Finally - The Orioles

While out working last weekend I found a Baltimore oriole (Icterus galuba) nest on the ground alongside the creek.

It's a sock-like nest constructed of spider webs and other woven material.

And it was in reasonably good condition having weathered the seasons since it was last used. 

So I hung it on the wall.  One more nest to add to the growing collection.

In any event I was wondering if the orioles were ever going to show-up.  Both a nectar and grape jelly feeder have been out for a month following a rumor that the orioles and humming birds had returned.

Weeks have past with no sign of either species.

Yesterday a flash of color caught my eye.

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They're back.  Last to arrive and first to depart.

Note to self - Don't listen to the rumors... 

Turkey Wing

It is entirely possible that the turkey wing is not an attractant that anybody wants to eat.

It is an object of curiosity that it would appear the deer want to avoid.

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They're curious - but they're giving it a wide detour.

Another Experiment

In keeping with my bad habit of scattering dead animal parts all over the landscape Girlfriend and I decided to take the wing from a dead turkey and put it in front of one of the trail cameras.

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There was just enough residual flesh on the the joint that there was a possibility someone might be attracted to it.

We'll see.

Giant Swamp Gas Eruption

Researching the history of our abode at the County Courthouse I have learned from the official Government Land Office records that it is suggested that we have likely built our house on a swamp.

As evidence of this I present to you a landscape panorama of pictures taken last evening at sunset.  My hunting and fishing buddies will recognize these shots as taken from the back porch facing NW and panning to the right to true N to NE.

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Very spooky....

No More Pork Bones

When I checked on Friday the pork bones were gone!

Girlfriend gave the location a good sniff - but there was not a molecule of pig to be found.

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You're probably thinking - Why didn't the camera capture whoever it was that carried them off?

And the answer to that is the delay function on the device. 

When the motion detector triggers the camera it is presently programed to take three pictures and then go into sleep mode for another five minutes.  As near as I can figure something triggered the camera and then some critter made-off with the bones when it was sleeping.

On the other hand - there are aliens....

Pork Bones

About those pork bones.

The deer are certainly interested - stopping by to give them a sniff.  But they're not eating them.

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So far nobody's eating them.

More Trail Camera Experimentation

As I pointed out yesterday - one of the ways to capture wildlife on your trail camera is to position it where the critters travel.

Another way is to use something to attract the critters.  Some sort of attractant.  A scent perhaps.  Or something to eat.  Or maybe something that just might be an object of curiosity.

Bait.

Last weekend Lawyer and I had made some plump little breakfast sausages and I ended up with a double handful of pork bones when we had completed the task.  Rather than just put them in the garbage I thought I'd put them in front of a trail camera.  Someone was bound to come along and eat them don't you think?

You can see them here:

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Bottom/middle of the photograph just above the end of the date.