Chattering red squirrels also known as pine squirrels
When walking through the woods the silence is often pierced by the rapid chatter of a red squirrel as I intrude upon its territory. But…
Category: Mammals
Muskrats, beavers similar but not related
Muskrats and beavers are similar in many ways which is surprising since they aren’t even close relatives. Muskrats are more closely related to voles and…
Feast or famine for animals in the winter
Last weekend, the chickadees and nuthatches finally found the two bird feeders I filled several weeks ago. For birds, finding a full feeder is like…
Sign Posts of the Forest
Wandering through the woods, I found a tree with claw marks scratched in the bark at eye-level and black hair stuck to once oozing sap.…
Camouflage a means of survival
I catch a slight movement out of the corner of my eye and stop to scan the brushy slope. After a few seconds I spy…
What’s that protruding from your head?
Often I catch myself using the terms antler and horn interchangeably, such as “I’m going horn hunting”, even though I know they are different. One…
Howling at the moon reveals coyote’s presence
As the light fades over the alfalfa field, the nighttime serenade begins with a long call, then a tremolo of howling. With all the howling…
White-tailed deer a far ranging species
Grazing in fields in early morning, seeking shelter in the woods during mid-day, browsing in city parks in the evening and crossing highways at night,…
How to Identify a Grizzly Bear versus Black Bear
After spotting a bear in the basin below Goat Mountain on the State Line, I pulled out my binoculars to take a closer look. Even…
The Incredible World of Animal Flight
To soar like an eagle, hover like a hummingbird or dart through the trees like a chickadee would be incredible. In the past one hundred…
What’s behind an antler’s shape?
When stumbling upon a shed antler, figuring out who left it behind is usually easy. Moose have large, palmate antlers with numerous tines. White-tailed deer…
Mountain goats: Clinging to existence in the harshest places
The narrow ledges protruding from the sheer cliff caught enough snow to create a patchwork of white snow and dark rock that looked void of…
Muskrats, beavers similar but not related
Muskrats and beavers are similar in many ways which is surprising since they aren’t even close relatives. Muskrats are more closely related to voles and…
Feast or famine for animals in the winter
Last weekend, the chickadees and nuthatches finally found the two bird feeders I filled several weeks ago. For birds, finding a full feeder is like…
Sign Posts of the Forest
Wandering through the woods, I found a tree with claw marks scratched in the bark at eye-level and black hair stuck to once oozing sap.…
Camouflage a means of survival
I catch a slight movement out of the corner of my eye and stop to scan the brushy slope. After a few seconds I spy…
What’s that protruding from your head?
Often I catch myself using the terms antler and horn interchangeably, such as “I’m going horn hunting”, even though I know they are different. One…
Howling at the moon reveals coyote’s presence
As the light fades over the alfalfa field, the nighttime serenade begins with a long call, then a tremolo of howling. With all the howling…
White-tailed deer a far ranging species
Grazing in fields in early morning, seeking shelter in the woods during mid-day, browsing in city parks in the evening and crossing highways at night,…
How to Identify a Grizzly Bear versus Black Bear
After spotting a bear in the basin below Goat Mountain on the State Line, I pulled out my binoculars to take a closer look. Even…
The Incredible World of Animal Flight
To soar like an eagle, hover like a hummingbird or dart through the trees like a chickadee would be incredible. In the past one hundred…
What’s behind an antler’s shape?
When stumbling upon a shed antler, figuring out who left it behind is usually easy. Moose have large, palmate antlers with numerous tines. White-tailed deer…
Mountain goats: Clinging to existence in the harshest places
The narrow ledges protruding from the sheer cliff caught enough snow to create a patchwork of white snow and dark rock that looked void of…