Cold, snowy days...

We're rather chilly here. It's the time of year to cocoon, and find some treats. 

Joe is finding all sorts of goodies at the grocery store. Oranges from Morroco.

I am afraid to open the can on the right. It's been in the garage, and froze. Water expands when it freezes.

We keep bottled water in the garage for emergencies. We can't get water from the well if our power goes out. 

I had high hopes for the Amaryllis. That spot of colour is wonderful.  Sure enough, Feb. 17, Feb. 19, Feb. 20.

My fix for the fish tank has been pretty good. At least, I have lost any fishies! The plexiglass I placed on top works well.

Time for outdoor play. I decided to go fetch a trailcam to thaw it. This snow is deep on the lawn. 

See the camera on the tree?! Now, I could have retreated and fetched my snowshoes. I did not.

The only problem was the snow was above my knees. I don't think my snowshoes would have helped.

The purpose of that adventure was to see what was on the camera and to thaw it out. This was Sunday...

 

Then, I ran out of gas!

 

Monday Morning!

Monday morning: garbage day. They predicted -19 ℃ overnight. (It's the things that don't quite kill ya...!) I was thinking I could put it out the night before as the critters won't smell it, it'll be frozen. Too late. I was in my jammies. 

I ended up driving it out in the car, despite it only being -12 ℃. It is snowing, too!

Anyway, I had a great haircut. There wasn't too much traffic on a Sunday morn. My stylist is a sweetie. Thing is, stylists like to cut hair. The thing is that I don't like my hair feathered. It's easier to put a curling iron in it. Here is the before and after. 

Hard to tell which is which, but it's really cleaned up at the back. My last professional haircut was in the summer. My bangs get long and I got to it. 

I built Joseph a fire down in the basement, and he was cozy. Joe was up to his eye balls in football games. He's been running around doing groceries, which is good to keep the car going. We a headlight out, front left. I just thought of it. Non-mental note!

Sunday we decided to bring in pizza. We're too far out for deliveries. I volunteered. He knows I get stressed just driving into town. He was grateful. Crazy senior drivers. This incident involved entitled young people.

Something that bothers me is people laughing at me. They sat in the car and laughed. 

Trailcams don't always do well in winter. The cold is hard on batteries. The melt/thaw freezes them, too! I brought this one in to get warmed up and melt. I needed to replace the batteries, and I couldn't open it up. Frozen shut! I sat it on the placemat and it melted. I loathe the rain in winter. 

I am happy with some snow fall. The red fox crossed the highway, and came all the way up the driveway, and around the back of the house. The track is a little smaller than the coyote. 

 

This is a screen capture from my latest red fox video. It came onto the sidewalk. I've not see it in the day in ages. 

This is the exception. It looked like a young one. Dec., 2021, there was a fox trotting along. I grabbed the camera, and it just hunkered down and gave itself a wash up! Cinnamon was nearby, and I captured him gazing off along the wetland as fox took off. 

Fall chores

 🍁Fall chores <= there be a few!

Aquarium Repairs 🐠

It took me a couple of months to repair the tank. I am pretty confident it isn't leaking anymore.

First, I partly filled the tank. It is cold well water, and takes time to warm up to room temperature. Over the next couple of days, the water has to balance itself out and the cloudiness disappears. Next, the goldfish pond needs to be drained, and the three (I hope) goldfish have to be netted and brought in. Finally, I hope for a rain to refill the pond from the water barrel and the eaves. 

The gutter was overflowing during the 24 mm (1") of rain. I hauled my big butt up the ladder (in between clouds), and onto the roof. Oh my! Three or four leaves were blocking it. It was a sweet sound when it drained. Gutter Guards don't work with the heavy downpours we get. I've tried a brush-like insert, but it blocks at the end. 

Somebody was in the frog pond. I'm not sure if the muskrat came back. Maybe Butch Raccoon?

Sept. 6th – This home is coming along. <= watch their progress. I am silently cheering them on.

