Not my life in the field, that would bore most anyone who happens on this article. I’m talking about new life, the deer dropped their fawns two to three weeks ago. One doe has hung around the field out here chasing the cats away and snorting at them everyday. It’s quite comical actually to see the deer chase the cats away and the cats chase the doe right back. I think their more playing with each other than anything. The doe hanging around everyday was a sure sign that her fawn was close by. Try as I might I could not locate her. It wasn’t until last week that I saw them in the adjoining field together. When the doe spooked to draw attention away from the fawn, the fawn ran about 20 feet and immediately laid down. It figured that, that was the one day I was late getting out to work and left the camera at home. I wish I had gone back for it and I could have gotten a nice pic to post here. They are beautiful animals. They will be out together shortly so I will have another chance for a photo, Ill be back!!!! Happy Hiking.
Posts Tagged ‘deer’
Life in the Field
Sunday, July 12th, 2009Finally!!!!
Sunday, March 15th, 2009At last Spring is finally here. Although I may be a bit premature cause I’m sure there is at least one more snow storm somewhere on the horizon. There always is it seems. But today was beautiful, I saw my first Redwinged Blackbird and yes I did pull over and turn the truck off. There were at least a dozen singing in the trees. On top of that a small flock of turkeys, 30 or 40 deer and maybe a couple thousand geese, way to many to count but they completely covered about a 30 acre field. Everything seemed to come alive today. There is nothing like spring, my favorite season. The peepers should be out in a couple more weeks if the temperatures stay up. I’ll write a little about them later this week. It;s days like today that make life worth living, simple things if you just take a moment to notice.
Antler Hunting
Wednesday, March 11th, 2009With the snow quickly dwindling now is the best time to do a little horn hunting for shed antlers. The deer here I have found usually drop their antlers between December 20th to around the first week of January well before they enter their traditional yarding areas, atleast from my experience. If you know the area they were hanging around in the fall, walk the deer trails and you may get lucky. I like to walk through the bedding areas and the trails leading to and from them. I have gotten lucky on several occasions and have found some very nice antlers. If your really lucky you’ll find a matched set but do date I have only found one of those in all the years I have spent looking. It is a relaxing way to spend some time in the woods and enjoy nature.
Winter Wildlife
Friday, February 27th, 2009Welcome to the North Woods blog site. I will be putting in some info this weekend on what the wildlife around here (here being the Adirondacks) have been experiencing this winter. It hasn’t been a good one for the those that don’t hibernate and I will fill you in on that shortly. Happy Hiking!!
3/1/2009
So far the winter of 2008/2009 has been pretty severe in Adirondacks. The amount of snow we have had the past couple years has taken it’s toll mostly on the deer herd. I have seen deer where just about the only part visible was their head above the snow. Displacing that much snow when they move consumes alot of energy which isn’t easy to replace. Any of the mast crops that fell last fall are buried under 3-4 feet of crusty snow with more surely to come in the next month. Deer have been browsing heavily on evergreens which offer very little in energy and nutrition. I suspect the winter kill will be fairly high this year. As sad as that is it’s a part of the natural cycle of life in the wild. For every deer that succcumbs to the elements there are other animals and birds that will live to see another winter. Fox, coyotes, fisher, hawks,crows and turkey vultures will leave little to waste. Usually the longer the winter the higher the mortality rate among the population as their fat reserves they stored up in the fall are almost depleted once mid March arrives. If we can get through this month with some warmer temperatures and some what of a thaw then they may fair better. I certainly know I would be much happier if this winter was over. If by chance your hiking or snowshoeing and come across a winter deer yard try not to disturb the area. The more you push the deer around the more precious energy they needlessly burn up and may not be able to replace.
Happy Hiking