life in the dead of winter (part 2)
Monday, January 23, 2012
Looking for signs of life in the January woods is a bit like being a detective searching for clues. One thing I find myself constantly noticing is all the little sheltered snow-free spots that look like they’d be perfect places for small animals to hunker down.
The hollow under this log actually went back further than I could see.
And in this case, something – probably a red squirrel? – agreed with me about its shelter potential. There were tracks leading through the snow straight to the log.
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Looks pretty cozy. But isn’t the bare ground colder than the snow? Ever see any black squirrels (Gray color morphs) up there in your North Woods?
You’re probably right, but I suspect this could be a cache, where a squirrel is storing cones etc. far back under the log.
We do have black-morph gray squirrels in the area, but in town and around people’s houses. The campus of the school where I live and work is basically 1200 acres of forest and here I only see red squirrels.
Thanks for the response, Rebecca! We don’t have red squirrels here in NYC, although apparently a single red was living in Central Park in 2006. Maybe introduced or…? Don’t know if it’s still there or not. We do have black-morph gray squirrels, although I’ve not seen one. Yet.
You may be surprised at what’s under the log! Squirrels, skunks, and other critters will gather leaves and grasses in the fall to insulate places like that for use over the winter. I had some photos of a fox squirrel doing just that I was going to post, but I lost them some how.
Wow, that snow must seem incredibly deep to a little squirrel. But I guess they’re not the type to whine about it, like we humans. :-) (Of course, they don’t make snow angels or snowmen, either.)
Like you I explore the smallest of covies in winter. They are so interesting to look at. The tracks going in and out tell the observer a lot. If they are particularly interesting I set up a trail camera.
Some unique photos that reveal some pretty interesting wildlife habitat.