tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65623800415505855002024-03-06T02:54:57.559-05:00Backyard BeastsI teach an introductory course on mammal identification and natural history. This blog serves as a place for all of those stories, photos, facts and fun stuff that simply won't fit in the course. Type in your email below to follow this blog!John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.comBlogger163125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-54229575241787553422017-12-06T11:40:00.002-05:002017-12-06T11:42:47.843-05:00I (accidentally) Camera Trapped one of New York's Smallest MammalsIt has been just over a year since I blogged last (December 2 2016). It not like I haven't been writing. I just haven't been blogging. I have been writing a monthly column for the Finger Lakes Times called "Speaking of Nature". Between the articles and Facebook posts, my itch to write has been scratched.<br />
But I just retrieved a camera that I had deployed for a year and thought i would share the results here.<br />
My first camera traps were all Cudeebacks and although I loved the fast trigger speeds and their ease of use, they just don't live very long. They become unreliable quickly and I don't use them for class projects. But my Dad and I set one last year with the intention of letting it just soak for months.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5qhrEgHfvNs-j2oBdEDv7skfQ3qGUa2LYV7rGHZcDfJdX0mLSI3dsOZ6E34k-I7t2BF5Gd_HUGHNs7vvCyml44boYfQpPXRixck7Nzk_aOoR7eU2Jo8Acobru_hNncQA62I1BFuIEK3o9/s1600/jvn01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1235" data-original-width="1600" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5qhrEgHfvNs-j2oBdEDv7skfQ3qGUa2LYV7rGHZcDfJdX0mLSI3dsOZ6E34k-I7t2BF5Gd_HUGHNs7vvCyml44boYfQpPXRixck7Nzk_aOoR7eU2Jo8Acobru_hNncQA62I1BFuIEK3o9/s400/jvn01.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dad and I set a camera trap in December 2016<br />
Fremont, NY</td></tr>
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To tell you the truth, I forgot about it. In fact, I had walked within 10 yards of it several times and didn't even notice it. Partly because I wasn't looking for it but partly because it had fallen off the tree...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1qQRf-ocGxEiVtYGy-d2DpeQjI2uIjn83GfLLN7ECMkP9QW8WorqG34PV8kPdJHNHHm5bonkSczqyz87O-XtndVKoCTdcM-22GEN9I5GIUvMSEEqVL-_zKF3mPeXHsX0-mywD9vesH2s3/s1600/jvn02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1235" data-original-width="1600" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1qQRf-ocGxEiVtYGy-d2DpeQjI2uIjn83GfLLN7ECMkP9QW8WorqG34PV8kPdJHNHHm5bonkSczqyz87O-XtndVKoCTdcM-22GEN9I5GIUvMSEEqVL-_zKF3mPeXHsX0-mywD9vesH2s3/s400/jvn02.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Last image from an upright camera<br />
Fremont. NY</td></tr>
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The strap came loose. There is no evidence an animal did it. But I will never know. By March 30th, here was the angle of the camera:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwrHblRpRBZkWWk1b9i2-4r0P4CdSj8EFLGq_S5ktBj7o7DMyzJDCPBtStlIlHEKv5TbigSbgnxeHUZXMHeW3boIMZe8uhm7QuWigbVEPVWzSYp2chpmXqSxSdGvfn5PgjoUbkHq68eBqp/s1600/jvn03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1235" data-original-width="1600" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwrHblRpRBZkWWk1b9i2-4r0P4CdSj8EFLGq_S5ktBj7o7DMyzJDCPBtStlIlHEKv5TbigSbgnxeHUZXMHeW3boIMZe8uhm7QuWigbVEPVWzSYp2chpmXqSxSdGvfn5PgjoUbkHq68eBqp/s400/jvn03.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red Squirrel<br />
Fremont, NY</td></tr>
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<br />
And then the strap came completely undone and the camera came to rest on its side,<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1XhH9VtfvEjtkGQZY-3cXxQeqSWxY0wV47w1tKGXoJ3U_QkSmZuDXy5ZHG01PcaeuD3DCT9ni7arIPyc1SBEwjwZQ82v5S0ih35GZ-to8jGXV_4fy8xCbiPmxI8UJWauCnsTk1aNwrKAt/s1600/jvn04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1235" data-original-width="1600" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1XhH9VtfvEjtkGQZY-3cXxQeqSWxY0wV47w1tKGXoJ3U_QkSmZuDXy5ZHG01PcaeuD3DCT9ni7arIPyc1SBEwjwZQ82v5S0ih35GZ-to8jGXV_4fy8xCbiPmxI8UJWauCnsTk1aNwrKAt/s400/jvn04.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The original view</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvqDX-57M1BSEYwBTlmsQkK_-LqDqIOhfoQ7wIrKkTmqbfOv-NOpc5VcfB6lOVCiLyktb8VtwbOurRuL27OS-Yynmy2EqkLm-rXH1n5tAjzpCIT_kIWZluZx3lFcfXWv5jLtMxfI5b0CGn/s1600/jvn04a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1143" data-original-width="1600" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvqDX-57M1BSEYwBTlmsQkK_-LqDqIOhfoQ7wIrKkTmqbfOv-NOpc5VcfB6lOVCiLyktb8VtwbOurRuL27OS-Yynmy2EqkLm-rXH1n5tAjzpCIT_kIWZluZx3lFcfXWv5jLtMxfI5b0CGn/s400/jvn04a.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Same photo, cropped and rotated</td></tr>
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Commercially available camera traps are not designed to capture small animals. Someone can have one especially made or home brew one themselves. So I rarely get shrew photos. And by rarely, I mean three times before. This shrew capture is by far the best. And it is of a shrew i never see in the wild.<br />
<br />
Here is a mouse for comparison:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPoGweZJGiXE8QhbNoQfMOjocwOq8pkrugXs1pFsMIM_cODO5W9NmaHNnDPrc6WZDRIF49Mc8Rppx-9FFFFUjlFH39NOJek9GlEGe1es-8TRAXlDR3vfXQCY6jDn7zuJoEsFuKbZId3Vz-/s1600/jvn05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1235" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPoGweZJGiXE8QhbNoQfMOjocwOq8pkrugXs1pFsMIM_cODO5W9NmaHNnDPrc6WZDRIF49Mc8Rppx-9FFFFUjlFH39NOJek9GlEGe1es-8TRAXlDR3vfXQCY6jDn7zuJoEsFuKbZId3Vz-/s400/jvn05.jpg" width="307" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Deermouse<br />
Fremont, NY</td></tr>
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And here is the shrew:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8RfGN0PjGKvVVFtAj3gaVYG6I6EkmmMXFI0c56od-oxqLOb41NYxg0A9lnBH1Ihpganh38dS-vy1e3aomxncIyISFna_qlKePvOZCtExCSIdSqUPk_7RSiyK9_tuL6ejWgq2SbRU_uRt0/s1600/jvn06shrew.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1235" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8RfGN0PjGKvVVFtAj3gaVYG6I6EkmmMXFI0c56od-oxqLOb41NYxg0A9lnBH1Ihpganh38dS-vy1e3aomxncIyISFna_qlKePvOZCtExCSIdSqUPk_7RSiyK9_tuL6ejWgq2SbRU_uRt0/s400/jvn06shrew.jpg" width="307" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shrew, possibly Masked Shrew<br />
Fremont, NY</td></tr>
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<br />
I cannot tell the species from this photo. I suspect it is a Masked Shrew but it could be a Pygmy or a larger Smoky. We are talking about an animal that weighs between 2 and 6 grams. It takes 28 grams just to get to an ounce. This animal weighs as much as a few paper clips. They are so light that they do not trigger the live traps I use when capturing small mammals for class. i will probably never photograph this species again unless it is in the hand or I am using a special camera.John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-56513352629123403552016-12-02T22:46:00.000-05:002016-12-02T22:46:26.712-05:00The Camera Trap Tells the StoryOne of my favorite parts of camera trapping is when the photos tell a story. I don't mean a single image that one can interpret, I mean a series of images that tell a tale from beginning to end. Today I pulled three SD cards and found such a series.<br />
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Chapter 1: The Coyote. I made this particular set over six weeks ago and in that time coyotes have shown up frequently. Other predators captured include red and gray fox and a neighbor's cat. But this particular coyote looks large and majestic.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ-eBp4bb2algA_cX5ShP0sCZQb58sXp9NV0CxpvjMeQuCylGyEUR99GwZErQpIMJHXUoV23MsRsQSz9vkmvO_RTx0OsIkRgKiTIJwMRdyyptta8WjR-MnJGXolhUFwsN0vXWKBuQ5oBfi/s1600/coy001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ-eBp4bb2algA_cX5ShP0sCZQb58sXp9NV0CxpvjMeQuCylGyEUR99GwZErQpIMJHXUoV23MsRsQSz9vkmvO_RTx0OsIkRgKiTIJwMRdyyptta8WjR-MnJGXolhUFwsN0vXWKBuQ5oBfi/s400/coy001.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coyote's first appearance of the night</td></tr>
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<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Pu9Te2pFow5gBQLLJEHIwa8lJNEZVXnJICbFDuHF_3yBAJhLCDdOybf_Wc0ONXd5e3vxUaM6UNhDbtsCBPybcHAiaFfz6LIDyY5yzNMKZMab5AjkB5Dr9SwEXfwFkEbRtE-G4SNr5TOh/s1600/coy002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Pu9Te2pFow5gBQLLJEHIwa8lJNEZVXnJICbFDuHF_3yBAJhLCDdOybf_Wc0ONXd5e3vxUaM6UNhDbtsCBPybcHAiaFfz6LIDyY5yzNMKZMab5AjkB5Dr9SwEXfwFkEbRtE-G4SNr5TOh/s400/coy002.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coyote heads north, away from the camera</td></tr>
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<br />
Chapter 2: Eastern Cottontail. About an hour later I captured this Eastern Cottontail. Rabbit captures have been common at this set, complimented by gray squirrel captures during the daylight.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG-p9fMWZFPSofNPHHeP8vu31mukE_XmdwXKYd5WNq93Oi9PNXoYwEO31NK8HqPS-EJFPip1FaIaawS-sDQM4QNJFTHjyRexc68TCtKwxLHI2yZ-HM21fgtS83HKLWPCo0PkzCpmV5raJ_/s1600/coy003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG-p9fMWZFPSofNPHHeP8vu31mukE_XmdwXKYd5WNq93Oi9PNXoYwEO31NK8HqPS-EJFPip1FaIaawS-sDQM4QNJFTHjyRexc68TCtKwxLHI2yZ-HM21fgtS83HKLWPCo0PkzCpmV5raJ_/s400/coy003.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eastern Cottontail about an hour after the Coyote left</td></tr>
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Chapter 3: The eyes have it. Look in the distance, in the direction the coyote was last heading. See the eye shine? Could it be the coyote?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUIrnOuGTMeCQ1vxIb98b4dAHThGHtbcExleheS-540z72YLJJ0mzO3F8CdXdFQ8mg6JQ7LlBGMHJa6RG5AIdwRTH11k04Rt-DnRj2Azh33Zm4EIB_jKI7YLGq_gK53gse1uUL3gFp2lSd/s1600/coy004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUIrnOuGTMeCQ1vxIb98b4dAHThGHtbcExleheS-540z72YLJJ0mzO3F8CdXdFQ8mg6JQ7LlBGMHJa6RG5AIdwRTH11k04Rt-DnRj2Azh33Zm4EIB_jKI7YLGq_gK53gse1uUL3gFp2lSd/s400/coy004.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eastern Cottontail with a coyote in the distance</td></tr>
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<br />Here is the same photo cropped! I think that IS the coyote.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYE1Kxk2DnOnXj9VfhNl7oDwaLEyLXvyv5v7K4cfzWMJT_Su9UPqUZwjy0FhO9AZQWYnoPOF7N8q47tTDPF0uMo4OTudxge9693TmpAQ0E9GXrqbil3Fdkk9dzYOn5PA_rxgi3I5keuE5E/s1600/coy005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYE1Kxk2DnOnXj9VfhNl7oDwaLEyLXvyv5v7K4cfzWMJT_Su9UPqUZwjy0FhO9AZQWYnoPOF7N8q47tTDPF0uMo4OTudxge9693TmpAQ0E9GXrqbil3Fdkk9dzYOn5PA_rxgi3I5keuE5E/s400/coy005.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eastern Cottontail with coyote eye shine in the background</td></tr>
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<br />Chapter 4: The End. A good story can still hold its own even when the action takes place off screen. Here we see that those were indeed the coyote's eyes in the distance. This particular rabbit met its end on this warmer than average morning. I kept the set active. Perhaps another story will emerge. Perhaps in that next story the rabbit will get away...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguueLjzgwB7N4kXoz49xx_PFYT-HZuf9Qn-on9Qx87ccsBjFPGwEgHoKNBU5rqH7R-kj7de8eqrBCJp0xDuUTxpf2dWcIU9Ws_R-O-XUEanZ96ee5ipLN8PWeu62h5O2AgEP4WMdoKe_8-/s1600/coy006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguueLjzgwB7N4kXoz49xx_PFYT-HZuf9Qn-on9Qx87ccsBjFPGwEgHoKNBU5rqH7R-kj7de8eqrBCJp0xDuUTxpf2dWcIU9Ws_R-O-XUEanZ96ee5ipLN8PWeu62h5O2AgEP4WMdoKe_8-/s400/coy006.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coyote captures eastern cottontail</td></tr>
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<br />John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-5055623726749582392016-06-28T00:54:00.001-04:002016-06-28T00:54:17.093-04:00Searching for Florida Panther TracksLooking for a good way to get the attention of airport security? Try bringing a half-gallon Ziplock bag full of an unmarked powder in your carry-on bag.<br />
Agent: "Sir,what is <i>this</i>?"<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRkN47-f_psP2AmXR3Iwb_WcvUvYTy5lVYWSaSjUrbGTmDqCGHE6-LboSXv3-fKQQp6P__RI2VSXdIJ1UoyaQP52kV62OxsYWMaE38Y3Mxuwp2IPBcSScdxwvPhDYfwCfUkGgyC9iaQ_H6/s1600/panther+sign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRkN47-f_psP2AmXR3Iwb_WcvUvYTy5lVYWSaSjUrbGTmDqCGHE6-LboSXv3-fKQQp6P__RI2VSXdIJ1UoyaQP52kV62OxsYWMaE38Y3Mxuwp2IPBcSScdxwvPhDYfwCfUkGgyC9iaQ_H6/s400/panther+sign.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Route 29, South Florida<br />
June, 2016</td></tr>
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Me: "Plaster of Paris."<br />
Agent: "And why do you have it?"<br />
Me: "To make casts of animal tracks."<br />
Agent: "<i>What?</i>"<br />
She recommended next time I fly, I take it out of my daypack for easier screening...<br />
<br />
I was heading to Tampa, Florida to attend a business meeting but had managed to arrange exactly 25 hours of free time before the opening session to head south and search for Florida panther tracks. That meant a three-hour drive each way once I arrived in Tampa. I sought advice before heading out on where to go. One spot that looked promising on a map was a highway underpass leading from Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State park to the Florida Panther NWR under I-75. My plan was to park to the south near what appear to be flooded quarries in the Northeast corner of "Fak" and hike the two-track to the underpass rather than try to drive the low-clearance rental car on any of it.<br />
I arrived at the hottest part of a (to me at least) very hot and humid day. I have never been to Florida in June and everything appeared to my eye to be very wet. The trail quickly produced domestic dog tracks, similar in size to the panther tracks I sought, and this allowed me to brush up on my canine v. feline track ID skills.<br />
I feel there is much misinformation regarding how to tell cat from dog tracks. For example, many people put far too much stock in whether they see nails or not. First, not all dog tracks show the nails and second, lay persons often do not recognize nails even when present. Consider the dog tracks I photographed only minutes into my hike:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_eHPBEo1X0WN1JJq-b6ocb0YgZwT2_CFTNGlqV2O8uXY_4SbKe2Ezg3RmvCzCdxZqRp8IPV7TuFiNqUiUcX0lPgRwxYQGZuNK5j-uPbfZIwa3CvSYlmPzFaNw1K36lNxlMnpDHqQ5q1aH/s1600/domestic+dog+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_eHPBEo1X0WN1JJq-b6ocb0YgZwT2_CFTNGlqV2O8uXY_4SbKe2Ezg3RmvCzCdxZqRp8IPV7TuFiNqUiUcX0lPgRwxYQGZuNK5j-uPbfZIwa3CvSYlmPzFaNw1K36lNxlMnpDHqQ5q1aH/s400/domestic+dog+02.jpg" width="285" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Domestic dog track<br />
Fakahatchee State Park, FL June, 2016</td></tr>
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If you look closely at the track above, you can see the nail marks on the left side of the track but I cannot see them on the right side at all.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdpdGNSdLngRORxkpAAaryi9envCdLK3G9OJJ8LJ7Kr6WcCrHEIkcxy39M-BgOsQXsRo_ThnyX-4neJPikPCDWk6vgQUWCPBcWxT-o2iez3jFCpsMhkaswbSYzAxOHO4_BU5C1b2_3K8Vf/s1600/domestic+dog+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdpdGNSdLngRORxkpAAaryi9envCdLK3G9OJJ8LJ7Kr6WcCrHEIkcxy39M-BgOsQXsRo_ThnyX-4neJPikPCDWk6vgQUWCPBcWxT-o2iez3jFCpsMhkaswbSYzAxOHO4_BU5C1b2_3K8Vf/s400/domestic+dog+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Domestic dog front (lower track) and rear (upper track) paw prints<br />
Fakahatchee State Park, Florida June, 2016</td></tr>
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I followed the trail largely with my head down looking for sign which is not the best way to stay aware of one's surroundings but perhaps a forgivable sin considering the singular purpose of this hike. The trail was a maddening mixture of wonderful muddy substrate followed by long stretches of difficult limestone bedrock. My eyes strained to find recognizable detail in this unfamiliar ground when suddenly a bird leapt up from my very feet. I instantly registered "goatsucker" (the common name for the family Caprimugliformes) as I watched it settle on the trail 15 yards ahead. But which species? It took to flight and the white wing patches confirmed Common Nighthawk.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiupUTFI-v7BUXdm7y9RpSdtuLIR6EEYI8fLfUTcFifSI38F7arbIprgMkrhF33xP8LHHnw41tTk0k6nNMwDTRSdGW-HHFp5X3BLKKBZNuI6vqvQTNuRc0VXpRYCkd2nBNmLPyztZrFneHr/s1600/nighthawk01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiupUTFI-v7BUXdm7y9RpSdtuLIR6EEYI8fLfUTcFifSI38F7arbIprgMkrhF33xP8LHHnw41tTk0k6nNMwDTRSdGW-HHFp5X3BLKKBZNuI6vqvQTNuRc0VXpRYCkd2nBNmLPyztZrFneHr/s400/nighthawk01.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Common Nighthawk<br />Florida, June 2016</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijP03PC-8oFo-m6Q-W12L7g3vMC59Y5vhhI-1GxHqQtr03Cy-8qu9nXNEndUmJioXO1jITQpS31gOm7BStjiDvQ7mRkssK7NmEEsvTqoa9M3FH2TQ-3F7RRZpYRu9kYg1X1a0huQL6rcZ8/s1600/nighthawk02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijP03PC-8oFo-m6Q-W12L7g3vMC59Y5vhhI-1GxHqQtr03Cy-8qu9nXNEndUmJioXO1jITQpS31gOm7BStjiDvQ7mRkssK7NmEEsvTqoa9M3FH2TQ-3F7RRZpYRu9kYg1X1a0huQL6rcZ8/s400/nighthawk02.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Common Nighthawk<br />Florida, June 2016</td></tr>
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<i> </i>I pressed on. I knew from the aerial view on Google Earth that the trail would bend north ahead and i was prepared for the mud, brush and mosquitoes I was to encounter as the trail became less used and more narrow. What I was not prepared for was two feet of standing water. The water stretched as far as I could see and I had at least a half-mile to go before reaching the underpass. I considered continuing but realized that the underpass was probably underwater as well.<br />
It was only a short drive to my next stop. Also in the northeast corner of "Fak" there is an unmarked road that ends at a gate. The road provides access to a few private inholdings and makes for a nice hiking trail for the public. By now it was late afternoon with temperatures and percent humidity still reading in the mid-90s. My glasses, camera and binoculars all fogged while making the transition from the air-conditioned car. I applied more sunscreen and donned my camouflaged bucket hat; the one I plucked from the Indian Ocean while snorkeling in Australia a decade ago. My pack was heavy with plaster, water, camera and field guide. But my spirits were light as I hoped for success.<br />
Facebook friend, fellow blogger and all-around naturalist Janet Pesaturo had recommended this trail to me. She placed camera traps here in January and wrote about her results on her blog <a href="http://winterberrywildlife.ouroneacrefarm.com/camera-trapping-the-florida-panther/" target="_blank">here</a>. It didn't take long before I found my first set of tracks. And they were CAT TRACKS!<br />
I guess I knew they were bobcat from the moment I saw them but I still carefully measured them and consulted my field guide. On page 208 of Elbroch's <i>Mammal Tracks & Sign, </i>the author states that the<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz_KRUIALLqNwWREfLexBeTbX2wQ0dRCdvWkAd9WVJJfY8pzUAH5RDza6l64h9CJvH2F5UMZ14VsJI4bwypGoJMNmo107_uJhzUlKBQu6TfZyWFMyKNskovpF2wnqDtOkdQBOXaBXCcZUc/s1600/bobcat+track+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz_KRUIALLqNwWREfLexBeTbX2wQ0dRCdvWkAd9WVJJfY8pzUAH5RDza6l64h9CJvH2F5UMZ14VsJI4bwypGoJMNmo107_uJhzUlKBQu6TfZyWFMyKNskovpF2wnqDtOkdQBOXaBXCcZUc/s400/bobcat+track+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bobcat track<br />Florida, June 2016</td></tr>
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heel (or palm or metacarpal) pad of a bobcat measures 1-1 9/16 inches while a panther would be larger. Since toes can sprawl, the heel pad is a more reliable measure than overall track width. These pads were just under 1 1/2 inches, not even at the high end of bobcat so my initial impression was confirmed.<br />
What made me so certain these were feline? First, they show an asymmetry that canine tracks do not. Picture your four fingers without the thumb and you have the toe pattern of a cat. But there are other characteristics too. Look at the shape of each toe. They are nice ovals. The leading toes of most canines are oval but the outer toes of canines are not. Those toes have an inner edge that points toward the center of the track. Panther toe prints are compared to grapes in both size and shape.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho-lU20pmU9qpX24wnvcia-nuGDrsZoxE4clJ2b-BPIItX-EcrIPwe6YfcP0nb4egF0C-sDIYnVQ2ecgKlQcaruYGOP-Hb7buWrwm_5R5e-3xLSGlZcJM8vjU2EWrGjVoFcfm_rCA93W02/s1600/bobcat+track+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho-lU20pmU9qpX24wnvcia-nuGDrsZoxE4clJ2b-BPIItX-EcrIPwe6YfcP0nb4egF0C-sDIYnVQ2ecgKlQcaruYGOP-Hb7buWrwm_5R5e-3xLSGlZcJM8vjU2EWrGjVoFcfm_rCA93W02/s400/bobcat+track+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Front right Bobcat track<br />Florida, June 2016</td></tr>
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In addition to the toe shape, look at the heel pad shape. Canids have a single bump at the front while felids have two. <a href="http://keepingtrack.org/" target="_blank">Sue Morse's</a> trick to remember this is to think of the double bump as the letter M for "meow". It works.<br />
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The thunder rumbling in the distance had been barely registering in my mind but as I looked up from the bobcat tracks I noticed an ever darkening sky. I decided to press on but 20 minutes later i saw that I could no longer ignore the incoming thunderstorm. I turned back and reached the car just as the first fat drops of rain began to fall.<br />
The 15 minute drive to the motel in Everglades City was a wet one. It had been a rainy week before I arrived and I saw standing water in every parking lot. I grabbed some food to go and waited out the weather in my room.<br />
A night drive after the storm produced lots of snakes but no mammals. The following morning I was back in my same parking lot at the gate ready to press on where I had to turn back the day before. I relocated the bobcat tracks and they showed that this spot was on the edge of last night's storm as the tracks had not changed much. I continued past the point I reached the day before and quickly found rodent tracks of both gray squirrel and what I believe were hispid cotton rat. A Barred Owl was hooting and I began to spot small alligators among the cypress knees. As I bent to inspect yet another muddy spot, my heart skipped a beat as I saw a clear tow print the size and shape of a grape! Then another. And another. And two more. Wait.... that makes five. My mind screamed "black bear" but I <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgV4neYeQYPREH7Rx6-rbshESln1vPLmVWMQBSXwz0D0HiAW7SG509QUjwIvalGKg9ICIO0_Fm6SX7TeQd84i-VULZqQA1HW3d3HkHvPwGrjT1CayfztxXIBFjOzIdUIbAkgDmi8VlrnQ3/s1600/bear+track+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgV4neYeQYPREH7Rx6-rbshESln1vPLmVWMQBSXwz0D0HiAW7SG509QUjwIvalGKg9ICIO0_Fm6SX7TeQd84i-VULZqQA1HW3d3HkHvPwGrjT1CayfztxXIBFjOzIdUIbAkgDmi8VlrnQ3/s400/bear+track+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black Bear track<br />(Florida, 2016)</td></tr>
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fought that identification with all my might. Surely this was to be my elusive panther! But it was not. One track became two, that became a short trail. Not a Florida panther for sure, but who can remain sad while looking at fresh bear sign.<br />
I pressed on. I found more bear tracks. I birded. I softly grunted to the alligators, imitating the call of the young. I looked in vain for panther tracks. I was lost in thought when I realized I was hearing running water. Ahead the trail was blocked. My search had come to an end. Walking back, I discovered a camera trap, crouched down in front of it for a selfie, and sent Janet a Facebook message asking if it was one of hers. It was.<br />
The drive to Tampa was long but uneventful. I decided I had to return to that trail when there was less water. That night after dinner, I found the passage I was looking for in Maehr's 1997 book <i>The Florida Panther: Life and Death of a Vanishing Carnivore": </i>"We were standing in the heart of the only place east of the Mississippi River where this combination of terrestrial carnivore species - panther, bobcat, and black bear - still live." I smiled at the thought that I had stood there too.<br />
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<br />John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-10771773082196718882016-02-29T20:53:00.000-05:002016-02-29T20:53:37.684-05:00Unusual Bird Tracks<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOcLFBlFjV9040WbXF3oKml3k5a0pnCBfW-GMQJzFUo22cb6EZ71HSFrNMzReMn6POeGNipB3iivJDUwocgbf-Tq6NSWR8cdqXBQ9dNCZcSt9MeGq3X3jL1M03fL4AoVfk32d1VJ4svo9X/s1600/alg10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOcLFBlFjV9040WbXF3oKml3k5a0pnCBfW-GMQJzFUo22cb6EZ71HSFrNMzReMn6POeGNipB3iivJDUwocgbf-Tq6NSWR8cdqXBQ9dNCZcSt9MeGq3X3jL1M03fL4AoVfk32d1VJ4svo9X/s400/alg10.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Algonquin Provincial Park East Gate<br />2/16, Ontario Canada</td></tr>
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My wife and I recently made the 325-mile trip to Algonquin Provincial Park to do some wildlife watching and cross-country skiing. We succeeded in both. I have been focused on increasing my tracking skills lately and took the opportunity on this trip to study the trails of American marten, snowshoe hare and red squirrel. But it was the bird sign that we encountered that got me to write this post. I present here two "unusual" tracks.<br />
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When most people think of a track, they think of a footprint. But trackers know better. A "track" can be any number of evidence an animal leaves behind,<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqMMCNXa7DvN05OkT5OpLI-1lPAKMW394t5rkLnDCygOKvFcPviiY7btRLnvB3vr2KRnjgq_-d7mt2YvyUpavjKJ6VDF-JGGFT7C7rU7TYN_BzBC3vC8XZR87JTzABjnj6scEIQ5W0NlVV/s1600/ruffed+grouse+track+in+snow+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqMMCNXa7DvN05OkT5OpLI-1lPAKMW394t5rkLnDCygOKvFcPviiY7btRLnvB3vr2KRnjgq_-d7mt2YvyUpavjKJ6VDF-JGGFT7C7rU7TYN_BzBC3vC8XZR87JTzABjnj6scEIQ5W0NlVV/s400/ruffed+grouse+track+in+snow+01.jpg" width="285" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ruffed Grouse tracks and body print<br />2/16, Algonquin Park</td></tr>
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EXAMPLE ONE: Ruffed Grouse body print. While skiing the Pinetree Loop Trail, Laura and I spotted Ruffed Grouse tracks crossing the groomed trail. When the bird hopped/flew up from the hard packed trail onto the powdery shoulder, it left an imprint of its entire body as it landed. That impression, called a sitzmark by some, is a track just the same as the peace-sign footsteps that work their way through the snow.<br />
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Each step carefully placed before the last, these tracks always remind me of a zipper.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwniF70EDcb2ZROga-UNwRBbd0XvK9dWP56QtTsQTb6qEa2jbOW45y1JpGlrLE8NS6v0BqUYjfZ0n5v14uir3FN0rHSQmcWZ4qDSv0Pt5Ril9QaGv9l9__hiBYlpYdi2SnvhEyaLlEraLt/s1600/ruffed+grouse+track+in+snow+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwniF70EDcb2ZROga-UNwRBbd0XvK9dWP56QtTsQTb6qEa2jbOW45y1JpGlrLE8NS6v0BqUYjfZ0n5v14uir3FN0rHSQmcWZ4qDSv0Pt5Ril9QaGv9l9__hiBYlpYdi2SnvhEyaLlEraLt/s400/ruffed+grouse+track+in+snow+02.jpg" width="286" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ruffed Grouse tracks in snow<br />2/16, Algonquin Provincial Park</td></tr>
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EXAMPLE TWO: Birds on a fence.Wherever we went in the Park, we seemed to encounter birds that were used to being fed. Black-capped Chickadees mobbed us at the end of a road.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmhtIvcFIsq3ajpCbyspfIyaNez14ibGQYyii8HsyHblcGFu2Fr9rlhki1wZnt3CEPxHt-O9-akibxHR5tWjOAZ6K0QPW70Qwxd7UjpG-4CDukI9sVvO5Qqn-OtzWvBOE120K2Z6latI-5/s1600/alg20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmhtIvcFIsq3ajpCbyspfIyaNez14ibGQYyii8HsyHblcGFu2Fr9rlhki1wZnt3CEPxHt-O9-akibxHR5tWjOAZ6K0QPW70Qwxd7UjpG-4CDukI9sVvO5Qqn-OtzWvBOE120K2Z6latI-5/s400/alg20.jpg" width="285" /></a></div>
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Gray Jays are notorious for readily coming to the hand and these were no exception.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_lgB-AYkC2KH0tJhQaX3FByu1KV4Dk0JEXFtgevfaNBTWtOt-BYYCGfIRmFe9tcSoDKPSWkxt9VJNKppujYMQpGNQ2j5qMEkUjsD_EFn36U-CD5royLO1ik77Qdk8TD6BdUi7Ea8Bbf0R/s1600/alg24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_lgB-AYkC2KH0tJhQaX3FByu1KV4Dk0JEXFtgevfaNBTWtOt-BYYCGfIRmFe9tcSoDKPSWkxt9VJNKppujYMQpGNQ2j5qMEkUjsD_EFn36U-CD5royLO1ik77Qdk8TD6BdUi7Ea8Bbf0R/s400/alg24.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gray Jay<br />2/16, Algonquin Provincial Park</td></tr>
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We left the parking area and hiked for a bit looking for open water and signs of river otter. We ran out of time before finding much of either. A few inches of fresh snow provided an hours-old blanket that had wiped most of the slate clean. And when we returned to the parking area, the birds were there to greet us. And it was the very freshness of the snow that made me notice the gaps on the gate.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU4qksCT8_wu4Z7UswRM8TVBVE8tyd4X4BDWLSPUa3mCGdg5T0FF7lKKpYFtXmypSBoq3w97Mkr_MuvyasjRrNN8KV2UCbJDvMB3Oy6eDrsYak4nNvjCM21PZni_uwQXwxdu4rBUITedtt/s1600/track01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU4qksCT8_wu4Z7UswRM8TVBVE8tyd4X4BDWLSPUa3mCGdg5T0FF7lKKpYFtXmypSBoq3w97Mkr_MuvyasjRrNN8KV2UCbJDvMB3Oy6eDrsYak4nNvjCM21PZni_uwQXwxdu4rBUITedtt/s400/track01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Each rail of the gate had patches of snow missing. Some of the patches were shapeless while others looked like the photo above: two slots. I remarked to Laura that they looked like legs. And the more I thought about it, the more I realized I was on to something. We stood back from the gate and watched as birds landed and made new gaps in the snow. These were in fact bird tracks! And we got to watch them being made.<br />
