Wildlife Outside My Window

[LindaRS]

One thing I miss about not being in the country is hearing the evening bird calls. Growing up in WV we heard Whipporwills which are a member of the night hawk family of birds (not actually hawks). In AL I loved to stay outside just after the sun was setting and listen to the chuck-will's-widow, another member of the night hawk family. I also heard the coyotes at night, and sometimes saw their tracks in the driveway in the morning. The other bird I miss is the Southern mockingbird. There are mockingbirds in OH, but they don't sing like those in the South do. But we do have a wren couple who have taken to the nesting box on the deck here. The male sings for our entertainment when the weather is warm. And I do believe that the crows hold their daily gabfest in our backyard! That much squawking makes even the peacock sound pretty good. 

[Wally]

One thing I miss about not being in the country is hearing the evening bird calls. Growing up in WV we heard Whipporwills which are a member of the night hawk family of birds (not actually hawks). In AL I loved to stay outside just after the sun was setting and listen to the chuck-will's-widow, another member of the night hawk family. I also heard the coyotes at night, and sometimes saw their tracks in the driveway in the morning. The other bird I miss is the Southern mockingbird. There are mockingbirds in OH, but they don't sing like those in the South do. But we do have a wren couple who have taken to the nesting box on the deck here. The male sings for our entertainment when the weather is warm. And I do believe that the crows hold their daily gabfest in our backyard! That much squawking makes even the peacock sound pretty good. 

I miss Mockingbirds, also.  Where I grew up in California they would sing all night long in the summer (I could hear them out my bedroom window).  We have them in Maine, but they're not common and are mostly in the southern 2 counties.  I've never seen one in my yard--wrong habitat.

[Richard Myers]

I did not know what a Mockingbird sounded like, but after a few years, it all of a sudden came to me that the bird that was singing all night long was singing the songs of many birds. How could one not know it was a Mockingbird?    They tend keep one awake on long hot nights. They just keep on "mocking".    There must be a spiritual lesson here?

[Mimi]

Must be ...

The birds I love for their looks are the huge magpies. They come in droves landing in my fields to eat worms after a rain. Their stark colors and massive bodies are just amazing to see. Have never heard them sing, though.

[Wally]

Must be ...

The birds I love for their looks are the huge magpies. They come in droves landing in my fields to eat worms after a rain. Their stark colors and massive bodies are just amazing to see. Have never heard them sing, though.

Ah, another bird I miss here in the formerly frozen wastelands of Maine.  They just don't like that part of the continent east of the Appalachians.  They don't really have a song, just a raucous cry.  As common as they are in the west, and try as I might, I was never able to get a good picture of one until we ran across a small group of young ones in eastern Alberta a couple of years ago.

[Lewis]

We have magpies that come close to our elevation. They have a reputation like the crows in their habits. I have seen them around 9500 feet. We also have many mountain blue birds and swallows. It has been interesting to see the bluebirds and swallows fighting over the bird house that we have at the edge of our property. The hummers have arrived this week, so I put out their feeder.

Yesterday, the children and I watched a yellow bellied marmot come down the hill through the woods while we were in the back yard. This morning this marmot was by our storage shed. I think that "she" is building her home or nest underneath our shed. I have never seen them come down to this elevation. They usually build their homes in the rocks above tree line from what I have seen when I use to run at those elevations. It is going to be interesting to see what happens with this.

[Wally]

We have magpies that come close to our elevation. They have a reputation like the crows in their habits. I have seen them around 9500 feet. We also have many mountain blue birds and swallows. It has been interesting to see the bluebirds and swallows fighting over the bird house that we have at the edge of our property. The hummers have arrived this week, so I put out their feeder.

Yesterday, the children and I watched a yellow bellied marmot come down the hill through the woods while we were in the back yard. This morning this marmot was by our storage shed. I think that "she" is building her home or nest underneath our shed. I have never seen them come down to this elevation. They usually build their homes in the rocks above tree line from what I have seen when I use to run at those elevations. It is going to be interesting to see what happens with this.

Just hope that the marmot does not find your flower or vegetable garden to be a gourmet feast, like her cousins here in the east do.  It can be a real battle.

[Mimi]

Must be ...

