This last week was particularly good for wildlife spotting in the nature preserve that is our not very large yard. For the first part of the week, we had a family of newly hatched quail chicks and their parents living in our front yard. Based on watching her herd the brood, Mama Quail was using the landscaping as a play pen to keep her youngsters from wandering too far.
We also had a baby bunny show up. He was very visible for several days, and somehow acquired the name Frippery Wigglenose Scampbutt. The picture doesn’t really provide scale, but I could have easily held him on one hand.
It’s unclear whether Frippery and PF—our more or less resident cottontail—are related. Certainly, PF did not seem unduly enchanted when Frippery came bounding up, wanting to play. Of course, since Frippery’s idea of a fun game is to run at someone with intent to pounce (something we saw him do to sparrows, doves, and even sharp-beaked Skinny the Thrasher), PF can’t exactly be blamed.
Skinny has continued to show up pretty much daily with a younger thrasher in tow. Last Sunday, I moved the fence around our front flowerbed so I could transplant some of the volunteer tomato plants that had come up. (Volunteer plants are a consequence of using grey water on some of our beds.) I left for a minute to carry some of the transplants around back. When I returned, Skinny and Skinny Junior were actively investigating the changed landscape.
Maybe because they don’t have wings, the rabbits are less delighted by alterations to their surroundings. When Jim left a coiled hose under the ash tree near the bird block, PF would not go near, not even after one of the white-winged doves had investigated the coils closely, up to and including stepping right into the middle of the largest coil.
PF was not to be fooled. That was a boa constrictor, for sure! Of course, if we’d put something interesting to eat on the inside of the coils, he probably would have let appetite overcome his apprehension. I mean, we’re now pretty sure he’s the one who squeezed into our backyard to have a go at the bean plants. This would have involved encounters with all sorts of new and potentially dangerous items.
Our annual tribe of toads is now making regular visits to the teeny-tiny pond in our backyard. Most nights, we fall asleep to the sound of their song. The lizards are very active and, based on the clipped tails I’ve seen, several have had encounters of the not quite deadly kind.
Even if we do need to occasionally replant something, it’s worth it for the fun we have watching our co-residents… I guess this just means we’re part of the circle of lunch.
June 19, 2019 at 4:03 pm |
I do miss the critters that would come to our garden. Mostly birds and bugs since it was in the middle of an urban/sub-urban area. Now the only critters I see are rats and opossums and they aren’t cute.
June 20, 2019 at 7:27 am |
Can you manage a small bird feeder? Or a small water source? Meantime, I’ll share mine.
June 20, 2019 at 10:25 am
I’ll have to keep sharing yours for now. We have room for a garden but King Ben took over the yard to dig a hole and sweep, sweep, sweep the dirt into the air. Both actions are stress relievers for him so we let him have at it. Hopefully as he matures and learns more ways to self regulate, we’ll get our yard back and can put a garden in again.
Any water would become mud and I’m afraid a bird feeder would be attractive to the neighborhood cats. Or Ben would think it’s a piñata😄
June 20, 2019 at 11:35 am
I shall keep sharing, and blessing on you for being so good to King Ben.
June 23, 2019 at 6:14 pm |
Love Frippery Wigglenose Scamperbutt’s name!
June 24, 2019 at 1:50 pm |
Thank you, ma’am!