Winter has been so much harder on me this year than in years past. The weather hasn’t been any worse; it’s just inflicted the worst case of “cabin fever” I think I’ve ever had! The woods are silent, save for the occasional Chickadee. The pine squirrels are all hibernating, and even the flickers have been quiet.
Fortunately, being able to get out and take some photos does help some. The early morning fog combined with cold temperatures create the most amazing hoar frost on everything. And the warming temps also create some magnificent icicles, streaming all the way from the eaves on the roof almost to the ground! Another great thing about being out in the snow is finding all of the tracks from late night and early morning critters that wander through. There are always plenty of deer and fox tracks, but also coyote, otter, raccoon, mink, bobcat and mountain lion are regular visitors to the creek, not to mention the numerous birds. Occasionally I’ll be lucky enough to find the tracks of a Great Blue Heron as it stood on the bank of the creek in search of a breakfast of fresh trout.
The Great Horned Owls have been hooting up a storm at night. They seem to have gotten a late start this year, because I usually begin hearing them in mid to late December. I’m hearing mostly females right now – only one male the other night, and none before or since. Do the females begin calling first? That’s a twist… One landed in the Blue Spruce behind the house the other evening and I managed to get a few photos of it before it flew off. The photos are a bit grainy, as I had to use a slow shutter speed due to the fading light, but you can definitely identify it as a GHO. It was very cool having it so close, and I’m hoping it’s planning on nesting in the spruce. Maybe I could even get some photos of the nestlings, although I hear they are notoriously protective of their young… It would be fun to have them fledge right in my yard, although between my dogs and the neighborhood cats it wouldn’t be the safest place in the world for them.
