Foxes and marmots and geese, oh my!

[altivo]

Neighbor across the road reported a fox sighting to us and asked if we had seen the "neighborhood fox" yet this year. Had to admit we haven't actually had a visual confirmation, but I found two dead meadow voles stashed outside the burrow under the far corner of the arena this morning, we've seen footprints in the snow, and heard fox sounds outside after dark. Checked our regional wildlife guide and it says this is about the right time for kits to be born, which would fit with last year's observations of the young female that we ultimately had to cut loose from where she got entangled in our fence. That happened in mid-June, which is about right. Evidently at least one of the foxes is still here, so we'll redouble our observation attempts.

Gary saw a very large, perhaps pregnant, woodchuck out at the head of the creek in the pasture, too. There's a burrow there that has been used by foxes in the past but they are noted for using dens originally dug out by woodchucks here. I don't mind woodchucks, and the babies are cute. But they may end up as fox dinners. I can't dispute the fox over that, because if they don't get eaten, they will in turn be eating my vegetable garden as soon as things start coming up.

At the library we may have a pair of nesting Canada geese. They've been hanging around one slightly raised area near the building, at the edge of a large wildflower planting. Our expert birdwatcher on staff is retiring this week, but plans to still help out with the flower beds so she'll probably scope out the possible nest and let us know what's up with that.

Comments

[brunbera.livejournal.com]

Ah, signs of spring. We're supposed to have more snow on Friday...

...I feel like screaming. We've had enough.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

It's been raining here. A lot.

[hgryphon.livejournal.com]

Nighttime fox noises, huh? :)

[duskwuff.livejournal.com]

No, "unfunfunf!" is not what he means by "nighttime fox noises". Sheesh.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Yeah. Barking, not that.

[mortonfox.livejournal.com]

I live near a bunch of small wooded areas, so I've seen foxes, groundhogs, skunks, raccoons, and deer in the backyard. Groundhogs are fairly common here on the well-manicured lawns of suburbia. The passing traffic tends to keep predators away but doesn't seem to bother the groundhogs too much.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Yes, the marmots seem rather unphased by traffic and human activity, though they will stand and watch it for long periods of time. Dogs bother them, but not so much people or vehicles. They seem road-wise too. I see new raccoon kills every day between home and work, but almost never a woodchuck.

[cabcat.livejournal.com]

You'd think the Raccoons would've got the idea by now, they aren't stupid creatures after all.

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it seems to be an odd blind spot in the raccoon brain. By now the pressure should be making them adjust, but I dont' see much evidence.

Did see a dead woodchuck on Monday. The poor guy was lying in the grass beside the road frozen in exactly the posture they have when they sit up to peer curiously at something. He looked like a statue or a stuffed specimen. However, that's the first woodchuck roadkill I've ever seen, compared with literally hundreds, probably thousands of raccoons.

[cabcat.livejournal.com]

Considering how many species have adapted to urban living, it is odd that traffic still seems to elude them as far as adaptation goes :)

Although there was a Cat in England which would get on a bus and ride it several stops and get off at a Fish and chip shop :)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=447527&in_page_id=1770&in_page_id=1770&expand=true

[altivo.livejournal.com]

And we had that famous coyote here who walked into a Quizno's sandwich shop and sat down in the cooler.

I understand in England that foxes are adapting to urban settings and living there like natives. Here it seems to be the coyotes who are doing so. I saw another news story about coyotes riding the subway somewhere in the US.

[hrrunka]

Hmmm... Nesting Canada geese can be a bit aggressive. Good luck!

[altivo.livejournal.com]

It's at the corner of the building farthest from the entrance, but readily viewable through a glass window wall. Just about ideal, actually, except that we are located in the middle of a city park. If they really are nesting, we may need signs outside to warn kids and adults away from the nest, but inside we can put up a display encouraging them to watch for the goslings and even arrange chairs for easy viewing by the older folks.

[hrrunka]

Yep, a glass wall between geese and visitors shoud be enough. :)

[keeganfox.livejournal.com]

Bwahahahahaha! The inevitable fox takeover is proceeding as planned! Soon the world will be ours! Ours! Mwahahahaha!

Oh, wait... never mind that... Just disregard entirely...

¬.¬

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Bwahaha yourself.

*starts collecting vixen musk and piss to bait live traps with...*

[cabcat.livejournal.com]

You're too late the felines already control it :D

[saythename.livejournal.com]

Careful with those marmots.

The reputable scientific sources say Marmots, not rats, brought
the Black Death to Europe through Russia.

@.@

[altivo.livejournal.com]

Don't worry, we won't be getting exposed to fleas if we can help it. I believe Yersinia pestis is still wiped out pretty quickly by modern antibiotics, though.