Spanky, Red Fox, and More - UPDATE April 19, 2023
Spanky
Spanky, our special needs bear, has made it through another winter and looks fine. The report is that he still takes only meager bits of food per bite, making me think the diversionary feeding sites are important to his growth. I hope he comes here one of these days to give us a weight.
Red fox
Red fox
Red fox
Red fox
One of the red foxes paid a visit at 5:17 AM, and our Early Riser Judy Thon caught him on her cell phone. Bear Course participants will recognize the railing he is on in one of the pictures and up on the cub feeder, as we call it, in the other, probably checking for suet.Common Grackle
Common Grackle
The common grackle showed his colors in good sun as he pointed his beak high, sometimes even standing on his tiptoes in what looks like a show of dominance toward other males.
This pre-dawn dark-eyed junco is one of so many that locals are emailing that they have never seen so many passing through at once. Juncomania they are calling it. Some juncos stay here for the summer, but most move north into the boreal forests throughout Canada and Alaska. Their breeding range also extends south in the mountain ranges of eastern and western states.
Dark-eyed Junco
Dark-eyed Junco
Seeing the picture of Spanky makes me look forward to the Black Bear Field Courses that are filled up except for one open space in the July 3-6 course and one in the July 17-20 course.
The lakes are still ice-covered with daytime temperatures now back down into the 30’s F.
Thank you for all you do,
Lynn Rogers, Biologist, Wildlife Research Institute and North American Bear Center
