Do you have a favorite local animal to observe?

My favorite is when the Bald Eagles are around in the spring. We have a nesting pair just down the shoreline of our lake cabin and see them pretty much all the time when we are at the lake especially in the winter when they are “fishing” along the open water on the frozen lake. I also have bird feeders and humming bird feeders and watching the humming birds is my second fav with watching all the Cedar Waxwings feasting on berries and bugs is another favorite of mine.

No favorites, I enjoy all the local suburban wildlife, even the squirrels. There is some sort of a marmot thing that sleeps under my deck, and waddles out into world just before dawn. Raccoon and skunk families head west at dawn (maybe to the Dunkin Donuts for breakfast?) and once in a awhile a coyote visits at dusk.
The birds are unfazed by my dogs, they are around a lot, too.

@Cruiser, when I lived in the North West we had a couple of bald eagle families that would occasionally go after tiny dogs in the winter. :-)

@canidmajor We have packs of coyotes in our neighborhood who have pretty much eliminated all the lap dogs people let out in their yard. I also once saw two coyotes try a flanking maneuver on my 45 lb dog who is about the size of a coyote and why I have an aluminum baseball bat out on our backyard deck.

@Cruiser . If your budget and location could take it, you might want to invest in a larger ,stronger breed of dog to chill with you and your smaller dog. Some dogs are bread to fight off predators like coyotes. Some have thick fur to absorb bites,and powerful jaws, with instinctive fighting ability.

If you don’t have loads of cash, a German Shepherd, or Rottweiler are loving dogs that can also really handle themselves.

Get these breeds young and socialize them with as many people as possible when pups, and you’ll have a cuddle buddy for your family, and an animal who would die to protect you. It wouldn’t have to fight much. It would intimate other animals.

Just a thought.

Appreciate the suggestion @MrGrimm888 and those breeds were among my choice breed to get, but my wife feel in love with our American Fox hound mixed breed we got as a rescue dog. Our Sadie is one tough dog and has yet to back down from the coyotes and she always knows where they are. In fact I do not see them cutting through our yard to get into the wetlands next to us anymore. I see them walk the outside edge of our yard now as our Sadie is always calling them out when she sees, hears or smells them. I always escort her in the yard at night.

@Cruiser: the coyotes are really rare in this neighborhood, we have conscientious folks who keep their creatures in at night, but I’m pretty sure there are fewer raccoon kits after each visit.

I have a 50 pound Pit bull. But I raised her non violent, so she’s pretty much worthless for protection. She grew up with 3 kittens. She doesn’t bark, and I used to have to keep the kittens from eating her food because she would never hurt them. I got her to be a guard dog because I live in not the best neighborhood, but she’s all heart. I learned a lot about the breed.

Good luck with them coyotes. Protect your doggy.

We have a nest of Havørn locally and they fly right in front of my house over the fjord when they go hunting. They are the fourth largest predatory bird in the world and the largest here in Europe. Amazing to watch.

I like watching the crows placing nuts on the road, waiting for cars to crack them.

Coyotes are wiping out all of the domestic cats in my neighborhood. Nextdoor.com has nothing but missing cat posts, like 20 in the past year. People are still letting their cats out because they have no idea.

I like watching bald eagles also, as well as black bears.

Crows are the shit.

@ARE_you_kidding_me I mentioned to someone in our neighbourhood with a missing cat that the eagle could have taken it. Sometimes words come out before I really think. The look on that poor woman’s face.

I know, I could not mention that myself. At least one other person is telling people that here though. We have plenty of coyotes in the area. Coyotes in suburban areas have a diet that is roughly 50% domestic animals and pets.

I’m a nature nut too and man, there are so many animals around here.
I love watching all the birds swarm my bird feeders. Titmice, Nuthatches, house Finches, Towhees, jays, on and on. It is grand central station, especially mornings and late afternoons.
We also have a resident big Jack rabbit that hops around on the lawns here and sneaks under the horse fencing to find wisps of hay.

