Wild Nature Friends

We have many friends in nature around here. So far we have seen:
• Deer (including bucks and fawns)
• Chipmunks
• Skunk. We knew a little skunk with a broken leg and brave spirit, but we have not seen him much since the snow came.
• Flies. We have not seen any this winter. But probably will soon.
• Red-tailed hawk. The pair of red-tail hawks like to circle the field and look for mice.
• Frogs live in the pond.
• Raccoons.
• Heron. Hopefully he will come back in the spring.
• Coyotes. Coyote footprints show up in the snow. Coyote scat is full of fur.
• Grasshoppers.
• Woolly Bear Caterpillars. We had two named Georgia and Linda. We want more caterpillars.
• Opossum. They play dead so something won't chase them. We saw an opossum on a tree by the trail.
• Squirrel.
• Mice. Field mice like to live in the basement in the winter.
• Shrew.
• CORRECTION! MUSKRATS! What we thought were beavers are Muskrats. [Beaver. It looks like there are beavers in the pond. We see mounds of grass that look like beaver dens. But we have not seen any beavers yet.]
• Woodpeckers. They peck holes in trees. They are looking for insects to eat.
• Mosquitoes. They come in summer and in the fall.
• Birds. Chickadees. Crows. We need to learn more birds, but there are lots of birds around.