Fauna and other natural things

[apl68]

My town recently passed a "do not feed the (urban) deer" ordinance. I live in a wooded section of town with a fairly large deer herd. A few years ago, I paid for extensive landscaping of my front and side yards. That evening, the deer herd stopped by to sample the smorgasbord of plants I had conveniently put out for their perusal. I wonder if that would be considered "feeding the deer" under our new city ordinance?

I know that the (rural) deer near my parents' house are always eating Mom's flowers.  She comes out in the morning to water them and finds that they've been nibbling on them.  They only seem to like certain ones.

[apl68]

This morning I was sorting out the "free table" outside the library when a lizard suddenly dropped from the overhead canopy onto the table right in front of me.  Kind of startling.  Judging from the way it promptly ran off, the fall didn't hurt it.  I now feel fine about the lizard I accidentally dropped while relocating it a couple of days ago.

These are a different species from the green anole lizards ("chameleons") we've been seeing around the building for years.  I'd hate to think that the new lizards have run them off.  I was quite fond of the little green folks.

It must be a banner year for lizards locally.  A staff member says that her flower pots at home have turned into a kind of lizard sanctuary.  They gather on the plants at night and catch the insects drawn by the house's lights.  Nature's own bug-zappers!

[AmLitHist]

I drove to our daughter's house in the country around 2:00 this afternoon--it was HOT (102 air temp, probably 115 or so heat index).  As I turned off the main road onto the gravel road, a young doe crossed from the bean field on my right into the corn field on the north. I was surprised to see anything moving in that heat, much less a deer. They usually wait for the cool of the evening.

[apl68]

On my desk right now:


Bowl of gardenias
One good thing that has come from
These blazing hot days

[apl68]

Seen on my morning walk:


A squirrel on a fence
Drops behind it with a thump
Not very graceful

[apl68]

This morning a staff member spotted a small snake inside the building.  Fortunately no patrons had yet arrived.  I had to be the one to escort it outside.  I used a long stick to rake it into a small box, and released it into the woods on the edge of the property.  Hope I didn't hurt it too badly during the relocation.  If it shows up again, I'll be forced to employ a more...permanent fix to the problem.

[fleabite]

Seen on my morning walk:


A squirrel on a fence
Drops behind it with a thump
Not very graceful

I like this image. The local squirrels can get very rotund as they prepare for the winter.

[apl68]

A shower of nuts
Dropped suddenly by that tree
Glad it just missed me

[Morden]

A bobcat and two mostly-grown kittens napped in our yard the other day. They are so beautiful.

[Langue_doc]

I went looking for the heron in one of it's usual haunts, and then saw what looked to be a rather plump heron in an unusual pose. Trained my binoculars on that spot--some low lying dead branches of a bush hanging over the water--to see a fat raccoon clutching the branch, presumably looking for fish, frogs, or other aquatic food. The raccoon didn't seem distressed in the least despite what looked like him hanging on the the branch for dear life.

[Langue_doc]

Went birding this morning--nice walk, very few birds. While looking for waterfowl in one of the ponds, I saw what I first thought was a beaver, but turned out to be a rather large muskrat. Both animals are common in this preserve, hence the initial confusion.

ETA: Just looked out the window to see a large deer in the front yard. This is deer country and also hunting season.

[Langue_doc]

We've all heard about the proverbial bull in a china shop, but here is a bull on the railroad tracks.

Bull on tracks delays NJ Transit service between NYC and Newark

[ab_grp]

We've all heard about the proverbial bull in a china shop, but here is a bull on the railroad tracks.

Bull on tracks delays NJ Transit service between NYC and Newark

My friend got held up by that bull! Not such an express train, unfortunately, but it was an interesting experience that you don't have every day. 

[Langue_doc]

ab_grp, that's quite a coincidence. I vaguely recall reading that the bull was trying to escape from a slaughterhouse. Ricardo is now in an animal sanctuary.

[Langue_doc]

Watch the mouse tidy up a workbench every night.