He?she has gotten quite tame, which is unusual for these guys and will often sit, just a few feet away from me and we commune in silence. haha
I love the way all the veins in his giant ears are illuminated by the back lighting of the sun. Those ears are THE major defense for Mr. Bunny Man. I see him every afternoon and am always glad he has not been nabbed by a Coyote, yet anyway.
I also love, love, love Lizards, of which we have scads of them of several different species.

They are constantly scurrying around and doing their “push up” routines. Cracks me up.
We also have ground squirrels by the hundreds too that scamper around and live under out hay tent which is set up with the hay stacked on pallets. My cats love to sit on the hay stack and watch them but they are lightening quick and nobody has ever been caught yet. haha

I like looking at great tits

I prefer cocks.

I like hearing the mockingbirds, and the wack-o things they emulate. I could have sworn I heard one whistle a Nokia ringtone once.

And the hawks and ospreys are always a blast. I love birds of prey.

I also enjoy beaver

nothing beats an ass

You can’t beat a pussy

Seriously though, my absolute fave animals are otters, they are all kinds of cute

Yes, I live in a high density Coyote zone too, and my cats are only allowed out for a couple hours mid-morning, never at night, ever. In 25 years and out of about 10 cats, I have only lost 2 to Coyotes, most likely. Possibly a Cougar/Bobcat as well. I have had pet geese for years, one that was a big, 26 lb. Embden and I saved her twice, once from a Bobcat that tried to drag her over the fence by her neck and another time from a 3 legged Coyote that was every bit as fast as his 4 legged brothers.

My goose suffered a spinal cord injury from the Bobcat attack and I had to tube feed her for several weeks as her balance was effected. She made a full recovery but always listed to one side when she walked. When the Coyote nabbed her, it was 5 ‘0 clock in the afternoon and I had the geese out grazing around the yard and was washing my car in the driveway. This 3 legged Coyote jumped out of the bushes not 10 feet away from me and grabbed Babby goose.

He drug her to the edge of the hill across from the driveway which was dense brush, boulders and pine trees and she sat down on her fat bottom and dug her feet into the deep pine needles. The drag factor slowed the Coyote down as she was too heavy to be actually picked up and carried away. I had just enough time to grab a small log/branch and I, literally, was standing over the Coyote hitting it on the head and back until it finally let go of my goose.

She was unharmed but seriously shaken up, of course. Poor thing, she always stayed right by me after that when I let them out in the yard, which was unfenced on a 7 acre property. This property has good fencing and cross fencing and there are only a couple spots where something could sneak under a fence. While it is never a happy occasion to lose a pet to one it goes with the territory of living in these foothills/mountains.

You do your best to keep everyone safe but the risk is still there.
They don’t call them wiley coyotes for nothing, they are very smart and clever.
We have been feeding, have tamed down a semi-feral young black cat here in the last 8 weeks or so and are now able to confine him to his “apartment” a small, unused chicken coop with a chain link run next to the big coop. He is locked into his apartment every night with his food, water, an area rug, astro turf in the run and a comfy kitty bed with toys but we let him out in the mornings for the day.

So far he has managed to evade the Coyotes for at least 6 months or more of being a stray. Soon he will be taken in for vetting and neutering but will probably remain a barn cat and live in his cozy apartment.

We have a colony of Mississippi Kites which is unusual for Eastern North Carolina.

I will also caution for those of you in the Coyote zone that this time of year is especially bad for predation. The attacks and encounters I have experienced have all been in the fall, late Aug.-Nov. This is, not only the season of fattening up for winter but all the Coyote pups are 4–5 months old now. Most are born between April and June and are too young to hunt independently or with the family unit/pack but requiring a lot of food since they are fully weaned.

Great Blue Herons and cormorants on the lake.

No love for ladybugs? I adore watching them, especially when they come on my arm.

Tourists getting dangerously close to wildlife. Me I like squirrels.

I live in a foresty area. I love seeing the deer in the area, but I have been eager to see the bear that lives here, and is occasionally seen crossing the highway, or up a tree.

Oh yes, I forgot the twin fawns that have been around here with mama the last few months.

Now, do not approach free ranging horses if you don’t them. haha
Horse body language 101, pinned ears mean ” I am not happy, look out!”

www.youtube.com/watch?v=vK491ZXgj-E