Sept. 8th, a poor hummingbird was trying to feed on the roses, but the wind was blowing them so hard! It was a moving target.

More chores. The trailcam was cloudy with condensation. Not good.

I had to take it apart to let it dry out. The other one, the same brand, sits on a tree. It isn't as prone to water dumps! 

Garbage is out. The sun is rising. We're going to go up from 9 to 20℃ today. I'd best plant or plan for my new plants! More on those tomorrow. 

Camera Critters

 Thanks to Eileen for hosting! Saturday's Critters # 511 

I love watching the critters remotely. Much better than near the house.  My oldest trailcam kicked the bucket. The one by the frogpond, I forgot to turn back on after I switched the memory cards. The one I moved to this beautiful old spruce corridor has been quite busy. I'd not realized! It is a lovely canopy up above.

 The bird surprised me. I was sitting reading, and was afraid to move. Dunno. Grouse? Wood duck? I invariably get it wrong!

mystery bird from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Butch has been active. They are madly trying to bulk up for winter!

 

Butch & kits Sept 21 from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

This is a mash up. I'm finding they are trotting very quickly through this part of the forest.

trailcam from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

I captured a daytime video of coyote. You can really appreciate their colours.

Sept. 21 Coyote from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

This was the highlight of the month. It is a short video, which gives you an idea about how fast they run.

fisher Sept. 29 from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Book Review: Camera Trapping Guide

 I follow a Facebook trailcam camera and video group. The author of the book, Janet Pesaturo, is one of the administrators. She posted information about her book, and I bought it for myself for my birthday, Dec. 26th. (That's how we roll here!)

There are a lot of books out about critters. It is often difficult to choose which is best for you. I have general guide books about eastern birds, moths, insects, and mammals. I've interesting books, like my latest on animal scat! Scat Finder I've books specific to deer, owls, and bears. 

Janet explains that when she began setting out camera traps, she would go out with her mammal field guide, a tracking guide, and a summary of the critter's behaviour. She took the initiative to write this book to help us understand how, when, and where to place cameras, and she provides good information on 35 mammals, 5 birds, and alligators. Now, I don't need to know about alligators, but it was fun to read.

Amazon provides a preview, and the table of contents lists the critters. Each chapter is devoted to one animal, and follows a consistent format: physical characteristics, tracks and trails, diet, scat and urine, habitat, breeding, then rounding it off with specific camera trapping tips.

Chapter two
Eastern Cottontail

If I have any constructive criticism, it is that the durn maps end at the Canada/US border. I've been researching woodland voles (meadow voles, as Janet calls them), for example, and learned a lot about them. I still don't know why they are going into the mouse hole in the house, and that remains a mystery. 

It helps to understand a species to know where to place a camera. It pays to track them, and understanding paths that they follow. My frogpond trailcam, for example, is a heavily trodden path between the wetland and the pond. Many critters prefer to stay on dry land whilst making their way through their habitat. What I notice is that in winter, when the frog pond is frozen, they avoid the camera. Little twerps!

Janet wrote a blog called, One Acre Farm, all about homesteading. She has a new blog, Winterberry Wildlife. There is so much information on them. 

I do recommend the book. It is full a lot of excellent information not found elsewhere. 

BTW  I learned how to refine my camera trapping skills from my photographer internet buddy (we've never met!) who has a video from last year with the buck losing its antler on film. He camera traps in a large forest and writes about wildlife photography. 

For me, camera trapping has been hit and miss. I've learned a lot by my mistakes. 

Today, we begin with - 30 C. temperatures. There won't be much on the cameras today. 

The birds, mourning doves and starlings nestle in the evergreen.

From large to small, we film them all!

backyard deer from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Richard Deer has lost his antlers, he'll regrow them in spring, but he still wears a figurative crown.

bossy Richard deer from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

I've been experimenting on the front porch, where the birds scatter seeds from the feeder.