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The larger shapeless gaps were places where the bird landed multiple times.<br />
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In the photo below, a Chickadee lands in a new location on the gate.<br />
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And here are the tracks it left behind:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3H2of7XV-YyBGtDNisvnG7M7LD03MK8rS_sFvOxjzaMMTO_cLBSFPbcJwVxK6vxp7F_-LXlTRxanvlTSiD1MjUkG7xzHFw6UrLABmwM5QG1i_rl7K3tLEdI783t4VWwmj1er3exQn-LoK/s1600/track04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3H2of7XV-YyBGtDNisvnG7M7LD03MK8rS_sFvOxjzaMMTO_cLBSFPbcJwVxK6vxp7F_-LXlTRxanvlTSiD1MjUkG7xzHFw6UrLABmwM5QG1i_rl7K3tLEdI783t4VWwmj1er3exQn-LoK/s400/track04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I was proud of myself for being observant and seeing these subtle signs the Chickadees were leaving behind. Tracks can be so much more than footprints.John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-84824209061425292002015-12-07T22:28:00.001-05:002015-12-08T07:41:20.906-05:00Norway Adventure Part II: Lierne<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZaRexxGnn-Myi99_00gtYfqQKK1khsSacPC8CKCw47aMeF8tR9jMsS4NTYdhoxyBqcimfUftB2cLf03MJGZmQzV28XncG-ABoYIRb0_yGYzX_4KkgeBrUROxIaCl2VD_nqd5OshDfa2P7/s1600/norway+cabin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZaRexxGnn-Myi99_00gtYfqQKK1khsSacPC8CKCw47aMeF8tR9jMsS4NTYdhoxyBqcimfUftB2cLf03MJGZmQzV28XncG-ABoYIRb0_yGYzX_4KkgeBrUROxIaCl2VD_nqd5OshDfa2P7/s400/norway+cabin.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jan's cabin</td></tr>
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It has been many months since I wrote <a href="http://con102.blogspot.com/search/label/Musk%20ox" target="_blank">Norway Adventure Part I: The Muskox</a> and I decided I couldn't delay any longer. This post will focus on the second half of our trip, after leaving Kongsvoll. Our train ride to Grong was beautiful. We arrived on time and met our host for the next five days, Jan Totsas. We rented a <a href="http://totsaas.no/" target="_blank">cabin</a> complete with sauna, mountain bikes and canoe on a private lake.<br />
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Jan has a beautiful set up and he was a fantastic host. He loves wildlife, American cars and metal music. He took us <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnk_EYfY0MU" target="_blank">fishing on the lake</a>. If you watch the video, you will see we had a fantastic time and caught more than enough for dinner. Laura and I took the mountain bikes out and discovered some young mountain hares.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVe5bG4p8iljb2FBJmxZb-ZpSAmtlNY2RvD8pF_NkWldm6AtzBbXrSRSadvk69wDD3kIpIL47GUWiGORR318K1d_Zwnfw_-0pQ6Erms95tV48Pl0YndORHjEyBCWsMsuAN9tzyQ6WICkuT/s1600/Hare01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVe5bG4p8iljb2FBJmxZb-ZpSAmtlNY2RvD8pF_NkWldm6AtzBbXrSRSadvk69wDD3kIpIL47GUWiGORR318K1d_Zwnfw_-0pQ6Erms95tV48Pl0YndORHjEyBCWsMsuAN9tzyQ6WICkuT/s400/Hare01.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Young mountain hare Norway</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1xN1PRG4YcDSpidHWycjcO-QxID6NxFK-kRGAHb5GoJ6QAxUBQJq1Dwk2pUTCyCF6PLopWPAoXvqbseJjkUmAR7Wm2OIFgpaSkz46po_cj_2ZkPs9eUhHhCon-z_M8Hmf65WDsbBd5Okr/s1600/Hare02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1xN1PRG4YcDSpidHWycjcO-QxID6NxFK-kRGAHb5GoJ6QAxUBQJq1Dwk2pUTCyCF6PLopWPAoXvqbseJjkUmAR7Wm2OIFgpaSkz46po_cj_2ZkPs9eUhHhCon-z_M8Hmf65WDsbBd5Okr/s400/Hare02.jpg" width="283" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mountain Hare</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0fjVsB8n6-t_CTzZOAk_pWIt9mn32-rGmUu810eRJguyS1leoXVxZ453rgH6bwoEAlE4q7ZQ6X4lnWvdDmmiyfYhLRg2guRYARtV_fcnz4p9qlfb7IO88sN2LDTkmOHKN1VIxXC0QTKtz/s1600/Hare03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0fjVsB8n6-t_CTzZOAk_pWIt9mn32-rGmUu810eRJguyS1leoXVxZ453rgH6bwoEAlE4q7ZQ6X4lnWvdDmmiyfYhLRg2guRYARtV_fcnz4p9qlfb7IO88sN2LDTkmOHKN1VIxXC0QTKtz/s400/Hare03.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Norwegian Mountain Hares</td></tr>
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Hares are born precocial. That means they are well-developed at birth: eyes open, fully furred and mobile. Compare that with rabbits which are born altricial: eyes closed, naked and helpless. So these hares were pretty young. They were everywhere. I used the GoPro to take this <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__KyjxhCHoE" target="_blank">video of young mountain hares</a>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWkGVMOgLYjbn7z_rJTUpQU_7JIv9krDEYd_WsXkxJ9S4Jv2uJcV0ls4xL0YpwMAR7AHfASxgg0CXaGEJufmF5Pre1Eb07o2iCyq2VkRgRNYL8dRh-rfDUtIm1rHTPeSeNeVZLZTV5OQGN/s1600/troll.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWkGVMOgLYjbn7z_rJTUpQU_7JIv9krDEYd_WsXkxJ9S4Jv2uJcV0ls4xL0YpwMAR7AHfASxgg0CXaGEJufmF5Pre1Eb07o2iCyq2VkRgRNYL8dRh-rfDUtIm1rHTPeSeNeVZLZTV5OQGN/s320/troll.jpg" width="228" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Norwegian Troll</td></tr>
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One evening we biked to a stream hoping for beaver. We parked our bikes near the statues of trolls (apparently a Norwegian invention) and headed across the meadow. We didn't find any fresh beaver sign but had great sightings of moose, red fox and lots of birds. But it was the bike ride home that produced our best sighting. With Danika in the lead and Laura second, I somehow managed to miss seeing the European pine marten that crossed the road in front of us. It would have been a new mammal for me and an exciting addition to our trip list. Even Jan was impressed!<br />
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The gnats were fierce once the sun went down but fortunately for us the days were long. We went to bed knowing that tomorrow was our best chance to see a brown bear.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWHEbbNhBmUhV1csVpANTFOD79qB35s2o4NwLBpUp5GOxOq17MXms444Kx1VvojM-yufPAiz4ZF9DfG-ATJXitDlZTcVyfiPloaDmiCtcv6xmX5u2N3CMOOfmJ8ekdTC_YLMqqqKN-dOFb/s1600/moose01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWHEbbNhBmUhV1csVpANTFOD79qB35s2o4NwLBpUp5GOxOq17MXms444Kx1VvojM-yufPAiz4ZF9DfG-ATJXitDlZTcVyfiPloaDmiCtcv6xmX5u2N3CMOOfmJ8ekdTC_YLMqqqKN-dOFb/s400/moose01.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In Norwegian, this is an Elg. In English, it is a Moose<br />Norway, July 2015</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6LFBOuaGLFHSRBzWxke-jtihqOOO6vbyGVjH3WmAPCxhir7-Zl0iYZzniy8uzoKQqFT_gd-k8rMVo8xkBoUmFnz1oq3g22ctzy-0gmuU41ujq26b8zPDfE3FQrTJPTSCHpaTlxrIlsx1-/s1600/group01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6LFBOuaGLFHSRBzWxke-jtihqOOO6vbyGVjH3WmAPCxhir7-Zl0iYZzniy8uzoKQqFT_gd-k8rMVo8xkBoUmFnz1oq3g22ctzy-0gmuU41ujq26b8zPDfE3FQrTJPTSCHpaTlxrIlsx1-/s400/group01.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Van Niel family in Norway<br />
July 2014</td></tr>
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Our last full day before we headed home, it rained. And rained. This was our day to look for bears and bear sign. The bear sign was going to be easy to locate but the bears themselves proved elusive. Jan took us to a location where the bear sign was heavy. We went to a well-known area that contained numerous trees that were bit and scratched along a path. The path included places where the bears had stepped and re-stepped int he same spots so that well-worn footfalls were present. I would call this area a "ritual trail" and I have studied the ones made by black bears here in the US. If you are interested in learning more, check out <a href="http://con102.blogspot.com/search/label/Ritual%20Trail" target="_blank">these posts</a>. They didnt photograph well and I have included no pictures here.<br />
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This first photo is a tree that has been bitten and scratched. The purpose of the markings is not entirely clear. Bears are not really territorial. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZO5lv3aOuVb3N9Vx65EDZ32XtagFkFpjbnZDvg7i6kfez_KTyERvtPP7CQu4s5GnfakXEQhreDeimm3jEO0YEqoAfRYDpVWO7WN2pF_I5Z-2sC6QG0ju0jU0-mG0HnOBgIoWOIFhjlAKo/s1600/bear02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZO5lv3aOuVb3N9Vx65EDZ32XtagFkFpjbnZDvg7i6kfez_KTyERvtPP7CQu4s5GnfakXEQhreDeimm3jEO0YEqoAfRYDpVWO7WN2pF_I5Z-2sC6QG0ju0jU0-mG0HnOBgIoWOIFhjlAKo/s400/bear02.jpg" width="285" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brown bear bites and scratches<br />
Norway, July 2014</td></tr>
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Here is a single bite mark on a sapling that tore a nice chip from this tree. Note the wood fibers that were torn by the bear's canine teeth. If you look VERY close you can see that the fibers point towards the center indicating canines moving in both directions rather than say a bullet grazing the tree and moving in one direction.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKrHg2ouzIiu3lWCTY6X-PzD96fqzbzG3844mv6fGpSCpTMP1ZkRj5a8bPYF1KtngInytaqKg3xOJOHThWJWpgYqLYSTHmryE4M2Lvct5R50IxqoDGjYJMB8YAPWOUWs_BwV9ZywnDkffR/s1600/bear03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKrHg2ouzIiu3lWCTY6X-PzD96fqzbzG3844mv6fGpSCpTMP1ZkRj5a8bPYF1KtngInytaqKg3xOJOHThWJWpgYqLYSTHmryE4M2Lvct5R50IxqoDGjYJMB8YAPWOUWs_BwV9ZywnDkffR/s400/bear03.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The clean bite of a brown bear.<br />
Norway, July 2014</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFLYD9HJtcO2c9_GWnUzxxCbILXTBAcxrNVSYV4RgOleNi-PKpkAffF0K6BRTrObfARm2V0WOln4RSK-9t6YQUIBx1yozUAmSpIhnA3x7UIX4ZL50mEu7jVsQzADc_nCu_P20kg1UUDYEF/s1600/bear04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFLYD9HJtcO2c9_GWnUzxxCbILXTBAcxrNVSYV4RgOleNi-PKpkAffF0K6BRTrObfARm2V0WOln4RSK-9t6YQUIBx1yozUAmSpIhnA3x7UIX4ZL50mEu7jVsQzADc_nCu_P20kg1UUDYEF/s400/bear04.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brown bear hair left while rubbing<br />
Norway, July 2014</td></tr>
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On our way back to the vehicle Jan took me to a sandy hill with some older tracks that further suffered from rain. I sure wish we had seen these tracks when they were fresh. But I did my best to photograph these older sandy tracks. The closest track is a front. The next is a rear.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIt2mV3U9BarRYcyb9mjbNrCpmzU53qqvLS39S0WcxKrMeC4Vdt8-NMYmcf0Q6C96Zw0F534TpikJgJrA_ZfbEbDrFhAzoKAr6RcxDbvzL5oVifDnuPyHAMoYAruHqpJxHibz7YvwRzr95/s1600/bear06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIt2mV3U9BarRYcyb9mjbNrCpmzU53qqvLS39S0WcxKrMeC4Vdt8-NMYmcf0Q6C96Zw0F534TpikJgJrA_ZfbEbDrFhAzoKAr6RcxDbvzL5oVifDnuPyHAMoYAruHqpJxHibz7YvwRzr95/s400/bear06.jpg" width="285" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Old brown bear tracks in sand<br />
Norway, July 2015</td></tr>
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We had a fantastic time in Norway. We only saw nine species of mammals but most were new for me. We structured the first part of our trip around the musk ox and our second half around the area with the bear sign.<br />
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<br />John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-48213997748868794422015-07-31T20:20:00.002-04:002016-06-29T21:49:49.654-04:00A Tale of Three Cameras<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVbvtoW6eaNmFQTAU5Lcx6lR3ik7AxUUvL5eS64CdFEHt6Wjz76wvSZlCH_-i4XosY10Pu3xnBP__TwBq0gsOLrk43SroI_rEYBATiRvmEceu_w5U4fo-a1dJPwe9iLBe2ZMBWAEsw_VFH/s1600/mfs001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVbvtoW6eaNmFQTAU5Lcx6lR3ik7AxUUvL5eS64CdFEHt6Wjz76wvSZlCH_-i4XosY10Pu3xnBP__TwBq0gsOLrk43SroI_rEYBATiRvmEceu_w5U4fo-a1dJPwe9iLBe2ZMBWAEsw_VFH/s400/mfs001.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Button Buck" captured on camera trap<br />
(Muller Field Station, 5/15)</td></tr>
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I set three Reconyx cameras at our Muller Field Station in May of this year. They were retrieved about a month later. Each of the sets were located along the channel but each had very different results. I guess this is one of the reasons I enjoy camera trapping so much. First, you never know what you are going to get and second, there is really a level of knowledge you need to tease out what is happening in the photos. Here are some of the best stories from each:<br />
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SET 1: Let's see... 145 captures X 10 photos per capture = 1,450 photos to sort through. I captured <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Raccoon inspects snapping turtle<br />
(Muller Field Station, 6/15)</td></tr>
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six species of mammal at this location (including that handsome deer in the photo above) but my favorite story involved a reptile. In the photo to the left, you can see the top of a shell of a snapping turtle. It appears the raccoon doesn't know what to make of it. I wish the camera was set a bit lower to capture the whole image, but we will have to make due.<br />
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The next day, the turtle was in the exact same place (making me pretty sure it was a female laying eggs) and two river otters found her. In this photo, the one of the river otters actually puts it front paws on the carapace.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3wLZpFxFPf1r4O1LVuD3QdhFyM3PDYfGwu3Fu18AuPwE625DifSi2BVvXKrHkK2_M_1ujUI6wlIOHWQc9klm4_UTZycuUkfXKXFdVegzhRqyqpvoHg3Jn3dPZFDljOlFZWhS9zladdj97/s1600/mfs004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3wLZpFxFPf1r4O1LVuD3QdhFyM3PDYfGwu3Fu18AuPwE625DifSi2BVvXKrHkK2_M_1ujUI6wlIOHWQc9klm4_UTZycuUkfXKXFdVegzhRqyqpvoHg3Jn3dPZFDljOlFZWhS9zladdj97/s400/mfs004.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">River otter and snapping turtle<br />
(Muller Field Station, 6/15)</td></tr>
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SET 2: The otters visited this site as well. With no turtles to play with, they had to occupy their time in other ways. They visited a total of five times in the month but never stayed for more than a few minutes.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg-bnok9zAdNZe0EKrqFEqO8irD83yiv8rNHcYXQZ2doDS48JBjLbrQ0ASPiJfyLfimJkDLc73t8tzWu4yZ1rO0s0NVSiDHef9f5B9eSs7gRMCs3haxJwggobtsxaojCPJAfJDGR6YaUAd/s1600/mfs101.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg-bnok9zAdNZe0EKrqFEqO8irD83yiv8rNHcYXQZ2doDS48JBjLbrQ0ASPiJfyLfimJkDLc73t8tzWu4yZ1rO0s0NVSiDHef9f5B9eSs7gRMCs3haxJwggobtsxaojCPJAfJDGR6YaUAd/s400/mfs101.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daytime capture of river otter<br />
(Muller Field Station, 5/15)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">River otters mating?<br />
(Muller Field Station, 6/15)</td></tr>
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Alright, let's talk about that last photo. Although the otters are in the mating position, I am not certain that they are actually copulating here. This could just be play. What I am certain of is that the encounter was brief.<br />
Otters weren't the only story here. Canada Geese came on many nights to loaf in front of the camera.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXzy5zf58mXDqh56BeCbdKQClnL7T7NMseUkaD0CGIgyn3cQmpPfd0DxjUzr9JmF53RLwsnSxmkpp7278cflDVV1Zu6Pz0_shUYS_7gwMWm0VvIvV_vpvExWTUSbvZouOwnKE00OZfepvt/s1600/mfs102.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXzy5zf58mXDqh56BeCbdKQClnL7T7NMseUkaD0CGIgyn3cQmpPfd0DxjUzr9JmF53RLwsnSxmkpp7278cflDVV1Zu6Pz0_shUYS_7gwMWm0VvIvV_vpvExWTUSbvZouOwnKE00OZfepvt/s400/mfs102.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Banded Canada Goose and goslings<br />
(Muller Field Station, 5/15)</td></tr>
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That means lots of photos. I assumed that it was the same group of birds each night but when I looked closer, I noticed that on a few occasions, a banded adult showed up while on other nights, the adults were all unbanded. I don't recall ever camera trapping a banded bird before.<br />
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SET 3: This was the most interesting set. Years ago a tree toppled over the channel and what was the trunk is now a horizontal trunk that is suspended over the water. I have always wanted to create a set here and finally did. One of the tree limbs, now pointing towards the sky, worked as a perfect point of attachment. I assumed I would get river otters here. I mean, it just looked like a real inviting place for otters to climb up and explore. It turns out this was the only set that did not capture otters. Instead, I captured my other favorite mammal... black bear! And it only took four hours from the time the cameras were set until the bear showed up (I understand how lucky that is! The last time I set a camera at the Muller Field Station, it took 10 weeks to capture a bear image).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx289FNfXQ_3w9iMVHrGXVEC6jni9eH8Xp9DRxO1lASR5dXJd5EwnG8r6GfdRD5avxUCZhyphenhyphenQK07T0J9nv1vJ7oXIvBQBo0LDsR_rTo45ykQQPymoMDpqWzvMqTMobqQsS2td1TT72Hv8LG/s1600/mfs201.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx289FNfXQ_3w9iMVHrGXVEC6jni9eH8Xp9DRxO1lASR5dXJd5EwnG8r6GfdRD5avxUCZhyphenhyphenQK07T0J9nv1vJ7oXIvBQBo0LDsR_rTo45ykQQPymoMDpqWzvMqTMobqQsS2td1TT72Hv8LG/s400/mfs201.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black bear<br />
(Muller Field Station, 5/15)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzKgucUCln4o1ldVFfUt-LDMa1x0S9XmDxERSR8L7zrdDOuFOt44XldYqPmNZCPO2SfR7aW8gSFlaCEB4gc17N9p-9nFFfp_k11ssY1LeiiiVZVXbtoEcizZAPI7Nw13KkU-kMHnR7Giwj/s1600/mfs203.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzKgucUCln4o1ldVFfUt-LDMa1x0S9XmDxERSR8L7zrdDOuFOt44XldYqPmNZCPO2SfR7aW8gSFlaCEB4gc17N9p-9nFFfp_k11ssY1LeiiiVZVXbtoEcizZAPI7Nw13KkU-kMHnR7Giwj/s400/mfs203.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black bear showing hind paw<br />
(Muller Field Station, 5/15)</td></tr>
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Birds were the second story of this set.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5tD7Ag9XSwelmgOlce91DwUxCkvG_vZWgvdnweJzJEyLC5cwV5tokM685WUnGp4vT8fDN12pHqUD7Zq2rSDYEBwc_xSjtDnbNY7YOTB-OPHFBygz1Wkba4cBkuiBWQ_voxki5NbsWEI5L/s1600/mfs204.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5tD7Ag9XSwelmgOlce91DwUxCkvG_vZWgvdnweJzJEyLC5cwV5tokM685WUnGp4vT8fDN12pHqUD7Zq2rSDYEBwc_xSjtDnbNY7YOTB-OPHFBygz1Wkba4cBkuiBWQ_voxki5NbsWEI5L/s400/mfs204.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wood Duck drake<br />
(Muller Field Station, 5/15)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Great Blue Heron<br />
(Muller Field Station, 6/15)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCVyEC9DrCUbiy09Kgd7FZne5tHWPUPuh2SXOlfkfENW2BiFgM7_U22LAJdYIpXnvyhk1J2vSKWYgp8hBs8t-FFiNWXYoI-nfVhP2ly7Zf4UgLDLoijEqdC1CYtZWSGQBC6jk2HZ897Xa8/s1600/mfs206.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCVyEC9DrCUbiy09Kgd7FZne5tHWPUPuh2SXOlfkfENW2BiFgM7_U22LAJdYIpXnvyhk1J2vSKWYgp8hBs8t-FFiNWXYoI-nfVhP2ly7Zf4UgLDLoijEqdC1CYtZWSGQBC6jk2HZ897Xa8/s400/mfs206.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wood Duck hen<br />
(Muller Field Station, 6/15)</td></tr>
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Take a look at the photo above. The photo below was taken less than 48 hours later. The camera hasn't moved but the water level changed dramatically. Instead of ducks loafing on a dry perch in front of the camera, they are SWIMMING past it. This was not the only hard rain we had this year and I am grateful that the camera stayed above the waterline :)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI3UYKxrq23h7gULJunwmIcoVxz8bSQH98VrAGWE8BDh5GUycei_1DX19BcJ2u3VpqWQk6BacTRhSL5VFbkNiHPOKulkdHg26QDJH4OZ7P_vcnFvEl1zLnrwsLav8_lst4vf6QcKXPjFMj/s1600/mfs207.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI3UYKxrq23h7gULJunwmIcoVxz8bSQH98VrAGWE8BDh5GUycei_1DX19BcJ2u3VpqWQk6BacTRhSL5VFbkNiHPOKulkdHg26QDJH4OZ7P_vcnFvEl1zLnrwsLav8_lst4vf6QcKXPjFMj/s400/mfs207.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mallards<br />
(Muller Field Station, 6/15)</td></tr>
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John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-85702098554115866212015-06-29T14:59:00.002-04:002015-06-29T16:38:52.603-04:00Norway Adventure Part I: The MuskoxOur family vacation in 2014 was a ten day excursion to the beautiful country of Norway. Why Norway you ask? Well, it happened like this: We decided we wanted to go to Europe (I was the only one that had never been....) so I started researching wildlife vacations (or "holidays" as the rest of the world calls them) and found a few promising locations. But what really tipped the scales for Norway was the combination of brown bears and muskox. This post will focus on the first leg of the trip and our muskox encounters, but our full itinerary was a simple one: We flew in to Oslo and took the train from the airport to Kongsvoll Station where we spent three nights at the <a href="http://www.kongsvold.no/" target="_blank">Kongsvold Fjeldstue Hotel</a>. We then took the train North to Grong Station where our host and guide Jan Bjornar Totsas. We rented a <a href="http://totsaas.no/" target="_blank">cabin</a> from Jan in Lierne and also hired him to guide us for day trips (the subject of my next post). After five nights, we returned to Grong and boarded the train for a ten-hour journey back to the Oslo airport. We had a fantastic time! Our mammal list for the trip in order of appearance:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We stayed in the Trollheim (troll home) at Kongsvold Fjeldstue<br />
(8/14, Oppdal, Norway)</td></tr>
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European moose (Elg)<br />
Muskox<br />
Caribou (reindeer)<br />
Mountain lemming<br />
Red fox<br />
Mountain hare<br />
European pine marten<br />
Roe deer<br />
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And we saw sign of brown bear and beaver.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Land of Muskox</span><br />
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Our adventure really begins the moment we exit the driveway for the (first) airport. It is an hour to the airport, but it is a relatively small one so our next stop is a major hub. On this trip, we flew from Rochester, NY to Newark International then Amsterdam before landing at the Oslo airport. There is a train station right at the airport so we never did see the city of Oslo. The weather was great and our train ride was beautiful. We arrived at the unstaffed Kongsvoll Station and walked with our luggage the short distance to our lodging. We were ready for dinner and sleep. I managed a short hike around the historic grounds. Although the oldest buildings standing today date back to the early 1700s, this location has been a stopping point for travelers for over a thousand years. But the history was lost on us that first night as we settled in for some much needed sleep. By ten am we were well fed and ready for our muskox tour. Having no familiarity with the area, we decided to join the "muskox safari" that leaves directly from the hotel. The weather was good and the group was a bit large, about two dozen. Our guide was a likable young man but I would not consider him an expert. We car pooled a short distance down the road to a parking area and started our hike there. In fact, we had a muskox in view from the road.<br />
As you enter the muskox area, there are signs in several languages warning hikers to keep their distance. They recommend 200 meters. Our guide did get us a bit closer than that, but not nearly close enough for good photos.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Warning signs in Norway<br />
(8/14)</td></tr>
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The fear is that a person would be charged by a muskox that feels threatened. Although charging muskox can cause injury and even <a href="http://dolly.jorgensenweb.net/nordicnature/?p=747" target="_blank">death</a> (last report I can find is this 1964 incident), the mighty charge often ends in a bluff as shown in this <a href="http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=8aa_1247580063" target="_blank">video</a>. This is all in stark contrast to historical information I read in preparation for our journey.<br />
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Before our trip, I read the chapter "The Musk-Ox" by Caspar Whitney from the 1904 classic <i>Musk Ox, Bison, Sheep and Goat. </i>I completely enjoyed reading Whitney's account of his 57-day hunt for musk ox. He had hired several Natives as guides and they spent a considerable amount of time just traveling to musk ox country. Once there, they had some trouble actually locating their first band of the creatures. But once they did, all hell broke loose. The dogs were unharnessed and sent to chase the musk ox. The men strapped on snow shoes and chased the dogs. Whitney did the same but his <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo of musk ox from first day<br />
(8/14, Norway)</td></tr>
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store-bought buckles and harnesses were difficult to manage with his inexperienced hands, thus he was the last to set off. "My preconceived notions of the musk-ox hunting game were in a jiffy jolted to the point of destruction, as I now found myself in a situation neither expected nor joyful. It was natural to suppose some assistance would be given me in this strange environment...but we were a long way from the Post and interpreters and restraining influences..."(p.21). Whitney worried about getting lost and about not getting to shoot a musk ox himself. He recounts running in the direction of the dogs for an hour and a half before he caught sight of them. More chasing ensued with the actual kill (to me at least) anticlimactic. Whitney ran on to try for another but was unsuccessful. He finally gave in and was able to find the rest of the party by back tracking his own footprints. The last paragraph of the chapter: "Then in a sixty-seven degrees below zero temperature we rolled up in our furs, while the dogs howled and fought over the carcass of my first musk ox." (p. 31).<br />
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I was most interested in what Whitney had to say regarding the danger of these animals. I had read (see above) the warnings about the musk ox and wanted to know the thoughts of this man who spent a long time in their company in an era that was not concerned about liability insurance. On page 56 he states: "...hunters and trained dogs could practically wipe out every herd of musk-oxen they encountered; for while it is true that musk-oxen give you a long run once you have sighted them, yet when you get up to them, when the dogs have brought them to bay, it is almost like shooting cattle in a corral." I of course would not have trained dogs and nor was I planning to stand a rifle-shot away. What did he have to say about that?<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Musk ox habitat<br />
(8/14, Norway)</td></tr>
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"Several Arctic explorers who have written on the musk-ox also refer to it as 'formidable' appearing and 'ferocious', but those are the last adjectives that I should apply to the creature," writes Whitney. "The Indians and some of the Arctic authors also say that it is dangerous to approach, especially when wounded. My experience does not indorse [sic] that statement. We encountered one hundred and twenty-five musk-oxen, killing forty-seven, and I did not see one that even suggested the charging proclivities for which it is given credit." (p. 73). And my favorite line of this entertaining read: "Perhaps the musk-ox might charge if you walked up and pulled his ear, but I doubt if he would under less provocation, and really, I do not feel so certain that he would even then." (p. 74).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Danika at trail junction<br />
(8/15, Norway)</td></tr>
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On day two, we decided to head back to the musk ox area on our own. There is a fantastic trail that began across the road from our lodging and went up into the alpine tundra. We left at sunrise and it didn't take us long to reach the top. It was now a matter of finding musk ox. That proved just as easy. There were several other small parties already on top. One group was slowly approaching two females with calves. The musk ox wanted nothing to do with them and kept out-distancing them. Slowly, the herd was getting farther from the hikers. As much as I wanted photos of calves, I saw little point in trying for these. Their comfort zone was too large. Instead, we spotted a single (male) muskox on a rise ahead of us. We set off over the lichens to try our luck with him. Along the way, we spotted a single male caribou on a distant patch of snow. This was our only caribou of the trip but a truly wild one (many tourists see only captive or semi captive reindeer as they disembark the cruise ships at a native village. We also spooked up a mountain lemming and some ptarmigan (no photos). We approached the musk ox, the sun came out and I set up the tripod. We had made the right decision.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Male musk ox<br />
(8/15, Norway)</td></tr>
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I would have been happy with this view. We were so much closer than we had been the day before. And as you can tell, the musk ox didn't seem to be bothered by our presence. As it turned out, we had stumbled on the perfect scenario. From our vantage point, we were not able to see that there was a narrow but deep ravine between us and the musk ox. What luck! I could now get much closer... so I did.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Musk ox rubbing side on a rock<br />
(8/15, Norway)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Musk ox scat pellets<br />
