This is going to be a very random post, so please bear with me! 😊 Yes, I'm still here! We missed the technician when he came out to change over the phone yesterday, so that is now rescheduled for Friday and we still have internet in the meantime. That gives me a chance to upload more pictures and research a few more things, so I'm grateful! We just had a week or so of relatively mild weather but now it seems that winter is back. It is in the single digits right now and I keep interrupting my typing to blow on my hands because it's not all that warm in the house either! We had an interesting visitor this morning. This little fox was scampering around in the field. I think he must have been chasing mice under the snow, but it almost looked like he was just playing. He certainly was frisky! I think I have only gone to the woods without the camera twice this year, both times because I had just been out a day or two before and didn't think there would be anything new to photograph. The first time, a coyote ran right out in front me - a perfect photo opportunity! But I guess I didn't learn my lesson because I went out without it again a few weeks ago. No animals this time, but there was a very interesting "story" written in the fresh snow. I noticed some large tracks going across a little clearing and went to investigate. They turned out to be lynx tracks, and the smaller tracks near them were most likely those of a snowshoe hare - the lynx's favorite food! Following the tracks backwards, it was interesting to see that the lynx's tracks came from deeper in the woods while the snowshoe hare had come from the field. They apparently met in the middle and the chase was on! I would have liked to follow and see how it ended, but it was getting dark. That night it snowed again and then we had a couple of windy days, so the tracks were mostly filled in, but you can still see traces of the lynx's trail in this picture from a few days later. One of my hopes for this winter is to see a lynx again. We had two of them visit our property about 5 years ago and what a thrill it was! I had just gone out to the field where I run with my dogs. My two oldest goldies were just puppies (although big puppies!) at the time. Thankfully I didn't have them with me at the moment! I kept hearing a very strange "meow" coming from behind me, turned to look and couldn't believe my eyes as two lynx nonchalantly crossed the road and came right towards me! Once again, I had no camera with me as this time I was only out to get some exercise, but I ran back to the house to get it. When I returned, the lynx had found the open gate and walked right into the fenced area! I left it open but it took them a while to find their way out so I was able to get the pictures, although now that I look at them I wish I had gotten closer and that the fence wasn't in the background! Honestly I was so excited I wasn't thinking too clearly! 😁 The lynx didn't really show much concern about my presence which surprised me, but I've talked to others since who have had similar experiences, so apparently it wasn't that unusual. I'm really hoping to see them again and get some better pictures of them! The long evenings are made pleasant by reading and studying everything I can possibly lay hands on about plants. I'm living in a state of breathless anticipation right now because I recently ordered Gray's School and Field Botany and Gray's Manual of Botany, both original copies. I am terribly ignorant of even the most basic botanical terms (someone recently commented on the variegated "cotyledons" of my baby morning glories and I didn't even know what that meant!). Only a year ago I wouldn't have cared, but now I'm just scratching the surface of all there is to learn about plants and realizing what complex and wonderful creations they are. Everything I learn only increases my love and reverence for the Creator! So that's my winter day's ramble...hope you got something at least out of it. 😊 Stay warm and enjoy the beauty and joy the season has to offer...before we know it, the days will be getting longer!
8 Comments
Exciting wildlife sightings around your place! We have bobcat, but a lynx would be amazing to see.
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I believe we are right on the southern boundaries of the lynx's range here. Never seen a bobcat although in other places we've lived the neighbors claimed to have seen them. For some reason I've always thought of bobcats as more aggressive than lynx but I don't know why!
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JanetLee
12/5/2018 09:24:25 pm
Beautiful shots!
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I'll tell my sister to look out for your pictures on KP! :)
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JanetLee
12/5/2018 10:43:57 pm
I have also seen bob cats. They are a walking chunk of muscle!
Misery...my father called it that too! 😁 I loved it there though. I'm amazed that you have as much wildlife as you do where you live! There is a lot of everything around here. The deer have a hard time when the snow gets really deep though. And the lynx populations increase or decrease according to the snowshoe hare population!
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AuthorI am a passionate gardener and seed-saver, who also enjoys playing the violin and accordion, running, spending time with my 4 golden retrievers, keeping chickens, photography, and reading. Archives
March 2019
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