MagiStream

My experience with wildlife isn't that extensive or anything, but I've certainly heard stories from others and seen odd things.

Probably the most memorable (and horrifying) experience I've had so far was driving along a highway in Kentucky and seeing dead squirrels, deer, dogs, and other animals - there was a coyote, too - lying at or on the road...So sad...

I have seen several interesting birds, one rather rare. Also, I have seen a few deer in our backyard from time to time. Just thought I'd share.

I saw an elk just outside of town a couple of weekends ago, just slightly down in the Snake River Canyon from a bunch of houses! I don't know what gender it was (no antlers, but they may have dropped if it was a bull) and it was getting a LONG drink from a little stream falling out of the farm land into the canyon. I watched it for several minutes and it never lifted its head! I would have stayed longer, but I was blocking traffic and in a dangerous spot since I was just around a hair pin turn in the road.

The marmots and ground squirrels have come out of hibernation! I've been seeing and hearing them for a couple of days now. If it doesn't rain, I'm hoping to go on a hike tomorrow and see what I can see. Maybe I'll even find my camera and get some photos!

My father was a hunter and because/in spite of this (depending on your beliefs concerning hunting) he was in love with nature. It's one good thing he passed on to me. We were always really conscious of nature and taking proper care of it (not littering, etc.) He always had a subscription to Missouri Conservationist and encouraged me to read it. He was also a master fisherman (I still have his trophies) and kept several bird feeders around the house (near the windows so we could watch, naturally!) I wish I'd listened more to his stories now and knowledge now. I didn't have much of an interest in it all when I was younger.

Missouri is an aviary playground in the spring, so I've really taken to birdwatching. He gave me a book on it on my sixteenth birthday that I must've read and reread a thousand times, but I never actually got into it until the last year or so of his life. I have a pair of B.A. binoculars and used to own a proper camera (it was stolen by my ex-roommates e.e). I used to keep a journal of the birds I'd watched and scrapbook the pictures. I have to say I absolutely love hummingbirds and bluebirds, but I find beauty even in the "plain" robins and the V's of geese in the sky when the seasons change.

Chanilove wrote:My father was a hunter and because/in spite of this (depending on your beliefs concerning hunting) he was in love with nature. It's one good thing he passed on to me. We were always really conscious of nature and taking proper care of it (not littering, etc.) He always had a subscription to Missouri Conservationist and encouraged me to read it. He was also a master fisherman (I still have his trophies) and kept several bird feeders around the house (near the windows so we could watch, naturally!) I wish I'd listened more to his stories now and knowledge now. I didn't have much of an interest in it all when I was younger.

Missouri is an aviary playground in the spring, so I've really taken to birdwatching. He gave me a book on it on my sixteenth birthday that I must've read and reread a thousand times, but I never actually got into it until the last year or so of his life. I have a pair of B.A. binoculars and used to own a proper camera (it was stolen by my ex-roommates e.e). I used to keep a journal of the birds I'd watched and scrapbook the pictures. I have to say I absolutely love hummingbirds and bluebirds, but I find beauty even in the "plain" robins and the V's of geese in the sky when the seasons change.

My dad is the same way. He loves to hunt, but he always had a respect and admiration for nature. He can't stand poaching, especially when he found a big buck that someone had killed and not bothered to track down. The meat had already spoiled and gone to waste.

Today I found the body of what I think is a female cardinal, it was probably killed by my cat However, it had bright yellow on the tips of it's tail feathers. Does anyone know what bird that is?

@ Wolfcub
Did it look like this-

Spoiler

If it did, that would be a Cedar Waxwing.

And if not Cedar, a Bohemian waxwing. Looks very similar, but lives in different areas, and if I remember right, it's slightly larger.

Wolfcub wrote:My dad is the same way. He loves to hunt, but he always had a respect and admiration for nature. He can't stand poaching, especially when he found a big buck that someone had killed and not bothered to track down. The meat had already spoiled and gone to waste.

Today I found the body of what I think is a female cardinal, it was probably killed by my cat However, it had bright yellow on the tips of it's tail feathers. Does anyone know what bird that is?

Our dads really do sound similar! My father disliked poaching, too, though it's not a huge issue where we live. Our conservationists in this area are super-strict, so most of the local hunters know better than to game out of season.

And yes, that'd be a Cedar Waxwing. It's strange. They're supposed to live here year-round but I haven't seen a single one in over a year. That might be due to the fact that I no longer have a bird feeder and don't bird watch very often at all. I'll have to grab one for the spring. ^^

That's pretty common, to know that something is listed as being in your area year round, but only seeing them seasonally.
I remember one year when we had a bird feeder up- and it had been up for a few years, we were inundated with Lazuli Buntings and Evening Grossbeaks. Both VERY beautiful birds. After that year, I've almost never had them at a feeder again. I've only seen one Grossbeak, and it was at a park, and a couple of years ago I had a pair of the buntings at the feeder for a few weeks, but usually I see them while hiking, and even then, rarely.
Juncos supposedly live in my area year round, but I only ever see them in fall and winter and early spring. They disappear for the summer.

I really do hope they come back for the spring. If they do, I'll take some pictures and share them with you all. This thread has inspired me to get back into bird watching. I don't have a really good camera anymore so the quality of the pictures will be limited. They have this lovely park a few miles outside of town with a nice hiking trail that I'll have to visit when my foot's fixed. ^^

Yeah, that picture looks about right. Thank you!