(8/15, Norway)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Musk ox fur<br />
(8/15, Norway)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Musk ox<br />
(8/15, Norway)</td></tr>
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He eventually made his way down the ravine and into the stream. We watched him for several hours before moving on and trying our luck with others. But by then, there were many other visitors and the musk ox seemed a lot more skittish. We headed back down the mountain and readied ourselves for the second half of our journey.<br />
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John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-73683652906905782452015-05-20T07:56:00.002-04:002015-05-20T22:06:51.171-04:00Jumping mouse jumps no more...<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Great Blue Heron with bullhead<br />
(Seneca Falls, NY 5/15)</td></tr>
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I had a few camera traps set near water recently and captured a few images of one or more Great Blue Herons catching their dinners. Most of the images were fish, bullhead specifically. But one particular series caught my attention for two reasons. First, the heron caught a mammal and secondly, the images were recorded a mere 20 minutes before I pulled the camera. It was a reminder to me that timing is everything in camera trapping. Most camera trappers mitigate that concern by keeping as many cameras out as long as possible. But there is still the question of where to put them and when to move them. It makes the camera trapping game more interesting and active.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Great Blue Heron with jumping mouse sp.<br />
(Seneca Falls, NY 5/15)</td></tr>
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The GBH in these photos caught a jumping mouse. There are two species of jumping mice in NY (woodland and meadow) and both have that diagnostically long tail.<br />
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Another view. Here you can see the huge hind feet jumping mice use to 'jump'.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jumping mouse caught by Great Blue Heron<br />
(Seneca Falls, NY 5/15)</td></tr>
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Last photo before the mouse becomes dinner:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Great Blue Heron preying on jumping mouse<br />
(Seneca Falls, NY 5/15)</td></tr>
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A shot with the mouse on its way down....<br />
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And its gone.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Woodland jumping mouse with white-tipped tail<br />
(South Bristol, NY 5/11)</td></tr>
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I cannot quite make out which species the heron ate. The photos were taken with an infrared flash so they are not in color and the distinguishing characteristic is small: the tail tip. If it is a white-tipped tail call it a woodland. If it lacks the white, call it a meadow.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Impressive hind feet of a woodland jumping mouse<br />
(South Bristol, NY 5/11)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Woodland jumping mouse with ear tag<br />
(South Bristol, NY 5/11)</td></tr>
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John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-19061306123364728902015-04-04T21:03:00.000-04:002015-04-04T21:03:08.741-04:00Winner, winner, chicken dinner!Laura: "Hey, I brought some chicken home from work. It's in the van."<br />
Me: "Excellent.", as I imagine chicken tenders or even (dare I dream?) wings. But what I find is much different. You see, my wife teaches high school seniors that plan to go into the medical profession. I have written about her program in the past as she conducts a deer heart dissection each year. On this day, the students practiced sutures by sewing up cuts made in chicken thighs. The lesson was taught by Dr. Sinclair who works in the ER at Geneva General Hospital. I carefully removed the stitches from each piece and cut the thighs into smaller portions.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher<br />(Seneca Falls, NY 3/15)</td></tr>
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Since I only have one camera trap deployed at the moment, I used the chicken as bait there. Our very first capture was the fisher that only recently showed up on our property (see my previous entry). I was excited to see him back and in the day time to boot!<br />
Fisher are members of the weasel family. They are sometimes called "fisher cats" but they are not felines at all. I think that name comes from the long cat-like tail they sport. I am fairly certain this is a male due to the size. Females are about a third smaller. Below is the same photo but cropped down to have a closer look at him:<br />
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Fisher are essentially creatures of the forest. As I mentioned in my last post, they were eliminated <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close up of fisher<br />(Seneca Falls, NY 3/15)</td></tr>
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from our part of the state many decades ago and are only recently making a comeback. When a mammal species expands its range, it is the males that are the pioneers. That makes sense. The males are the ones that disperse farther from their birthplace Who knows how long it will take for the females to catch up with this guy? Time will tell... Most weasels have a short snout (think otter) but the fisher has a bit longer of a nose than most. Not as long as a red fox or coyote mind you, but longer than any of the other weasels we have in NY.<br />
I put out the chicken on March 23rd in the evening. I obtained these the following morning.<br />
Here is the best shot from an artistic perspective:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher<br />(Seneca Falls, NY 3/15)</td></tr>
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During the morning visit the fisher did not take a single piece of chicken and I do not know why. At 7:09 PM he was back and this time he grabbed some of the bait. In all, he made five visits in a few minutes, taking some chicken each time. There was not enough time for the fisher to have eaten all the pieces so he must have been caching them.<br />
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Well, I have to admit he is looking pretty catty in this photo. These are the last photos to date of the fisher. That doesn't mean he isn't still around. Fisher can range over a large area and I have hopes that this guy will be a permanent resident.<br />
With only five pieces of chicken missing, there was still plenty left. What would be the next species captured?<br />
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Red fox. The following morning, a red fox showed up. This first photo shows a nice fox in its winter coat eyeing up the chicken.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red fox<br />(Seneca Falls, NY 3/15)</td></tr>
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However, this next photo reveals a problem. This fox has mange. That bare spot on the tail is where the mites have burrowed into the skin. The mites cause hair loss and itching. The itching causes the fox to scratch which causes more hair loss.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQLoXfvdTTTeTzvlf2-3AEEvS1VfeirRuFrNHNt3g5y-gasCJPOYTzxIsQMwLcIwhs4W-7osL0SP6L-e5eA9FHD_3OBWHigFJiFjoP16v89a1AvkKIUbLNsxQQf5Nh0FAm-Z6IBC2iAWSA/s1600/007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQLoXfvdTTTeTzvlf2-3AEEvS1VfeirRuFrNHNt3g5y-gasCJPOYTzxIsQMwLcIwhs4W-7osL0SP6L-e5eA9FHD_3OBWHigFJiFjoP16v89a1AvkKIUbLNsxQQf5Nh0FAm-Z6IBC2iAWSA/s1600/007.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red fox with mange on tail<br />(Seneca Falls, NY 3/15)</td></tr>
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The red fox made seven trips to cache chicken. Now, these bright sunny photos notwithstanding, this was a cold morning and although I had carefully cut the chicken into bite-sized chunks, many of them froze together into a giant mass. Well, on the fox's final trip he grabbed the whole pile and dragged it away.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiH022I7dwNB0oJdtRTJ_vSzYFWx8s3BaODfm5CWYW3qvsVak9WA2Ldh9Qewm0ivMGnAsCdbjcsI_EOpuQ5SzivXpGqdgY4vi_IDZGWPrVU1f8ZmTiYnNkqCED_F5Sx0Y6S4h_WDkfrI8w/s1600/008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiH022I7dwNB0oJdtRTJ_vSzYFWx8s3BaODfm5CWYW3qvsVak9WA2Ldh9Qewm0ivMGnAsCdbjcsI_EOpuQ5SzivXpGqdgY4vi_IDZGWPrVU1f8ZmTiYnNkqCED_F5Sx0Y6S4h_WDkfrI8w/s1600/008.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red fox<br />(Seneca Falls, NY 3/15)</td></tr>
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It took less than two days for all the chicken to get grabbed up by two very different carnivores. It wasn't all eaten of course and who knows if any of it changed hands again as caches sometimes get raided by others. The evening after this photo was taken, one more carnivore was captured by the camera. Perhaps this coyote smelled the chicken because it seemed to wander in front of the camera a bit and sniff around. What started as a classroom project ended as meals for at least two predators and some great photos for the blog. :)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTPvOjq_zHwcR5LT99xWz9CZlHKeZOpNRwovhP9J8Ke2VDrdG7JzdqWOqhi6qQYoHUFXqvPz67rWr5T-18nuMijeg-RZHKpFgjTIi39nP6LO0s4f-TMQsVXjuY6EIpCF4nsmQWbcAVp3Yz/s1600/009.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTPvOjq_zHwcR5LT99xWz9CZlHKeZOpNRwovhP9J8Ke2VDrdG7JzdqWOqhi6qQYoHUFXqvPz67rWr5T-18nuMijeg-RZHKpFgjTIi39nP6LO0s4f-TMQsVXjuY6EIpCF4nsmQWbcAVp3Yz/s1600/009.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coyote<br />(Seneca Falls, NY 3/15)</td></tr>
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John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-23862364949989521542015-03-22T20:43:00.001-04:002015-03-22T20:43:05.192-04:00Mammal #29I had set aside some time to blog today and was planning to whine about the snow. I had selected some rabbit and squirrel tracks to discuss, but those plans all changed once I checked my camera trap. I was going to check the camera on Friday, but got busy with other things. The story was the same on Saturday. But on today (Sunday), I had run out of excuses. You see, we had some chicken thighs I had to dispose of. They had been used as part of a lab by my wife's students. They were practicing suturing and the result for me was bait for the camera trap. I do not go out of my way to bait animals, but I was not going to let these go to waste. I cut out the sutures and chunked the meat into bite sized pieces.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher tracks<br />(Seneca Falls, NY 3/15)</td></tr>
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I am sure glad I waited. It is only a short walk from the house to the camera. The fresh snow obscured all but the most recent tracks. I followed a set of red fox tracks that must have been made only hours earlier as they had no snow in them at all. I arrived at the set, changed the SD card and dropped off the chicken. I decided that I should take a different route back. Almost immediately I encountered a trail that had been snowed in by the day's precipitation. I admit that I was a bit distracted at first and wrote the trail off as fox. But fox didn't fit, This was not a side trot as I had originally thought but rather a lope.<br />
I am reading <i>Animal Tracking Basics </i>by Jon Young and Tiffany Morgan. They advocate looking at a trail or track and listing your three best guesses. So I gave that a try. My first thought was striped skunk (although I knew these tracks were way too big). My second critter was raccoon because coons can leave some really odd track patterns (but I wasn't convinced of that either). My third guess was the hardest of all. I kept telling myself these couldn't possibly be fisher. I have never seen a fisher on my property or even heard of one in the township. I do not have fisher habitat.<br />
Here is another view of those same tracks. The sun was getting low in the sky and that provided <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTCs8BLw70fL7gEXFl6jFAz2UETl48B3GYKhRj18IJW-YfoBk0OhgzLNJQ2R8VRFaKRAW3VPzTQFwEb6r1JF-tuR9Q80LSeirn0Yhms099BsGFm_LQM_vWktr_7hhzIxL88avj4gCao07z/s1600/fisher04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTCs8BLw70fL7gEXFl6jFAz2UETl48B3GYKhRj18IJW-YfoBk0OhgzLNJQ2R8VRFaKRAW3VPzTQFwEb6r1JF-tuR9Q80LSeirn0Yhms099BsGFm_LQM_vWktr_7hhzIxL88avj4gCao07z/s1600/fisher04.jpg" height="400" width="297" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher trail in a lope<br />(Seneca Falls, NY 3/15)</td></tr>
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enough shadow to bring out the detail in these tracks. These had been protected a bit by the trees and had far less snow in them than the first ones I encountered. I bought the ruler in the photo from Sue Morse when I attended one of her tracking workshops. At that workshop, Sue described the toe pattern of a fisher as "C" shaped. I could see that clearly in three of the four tracks shown here. I was still a bit in denial that these were fisher tracks. It is interesting what the mind can do. I really wanted to turn them into something, anything that I would expect to find here in Seneca Falls. I kept telling myself they were fox or just some weird skunk tracks. But I just couldn't make anything else fit besides fisher. And in the words of Mr. Spock (who was paraphrasing Sherlock Holmes): "If you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.". Who am I to argue with Spock (or Holmes for that matter)? But I did. I argued. I resisted. I have one more track photo to show you, the one that convinced me I just couldn't argue anymore.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher tracks<br />(Seneca Falls, NY 3/15)</td></tr>
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Here is as good a fisher track as I was able to find. I found it under the spruces. I learned that from Sue Morse as well. Sue told us several times during that weekend workshop to follow a trail until you found sheltered tracks that would show the details. Fisher like other members of the weasel family have five toes on the front and rear feet. You can make out all the toes in this photo.<br />
I was very excited to say the least. This was the 29th species of wild mammal I have documented on our property (and the title of this entry). It is now one of four that have only been documented a single time (house mouse, beaver and star-nosed mole are the others).<br />
So if I hadn't checked my camera today, I wouldn't have found these fisher tracks as the weather in the next few days will assure that they will soon be gone. But the story is not over. I returned home and slipped the SD card into my laptop. Skunk, deer, opossum, cottontail, and a few others appeared. There was the red fox who left the trail I originally followed. But my prize was there at the end. Any doubts I had about my identification of the tracks were laid to rest by several images of a fisher. The fisher tracks near the camera were obscured by the other tracks that were present and drifting and blowing snow. But once I knew where to look, I was able to find those tracks as well. None of the photos are spectacular, but I will include them here to complete the story.<br />
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Let me share two photos to set the stage and give you some scale. First, a striped skunk. Striped skunks are variable in their pattern and this individual is particularly white. Just below that is an opossum, very obscured by the vegetation. This camera only uses infrared flash at night so none of the photos will be in color.<br />
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Both are about the size of a house cat and both are in nearly the exact spot where the fisher was captured. Here is the first photo of the fisher. You can see that he is laying down tracks as the snow is busily filling them. This animal is clearly larger than the opossum or skunk.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSP2S3RBmCaEqNWhybjkK95TBZKHHBpQNWf-8oQIXbXxp3JeB0SSbiOSF7ef8Dho7BNXihFHfceFCsUyOsnND_i3aUOJLs6aKycz3lR59zIS_KYC2NnD5bAvJ0h2tkqQgs1hHOge0gZzs0/s1600/fisher+first+uncropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSP2S3RBmCaEqNWhybjkK95TBZKHHBpQNWf-8oQIXbXxp3JeB0SSbiOSF7ef8Dho7BNXihFHfceFCsUyOsnND_i3aUOJLs6aKycz3lR59zIS_KYC2NnD5bAvJ0h2tkqQgs1hHOge0gZzs0/s1600/fisher+first+uncropped.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher<br />(Seneca Falls, NY 3/15)</td></tr>
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Here is the second photo of the fisher. I include it here because it shows the tail so well.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq_Nv-5COcX8_ramJ45HBNnyEcKQHz8lw8XzPnNDxpnRQBgLMXRAUmcgg7eBenexBHkthUmzjcrqSET1BCGdJnYUNMxkPx84KoT36eI5FJbIfpPimT6l3lpGvpSGX3RVlnIoEpyFxmrUBf/s1600/fisher+second+uncropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq_Nv-5COcX8_ramJ45HBNnyEcKQHz8lw8XzPnNDxpnRQBgLMXRAUmcgg7eBenexBHkthUmzjcrqSET1BCGdJnYUNMxkPx84KoT36eI5FJbIfpPimT6l3lpGvpSGX3RVlnIoEpyFxmrUBf/s1600/fisher+second+uncropped.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher<br />(Seneca Falls, NY 3/15)<br /></td></tr>
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Finally, the fisher walked so close to the camera that it only captured the top part of his body. I say "his" because I am pretty sure this is a male by size. Females are smaller (as is common in the weasel family).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmbtDKeplREg8pnQ1iSOViBAUu3PhQ5FmfZbNPrwtJj6BWnhGt4bWEU-OIkkuNyW-sRuH49YZZEDwvpr2F7v3ER7npRg-gqmOrIseBVUr7wpFI4zfq9gZNOWF__kN_j5Ru2BNs_kBnQSvG/s1600/fisher+last+uncropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmbtDKeplREg8pnQ1iSOViBAUu3PhQ5FmfZbNPrwtJj6BWnhGt4bWEU-OIkkuNyW-sRuH49YZZEDwvpr2F7v3ER7npRg-gqmOrIseBVUr7wpFI4zfq9gZNOWF__kN_j5Ru2BNs_kBnQSvG/s1600/fisher+last+uncropped.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher<br />(Seneca Falls,NY 3/15)</td></tr>
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What an exciting final day of spring break for me. I head back to classes tomorrow and begin the "Wildlife" section of CON 102 Introduction to Wildlife and Fish. This is a class that is required for all conservation majors at our college and the inspiration for this blog in the first place. I can't wait!John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-19539079076239088502015-02-25T21:55:00.000-05:002015-02-27T13:16:51.776-05:00Winter tracking: Red FoxThis winter has been marked by a large amount of snow and long periods of below freezing temperatures. Although the temperature was only about 24F it was sunny and I strapped on the cross <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMo82R8qDSBPY9uRe-P786yuv8cz6FRHhNhvRaEdeU22GNeoRYPlZdX6LsYCzcw_vDNzJduZ9nWmVZhVSH-BgpwYJRgStcQZct9KFPRQGusoHENj8ZzHwj9wdrdmMR_mN5rb7ddjTnga-1/s1600/foxa01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMo82R8qDSBPY9uRe-P786yuv8cz6FRHhNhvRaEdeU22GNeoRYPlZdX6LsYCzcw_vDNzJduZ9nWmVZhVSH-BgpwYJRgStcQZct9KFPRQGusoHENj8ZzHwj9wdrdmMR_mN5rb7ddjTnga-1/s1600/foxa01.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red fox<br />
(Seneca Falls, NY 2/15)</td></tr>
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country skis to retrieve one of my camera traps. Turns out there has been a lot of fox activity at that site, both red and gray. At right, a red fox noses under the snow for food.<br />
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Next, a gray fox appears after a fresh snow:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqqIpdR_t01xbYb6Wq7Udu65RyY3qiT_T40FaFlTrGA5rQrpdahhqQ24fgnwEQ7XQ1zvp-TiFXa739uMOPkJyNN6H5qGA1HeD3ccC7fEw76lM_a725z04_Loo8HZuSpYUbJoOs8Wdchjen/s1600/foxa02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqqIpdR_t01xbYb6Wq7Udu65RyY3qiT_T40FaFlTrGA5rQrpdahhqQ24fgnwEQ7XQ1zvp-TiFXa739uMOPkJyNN6H5qGA1HeD3ccC7fEw76lM_a725z04_Loo8HZuSpYUbJoOs8Wdchjen/s1600/foxa02.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gray fox<br />
(Seneca Falls, NY 2/15)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp46wNWk4Y0QUiBtzdytAbbibFRscmFznDIwsGIbJoM3l-SjUvVhVg9CuMYPHIv9C09wuHsajOiM8DFytqUZJ45KsQXbV6FdaCBfObKPvexYSeiYOORSTcmL-VM9B6N8i4_JWq2_HErKcf/s1600/foxa03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp46wNWk4Y0QUiBtzdytAbbibFRscmFznDIwsGIbJoM3l-SjUvVhVg9CuMYPHIv9C09wuHsajOiM8DFytqUZJ45KsQXbV6FdaCBfObKPvexYSeiYOORSTcmL-VM9B6N8i4_JWq2_HErKcf/s1600/foxa03.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red fox leaving a trail in the snow<br />
(Seneca Falls, NY 2/15)<br />
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I have been looking at animal tracks in the snow for years. Tracks and trails in the snow are often easy to identify. Up until recently, I have been focusing exclusively on the track itself. This winter, I have paid attention to the changes to the snow below the track. The weight of the animal compresses the snow, packs it down and makes it harder. If you find a trail that has fresh snow on top of it, you could try to gently brush away the new snow and uncover the harder lumps left behind. you could confirm track size, gait and perhaps even direction of travel.<br />
What I found today was a bit different. Instead of fresh snow covering an old trail, I discovered an <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggcKnE9s3nc7t1hKsGpMy4xk3nWYBAOdfz8v6suu3WPL2wFURIAlHzoqHP1wtlzhV-FXvcNeRYV0jN3K7G9bkGdjASqmUW-oG_LMDKXOqPkuYTMWs4YWq97uO-syOQIUWqvE8sboil0lBQ/s1600/fox01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggcKnE9s3nc7t1hKsGpMy4xk3nWYBAOdfz8v6suu3WPL2wFURIAlHzoqHP1wtlzhV-FXvcNeRYV0jN3K7G9bkGdjASqmUW-oG_LMDKXOqPkuYTMWs4YWq97uO-syOQIUWqvE8sboil0lBQ/s1600/fox01.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two red fox trails<br />
(Seneca Falls, NY 2/15)</td></tr>
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old trail that had been scoured by strong winds. The hard compressed snow at the bottom of each track remained while all the other snow was whisked away. In the photo at right, the new trail is towards the bottom of the screen and the older trail is above that. Both foxes are travelling to the left. You can see the shadow of my head in the photo for some scale.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk60rxvHdXwB7JnfGq469IYvIjSRU8XMsEmZXg3SFGaSyejQwbQv_uL2Vs4vXHF-TVw2_ywePX0EthxtudMbgi26ZZLVF6HgeESLXuz7P_FgkklNzvgohi_M5DLbJcznbxok_W3Cv-Mvty/s1600/fox02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk60rxvHdXwB7JnfGq469IYvIjSRU8XMsEmZXg3SFGaSyejQwbQv_uL2Vs4vXHF-TVw2_ywePX0EthxtudMbgi26ZZLVF6HgeESLXuz7P_FgkklNzvgohi_M5DLbJcznbxok_W3Cv-Mvty/s1600/fox02.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Old fox tracks that have been scoured by wind<br />
(Seneca Falls, NY 2/15)</td></tr>
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Here is the same scene but a bit closer. I know that photos of tracks can sometimes produce an optical illusion and it is difficult to see what is depressed and what is raised. In this photo as in the one above, the upper most trail is raised and the lower trail is the fresh trail with impressions in the snow. If you look closely at the upper tracks, you can see that they are almost an inch above the rest of the snow.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsT2pyrWL8szqfqhsevmwBDCO-RdxyU0Z3XZzPTMUekdcRYKo8BsWO7DHoY8cDGqZSn3JuXdjq4WMOqiEDW8r0ZZBH_eoAxagYfKpuw-xkNFlXT2LGxknfztRr08VrQvrzcXcugyEn0rCA/s1600/fox03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsT2pyrWL8szqfqhsevmwBDCO-RdxyU0Z3XZzPTMUekdcRYKo8BsWO7DHoY8cDGqZSn3JuXdjq4WMOqiEDW8r0ZZBH_eoAxagYfKpuw-xkNFlXT2LGxknfztRr08VrQvrzcXcugyEn0rCA/s1600/fox03.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
Here is another view. What is amazing here is that for three steps, this fox matched the old trail perfectly. There is a good chance that this is actually the very same fox taking the very same trail maybe a week apart. I have added some shadow here to provide some depth to the photo. Can you tell the direction of travel? I can.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCIwu5pACYaN_nF8ow87qwiRQbr26XgZPxmb_zLfxyzwFEsYD7tTqHSQ-9dqQW9BKfCQ3qSp0aMy5hyQos8SW3DlVyHZLjozWyx5MwxSIOQB9qZNVCggi6IwlCIA87khoCkxQhGj3t8uvZ/s1600/fox07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCIwu5pACYaN_nF8ow87qwiRQbr26XgZPxmb_zLfxyzwFEsYD7tTqHSQ-9dqQW9BKfCQ3qSp0aMy5hyQos8SW3DlVyHZLjozWyx5MwxSIOQB9qZNVCggi6IwlCIA87khoCkxQhGj3t8uvZ/s1600/fox07.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Compare a fresh and old red fox track in the snow.<br />
(Seneca Falls, NY 2/15)</td></tr>
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There are two pieces of evidence that I can see in the photo that tell me the old trail is heading towards the top of the image. First, if you look closely you can see the faint impressions of the toe pads as well as the palm pad. They are faint, but they are there. Secondly, notice that there is a slight uptick to the hard pack at one end. That is the back of the track. It is literally the spot where the leg itself bore some of the weight of the animal as it stepped in the snow<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red fox track<br />
(Seneca Falls, NY 2/15)</td></tr>
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I scooped the track up and held it in my hand. I smiled thinking that I was probably the only person in the world that was holding a fox track at that very moment. I turned it in the bright sunlight to catch the shadows along the surface. I scraped off all the excess snow until I was left with the hardened lump. I was pleased with myself. It had been a good walk. I felt the cold track in my bare hand and thought of the animal that had made it. It was time to head home. On an impulse, I took a big bite out of the fox track and dropped the rest. A perfect ending to my lesson in the snow.<br />
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<br />John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-32412044466956124252015-02-10T21:15:00.000-05:002015-02-10T21:15:28.766-05:00Winter shrewWe have an old farmhouse that features an unfinished basement. Consequently, we have mice more or less all the time. But over the weekend my wife reported a dark ball of fur darting past the washing machine and she concluded: It was a shrew. So I set a Sherman trap baited with peanut butter and within hours, I captured a short-tailed shrew. I placed him in a cardboard box and took a bit of video with my Go Pro. Got a minute? Watch the video <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsGWzf9q-Nc&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">here.</a><br />
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I wanted to get some photos of the shrew in snow but I didn't want to just release him outdoors. We have had a very cold winter so far with lots of snow. Letting him go outside might jeopardize his survival. So I came up with a different plan. I filled a large Tupperware container with snow and placed the shrew in it. I hoped that I could snap off a few photos before the shrew bolted for the dark corners of the basement. Much to my surprise, the shrew tunneled through the snow and climbed on the edge but refused to leave. I got my photos and then gently returned him to his adopted home.<br />
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One defining characteristic of our shrews is the dark enamel on the teeth. There are white-toothed shrews elsewhere in the world, but our shrews all have dark teeth.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Short-tailed Shrew<br />(2/15, Seneca Falls, NY)</td></tr>
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The short-tailed shrew is very common and may be the most common mammal in New York State. They have small eyes and no visible external ears. They are NOT rodents and therefore not closely related to mice. In fact, the short-tailed shrew can actually prey on mice with their venomous saliva.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyG58yOPyV_R_QUb8_LqkJocv-7Syu6K9zQT1yueBgP8Ml-riQKQNh6BbrgvodHDyhqa3oaoLMpJ5ixbfQA1VcxZ_6ejT5_TB8u26wGrQwk67Kz5cN1UyoMtzi5BLARAC4wAvjmqbIa4aF/s1600/shrew004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyG58yOPyV_R_QUb8_LqkJocv-7Syu6K9zQT1yueBgP8Ml-riQKQNh6BbrgvodHDyhqa3oaoLMpJ5ixbfQA1VcxZ_6ejT5_TB8u26wGrQwk67Kz5cN1UyoMtzi5BLARAC4wAvjmqbIa4aF/s1600/shrew004.jpg" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Short-tailed Shrew<br />(2/15, Seneca Falls, NY)</td></tr>
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Aaaahh.... :) Check out the tiny black eye visible in the photo below. The real story is those whiskers though. This is an animal that uses scent and touch more than vision.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV7b1Nz2hQ9E4joNQxc4dojB6NCWthGGoVD6CUyIi2gWLDskvcCoDclzdiNSk9Z3OGz_Kxt892H7hczM6LzDOwGyfSxTC8Q5dFjrehNJUNcJGmh5OVgnlkZyz7bJi2qwYkd-WK9PBs-Q5u/s1600/shrew005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV7b1Nz2hQ9E4joNQxc4dojB6NCWthGGoVD6CUyIi2gWLDskvcCoDclzdiNSk9Z3OGz_Kxt892H7hczM6LzDOwGyfSxTC8Q5dFjrehNJUNcJGmh5OVgnlkZyz7bJi2qwYkd-WK9PBs-Q5u/s1600/shrew005.jpg" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Short-tailed Shrew<br />(2/15, Seneca Falls, NY)</td></tr>
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Shrew tunnels are smaller in diameter than mouse tunnels. Shrews are active all year and require an enormous amount of calories each day. I have read that the short-tailed shrew specifically takes in 75% of its own weight each day. In that is a lot to find in the subnivean world. I hope my shrew ingests lots of spiders and maybe even some mice in that basement of ours!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWjJfgA0W2tUGltCjiu0NWFf6C8dBDnop8PcPshSYa50tEqhDO2z1up0yTzJg1Op9qT2Y3aSdOwKd7QnS3LX9TFIrT7UhKtxLwzEFxodqrc47rYWY0SglGIhMihQC_5YudSNoXfmfhZDUe/s1600/shrew008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWjJfgA0W2tUGltCjiu0NWFf6C8dBDnop8PcPshSYa50tEqhDO2z1up0yTzJg1Op9qT2Y3aSdOwKd7QnS3LX9TFIrT7UhKtxLwzEFxodqrc47rYWY0SglGIhMihQC_5YudSNoXfmfhZDUe/s1600/shrew008.jpg" height="428" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Short-tailed Shrew tunneling in the snow<br />(2/15, Seneca Falls, NY)</td></tr>
