I’ve been getting many reports of Gray Fox sightings by both staff and Guests. I myself have seen a fox on just about a daily basis, sometimes twice, or even three times in one day. Just the other day I heard one of the fox barking in the woods up behind the Red Wolf Enclosure. A few minutes later it was standing on the path about 30 feet away. I looked at the fox and the fox looked at me.Read more
Posts filed in: Mammals
¿dónde está mi casa?
There’s a new exhibit under construction in Catch the Wind. In the process of installing the exhibit there has been much moving about of earth, rocks, and plants across the landscape. Each time that I walk by the site there seems to be something new going on. I walk by often, believe me, there’s a lot going on! On one such stroll past the site last week, Landscape Tech, Jose, pointed out to me a tiny mammal running around inRead more
Groundhog Juveniles
Two young Groundhogs have been seen munching on the grass along the side of the path just past Catch the Wind on the back side of the Outdoor Loop. I first saw them with Mom on the 16th of this month and have seen them several times since, with and without Mom. Keep a lookout for these little guys.Read more
Who’s that coming up the path?
Friday (4/27), a group of crows were making an incredible racket back up in the woods towards the Outdoor Classrooms here at the Museum. They were on to something, an owl, maybe a hawk, and they were going at it with vigor. Something up the in the pines had the crows terribly upset and they wanted it gone, or at least they wanted to make its life miserable for a while. I was up at the Sailboat Pond watching ExhibitsRead more
Eating what’s in Season
The Museum’s gray squirrels have shifted their diet from elm to mulberry. The dark succulent berries of the mulberry trees are ripening as I write and the squirrels have found them. I found them too, and they are delicious! I don’t know a mammal or bird that would pass up a big juicy mulberry. It’s a good thing that the trees produce copious amount of the berries, too many if you talk to homeowners that have them next to theirRead more
Firsts
Although I’ve been seeing Common Baskettails (Epitheca cynosura) for several weeks now, the one above is the first that I was able to photograph. Again, not the first bullfrog tadpoles of the season (they’re present all year long) but they are beginning to become frogs. Some are showing short hind legs, they’re surfacing to gulp air, and well, just look at them, they’re huge! Right on time is the first Eastern, or Common, Musk Turtle. This one was seen baskingRead more
Catching Up
As predicted, dragonflies have been steadily emerging from the deep. I’ve seen numerous Common Whitetails and Common Baskettails, fresh out of their nymphal skins, fly off to a safe place to further dry and harden before starting their life cycles anew; feeding, mating, and ovipositing in the Wetlands. Hatchling Yellow-bellied Sliders continue to be seen hiking down the paths and trails of the Museum heading for the Wetlands or other suitable bodies of water in which to take up residence.Read more
The Finer Points…
…of identification of the Black Bears at the Museum of Life + Science. If you’ve spent any time around the Black Bear Exhibit you probably already know that we have four Black Bears on display, Mimi, Virginia, Gus, and Yona. You may also know how to tell them apart from one another, Mimi has two thin white lines on her chest, Virginia has a large white “V” on her chest, Gus is long and lanky, and Yona is the smallest ofRead more
Give me Some Kind of Sign
signs of the season… Read more about Chip. There are so many signs that point to spring it’s difficult to zero in on just a few. Here’s two very obvious bird signals of the change that’s coming. The two geese in the photos below arrive at the Museum’s Wetland each February. I’ve been calling them Lucy and Goosey, Lucy’s the female. I typically don’t name birds, but these two have become so familiar that, well, why not! How do IRead more