Animals
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Animals make everything better, no? They are a Magical part of our Story..
In Our Story
Geese - Brightbill and Loudmouth
In addition to grasses, sedges, grains, and berries, Geese also feast on aquatic vegetation. When eating in water, they "tip up," reaching underwater and tearing water plants with their heads beneath the surface and their rear ends sticking up in the air.
Male geese fight one another to win a particular female. The winning male gets the female as a mate, and the pair may stay together for life. The female of the pair picks a good spot to make her nest. She finds a place - always near water - which is isolated and a little higher then anything right around it. The female makes her nest in dry grasses, twigs, and other plant material. She uses her body to shape the nest into a bowl.
The baby geese, called goslings, take about a month to hatch. Babies are covered with soft feathers called down. They hatch with their eyes open and will leave the nest within 24 hours, following their parents. In less than two months, the goslings grow adult feathers and learn to fly.
Foxes - Fink
A fox is a small mammalian carnivore. They hunt and eat live prey, mostly rabbits and rodents (rats and mice). They may also eat grasshoppers, birds' eggs, and even fruit and berries. Sometimes they eat carrion.
They are swift and agile runners, and live in family groups. A female fox is called a vixen, and the male is called a dog. A group of foxes is called a skulk or a leash.
Red foxes have excellent hearing—they can hear rodents digging miles underground. They have long whiskers, retractable claws, and excellent night vision.
Although they hunt solo, both red fox parents take care of their pups, or kits. Parents take turns hunting for food and bringing it back to hungry kits waiting at home. Kits stay with their parents for about seven months. In the wild, red fox homes—called dens—are usually on the edges of forests, near fields where hunting would be good.
Foxes have more than 20 different calls!!?! Here are just a few..
Whine- Made shortly after birth. Occurs at a high rate when cubs are hungry and when their body temperatures are low. Whining stimulates the mother to care for her young; it also has been known to stimulate the male fox into caring for his mate and cubs.
Yelp- Made about 19 days later. The cubs' whining turns into infantile barks, yelps, which occur heavily during play.
Explosive call- At about a month old, the cubs can emit an explosive call which is intended to be threatening to intruders or other cubs; a high pitch howl.
Combative Call- In adults, the explosive call becomes an open-mouthed combative call during any conflict; a sharper bark.
Growl- An adult fox's indication to their cubs to feed or head to the adult's location.
Bark- Adult foxes warn against intruders and in defense by barking.
Foxes' tails are multi-purpose organs. Their bushy tail helps them keep warm while they are sleeping in cold weather. It is also part of the animal's food store for wintertime. Foxes' plump bushy tail is easily seen, and is used for sending signals to its family members. The tail is also used for balance while running.
Opossums - Pinktail
Commonly known as "possums", these pests are the only marsupial native to the United States. They are closely related to the Kangaroo and Koala. They are light gray in color and basically look like big rats. Opossums have five toes on each foot and a tail with no fur. The opossum’s long pink tail is prehensile, meaning it can be used as a fifth hand.
A female gives birth twice a year, 13 days after conception, to 5 to 8 babies that remain in her pouch until able to walk around on their own by about 4 months of age. Baby opossums are so tiny at birth that 10 can fit in a teaspoon!
Opossums like to eat garbage, fruit, vegetables, green plants, snails, slugs, snakes, and insects, including cockroaches, crickets, and beetles. They catch and eat rats and mice. They also eat dead animals of all types. Opossums move around a lot. They typically live in hollow logs, rock crevices.
Opossums are non-aggressive and non-destructive. They do not dig into the soil or destroy property. They will not harm people or pets. However, they are wild animals and should not be handled. An opossum will use its 50 pointy teeth to defend itself if necessary.
Squirrel - Chitchat
With over 200 species of squirrels around the world, they share the common traits of being nimble, inquisitive, and smart enough to figure out a lot of ways to get their food.
Squirrels live in places depending upon the type: most live in trees and some burrow into the ground and other types will remain in their burrows to hibernate in the cold months.
Squirrels are extremely territorial and they will battle other squirrels and animals to protect their area. Mother squirrels are the most aggressive when defending their young. If you see a group of squirrels together, it is called a ‘dray’ or ‘scurry’.
Squirrels are only out at dusk and dawn and are therefore classified as ‘crepuscular’.
The average squirrel will each around 1 lb. of food each week. Squirrels will eat fruit, nuts, seeds, fungi, small insects, eggs, small animals, young snakes and caterpillars.
Pike - Rockmouth
The Northern pike (Esox lucius), has a number of nicknames such as 'Northern', 'Great northern pike', 'Pike', and 'Jack'. It's name literally means 'water wolf'.