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Did you remember that this was all staged in a little Tupperware full of snow? Here is the shrew getting up on the lip. But after a moment, it was back into the snow!<br />
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One bonus photo: Shrew scat. Whether you call it shrew poop, shrew scat or shrew droppings, it is all the same thing. I am not sure how typical this scat is, but it looks very different than the pellets that are produced by mice.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMK1pej6L8-NiPBkw1rktq5SsEzUTruMmkO4woKDCVoizoNDKgfrPfWX7d_W9eLy9zxto8yexoZKNEsNHhfZPlj1yGg-1mEWo70vAT_g2HGlSUN4pcnqZyFh-FCoROyjZXi7FQ3n6DhvBZ/s1600/shrew010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMK1pej6L8-NiPBkw1rktq5SsEzUTruMmkO4woKDCVoizoNDKgfrPfWX7d_W9eLy9zxto8yexoZKNEsNHhfZPlj1yGg-1mEWo70vAT_g2HGlSUN4pcnqZyFh-FCoROyjZXi7FQ3n6DhvBZ/s1600/shrew010.jpg" height="267" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shrew scat<br />(2/15, Seneca Falls, NY)</td></tr>
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Thanks for reading. Check out my other shrew posts to see a shrew nest and some baby short-tailed shrews.John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-11565935540676408872014-12-07T22:19:00.000-05:002014-12-14T17:29:51.987-05:00On the Trail of the FisherTwo of my fall traditions came together this year in the form of fisher tracks and photos. My father<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHF7ORQhRy-0wxNIj-cCnltHIpLGSjmwnwuR7wYVG3cTXTUI5-g-h-0EJMZ_CPBcflTghhf0uH69JXfsTW_ovTaJqnuh0gPsdGfPWqRNQ_hqClHnbVh1Kq0CXo6fu9eeYD5NjyQe4sy9Kk/s1600/CDY_0002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHF7ORQhRy-0wxNIj-cCnltHIpLGSjmwnwuR7wYVG3cTXTUI5-g-h-0EJMZ_CPBcflTghhf0uH69JXfsTW_ovTaJqnuh0gPsdGfPWqRNQ_hqClHnbVh1Kq0CXo6fu9eeYD5NjyQe4sy9Kk/s1600/CDY_0002.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher crosses a log<br />
11/12, Fremont, NY</td></tr>
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owns about 80 acres of forest and field in the town of Fremont, NY and each fall semester I put out ten camera traps in hopes of capturing images of black bears. Two weeks later, I bring my Black Bear Management class to the property and we retrieve the cameras and look for signs of bear. We did succeed in capturing a (single) image of a black bear but the real star of the show this year was fisher.<br />
Fisher are recent additions to the fauna of that area. In 2012, I saw a fisher from my tree stand and decided that day I would try a camera trap set to capture an image. There is a small gully on the property with a fallen tree acting as a natural bridge. I reasoned that this was a perfect location for a fisher to travel. I was right, It only took 36 hours to capture a fisher with my Cuddeback camera. And it didn't take long to get a second photo:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher crossing log<br />
11/12, Fremont, NY</td></tr>
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Since then, fisher have shown up regularly on my cameras. They really are rapidly expanding their range in our part of New York State. Most of my students have never seen one and many do not live in areas where fisher are common yet. So although we are targeting black bears in this particular project, the fisher photos are welcomed by all.<br />
To increase our chances of bear captures, we set out ten (or so) cameras for two weeks in a variety of situations including game trails, mowed paths and likely looking locations on the landscape. But the <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFLG42thN4LmBrApjgsRFkoE4gXjemnvws7kOrLnTPx1E4z0hww3QmUaAf_6XnwvdkqqgpegF5ig2v9-Fe9KDt2jHm1vMST_tlIDQPoDh6qCvZ4gE7u8KgaIOYMFkIO4CTMZEJIPZCOmKd/s1600/for+fisher+entry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFLG42thN4LmBrApjgsRFkoE4gXjemnvws7kOrLnTPx1E4z0hww3QmUaAf_6XnwvdkqqgpegF5ig2v9-Fe9KDt2jHm1vMST_tlIDQPoDh6qCvZ4gE7u8KgaIOYMFkIO4CTMZEJIPZCOmKd/s1600/for+fisher+entry.jpg" height="229" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adding lure to a rotting log</td></tr>
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secret weapon has been the use of a commercially available lure called Ultimate Bear Lure by a company called Wildlife Research Center. This sweet-smelling lure has brought bears to the cameras in the past but we also get other animals like red fox, raccoon and even deer sniffing at the lure. And of course, fisher. At left is a photo of me taking a minute out of my turkey hunting to freshen up the scent at this set. I chose this location because I believe the rotting log holds the scent better than just pouring it into the ground. Besides, that's my Dad's hunting blind in the background and this set can serve double duty by scouting for deer.<br />
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Although no bears appeared at this set, we did capture a fisher marking over the scent. According to Elbroch and Rinehart (2011), fisher will rub their bellies to scent mark. The Reconyx camera at this set took several bursts of ten images that work almost as a video. Have a look:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/v9PHpiV8wIc?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
This was an exciting capture for me. I love documenting a behavior or other aspect of an animal's natural history. This particular scent marking was new to me, and I was excited to read about it. It wasn't long before I was able to put this new knowledge into practice.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh28Vj5ipQa7Xtg2VUsSL_DZ2dppgTpRAD7uF-WZDZHaToI-LSN70gggephCL4KfdbEjwsJiS5N853cyE8VVRCXWN2Y_LI-QF9f17qYrYopiViJFiW7AEwHbQhQ6q1m6yrb8xOWpFqn3QUg/s1600/2014-11-28_10-25-30_671.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh28Vj5ipQa7Xtg2VUsSL_DZ2dppgTpRAD7uF-WZDZHaToI-LSN70gggephCL4KfdbEjwsJiS5N853cyE8VVRCXWN2Y_LI-QF9f17qYrYopiViJFiW7AEwHbQhQ6q1m6yrb8xOWpFqn3QUg/s1600/2014-11-28_10-25-30_671.jpg" height="298" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher tracks in fresh snow<br />
11/12, Fremont, NY</td></tr>
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I started this blog entry by talking of two autumn traditions. The first was setting camera traps for my bear class and the other is hunting with my Father. This year's deer season didn't produce many deer but was productive in other ways. Last weekend, while heading to my hunting spot, I found fisher tracks. It has snowed overnight so these were very fresh tracks. I wondered if the fisher visited that tree to scent mark. I couldn't detect any odor though. I back tracked this fisher for a few hundred yards. A typical gait for fisher is a lope. Here, the fisher loped down the center of the trail and was straddled by Dad's ATV.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFaQLgoaF7NIUZbATSAB6qIDVeLFHZj_z8x1nHIxYN-OsMauKol6QUywcHXgcJ-sU4_4AyiTMETRMrC-R4uiVe10mZXz0wP4a37bm_4rc3fZyFz0n2-VstPrvBYJ9qy3q1KYtXOjHwm6UN/s1600/2014-11-28_10-25-43_124+(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFaQLgoaF7NIUZbATSAB6qIDVeLFHZj_z8x1nHIxYN-OsMauKol6QUywcHXgcJ-sU4_4AyiTMETRMrC-R4uiVe10mZXz0wP4a37bm_4rc3fZyFz0n2-VstPrvBYJ9qy3q1KYtXOjHwm6UN/s1600/2014-11-28_10-25-43_124+(1).jpg" height="400" width="298" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher tracks</td></tr>
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Fisher are members of the weasel family and have five toes on each foot. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjshT6zMFUgGuuylXEWfeTDw7dS8fxJSdnQWRlXcRKSJ_2bZhhouJ4rui3Z2w5bIui2qNw61CJUJyLlLmhbUa86EgUWRAVtLu81yWFLZe5lemi5xcwPvYAg7KIqMtJjGngHRHbJnvkyy8qj/s1600/2014-11-28_11-01-07_773.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjshT6zMFUgGuuylXEWfeTDw7dS8fxJSdnQWRlXcRKSJ_2bZhhouJ4rui3Z2w5bIui2qNw61CJUJyLlLmhbUa86EgUWRAVtLu81yWFLZe5lemi5xcwPvYAg7KIqMtJjGngHRHbJnvkyy8qj/s1600/2014-11-28_11-01-07_773.jpg" height="400" width="298" /></a></div>
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That night, it snowed again. Maybe an inch, maybe less. In the morning I returned to my deer stand only to find fresh fisher tracks on top of the fisher trail from yesterday. I had questions! Was this the same fisher or another? Why would it retrace its own steps from the night before? Or was he following MY footsteps? Was this another fisher discovering an intruder? All these questions remain</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSdDApNZ0KssOEgzepuh09DccbUOkiBsBhwYiq90HlOsBOtZvhX0Embf24S9zZ7hrYV2AXmVRbqKh9A6rgmCh_zghlB0yiDrBt5XCWCeoGjUkcj-HJQFC0x1H55w0KtQJ2CkIq17qV0aq7/s1600/2014-11-29_09-29-30_376.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSdDApNZ0KssOEgzepuh09DccbUOkiBsBhwYiq90HlOsBOtZvhX0Embf24S9zZ7hrYV2AXmVRbqKh9A6rgmCh_zghlB0yiDrBt5XCWCeoGjUkcj-HJQFC0x1H55w0KtQJ2CkIq17qV0aq7/s1600/2014-11-29_09-29-30_376.jpg" height="298" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher scent marking<br />
11/14, Fremont, NY</td></tr>
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unanswered. As I followed fresh fisher tracks for the second time in two days, I found myself crossing the ATV trail. But this time the fisher did not walk across the trail. It dragged its belly in a scent marking behavior. I have to admit that for a moment I wondered if I was looking at an otter slide. But it was fisher. A fisher doing the same thing in the snow as the one on camera did on the log. In fact, given the large home ranges of fisher, this is most probably the same fisher as the one photographed. I took several pictures of this marking from different angles:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7q50hRCVq6wZ5stdaVxyia9aNwErW0TlslGvP48s8TbE-Sbltq_M4F9Ztq-slCqGkLNL87sDlSlXsh6-yDsFaC1zppN4UsQ_BPVUEXenENFao_IVDhT1UKTPVsJDTVhehtYLd54O2E_eC/s1600/2014-11-29_09-29-42_889.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7q50hRCVq6wZ5stdaVxyia9aNwErW0TlslGvP48s8TbE-Sbltq_M4F9Ztq-slCqGkLNL87sDlSlXsh6-yDsFaC1zppN4UsQ_BPVUEXenENFao_IVDhT1UKTPVsJDTVhehtYLd54O2E_eC/s1600/2014-11-29_09-29-42_889.jpg" height="400" width="298" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIx4IEknw5mjaXuKDGEfYljaoMomNNFjlihnexJYSC9uxhqZCEJMqJY_CVrka8x8HHa19WYbhtxy813FQNddRCuN0n1Hz1ZpZGb8T4PbWxXNV5TNKoYDdQpQ7lBFzaj69XCU9PfkkUUgNH/s1600/2014-11-29_09-30-09_374.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIx4IEknw5mjaXuKDGEfYljaoMomNNFjlihnexJYSC9uxhqZCEJMqJY_CVrka8x8HHa19WYbhtxy813FQNddRCuN0n1Hz1ZpZGb8T4PbWxXNV5TNKoYDdQpQ7lBFzaj69XCU9PfkkUUgNH/s1600/2014-11-29_09-30-09_374.jpg" height="400" width="298" /></a></div>
Above, you can see the imprints that the rear legs left when it shuffled its belly along the ground.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCgb2X-rcL-IidqCLt4jGn9cA5dvY9dhXpesScL8sXayjtr45LZaT6_3BTQVLu9w8Jj6NB01W6JeVYIEM1_Ixl4_9xyZf8LAnfbwoFf21Cx-8Y_TyK7jXt_u5UBenuCOWkk5olp7yo2egR/s1600/2014-11-29_09-30-24_877.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCgb2X-rcL-IidqCLt4jGn9cA5dvY9dhXpesScL8sXayjtr45LZaT6_3BTQVLu9w8Jj6NB01W6JeVYIEM1_Ixl4_9xyZf8LAnfbwoFf21Cx-8Y_TyK7jXt_u5UBenuCOWkk5olp7yo2egR/s1600/2014-11-29_09-30-24_877.jpg" height="400" width="298" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYDZn11MLQlHKyz2tHMCw9dLvl3xYqf6gU0lDgef280lm5U_aTD2nY5pS8wDs1nTpI6EmgmKtOsiPjstbXJsa0E1KRCeISaBkqnsUXwLbHMZF6wsYvLYBabQ9EQgOGhcWMSvNxdJ6eORLE/s1600/2014-11-29_09-29-53_473.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYDZn11MLQlHKyz2tHMCw9dLvl3xYqf6gU0lDgef280lm5U_aTD2nY5pS8wDs1nTpI6EmgmKtOsiPjstbXJsa0E1KRCeISaBkqnsUXwLbHMZF6wsYvLYBabQ9EQgOGhcWMSvNxdJ6eORLE/s1600/2014-11-29_09-29-53_473.jpg" height="400" width="298" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher tracks<br />
11/14, Fremont, Wayland NY</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIkjIoGz9JrxObKuroQnqT8NlUYCNISJIbdA19KyOW8p8ovjTkENxireHcC9YoiE4gZmfqH44ngOs7BUvU_JuijAbkwrU2g6hJffqo7l4jSxPXuNkyjxSwRHJMUUxeydzgF_LM9UJ57-41/s1600/2014-11-29_09-32-55_882.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIkjIoGz9JrxObKuroQnqT8NlUYCNISJIbdA19KyOW8p8ovjTkENxireHcC9YoiE4gZmfqH44ngOs7BUvU_JuijAbkwrU2g6hJffqo7l4jSxPXuNkyjxSwRHJMUUxeydzgF_LM9UJ57-41/s1600/2014-11-29_09-32-55_882.jpg" height="400" width="298" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMI8A_8tRQF9qanEJHSsaSOCRwbZkRqUxEJmzBf0gp46cpwEKGxGr9h8LgsomXUEZWq4FtCZcOnQNAObiHTEyooqa0lXgzldFDIxbHwJxFjVgQbH2zAUNJnrGS9X6dtrJL2xH1WZu5vqDb/s1600/2014-11-29_09-33-07_288.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMI8A_8tRQF9qanEJHSsaSOCRwbZkRqUxEJmzBf0gp46cpwEKGxGr9h8LgsomXUEZWq4FtCZcOnQNAObiHTEyooqa0lXgzldFDIxbHwJxFjVgQbH2zAUNJnrGS9X6dtrJL2xH1WZu5vqDb/s1600/2014-11-29_09-33-07_288.jpg" height="298" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fisher scent marking<br />
11/14, Fremont NY</td></tr>
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This fisher was in the mood to scent mark. Whereas I followed the fisher the day before for over 300 yards and did not find a single scent marking behavior, the fisher trail on this day showed numerous scenting. I found four scent marks within 20 yards of the ATV trail. I could not detect an oder at any of them (although I was stuffed up from a cold). Why the difference? I am left to wonder if somehow I influenced the fisher's behavior. Was the marking due to my footprints (and scent) or was this truly a second fisher marking over an intruder? It is questions like these that make camera trapping and tracking so enjoyable.<br />
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John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-85471988400188441222014-11-11T22:54:00.000-05:002014-11-11T22:54:17.230-05:00Tracking in Rocky Mountain National ParkI had the opportunity to visit Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) around a business meeting I attended in Denver. When I arrived, the weather was sunny and 65F. On my final day, it was 5F and <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyhbcSCHvcgLJN6ZPKKMLX7Nu6q3wNKkB8C7wmS2yjJpACtpuQaV2CntIgFOAN5NSM8k7ECPlnUFWmb9tTkfwbSDh9OcUJZzziHr24BV8A4ystxxwPnR8O5S7A3Cun3DlufhfOxvSyjX87/s1600/RMNP+sign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyhbcSCHvcgLJN6ZPKKMLX7Nu6q3wNKkB8C7wmS2yjJpACtpuQaV2CntIgFOAN5NSM8k7ECPlnUFWmb9tTkfwbSDh9OcUJZzziHr24BV8A4ystxxwPnR8O5S7A3Cun3DlufhfOxvSyjX87/s400/RMNP+sign.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Balmy November day at RMNP<br />Estes Park, CO (11/14)</td></tr>
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had snowed during the night. My goal - dream really - was to get into the park early and drive the roads slowly to find a set of mountain lion tracks that cut the road. This is a common technique for finding tracks (and the cats themselves) but the fresh snow was a mixed blessing. On the one hand, anything I found would be absolutely recent (the nearest I could tell the snow had stopped around midnight), but on the other hand it meant that I would ONLY be finding tracks made in the last eight hours. That was going to make my task a long shot. Spoiler alert: I found no cat tracks. But I did have some interesting tracking experiences. Let me share two:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5lURAxzZ7LxNmLtr32yzapVr01Q7LdyA5WsvD9C2zG9FGPVhXZJglo_3-9ZwiuzE5o2wwoY5KXiAMnD6rqgFv7Eo2EtnQJ6Pf6KvqTNLAC6CnjriTIr3FkSQHvt5qETAToEAMOzxrEOQb/s1600/elk+trails08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5lURAxzZ7LxNmLtr32yzapVr01Q7LdyA5WsvD9C2zG9FGPVhXZJglo_3-9ZwiuzE5o2wwoY5KXiAMnD6rqgFv7Eo2EtnQJ6Pf6KvqTNLAC6CnjriTIr3FkSQHvt5qETAToEAMOzxrEOQb/s400/elk+trails08.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rocky Mountain National Park<br />Estes Park, CO (11/14)</td></tr>
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I wasn't the first to make it into the park today, I was the third. I followed two sets of tire tracks from the park entrance and slowly made my way through the snowy winterland. A pair of coyote trails followed the road for a while and I kept one eye on the distinctive side trot pattern and the other eye on the fresh snow looking for other tracks (that leaves no eyes for the road for those of you counting...). Despite my scrutiny of the road shoulders, it was a scene in a field that caught my eye. As you can see in the photo, everything was covered in a fine powder so when I saw something that WASN'T white, it stood out immediately.<br />
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These elk trails in the grass were so obvious to me but I wonder how many similar scenes I had missed over the years when I was less attuned to wildlife sign. I pulled the rental car over and snapped a few photos:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCpY4d-Uj8L2gYbi_du8TwxX02Y78NKShqtPASaOaebYQ5eI3y9KSLcn5a4alb5hn5yLu0YG1TktxiLULMoEfJAjPpDf3RxMbueiOC0hDIZ_WZoA9sG2qBKk30TG07wlnscX7aGZ2PHXBA/s1600/elk+trails01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCpY4d-Uj8L2gYbi_du8TwxX02Y78NKShqtPASaOaebYQ5eI3y9KSLcn5a4alb5hn5yLu0YG1TktxiLULMoEfJAjPpDf3RxMbueiOC0hDIZ_WZoA9sG2qBKk30TG07wlnscX7aGZ2PHXBA/s400/elk+trails01.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Elk trails in the snow<br />RMNP (11/14)</td></tr>
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The tracks were easy to find as they crossed the road. I took a tracking class a few years ago and <a href="http://davidmoskowitz.net/" target="_blank">David Moskowitz</a> was one of the instructors. He is the author of <a href="http://davidmoskowitz.net/publications/wildlife-of-the-pacific-northwest/" target="_blank">Wildlife of the Pacific Northwest</a> and describes elk tracks as hamburger buns. As a long time burger-eater, I concur:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfcy67mIyuU7Y1KbBa1Iq28_wCT7dWSbbfJeJFs0RDO7-4FogIcGs45ylxZRTQV2FrY24VYNm1XJNKvdvp1MPMRFJs6jlrMmVybgI7REEKk5eo15jPNci_MkcZ_UggFUwcbrC2JuofE0AU/s1600/elk+trails05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfcy67mIyuU7Y1KbBa1Iq28_wCT7dWSbbfJeJFs0RDO7-4FogIcGs45ylxZRTQV2FrY24VYNm1XJNKvdvp1MPMRFJs6jlrMmVybgI7REEKk5eo15jPNci_MkcZ_UggFUwcbrC2JuofE0AU/s400/elk+trails05.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fresh elk tracks<br />RMNP (11/14)</td></tr>
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Here is a photo of the trail:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAJURK-MfDCrerQWy4LMduNz6M4pr2FLn6rdaL6USzkgVjGQAll9div34CXBYuNke9NISWyjmQyfoebuJz1rVXYnzpxgl10jbUJjPID2BotClVbTWKN55KYOx3O4GKdZs56pJAXTyGe_i5/s1600/elk+trails03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAJURK-MfDCrerQWy4LMduNz6M4pr2FLn6rdaL6USzkgVjGQAll9div34CXBYuNke9NISWyjmQyfoebuJz1rVXYnzpxgl10jbUJjPID2BotClVbTWKN55KYOx3O4GKdZs56pJAXTyGe_i5/s400/elk+trails03.jpg" width="286" /></a></div>
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One even scatted for me:<br />
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So I had the trails coming towards me and I had the fresh tracks on the road in front of me. All that was left was for me to look at the direction the traveled. Sure enough, I only had to lift my head to see elk.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi91grN6N7eQ5CTWjG_9u8u_ichmBAFxGsXBz52lpOJZ4HFcdwue46z9VezdXNj1qprjinIq5olNQMuRqKHiOnylxch5wIq5P5C40mVDxhyphenhyphen1KXzhTUx5fDVliN97oWtlRWY-fMNsLISS12Y/s1600/elk+trails02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi91grN6N7eQ5CTWjG_9u8u_ichmBAFxGsXBz52lpOJZ4HFcdwue46z9VezdXNj1qprjinIq5olNQMuRqKHiOnylxch5wIq5P5C40mVDxhyphenhyphen1KXzhTUx5fDVliN97oWtlRWY-fMNsLISS12Y/s400/elk+trails02.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Elk<br />RMNP 11/14)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGoPx7jpz5m7n8UCDwIMJZDTC0lcJMICHrIkiyrzq9jYaAfiaXH8aLB7bPX1S1Y1FL-EiekULIlNX8hL1VeA3q0QSSUrHzhlPPcyJs1bwUbNLD2E0U-a4bM6w4k_c3PHfJc9fWDKxJ-cqa/s1600/elk+trails06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGoPx7jpz5m7n8UCDwIMJZDTC0lcJMICHrIkiyrzq9jYaAfiaXH8aLB7bPX1S1Y1FL-EiekULIlNX8hL1VeA3q0QSSUrHzhlPPcyJs1bwUbNLD2E0U-a4bM6w4k_c3PHfJc9fWDKxJ-cqa/s400/elk+trails06.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Elk<br />RMNP, (11/14)</td></tr>
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There were far more elk above me than the tracks indicated. I looked ahead on the road and found more tracks and more trails. The story was complete.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQYXgZreqPGZJDUx4Yk53QuGvg3EVThhZfsx-zkod7YR-dKI0bWcqPFsYMJcOIG-WmLuLjCHaVxW-mq88wTzlpq-vxUM2FiJ20ZjM1OFhANvLsCzC_Q64r_O1x3zzT4jo20SUb7cDkoPCb/s1600/elk+trails07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQYXgZreqPGZJDUx4Yk53QuGvg3EVThhZfsx-zkod7YR-dKI0bWcqPFsYMJcOIG-WmLuLjCHaVxW-mq88wTzlpq-vxUM2FiJ20ZjM1OFhANvLsCzC_Q64r_O1x3zzT4jo20SUb7cDkoPCb/s400/elk+trails07.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Elk trails in fresh snow<br />RMNP, (11/14)</td></tr>
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There was something very satisfying about this whole encounter. Reading sign that in this case, was verified by the individuals themselves. It was a simple story of a common animal, but I relished it nonetheless.:)<br />
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My second tracking story is more of a mystery. After driving the roads I layered up against the cold and started on a hike up Deer Mountain. The summit was a mere 3.1 miles away with a vertical gain of 1,080 feet. I was the only car parked at the trailhead. I brought the small lens instead of the telephoto as I was going to primarily take photos of wildlife tracks and sign. I spotted a nice variety of tracks including long-tailed weasel, elk, mule deer, snowshoe hare, mountain cottontail, chipmunk sp, red squirrel and perhaps one or two others that I have forgotten.<br />
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Here is a nice mule deer track to compare to the elk tracks above Not only are they smaller in size, but they are a different shape. Gone is the hamburger bun, replaced by a heart.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5XkEpIUtlXExBpQdxtY5gS8ggIvYM3DE36DMCm01FevPdgcQJHnUTU7N0pibvr5RTa6r41x66OQhVKMwij_hCls1Q8bgHMVnudLKXdDXEJdqNkP_jOzWX2c7-5-oYp0Lq7W_F6_4KcYgw/s1600/mule+deer+track+901.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5XkEpIUtlXExBpQdxtY5gS8ggIvYM3DE36DMCm01FevPdgcQJHnUTU7N0pibvr5RTa6r41x66OQhVKMwij_hCls1Q8bgHMVnudLKXdDXEJdqNkP_jOzWX2c7-5-oYp0Lq7W_F6_4KcYgw/s400/mule+deer+track+901.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mule deer track<br />RMNP, (11/14)</td></tr>
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I enjoyed the solitude and the view. The trail switchbacked up into a sparse pine forest.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipveYXlnCBMdLMsKDiqtnlts-QSrKQuFY8XEFpEn6AJrCO6ZCp2zdsbrDVEaSRB3TBmQ0fcDfPh1adCGpUmDwQC7SEi7Eaqbj0zj7ogS4cRWMpe2qIHt3AnVr-3qa2T0hcguOyFGpRhECg/s1600/deer+mountain+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipveYXlnCBMdLMsKDiqtnlts-QSrKQuFY8XEFpEn6AJrCO6ZCp2zdsbrDVEaSRB3TBmQ0fcDfPh1adCGpUmDwQC7SEi7Eaqbj0zj7ogS4cRWMpe2qIHt3AnVr-3qa2T0hcguOyFGpRhECg/s400/deer+mountain+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Deer Mountain Trail<br />RMNP (11/14)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaSCVHqHosKgg8N0EfMVGhDg-YKo6yl9kl3SZWfF95sQUuIE86KuZAv-LXSRGgxfNKBIZC9LXvwr9kCpU96u99JhlPb1RdJ2EWCSupfLaPOQAfPWhjMMYNchHJrO-gbvgLsuyD7c85O5Jy/s1600/jvn001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaSCVHqHosKgg8N0EfMVGhDg-YKo6yl9kl3SZWfF95sQUuIE86KuZAv-LXSRGgxfNKBIZC9LXvwr9kCpU96u99JhlPb1RdJ2EWCSupfLaPOQAfPWhjMMYNchHJrO-gbvgLsuyD7c85O5Jy/s400/jvn001.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Selfie<br />RMNP, (11/14)</td></tr>
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As I neared the summit, I saw a snow-covered shape in the trail. My first thought was "That rock looks just like a rabbit." My second thought: "That is a rabbit."<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2xPM1ISgtUfPRpCH9-ziQuDwoHQxrwfrmuHMlxn1VCdiVAJ6q1rhGhVQSxSABDufTuL0odRaYpPzTgqdwZoXuV1F1yEmNf0n8w2M7rLm2FaRntJbPfacUOJFyVYVM2iIPVBoCVF5KcbzO/s1600/deer+mountain+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2xPM1ISgtUfPRpCH9-ziQuDwoHQxrwfrmuHMlxn1VCdiVAJ6q1rhGhVQSxSABDufTuL0odRaYpPzTgqdwZoXuV1F1yEmNf0n8w2M7rLm2FaRntJbPfacUOJFyVYVM2iIPVBoCVF5KcbzO/s400/deer+mountain+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dead mountain or Nuttall's cottontail<br />RMNP, (11/14)</td></tr>
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I cautiously brushed off some snow and saw that it had been killed by a wound to the throat. Weasels are known for that type of kill. Some of the flesh was eaten, but i will save you from the gruesome photos.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj52Rqqb5KMeobSbmglz_rJOJlIihicPmcwZKnHpGNeISEw9PaIr2ZE-Js8_JyxxCVU3ZpGf0pUJHmvLRSTN87gYQszmRiWntx1eNgiQx65df5EX7dQavWODgdG7WuugEUtUeAZKPMDm0f1/s1600/deer+mountain+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj52Rqqb5KMeobSbmglz_rJOJlIihicPmcwZKnHpGNeISEw9PaIr2ZE-Js8_JyxxCVU3ZpGf0pUJHmvLRSTN87gYQszmRiWntx1eNgiQx65df5EX7dQavWODgdG7WuugEUtUeAZKPMDm0f1/s400/deer+mountain+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">RMNP, (11/14)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgle4Y_EPp-yDxSMjp7xZqfwK1GuXpOLQywDOmEfw5pQiomaZbyAnUT95GHjCyAUc7gvd2GFX6JFR53iicEHaYCJX0kWITRxgYwKtz_z0mIHcmBsuIMrOm4ZdXxY-HDA2xDfLEdnZfvvzlp/s1600/deer+mountain+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgle4Y_EPp-yDxSMjp7xZqfwK1GuXpOLQywDOmEfw5pQiomaZbyAnUT95GHjCyAUc7gvd2GFX6JFR53iicEHaYCJX0kWITRxgYwKtz_z0mIHcmBsuIMrOm4ZdXxY-HDA2xDfLEdnZfvvzlp/s400/deer+mountain+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cause of death was a bite to the throat<br />RMNP, (11/14)</td></tr>
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One member of the weasel family that could be a suspect here is the marten (<i>Martes americanus</i>). Here is a video I found of a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpKJA9sJ1Ac" target="_blank">marten killing a rabbit</a>. But I had not seen any marten tracks. I HAD found long-tailed weasel tracks. Twice along this trail. The lack of blood would also be indicative of this weasel as they are known to lick up the blood from a kill. I am not certain the l-t weasel was the culprit, but since the snow had covered up the evidence, I was free to speculate and move on. So I did. And I only took a few steps when I noticed that the snow had not erased ALL the evidence. Look here:<br />
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This is a terrible photo looking back towards the dead rabbit. I wasn't paying attention to proper exposure, tricky when taking photos of snow. But if you look down the center of the photo, you can see that there is a trough under the snow. A furrow that had been snowed over, as if the rabbit had been dragged to its present location. Still can't see it? It runs the length of the photo, pretty much in the center. Let me try to darken the photo and see if that helps...<br />
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Well, on my monitor I can see the drag mark now. Here is another that I had to darken as well:<br />
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Here you can see rabbit tracks emerging from the left side of the photo and the start of the drag on the right side leading to the bottom right corner. I believe this is where the rabbit was killed. Could a long-tailed weasel drag a mountain cottontail 20 yards? Maybe. It was dragged downhill and there was a coating of snow present to help reduce friction. The fresh snow made it impossible to tell the whole story. But I enjoyed trying to puzzle it out. I left the rabbit where I found it. I wonder what the next hiker will find.<br />
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<br />John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-72818640379270834402014-07-30T21:01:00.001-04:002014-07-30T21:01:06.329-04:00Small Mammal Trapping: Techniques for safe captureIf I asked most people to quickly name three mammals, I believe most of them would name larger mammals. Pets like dogs or cats, farm animals like horses or cows and zoo animals like elephants and giraffes would probably be common. Yet this is such a skewed sample of the mammals that currently live on this planet. Although our minds go to the more charismatic examples of mammals, the truth is that over 90% of mammal species are small. Merritt (2010) defines a small mammal as one weighing five kilograms or less. For my students and I, that translates to about 11 pounds. Woodchucks weigh about 11 pounds and are among the largest of the small mammals. This blog entry will focus on the smaller small mammals: Mice, small squirrels like chipmunks and shrews.<br />
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I am not currently engaged in any small mammal research (beyond simple inventorying of species) but I teach proper capture and handling techniques in my classes. Let's review the equipment first.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnC266q0X9frNuthHnltAeuh7Ru_lkm-7rh5u1z1otkwLMg3HdOwRhYimpqDVE74a7hbEe8lVcoD0u1SbOrMAIDJAcOIQZ0g1X2z9I4UOhdQvFXyrWcHDthpHFSCscYz6bljVTFvLVh7E8/s1600/set+trap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnC266q0X9frNuthHnltAeuh7Ru_lkm-7rh5u1z1otkwLMg3HdOwRhYimpqDVE74a7hbEe8lVcoD0u1SbOrMAIDJAcOIQZ0g1X2z9I4UOhdQvFXyrWcHDthpHFSCscYz6bljVTFvLVh7E8/s1600/set+trap.jpg" height="285" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sherman trap at a forest location<br />
Naples, NY (7/14)</td></tr>
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The photo at left shows a type of trap called a Sherman trap. Here is the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherman_trap" target="_blank">link</a> to the short entry on these traps in Wikipedia. Note that you can go to the company website from there if you want information on sizes, prices, etc. These traps have become the standard for live trapping as they are light, durable and fairly easy to clean. Importantly, they keep the trapped animal secure inside solid walls rather than a wire mesh cage. This provides the captured critter with more protection from weather and they may feel more secure as the closed trap is similar to a hole or burrow that most small mammals would seek for shelter. The flag serves several purposes. First, it makes the trap easier to locate. And by numbering the flags data collection is simplified. This is deployment #13 on the blue transect. Finally, if animals are not processed at the spot they are collected, a flag allows field workers to return the animal to the exact location it was captured.<br />
