Wildlife departments in Washington and Oklahoma have led the way as government officials find a new voice on social media.
“If you encounter a cougar, never approach or offer it food. You are not a Disney princess.”
“Most grandma/reindeer collisions are entirely preventable. Please give wildlife plenty of space.”
“Please be responsible with hot takes this Thanksgiving if your turkey is as dry as our forests.”
These are just a few salient and amusing pieces of advice published over the holidays by officials at the Washington state department of natural resources (DNR).
And, happily, it’s not alone. The Oklahoma department of wildlife and conservation has also made a national name for itself with its informative tweets wrapped in memes. A scroll through the department’s Twitter feed highlights wildlife facts (“Virginia opossums can gain as much as 30% of their body weight each winter but they don’t get targeted ads for gyms”) and pop culture participation (reminding the 2,000 people ahead of them in the online queue for Taylor Swift tickets that it’s nice outside today and they might consider a hike).
There’s also banter with other state nature agencies; departments in Georgia, Oregon, Iowa and elsewhere have Twitter feeds upping the entertainment factor with positive results.
State agencies are not, let's face it, well known for being funny in their messaging. So, what's going on? Are funny people instinctively drawn to careers at state wildlife departments?
Rachel Terlep, senior social media manager for the Washington DNR, says a generational shift may have something to do with it. Sarah Southerland, communication and education specialist at the Oklahoma wildlife department, says the humor is simply a result of government employees getting free rein to be themselves. It seems that they are both correct, but the clinching factor is that the 'higher ups' are happy with the results.
In Oklahoma, that freedom expanded last year after a January tweet about a mountain lion went viral. The post showed a mountain lion rolling in the snow, with a little guidance for humans: “YOU are cold. They have fur. Do not let inside.” The tweet has earned more than 14,000 retweets and 123,000 likes. “That gave us the green light from the higher-ups that like, hey, you know, this, this works better. Because, you know, 40m impressions is better than like 200 impressions that we had,” Southerland said. Now, she has “a volunteer group of co-workers in full-time other roles – TV show producers, magazine writers, accountants and property managers - who volunteer their time to just goof off and give me ideas.”
After all, who doesn't like a bit of humor in the messages they receive?