I had a bit of a surprise yesterday – I had been in the camper and as I came out I could hear what I thought were ducks on the pond, so I snuck down a bit closer to get a look. They were not ducks, they were furred creatures. I thought at first they were muskrat, which are reasonably common in the area, but they didn’t swim like a muskrat, and their tails were wide and furry.
They sure looked like otters, but do we even have them in the area? A quick google and look at Wikipedia told me that these were North American River Otters, and that this was part of their range. They normally inhabit larger waterways but perhaps there is population pressure sending them our way.
They were busy fishing for goldfish in the pond – I wonder how many will left when the otters are finished their feast? We tried scaring them away, but they basically just looked at us and gave us the proverbial finger. We let the dogs out as another try. The dogs were pretty interested, but since the otters were in the water, the dogs lost interest pretty quickly. Hurmph.
Later in the day there was no sign of them.
This morning I could hear them again and sure enough all 3 were back, whistling and snorting to each other. They are slightly cute, but also slightly snake like… Still it is fun to have wildlife in the backyard.
Speaking of wildlife, Spike killed a little rabbit yesterday. I have mixed feelings about it – I don’t like him killing (and he seems to be a Natural Born Killer), but an overpopulation of rabbits isn’t great for the garden or the trees. In the winter they eat the bark off, sometimes “ringing” it, causing the tree to die. So. I guess I won’t get too excited about it. (note to self: put the flea stuff on the dogs after their bath today).
In all things of nature there is something of the marvellous.
Aristotle
4 comments:
It is good for the dogs to catch an occasional rabbit. Keeps them active and interested, but don't let them eat them if you prevent it. They can get tape worms from the rabbits.
always nice to have wildlife nearby. nice pictures of the otters.
When we work the Fishing Derby at a wildlife refuge in Maine, we can't have the fish delivered (the pond is stocked so kids are sure to catch something) until the morning of the derby as the otters can clean 100 fish out overnight. So... wildlife is nice, but sure can be a nuisance ;-)
I am envious - otters, rabbits, etc. Hoping for an invitation to photograph your wild creatures! Speaking of that, it's been on my mind to suggest a photography outing to a park (along the Castor River) or wooded area where we could find "fall colours".
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