# Our yard wild life and some times at the door



## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

One thing I have always enjoyed since we bought this place in the winter 1985/86 is the wild life.

One of the first things we got joy watching shortly after moving in between Christmas and New Years was a family of otters that came up the creek and started sliding down the hill into the creek climb the hill and slide down again. Must have did it for a hour at least.

Deer alway around in the back yard or the front yard some times nearly standing on the front door steps to chow down on the burning bush near by.

We have had great blue herons come up and stand preening just ou tthe dinning room window. Wood ducks come every spring and check out the huige pople tree across the creek for a nesting site.
At one time there were a lot of phesants who woud prade by the living room window but we lost them along with the quail one winter after a ice storm and bitter cold snap when they could not burrow into the snow to stay warm.

There are a consinstance parade of doe's with fawns in the summer, turkey hens with chicks and even the nasty pest. Had a skunk that lived in the garage useing rhe cat door to come and go. Wife said get rid of it before i get sprayed when i go out to go to work or when i come home. so with reluctence I did away with it. 
Pussoms raid the bee hives sratching them to get the bees to come out at night to eat them. Four years ago I shot 39 of them and several others I caught in the live traps.
Was not uncommon to go out to the pole barn and where my dogs spent the night, find the lid to the garabge can off where I kept the dog food and find a **** in there.

I write about this due to yesterday and and again this morning going out to let my dogs out into their outside runs and a doe with two fawns standing under the apple trees. I could imagine her saying to the little ones, in another month we will come here and eat the fallen sweet apples. ya they have worms in them but a little protien doesn't hurt. She was there again this morning with those still spotted spindley legs fawns, boy do they like to run and kick up there heels.

Also yesterday their was a pair of hen turkeys with 6 chicks walking across the drive way went down to the creek where you could see the grass moving from the chicks but could not see but the adults as they were heading to the back or deeper woods.
yet when i went to take the garabge out at 9:00 AM they were 300 feet up the drive way totaly oppsite of the way they had been going last I had seen them. the chicks flew up and landed in the pine trees as I drove by. 

Kare and I went shopping in the afternoon. When we returned at 3:30 PM their were the hens and those 6 chicks cleaning up bugs in the front yard walking off into the pines when we drove by.

I just checked and we are 58 miles north of Detroit.

And to think I wanted to retire to Michigans UP for the wild life and elbow room. I love it here in SE Michigan, only need some snow mobile trails.












































Al


----------



## Rural Kanuck (Apr 13, 2020)

Its wonderful to be able to look out of our windows and see wildlife in our backyards and we here just a couple of hundred miles north east of you across the lake get a wide variety throughout the year which I rarely seem to have the camera to hand when the unusual ones show up. The wild turkeys pictured below show up most springs often in groups of 20 or more however the Owl pictured was a one time occasion (and yes it IS an owl not a cat)


----------



## crehberg (Mar 16, 2008)

alleyyooper said:


> One thing I have always enjoyed since we bought this place in the winter 1985/86 is the wild life.
> 
> One of the first things we got joy watching shortly after moving in between Christmas and New Years was a family of otters that came up the creek and started sliding down the hill into the creek climb the hill and slide down again. Must have did it for a hour at least.
> 
> ...


Al I believe that deer in the last picture might want a seat at the table...


----------



## Snowfan (Nov 6, 2011)

I was going to say you don't see sights like that when you're sitting in your recliner. Well, I guess I was wrong. Again.


----------



## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Location, location, location.

I always enjoy Al's posts with pictures of his yardlife. They have a great place and have worked hard to keep a good balance of critters.

You should be seeing Monarch caterpillars soon. My first ones for the year hatched out a couple days ago.


----------



## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

I keep watching. I have a aquarium with a new screen top to set on the screen porch to recieve them.






















Mister Mom.


----------



## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Doesn't have to be early in the morning or late evening here.



























The white thing on the post is one part of my self emptying rain gauge.


















Al


----------



## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Al


----------



## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

It took a bit before I saw the real deer in the picture with the yard ornaments.
Good picture of the toad. I have a plant saucer on the ground for toads and snakes to drink from.


----------



## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Al


----------



## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Turkeys aren't real common around here. They are there but not very many and they don't often show themselves.


----------



## alida (Feb 8, 2015)

Great pictures! That picture of a flock of turkeys could have been taken at my relatives place. A flock roosted in the woods at the west end of their woods, then would troop across their front yard, cross the road and go into the fields to the east of them eating as they went. I saw them in action a couple times and that was a real treat watching their antics. My relatives said the turkeys took this route several times a week, veering off a bit further south into corn fields after the harvest. My uncle said the flock was as big as thirty birds sometimes - yes he loved to count them and keep track.


----------



## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

I have had as many as 42 at one time in the yard. I now have to adult hens with 6 chicks hanging about taking care of bugs possiable ticks too.

For some reason this site is not allowing pictures I coud up load on the old site.








Kare found two monark catipillers yesterday. One probably the 4th instar and the other one in the 2nd instar.

Al


----------



## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)

Moose have been a huge problem for us. Mamas n babies. We had a calf get hurt here last week. Now its just mama n some bald eagles n ravens. A really mad mama. We see moose almost every day at the moment. Lots of deeeep snow so it's pretty hard on them. Especially pregnant cows. 1000 pounds of bad ass !


----------



## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)

A few pictures of some moose in our yard.






.
The last on wasn't in our yard when he has first spotted. But ended up in our cabins yard. Then our garage n freezers.


----------