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Traps such as these require bait to increase the capture rate. I mean, a small mammal could stumble in and investigate, but bait is needed to really make this work. Much has been written regarding <a href="https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&rlz=1C1TSNF_enUS463US464&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=small+mammal+bait" target="_blank">various bait effectiveness</a>. We use the following recipe ( I believe credit goes to SUNY ESF???):<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhX2JMqZX5aaX_belLKJJ3gd3SsGGgsLN4WVWHKTiZWg_f3JXYfKFvUGVgIKZVV95dYvVDxZzxL0t2dULC2iqjkFUoNh2gos5QXe7-VgT8zVRRoEbra-E-nuqA8dnn9DLGH3P4qLOdyRwI/s1600/recipe-card-1_4x6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhX2JMqZX5aaX_belLKJJ3gd3SsGGgsLN4WVWHKTiZWg_f3JXYfKFvUGVgIKZVV95dYvVDxZzxL0t2dULC2iqjkFUoNh2gos5QXe7-VgT8zVRRoEbra-E-nuqA8dnn9DLGH3P4qLOdyRwI/s1600/recipe-card-1_4x6.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sasha makes this for us but I believe this is a SUNY ESF recipe</td></tr>
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A few things about this recipe. It is pretty simple and we have had good success with it. Other popular ingredients include raisins, molasses and nuts. It is difficult to break it into perfect squares, so we usually are faced with a plastic bag full of oddly shaped pieces. I tell the students to use bait about the size of a Starburst candy. There is really no need to use more. Traps are checked frequently and there is no chance the animal would need more food.<br />
We also place cotton balls in the traps along with the bait. Cotton serves several purposes. It acts as insulation against the cold of the bare metal and it also gives the captured animal something to do. In my experience, captured rodents often shred the cotton balls and create a "nest".<br />
Other useful equipment for setting traps includes plastic gloves for handling bait, GPS receiver for marking trap locations and a notebook. Please note that there is a different equipment list for checking traps.<br />
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To increase capture rate, we typically pre-bait traps for about a week. This entails setting the traps in their transects, adding cotton balls (I like to use two) and bait and leaving the back door open so any animal that enters the trap is free to leave. This can increase capture rate by getting the animals used to visiting the trap for a reward (bait). We try to re-bait every second or third day. It also gives us a chance to see the activity level in the area. If many traps are being cleaned out, we expect a bigger capture when the traps are finally set. One disadvantage of pre-baiting is that larger animals can also find your traps. We have had problems with raccoons, striped skunks and gray squirrels finding and raiding traps. Here are some examples:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUUnPQbDEZGepT9LpyTiPB3X79t0FAQYcJq06ZbYrjveY4VSbjen47Jcx6R2ej1sUN59hVE-psFm2RXBztbVnpC_3cMS1YMwB3g3PkS-CJQW028OqKD_e_pNJrs0VvapVDWTrvzmbEuqJ2/s1600/sherman+trap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUUnPQbDEZGepT9LpyTiPB3X79t0FAQYcJq06ZbYrjveY4VSbjen47Jcx6R2ej1sUN59hVE-psFm2RXBztbVnpC_3cMS1YMwB3g3PkS-CJQW028OqKD_e_pNJrs0VvapVDWTrvzmbEuqJ2/s1600/sherman+trap.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Striped skunk raiding a Sherman trap<br />Canandaigua, NY (11/13)</td></tr>
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Last November, we had several transects set on the main campus at FLCC. One was being raided. We set a camera trap and captured this striped skunk opening the trap and eating the bait. Sherman traps open like this to facilitate cleaning (there is a model that folds that does not open). In this case, pre-baiting allowed this skunk to find our traps and raid them numerous times during the week. To counter this, we used a small rope and two tent stakes to hold down each trap and the skunk was unable to get the bait.<br />
Each May we offer a Conservation Field Camp course and small mammal trapping is part of that. Here, two technicians set and bait a Sherman trap specifically targeting flying squirrels.<br />
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This time it was a gray squirrel causing us problems:<br />
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A final example is more recent. We had traps set at our East Hill Campus in Naples for the past several weeks and one or more raccoons were hitting two of the four transects. Here, Sasha walks away from a trap after setting it. You can see that the back door is closed. The spring-loaded front door is facing away from the camera.<br />
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It only took about five and a half hours for this coon to visit. He found this set during the pre-baiting period. In this photo he is starting to reach into the trap.<br />
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It is difficult for him to reach the bait without triggering the trap. By now, I bet this guy has enough experience with these traps to know that if he pulls out his arm without the bait, he won't get a second chance as the door will close.<br />
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As mad as I get at them, this picture makes me smile. </div>
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The rock wall transect was getting hit as well. Here is a pre-bait photo. Notice first that you are looking at an open back door. The back door is not spring loaded so animals are free to move in and out. To try to increase the camera trap captures at this photo, Sasha placed some natural bait (hickory nuts and mushrooms) on a rock.<br />
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Less than two hours later, an eastern chipmunk enters the trap and presumably takes some of the bait.<br />
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As hoped, there were lots photos at this location, including some mice in the genus <i>Peromyscus. </i>Check out this mouse in mid-leap with an open Sherman trap in the background. I thought "What a lucky shot! That'll never happen again." Well.....<br />
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... I was almost right. Several nights later, I got a photo of presumably the same mouse JUST ABOUT to make the same leap. So I did not get him mid-leap, but I did capture the same behavior a second time.<br />
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And then a third... Here I present them to you in the order they were taken. All were captured on different nights. But when I use these in class, I will be putting them in "order" to make it look like a sequence of three photos of one mouse making one jump :)<br />
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But back to marauding raccoons. Here is the last image of the trap with the back door open. Notice the edge of the opening. </div>
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Since the last photo, Sasha has closed the back door, set the spring loaded front door, re-baited the trap and turned it around so that the opening is still in the same direction as it was during the pre-bait week. Can you see how the edge of the opening looks different than in the photo above? The front door opening has a bit of a lip that the door closes against.<br />
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Here is the very next photo captured. The door is closed and the mushrooms have been moved. Obviously, the camera missed some things.<br />
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Not far behind was this raccoon. When we checked the traps, this one was tossed open and empty. Was there a critter in the trap when the coon opened it? Probably, but we will never know for sure.<br />
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Once we capture a small mammal, the handling protocols we use are designed to assure a safe and quick experience. For example, shrews are particularly susceptible to trap-stress, so our protocol calls for processing them first. Students are instructed to keep noise to a minimum. We still talk, but we use our inside voices. Students work in pairs with one wielding the clipboard while the other processes the animal. And as mentioned previously, animals are returned to the exact location of their capture.<br />
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Let's start at the beginning. Students check all the traps in a given transect. If there is a small mammal captured in a trap, the trap label is marked with the flag number and color and taken to the processing location. Since the goal of the activity is to teach the students how to participate in all aspects of small mammal trapping and handling, we process the animals in a central location so we can all learn from all captures. You may wish to process animals right at the capture site depending on your research question.<br />
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Removing an animal from the trap is not difficult, but does take some practice.<br />
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Here, FLCC professor Clinton Krager places a large Ziploc bag over the back door of a Sherman trap. The bag opening is folded over so the animal cannot escape. We use plastic bags for two reasons. It is easier to see the animal in the plastic bag rather than a cloth bag and therefore makes the process go faster. The animals do not spend much time in the plastic bag so they do not run out of air or get too hot.<br />
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Sometimes an animal is reluctant to leave a trap even after shaking it a little. A nice trick is to aim the opening up. Often an animal will scoot right out.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Author removing a flying squirrel from a live trap<br />Photo credit: Alyssa Johnson</td></tr>
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When the animal is in the bag, the bag and contents are weighed. Usually, the cotton and some bait are in the bag as well as the animal. Once the animal is removed from the bag, the bag and contents are weighed and subtracted from the total to find the true weight of the animal.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Weighing a mouse with a spring scale<br />Canandaigua, NY (4/14)</td></tr>
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The next step is removing the animal from the bag. Here, Clinton holds the bag against his leg and uses one <br />
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hand outside of the bag to hold the animal while sliding his other hand onto the bag to grab the animal by the scruff of the neck. Again, the animal spends a short amount of time in the bag and the researcher can see the animal easily. I have also found that animals will latch on to cloth bags with teeth and claws making them harder to extract. This technique works very well with small small mammals. It does not work well with larger small mammals like gray squirrels. Oh, and flying squirrels have lots of loose skin and can be difficult to hold so that they cannot reach around and bite.<br />
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Sasha is holding an eastern chipmunk properly. This was her first chipmunk. They can be bitey, so she was using gloves. The data we collect is pretty basic. I mentioned weight. We record the species, gender, total and tail lengths and age (adult, immature or unknown).<br />
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If we are holding an animal for any length of time (to let students observe it), we place it in a jar. The jar <br />
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makes it easier to see and most animals calm right down when placed inside. Meadow voles will begin grooming almost immediately when put in a jar.<br />
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Finally, we have experimented with different methods of marking small mammals. Ear tags are available in various sizes and easily attached to most critters (not shrews). Since I am not engaged in a research project that requires permanent marking, I do not ear tag. However, we do use non-toxic markers to make an X on the belly. It does not last very long, but it works for a quick mark-recapture study.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Male with enlarged testes and large distance from the<br />anus to the genital<br />Naples, NY (7/14)</td></tr>
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<br />John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-91665262016206032512014-04-28T22:53:00.000-04:002014-04-30T21:31:44.070-04:00Northern Short-tailed Shrew Nest, Latrine and CacheGreetings everyone! I have been slow to blog in 2014 due to a very busy schedule. This weekend's wildlife encounter forced me out of exile and back into the blogosphere. On Friday evening, we hosted the FLCC Student Chapter of The Wildlife Society for a nice spaghetti dinner (thank you Laura!) followed by a woodcock walk on our property. We checked for tracks in muddy spots, looked at muskrat lodges in the wetland, learned a little about native warm-season grasses and tried to find spring peepers in the pond. But one of my highlights is always flipping over some old pieces of siding to see who might be living underneath.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Short-tailed Shrew<br />
Seneca Falls, NY (4/14)</td></tr>
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I should explain that I have been a "flipper-over" for a very long time. I saw my very first weasel when I was a teenager by looking under an old sheet of plywood. I found my first Norway rat under an old automobile hood. Childhood successes such as those made me a life-long investigator of all things flip-able. So I was very excited when our first piece of corrugated siding produced a short-tailed shrew. One of my students caught the shrew and I held it for all to see. Sasha (club adviser and FLCC Technician) noticed a nest and we concluded it was the shrew's. It was empty.<br />
On Sunday, my wife and I took a walk to look for antlers and decided we could risk disturbing momma shrew and flipped the siding again. We waited patiently and within a few minutes, the shrew began to nose around at her newly disturbed world.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Molting short-tailed shrew<br />
Seneca Falls, NY (4/14)</td></tr>
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In the photo above, you can see a bit more of the shrew and she is clearly molting out of her winter coat. I guess it makes sense, but I honestly never thought of shrews molting before. Notice how small the eye is. Shrews are not known for having good eyesight. She slowly emerged from her tunnel and made her way into the grass...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Northern short-tailed shrew emerging from tunnel<br />
Seneca Falls, NY (4/14)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">There is the short tail that gives this species of shrew its common name.<br />
Seneca Falls, NY (4/14)</td></tr>
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I decided it was worth it to peek into the nest. I have only ever found one other shrew nest and blogged about it <a href="http://con102.blogspot.com/2012/04/northern-short-tailed-shrew-nest.html" target="_blank">here.</a> But if there were shrews in this nest, they would be less than two days old. We carefully peeled back the dried grasses to find a ball of leaves. And inside the leaves were eight tiny altricial shrews.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWhyaJGIbw5ZI9VXaMMjO54c5xBE_Azr67pGgJqbmPZfe7jr6ys4gfAi1-wZ4339hyphenhyphencGXEAD_FPFcfCWSbngF6OM8F8dMlpBjYlNetwNyxuETBZd1_Le3AbUwFPWTTNuc8WH0UmhjKSbAJ/s1600/shrew+nest+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWhyaJGIbw5ZI9VXaMMjO54c5xBE_Azr67pGgJqbmPZfe7jr6ys4gfAi1-wZ4339hyphenhyphencGXEAD_FPFcfCWSbngF6OM8F8dMlpBjYlNetwNyxuETBZd1_Le3AbUwFPWTTNuc8WH0UmhjKSbAJ/s1600/shrew+nest+01.jpg" height="285" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baby shrews in nest<br />
Seneca Falls, NY (4/14)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYmlYKR0QzWzPgmkYDVQsLmqU4NFZIHigoWJfzBIYP5wBHTPq_BXwUJ9pf8GrlnaVJmdajTxEDFhRCY_UUeXak-dScxT-jIruXolwCRTS4R_aI2QdCW-RotKn2rFda3P64jFO_aTgobq_q/s1600/shrew+nest+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYmlYKR0QzWzPgmkYDVQsLmqU4NFZIHigoWJfzBIYP5wBHTPq_BXwUJ9pf8GrlnaVJmdajTxEDFhRCY_UUeXak-dScxT-jIruXolwCRTS4R_aI2QdCW-RotKn2rFda3P64jFO_aTgobq_q/s1600/shrew+nest+02.jpg" height="640" width="456" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look for five digits on the front foot to rule out mice<br />
Seneca Falls, NY (4/14)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsyF4WSCUrGeePsbLF-aOARDGOitcOaRkslxK59szAia-7_4aPyBW97nPz_J8DuaZ53nfNZsezXbsD-71Pm_NVq9D8uEUIFuDp0pPWUGnfdcoxW71MnufOtWFmdRmrcr-3tjiXiom9zrz0/s1600/nest+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsyF4WSCUrGeePsbLF-aOARDGOitcOaRkslxK59szAia-7_4aPyBW97nPz_J8DuaZ53nfNZsezXbsD-71Pm_NVq9D8uEUIFuDp0pPWUGnfdcoxW71MnufOtWFmdRmrcr-3tjiXiom9zrz0/s1600/nest+03.jpg" height="287" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baby short-tailed shrews in nest<br />
Seneca Falls, NY (4/14)</td></tr>
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We carefully covered the babies and I quickly snapped a few photos of the other items under the siding. There was a large pile of scat within a foot of the nest. I cannot imagine it was made by any other species (especially given how fresh some of the scat was). However, the diameter seemed rather large when I compare it to published information. Elbroch says up to 3/16 inches in diameter and although I did not measure the scat, it sure seemed larger than that. He also states that when they are feeding on worms or other soft bodied animals, the scats would be "soft squirts". Well, that certainly describes the freshest of the scats. Here is the latrine:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjus3gcX3LXJpZxO4Fh_xjQQVowXnJNxkX0Ky3dTGUsyaDH24L4YOXuGoO8GBQyOSxsb5f6QJCcmQn4llCImKh3qbDZtKZol74HZS4FXWGVYWPKwzIoVPbDz_g6B6b2Ur4eQnocF1aWFhKk/s1600/shrew+latrine+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjus3gcX3LXJpZxO4Fh_xjQQVowXnJNxkX0Ky3dTGUsyaDH24L4YOXuGoO8GBQyOSxsb5f6QJCcmQn4llCImKh3qbDZtKZol74HZS4FXWGVYWPKwzIoVPbDz_g6B6b2Ur4eQnocF1aWFhKk/s1600/shrew+latrine+01.jpg" height="286" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Short-tailed shrew latrine<br />
Seneca Falls, NY (4/14)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggHkUcqbsOGXe-iucZTEOasaLKRgQkuiud0XuZlojbszt26xTxlHwR3nMVxnuJWNW6ezYC6MPdEDIa8i7VJvbOvETqF0OBPZSti6-cauKzDrOMgNptCAwuIhcX7ZVVhilLTbUkNkmVrsWY/s1600/shrew+latrine+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggHkUcqbsOGXe-iucZTEOasaLKRgQkuiud0XuZlojbszt26xTxlHwR3nMVxnuJWNW6ezYC6MPdEDIa8i7VJvbOvETqF0OBPZSti6-cauKzDrOMgNptCAwuIhcX7ZVVhilLTbUkNkmVrsWY/s1600/shrew+latrine+02.jpg" height="286" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Short-tailed shrew latrine. This is the end that was closest to the nest.<br />
Seneca Falls, NY (4/14)</td></tr>
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The piece of corrugated siding was about four feet by three feet. Besides the nest and the latrine, I noticed two spots with concentrations of earthworms. Now, this entire area was bare of vegetation, yet the only earthworms to be seen were in two small areas. They were alive but slow moving. I have to believe they were cached by the shrew. Have a look:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-bJBi_7R0iYm7xh_XvbNSO5c1Z7idiZAAt2F0jPBuGjskfIhcv8Nx1rPH8tiAygoo4uDVugVqBJr7ONX_TdkijcLDIXoVFowa5ynXovos9jlfTiBqe2y9mHfvVHQg-CyQ7Hhz0DFXBea5/s1600/shrew+food+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-bJBi_7R0iYm7xh_XvbNSO5c1Z7idiZAAt2F0jPBuGjskfIhcv8Nx1rPH8tiAygoo4uDVugVqBJr7ONX_TdkijcLDIXoVFowa5ynXovos9jlfTiBqe2y9mHfvVHQg-CyQ7Hhz0DFXBea5/s1600/shrew+food+01.jpg" height="640" width="454" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Worms cached by short-tailed shrew<br />
Seneca Falls, NY (4/14)</td></tr>
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I wonder if the worms had been injected with some of the venom these shrews have in their saliva. That would explain how they could be cached alive. The large one near the top of the photo looks damaged.<br />
I hope I did not disturb her too much but I learned a lot from this encounter. Latrine, cache, nest.... it was all here! I will check again after the young have left the nest and see what else I can find.<br />
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John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-52198087543337475642014-03-10T21:50:00.000-04:002014-03-12T14:26:16.087-04:00Christmas on the Baja Peninsula I have been away from blogging recently due to a busy schedule and have honestly missed it. It has been <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsvDxQOfYt2pRS1NWtmj2PjmwN7jcaf2SZT2EZZv40N3JEuSKwWaUARRp7tQMLfIOw6SNYuQf6auhGPCdv9jJ4QbZOpqdPw7iID0waEuP-c0lvuUSWLdhE1QoeqgYrGAQMhElupOZDfHE9/s1600/shadows01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsvDxQOfYt2pRS1NWtmj2PjmwN7jcaf2SZT2EZZv40N3JEuSKwWaUARRp7tQMLfIOw6SNYuQf6auhGPCdv9jJ4QbZOpqdPw7iID0waEuP-c0lvuUSWLdhE1QoeqgYrGAQMhElupOZDfHE9/s1600/shadows01.jpg" height="285" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Family portrait on the island of Espiritu Santos, Baja Mexico</td></tr>
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good therapy for me to write and I have learned a lot in the process. It is March as I write this but my thoughts have returned to our last family adventure: a Christmas trip to Mexico. We booked our tour through ROW Adventures and enjoyed every bit of it. We hiked, kayaked and snorkeled. We swam with sea lions and whale sharks. It was a true adventure! Five days and four nights of kayaking and camping were complimented with a few nights in a hotel and two nights at a lodge. Here are some of the highlights.<br />
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Christmas was on a Wednesday this year. That meant the public school vacation would extend 16 days. We decided to take advantage of that block of time and found a tour that advertised great activities and some interesting wildlife encounters. We left the unusually harsh NY winter on Christmas Eve and flew through Mexico City then connected on to La Paz, Mexico on the Baja Peninsula. That evening, we met our guides "Charo" and Damian, as well as the other family that was on the kayaking portion of the tour. We were fitted with wetsuits and snorkeling gear and given dry bags to pack our gear. We left early Christmas morning by motor boat for the island of Espiritu Santos and four nights of camping.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6arb7P1hPogJvidvNlSaRRDe-UOUEB4k7iUO7xH5p_nYGyLeO1uMr9hXQ9f1Ulb0tqMVjsjW0wjnaKOKAC8QIHz9YXfLXLIJvpMML2vyK4gZ8oBkMmxstSTbfWPk_EXiA75wF21MFk-Ht/s1600/mex007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6arb7P1hPogJvidvNlSaRRDe-UOUEB4k7iUO7xH5p_nYGyLeO1uMr9hXQ9f1Ulb0tqMVjsjW0wjnaKOKAC8QIHz9YXfLXLIJvpMML2vyK4gZ8oBkMmxstSTbfWPk_EXiA75wF21MFk-Ht/s1600/mex007.jpg" height="286" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Laura and Danika, Christmas Day 2013</td></tr>
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When we arrived on the island, we were given some additional instructions regarding kayak operation and how to pack it evenly. Each day we paddled only about four hours, giving us enough time to set up camp at each beach and explore the upland areas a bit. We saw rays jumping, dolphins swimming and everywhere there were birds. Gulls, pelicans and frigatebirds were the norm.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUyA06rYk3w8QU55ud_tBk6DcACTJBY1EKlSIb8BFGNtfRa7hYO9fApvU7mHiElmBCBiE1ux_EyrPWGrVNUXgXQVhHCvrXiEXbW0NQnYPM2y8JmFLkz1ML03maJiS4hu7a5R4JYNnG-9Ul/s1600/mex032.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUyA06rYk3w8QU55ud_tBk6DcACTJBY1EKlSIb8BFGNtfRa7hYO9fApvU7mHiElmBCBiE1ux_EyrPWGrVNUXgXQVhHCvrXiEXbW0NQnYPM2y8JmFLkz1ML03maJiS4hu7a5R4JYNnG-9Ul/s1600/mex032.jpg" height="283" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Magnificent Frigatebird, male<br />
Baja, Mexico (12/13)</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivvoB9WysnnBAn5To-PpC0jjyVTBRUDJ91rrZ5ot_OPPXXVzzF8MojxjHQd7mfqy-xG0bYMVxxvkTsw7KEg7d1MMeQwWM5I7AW5C_5qS7NeBDFg-fQbhyphenhyphentXkQI5QVN8_ifR9dBkondIiUl/s1600/lizard01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivvoB9WysnnBAn5To-PpC0jjyVTBRUDJ91rrZ5ot_OPPXXVzzF8MojxjHQd7mfqy-xG0bYMVxxvkTsw7KEg7d1MMeQwWM5I7AW5C_5qS7NeBDFg-fQbhyphenhyphentXkQI5QVN8_ifR9dBkondIiUl/s1600/lizard01.jpg" height="229" width="320" /></a></div>
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Picture the habitat of southern Arizona, but along the ocean. Once I turned from the ocean, I would swear I was in the Sonoran desert south of Tucson. The cardon cactus looked to me the same as the saguaro I had seen years ago in AZ. However, the fact that we were on an island with very little fresh water in the Sea of Cortez meant a very muted fauna. So although the bird life was abundant, we only saw one species of land mammal (Black-tailed Jackrabbit).<br />
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The morning of our final day on the island was spent taking a short motorboat trip to snorkel with sea lions at a small rock jutting up from the ocean. This was one of the highlights of the trip for me. The sea lions ranged from tolerant to outright social with us. If you watch the video <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GveVWj2B_TI" target="_blank">here</a> you will see that one of the sea lions even grabbed on to my arm for a moment or two. Warning: That video is about 11 minutes long. I just couldn't bring myself to edit it down any shorter. I won't be offended if you just watch a little :)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjam33KrQBEm9Pbe_18OzajMps9sv8zQSqfIkIaLOlxrHK22xATW25jE3jge57l9owf8NYVsLy5tJsF0HbXcgdJQEvKw_b5BCg60T8FROTELu7SBYKBMOV8jl6cNUmGqpERtKklym_E_bqY/s1600/sealion01.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjam33KrQBEm9Pbe_18OzajMps9sv8zQSqfIkIaLOlxrHK22xATW25jE3jge57l9owf8NYVsLy5tJsF0HbXcgdJQEvKw_b5BCg60T8FROTELu7SBYKBMOV8jl6cNUmGqpERtKklym_E_bqY/s1600/sealion01.png" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Still photo from GoPro camera<br />
Baja, Mexico (12/13)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9v7x9kRZytazzJE4UOeoVFQ0_I5ARaEdUr5PPM-FIFddvx26Uox_4xVYTJUrMdhNg37aow237wffcVacPK4g2GMQy4RI1oxwyUQYxfL6W8kGZAxYdyEFjOFNEkaNJTiA9wAZ2088vwVQh/s1600/whaleshark03.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9v7x9kRZytazzJE4UOeoVFQ0_I5ARaEdUr5PPM-FIFddvx26Uox_4xVYTJUrMdhNg37aow237wffcVacPK4g2GMQy4RI1oxwyUQYxfL6W8kGZAxYdyEFjOFNEkaNJTiA9wAZ2088vwVQh/s1600/whaleshark03.png" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Whale shark photo with GoPro</td></tr>
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After snorkeling, we headed back to camp to pack. Low tides forced us to shuttle our gear through shallow water to the motor boat that came to pick us up. We arrived back in La Paz with plenty of time to unpack, shower and get ready for our group dinner together. The next day, we were driven to the harbor and met Dr. Deni Remeriz for a morning of searching for whale sharks. We had never even seen a whale shark no less swam with one, so the entire Van Niel family was excited for this adventure. Deni was very free with her knowledge of all things whale shark and you can find out more about her and her organization <a href="http://www.whalesharkmexico.com/home.htm" target="_blank">here</a>. For a video of our adventure on YouTube, click <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HC2dezXtn2Q&list=UU-SlRE7z5IwE0t9CrOJZDfA" target="_blank">here.</a><br />
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Our final two days were spent in Todos Santos, a small town with plenty to offer. We went horseback riding on the beach, took a cooking class, hiked and even got to help release sea turtles. One of our guides (pictured here) was Citlali. Turns our that means "morning star" in Aztec. In turn, we taught her the name of our daughter "Danika" which is morning star in Danish :). Here is a photo from the cliff hike. We had numerous sightings of humpback whales while on this hike.<br />
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On our last evening, just before dinner, our guide and driver told us they had a surprise for us. They had talked to the man that coordinates a sea turtle rescue operation and he was confident that there would be freshly hatched sea turtles to release to the ocean. This story deserves an entire entry by itself. But the short version goes like this: The olive ridley sea turtles come to the beach in Todos Santos and lay their eggs. But vehicles are allowed on the beach and would crush the eggs if they were left in place, so volunteers dig them up and re-bury them in an enclosure on the beach. When they hatch, they are collected and brought to the ocean where they must fend for themselves. It takes about 10-15 years for them to reach sexual maturity. There were about a dozen of us there to witness the release and the gentleman in charge picked Danika to carry the turtles to the surf.<br />
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All told, this was one of our most memorable trips.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sunset in Mexico</td></tr>
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<br />John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-3959976411777906322013-12-01T22:18:00.000-05:002013-12-01T22:19:06.297-05:00In nature, nothing goes to wasteMy <a href="http://con102.blogspot.com/2013/11/well-we-were-hoping-for-bear.html" target="_blank">last entry</a> described setting out cameras for my Black Bear Management Class and hoping to capture images of bears. As I reported, it was my third year conducting that activity but the first one that didn't produce bear captures. That activity ended about two weeks before the start of the regular firearm season for deer and bear, so I repositioned a few of the cameras in hopes of getting some last minute scouting in on the bucks in the area.<br />