The birds I love for their looks are the huge magpies. They come in droves landing in my fields to eat worms after a rain. Their stark colors and massive bodies are just amazing to see. Have never heard them sing, though.

Ah, another bird I miss here in the formerly frozen wastelands of Maine.  They just don't like that part of the continent east of the Appalachians.  They don't really have a song, just a raucous cry.  As common as they are in the west, and try as I might, I was never able to get a good picture of one until we ran across a small group of young ones in eastern Alberta a couple of years ago.

The ones we have here are huge. Imagine a typical crow times two. They are enormous birds with incredible wingspans.

[Lewis]

We can't grow any vegetables up here in this elevation. Some flowers we can, but they are short lived.

Besides the magpies and crows, we also have ravens. Some of the ravens are as big as the hawks and eagles we have.

I have also seen a moth humming bird... as they call them. Strange looking things. I also saw for the first time a little bird related to the sparrow that looked like a mini bald eagle.

[Wally]

We can't grow any vegetables up here in this elevation. Some flowers we can, but they are short lived.

Besides the magpies and crows, we also have ravens. Some of the ravens are as big as the hawks and eagles we have.

I have also seen a moth humming bird... as they call them. Strange looking things. I also saw for the first time a little bird related to the sparrow that looked like a mini bald eagle.

Are you describing a Snow Bunting?

[LindaRS]

When I got up this morning and looked out the window I was surprised to see a flock of geese——wait a minute, those aren't geese in the back yard. It's a flock of wild turkeys! I grabbed the camera but the photos are blurry because the birds started making their way quickly back into the woods. But I loved seeing them. I've seen a few wild turkeys together but never the large flock I saw today. My guess is that there were 30 or more of the birds. What a way to wake up on Sabbath morning.

[Lewis]

When I got up this morning and looked out the window I was surprised to see a flock of geese——wait a minute, those aren't geese in the back yard. It's a flock of wild turkeys! I grabbed the camera but the photos are blurry because the birds started making their way quickly back into the woods. But I loved seeing them. I've seen a few wild turkeys together but never the large flock I saw today. My guess is that there were 30 or more of the birds. What a way to wake up on Sabbath morning.

Wow what a sight to see. The last time I saw a turkey was down at SAU. I use to see 20-30 of them walking in a line through the woods on the nature trail. It would take 15 minutes or so for the whole line of them to walk by while I would hide behind trees or stones to watch them.

[Richard Myers]

Unlike commercial turkeys, these guys fly. Have you seen them up in the trees? 

[Wally]

Unlike commercial turkeys, these guys fly. Have you seen them up in the trees? 

Their population has increased dramatically here in the last 10 years or so.  They do look out of place up in the trees.  And one had best hit the brakes hard if they come upon a flock near the road.  They have broken more than one windshield in these encounters--not my windshield, fortunately.

[Lewis]

Unlike commercial turkeys, these guys fly. Have you seen them up in the trees? 

When living down in the south, I never did see them in the trees. I did see owls however. But yes, they did fly. They would all take off when they notice me, and would fly off and glide down the hill side. I would see, I am assuming, this same group of turkeys once and sometimes twice a week in about the same area.

[LindaRS]

Seen outside my bedroom window this morning:

[Wally]

Please keep them in your yard.   I have a 10' electric fence to keep them out of my garden. 

[LindaRS]

Please keep them in your yard.   I have a 10' electric fence to keep them out of my garden. 

The only migrating these deer do is to cross the road. 

[Wally]

Living in the woods has it's advantages (lots of wildlife around) and disadvantages (orphaned porcupines scratching at the screened window every night  --we finally had to capture that one and relocate it).  Now it's a coyote that won't go away.  First it was up in the old hay shed several hundred yards up the old farm road in the woods (probably catching the mice we had relocated).  Now it's coming down around the house.  Yesterday I went to take the dog out to do its thing before leaving for work.  As I started out on the farm road I was surpised to see the coyote less than 50' away (this is 8:30 in the morning).  It trotted away, but wasn't as frightened as it should have been.  Odd behavior for a coyote.  A scrawny looking one at that.  I normally wouldn't be too concerned, but our "dog" would be about 2 bites for a hungry coyote.

[Mimi]

A coyote not afraid of humans is a dangerous thing - especially a skinny looking one. Better watch him as best you can, Wally.