Ice to nuts..

worldtalker · Jan 16, 2019

We have had a pretty descent winter..so far.Monday took a walk along the river late day up here in Mass.,I never knew Great Blue Herons wintered over, looks like he's catching them late rays.

Yesterday I went again in the early morning down the river in Conn.and I was surprised by another heron..

Food has to be real lean pickins for this dude it looks as though he's using his beak as an ice pick.

I really do not like people doing crap like this..

This morning,every morning for that matter Darky and Beggar are always ready for their breakfast..

Beggar gets a little hoggy now and again. :laughing7:

Then he came back for more.

GOD Bless

Chris

ARC · Jan 16, 2019

Sheesh... With a thread title like that... you just have look.

Wheeew thank goodness. :P

old digger · Jan 16, 2019

Beggar kind of reminds me of that cousin of Harry Potter, need to zap a piggy's tail on that little guy.

DeepseekerADS · Jan 16, 2019

Thank you for caring about your neighbors!

Love all the critters around me, we even put all our scraps in a pot on our back porch. Seems the coons dominate. But all our "neighbors" are welcome. The problem/disappointment I feel here is that I've yet to see a squirrel in the 5 years I've been home up the holler. But, so far I've seen a bear the size of a Volkswagen bug out maybe 20 feet from my front door. There was a lynx out my back door, deer in the yard every single day, rabbits - but no squirrels in the 5 years I've been home. Years and years of timbering all around my property = no nut bearing trees anymore.

worldtalker · Jan 16, 2019

DeepseekerADS said:
Thank you for caring about your neighbors!

Love all the critters around me, we even put all our scraps in a pot on our back porch. Seems the coons dominate. But all our "neighbors" are welcome. The problem/disappointment I feel here is that I've yet to see a squirrel in the 5 years I've been home up the holler. But, so far I've seen a bear the size of a Volkswagen bug out maybe 20 feet from my front door. There was a lynx out my back door, deer in the yard every single day, rabbits - but no squirrels in the 5 years I've been home. Years and years of timbering all around my property = no nut bearing trees anymore.

Rodger

ALL leftovers(that I don't eat)go out the back door for coons,foxes,possums,skunks,and neighborhood cats oh ya..occasional coyotes and a mother bear and her cub last summer. The more the better. :laughing7:

tamrock · Jan 16, 2019

Herons leave here in the winter.

Professor of Engineering · Jan 16, 2019

Thank you for sharing! :icon_thumleft:

smokeythecat · Jan 16, 2019

Worldtalker, mine go out the back too. I look very carefully when I go outside, cougars, coyotes, bobcats, deer, foxes, opossums (I like them), raccoons and delivery people. You never know what will turn up.

Darky has no friend of like color yet?

Kace · Jan 16, 2019

I really like Darky! I miss the albino that used to come to the house. I've got a couple that are hoarders too... they grab everything they can! lol!

Thanks For Sharing!

Kace

Megalodon · Jan 17, 2019

tamrock said:
Herons leave here in the winter.

Here in Chesapeake Bay, some fly south and some remain during winter. The ones that remain tend to seek out more protected areas during the winter. They can also hunt backyard fish ponds that are kept somewhat ice-free with bubblers, etc. When they learn you keep fish, they can become pests. The solution is to provide hiding places for the fish - sections of PVC pipe work.

worldtalker · Jan 17, 2019

smokeythecat said:
Worldtalker, mine go out the back too. I look very carefully when I go outside, cougars, coyotes, bobcats, deer, foxes, opossums (I like them), raccoons and delivery people. You never know what will turn up.

Darky has no friend of like color yet?

I tell the Wife "make sure you check out back before you open that door". I'm hoping Darky mates with one of the grays,he's all by himself.

worldtalker · Jan 17, 2019

Kace said:
I really like Darky! I miss the albino that used to come to the house. I've got a couple that are hoarders too... they grab everything they can! lol!

Thanks For Sharing!

Kace

I'm kinda partial to him myself..

worldtalker · Jan 17, 2019

Megalodon said:
Here in Chesapeake Bay, some fly south and some remain during winter. The ones that remain tend to seek out more protected areas during the winter. They can also hunt backyard fish ponds that are kept somewhat ice-free with bubblers, etc. When they learn you keep fish, they can become pests. The solution is to provide hiding places for the fish - sections of PVC pipe work.

There is a lady I know that had koi,not for long after the herons found out though. :laughing7:

Megalodon · Jan 17, 2019

worldtalker said:
I tell the Wife "make sure you check out back before you open that door". I'm hoping Darky mates with one of the grays,he's all by himself.

It is still possible for a melanistic squirrel like Darky to produce black offspring with a normally colored gray squirrel - provided the gray squirrel has the recessive gene for melanism.

Megalodon · Jan 17, 2019

worldtalker said:
There is a lady I know that had koi,not for long after the herons found out though.

That's a shame. The solution is to provide hiding places for your fish. Herons are attractive and a popular symbol (they were on the MD Chesapeake license plates) but they are the definitive hosts for some nasty parasites.

smokeythecat · Jan 17, 2019

I think from memory, God help me there, Darky is actually a different species of squirrel. I used to know that stuff decades ago.

Hawks88 · Jan 17, 2019

I always enjoy your pictures. Thanks for sharing.

Megalodon · Jan 17, 2019

smokeythecat said:
I think from memory, God help me there, Darky is actually a different species of squirrel. I used to know that stuff decades ago.

The black squirrels we have around here are the same species as gray squirrels. They have both genes for melanism, so the black is expressed. If they mate with a normal color gray that lacks the gene, the offspring will be gray. If they mate with a gray color gray squirrel that has the recessive gene, then their offspring will be black.

Wild Maryland 101: Maryland: Weird and Wonderful - Melanistic Gray Squirrels

worldtalker · Jan 17, 2019

Megalodon said:
It is still possible for a melanistic squirrel like Darky to produce black offspring with a normally colored gray squirrel - provided the gray squirrel has the recessive gene for melanism.

It would be nice to see a few of his offspring,just have to wait and see.