Red Fox Encounter
I recently encountered an old friend in the form of a Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) at a known site that has a den and an annual family. I was unexpectedly thrust into the role of being the stalker instead of the sly fox. Even that is not a very accurate description as I stopped moving when I spotted it, knowing that it would detect me if I continued my progress. It was busy hunting, likely for small mammals, right along the earth in these grasslands. It took a couple of snaps of my shutter for it to turn around, see me, and then flee, all recorded below. This is what most mammalian predators,...
Read MoreWhite-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys)
If you’re out and about enjoying fall foliage, heading to a farm or a pumpkin field, or spending time in other agricultural, grassy, weedy areas you may be about to see many White-crowned Sparrows like this autumn one. Here in Western New York we can find them in the dozens during the peak of migration. I remember – thanks to my eBird checklist – that I saw 41 of them at the Jamestown Airport this past May. I know there were likely many more present there. See if you can beat that total on a fall birding day!
Read MoreApex predator or small meal?
When looking at a “teenage” Timber Rattlesnake from above like this it seems rather insignificant and certainly unimposing. We know it is a venomous snake, which may add a bit of intimidation, but we should also know it is shy, passive and uninterested in harming a human unless it is being directly threatened. At this time of year there are much smaller Timber Rattlesnakes – some less than a foot long – in the form of neonates. These newly-born young have fangs and venom but a significant percentage will perish in their first year from a variety of threats. Twan...
Read MoreTimber Rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus) leaving den
For a final Timber Rattlesnake post here’s the third “teenage” individual that we saw, coming upon this one leaving its den. It decided to go back home once it found ferocious humans. I find it endlessly engrossing that some of the wisest early Americans used the rattlesnake as a unique symbol for the burgeoning nation – “a strong picture of the temper and conduct of America” as Benjamin Franklin said. In his infamous “Join, or Die” political cartoon, created during the French and Indian War, Franklin depicted a rattlesnake in eight pieces...
Read MoreRoger Tory Peterson in 1935
Here’s a #TransformationTuesday of Dr. Peterson with the young Roger photographed having what looks to be a wonderful time in 1935. I hope everyone enjoyed Labor Day weekend outdoors that much.
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