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#amblogging, bears, bees, birds, C. C. Cedras author, deer, Fergus, Spring, Summer, Whip-poor-will
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Every year, back comes Spring, with nasty little birds yapping their fool heads off and the ground all mucked up with plants.
— Dorothy Parker
This is the time of year when all of the fauna on the mountain start to stir. The goldfinches are thick on the bird feeders in their full breeding plumage; the cardinals and bluebirds are nesting in the wilds of the garden. The bears show up on the patio hoping that I’ll be slow, or inattentive, or preferably both so they can raid those same bird feeders. And the whip-poor-will sits in the garden calling for a mate all night long. It seems I blog about this annual rite of Spring (or early Summer) at this time every year.
Seriously. The whip-poor-will is just freaking annoying. The monotonous call is incessant and, even with all windows tightly closed, pierces the night-time quiet. But at least it forces out the ear worms that usually accompany my insomnia. Fergus has gotten used to it after the past couple of years; nothing interferes with his gentle snores. Bless him.
Two years ago:
I’ve already replaced the bird feeder pole and sundry feeders that a very large bear destroyed a few weeks ago, but, sure enough, another bear strolled onto the patio last week — in broad daylight — and was just about to help him (or her) self to the new feeder station when Fergus went insane at the patio door. The bear stopped in mid-raid to study the wee creature flinging himself at the glass and barking his head off, giving me an opportunity to scare him (or her) off before real damage was done. I had time to fetch the Glock and fire a series of warning shots at his (or her) fat butt lumbering through the woods and past the bee yard (and it’s electric fence humming with 10,000 volts).
Last year:
The prior Fall:
So, lazy blogger that I am, I’m just picking a few previous posts out of the ether to avoid the effort of trying to say the same things in new, more interesting ways.
Like KRB, I have a critter cam (actually set up to catch rogue ATV riders trespassing across my property), but all I get are photos of herds of deer … maybe I should go fetch the sim card and see how many bears are smiling for the camera. Or, maybe I don’t really want to know.
Stay safe, y’all.
C C Cedras
K R Brorman
S A Young
5 Comments
May 24, 2018 at 12:05 pm
I’m always fascinated by your adventures with the creatures that populate your mountain paradise. And that pic of Fergus is sincerely cracking me up!
May 24, 2018 at 12:44 pm
Fergus is my little hero!
May 24, 2018 at 5:10 pm
Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!! The joys of living in the mountains! 🙂
May 24, 2018 at 5:36 pm
After all these years, I’ve got the rhythm of the wildlife. I get Facebook “memories” that are almost TO THE DAY from prior years’ bear depredations. I could mark the calendar.
May 26, 2018 at 4:37 pm
Ooh bear cam! Easy for me to be eager for it when they are not on MY back patio. Although, the odd black bear, bobcat and mountain lion has been spotted around here during droughts – cattle water = wild watering hole. Looks like I’ll have to keep my eyes open this summer.