Red Fox

Over the years this critter would show-up on a trail camera image sporadically and without any pattern.  Then beginning with the spring of 2024 this species of canine began showing-up on the trail cameras quite regularly and never stopped.  What is unusual is that coyotes persist and both species typically do not occupy the same neighborhood.  As a consequence of competition for similar prey choices it is generally one or the other.  Rarely both.

The Red Fox is distinguished from the Gray Fox by a white-tipped tail visible in the photos.  They’re omnivores that dine-upon everything from rabbits, small rodents, roadkill, fruits and nuts and insects.  They sometimes make their home in an enlarged woodchuck den, or hollow log, or underneath a log or rock in a stream bank or side of a hill.  A mated pair will defend their turf from other foxes but this canine frequently is prey to the resident coyotes and wolves.   

A female is called a vixen, a male is called a dog fox, newborns are called pups, kits or cubs.  And a group of foxes is called a skulk.  

Recent video and a photo.  If you want to checkout the library use the Label tool on the left margin of the homepage and click of Red Fox. 

 

 

That dang cat running around here is gonna get tangled-up with Mr. Red Fox one day and I won't be seeing the Ditch Tiger mooning for a photo-op anymore.

You Know Who

The holiday spirit would be somewhat diminished without this smiling sprite.... 

Big Night Stalker

Taking the dog out for a bedtime potty call nowadays it is not unusual to hear the call of the call of the Great Horned Owl as dusk has settled upon the forest.  The horned owl is common around here and it is quite distinctive.  

This is one of the earliest nesting birds in Wisconsin; laying eggs in January and February.  Mated pairs raise one brood per year in an abandoned cavity nest, nest of a great blue heron or crow or even in the stump end of a large broken branch.

The horned owl is particularly gutsy being one of the few birds of prey that will take porcupines and skunks.  Plucky bird the horned own is - which is why it is sometimes called the Flying Tiger.  This bird of prey sports silent wing feathers, hearing so acute it can hear a rodent beneath the snow, bright yellow eyes and cannot turn it's head completely around.  Notably, it has a wingspan of up to four feet.  Why is that important?  This trail is groomed with a Rhino Bush Hog and a five foot wide cutting deck - at ground level.  Tree branches make the actual trail a bit narrower.

Helping to identify the fleeting appearance and disappearance of this night stalker.

There and gone again; in a ghostly flash.....

 

December Night Sky

Before sunrise today.

View west, the constellation Gemini above, top center (two stars at top).  Jupiter (brightest object) upper left of center.

click on image for a closer look

 

Screen shop of star map from Night Sky app.

If you have clear and dark viewing conditions there is more meteor shower action on tap for tonight.

It was pretty cool (pardon the pun) last night. 

-3F around these parts... 

Ditch Tiger

I want to preface my remarks this morning with this:  I am an admirer of Felis catus - the genus name for the domestic cat and several other small wild cats. I've had a couple of cats in my life and they made for terrific companion animals.  Clever and playful they made a positive contribution to the household and our family.  

They were not allowed to roam freely outdoors.  They did wear a harness and clipped to an overhead line by a length of parachute cord they could enjoy sunshine, shade and the outdoors to the extent of the patio's edge.  

This was for their own safety, and knowing what I know about predator instincts.    

It is difficult to know if the cat in these photos is a feral (wild) cat, or someone's barn cat, or a house cat that is allowed to roam at will.  It is not wearing a collar and what is obvious is it has been showing-up frequently on the trail cameras lately.  And these photos are only a small sampling.

Colloquially known around here as ditch tigers, feral cats are not fuzzy, cuddly pets.  Hard-wired as predators they are stone-cold killers who kill solely for the thrill of killing.  Roaming cats are a scourge on ground-nesting game birds and song birds. 

Very few things get me grumpy as much as feral cats or cats that have been granted permission to roam freely at large.  Cats compete with other wild animals such as owls for small prey.  And cats introduce rabies, feline leukemia and other diseases to native wildlife.

In the United States alone, cats like the one pictured above, kill billions upon billions of wild mammals, reptiles and birds every year.  Many, many-fold more than are killed by human-related causes such as wind turbines, office building windows, power lines, farming practices, automobiles or habitat loss.  

Cats are predators of the highest order.  Not native to North America they are introduced and thus an invasive species.  And allowing them to roam is not doing native wildlife any favors.  If this cat is a member of a household or farmstead the risk to the cat itself is irresponsible.

I cannot think of a single socially redeeming element to tolerating feral and free-roaming domestic cats.  Can you?   

If you are interested in a balanced read there is this from National Geographic - To Save Birds, Should We Kill Off Cats?

Keep your cats indoors people.

Please. 

December Night Sky

One of the fun things about winter is the night sky.  Cold, clear, winter skies are characterized by a lack of humidity and if you live in the country there is very little urban light pollution creating some spectacular opportunities for star-gazing. 

December brings a couple of meteor showers to the night skies.  The more prolific of the two is the Geminids with as many as 120 shooting stars per hour.  Shooting stars are most often associated with the Earth’s passage thru the debris field of a comet.  Gritty debris burns-up as it collides with the upper atmosphere.  The Geminids are a bit of a mystery as they are related with an extinct comet which also happens to be a near-earth asteroid named 3200 Phaethon. 

The Geminid meteor shower began December 4th and will remain active thru the 17th.  It will be producing meteors at its peak rate this Saturday and Sunday evenings.

Each meteor shower is named after its radiant - that point where the shower appears to come from.  In this case the constellation Gemini - The Twins.  A meteor shower's radiant needs to be above the horizon before any of the action begins.  And you don't have to look directly at the radiant to see meteors;  shooting stars will be visible across the sky once the radiant has risen.  

Find the easily recognizable belt of the three bright stars in Orion the Hunter.  From Orion's belt (or from Rigel, his foot, through the belt), follow an imaginary line towards the northeast (up and left).  Continue this line until you see two bright stars close together - Castor and Pollux - the heads of Gemini.

For the duration there will be a chance of seeing Geminid meteors whenever the shower’s radiant point – found in the constellation Gemini – is above the horizon. The number of visible shooting stars increases as the radiant point rises to its highest point in the night sky.   

December also brings the Ursid meteor shower with 5  to 10 shooting stars per hour as the Earth passes thru the debris field of Comet 8P/Tuttle.   

Although not as spectacular as the Geminids peak action coincides with the solstice the evening of the 21^st and 22^nd.  This year the new moon occurs a few days before the Ursids peak, so you'll enjoy dark skies.  Best time is before dawn with 10-15 meteors per hour.  

Mark your calendar and if your catch a cold, clear, winter sky bundle-up and take some time to sit outside and observe the heavens. 

There’s no mosquitoes this time of year! 

Canadian Fly-In

From a brittle 6F morning yesterday there was this.

In a light dusting of snow on the porch I found these miniature dinosaur tracks.

These belong to one of Wisconsin's most common winter residents.  Yes, they come here for the winter weather.  

Junco hyemalis - the Dark-eyed Junco.  You're unlikely to confuse this species with another bird as this member of the sparrow family sports a slate-colored head and back, white belly and pink beak.  Quite distinctive.

These little birds migrate from Canada to winter here in the south.  We tend to observe larger numbers of males as I am told that females do not travel as far south as the boys do.   

They'll readily come to a feeder and it is not unusual to see a flock of them scratching-about on the ground.

They're commonly called Snowbirds.

Tough little bird the Junco is.....