Critters 06-01-23

There seem to be more wild critters around recently.   There are more birds and I've seen a few that I don't normally see.  In the daytime there are always small lizards enjoying every ray of sunshine.  I know  there are nocturnal animals - raccoons, opossums, rats  and mice, but I never see them.  There is a Great Horned Owl that I have glimpsed, but they fly so silently it is a rare view - the Crows chase him away from their nests.  There is a Wren nesting somewhere nearby, possibly in the ficus tree along with an Anna's Hummingbird.  And an Acorn Woodpecker has been pounding on the rotting wood fence in the backyard.  We have the usual resident Western Bluebirds, House Finches, House Sparrows, Crows, Bushtits, Goldfinches, and, most common of all, Brown Towhees.  They are almost always in pairs, searching lawns and underbrush for tasty morsels.  Cell phone cameras are not suited to taking pictures of birds, but I did manage to catch this gal/guy in my backyard, searching among the weeds.  They are constantly moving so many shots are required to catch one good picture - I took about 30 just to get these two!

Brown Towhee

This picture taken by a neighbor. Coyotes blend into the landscape very well.  They are here, but we don't see them very well.  They do, however, walk down the street and sidewalks and jump into backyards.  Wily!  

Then there are the coyotes with and increasing population everywhere.  I have not seen any since  last fall, but I hear them at night and  there are many reports of sightings and, unfortunately, missing cats and small dogs.  They cannot be killed so we just learn to live with them.  KoKo never goes outsie without his lease except to piddle in the backyard with me carrying a large stick by his side.  

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