Trail Camera Video Montage – “Best Of”
Video montage of my favorite trail camera video clips and photos from late 2015 through 2018.
Continue reading →Category Archives: Rodents
American Porcupines Playing?
The North American porcupine, Erethizon dorsatum, is thought to be generally solitary except for brief mating associations in autumn and mother-baby pairs in spring and summer. However, I believe I have some video footage of porcupines playing together in winter. … Continue reading →
Chipmunks, Hibernation, and Climate Change
The eastern chipmunk (Tamias striatus) copes with winter by storing food, rather than body fat, and by entering torpor for days at a time, waking up in between to nibble its cache. It begins cycling through torpor only when and … Continue reading →
Tree Preferences of the Beaver
The North American beaver’s winter diet of tree bark is familiar to many, but less well known are its distinct preferences. Generally, it prefers deciduous trees over conifers, but from the beaver’s perspective, not all hardwoods are created equal. The … Continue reading →
Red Squirrels: Mushrooms, Moisture, Mast, and Mystery
Most people associate red squirrels (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) with conifers, and while it’s true that they need forest with at least some conifers, they are fairly adaptable omnivores and their diet tends to reflect local abundance. So in Alaska’s boreal forest, … Continue reading →
Flying Squirrels and Hickory Nuts
So for a long time I’ve been fascinated by the different feeding signs that different rodent species leave on mast, especially that of flying squirrel on hickory nuts. The reason is that it’s fairly distinctive. Flying squirrels often create a … Continue reading →
Woodchuck Scent Marking: Video
Woodchucks (Marmota monax) have sweat glands near the corners of the mouth which emit a pungent odor. The animals are well known to rub their cheeks on trees, roots, and stones near the den, thus depositing their scent. Groundhogs often … Continue reading →
Porcupine Grooming and Napping: Video
Sometimes the most interesting trail camera captures are incidental. Such was the case with this video of a North American porcupine (Erethizon dorsatum) grooming and napping. I had set the camera near an otter latrine just off a well used … Continue reading →
Meadow Vole Eating Garden Vegetables: Video
Meadow voleĀ (Microtus pennsylvanicus) populations typically cycle every 3-4 years, and this year is definitely a peak, at least in my backyard. The earth seems to be burping them up. To give you a sense of their abundance, I’ve seen more … Continue reading →
Groundhogs at Burrow
Groundhogs at Burrow By Susan Fly It’s a mom and pop business for now, with both male and female woodchucks (Marmota monax) sharing this burrow. That arrangement will end once the mom gives birth – when dad will take his … Continue reading →