Day 155 - Watching Wildlife
Besides a trail, one of the other joys of our backyard is watching wildlife. We put up various bird feeders and keep them filled throughout the year. While we have our usuals including woodpeckers, red-winged blackbirds, and eastern bluebirds, we have enjoyed some special vitis from orioles, nuthatches, northern flickers, and cedar waxwings. We get frequent visits from lots and lots of white-tailed deer. We love watching the turkeys run around. A highlight was watching our sandhill crane raise their chick. After our first year of restoration, we noticed many more waterfowl enjoying the wet season in our yard. We viewed mallards, canada geese, and a great blue heron.
Occasionally, we see chipmunks and squirrels but the neighborhood hawk keeps them few and far between. Speaking of birds of prey, we’ve noticed an osprey soaring above and heard the regular hoot of owls. We’ve had a run in with an opossum sneaking bird feed and noticed a portly woodchuck sauntering around the yard.
Though we see a lot of animals, we hear many, many more. The frog and toad chorus is loud and proud throughout the year. Songbirds wake us up every morning. Coyote howls spook up evenings.
We also enjoy seeing animals through the use of trail cameras. We put up a trail camera from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Snapshot Wisconsin program. Basically, as part of a special citizen science opportunity, landowners can receive a trail camera from the state. In return, they download and share photos so that state biologists and scientists can track lots of information regarding animals in the state. I have already done this with my school so it made sense to do the same with my own property. We’ve enjoyed seeing different visitors use our woods at different times of the year. With so much space to explore, we’ve actually put up a few other trail cameras as well and enjoy checking them often.
Every day, there is a new opportunity to see something we haven't seen before and enjoy the classics. As we continue to restore and improve our land, we will attract new animals.
Watching wildlife is addicting.
Catching them might be even more fun.
