Top Photo: Red-tailed hawk cruises over the museum’s airspace. As cold weather descends on us, our resident eastern gray squirrels reinforce the insulation in their nests. The one in the following photos apparently caught the attention of one of the local red-tailed hawks. The redtail came in for a closer look as the squirrel made haste for the nest. Alerted by Animal Care Patrick (Pattie) to all of this activity, I was able to get a few shots to share.Read more
Posts filed in: Mammals
Finding Martha: and Oka too
Top Photo: West side of red wolf enclosure. Our new resident red wolves (Martha and Oka) have come from a facility which did not have them on daily display. They’re not used to having people at front and center of their habitat. They will, I’m sure, get used to human visitors, but it may take time. Our male Oka spends most of his day sleeping on the far west side (left side) of the enclosure curled up or stretched outRead more
An Aster, a Skipper, a Lady, and a Shrew!
Top Photo: Purple aster at the Butterfly House Garden. Purple aster is a late bloomer. As such, it attracts many late season insects to its nectar like the common checked skipper pictured here. In our area, this skipper may occasionally be seen as late as December, but certainly into mid November. As I walked into Catch the Wind, I noticed a group of about eight people smiling and laughing as they stared down at the ground near the base ofRead more
Welcome Martha and Oka
Top Photo: Martha’s first day in her new home at Museum of Life and Science. Welcome male red wolf Oka and female Martha to the museum. Both wolves, while not yet fully acclimated to their new habitat, are doing well. The pair arrived from the Wolf Conservation Center in South Salem, NY late Monday night (10/21/24) and were released into the kennel area of the enclosure. Here’s some photos to perhaps help you figure out who’s who when you stopRead more
Adeyha & Oak
Top Photo: Adeyha Ranger GregRead more
October Awakenings
Top Photo: Mating common snapping turtles in the spring create hatchlings for the fall (see below). Snapping turtles have a rough and tumble mating season. The choosing and sorting out of mating partners can be rather violent. But for snapping turtles it’s a necessary part of the process which occurs each spring and summer. Rest comes next for the big males. Snapping turtles leave the water infrequently and for only a very few good reasons (a basking snapping turtle isRead more
Off To New Digs
Top Photo: Two of five pups born on April 21, 2024 at Museum of Life and Science. The five red wolf pups, Cedar, Juniper, Maple, Sassafras and Tupelo and two adults Oak and Adeyha, that we now house will soon be transferred to the Wolf Conservation Center in South Salem, NY. Come by to see them. Wish them well. Good luck!Read more
Howling Foam
Top Photo: Excited by the sound of sirens in the distance, the red wolf pups howl in response. Some mornings the wolves howl multiple times, always stimulated by passing sirens. The precipitating frequency seems to be consistent. Fire trucks are preferred. Mornings are the active period of day for the family. The pups, however, may be excited by the most mundane of things at any time. They were very suspicious of a floating mass of foam bubbles in the poolRead more
Red Wolf Names and Family Fun
Top Photo: From left to right, Adeyha, Cedar, Juniper, Oak, Sassafras, Maple (or it could be). The photo above depicts the two parent red wolves here on exhibit, Adeyha and Oak, and all but one of the pups born April 21, 2024 at the museum (the fifth pup is off to the side). And thanks to you who voted for them, the pups now have names. Cedar Juniper Maple Sassafras Tupelo I for one cannot distinguish who is who amongRead more