Winter's in the air

[Radman]

I actually got to watch a pair of these guys pretty closely - imagine the cutest cat you ever saw on stilts - legs twice as long as usual, and huge ears. They're just adorable and very skittish and jumpy, I'm happy just to have captured any image at all.

[Radman]

Here's a raccoon on my patio:

[Radman]

I was able to get some better shots of one of the local raccoons, Procyon lotor; or Waschbär, as I call it, last night.



There are at least three that come visit, this is a young female, as far as I can tell.



I was able to stick my hand out of the patio doors and take some pictures. She didn't mind the flash at all.



Of course, that made it hard to center the picture:







Gotta love those coons!

;D
There is at least another small one and an older male that come by, I'll try to snap them too.

[stoneage]

Did you pet them?

[Radman]

They are pretty cute, but with even the small chance of rabies or distemper, no, I won't interact with them beyond offering random food on an irregular basis.
They can find their main sustenance somewhere else most of the time.
C

[stoneage]

May 4, 2010 1:29:06 GMT Radman said:

They are pretty cute, but with the even small chances of rabies or distemper, no, I won't interact with them beyond offering random food on an irregular basis.
They can find their main sustenence somewhere else; most of the time.
C

Didn't you say you had some Butterfly pictures?

[crazycrowman]

Awesome photos Radman!!! SC is a lovely state with some awesome wildlife - looks like you have a lot of it right around your home

[Gabe]

A year ago I've seen a raccoon so close to me here in Brooklyn! That was a sight!

[Radman]

Thanks CCM. Now here's something you don't see on the forum that often - a PLANT!
This is a cinnamon fern, Osmundastrum cinnamomeum:



I dug it up a couple years ago from a neighborhood plot that was about to be developed, they are native to these parts. I planted it in the shade by my garage, where it still gets plenty of indirect and some direct sunshine, and it has rewarded me by coming back bigger and stronger each year. It dies to the ground in the winter, and in early spring sprouts the brown, spore-bearing fronds that give it its common name, followed shortly by the green leaves. All the growth you see here has taken place over the last month. Another cool thing about this plant is that it has been around for at least 75 million years! So it was probably dinosaur food for some time. Along with my sago palm, I've got some nice dino chow right in my front plot.

[Gorgonopsid]

May 7, 2010 21:02:28 GMT Radman said:

Thanks CCM. Now here's something you don't see on the forum that often - a PLANT!
This is a cinnamon fern, Osmundastrum cinnamomeum:



I dug it up a couple years ago from a neighborhood plot that was about to be developed, they are native to these parts. I planted it in the shade by my garage, where it still gets plenty of indirect and some direct sunshine, and it has rewarded me by coming back bigger and stronger each year. It dies to the ground in the winter, and in early spring sprouts the brown, spore-bearing fronds that give it its common name, followed shortly by the green leaves. All the growth you see here has taken place over the last month. Another cool thing about this plant is that it has been around for at least 75 million years! So it was probably dinosaur food for some time. Along with my sago palm, I've got some nice dino chow right in my front plot.

Nice. Is that what its called? I just called it ferns. I have them at my house too.

[Radman]

Cicada killer - Sphecius speciosus



Eastern North America's largest wasp, ;D

[stoneage]

May 7, 2010 21:02:28 GMT Radman said:

Thanks CCM. Now here's something you don't see on the forum that often - a PLANT!
This is a cinnamon fern, Osmundastrum cinnamomeum:



I dug it up a couple years ago from a neighborhood plot that was about to be developed, they are native to these parts. I planted it in the shade by my garage, where it still gets plenty of indirect and some direct sunshine, and it has rewarded me by coming back bigger and stronger each year. It dies to the ground in the winter, and in early spring sprouts the brown, spore-bearing fronds that give it its common name, followed shortly by the green leaves. All the growth you see here has taken place over the last month. Another cool thing about this plant is that it has been around for at least 75 million years! So it was probably dinosaur food for some time. Along with my sago palm, I've got some nice dino chow right in my front plot.

So that's what gradually killed off the dinosaurs!

[Radman]

Sago Palm, or more accurately Sago Cycad Cycas revoluta



Cycads have been around for almost 300 million years and are popularly depicted as "Stegosaurus chow". The young leaves in the center are soft and feathery, within a week or two they turn tough ,leathery, spiky and inedible. The trunk is spiky also, you do not want to fall onto this plant! This species is poisonous and nothing eats it. Perhaps this evolved due to the grazing stegosaurs? Stegos are often depicted (the Procon deluxe comes to mind) with an armored throat to protect against the tough outer leaves. Cycads are tropical and this is about as far north as they can tolerate. I've had this particular plant for years and am very happy with it, it is an impressive ornamental in the front yard.

[Radman]

Brenda is getting quite used to me, she will now accept food from my hand. She is obviously nursing kits, her dugs are always wet and swollen. I hope she doesn't have rabies.





My wife thinks I'm an idiot and worries about our kids, but it's not like that's a new thing.

If Brenda brings her kits around and I can get pictures of them, it will all be worth it. ;D

[stoneage]

May 28, 2010 23:52:35 GMT Radman said:

Brenda is getting quite used to me, she will now accept food from my hand. She is obviously nursing kits, her dugs are always wet and swollen. I hope she doesn't have rabies.





My wife thinks I'm an idiot and worries about our kids, but it's not like that's a new thing.

If Brenda brings her kits around and I can get pictures of them, it will all be worth it. ;D

Problems with raccoons often arise because we find it so difficult not to "do something" for them.

Feeding raccoons is one such case. Because they eat just about everything imaginable, raccoons are almost never in danger of starving. Even in urban landscapes, raccoons find plenty to eat. By putting food out for them, we condition them to lose their "respect" for people--a trait that aids greatly in their ability to survive. It also causes local populations to become denser than the habitat can adequately support. At these times, raccoons begin to look more closely at your home to provide them shelter and they are more likely to become ill and to transmit diseases.

[Radman]

Cottontail. Yes very common, I have mostly refrained from the very common critters around here, squirrels, crows, ducks, sparrows, vultures, etc. Still, this cute little guy posed for me in the middle of the morning, it's rare to get a good pic of one. BONUS: whoever spots and identifies (species, manufacturer) the prehistoric critter that also happens to be in the shot gets a cookie!

[sbell]

My daughter spotted it in about 2 seconds--and it appears to be a Wild Republic Megatherium.

[Radman]

Jun 27, 2010 14:23:46 GMT sbell said:

My daughter spotted it in about 2 seconds--and it appears to be a Wild Republic Megatherium.

COOKIE for sbell and daughter (what's her name?). Okay, a little more difficult: Identify at least three different species of flora you can see in the pic (no, saying "grass" doesn't count). Some are native, some are exotic.
;D

[Radman]

That spot on the stump is my preferred picture-taking spot (see my customs thread). I think my son and his friends were playing with the mega-mammals some days ago and left it there.

[franchesca]

wabbit!