The leaves are all down, except for a black willow at the end of our street. It is time to notice other things on our walks. Like squirrel nests!
The city park is filled with oak trees which feed the squirrels.
We have the Eastern Grey Squirrels and Fox Squirrels I remember from growing up, but now there are more black squirrels than any other.
I researched why they have appeared in Michigan and discovered that they had been introduced intentionally! Their color helps to protect them during the cold winters and so they have thrived.
According to Wikipedia, the black morphs had nearly disappeared when John Harvey Kellogg decided to repopulate Battle Creek, MI, with the black Eastern Gray Squirrel in 1915. In 1958 and 1962, the black morphs were trapped at the Kellogg Biological Station and released on the Michigan State University campus! They were also reintroduced at Kent State University in Ohio.
Where there are squirrels and bunnies and chippies (and yes, skunk, opossum, raccoon, rats, and mice, too) there will be raptors. Our city is filled with all of these creatures.
A number of winters ago there was a hawk on our roof holding a frozen rate. Last summer I saw the peregrine falcon winging overhead.
On a community Facebook page I mentioned seeing raptors in the city and one person was aghast. She thought 'velociraptor' not hawks!
Telephone lines and fences and houses and garages block our view from the house, but the sunsets and sunrises are easier to see now the leaves are down.
I have so many 'win' books that have not arrived! Instead, I received a book that was a total surprise! Jane Smiley's new novel Perestroika in Paris sounds like a charming read!
I will soon have another quilt top completed, I started a small embroidery project, and am toying with doing some painting.
There is plenty to keep me busy as we self-isolate. Michigan and our county has seen escapating Covid-19 cases.
Over 329,00 cases and 8,875 deaths in Michigan.
Over 40,000 cases in Oakland County and 1,310 deaths.
Our city has 260 cases and 18 deaths total, 217.03 positive cases per 10,000 people.
Sadly, I now can say I know someone with Covid, along with knowing many people who has a family member that became ill, and several people who lost loved ones.
Stay safe, out there. Use a mask. Stay home. Better to miss one Thanksgiving than to lose a family member.
We have a very black squirrel at our feeders. We've only seen them in Ann Arbor MI in the past 5 or so years. We are overrun with fox, Eastern gray, black, and red squirrels, and chipmunks. All our bird feeders are squirrel-proof, but the birds are messy eaters. I loved all your pictures.
ReplyDeleteWe have no children here for Thanksgiving, but we will chat by Zoom or phone. We continue to stay at home and be safe.
I have seen rabbits eating the seeds birds have scattered on the ground, and my brother has deer coming to eat under his feeder.
DeleteHave a happy thanksgiving.