Good news and bad news
First the bad news. My pheasant left as soon as the snow got off the ground and I haven't seen him since.
Second. The ticks are really bad this year. While I was sitting on the john earlier, I spotted a tick drilling into my thigh. I have no idea how he got there since I wear long pants. This makes the 4th one this year and the summer isn't even here yet.
The robins that were in my shed last year and had two broods of babies...I had left their nest in place on top of the rafters in my shed to see if they would return but they never did. Not yet anyway.
Now for the good news. A few years ago, a wild apple tree at the edge of the woods out back, came down during a very bad winter storm. The following spring, I had planned on cutting it up but thought...well, it really isn't in the way of anything so I think I will leave it where it is because some of the roots were still in the ground and the tree was still alive and thriving. The following fall, I spotted deer eating apples from that tree. Since the tree was laying parallel to the ground, they were low enough that the deer could pick them off the tree without waiting for them to fall.
If you all remember the wild rabbit I took photos of while eating clover on my lawn, last fall... I spotted him this morning eating apple blossums off that downed apple tree! He loved them! He was so happy!
I have a groundhog living under another shed. I have seen him multiple times.
I started feeding the pheasant back in the middle of winter but after he was gone, I continued to feed the wild birds. I have the usual starlings and red wing and yellow wing blackbirds, and 3 sets of morning doves, plus one set of male/female cardinels and most recently, some evening grosbeaks which are very rare in this area. It's even more rare for them to come out of the forests and eat from a home feeder from what I am told.
My magnolia trees are in full bloom and my entire property smells like perfume! Life is beautiful!
God Bless
Replies
Nice post. I have had a nest of robins in what used to be a coal storage shed in my yard.
Beautiful!
Be careful of those wicked ticks... They're nasty things!!
All of your animals friends sound lovely... I'm in the city so I don't have too many but I feed the birds and squirrels and love it... I would love to spend a day watching the critters there.... Nice Bob.... Chicken soup for the soul.... xo
yes if you get a bullseye ring around the tic bite be sure to see doctor because that is indicating lyme disease
suncloud, I forgot to mention that I have a couple of red squirrels that steal my bird food, but I don't mind. I dump leftover seed on the ground just for them.
Bill, I got lyme 3 years ago. By the time I had it seen by a doctor, I had to go to the ER because it was all over the top of my body. It was awful....like a bad sunburn.... and it took me 2 years to finally get rid of it.
Thanks Mid
Barry yes I knew you had robins over there. They are migratory birds and represent the first sign of spring here.
Wonder where pheasants migrate to, bob. Hmm.
Lovely how the trees are popping on your place. Yeah!
The smell of magnolia flowers is divine.................................you are very blessed Bob, we don't have groundhogs here, would love to see one x
bob shoot the ground hog stuff it with a taxidermist and I will pay shipping to send it to Lisa....LOL
Wow!! You have as many animals as we do here. Isn't it great living in the country.
Ticks are bad everywhere this spring. I hate them.
Our robin's came back to their nests in the tree beside our deck. Don't know if they are the same ones as last year but they are nesting.
Our pheasant left too. I don't know if he left or something got him. He was so neat cause he was so take.
Have a great rest of the day.
Hugs
Deb
Sounds so lovely. I would of loved to see the deer eating the apples. Mu daughter lives in the sub burbs she has seen a few ticks too, She has mostly deer, fox and geese out back.
You painted such a beautiful picture, thank you for sharing that.
Hopefully nothing comes from this tick! I've been fortunate not to have a run in with any myself (yet).
@mujicaptsd Ring neck Pheasants don't wander very far from what I have researched. They usually spend their entire life within a 700 acre area.
More bad news.....I have not seen any worker bees this year. so consequently, I have no pears as a result. I have tons of lilacs, in full bloom nearby which always attracts the bees. I have only seen a couple of yellow jackets....not together but on different days.....Where have all the bees gone, is the big question......I do not know where they all went to or if they even survived the winter! It was a fairly mild winter by comparison. It is quite odd to not see any bees!
Thankyou all for the wonderful replies!
God Bless
A lot of bees were killed due to being left inside of a semi-truck carrying them to Maine a couple of weeks ago.
I know, it's rough to not get fruit because there are no bees available to do the pollen migration!
there is also colony collapse that has hit the bees that are out there too....millions maybe billions of bees have died from colony collapse....it is two years old news bob so I would have thought u would know about it....