My Father is still recovering from his back surgery so hunting from a tree stand was not possible this <br />
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year. Instead, we set out a ground blind in a likely location, but one in which neither of us had hunted before. I set out a camera there of course.You can see the blind in the background. Notice the trail to the blind has been nicely raked so Dad would have an easy time getting to it. Although I changed cameras, this is the same set where I had placed "Bear Lure" on a dead log (foreground). We got some nice results!<br />
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The only deer photo:<br />
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A curious coyote:</div>
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And those bears we were hoping for two weeks earlier!!!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bears rolling in "Bear Lure"</td></tr>
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Well, opening day arrived and Dad saw no deer but he DID see these two cubs and their mother. He has no interest in shooting a bear. In addition, shooting a bear from a group of bears is not legal in our </div>
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part of New York. I was jealous of his sighting. I spent the day in my tree stand and saw no deer OR bears. The next day wasn't much better. We made plans to hunt on Tuesday. Turns out Tuesday was a far different day. Tuesday's hunt lasted a whole ten minutes. Dad had just gotten himself zipped into the blind and I had only taken a few steps away when I heard a soft whistle and turned to see his arm pointing out the side window at a buck that was walking through the woods. With a single shot, the buck was down and just like that I had my work cut out for me :). Not that I minded field dressing the deer. I made quick work of it and dragged the nice 8 point buck to level ground.<br />
Now, I am not one to waste an opportunity. With that fresh gut pile just sitting there, I repositioned the camera in hopes of capturing whatever would come for the Thanksgiving-time feast. As you can see from the photo above, there was no snow on the ground on the day I made this set but a week later it was a different story when I went to retrieve it. It was cold. It had snowed, then rained, then froze, then snowed again. It made for some beautiful scenery:<br />
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When I got to the tree where I had left the camera, I found only a strap and attachment. This is a Cuddeback Attack so there is a plastic mounting bracket that goes on the strap. The camera can be taken off and checked and the strap remains in place. I could see some damage to the bracket and hoped it was either weather or wildlife and not a trespassing hunter. I felt around in the deep snow a bit and found the camera with no trouble. We had to take it back to camp to thaw it before I could extract the SD card and see what we had captured. First to find the gut pile were crows:<br />
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But the remaining photos (and video) were three bears: a mother and two large cubs.<br />
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I am always pleased to get bear photos but these were especially nice. First, these were certainly the same bears my Father had seen only a few weeks earlier. Second, it was interesting to see them scavenging. I wondered what their meat scats looked like. And finally, I had the camera set to take 30 second videos as well so I was treated to some excellent views of the big fat sow and her two healthy looking cubs. With so much food available this year, I was not surprised at their apparent healthy condition. I made a simple video and uploaded it to YouTube. You can view it <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LK2NsSbfPZ4&feature=c4-overview&list=UU-SlRE7z5IwE0t9CrOJZDfA" target="_blank">here</a>. Its only a few minutes long.<br />
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One final note: On our way out of the woods for lunch that day, I noticed something as we passed an apple tree near the ATV trail. Looks like our bears stopped and gave the tree a good clawing. I now have more bear sign to share with nest year's Black Bear Management students....<br />
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<br />John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-1014686571172627492013-11-03T19:24:00.001-05:002016-06-29T21:51:22.269-04:00Well, we were hoping for bear...<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trying a "creative" overhead set</td></tr>
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This was the third year in a row I have set cameras out at my Father's property with the goal of capturing images of bears for my Black Bear Management class. Here are <a href="http://con102.blogspot.com/2012/10/camera-trapping-with-my-black-bear.html" target="_blank">last year's results</a> and <a href="http://con102.blogspot.com/2011/11/camera-trap-results-wayland-ny-november.html" target="_blank">results from 2011.</a> Let me assume most of you will NOT click on those links (even though I highly recommend you enjoy the stories) and let you know I captured bear photos in 2011 and 2012. This year, we were not as fortunate. Seven cameras were out for 12 days, including four of our new Reconyx cameras. I used the same brand of scent lure I used in previous years to attract bears and fully expected we would achieve our goal.<br />
Some highlights:<br />
WTD: We captured deer on each camera. Our biggest buck<br />
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One morning of snow and this lip-licking buck<br />
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The best image from my "creative" overhead set<br />
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Coyote: Five cameras captured coyote. Here are my favorites<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Reconyx seems to elicit a response from animals</td></tr>
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But the images from the Reconyx ARE nice. Look at this distant coyote and how nice it looks, even with the high magnification I subjected it to.<br />
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Raccoon: Even though we didn't get bears, we did get their lesser "cousins". I poured the sweet smelling lure directly into a rotting log.<br />
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Below is the log I have used in the past to attract bears. If you did check out my 2012 post, this is the set that produced the bear(s) rolling. In this set, the log is running perpendicular to the camera and is <i>just</i> below the field of view.<br />
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So no bears, but this set did have a surprise in store for us: FISHER. Multiple visits by one or more fisher made this class project a success. Fisher are increasingly common in this area but are considered recent additions. I was thrilled to get pics and will dedicate a future blog entry to them exclusively. For now, enjoy a few of the better shots:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cropped fisher in some wet snow</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love that tail!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rolling in the scent</td></tr>
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We captured seven mammal species this year (less overall than past years):<br />
-White-tailed deer<br />
-Eastern chipmunk<br />
-Gray squirrel<br />
-Coyote<br />
-Red fox<br />
-Raccoon<br />
-Fisher<br />
Missing besides the black bear are common mammals in this area like red squirrel, opossum, deermouse sp., etc. I had fewer cameras but four were Reconyx (which have a wider range of detection than the Cuddebacks and therefore as a rule pick up smaller mammal species more easily). <br />
What will next year bring???<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Why doesn't anyone care what the raccoon says?</td></tr>
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John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-465458503297769442013-10-15T23:20:00.000-04:002013-12-05T11:53:19.692-05:00The ShackLast week, I attended The Wildlife Society's annual conference in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I flew out <br />
of Rochester, NY on my birthday (49 this year!) and looked forward to
celebrating in my own way. The conference itself was full of
highlights: two of my former students presented posters while <br />
another
gave an oral presentation on her doctoral work at Penn State. Another
alum and I caught up over lunch and I got to meet fellow blogger<a href="http://blazin-trailblazer.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"> "Trailblazer"</a> and some of his students. I even gave a presentation myself on my critical thinking unit based on the mountain lion controversy in New York. But all of that took a back seat to the post-conference field trip to Aldo Leopold's shack.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aldo Leopold's Shack</td></tr>
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If you are unfamiliar with Aldo, his shack or the book A Sand County Almanac stop right now and open a new browser window and buy a copy on Amazon or run to the library and check one out. I cannot attempt to explain the book here other than to assure everyone that it is an enjoyable and educational read. This book is a real favorite of mine and required reading for all of the freshmen in our degree program. The first hundred pages are the actual almanac of the book, starting in January and progressing to December, with the stories focusing almost exclusively on activities in and around the shack and property.<br />
I teach the Leopold units (first unit is about Aldo's life while the second is more about the lessons of the book) to the freshmen and over the years have personalized the content in a way that makes teaching the first unit a real emotional experience for me. I have read SCA dozens of times and it seems the more I read it, the more connected I became to the work and to the man. And when I say emotional, I do not exaggerate. I have a confession to make: a "secret" that I just don't discuss. One year, with no warning, when I reached the part of the lecture on Aldo's life where he dies fighting a grass fire, I began to cry. I couldn't stop it. I was embarrassed. I was worried how my students would react. Surely I didn't want them to be turned off by the material but I had little control at that point either. The tears just flowed and I finished the lecture amid a perfectly silent crowd. And every year since, that emotion wells up and I can feel it coming. And every year I wonder if I should just change the lesson, make it less personal or not get so wrapped up in the story. The truth is, it takes a lot out of me and with multiple sections, I am pretty drained. But each year I receive positive feedback from my students. Not all mind you, but enough to continue to teach this section with all my heart. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2fB4oW395sI2b47fCL9SMqSuVEurpjD632a0guVxPrCPWKEFteRsYyRkEKwoV-pvy99wA0BdPC7O0AHsHeCG9huGkGi45GSPxjqwAFJyqq2JTo0DOLIam06ESDfDCoC4guQxTLTkcoo8B/s1600/aldo+leopold+shack+grindstone+sand+county+almanac.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2fB4oW395sI2b47fCL9SMqSuVEurpjD632a0guVxPrCPWKEFteRsYyRkEKwoV-pvy99wA0BdPC7O0AHsHeCG9huGkGi45GSPxjqwAFJyqq2JTo0DOLIam06ESDfDCoC4guQxTLTkcoo8B/s320/aldo+leopold+shack+grindstone+sand+county+almanac.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grindstone near The Shack</td></tr>
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So you can see that I would be pretty excited to visit Leopold's shack. I had been there before, but just as I have read the book dozens of times, I wished for multiple visits to the place that inspired so much of it. <br />
I brought two copies of SCA with me to Wisconsin. One copy was the original copy I bought as a Freshman in college; the one that is now missing both covers, has a spine that has split multiple times and is held together by a rubber band. I just had to have the old girl with me. The other is a newer book, one I will discuss later. I spent most evenings reading passages from the book as a way to wind down from the day's events and get ready for the trip to the Shack. One day I attended several presentations regarding wolf reintroductions, so I read Thinking Like a Mountain before drifting off to sleep. I visited the natural history museum one afternoon where I vaguely recalled that Leopold had somewhere written about the potential loss of species and that future generations might have to learn about birds only from specimens in museums. After much searching, I found that reference in Goose Music. I even listened to the audio version of SCA on my ipod while using the hotel's fitness center.<br />
So it was with great anticipation that I boarded the bus on a warm October day to journey to The Shack and the recently built educational center. Among the 30+ like-minded passengers was Alyssa from <a href="http://bearlyalyssa.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Nature in a Nutshell</a>, a former student. The chatter on the bus was diverse. Everyone had just finished a long conference and some where talking about future conference sites while others shared viral videos via smart phones. I took the opportunity to read Illinois Bus Ride:<br />
<i>"I am sitting in a 60-mile-an-hour-bus sailing over a highway originally laid out for horse and buggy. The ribbon of concrete has been widened and widened until the field fences threaten to topple into the road cuts. In the narrow thread of sod between the shaved banks and the toppling fences grow the relics of what once was Illinois: the prairie."</i> Leopold goes on to recount the conversations of his fellow passengers and what they see and fail to see on the drive. I smile at the familiar words and wonder what Leopold would make of the conversations surrounding me now. <br />
The drive seems long and I am getting cranky. I had skipped breakfast and assumed I was just misjudging the time. But as we rounded a curve and were faced with an overpass with a clearance of only 12 feet, it was clear that we had taken a wrong turn. The driver apologized and protested that he had only done what the GPS had told him to do. I tried to remain philosophical and knew the perfect passage to read to maintain my patience:<br />
"<i>Then came the gadgeteer, otherwise known as the sporting-goods dealer. He has draped the American outdoorsman with an infinity of contraptions, all offered as aids to self-reliance, hardihood, woodcraft, or marksmanship, but too often functioning as substitutes for them. Gadgets fill the pockets, they dangle from neck and belt. The overflow fills the auto-trunk, and also the trailer. Each item of outdoor equipment grows lighter and often better, but the aggregate poundage becomes tonnage." Wildlife in American Culture</i><br />
As I sit reading, the bus backs up farther and farther. I would guess we backtracked over a mile on that road until finding a suitable space to turn around. I remarked to the passengers "I feel like Leopold sawing through the Good Oak and traveling backward in time."<i> </i>The comment was met with only a few chuckles.<br />
When we arrived at the new Leopold Center, we were nearly an hour over due. Our guide got to it <br />
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quickly and explained that he would do his best to show us both sites, the Center and the Shack in the time allotted. The Center is fascinating. Until recently, it was the greenest building in the world. Some of that distinction comes from the use of local materials in the construction. Highlights for me:<br />
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The stone wall that holds the rain run-off from the roof and sends it to the native plantings is made from an old Civilian Conservation Corps building that had been torn down and saved. Our guide explained that a check of records revealed that Aldo had once lectured inside that very building. You can see some old cement adhering to the stones.<br />
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Much of the wood harvested to construct the buildings came from the original Leopold property with white pines having been planted by the Leopold's themselves. Here is a shot of the ceiling with red maple boards serving as material between the joists<br />
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But I was distracted. I was so close to the Shack! I wanted to maximize our time there. We boarded the bus for the very short trip to the shack and all exited. After a quick warning about the poison ivy, our guide told us of Aldo's purchase and the family's less than enthusiastic reaction at the condition of the Shack. We started down the path, the Shack obscured by trees that were not alive 80 years ago when Aldo purchased the property. And then, around a curve, it came into view.<br />
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We got closer and all stood in a semi-circle facing the Shack and learned of a few pieces of history. The Leopold's built an addition (left side of photo) for sleeping quarters. The chimney had to be rebuilt several times. Aldo was a bad cook.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leopold's Shack</td></tr>
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The first group went inside and the rest of us were encouraged to pick an apple or two. I didn't need to be told twice.<br />
"<i>These things I ponder as the kettle sings, and the good oak burns to red coals on white ashes. Those </i><br />
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<i>ashes, come spring, I will return to the orchard at the foot of the sandhill. They will come back to me again, perhaps as red apples, or perhaps as a spirit of enterprise in some fat October squirrel, who, for reasons unknown to himself, is bent on planting acorns." Good Oak</i><br />
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I spent considerable time looking for bur oak acorns. Leopold writes about bur oaks several times and I really wanted to try to plant a few on my property. But those fat October squirrels (and other pilgrims to the Shack) beat me to them. I grabbed instead a handful of red oak acorns and chuckling, turned to the following: "<i>I had a bird dog named Gus. When Gus couldn't find pheasants he worked up an enthusiasm for Sora rails and meadowlarks. This whipped-up zeal for unsatisfactory substitutes masked his failure to find the real thing. it assuaged his inner frustration." The Round River. </i>If any of my acorns take root, I will think of Gus.<br />
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When it was our turn to enter the shack I sat at Aldo's table and listened intently. I was most curios about the artifacts on the walls, including Aldo's shovel:<br />
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"<i>Why is the shovel regarded as a symbol of drudgery? Perhaps because most shovels are dull. Certainly all drudges have dull shovels, but I am uncertain which of these two facts is cause and which effect. I only know that a good file, vigorously wielded, makes my shovel sing as it slices the mellow loam." Pines Above the Snow</i><br />
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Aldo's saw:<br />
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<i>"We let the dead veteran season for a year in the sun it could no longer use, and then on a crisp winter's day we laid a newly filed saw to its bastioned base. Fragrant little chips of history spewed from the saw cut and accumulated on the snow before each kneeling sawyer. We sensed that these two piles of sawdust were something more than wood: that they were the integrated transect of a century; that our saw was biting its way, stroke by stroke, decade by decade, into the chronology of a lifetime, written in concentric annual rings of good oak." Good Oak</i><br />
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Two saws were found in the Shack. The other is displayed in the Leopold Center. One of them is undoubtedly the saw used to process the Good Oak:<br />
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Look closer at the photo above. That is Estella, The Leopold's youngest (and now only surviving) <br />
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child. I heard Estella speak in 2005 at the Wildlife Society conference in Madison, Wisconsin. And now I have another connection to Estella. Last year, I taught a brand new class called Wildlife Field Techniques. We worked hard as a group to create a class that was both educational and meaningful. No other group of students will be pioneers in the sense that these were. It was a great experience for us all and in appreciation, the students of that class arranged a gift for me. So on the last day of class the students presented me with the gift and I was genuinely surprised and appreciative. I opened the bag and found a copy of Sand County Almanac. I must confess that I was a bit confused. Surely these students knew I had a copy of this book and, seeing its disrepair thought I could use a new one. But just as surely they must know I would never give up my first copy. All confusion disappeared as I opened the book and found it pesonally inscribed to me from Estella. What an amazingly thoughtful gift!<br />
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I posed in front of the Shack on a Leopold bench with that very edition in my hands. And it was that book that I sat with and read Great Possessions while at the "holy land" itself. <br />
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Gone now were the worries of late buses, missed meals and unfound acorns. There was only genuine happiness at my place in the sun. <br />
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<br />John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-54683984347197357482013-09-02T01:11:00.002-04:002014-01-15T18:25:29.842-05:00Land of the Giants: The Pantanal<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant otter, Brazil (8/13)</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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The Pantanal of Brazil truly is home to giants. The tallest bird in South America (Greater Rhea), massive reptiles like the anaconda and caiman and the largest rodent in the world (capybara) all roam the Pantanal. There are even three species of mammal with the moniker "giant": an armadillo, an anteater and an otter. This post is about the latter.<br />
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We were fortunate enough to see TWO species of otters on our trip to the Pantanal. Both sightings, about 24 hours apart, were from boats while on the Paraguay River. It was our second day on the river when our boatman spotted this family of giant otters. There were seven in total, but I never did manage a photo of them all together. We had another john boat with us and I thought for sure our time with the otters would be brief. I mean, look at their reactions above. By the time we got the boat stopped and I took my first photo, two of the otters (adults??) had already bolted for the safety of the water. The rest sure looked ready to follow. But as the anchors were deployed and the engines turned off, the otters seemed to quickly forget about us. We spent about 45 minutes watching their antics. Here are some of my favorite photos:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant otters at den site, Pantanal Brazil (8/13)</td></tr>
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Here is a photo I took without too much magnification. It gives you a better idea of what the scene looked like without the benefit of a telephoto lens. A massive tree had blown over and the otters were loafing on the sandy spot left behind. I believe the actual den entrance is to the left of the screen under the upturned root mass. There are several spots that look like holes directly under the otters, but no one ever went in them. You can also clearly see the slide in this photo.<br />
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I said our boatman Mota spotted these otters, and he did. We were cruising along at a good clip when suddenly the boat slowed. As it did, Danika turned her head and saw the animals on shore and screamed "SEALS!". She quickly recognized her error (no seals in the interior of Brazil...) but as we watched the giant otters, I could see how her initial impression was formed. Below is the seal-like face a giant otter makes when a sibling crawls over its back just after it had gotten comfortable:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant otters, Pantanal of Brazil</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Curious giant otters</td></tr>
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Giant otters are social animals, staying in family units that may exceed a dozen animals. So our group of seven wasn't unusual and may have been a mated pair and five young (either all the same age or from different litters). The otter to the left has a particularly young looking face to me. I don't have any scientific reason for saying that, but I think you will agree. And those chest markings! What beautiful animals. They were a bit curious about us, but as you will see, they seemed unconcerned.<br />
Several sources list the giant otter as reaching lengths of over 6 feet, making it the longest otter species in the world. Only sea otters are heavier and that is due to the need for thick layers of insulating fat. Still, a 70 pound giant otter is a sight to behold.<br />
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You can get some sense of their size in the photo below. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant otter exiting the water</td></tr>
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Here is that same individual giving us a look before settling in for a snooze with the other otters. Notice a few things: first, that is a classic mustelid pose.Otters are members of the weasel family and that otter on the left is showing you the typical elongated body of most weasels. Second, have a look at the shape of the tail. It looked more like a blade or rudder than the thick rounded tail I am used to seeing on our North American river otters here in New York. Finally, the throat patch revealed that this was one of the otters that scattered as the boats approached. Soon, the comings and goings of the otters became too confusing to monitor effectively and I gave up trying to keep track of who was who :)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thick fur of giant otter</td></tr>
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This otter found a place to sit and immediately started to groom itself. In the photo below, you can see the MASSIVE hind foot rising to scratch at the fur near the animal's side. Each toe and the heel pad are covered in sand, giving them stark relief from the dark wet fur. Note that this otter still has its eyes firmly glued on us:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant otter grooming its fur</td></tr>
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Perhaps my favorite of all the photos is the action shot below. One of the names given to otters is "lobo de rio" or "river wolf". This probably refers to the fact that the otter is a top predator in the water like the wolf is on land. But when this otter was done scratching it shook itself in a completely dog-like fashion, just like a river wolf should:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant otter shaking off water</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant otter climbing river bank</td></tr>
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Next to arrive was the second (adult?) otter that had slipped away at our approach. Look at that tail! And look how easily this otter navigates the slide. The younger otters were smaller and not as well muscled and their struggles getting up the slide showed it. I wondered how they managed when they were younger...<br />
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Now that the family was reunited, it was time for some serious sleeping. I believe it was about 9 am when these photos were taken and the sun was not too high in the sky yet. As the otters snuggled in to their rests, I could never get a photo of all seven visible at one time. And I quickly learned that these brothers and sisters just couldn't quite get comfortable:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbj6cCDkTzkBQ4Zy86I9BnUXGVtd21klEUJhRJBHjSkGFJnDFp5c8kmfqU5ho3OzdCtictfzQ-LFaelLKLL5jzLdTm7hXnoXsYcMBwTOjj-09STburUBZdzZaON4PKbjhq0RXrPUqDm26v/s1600/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbj6cCDkTzkBQ4Zy86I9BnUXGVtd21klEUJhRJBHjSkGFJnDFp5c8kmfqU5ho3OzdCtictfzQ-LFaelLKLL5jzLdTm7hXnoXsYcMBwTOjj-09STburUBZdzZaON4PKbjhq0RXrPUqDm26v/s400/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+09.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sleeping giant otters</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc7hwECkZC17hiJRb0vMl9xbUemUneSBN87t5WyUCwN4h2AdFGQRoLB2wUwWGB5iZ_BZIkC3IhV5qrEURh16Nf0H9Vl3IWU3QwP9BVhfP1G1xr3lwDfVGzAoZa622QEDpuEgT90kCytX-_/s1600/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc7hwECkZC17hiJRb0vMl9xbUemUneSBN87t5WyUCwN4h2AdFGQRoLB2wUwWGB5iZ_BZIkC3IhV5qrEURh16Nf0H9Vl3IWU3QwP9BVhfP1G1xr3lwDfVGzAoZa622QEDpuEgT90kCytX-_/s400/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+10.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Young giant otters</td></tr>
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This one needs a new spot, but it simply must crawl over everyone else to get there. Notice the long tail practically being dragged over the head of an unlucky sibling. And that's a hind foot sticking out as this short-legged creature ventures over the back of not one but two resting otters. <br />
