Search This Blog

Sunday, July 29, 2012

Fawns, Butterflies and More at LRDC

Until this week it has been a hot dry summer here at Long Ridge, and the turkey dusting bowl and feather you see below are all over the place in our woodlands.
Below is the same picture I posted on FB of two Monarch butterflies mating about 50 feet up in a tree. I had to fully zoom my pocket camera to get them, and they are hard to see unless you double click the picture. Below them is our big milkweed plot.
The first Monarch caterpillar I have seen on the milkweed thus far.

This is the wild sweet pea patch in the Far field, which I have claimed were good for nothing but their beauty. I was wrong. This year the deer have browsed them heavily.
Three baby Phoebes in one of our barns, the day before they jumped the nest.
The turkey below was about 100 feet from me as I sat on the tractor idling toward her. Double click to see the one or two day old tiny poults with her. There looked to be about 7 or 8 but I could hardly see them in the five inch grass.
Camp wood is finally in! This will last for nine days of deer camps.
Here is a healthy set of twins. Many more fawns surviving this summer than last. 
Leaping for exercise...

These fawns are simply running for exercise and training. The timer shows them right back here minutes later.
This turkey has much bigger babes, so I suspect the one above lost her first clutch and had to start from scratch, because the teacup sized ones are my most recent picture!

Synopsis: As usual the bucks I was getting pictures of have disappeared from camera view, and the fawns are showing up everywhere. The deer herd here looks very healthy. The clover plot above is one of the reasons they are all so fat! If you blow up this picture you'll see the deer paths all through it as they have started to browse it heavily.
jackzeller@myfairpoint.net

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Long Ridge Nature at Work, and the Bears Return

All these does appear to be nursing so hopefully we'll have high fawn recruitment!
The turkeys and their broods below are below the Far Stand. There is a dusty place they all bath in there and lots of bugs for the babes. The strange shaded one is a camera mishap - not sure how it happened...




This doe is easily identified by the scars and missing hair on her body. A regular.
Looks like a headless turkey!

This bear is approaching the mineral lick.
Three shots of does on the Far Ridge


And here is bear, this time not bearing his behind.
Easy to see that these does are actively nursing..



And voila', a little one! Both on high alert with the bears and coyotes about.

Some interesting pocket camera pictures for the next post. What is everyone doing to get ready for hunting season? Answer: trying to stay cool!
jackzeller@myfairpoint.net

Monday, July 9, 2012

Last of Late June Game Pictures

I think these are last of the June pictures. July pictures will be scarcer, because starting July 15, I begin to prepare the plots for their August 1st plantings. During this time I will move one of the cameras to a trail. Check out this bad boy below!
Next eight pictures are of peaceful doe settings..no fawns in sight still!







Hard to tell what this buck will develop into by fall...
Looks to be a six or eight pointer.



Bucks at the mineral lick.



Our lucky hares!
I never knew they did this, but if you check closely you'll see the snowshoe is carrying a stick in his mouth! Nest material? Let me have some answers!
Especially with this guy around!

Hope you all enjoyed! Off to mow our clover field.
jackzeller@myfairpoint.net
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...