The Northern pike is a freshwater game fish They are a cold water fish and do best in deep lakes. Northerns are voracious feeders that require large supplies of fish for steady growth.
The Northern has light colored markings on a dark body. Also the Northern has a rounded tail fins and a long body. It has a large number of very sharp teeth. The northern is the only member of the pike family with spots on its side that are lighter than the body color.
We have Pike in many ponds around here. The biggest one was caught in the area was in Hundred Acre Pond in West Kingston.
It weighed 35 pounds and was 47 1/2" long. That is a BIG freshwater fish.
Beaver - Mr. Beaver
Beavers are the second largest rodents in the world, behind the South American capybara. Beavers are very social animals. They live in groups called colonies. Each lodge is inhabited by a monogamous couple and their kits.They communicate through vocalizations, scent marking, body language and slapping of tails against the water.
Beavers need water to survive. They live in lakes, ponds, marshes and rivers.
Their rounded body is covered with brown fur. Beavers have a flat, scaly, rudder-like tail. Their tail and webbed feet propel them through the water at 5 to 8 mph.
They are powerful swimmers that can swim underwater for up to 15 minutes. As the beaver dips underwater, the nose and ears shut to keep water out. Transparent inner eyelids close over each eye to help the beaver see.
Beavers are known builders. They create dams out of tree branches, logs and mud, which helps to maintain ideal water levels. In addition, dams also protect them from predators and irrigate their food.
Beavers have continuously growing teeth!! They use these to cut down trees and branches.
Woodpecker - Trunktap
Most woodpeckers live in forests, spending their lives mainly in trees.
There are about 180 species, or types, of woodpecker. They include the birds called flickers and sapsuckers. Woodpeckers look like songbirds in many ways. But scientists classify woodpeckers in a different grouping, the order Piciformes. They are related to toucans.
Woodpeckers live nearly all over the world.
Woodpeckers vary in length from about 6 to 18 inches (15 to 46 centimeters). They are often black and white with patches of red or yellow on the head.
Most woodpeckers fly with short swoops. Each of their feet has two toes pointing forward and two toes pointing backward. This helps the birds cling to tree trunks. The strong, rigid tail feathers help the bird hold itself against the tree. The long, sticky tongue helps the bird trap insects.
Most types of woodpecker eat insects found in tree bark. The bird often uses its bill to tap holes into the bark. This doesn't hurt them. Woodpeckers hammer the trunk with such force that their brain has to be protected by a special skull made out of a spongy kind of bone.
This normally does not hurt the trees either. In fact, woodpeckers eat insects that are harmful to trees. Some kinds also eat fruit. Sapsuckers also feed on sap, a liquid made by trees. Flickers eat mainly ants on the ground.
Racoon - Rumpkin, Bumpkin, & Lumpkin (The Fuzzy Bandits)
The raccoon is a mammal. Most live in the wild. They are curious, clever, and solitary and are usually nocturnal. They are omnivorous. Their food is about 40% invertebrates, 33% plant foods, and 27% vertebrates.
The raccoon's distinctive features are its multi-purpose front paws and its striped tail. The most characteristic physical feature of the raccoon is the area of black fur around the eyes, which contrasts sharply with the surrounding white face coloring. This is reminiscent of a "bandit's mask" and has thus enhanced the animal's reputation for mischief.
Raccoons are assumed to recognize the facial expression and posture of other members of their species more quickly because of the conspicuous facial coloration and the alternating light and dark rings on the tail. The dark mask may also reduce glare and thus enhance night vision. On other parts of the body, the long and stiff guard hairs, which shed moisture, are usually colored in shades of gray and, to a lesser extent, brown. The slightly rounded ears are also bordered by white fur.
Raccoons are noted for their intelligence. Studies show they are able to remember the solution to tasks for up to three years.
Bears - Mama, Nettle & Thorn
Bears are large mammals that eat mostly meat and fish. Many bears also eat plants, bulbs and insects. Bears have great big bodies, stocky legs, a long snout, shaggy hair, paws with claws and a short tail. Even though bears are big and heavy, they can run very fast and are also good at climbing and swimming. Bears have a large brain and are one of the most intelligent mammals.
Most bears live alone unless they have cubs. Bears take a long sleep in the winter similar to hibernation. They will sleep in the dens and a mother bear will also have her cubs in a den. Bear cubs are born in litters of 1 to 3 and usually stay with their mothers for about 3 years. A mother bear will defend her cubs ferociously if they are threatened. Don't mess with the mama bear!!
Grizzly bears can be dangerous to people, especially when they are sharing a habitat, but for the most part, bears are shy and are easily frightened of humans. Laws have been passed in many areas of the world to protect bears from hunting and the destruction of their habitat.
Do Animals have language?
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