# Today in nature I saw **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 20, 2020, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854 "2020-07-20T18:22:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 66
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2022, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1302 "2022-03-28T23:09:56Z")
Yes, blue heron. Probably a young one as his color is lighter than what we see in Minnesota, but could also be local variation. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2022, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1303 "2022-03-30T14:24:07Z")
I saw a coyote this morning! I’ve always heard they lived in the area, but never saw one until now. (checks off bucket list) ---
**Author:** ![JaneDoe42](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janedoe42/32/14104_2.png) [@JaneDoe42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaneDoe42)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2022, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1304 "2022-03-30T18:08:09Z")
A big roadrunner strolling through our yard. Roadrunners can jump 6 feet straight up in the air and catch a hummingbird in flight, so all of our feeders are too high for roadrunners to reach. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2022, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1305 "2022-03-30T18:09:59Z")
We could get our critters together and make a good cartoon! ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2022, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1306 "2022-03-30T18:17:56Z")
I think I saw a muskrat on my run this afternoon. I am not entirely sure, though. It looked like a tiny beaver with a bad case of bedhead. We were both running, so I didn’t get a good look at it. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2022, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1307 "2022-03-31T18:04:14Z")
[Samuel L. Jackson] “I have had it with these m’f’in caterpillars on this m’f’in gate!” [/SLJ] They are _everywhere_. It’s like a horror movie, y’all! [![Imgur](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51973779553_be910a6551_b.jpg "Caterpillars") ](https://www.flickr.com/photos/45215582@N06/51973779553/) ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2022, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1308 "2022-03-31T19:11:52Z")
[[Album] imgur.com ![](https://i.imgur.com/L9cPC4H.jpeg?fb "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/a/MMm2wWG) I took this pic several days ago. A week or more ago, we saw the two drakes sleeping in the ivy. We didn’t see the female. When I took _this_ pic my attention was drawn to her. That plastic fencing? It’s blocking off work that plumbers are doing. He was using a jackhammer then, and she came out to quack at him. Very loudly. Turns out she was nesting in that bush behind the tree. I thought she might have relocated because of all the noise. But yesterday I took my dog out, and he started nosing around our neighbor’s steps (we’re directly across). Since I thought mama duck had left I let him step about a foot or so into the ivy when she came flapping out. Dang. I felt so bad. I took Max inside and watched from our window. She stood off to the side for a few minutes, and then I didn’t see her. I hope she’s back under the bush. This trio of ducks have been returning to our complex for about ten years, and they’ve had ducklings here before. We have two pools and some artificial ponds and streams with plenty of vegetation, so they like it here. Although NextDoor reports they’ve been seen in other places in the neighborhood. For now, I’m keeping Max well away. ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2022, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1309 "2022-04-03T19:46:04Z")
We were out on the South Downs today, and stopped off for a coffee in the National Trust cafe at Birling Gap. The downland scrub grows right up to the outdoor seating area - and sparrows just love to hang out in the scrub (and scavenge crumbs). There is a fence which separates the seating area from the scrub, and the mesh size (if that’s the right word) of the fence is a perfect fit for a sparrow. [![Google Photos](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/NKebAvJHtYevKDh-ReUj_4ELqahZpyLRNrLLQRLWwvrLxy64N-MHX9ESuQuWgASTZbez6WA8LqF5gcRceTwmE0POZxAPGcSXWLBVFYBTLp-ClC3oYH7Hih-t0RlEbzirYOsAjrMd3Q=w600-h315-p-k "New item by j") ](https://photos.app.goo.gl/B3MZZyLSTjaCGbFi7) Do interesting patterns of sunlight on chalk cliffs count for this thread? [![Google Photos](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/4FX-6If2PDAjR1bcZ16uCcmVjp5niMYTjmeEbkHk9LbKa31nTbp7ELxQq4nH3Is3D7oAx29dKL5zp1X7wZ4bp1Z5l_c1XwaoiMMOoEj1lkt9vOqE2U64KEhcHhXtoSbYAIm78_SMGA=w600-h315-p-k "New item by j") ](https://photos.app.goo.gl/khTEohb7YrXWMkLG8) j ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2022, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1310 "2022-04-03T21:12:50Z")
Yes, that’s gorgeous. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2022, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1311 "2022-04-03T22:55:46Z")
Both pics are great. It was beautiful here yesterday and rainy/slushy today but I’ve not got anything to report. I’m on steroids for a week and put myself into quarantine so I’m not too affected the wrong way by it. Eaglets still well-hidden under parents today. ---
**Author:** ![TRC4941](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trc4941/32/6792_2.png) [@TRC4941](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TRC4941)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2022, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1312 "2022-04-04T14:45:30Z")
The first sightings of “spring” yesterday: A small gaggle of Canada geese looking for some open water Chippy-Chip-Chipmunk was out and about A robin It snowed last night 😧 ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2022, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1313 "2022-04-04T15:22:29Z")
