Framingham Nature Blog - Fall Trail Cam...

So basically i'm back into camera trapping. My old Meidase Sl122 pro was having an issue where the SD card would not stay in it's port, which effectively means it can only take and store photos while im holding it in. This made it useless and I stopped using it for around 6 months. At the beginning of November, I bought the slightly more expensive Meidase P40 Trail Camera. If you can believe it, The day the new camera was expected to be delivered by amazon, I tested the old camera, and the SD card stayed in it's slot as if it was brand new. I thought about returning the P40, but decided it would be cool to have two cameras set at the same time. Twice the footage.

I set the Meidase Sl122 pro behind a local school, in the woods, with a chunk of raw bacon as bait. I hoped for Raccoons, Coyotes, Fishers, and Opossums, but I guess i placed the camera too close to a popular trail, and all I got was a really lucky dog. I am not showing footage because frankly, It's boring.

The next day I put the Meidase P40 in the woods near Juniper Hill School. I don't know what it is about schools, but they always have really good forests around them, probably as a buffer zone to keep the kids safe. I knew Juniper hill was a very Coyote loaded place, but I didnt expect them to be so attracted to pumpkin chunks. Coyote's diet is sometimes made up of up to 50% plant matter (mostly berries). I also think the path i put the bait and camera on may have been a common travel route for them. I am even considering the possibility that the path was created over time from trampling by Coyotes. The photos seem to show that Coyotes average 4 times of running up or down the path per night, past the camera.

I find it scary that apparently some eastern coyotes are up to 65% Grey Wolf. (Eastern Coyotes are the result of Hybridization between Grey Wolves and Western Coyotes. This means some of the animals that walk the path that I walked 5 hours earlier are mostly wolf. While Western Coyotes (True Coyotes) hunt almost exclusively rodents and ground birds, A single Eastern Coyote can take down an Adult Whitetail.

Apparently the wolf DNA is the strongest in forested areas, and The Coyote DNA is strongest in feilds, grasslands, and clear cut farmland. The camera trap has only gotten Eastern Coyotes in wooded areas, meaning the Wolf genes are probably pretty strong.

Even the western coyote is descended from both Jackals and Wolves.

8 pm (Eastern Coyote)

1 am (Eastern Coyote)

Meanwhile, The Meidase Sl122 pro was strapped to one of the Eastern Hemlocks in our side yard. I was hoping specifically for Opossums and Raccoons. I put the camera very close to the bait (Cookie Crumbs, Oatmeal, Marinara Sauce, Honey, and a Tangerine.) All I got was birds. Both birds I got are closely related and are very common in my neighborhood. The Black Capped Chickadee and Tufted Titmouse. I assume they were just there for the oats. They also seemed to stop coming after around two curious visits each. I think they decided they didnt like it.

My Bait Mix

Black-Capped Chickadee

Tufted Titmouse

I then put the Meidase Sl122 Pro on the Old Coyote Path to replace the Meidase P40. I got a few photos and one video of the Coyotes. the video is great because it shows two Coyotes, and rather than just showing them strolling by, they sniffed around and one leaps over the log that the pumpkin was stuck to.

20211111_163201_1.mp4

I noticed while picking that camera up on my bike something gross but cool. There were Coyote scats scattered regularly, up and down the Coyote Path. I know they weren't from a dog because their is fur, bone, and chunks of plant matter in the feces. See for yourself.

I then set up the Meidase P40 in a forest that is crammed in-between the Sudbury River and Framingham high School. It is specifically on the feild forest transition zone on the north edge of school property. I used cookie crumbs and olive oil as bait. It Attracted Grey Squirrels, Red Foxes, Coyotes, and Raccoons. This was my first time getting foxes on a Camera Trap. This only confirms that my High School is a very highly fox populated area. This probably has something to do with the good den digging conditions of the well managed riverbanks. There are at least three fox dens in the high school property, but there are probably more that are hidden.

Coyote

Red Fox

Red Fox x 2

Coyote

Red Fox

Common Raccoon

Red Fox

This in combination with the previous setups reveals a pattern about when these three predatory mammals are active. Raccoons and Coyotes are ALMOST exclusively nocturnal, while Foxes seem to be almost equally active at day and at night. Wikipedia says they are "crepuscular" meaning they are most active while the sun is rising, and again while the sun sets.

I asked myself why the foxes are not nocturnal, and this is all I can think of: Foxes probably have a diet that does not require as much close proximity with humans as Raccoons and Coyotes. In other words, While a Fox might be hunting in the woods, While a Raccoon might be trying to figure out how to get into someones house, and being around humans while they are awake is dangerous for the animal. My research confirms this theory. Coyotes and Raccoons were probably much more active during the day before the modern cities we live in now were built.

On my way home from school, I decided to use the Sl122 pro underneath Wickford Bridge, which crosses over a wide section of the Sudbury River. Around the concrete supports, underneath the bridge are little flat areas of mud. The mud is always covered by the footprints of Geese, Raccoons, Muskrats, and Graffiti Artists. Most of the footprints are actually mine, as a result of my daily piss and quick scan for snapping turtles and frogs.

For bait I used a combination of Apple Slices, Yogurt, Olive Oil, Raw bacon, and a "Recycled Mouse" from one of my dad's traps. Circle of life. This may sound like a disgusting combination of ingredients to humans, but to a Common Raccoon on a 41 degree night, It could be saving it's life this winter. The little dude looks hungry.

Surprisingly to me, It didnt even nibble at the mouse. The Raccoon decided to fill up on the human food rather than it's natural food. This says alot about Raccoons as a species.

The food before and after:

I set up the P-40 near my school, when when I tried to pick it up, it was gone. It might have been stolen, carried off by an animal, or mistaken as trash by Environmental Club. I tried to contact them, but they didnt respond. I am now limited to just my old camera, the Sl122 pro. That weekend, I left it under Wickford Bridge again, with some steak bones and scrambled eggs. The mouse was surprisingly still there.

When I picked it up on Sunday the 21st, I got a few great pictures of what is probably the same Raccoon I got last time.

I also got a new animal. White-Footed Mouse. I guess they were nesting under the rock the camera was facing towards.

The mice were not clear photos, but when you see photo after photo, the little moving white eyes clearly are of mice. Trust me, they are not worth showing.

Next, I moved it to Framingham High Again, and pointed it towards a plank of wood that bridged across a little dried up stream. I figured I didnt need bait because it was the easiest way to cross the river. On one side is central street, and on the other side is the School. I ended up only getting people and a coyote.

Next, I put it at Juniper Hill. Again, i didnt use bait. After 3 days, I only have photos of this small group of kids walking through the woods. I thought because it had such a broad view, it would have a lot of passing animals. I was wrong.