It started out as an idyllic scene. Two mallard hens, one large domestic duck and a Canadian goose. The four were working the edge of Beaver Lake. They were busily working the mud, at the water's edge, for whatever food or nutrients were to be found in the thick muck. The water at this edge of the lake is only a few inches deep. The attack was unseen, silent, stealthy. The goose was in a fight for its life, its head now under water, wings flapping wildly. The other three fowl made a quick exit of the area. The struggle continued. It was raw and brutal and there was only one outcome.
After what seemed like an eternity, the goose gave up the ghost and after some human intervention, lay motionless in the shallow water. We had witnessed this from the swimming pool deck that extends above this side of the lake. The attacker was no where to be seen. Some speculated the goose had gotten its head stuck in some debris along the waters' edge, a couple of us were certain we knew what had happened, but there was no evidence, so we waited. While we waited, the entire flock of geese stood silent on the other edge of the lake, all looking in the direction of their fallen feathered counterpart.
The wait was long and required patience. It had to have been a snapping turtle, there was no other explanation. But, the water is so shallow and it would have been seen coming up behind the goose.
Patience finally paid off. The water had remained murky in one spot and oh, so very slowly, the beast began to raise its head to inquire as to what had happened to its meal. As gruesome as it was to have witnessed this act of nature, what exposed itself was nearly awe inspiring. The head of the turtle, the only part we saw, was nearly the size of a football. It had not come up from behind, to attack the unsuspecting goose, the goose had simply been in the most unfortunate spot at a most unfortunate time. The lair of the turtle. The rest of the turtle was submerged in the thick mud and silt and perhaps that is were it spends the majority of its time. This creature, whose species have been around since the age of the dinosaurs, did not get to the age and size it is now by being careless.
A recent walk through the forest, surrounding a man made lake, produced an unusual encounter. Our youngest daughter and myself were walking back from the lake. I was in the lead as we walked on what was probably a deer path and as I looked up, I saw a small animal approaching us. It was a grey squirrel and it was making little squeaky chattering sounds as it headed right towards me. We stopped and as my daughter said something about me being 'one with nature', the little squirrel climbed onto my feet. I reached down and slowly ran my fingers across its tail. It was the oddest experience. Just as I was going to offer my hand, to see if it would let me hold it, the thundering feet of terror to all living things, aka, Max the German Shepherd, came bounding through the undergrowth and the little squirrel high tailed it up a tree.
It was a heart breaking sight. A set of twin small spotted fawns lay dead alongside the road. Their mother was standing close by. The road is not a heavily traveled one and whether their demise was intentional or accidental, will never be known. A kind person stopped and moved the fawns off the road for two reasons....to allow the mother the time she needed and to keep her from being hit by an oncoming vehicle. The doe stayed for several hours before leaving.
Parkour: the sport of moving along a route, typically in a city, trying to get around or through various obstacles in the quickest and most efficient manner possible, as by jumping, climbing, or running.
There is a delightful video traveling around the world wide web of a raccoon defying all the odds of man made interventions. The video shows the animal as it effortlessly climbs a bird feeder pole, bypassing a large dome shaped barrier meant to thwart this type of behavior. It holds on to the pole, above the aforementioned barrier, with its front paws while it swings the rest of its body over to the bird feeder and grabs it with its hind legs. Then, while looking directly at whoever is videoing this spectacle, it grabs the top of the feeder, with the front paws and proceeds to unscrew the bottom of the feeder with its hind legs, until the bottom falls to the ground followed by a payload of bird seed.
Google: parcoon to watch this hilarious and crafty critter. It will help lift the soul and put a smile on your face. It is like a small sparkling diamond that leaves us to ponder about the true nature of things.
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