The
woods, at least in front of my camera traps, seemed quieter during the first
three months of 2015 than they have been in years. Why? Low temperatures, fairly deep
snow, something else not so apparent to a mere human? Perhaps wildlife populations
have been rather low or they were in different areas due to food supplies of
some disturbance?
In any
case, the camera traps did get some interesting photographs of wildlife. A
young buck with an antler apparently broken during the rut –
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Another
young buck still carrying his antlers on March 2nd -
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Two gray
fox above the yard –
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The
black bear that was up and about on January 11 –
.jpg)
And the
large male bear that visited the yard and prompted us to bring the bird feeders
in each night. The scars on his face are undoubtedly the result of
mating-season battles –
.jpg)
And the
Red fox –
.jpg)
Coyote –
.jpg)
.jpg)
Perhaps, in retrospect, things weren’t so quiet
after all.
I am so impressed! Having a bear in the backyard...awesome! Did they wake up or was it just at the beginning of their hibernation? Hope that you will catch many more animals with your camera.
ReplyDeleteThat's remarkable! All those different animals right in the back yard! Wow!
ReplyDeleteThose are great shots! We have one of those "trail cams" but so far have gotten shots of my husband and I - we seem to be the extent of our "wildlife capture"!
ReplyDeleteWon't you come link up at http://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2015/04/at-keyboard.html?
I would like to get a critter cam, but we don't get many animals around our cabin, or at least I don't think so. But who knows what happens while we sleep. - Margy
ReplyDeleteThanks to all for your comments. We've been very fortunate to have lived on the edge of an extensive wooded area for over 40 years. We had some idea of the wildlife that regularly visited us since we'd occasionally see individuals. But when I began setting out camera traps on the hill above the house the actual numbers and frequency of those visits and the species involved became much clearer.
ReplyDeleteOnce I began setting multiple camera traps in the same general area it quickly became apparent how much a single camera would miss. Now I run eight to ten camera traps, several above the house and the rest elsewhere.
The bears in this area have various hibernation strategies; large males like the scarred-up one often don't enter dens but may be active all winter -- taking shelter beneath a fallen tree top or in thick brushy areas during the worst winter weather.
What fanatastic selection ofcritters visit your garden at night. Wouldn't do to go sleep walking outside!!
ReplyDeleteWow, awesome captures from your wildlife camera.. The bear is really cool! And I love the buck! Great photos! Thank you for linking up and sharing your post.. Have a happy weekend!
ReplyDeleteReally great captures! That bear does look battle-scarred.
ReplyDeleteWonderful set! I love those foxes.
ReplyDelete~
those are some nasty scars on the bear. up and about in January, darn.
ReplyDeletevery cool to see the fisher and all.