[dropcap]K[/dropcap]issMe has another story. Since he cannot speak English, let’s just surmise. Late one night, I went into our backyard looking for our Great White Hunter with Red Spots. His whimpers beckoned me to our low-fenced herb garden (too high for his super short legs to get him out, once he gets in). With a little boost, KissMe headed towards the kitchen’s doggie door.
Dim light revealed something large and furry in his jaws. Somehow, my hand made it to his collar before he jumped into the house. KissMe reluctantly gave up his deathgrip and dropped his prize. He had the back half of a squirrel.
Half a squirrel at 1 a.m.? It has been three days, and we’ve seen no evidence of the front half of that squirrel.
So, what’s your guess? I see a red-tailed hawk leaving it on a limb, from whence it got knocked to the ground by wind or a beastie. That’s totally a guess.
For certain, we have Red-tailed Hawks, parents and juveniles, near the end of Live Oak Drive. AllAboutBirds.org says they eat mostly mammals, and they seldom go after dogs and cats.
A pair of Screech Owls, the ones that spent weeks earlier in the season at the OwlShack above our driveway, flew the coop without nesting. A possible explanation came to me. We switched this spring from a mercury vapor bulb in our yard light (when the ballast went out) to a CFL. Owls no longer have a nighttime smorgasbord in our driveway.
In May, RonTom and I attended a nighttime moth workshop. A mercury vapor bulb was set above a hanging white sheet to bring in moths and nighttime insects for observation. Our new CFL attracts no insects.
Beautiful orange-billed black-bellied whistling ducks landed on our “wildlife tree” (trimmed dead oak tree, now teeming with life) one morning last week. Over on Juniper, they’re frequently seen.
At least one gorgeous yellow-billed cuckoo, with black and white spotted tail, has been spotted in Mountain City. One showed up when Ed and Ginger Hite were entertaining friends who bird.
The Hite’s have a large Poke plant, which I surmise got planted by a bird that ate berries on our plants several years ago. Poke is not a plant available in nurseries. The red-stemmed plant with purple berries attracts birds.
For trivia buffs, legend has it that the Declaration of Independence was signed with fermented poke berry ink.
A Mountain Cityian sent word that she got suckered into ordering “free” beauty products online which had a 14-day return if not satisfied clause hidden in fine print of the privacy statement. She had unchecked “reorder.” Still, in came two bills. Buyer beware.
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Thanks! Love, Pauline