I had to move a wren’s nest Saturday. She had built inside the arm of my husband’s tractor! Don’t ask me how; he uses it every day and doesn’t always leave it in the same spot. But she had, so I pulled it out and put it into a bucket, lying on its side on the hood of the tractor just a few inches away. Five little eggs were in it. The next day, I took the bucket and put it on a nearby shelf. I sure hope she was able to come back and find it, but I haven’t seen her. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![romansperson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/romansperson/32/17100_2.png) [@romansperson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romansperson)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2022, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1314 "2022-04-04T15:26:34Z")
Wrens are pretty strange about where they’ll build their nests, aren’t they? [![](https://nc.audubon.org/sites/default/files/styles/bean_wysiwyg_full_width/public/34857112_10215627500579135_6372266741682143232_n.jpg?itok=SnJVDuxy) ](https://nc.audubon.org/sites/default/files/styles/bean_wysiwyg_full_width/public/34857112_10215627500579135_6372266741682143232_n.jpg?itok=SnJVDuxy) That pic is from [this article](https://nc.audubon.org/news/birds-nest-odd-places#:~:text=Carolina%20Wrens%20are%20famous%20for,of%20my%20weedeater%22%20says%20Smalling.), and at the end, they say you did the right thing, leaving the nest nearby. At least it’s early enough they can try again if that doesn’t work out. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2022, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1315 "2022-04-04T15:30:08Z")
Thanks, I’ve been worried! ---
**Author:** ![MikeF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MikeF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeF)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2022, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1316 "2022-04-04T16:51:00Z")
Right after stepping outside this morning (6:30 AM) I saw large flocks of something heading north. V formations, a couple of hundred birds, at least. Within a minute an osprey flew at low altitude with a fish in his talons. The early bird catches the menhaden, I guess. Right after that, a sharp shin hawk went zipping by. Not a bad start to a Monday in coastal New Jersey. Curiously, I’ve not seen any oyster catchers. They are normally one of the first migratory birds I see return. Always before the osprey show up. ---
**Author:** ![Crane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crane/32/3495_2.png) [@Crane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crane)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2022, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1317 "2022-04-04T17:15:55Z")
I’ve wondered if pitcher plants are aerotropic. If so, they are not fast movers like sun flowers tracking the sun. Three days ago we had been experiencing a steady stiff breeze. Shown from left to right in the photo by black arrow. Then all of the traps were perfectly aligned facing the wind, against the arrow. Now the wind has died down and shifted 180 degrees so I checked this patch and found that the traps have been rotating. Some on the upwind side (right) have made a full half turn and some a partial. Those on the downwind side are just beginning to turn. The traps have a very sturdy base attachment. I’m not sure how they manage a 180 degree turn. And they must turn only one way. Can’t imagine a 360. This warrants further investigation. [![](https://i.imgur.com/o9Nl1h4.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/o9Nl1h4.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Author\_Balk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Author\_Balk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Author_Balk)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2022, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1318 "2022-04-05T16:38:01Z")
I was in the backyard with my dog. I saw a fox running in the neighbor’s backyard. The dog barked at it. It was running back into the woods behind the house. A minute or so later I noticed the fox coming up toward us from the back. It was about 20 feet away and inching closer. When I turned around it stopped, then made a noise and ran away. I’m thinking this is a mother fox and there are babies somewhere near the backyard and she was protecting her babies. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2022, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1319 "2022-04-05T18:42:47Z")
Here is your daily alligator. Well, maybe not daily but I’m seeing them a lot lately. This guy is in the cow pasture next to my house; I think he’s the only one. So far. [![Imgur](https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51984965994_1e9491f95a_b.jpg "Daily gator") ](https://www.flickr.com/photos/45215582@N06/51984965994/) ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2022, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1320 "2022-04-05T21:43:22Z")
Low-lying cow ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2022, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854/1321 "2022-04-05T23:13:59Z")
Two squirrels playing tag in a tree. My dog was too anxious for his dinner to pay attention. I think I saw one of the mallard drakes under the hawthorne bush. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854.md?page=65) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/today-in-nature-i-saw/915854.md?page=67)