Mammals in my backyard

Black Bear

2009-07-08T17:24:00.000-07:00

Ursus americanus

American Black Bear

These can be found all throughout the United States. They are generally shy but are becoming more accustomed human interaction. This one was going after my tomato plants last summer. I had a much larger one in my lawn about a month earlier.

North American Porcupine

2008-11-23T04:51:00.000-08:00

Erethizon dorsatum:
A rodent with short strong legs and tons of quills. They prefer a diet of berries and tree bark. They are able to climb trees due to their soft paws and sharp claws.

Oddly, I have kind of a history with these little guys. There was a cave that I liked to explore when I was younger that was the home of a family of porcupines. They are funny little guys. The whole throwing quills thing is a big myth. When frightened, they run a bit then stop quickly. I think, hoping to have what is running behind them run into them. Its funny to see them. On the whole, they are really charming and cute. I saw this one a couple houses down the road, on the way to work.

New England Cottontail..... probably :)

2008-06-22T12:01:00.000-07:00

NEW ENGLAND COTTONTAIL RABBIT
Sylvilagus transitionalis

Cottontails are the predominant species of rabbits found in eastern North America. New England Cottontails are currently a protected species due to their decrease in numbers. The other similar species are hares. Most domesticated rabbits are actually hares. Their are some differences between the two. Rabbits are born hairless, and cannot see. Hares are born ready for self subsistance. The other species of rabbit found in nymbers in New England are Eastern Cottontails. They are very hard to tell apart, and in some cases impossible just by casual observation.
New England Cottontails generally have a dark spot between their ears and almost always (95%) have a dark line on the front of their ears. Eastern Cottontails also may have these markings but with much less frequency. Also, Easterns may have a white spot between their ears and New Englands never do. New England Cottontails also have shorter ears and their skull size is slightly smaller.

There were rabbits everywhere when I took this picture in Rutland State Park. They are cute little guys and absolutely freeze when they see you see them. Then, it is a stealth game to get close enought to take their picture.

Beaver

2008-05-10T07:16:00.000-07:00

BEAVER
Castor canadesis:35.5-46"

Beavers have a huge range, covering most of North America. They are primarily nocturnal, hiding most of the day in ther huts, which come equipt, by the way, with woodchips that absorb excess moister, and a vent to let in fresh air.

Jenny loves beavers. They are neat. I was canoeing once in the evening and managed to offend a bunch of them. They nearly scared me to death by slapping the water together with their tails.

Red Fox

2008-04-12T05:48:00.000-07:00

RED FOX: 35-40" long. I can tell this is a Red Fox and not Grey Fox primarily because of the black tips of its ears. I took this picture just outside of a cow pasture. I think its eating some sort of rodetnt :)