August 04 2010

                    Garden Spider (Argiope aurantia)

Posted in 2010 Journal, Census

August 03 2010

•  marked Juniper trees for future removal
• Saw Painted Bunting
• refreshed all Hummingbird feeders

Posted in 2010 Journal, Census, Habitat, Food

July 30 2010

•  Refreshed all Hummingbird feeders
• Refilled all bird feeders

Posted in 2010 Journal, Food

July 27 2010

•  Pruning plan to remove dead Cedar Elm trees next to driveway for safety
• Put out Black Oil sunflower seeds at all feeding stations

Posted in 2010 Journal, Habitat, Food

July 25 2010

Caretakers note: 

How we humanely evicted a Ring-tail Cat family from the attic and basement of the house.

Ring-tail Cat caught on remote wildlife camera in attic

The first sign of Ring-tail Cat activity in the house was hearing scratching sounds in the ceilings and walls at dusk and throughout the night. We suspected that there may be more than one animal because the sounds came from different parts of the house at the same time. We assumed it was a mother Ring-tail cat with a litter of kits, also because it is the time of year that they give birth. We did not want to disturb the family unit or kill the animals, and we developed a plan of action.

First, we closed all the openings in the basement wall where the animals were getting inside the building (along with their favorite prey, the mice). We left one opening in one of the air vents along the wall to provide the animals a way out. Until the animal discovered the new exit, we provided food and water near the new air vent exit, hoping it would get a clue about the new opening. This went of for several weeks. Mid-July is a time when the youngsters have been weaned from mothers milk and are large enough to follow the mother.

Sure enough, our motion detector wildlife camera showed the Ring-tail mother teaching her kits how to climb the makeshift ladder we made, leading to the new exit. The mother had three young ones to escort away. 

Ring-tail Cat showing its three young kits how to use the ladder to get out of the house

The camera was set up the following nights and no further activity was seen. After the successful eviction, the air vent was resealed and both the Ring-tail Cat family and the mice have not been back in the house.

Posted in 2010 Journal, Census, Habitat, Food, Water