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And it is too bad for you if you happen to try to use your brother's tail as a pillow and he decides that his neck is just too itchy to go unattended. A great look at the massive hind foot of a giant otter:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinWrzDL492Ugj3q_cVGch3SWmExGxDB8ocRQ8RQPWsVujdxpnxDk_kYz6z-Xqdt16VTxJ5_eFcYRT4iqK7HcLlweDVaH5jLfRHFNonshcSwSJkEThgnNBJCggKiCIBM9QHw9q-tEsrVVNY/s1600/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinWrzDL492Ugj3q_cVGch3SWmExGxDB8ocRQ8RQPWsVujdxpnxDk_kYz6z-Xqdt16VTxJ5_eFcYRT4iqK7HcLlweDVaH5jLfRHFNonshcSwSJkEThgnNBJCggKiCIBM9QHw9q-tEsrVVNY/s400/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+11.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scratching giant otter</td></tr>
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"OK, I'm up, I'm up." Although those look like testicles, I think they are scent glands. Any opinions out there?<br />
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This is another favorite shot. I call this one "gato de rio" :)<br />
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Here is my best look at a front foot of the giant otter. There are five toes on the front and rear feet and they are fully webbed. These guys look like powerful swimmers. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Front foot of giant otter</td></tr>
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Several yawns and stretches signified that nap time was over. Although this is merely a harmless yawn, I couldn't help but be impressed by the dentition AND the size of the opening. One can also get a sense for how well-muscled those jaws are by how thick and full the cheek bulges are. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRM9CRmGEpIjMSEab34lPDr6KgBBHV8J_AYeNsVwzECfk1fyYu5Sc0EZpCbTX0-PRy0Ph7YKnU-GTHRN4PlLfDlQ_POyhh8wukETxgfrFDlvhqKrZWHaxf2DgQC9qaw2jVIqHRKtsCsSaH/s1600/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+15+yawn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRM9CRmGEpIjMSEab34lPDr6KgBBHV8J_AYeNsVwzECfk1fyYu5Sc0EZpCbTX0-PRy0Ph7YKnU-GTHRN4PlLfDlQ_POyhh8wukETxgfrFDlvhqKrZWHaxf2DgQC9qaw2jVIqHRKtsCsSaH/s400/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+15+yawn.jpg" height="400" width="285" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant otter yawning</td></tr>
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Napping (and yawning) over, it was time for the otters to head into the water. At first this was an orderly affair. Each otter took a turn going down the slide, slipped underwater and emerged in the vegetation somewhere to the right or left of the slide. This kept me busy and soon otter heads were periscoping all over the place. I confess to have missed more shots than I got, but managed to enjoy the show nonetheless. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPNX6DoxTlk1gs7lHXCh3XloPp0d4O_IA22i7knnKDMtQEMfUItF1Ij47artdR0p41Rrn0ji65LGyJxxyoKaik18V2wa2E1ZnGtr4fGBwmh0yWvuIehvKpCclnRnXE78Sb1o9uJfy1HKvi/s1600/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPNX6DoxTlk1gs7lHXCh3XloPp0d4O_IA22i7knnKDMtQEMfUItF1Ij47artdR0p41Rrn0ji65LGyJxxyoKaik18V2wa2E1ZnGtr4fGBwmh0yWvuIehvKpCclnRnXE78Sb1o9uJfy1HKvi/s400/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+16.jpg" height="400" width="285" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giant otter emerging from the vegetation</td></tr>
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I wonder if the dip in the river was to regulate temperature or for grooming or both. It surely didn't seem to be about fishing, as the otters did not spend very much time in the water. Down one would go and up would come another. Once back up at the loafing spot, the otter would roll in the sand:<br />
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A few even appeared to groom each other<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO5l_jwhD639M-6rCM0N3AAsna1pGL0wIjHNayF2gZGHuBoWM1UZYXJ20ulM_uBwMtgb-isq8KvPIDU1jXgpBkw3UYE0k6Ft4DeJKiAp6vgIq_PYGqrAYs3XeAjvZoRef9eqZmX5gsTAa0/s1600/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO5l_jwhD639M-6rCM0N3AAsna1pGL0wIjHNayF2gZGHuBoWM1UZYXJ20ulM_uBwMtgb-isq8KvPIDU1jXgpBkw3UYE0k6Ft4DeJKiAp6vgIq_PYGqrAYs3XeAjvZoRef9eqZmX5gsTAa0/s400/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+17.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8IATGu6S4W6ywYfxkFiwbI_nJbQ_1BP0de8smhjG1-vEhtS18qilXu4oK7N2L6ohIUBTJpjGvNremvAM7fH0ufFAp6zWG6MsdvK6-sPPbJXaxb_G1f9C-QtQRKVdSJMmR3IOu7pXcgI_b/s1600/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8IATGu6S4W6ywYfxkFiwbI_nJbQ_1BP0de8smhjG1-vEhtS18qilXu4oK7N2L6ohIUBTJpjGvNremvAM7fH0ufFAp6zWG6MsdvK6-sPPbJXaxb_G1f9C-QtQRKVdSJMmR3IOu7pXcgI_b/s400/giant+otter+brazil+pantanal+19.jpg" height="400" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Pardon me!"</td></tr>
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<br />
Soon all was bedlam, with otters coming and going so quickly that I didn't even notice that there were fewer and fewer until suddenly they were gone. I am guessing there was an underwater entrance to that den (the dry season had just begun, so the river would drop substantially as the months progressed) as is common with our otters. Seven otters X 45 minutes = 287 photos. In all that time, no one in either boat spoke above a whisper. We passed that den site three more times on our journeys and never saw a single otter. It was a classic "right place/right time" situation and I am glad the photos came out as well as they did.<br />
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You can imagine that we were feeling a bit spoiled at this point. It is hard to quantify: Giant otters are endangered and pretty rare but they are seen regularly enough in protected areas that many tour groups get to see them. But not all views are as leisurely as ours was. In fact, the Van Niel family saw giant otters once before (in Peru), but they swam past us without as much as a greeting. So although these were not "lifers" the experience was a highlight of the trip. At the time, though, we didn't realize that our otter adventures were only half over....<br />
Twenty-four hours after our giant otter adventure, we found ourselves in a different stretch of the Paraguay River looking for the elusive jaguar. Instead, we found the Pantanal's other otter, the neotropical otter.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1g0IsRlJR6T3zBuNzY208TmEAwGUZqRCL049SQFShu2GmD_vAmIlkkOG17qb6A3yYgrbXUMhy_X5rKzDFRo5sM96bIBiqcm31b6XmNB3GC9sLypDMuZoFs43rTJlmvtKdSEvVtOIuCozj/s1600/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+first.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1g0IsRlJR6T3zBuNzY208TmEAwGUZqRCL049SQFShu2GmD_vAmIlkkOG17qb6A3yYgrbXUMhy_X5rKzDFRo5sM96bIBiqcm31b6XmNB3GC9sLypDMuZoFs43rTJlmvtKdSEvVtOIuCozj/s400/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+first.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Neotropic otter, Pantanal of Brazil</td></tr>
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Laura gets the credit for spotting this one (as well as immediately recognizing that it was different than the otters we had seen the day before). At left is a good approximation of what it looked like without the aid of a telephoto lens. This otter was alone (as is typical for this species) and using a natural cave exposed in the clay by the receding water levels of the dry season. I took my first photo at 8:47 AM and the otter was just finishing off a fish...<br />
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Smaller (only about 4.5 feet long) and much lighter, the neotropic otter more closely resembles the North American river otter I am used to. This individual seemed completely unconcerned by our presence. I do not even remember him lifting his head from the grisly task of eating that fish.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieV0x0C5QrcebKToFLyQ34V82qKSWV5r2hDP0-_Ee46tkuLhoxVpMcXn6OeEvKv28NAh5fhUUpYs8-ItS1dAuxGeX04wCBog0NVk87Ca4Jv4IfzhISQ7Xs7cyqjeQqaujSjWByrK_-nAe1/s1600/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieV0x0C5QrcebKToFLyQ34V82qKSWV5r2hDP0-_Ee46tkuLhoxVpMcXn6OeEvKv28NAh5fhUUpYs8-ItS1dAuxGeX04wCBog0NVk87Ca4Jv4IfzhISQ7Xs7cyqjeQqaujSjWByrK_-nAe1/s400/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+01.jpg" height="267" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Neotropical otter eating fish</td></tr>
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As he worked the fish over, I was able to get a good look at its teeth. Sharp canines in the front and slicing carnassial molars on the side...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjORXZN4pJ3bSWeZt85WztB49WBJDLRxYILjl0y16nJxhkzjCcdfGIUiyuinV0vY9emXQv4wyMNsSRQY4Xy4-I39x28Nw2LlpgLvpXc0C0pH8ZUwqkwHLlTXTGyAv5TuaqEh4BJxQlp6Jzz/s1600/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjORXZN4pJ3bSWeZt85WztB49WBJDLRxYILjl0y16nJxhkzjCcdfGIUiyuinV0vY9emXQv4wyMNsSRQY4Xy4-I39x28Nw2LlpgLvpXc0C0pH8ZUwqkwHLlTXTGyAv5TuaqEh4BJxQlp6Jzz/s400/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+02.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></div>
He left the head behind and took a long drink of water before entering the river to continue fishing. Notice the blood on its right front foot. I think that is all fish blood, but at the time I wasn't so sure. But notice that when we see him again, the paw is clean.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbl8QKkI18yhdq1N3yoPCo9V5Q_WHNle8k1gwRGSoiS7OF68nvZsNaYvs8GlVG6ZWQl5PAm2_GyTGOB3d2z_r0HJCHRSj7PjjSODGA12054avYheKK4ygHJVdG4o6aKNAl7TDH7WYS6YFG/s1600/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbl8QKkI18yhdq1N3yoPCo9V5Q_WHNle8k1gwRGSoiS7OF68nvZsNaYvs8GlVG6ZWQl5PAm2_GyTGOB3d2z_r0HJCHRSj7PjjSODGA12054avYheKK4ygHJVdG4o6aKNAl7TDH7WYS6YFG/s400/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+04.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
Below is one of my favorite photos of this guy. I just like the contrast of the green vegetation. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYHglLNxuggYugFcgO1C88w-2T41mMGo_qss2WXMg09Gx1lTYnzXOM75eQue6ZhOj3NVHxtvPFlI2P9RCvUbpBwg2ci0VY5jfkxNL3J0IhkSbfW5_ODkqAQyLQCgn1USxpvtURAow7rAt0/s1600/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYHglLNxuggYugFcgO1C88w-2T41mMGo_qss2WXMg09Gx1lTYnzXOM75eQue6ZhOj3NVHxtvPFlI2P9RCvUbpBwg2ci0VY5jfkxNL3J0IhkSbfW5_ODkqAQyLQCgn1USxpvtURAow7rAt0/s400/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+05.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Neotropical otter, Pantanal Brazil</td></tr>
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Whereas the giant otters were playful and almost lazy, this guy was all business. No sooner would he enter the water than he would emerge again with a fish! We saw him catch four fish (plus the one he was eating when we arrived) in the 23 minutes we watched him. I don't know if the fishing is always that easy, but it was on this day.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3wdx-fhGR98HzKWWvCWuzoBIRijJMBhiqxncswYbp4L5TJo_aCiytEv4HNPSSByQxAmpQLieo98hjfSYmXkUOKsbRhw5o_GQ6xNJRC0KmMy7vvx2i404tZ9NwpQ24LS7Xof0kftX0XL-u/s1600/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3wdx-fhGR98HzKWWvCWuzoBIRijJMBhiqxncswYbp4L5TJo_aCiytEv4HNPSSByQxAmpQLieo98hjfSYmXkUOKsbRhw5o_GQ6xNJRC0KmMy7vvx2i404tZ9NwpQ24LS7Xof0kftX0XL-u/s400/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+06.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Neotropical otter with fish on the Paraguay River</td></tr>
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Now, as otter pictures go, the one below is not all that special. But it is the only one that clearly shows the head of the fish he caught. Add the leftover head from the previous fish and I wonder if any of you gill heads out there can help me identify them. <br />
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He got to work on the new fish tail-first. We slowly maneuvered the boat so I could get a clearer view.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgacdMdyjwX2W1AconoSK99NuNXXpad3GYajS7epN2muqpdynf5LtG3YesyaVZ_XijioO4gJYZn-r93ZUzV0JFuezcggkyqqzqTqvo3vmlFjtACN0_TBqZ77UoVBaf5hfgaHLWto0RNp2P8/s1600/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgacdMdyjwX2W1AconoSK99NuNXXpad3GYajS7epN2muqpdynf5LtG3YesyaVZ_XijioO4gJYZn-r93ZUzV0JFuezcggkyqqzqTqvo3vmlFjtACN0_TBqZ77UoVBaf5hfgaHLWto0RNp2P8/s400/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+08.jpg" height="267" width="400" /></a></div>
I am pretty pleased with the telephoto lens on that Nikon!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFEP3tP538zJjV9it5EWmYuJGuHjPQ67QSWrNf5UeqKwLvLbJYaPPJzow6UTDD8Zq4KSOPMUiteaijQjllM20eRtXEPjZ6wB4IZK4CM5mtsnzsKc5gec0y_T_USGy8pcAnnJQQjIUsfvBB/s1600/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFEP3tP538zJjV9it5EWmYuJGuHjPQ67QSWrNf5UeqKwLvLbJYaPPJzow6UTDD8Zq4KSOPMUiteaijQjllM20eRtXEPjZ6wB4IZK4CM5mtsnzsKc5gec0y_T_USGy8pcAnnJQQjIUsfvBB/s400/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+09.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
and<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3i5gryJyzrmiqW1oSqO1RUnv9GMahuR278pgCiY1g73HZfWSjBDRlwLkS0VSbcHI6wEe2CXdejiZHLYAZ9mlR35s9fDZgfWzH69Gzz9CRpQLy4buiQTelmR-WM2xfQprmWHcbA3VXP6Bg/s1600/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3i5gryJyzrmiqW1oSqO1RUnv9GMahuR278pgCiY1g73HZfWSjBDRlwLkS0VSbcHI6wEe2CXdejiZHLYAZ9mlR35s9fDZgfWzH69Gzz9CRpQLy4buiQTelmR-WM2xfQprmWHcbA3VXP6Bg/s400/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+10.jpg" height="267" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Neotropic otter eating fish in the Pantanal</td></tr>
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No leftovers this time...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJCK4bnD1tXx11TkbT3V0Rdw5EjJ1_lbbTgRKhcZ-KqQYlY6H747ss6AoPtBZgSxdBUINNhqkWskaLnuA3I46_VVgAMVfvz0vUR1F_L9Ql6IbgfriSHHohNftLW1wzuMlFqcIzwxbfUxns/s1600/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJCK4bnD1tXx11TkbT3V0Rdw5EjJ1_lbbTgRKhcZ-KqQYlY6H747ss6AoPtBZgSxdBUINNhqkWskaLnuA3I46_VVgAMVfvz0vUR1F_L9Ql6IbgfriSHHohNftLW1wzuMlFqcIzwxbfUxns/s400/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+11.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
He paused again to take a drink, but I missed it. Still, an interesting shot of him headed into the water.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbnioW3SB2SU6C7j1wisdlyKWIOSpfnjZhApeUHSASStzdpEwLTcuU6mAF0stVRglIDCKL2YbPBgxk2IP9ihd43bS5re0Gl_zGDoNinl4D741GX3xcT6JdyKHCpX3AUHttYEpXzzxfHKqq/s1600/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbnioW3SB2SU6C7j1wisdlyKWIOSpfnjZhApeUHSASStzdpEwLTcuU6mAF0stVRglIDCKL2YbPBgxk2IP9ihd43bS5re0Gl_zGDoNinl4D741GX3xcT6JdyKHCpX3AUHttYEpXzzxfHKqq/s400/neotropical+otter+brazil+pantanal+12.jpg" height="400" width="266" /></a><br />
When he came up with his next fish, he chose a decidedly more secluded location. We sat and watched as he ate, marveling at our luck. Two species of otter in two days. According to Karen our guide, sightings of this otter are rarer than the giant otter.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Neotropic otter in the wild</td></tr>
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Our experiences with Pantanal Ecoexplorer were exceptional. Our guide and boatman took the time to explain what we were seeing and allowed us to view the animals from a distance that did not disturb their natural behavior. We left the Pantanal knowing that we had been blessed with good weather, good people and great wildlife sightings.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sunset on the Paraguay River, Brazil</td></tr>
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John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-23157366967892745952013-07-25T22:33:00.004-04:002014-01-15T18:33:20.842-05:00Birding in the PantanalAs any birder knows, keeping a list of birds identified is an essential part of every trip, yet some forget that this is only one measure of many that can be used to represent the success of a journey. In<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rufous Hornero nest</td></tr>
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our eight days in the Pantanal and three more in the cerrado near Chapada, Brazil, I identified 125 species of birds. I consider that a real success given 1) this was not a "birding" trip but a wildlife tour and 2) I did not work hard to specifically pad the list. Many birds remained unidentified. Parrots and parakeets were maddeningly difficult for me as were the Columbids.<br />
Birds identified included ones familiar from home (Osprey, Great Egret, House Sparrow, etc.) to those that I knew of from their rare appearances in the ABA area (Jabiru and Roadside Hawk) to those with incredibly exotic sounding names that remind you that home is very far away (Toco Toucan, Greater Rhea, Southern Screamer, Amazon Kingfisher, Helmeted Manakin).<br />
In the Pantanal birds were literally everywhere. Photograph capybaras wading neck-deep into the water: Cattle Tyrant hops from one head to another. Stop the boat for a bathroom break under a shady tree: Great Antshrike and Masked Gnatcatcher bounce from limb to limb. Turn your head to the left to keep the bright sun out of your eyes: Maguari Stork flying parallel to the boat. Stop to look at black howler monkeys: Squirrel Cuckoo takes the spotlight.<br />
And it is stories like these that are behind the numbers on the list that make a trip so memorable. Memories like rounding a bend on the Paraguay River and flushing 50 jet-black Neotropical Cormorants from the trees and an equal number of pure white Snowy Egrets from the sand bar only to watch them commingle into a flock of nuns stampeding through the air. Or standing stock still one evening in the town square as twenty Ladder-tailed Nightjars catch insects above the illuminated 230-year-old church that is the centerpiece of this small town. Or my last species, a Red-winged Tinamou, running across the road as we headed to the airport, and home...<br />
But mine is a visual blog, so I present here my top ten photographed avian encounters of the trip:<br />
<b>10. Great Rhea: </b>At five feet, this is the tallest bird in South America and one of my target species. After seeing Emu in Australia and both Ostrich species in Africa, I wanted to add their New World cousin to my life list.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Curious Rhea</td></tr>
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<b>9. Snail Kite: </b>Common. Very common. As in, everywhere. Check out that beak!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snail Kite, Pantanal</td></tr>
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I guess you need a beak like that when the snails look like this:<br />
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<b>8. Sunbittern: </b>This is a good looking bird that becomes a real stunner when it flies.<br />
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Slightly out of focus, but it sure shows the amazing wing pattern Sunbitterns have.<br />
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<b>7. Hyacinth Macaw: </b>A signature species of this habitat, the Hyacinth Macaw is a bird that was on the brink of extinction and is now making a slow but steady comeback through some interesting conservation measures. The Pantanal is almost entirely privately owned so buy-in from the ranch owners is essential. to the survival of this ecosystem. Artificial nestboxes and redistribution of eggs to foster parents are two techniques that are being employed to increase the numbers of these raucous birds.<br />
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<b>6. Chestnut-eared Aricari: </b>What a fascinating mix of colors, both feather and beak.<br />
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<b>5.Blue-and-yellow Macaw: </b>We visited a pond specifically to watch for macaws to fly in. We saw three species of macaws here and I got some interesting artsy photos as the sun was setting...<br />
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<b>4. Wattled Jacana: </b>These are some really nice looking birds and I took lots of pictures of them. My favorite jacana shot is this one<br />
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<b>3. Toco Toucan: </b>This is the bird from the cereal boxes of my youth. Simply put, he looks like a crow carrying a banana.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Toco Toucan</td></tr>
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Look closely at this second photo. I never could get a great look at this individual. Laura spotted him and alerted me to the deformed bill. How in the world is this bird functioning???<br />
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<b>2. Large-billed Tern: </b>A well named bird: that really IS a large bill :)<br />
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<b>1. Jabiru: </b>By far, the most fun bird to view and photograph in the Pantanal was the Jabiru, a stork that reaches 5 feet in height with an 8 foot wingspan. Their nests are large and located in unobstructed areas.<br />
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Long post! Thanks for hanging in there!!! :)<br />
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<br />John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-33804442323715184912013-07-25T22:33:00.002-04:002014-01-15T18:36:43.482-05:00Brazil's Pantanal & Cerrado trip: An OverviewOur family adventure for 2013 was a two-week tour in Brazil's wildlife-rich state of Mato Grosso. We booked our tour through <a href="http://www.pantanalecoexplorer.com.br/" target="_blank">Pantanal Ecoexplorer</a>, owned by Carlos Grandez. In short, we had an amazing time. Although we did not see a jaguar (a main goal of ours), the things we did see more than made up for it. Wild animals don't adhere to our schedules and our failure to see a jaguar was not for lack of trying. We had fantastic guides and boatman. The lodges were great with plenty of excellent food. Each day's itinerary was well conceived. During the two weeks we drove, hiked, rode horses, took spotlight safaris, boated, snorkeled and boated some more -- all in the pursuit of wildlife. I am very pleased with our species lists.<br />
<b>MAMMALS (in order of appearance):<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikwqBMZTeAlgv0s3g79-URXfA5FWmHIohmDlklcMjRmbzDgWJ0FVIXG2ibllGA79YB7-29gA-F7lQ-pKr00gEY461daGuF2r13wgbGqzKYowAvhoOWxAiUcuY5cko0jilwkVx9MDeFuMI/s1600/bra41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikwqBMZTeAlgv0s3g79-URXfA5FWmHIohmDlklcMjRmbzDgWJ0FVIXG2ibllGA79YB7-29gA-F7lQ-pKr00gEY461daGuF2r13wgbGqzKYowAvhoOWxAiUcuY5cko0jilwkVx9MDeFuMI/s400/bra41.jpg" height="400" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Capybara in the Pantanal</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</b><br />
Capybara<br />
South American Coati* <br />
White-lipped Peccary*<br />
Crab-eating Raccoon*<br />
Collared Peccary<br />
Brown Brocket Deer*<br />
Brazilian Rabbit*<br />
Crab-eating Fox*<br />
Ocelot*<br />
Red Brocket Deer*<br />
Azara's Agouti<br />
Bulldog Bat sp.<br />
Black Howler Monkey*<br />
Black-tailed Marmoset*<br />
Brown Capuchin*<br />
Giant Otter<br />
Greater Sac-winged Bat*<br />
Neotropical Otter*<br />
Yellow Armadillo* <br />
* indicates a new species for me<br />
Danika also saw a small mouse-sized rodent on one of our spotlight trips.<br />
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Hoped for, but missed mammals include giant anteater, tapir and the aforementioned jaguar. We found jaguar tracks almost every day in the Pantanal.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Young coati crossing the road</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brown Capuchin digging insects out of a tree limb </td></tr>
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<br />
I think my mammal highlight was the ocelot (the giant otters were a close second, but I will do a <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our safari vehicle</td></tr>
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separate otter post) as it was an unusual sighting and a new species for all of us. Our guide "spotted" (hee hee) the ocelot on one of our night drives. It was a fairly short look as the cat quickly moved out of view. We had brought our own headlamps to supplement the spotlight and it was Danika that relocated the ocelot about 60 meters down the road. She glanced to her left and screamed "OH MY GOSH! ITS RIGHT HERE!". And she was correct. The ocelot was literally five meters from the truck. We stopped and and the cat just kept getting closer. I managed a few nice images:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ocelot in the Pantanal of Brazil</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brazilian ocelot</td></tr>
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<b> Birds:</b> I tallied 125 species. The sheer numbers of birds we saw was hard to describe. I have prepared a blog entry with many more photos and stories <a href="http://con102.blogspot.com/2013/07/birding-in-pantanal.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amazon Kingfisher, Brazilian Pantanal</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Burrowing Owl standing guard</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjerOKmKWwuZdHa8UO-aj4FP2Mf83KnuTPnOF-yOKXh1zKoe1lu9aL-yNph7RxdiEjKMj7AKbr7OKdMTCY4usYgO4qT08Q-RgV58AL-5DzWIz6xg5kPwydo8SKIi5VcPBDLG734Qq7gmbA/s1600/bra91.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjerOKmKWwuZdHa8UO-aj4FP2Mf83KnuTPnOF-yOKXh1zKoe1lu9aL-yNph7RxdiEjKMj7AKbr7OKdMTCY4usYgO4qT08Q-RgV58AL-5DzWIz6xg5kPwydo8SKIi5VcPBDLG734Qq7gmbA/s400/bra91.jpg" height="267" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Black-collared Hawk</b></td></tr>
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<b>Reptiles and Amphibians: </b>From the caiman to the tiny geckos that patrolled our rooms at night, we saw a nice variety of herps -- One snake (identified for us as a false water cobra); Numerous varieties of tree frogs; Lizards, including iguanas and a teghu; and a turtle species in the river. It should be clear by now that I am not as knowledgeable in this taxa as I am with the birds and mammals. But that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy all the herp-watching. The caiman were particularly hard to ignore...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRkRyGuRy8tW8pySp7-NWRpRNyrmlnKCCMuom3cuePRlNm1NgqBq2bkYpdE8vHMlDGRAK8sCePGkicURLHkbeM-yvdAKKBhyqvYj9uq6KD8t2tfu5AGLftFg5p1-OqfsnISlQwumD02Mg/s1600/bra92.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRkRyGuRy8tW8pySp7-NWRpRNyrmlnKCCMuom3cuePRlNm1NgqBq2bkYpdE8vHMlDGRAK8sCePGkicURLHkbeM-yvdAKKBhyqvYj9uq6KD8t2tfu5AGLftFg5p1-OqfsnISlQwumD02Mg/s400/bra92.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Caiman vocalizing</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnt2YTd3kpLn_e8k973SilZ4ccQu_yiM9MOZufR5yyOyAUnPLvD3rf2IkbGdStUNlYzEB5A44kxta0hu3VYF0eXfCOK7Z2ZU9BoJo-ZL_V_9EM0XpvcUtx32gNWoNFILhM-24V4Cttkwo/s1600/bra56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnt2YTd3kpLn_e8k973SilZ4ccQu_yiM9MOZufR5yyOyAUnPLvD3rf2IkbGdStUNlYzEB5A44kxta0hu3VYF0eXfCOK7Z2ZU9BoJo-ZL_V_9EM0XpvcUtx32gNWoNFILhM-24V4Cttkwo/s400/bra56.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Teghu lizard</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnV98ycIl7dFLKlOfSnUlb0Z3bzSmcCeJBLW6Q0RazxQ_G69ocOzwY1EW7xHCKsF2S950Tl5JDbC4Cs2T-zOWSv3BuBdbmp8g-9zWmmQzc86CnK50ArNK0b4WE2sw8NvF_vr7gajs5Tjc/s1600/bra60.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnV98ycIl7dFLKlOfSnUlb0Z3bzSmcCeJBLW6Q0RazxQ_G69ocOzwY1EW7xHCKsF2S950Tl5JDbC4Cs2T-zOWSv3BuBdbmp8g-9zWmmQzc86CnK50ArNK0b4WE2sw8NvF_vr7gajs5Tjc/s400/bra60.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lizard in the Pantanal</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7rwZNNwDHcknUPgq1rPjNgOeV_TefMnb4nrOEm_ek_JnorqCZSgbzZTEyZ1o3twLa1EWAImBZ2mU3to5QS9EsUKVFZLVH2MPUd5RPjm3Fm7fgzXNs6109NxXn2Lsehjq4Y38qwoA7Bxo/s1600/bra05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7rwZNNwDHcknUPgq1rPjNgOeV_TefMnb4nrOEm_ek_JnorqCZSgbzZTEyZ1o3twLa1EWAImBZ2mU3to5QS9EsUKVFZLVH2MPUd5RPjm3Fm7fgzXNs6109NxXn2Lsehjq4Y38qwoA7Bxo/s400/bra05.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Paraguay River</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjXFCyuKZs8xoOnOyDFUyuFqy4wzHayg_g-HUtVTgxMTAT37pYAwf5YU0VOC-pntO-XPRm2-r6ONZpmsjuXhgFNbNy0zTETMFGeNnHTEWaM97rGCJPhJcw_Db7ByLiv3d13fNBEMW2BKE/s1600/bra104.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjXFCyuKZs8xoOnOyDFUyuFqy4wzHayg_g-HUtVTgxMTAT37pYAwf5YU0VOC-pntO-XPRm2-r6ONZpmsjuXhgFNbNy0zTETMFGeNnHTEWaM97rGCJPhJcw_Db7ByLiv3d13fNBEMW2BKE/s400/bra104.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Iguana roused from his basking by a bird</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlxrKBQEr15vE_bUlCA4TCCrdeXt3ECqwQM6ZQCTwTaIFNQeoZlbhHTcVivX90i75OYbXhDZe2WedsbkMatXLYA1503bo6OlQJPZE2J6mz45vqj4ynU4YDcMldcRxZQsldqMjJ4se4UFg/s1600/bra107.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlxrKBQEr15vE_bUlCA4TCCrdeXt3ECqwQM6ZQCTwTaIFNQeoZlbhHTcVivX90i75OYbXhDZe2WedsbkMatXLYA1503bo6OlQJPZE2J6mz45vqj4ynU4YDcMldcRxZQsldqMjJ4se4UFg/s400/bra107.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Help me identify this snake please!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo7sRR6iBwK7rRFJ5Xa8t6RIHJOJ-mj4vabb87e3sZDZjol0aCQw_3ZlFs9lVNSgbMHai9jjy1KnLqrYeRnrvGKa_TLNosVFiCfqIPdbrgr1bx2evCG785gT5dIK8zCC694JECmEITv1s/s1600/bra109.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo7sRR6iBwK7rRFJ5Xa8t6RIHJOJ-mj4vabb87e3sZDZjol0aCQw_3ZlFs9lVNSgbMHai9jjy1KnLqrYeRnrvGKa_TLNosVFiCfqIPdbrgr1bx2evCG785gT5dIK8zCC694JECmEITv1s/s400/bra109.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Large tree frog in our bathroom</td></tr>
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<b>Fish: </b>Let me first say that we were served remarkable fish dishes every day at every lodge. We ate more kinds of fish prepared in more ways than I knew were possible. One lodge started dinner each night with a piranha soup/stew. We also ate dourado, pacu. pintado and a few others I cannot remember. While we were on the Paraguay River, fish were always breaking the surface and we passed many anglers, most of which were on guided trips of their own. But our fish adventures left the dinner table when we snorkeled at two fresh water springs. This gave us a chance to try out the new GoPro camera I received for Father's Day.<br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QK6KVsBW6Mo&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">Swimming with the fishes</a><br />
