Backyard wildlife
We alway accuse Lexi of barking at nothing but a download from the backyard trail cam shows we do have some visitors!
Nature
Snake surprise
A four foot black rat snake gave me quite a surprise the other day when I reached for a saw above my workbench. Snakes in our garage are not that unusual as they come after mice who see shelter and look for food in dark spaces. I only noticed this one when he struck my …
Bear cub visit
Lexi barks incessantly at any intruder – usually is just a dove or turkey. Last night it had four legs!
Why did the rufffed grouse cross the road?
She just wanted to get her chicks safely across East Reach! Three walked and one over achiever flew across.
Backyard Tanager
This male scarlet tanager was busy yesterday looking for snacks. His mate was nearby but much harder to spot with her mottled yellowish coloring. The Dogstar BirdnetPi detector did not pick up his song but its very distinctive. Check out BirdWeather if you want to see what species have been reported by Dogstar Observatory or …
Turkey love
Its that time of year! This guy was trying out some new lines on the ladies but they were ignoring him. Must be his cologne!
Sand Hill Cranes
We visited my sister in Chattanooga last week and caught the annual Tennessee Sand Hill Crane Festival. Huge birds. The flock along the river was busy fishing and defending territories. They mate for life and interestingly, are not an endangered species – hunting in season is permitted. More info here.
Infrared eyes
The guy showed up on one of our security cameras last week. Night vision security cameras have infrared LEDs that illuminate scenes at night. The deer’s eyes reflect the light back to the camera making them seem to glow in the dark.
Rocky steals bird feeder!
When we came back from out of town on Sunday we noticed a missing humming bird feeder on the deck. It had obviously fallen to the ground and as I picked up the broken plastic pieces I was wondering if it had been dislodged by a strong wind. I thought I would look at the …
Buck in the backyard
This young fellow was munching on a Rhododendron bush when Lexi saw him and went crazy. He just stared at her for a while and then pranced off.