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  • From: Gene GeRue <genegerue AT ruralize.com>
  • To: Homestead <homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [Homestead] The Morning Show at Heartwood
  • Date: Wed, 27 May 2009 06:29:26 -0500

6:45 am, Sitting on the porch with coffee. Overcast morning. A substantial animal launched itself from the dam into the pond. Then another. Much thrashing around in the water. Another animal followed but stayed out of the water. Water animal would go onto land, then quick movement, then go back into the water. Repeat. Old eyes can't get enough detail at four hundred feet and bad light. Moved slowly into house for binoculars. I'll be darned. It is a bobcat on land, a big one, with a long tail, so at first I though a young mountain lion. White on backs of ears, white at end of tail. Young otter came up out of the water, bobcat stalked it as if to attack, otter leaped back into the water. Are they playing or is this for real? Then a big otter, probably the mother, attacked the bobcat which made a quick retreat. All otters back in water, now clearly feeding on fish. Bobcat went around the end of the dam into a peninsula and onto a log, watched the otters thrashing in the water. Reminded me of a typical domestic cat with a strong hunting instinct, it was obviously fascinated with the young otters, for food or play, who knows.

Too much fun not to share. Whispered up the stairs to sleepyhead Chris to come see the show. Water movement subsided, otters must have swum upstream. At first I thought our movements scared the cat away but then it appeared, moved across the land to the old log bridge, went over that and up the driveway. No hurry.

A fawn appeared on the lawn walking from East toward the water. Mother soon followed. They went down to the stream, waded out into the water and drank. Chris said it looks like they are bathing. Deer moved out of sight upstream. Quick movement on the other side, I think it was the bobcat. Lots of snorts from both doe and fawn. Fawn reappeared. Mother doing battle? Then mom came back. All is well for now. Now I know the difference in snort sounds between mature deer and fawns. Invaluable knowledge, no doubt.

Next scene is at the dog porch where I groom Benny. A little Yellow- throated thrasher? energetically pulled dog hair out of the brush. How do they keep holding on to the previous pulls while they get more? Then he flew off to present his treasures to his favorite nest-maker. This scene repeated several times.

Now back to our regular programming.




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