Out Back II

Checked the camera traps behind the house a couple of days ago. There were photographs of the white-tailed deer that have been hanging around the house feeding on apples fallen from the apple tree and plants in the garden.

The fawns are accompanying the does now; earlier the fawns were hidden in thicker cover. The young ones have been nibbling on plants that the adults normally won’t eat –

And a young buck has been hanging around with them –

Our neighbor the gray fox has been coming by almost every night –

As has the raccoon that inspects the compost pile for edibles –

The most interesting photo was of the black bear that also passed by –

It’s not unusual to get a photograph of a bear out back once or twice in spring or fall, but this was the first time the camera traps have photographed a black bear here in the summer. A few moments later another camera trap took a photo of the bear's back as it was heading towards the neighbors’ place. We’ve not told them of any visits by a bear; they’re afraid of bears and it would only frighten them more if they knew that bears occasionally visited in the night.