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Over the next several weeks I hope to write more entries about our Pantanal adventure. But I had four camera traps out while we were away and Monday I leave for Massachusetts to take some data on black bear sign with my students. And then.... well, you can see there is never a shortage of things to write about and not even time to do it all!<br />
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<br />John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-89407561035798238282013-07-04T13:15:00.003-04:002014-01-15T18:55:03.622-05:00My milksnake brings all the fox to the yard...In my last <a href="http://con102.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-almost-costly-encounter.html" target="_blank">post</a>, I wrote about a Reconyx set I made in hopes of capturing woodcock images. I had great success with this location last year, but this spring has been so wet that our hedgerow has been in almost continuous standing water since April. So while woodcock pictures have been rare, other animals have been picking up the slack. And the water has provided a certain artistic element to the photos that I had not anticipated. For example:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimgYrQb0AxFm4lkm_T9Y_SiFCWXgFmCyofbJC3G9ObeTLyLGfQCVaKLJ6XfK6QTsA4uGQKYoEKacYHwFXFxPR-r20wrBbDYKvSQ66JUxaov-2whzexSHb1ZM0PJAjd57Zo08GdT4Twdog/s1520/doe+and+fawn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimgYrQb0AxFm4lkm_T9Y_SiFCWXgFmCyofbJC3G9ObeTLyLGfQCVaKLJ6XfK6QTsA4uGQKYoEKacYHwFXFxPR-r20wrBbDYKvSQ66JUxaov-2whzexSHb1ZM0PJAjd57Zo08GdT4Twdog/s400/doe+and+fawn.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Doe and fawn </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
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Here the infrared flash gives them glowing eyes but the Reconyx delivers with a nice crisp image. Deer, and fawns in particular, have made almost-daily appearances to this set. A few of my favorites:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3hjtUf0meCY89eTfRK5B3qVdv-CZhYIy_1gVjGaFMitVuORbuXDasC3JrU-V7R7DN_oUHffn3os1VQv3B-7IMWXUpeQS7boIWCC61qvnUjoEqlfVwQw4V4ioaa9xizF18MT-hNaegPZs/s531/white+tail+fawn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3hjtUf0meCY89eTfRK5B3qVdv-CZhYIy_1gVjGaFMitVuORbuXDasC3JrU-V7R7DN_oUHffn3os1VQv3B-7IMWXUpeQS7boIWCC61qvnUjoEqlfVwQw4V4ioaa9xizF18MT-hNaegPZs/s400/white+tail+fawn.jpg" height="400" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cautious fawn</td></tr>
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The image above is highly cropped. This fawn is right at the edge of the photo so I had little choices when it came to composition. Second only to the deer are the raccoon visitors. Two favorites:<br />
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and<br />
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I don't want to leave you with the impression that these are the ONLY visitors to this watery domain. Opossum, gray squirrel and various birds are commonly captured as well. Last week, we had another species as well:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-yF92tTf3JZSPhRo2kJPrDZKoIV0qun3AISUHA5UFApnuKPLMjyNk3IuxDlLp6VJlE4oQ3e6CrSw_nUU2JfVRY9iuqy23eFAVu3fdeJgBicTRPJ1hOAv9iCNV6yWh0NvzFwQ3Gm7Wdzw/s1600/gray+fox+reflected+in+water.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-yF92tTf3JZSPhRo2kJPrDZKoIV0qun3AISUHA5UFApnuKPLMjyNk3IuxDlLp6VJlE4oQ3e6CrSw_nUU2JfVRY9iuqy23eFAVu3fdeJgBicTRPJ1hOAv9iCNV6yWh0NvzFwQ3Gm7Wdzw/s400/gray+fox+reflected+in+water.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gray fox reflected</td></tr>
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Above is the entire image. Below, I crop it down to Mr. Gray himself.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLeuGnW2ZCghyq1bBO4Rt-2jfOgbR25Eu3wEtdmopM1ZoG13IDeOabXnnaI-iios45kaJzg9KMehEHFH1ZYI5MpiVZkPUNywXMqZmDIScxuFQc302TevefRo-0NLnzdepCV7Cn0xNBgqM/s1021/gray+fox+reflection.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLeuGnW2ZCghyq1bBO4Rt-2jfOgbR25Eu3wEtdmopM1ZoG13IDeOabXnnaI-iios45kaJzg9KMehEHFH1ZYI5MpiVZkPUNywXMqZmDIScxuFQc302TevefRo-0NLnzdepCV7Cn0xNBgqM/s400/gray+fox+reflection.jpg" height="267" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gray fox</td></tr>
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Even without color, this is unmistakably a gray fox. Note the short snout and the black line running down the dorsal surface of the tail. I always like my gray fox captures :) and this guy was only one of a pair<br />
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What really makes this such a great photo is the perceived size difference between these two animals. I have to admit my first reaction was surprise. I mean, that guy on the left looks HUGE compared to the other gray fox. But of course, it is closer to the camera AND it is standing on top of a mound. This is a great lesson in how careful one must be when comparing images. If you wish to compare the sizes of two animals, make sure they are exactly the same distance from the camera or it just won't be accurate.<br />
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The Reconyx is set to take a burst of three photos then almost immediately ready itself to take more photos if the animals are still triggering the sensor. I got several sets of photos of these fox, but here was the one that caught my eye (and inspired the title of this post):<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEBW-0M6UlYTo6_Ai4mG31NVDo9Y68SCML4vaQTgai15ktw3icCiLv8nfM4NHJIWG8WAR41gG3bf0l8V79DmoKzgGJxuIGNctdwyYc96AFpK10FvkSOO3Qr5BSCR8lfS1DFmbjC99g_F8/s1527/gray+fox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEBW-0M6UlYTo6_Ai4mG31NVDo9Y68SCML4vaQTgai15ktw3icCiLv8nfM4NHJIWG8WAR41gG3bf0l8V79DmoKzgGJxuIGNctdwyYc96AFpK10FvkSOO3Qr5BSCR8lfS1DFmbjC99g_F8/s400/gray+fox.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gray fox and milksnake</td></tr>
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Wow! A photo of a gray fox is always a "win" for me, but one carrying food is even more special. I was so excited. But had the fox killed the snake or scavenged it? I scrolled back through the photos to find out. Stay with me now, as we are going to go backwards in time...<br />
The photo previous to the one shown above didn't seem remarkable at all when I first glanced at it. But now under closer examination, I can clearly see the milksnake in the mouth of the fox:<br />
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Milksnakes are so distinctively patterned that on my property there really is no mistaking the identification. I continued to scroll backwards --<br />
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I need to crop and enlarge for you, but there IS a snake in the photo above. Thank goodness for the pattern on the milksnake or it would be invisible in this inrared photo.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyZHKUHUO54pu8vvNKSUQvVqN0kc2W76UM6GYWu1apA-9JRrOBHDhfNTU8cC2Zafjs8jKXvMl8ftfIQMlqMd4x_QAJbg4XcvPWu-kBRnW1mGxS8nDfugTr0q7NkLvz_zIPu5gHJkDDv1c/s796/gray+fox+scavenges+snake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyZHKUHUO54pu8vvNKSUQvVqN0kc2W76UM6GYWu1apA-9JRrOBHDhfNTU8cC2Zafjs8jKXvMl8ftfIQMlqMd4x_QAJbg4XcvPWu-kBRnW1mGxS8nDfugTr0q7NkLvz_zIPu5gHJkDDv1c/s640/gray+fox+scavenges+snake.jpg" height="640" width="425" /></a></div>
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A few inches below his nose and hidden by growing vegetation is the snake. At this point, I speculated that the snake was dead or it would have tried to escape. A quick scroll backwards through the photos confirmed that, but I am getting ahead of the story...<br />
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This photo on June 24th at 9:11 PM is the last image without a milksnake. I have zoomed in to the area in question and cannot make out any bit of a snake here:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjChyxZv2TGq97KT7I-yN24fVS6QLv-4lhH8-CKXLJtQraCf_MGhjCP2TlF_w7tWOCwia89AIShACcfMwwZ5YnYRG44fn3x13B0XEECLxlHzcUAqXlUkH4RYsj2l08urNCFa7TyubJYcME/s641/last+pic+wthout+snake+624+911.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjChyxZv2TGq97KT7I-yN24fVS6QLv-4lhH8-CKXLJtQraCf_MGhjCP2TlF_w7tWOCwia89AIShACcfMwwZ5YnYRG44fn3x13B0XEECLxlHzcUAqXlUkH4RYsj2l08urNCFa7TyubJYcME/s400/last+pic+wthout+snake+624+911.jpg" height="267" width="400" /></a></div>
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A raccoon had triggered the above image and it continued over to this spot:<br />
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The coon drags up a dead snake. It is visible in the photo below just under the coon's snout. <br />
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But after another sniff, he leaves it behind.<br />
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I have only a partial answer. The gray fox did indeed scavenge the snake, but I still don't know how long it lay there before the fox found it. And why didn't the raccoon eat it? And as I looked back through all the photos, concentrating on the snake this time, I saw that another visitor had found it too. Remember that cute fawn peeking out from the edge of the photo above? Well, she too investigated the milksnake:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE5Yw6wYr0n8RzYViDX3v49NWlN54sSgqmfNyVS2L_1UmB6RxBMnOTk5PkqKLZt7gqqEu3lMkeOHFvEaaEACNId9K91XrpxGDtCp44iB0F9u69wo21I9GBoTLb70Kk3U6zCIOImRg7Qnw/s947/deer+sniffs+snake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE5Yw6wYr0n8RzYViDX3v49NWlN54sSgqmfNyVS2L_1UmB6RxBMnOTk5PkqKLZt7gqqEu3lMkeOHFvEaaEACNId9K91XrpxGDtCp44iB0F9u69wo21I9GBoTLb70Kk3U6zCIOImRg7Qnw/s400/deer+sniffs+snake.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
Finally, an image of the snake in color! :) Identification confirmed.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8akTkz-YSF_MtafhQLfxqTFQP6b1JUlGEIjMlVwWDGDl8yct8CLPTqDzCazJ74iR-8FbXjIUoXvGlOgRKxo_dyHuAupWt3Ma9b0v4j1N_SU3PdO5ZCkprWsjnFMzY5zw3W-NRedVuQDY/s1600/coyote.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8akTkz-YSF_MtafhQLfxqTFQP6b1JUlGEIjMlVwWDGDl8yct8CLPTqDzCazJ74iR-8FbXjIUoXvGlOgRKxo_dyHuAupWt3Ma9b0v4j1N_SU3PdO5ZCkprWsjnFMzY5zw3W-NRedVuQDY/s400/coyote.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></div>
There is one more story I want to tell from these photos. The night after I captured the gray foxes, a coyote made an appearance. And lucky for me, he crossed in front of the camera in exactly the same spot as the gray fox did. This will allow us a direct comparison of size between the two species. But how best to convey that to my students? Since I do not own Photoshop, I had to get creative...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-yF92tTf3JZSPhRo2kJPrDZKoIV0qun3AISUHA5UFApnuKPLMjyNk3IuxDlLp6VJlE4oQ3e6CrSw_nUU2JfVRY9iuqy23eFAVu3fdeJgBicTRPJ1hOAv9iCNV6yWh0NvzFwQ3Gm7Wdzw/s1600/gray+fox+reflected+in+water.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-yF92tTf3JZSPhRo2kJPrDZKoIV0qun3AISUHA5UFApnuKPLMjyNk3IuxDlLp6VJlE4oQ3e6CrSw_nUU2JfVRY9iuqy23eFAVu3fdeJgBicTRPJ1hOAv9iCNV6yWh0NvzFwQ3Gm7Wdzw/s400/gray+fox+reflected+in+water.jpg" height="225" width="400" /></a></div>
Here are the two images stacked for direct comparison. But I can do better. Besides, I will be using PowerPoint to show these to students...<br />
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I made a jpeg of a PowerPoint slide:<br />
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That works, but i still wasn't satisfied. So I tried enlarging them.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHhzCqfPWqu5E4cuDzGjEk3Eb8lEfLPdlSZt3uuDNhF1aMTBb14jIgyUHdsqV6BXKQ51ClqbFVbB_NAw8PqKo0F0An5kMmTNWiv9iYtj0CsJeH6wHoAUI3-uQObs9dpu2flztkwMkAoD8/s960/coyote+versus+gray+fox+close+up.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHhzCqfPWqu5E4cuDzGjEk3Eb8lEfLPdlSZt3uuDNhF1aMTBb14jIgyUHdsqV6BXKQ51ClqbFVbB_NAw8PqKo0F0An5kMmTNWiv9iYtj0CsJeH6wHoAUI3-uQObs9dpu2flztkwMkAoD8/s400/coyote+versus+gray+fox+close+up.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
Better. But if I could combine the two images, that would be best. I am working with PowerPoint 2007 here at home and the best option I could find was to make most of the background transparent. Since this is a black and white image, it made the task a little harder...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixBdMf1KKrZXr77tSxZukx2LOChBksovyk0HXHrW5x3XvJSZY_drToWYe1psF7MIxuBySrihpSYSRSFGU-8dNVI0cwjNevk-I_KjvYJhEJQvvjTXE9cPRldoW0a648ro2SbOR-02AIuLI/s960/snipped+gray+fox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixBdMf1KKrZXr77tSxZukx2LOChBksovyk0HXHrW5x3XvJSZY_drToWYe1psF7MIxuBySrihpSYSRSFGU-8dNVI0cwjNevk-I_KjvYJhEJQvvjTXE9cPRldoW0a648ro2SbOR-02AIuLI/s400/snipped+gray+fox.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
There is the gray fox with most of the colors set to transparent and cropped as best as I could (is there a free form crop tool in ppt 2007? If so, I couldn't find it.) The last step was to lay this on to the coyote image. The best part of this is that the fox gets placed EXACTLY where he was in the original photo:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh88Uz3sVtb52l33hTsoQ0mFgb7PhN94hNplMquepVwAvIxz8Ix4AufWfmJZx1CFUBuXENGdti6DFFQ68zbS-dCDRm1pCZ1UnSlQKaF5XIgsnJA-HDt7jmzju6KYMwTxrThKbbSiZ30KzM/s960/final+coyote+gray+fox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh88Uz3sVtb52l33hTsoQ0mFgb7PhN94hNplMquepVwAvIxz8Ix4AufWfmJZx1CFUBuXENGdti6DFFQ68zbS-dCDRm1pCZ1UnSlQKaF5XIgsnJA-HDt7jmzju6KYMwTxrThKbbSiZ30KzM/s640/final+coyote+gray+fox.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Comparing the size of a coyote to a gray fox</td></tr>
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I am pretty pleased with the results. Not perfect and I assume I will get better as I try more of this. <br />
<br />John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6562380041550585500.post-36253965397892404532013-06-06T11:29:00.000-04:002013-06-06T11:29:29.594-04:00The (almost) costly encounterLast week was the official start of summer for me. With the semester over and the week-long Field Camp course completed, I could start attending to various projects around the house and property. But first things first... I wanted to relocate the Reconyx camera in hopes of capturing some woodcock images. I stumbled on a spot in our wet hedgerow last year at this time and got video of woodcock <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjepNbiWGAN2mCOfkEMPSBxLtkkMIgi0yI5FRRHq9g-Kv5RmPH3fACttKR0nUV4hP66QXFsXnk-xSf-51kjOA_YuJ0fl4HmPtUlxWRD6TUYnJNdAexftfR0cTj2unJvzDWmTK9R90yTEWA/s1600/woodcock.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjepNbiWGAN2mCOfkEMPSBxLtkkMIgi0yI5FRRHq9g-Kv5RmPH3fACttKR0nUV4hP66QXFsXnk-xSf-51kjOA_YuJ0fl4HmPtUlxWRD6TUYnJNdAexftfR0cTj2unJvzDWmTK9R90yTEWA/s400/woodcock.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Woodcock foraging for worms in wet soil</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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displaying and feeding (I have yet to blog about that, but here is a photo at right). Laura and I retrieved the camera from the back pond and worked our way to the "Half Hedgerow" (cleverly named due to it extending half way across the property). When we arrived, I found far more standing water than I was expecting. This area is wet into the start of summer (hence the reason it is a hedgerow and not field) but last year at this time it was merely damp ground. No woodcock would be wading in this water I assumed. But I created the set anyway, knowing the water would recede and in the meantime, other animals may present themselves.<br />
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So on May 29th I relocated the metal post I drove into the ground last year and attached the Reconyx. After a little trimming of vegetation, I was confident it was now only a matter of time before the target species arrived. The only thing that was troubling me was the high amount of water present. Compare to the photo above from last year.<br />
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The first species to be captured was this opossum. He was just pushing through.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin-SIgT8KkBufilNahp5Hcr5inEyPSd-ParXgYlxua11v8uzZfZLyUZ7WCLSX5BMz5BTyyl7Ktd1YSzG1W3a6XJNrWlqZHO7EQw5fL11pIVfl9gOFgDsvSKinlt9AW13TUIEnX8BfOOvM/s1600/02+opossum+photo+on+camera+trap+infrared.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin-SIgT8KkBufilNahp5Hcr5inEyPSd-ParXgYlxua11v8uzZfZLyUZ7WCLSX5BMz5BTyyl7Ktd1YSzG1W3a6XJNrWlqZHO7EQw5fL11pIVfl9gOFgDsvSKinlt9AW13TUIEnX8BfOOvM/s400/02+opossum+photo+on+camera+trap+infrared.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Opossum in wetland</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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And then the birds began to arrive. One huge difference I have noticed between the Reconyyx I am using here and the Cuddeback brand cameras I have used for years is the way they detect organisms. The Cuddebacks have a narrow zone of detection and often miss these smaller birds. The avian captures have been a pleasant and unexpected surprise.<br />
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American Robin: This bird appears to be collecting mud for a nest. I believe this is a female as the coloration is muted. A male should show a stronger brick red color and a darker cap.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgurg0bDJZetTN3DvNFyRWbcHIy2CzTj9KkSDkdMbrdh7tj3R_Q7li-Bh-_XNNRjR21cgCZbaGPoNh3R7aquAFKxqTK10JQEjvbu3ESPhPlyUeIMGePKTVBDRETQitDn4aoGnkmg1EYQVk/s1600/03+american+robin+photo+on+camera+trap+buliding+nest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgurg0bDJZetTN3DvNFyRWbcHIy2CzTj9KkSDkdMbrdh7tj3R_Q7li-Bh-_XNNRjR21cgCZbaGPoNh3R7aquAFKxqTK10JQEjvbu3ESPhPlyUeIMGePKTVBDRETQitDn4aoGnkmg1EYQVk/s400/03+american+robin+photo+on+camera+trap+buliding+nest.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">American Robin collecting nesting material</td></tr>
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The next bird to arrive was this Brown Thrasher. As the brushy habitat on our property has increased, so has our Brown Thrasher population. Not only are these birds visually pleasing, but they sound even better. They are mimics.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzW8pGGPmoo-xR2RDsBnGPW7UaCwCFGVd1W25CKnBwc-DW8aHXv50dsqX8INxWBMwqiQABJFHKqsB52UuzoD4Wj_PBjcLyAxCduuhtAnZGziO3gYUq6MBgLiBfrgAKzrCmVmUMvmT9NHc/s1600/04+brown+thrasher+photo+on+camera+trap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzW8pGGPmoo-xR2RDsBnGPW7UaCwCFGVd1W25CKnBwc-DW8aHXv50dsqX8INxWBMwqiQABJFHKqsB52UuzoD4Wj_PBjcLyAxCduuhtAnZGziO3gYUq6MBgLiBfrgAKzrCmVmUMvmT9NHc/s400/04+brown+thrasher+photo+on+camera+trap.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brown Thrasher</td></tr>
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All of this coincided with a few unseasonably hot days. The Robin in the photo below is a good candidate for a male as it is darker. Note the time and temperature. About 73 degrees F at 9am?? Too hot for May... This photo is the last "wet" photo taken as well.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMFrSr969RMmYqIDp0TtFqlLQGtMyDJ9HMAPtyglk6NGkxyf_LAU37CMGlufS95LnOx5qP4FJDdWhjDEoDNHDyy_Z-PLubEF4y0ymHpYcW-PXHN7uUzPlVc7bGjsvQeAYFZQ9tzQu9FNc/s1600/IMG_0067.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMFrSr969RMmYqIDp0TtFqlLQGtMyDJ9HMAPtyglk6NGkxyf_LAU37CMGlufS95LnOx5qP4FJDdWhjDEoDNHDyy_Z-PLubEF4y0ymHpYcW-PXHN7uUzPlVc7bGjsvQeAYFZQ9tzQu9FNc/s400/IMG_0067.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Last "wet" photo</td></tr>
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The next burst of three photos was taken only nine hours later. The bird that triggered the photos is a Cedar Waxwing. But what is really interesting is how much water evaporated since the last capture at 9am.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Y5IXEkWTxNW6pEYshY5V9ONUBnPgRAslfNc3AEIY5XLAZa7_KVnYQE1vcIgmrMlFTBLqRRvi_NsNIaLtSYw9AkUVdct-Eqn39_ve1MNj51AUGt0S3pG4ti-JqOSfpJqV7ehP-mw8Ndw/s1600/06+first+dry+photo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8Y5IXEkWTxNW6pEYshY5V9ONUBnPgRAslfNc3AEIY5XLAZa7_KVnYQE1vcIgmrMlFTBLqRRvi_NsNIaLtSYw9AkUVdct-Eqn39_ve1MNj51AUGt0S3pG4ti-JqOSfpJqV7ehP-mw8Ndw/s400/06+first+dry+photo.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First "dry" photo</td></tr>
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The change was so stark I found myself toggling back and forth between these two images in order to see the difference. THESE were the conditions that would produce woodcock photos. But there were other visitors to the set first...</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqueHJYUrDzn9YM3DFIeJQznasF63mR_HNU7cK7h7PS8aLLJKiummtFBmqjd-PU6hlyAu_nyOPkShnEWcLypzNpw4gLjAEVxc1mWV0IJll4PMjhXHvLF3v5SA7HH7aX7YweKPfZrSbUws/s1600/07+raccoon+pair+photo+on+camera+trap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqueHJYUrDzn9YM3DFIeJQznasF63mR_HNU7cK7h7PS8aLLJKiummtFBmqjd-PU6hlyAu_nyOPkShnEWcLypzNpw4gLjAEVxc1mWV0IJll4PMjhXHvLF3v5SA7HH7aX7YweKPfZrSbUws/s400/07+raccoon+pair+photo+on+camera+trap.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Foraging raccoons</td></tr>
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One of these guys spotted the camera</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgicNPXLkCgxNvOc4_wLTSnwPqPrvkcWgGvPTDTCsI85HAGFwFOwTUFQh1BTI347QufcePwcANG4mcx-Xo3RNDKPp0aXksBz7gz0onFpYvV7UiyP3uEPbHAbo1D9HxP-t3K_ZGZZdBiGxc/s1600/08+raccoon+discovers+camera+trap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgicNPXLkCgxNvOc4_wLTSnwPqPrvkcWgGvPTDTCsI85HAGFwFOwTUFQh1BTI347QufcePwcANG4mcx-Xo3RNDKPp0aXksBz7gz0onFpYvV7UiyP3uEPbHAbo1D9HxP-t3K_ZGZZdBiGxc/s400/08+raccoon+discovers+camera+trap.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Curious raccoon</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4eUbw170ixkjsFqh7EMcz-c4F81Ujo23tC86uJiePtoKTIfklNdoStYeIwOfG9_j37fXKonf0yQcLr7H1J78vzhLg1zcVbSgXh-p_yCIuVpEvqv4CFn23DJL8H-ttJ2wt8RQ0fQwqr-I/s1600/009+racoon+discovers+reconyx+camera+trap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4eUbw170ixkjsFqh7EMcz-c4F81Ujo23tC86uJiePtoKTIfklNdoStYeIwOfG9_j37fXKonf0yQcLr7H1J78vzhLg1zcVbSgXh-p_yCIuVpEvqv4CFn23DJL8H-ttJ2wt8RQ0fQwqr-I/s400/009+racoon+discovers+reconyx+camera+trap.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEmO-RkbRpciSd8mKrVu-cnHEFjdgZcFji7Fi0jT6GpmageC4J6523hAcUgKeiExI9oPlVvTzLc3EFTlmm5DxFCOeVXp9BroZf2yT3REkl7-LWC2GtcaREj1Vl60x_kdtUpEGaYHGDpZw/s1600/010+raccoon+viits+camera+trap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEmO-RkbRpciSd8mKrVu-cnHEFjdgZcFji7Fi0jT6GpmageC4J6523hAcUgKeiExI9oPlVvTzLc3EFTlmm5DxFCOeVXp9BroZf2yT3REkl7-LWC2GtcaREj1Vl60x_kdtUpEGaYHGDpZw/s400/010+raccoon+viits+camera+trap.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Please note the position of the camera in this photo. Look at the double trunked silver maple on the left. This curious coon made its way right to the camera and I have numerous photos that look like this:</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8d58vINAt654f9umY50P7rhZutub2Mv28uYBdkLVYYqa11wPvekDrJyh9s6K1vz8TzxN3ScZtcRyGNb564pmHa3myyFE5flQJGSJCqzkMoNlkUCir96RLJu_iDs137Tcv8ZlpjdGnlz0/s1600/012+raccoon+too+close+to+camera.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8d58vINAt654f9umY50P7rhZutub2Mv28uYBdkLVYYqa11wPvekDrJyh9s6K1vz8TzxN3ScZtcRyGNb564pmHa3myyFE5flQJGSJCqzkMoNlkUCir96RLJu_iDs137Tcv8ZlpjdGnlz0/s400/012+raccoon+too+close+to+camera.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Raccoon fur</td></tr>
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When the raccoon finally left the camera, it was positioned to take photos like this:</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL8FH8ZpVK33zEExAeRCTWOjeSTSwAr3RVn3UVDdldFigO0dAif72-TjCr5cKmVqZeU1LBWve6xNLtQe5bFECjZFDKMQD5MNXKV7M4wAkrIyA0allCei8T6SX0ppiHkOIhgEuX8AHil1Q/s1600/013+tilted+camera.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL8FH8ZpVK33zEExAeRCTWOjeSTSwAr3RVn3UVDdldFigO0dAif72-TjCr5cKmVqZeU1LBWve6xNLtQe5bFECjZFDKMQD5MNXKV7M4wAkrIyA0allCei8T6SX0ppiHkOIhgEuX8AHil1Q/s400/013+tilted+camera.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Camera trap tilted by curious raccoon</td></tr>
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Well, I have had cameras nudged aside before, so nothing particularly alarming here. The camera continued to record the critters that came through. But the new angle greatly reduced the zone of detection.</div>
A Gray Catbird was a new species for this set. Catbirds are also mimics, but not nearly as boldly musical as the Brown Thrasher. Nor are the sexually dimorphic like the American Robin. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4zkOB6XeUP34h5IUmI3IHFOd5q__DcHsOxlHNRkOYfT-uBnbAQ8QvYD7IM4ngS2AtOmGx9iv20ZFGJXyvmB909tF9jSt6sltvJcBuVKHC6kXu49JCwhpaXWHz4JlmwKp38VsnV9HJ5Vs/s1600/014+gray+catbird+on+trail+camera.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4zkOB6XeUP34h5IUmI3IHFOd5q__DcHsOxlHNRkOYfT-uBnbAQ8QvYD7IM4ngS2AtOmGx9iv20ZFGJXyvmB909tF9jSt6sltvJcBuVKHC6kXu49JCwhpaXWHz4JlmwKp38VsnV9HJ5Vs/s400/014+gray+catbird+on+trail+camera.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gray Catbird</td></tr>
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Finally, some more mammals. These two gray squirrels seemed to be foraging. I am not sure if this is an adult and a young or a male following a female. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwblDJFJ4a61MbXFJy6bOymK-KsKfuERF5Y7n6L_03oqXv_FADoT_v-8dhmqHnoO0DVKTVP_-KtzxyIB1omRaDK4C1gjbl24uaWX_NJ1Y7efj0cyihy2BpBCrYIJwPxmH4GgYcsOIm090/s1600/015+gray+squirrel+pair.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwblDJFJ4a61MbXFJy6bOymK-KsKfuERF5Y7n6L_03oqXv_FADoT_v-8dhmqHnoO0DVKTVP_-KtzxyIB1omRaDK4C1gjbl24uaWX_NJ1Y7efj0cyihy2BpBCrYIJwPxmH4GgYcsOIm090/s400/015+gray+squirrel+pair.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gray squirrels at camera trap</td></tr>
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But that night the coons returned. My first evidence of their arrival was this. There were several photos taken over a period of two minutes, all looking pretty much the same.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXTCkbgJzCjAsn5PTq7WjL5yy6g0MaZaS8PNv8GuNZwGakYH_HLf1iLkDiJDmGvQsHeXx7i21NwPDG58737IHg8lhQxhjBG_03BnEv8yoDmUQ0JD7VAbh6CgPq1b0ypIre_YyzBgdTPSk/s1600/016+raccoon+too+close+again.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXTCkbgJzCjAsn5PTq7WjL5yy6g0MaZaS8PNv8GuNZwGakYH_HLf1iLkDiJDmGvQsHeXx7i21NwPDG58737IHg8lhQxhjBG_03BnEv8yoDmUQ0JD7VAbh6CgPq1b0ypIre_YyzBgdTPSk/s400/016+raccoon+too+close+again.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc8a0MXt1HQo7vAheMevMBVWiHor7lThA5O5mF5rfogUrtV8ZxycUSLSPe4m8K3ErXt5alaWnNHpKMngETt49Oy_yNmwBoSxYvyzQ2Yh2z-WhdTVOeh34T56oidRTTHZZV7jIF3sau-aw/s1600/017+coon+investigates.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc8a0MXt1HQo7vAheMevMBVWiHor7lThA5O5mF5rfogUrtV8ZxycUSLSPe4m8K3ErXt5alaWnNHpKMngETt49Oy_yNmwBoSxYvyzQ2Yh2z-WhdTVOeh34T56oidRTTHZZV7jIF3sau-aw/s400/017+coon+investigates.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Normally, telling a story with camera trap photos is easy. I just pull out the photos that tell the story and arrange them in order. But this story was different. This story wasn't told entirely with photos. When I retrieved the SD card that contained these photos, there was a problem with the camera. As I approached, I could see there was something wrong with the camera. It was wide open! I turned back and looked at Laura and said "Did I leave this open?" She assured me that I had indeed closed it before leaving on the 30th. Well, who opened it?, I thought. The camera seemed undamaged. The SD card was still inside. I reasoned that if a person had done it, he or she would have either taken the camera or at least stolen the SD card to hide the evidence of their presence. And to be honest, I was not entirely sure I hadn't had a "senior moment" and left without closing the camera. In fact it was a relief to learn that it was the last visit recorded above that left me with an open camera. Turns out there is no damage to the camera, but I hate to think of what a rain storm would have done to those expensive electronics! Those dexterous hands somehow managed to open the camera without tearing it down. And the camera kept working. Hours later, a coon passed by without even a glance at the camera. Notice how the background has completely changed. That silver maple is no longer even close to being in the picture frame. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf2NfRiSQiDFzUceIY2mSnURQRSZvpxuw0HF1obUbFealuR6sehp9Ny9lay4meUYkaREFAEmVbGdpw-MixXyLKj_UNbMzgJCTnr-PNQNIHAYhYkbN47C1ojpN55DRSO8Zkm-cb2A6CITQ/s1600/018+camera+now+open.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf2NfRiSQiDFzUceIY2mSnURQRSZvpxuw0HF1obUbFealuR6sehp9Ny9lay4meUYkaREFAEmVbGdpw-MixXyLKj_UNbMzgJCTnr-PNQNIHAYhYkbN47C1ojpN55DRSO8Zkm-cb2A6CITQ/s400/018+camera+now+open.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I was tempted to move the camera. After all, I didn't want these curious coons to ruin it. But I had yet to get any woodcock photos. I decided to leave the set in place and see what happened. I am glad I did...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFdmZNC9kecQPVgrml2XXuaiQ9xY3T9MUA_nzNZxbjVDdWd6WTi3mwmZcXn0nLyuZr9utUYUl7e9ZlNt1LVuTpE1cPXtIgYXaJBHmffSVRvfeLa3vze3R7S0HI1E4N1fASOlmjnk9pakY/s1600/019+woodcock+first.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFdmZNC9kecQPVgrml2XXuaiQ9xY3T9MUA_nzNZxbjVDdWd6WTi3mwmZcXn0nLyuZr9utUYUl7e9ZlNt1LVuTpE1cPXtIgYXaJBHmffSVRvfeLa3vze3R7S0HI1E4N1fASOlmjnk9pakY/s400/019+woodcock+first.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj5FmkPbfyODDgp7822g3bMkB_GKiYBJe3xwVUhJKbMYCVG2b1IX4YpaYEmwfd7nHM1hFVsTuE-srACAYldSr9UlcfWeGWjUSlR-smWQCGdG89ecZ4emDEi8q3CSj4ZaOEZGWY3cc-27Q/s1600/020+woodcock+displaying.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj5FmkPbfyODDgp7822g3bMkB_GKiYBJe3xwVUhJKbMYCVG2b1IX4YpaYEmwfd7nHM1hFVsTuE-srACAYldSr9UlcfWeGWjUSlR-smWQCGdG89ecZ4emDEi8q3CSj4ZaOEZGWY3cc-27Q/s400/020+woodcock+displaying.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Woodcock ground display</td></tr>
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John Van Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15794094212588258914noreply@blogger.com5