In the wild: Animals edition

[ZackB]

@mclaincausey we had a sparrow nest here above our garage. Had 4 eggs in it, checked it yesterday and they’re all gone now.

[mclaincausey]

@ZackB nature is harsh! House sparrows are all over the damn place so despite my attachments to our house guests in the macro I suppose this needs to happen from time to time.

I have a suspicion that this guy is an enemy. Not sure if he’s trying to coopt the nest or what but they don’t seem to like each other. As you can see he is carrying construction materiel. He may be nesting in one of our trees though. I did see some building occurring there.

[twin]

Wood turtle.

[SFMCfranky]

Hooded Oriole outside my dining room window:

[Oaktavia]

@SFMCfranky holy crap

[seawolf]

Our new hummingbird baby. The nest isn't holding up very well. It's hard to see from the photo, but it came loose and rotated forward almost 90 degrees, and the baby has been perched on top of it for the last two weeks. It's getting so big so fast, but there were a few nights when it got really cold and we didn't think it would survive. This photo is from yesterday, and the baby is getting really big! I'm guessing it'll fledge in a few days.

[SFMCfranky]

@Oaktavia

Yeah, the males are pretty flashy.

[Oaktavia]

@seawolf awesome photo and write up please keep us posted as the saga continues.

[ARNC]

This fox seems to be living in the hedge at the top/far end of my shared garden but sometimes comes down to my end. It has at least two cubs but they hid when I tried to get a closer picture. I guess they’ll be a bit more comfortable around people in a few weeks.

[Mizmazzle]

@SFMCfranky incredible shot.

[SFMCfranky]

@Mizmazzle said in In the wild: Animals edition:

@SFMCfranky incredible shot.

I’ve got a couple of feeders specifically designed for orioles. They’re like hummingbird feeders, but with larger holes and perches. Hooded Orioles are nectar feeders. So they’ll eat the same sugar water as the hummingbirds. They’re not uncommon here in California. However, they are very shy. If they see you before you see them, they split immediately. Therefor, all my photos of them are taken through windows.

[Tago Mago]

Apparently we have a wolf prowling the fields around our village. Would love to see him in the flesh

[Oaktavia]

@Tago-Mago what?! What sort of village are you a resident of?

[mclaincausey]

We made a friend! Ok taxidermy is cheating but this one has an interesting story. She killed a pet German shepherd and when she came back for the second one they shot her. She’s Hattie’s best friend

[ARNC]

@mclaincausey reminds me of childhood visits to my local dead animal museum (originally the private collection of Walter Rothschild).

[mclaincausey]

@ARNC this place is owned by the Anschlutz family. They have a lot of taxidermy to say the least. They have a great collection of western art and a lot of that is displayed throughout the property.

[seawolf]

@Oaktavia I went outside this morning, and the baby was gone! It was looking more and more alert in the past few days, and suddenly it was all grown up and fledged the nest!

[mclaincausey]

House finches are giving it another go

[Oaktavia]

@seawolf oh wow, how long do you reckon the fledgling was in the nest for? Also, I wonder if they reuse nests. That nest could be a neat display piece. Like under a glass dome or something similar.

[seawolf]

@Oaktavia They reuse nests in the same season, but I'm not sure if Josie will be back in the same nest next year. If so, it's in need of some repairs. I may try to shore it up so it doesn't fall, and at least give her a chance to make the decision to use it again or not. Right now the way it's tipping over, I can't imagine her being interested in using it again.