American Tree Sparrow from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

mice and cats from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

For more critters: Saturday's Critters # 477. 

Indoor and outdoor tails

For the third day out of 4, I forgot to put the trailcam to the 'on' position after reinserting the fresh card. I am still unable to get a video of the buck marking his scrape (below, right). One is supposed to turn the camera off when removing and reinserting the cards. I thought I was being prudent. Whoopsie. 😳 Don't tell the kids. 

The one day I remembered, all I got was the doe and a raccoon.

Deer scrape from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

This is where they mark territory, it is rutting season. Nov. 26/22

Then, I contacted the wrong person, enquiring after something online. I thought it was, for example Dave Jones, when it was Don Jones. 😳 Don't tell the kids. 

Finished my workout, fetched trailcam cards, came in for a shower, and found I'd been wearing my t-shirt on inside out all morning. 😳 Don't tell the kids.

I did think to send flowers to Caitlin. They are there beside her tissue box! Covid has settled into her nose. Each day she is better, which is good news. She texted a 'thank you' and a photo!

In the fall there was lots of fungus and many mushrooms. This seems to be the last of it! I bright spot of colour.

I finally remembered to remove the house wren nesting box. It looks a bit the worse for wear. It's actually a bluebird nesting box, but I haven't seen one in years. They have flown south in search of live food! 

Grampa thought Polar Bear looked cold. He fixed that.

More rain tomorrow, they say. And winds. I need to clean the goldfish tank, too. Maybe that is a good rainy day activity. Percy-the-pooper is on the go!

Porcupine, Oregano, Coyotes

Here we are settling into Autumn. I'm making progress on 🍂Fall Chores. I am getting old and forgetful, so a list was crucial! I am comforted by all those with similar issues with insomnia. We are not unique, and being retired we have realized that it's not so bad as we can sleep in. No alarm clock to worry about, or having to be nearly human for a work day.

Well, we had snow in Ontario on Monday! We only had rain. I am glad I mulched the leaves the day before. The water fountain is cleaned and once it dries out I will cover it. 

We've had frost. Once it warmed up I did some garden work. Bye bye flowers!

I gazed out back, and spotted a critter on a rock. It turned out to be Cinnamon. He was looking for mice friends. He came in shortly after.

It was necessary to take leaves out of the rain gauge, in preparation for the incoming precipitation. We had a total of 21 mm (0.83"). It was a long, rainy day. 

I've taken the top off of the swing bench. Yesterday, I covered the bench and furniture with a tarp and put away the table and chairs. During COVID you know store shelves had issues. JB had brought me a 6 x 8 m white one (20 x 28'). I was so tired after wrestling with I had to go indoors and rest! 

The leaves are quickly falling. Enjoy them while you can!

There was graupel in south eastern Ontario. Actual snow up in northern Ontario. Us, just rain. 

Just before the rain, a young porcupine!

porcupine from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

In the night, strange cat 😼Oregano popped by the trailcam. I thought he might be feral, but I really don't know. There is lots to eat here: shrews, field mice, forest mice, voles, moles.  Our cats were safely tucked in bed. We don't know where he is from, but he is an intact male who likes to visit. I called him Oregano, since we have twins Nutmeg and Cinnamon, also tabby cats. I found the name following Janis Irwin, a very cool Edmonton MLA with a cat named Oregano. 

 

Oregano from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Not to be outdone, Coyotes appeared!

coyotes from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

There were two coyotes for sure, but I think another was trailing after them. What do you think? They are healthy pups. We never see them in the day, thankfully! They know lots of humans around here have guns, with lots of farms and farm animals who need protection. 

It's a lovely mixed community, with landowners (some with 600 acre 150-year-old farms) who have cows, sheep, chickens, goats, and two horse farms, including Ian Millar's. The nearby lake has cottages, a mixture of seasonal and full time residences, as well as AirBnBs and rentals. Some people commute into Ottawa to work. I've found a couple of people who have moved here for the peace and quiet, like us.