Fauna and other natural things

[apl68]

The 13-year cicada emergence is upon us!  The 17-year cicadas mostly live farther north, so we don't face the rare double-emergence that has been in the media so much. 

The constant drone keeps vaguely reminding me of science fiction I saw on TV growing up.  Somebody must have used recordings of cicadas as a stock otherworldly sound effect.

[bio-nonymous]

The dogs alerted me to a beautiful young Coyote on the other side of my back fence at the edge of the woods last evening. I suspect it was a recently evicted young-in, we had another sighting around this time last year. He hung around for a bit until the barking sent him scampering back into the deep woods. Now if they would only finish the construction in our neighborhood so the deer would come back...

[apl68]

I heard coyotes a good deal growing up, but never saw any.  They apparently don't get close enough into town here to hear them.  We do have them in the region.  A couple of years ago a young woman in our church went deer hunting and said that all she saw was a coyote.  Somebody told her "You should have shot him--I hear they make great tacos!"  I really don't think that coyote tacos will ever catch on.

[bio-nonymous]

I heard coyotes a good deal growing up, but never saw any.  They apparently don't get close enough into town here to hear them.  We do have them in the region.  A couple of years ago a young woman in our church went deer hunting and said that all she saw was a coyote.  Somebody told her "You should have shot him--I hear they make great tacos!"  I really don't think that coyote tacos will ever catch on.

Ick! That seems to me to be like eating dogs--not my style. I hope they were just kidding around?

[apl68]

I heard coyotes a good deal growing up, but never saw any.  They apparently don't get close enough into town here to hear them.  We do have them in the region.  A couple of years ago a young woman in our church went deer hunting and said that all she saw was a coyote.  Somebody told her "You should have shot him--I hear they make great tacos!"  I really don't think that coyote tacos will ever catch on.

Ick! That seems to me to be like eating dogs--not my style. I hope they were just kidding around?

Definitely kidding. 

Although, now that I think about it, I've never been to a coyote function on Taco Tuesday.  For all I know, maybe they do know how to make great tacos.

[hmaria1609]

There's been a few bear sightings in the DC area lately:
https://wtop.com/animals-pets/2024/05/watch-black-bear-politely-wanders-through-arlington-co-neighborhood/
Scroll past ad breaks to read full article. Posted online 5/13/24

[Langue_doc]

Coyotes and turkeys have been spotted in Manhattan. I think they come down from the Bronx, as I don't recall any instances of their sightings in the boroughs of Brooklyn or Queens. I've seen turkeys in Manhattan and Staten Island. We went looking for one on a bird walk in Brooklyn, along a path where he'd been sighted for at least a couple of weeks, but didn't see him that day.

[apl68]

Somehow I picked up an inchworm on my clothing.  I showed it to some staff members.  Then I relocated it to the edge of the woods outside.  Hopefully it will find that a more congenial environment. 

I've heard that finding an inchworm crawling on you is a sign that you'll soon get new clothes, since the inchworm has been measuring you.

[apl68]

Yesterday I saw a turtle beside the trail at the city park.  This morning I saw one that looked just like it a mile or so farther along the trail.  I suppose it was probably a different turtle.  If it was the same one, it must have done the turtle equivalent of a marathon yesterday.

[apl68]

And I saw another one this morning, in still another part of the park.  Either there's a family of very similar-looking turtles living in the park (likely), or that one really gets around for a turtle.

[apl68]

While visiting family last week, I took a walk near their home and spotted wild hogs crossing the logging road ahead of me.  There were at least two adults, and a little one in between them.  The hogs have become all too common in the region in recent years.  Granted this is Arkansas...but they're getting out of hand.

On the same walk I spotted a canine of some kind dashing across the road.  It might have been a wandering dog, but they usually don't dash from one patch of brush into another like that.  I wonder whether it may have been a fox or coyote.

This morning I spotted a squirrel clinging to a tree trunk, looking intently down at the ground.  They don't usually focus on anything for that long.  Then I saw another squirrel come up from the ground to join the first one.  Hope I wasn't interrupting anything....

[paultuttle]

While we were driving through the local Revolutionary War park a few days ago, a deer family--a doe and two fawns--ran across the road in front of us.

A hawk glided across the park very near me on yesterday's morning walk. She was about 5-6 inches above the newly mowed grass.

The chipmunk that lives in the storm drains next to our house is still alive and doing quite well. We watched it tease a local cat yesterday and then escape down the drain with a flick of its tail.

[apl68]

The chipmunk that lives in the storm drains next to our house is still alive and doing quite well. We watched it tease a local cat yesterday and then escape down the drain with a flick of its tail.

Chipmunks must be frustratingly hard to catch.  They move so fast, they make even squirrels look like clumsy oafs. 

[Langue_doc]

A baby skunk, no larger than a squirrel, decided that cars didn't pose a danger, hence stayed on the road (inside a nature area) until I stopped and rolled down the window to take a good look at him. I thought that this was strange behavior for a squirrel, so it wasn't until the skunk started scampering off that I realized that this was no squirrel.

[bio-nonymous]

A falcon landed on my back fence--it was pretty awesome. It turned its head around 180 degrees in both directions looking around, then chilled for awhile before flying off into the woods. I hope it wasn't looking for the Cardinal pair that I feed...