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Unexpected Wildlife Encounters

scotpens

scotpens

Professional Geek
Premium Member
So, yesterday morning, I'm awakened at 6 A.M. by a strange, loud chattering noise. I throw on some clothes and go outside to look, and there are two raccoons mating in the yard next door. I've lived in the same place for 30 years and I've seen opossums and even a skunk one time, but no raccoons until now.

Cute little buggers, aren't they? Oh,and they copulate for a LONG time -- often for over an hour. If only I had a cellphone camera or a camcorder, I'd be posting raccoon porn.

So, has anyone else had an unexpected encounter with wild critters lately?
 
I was on the bus the other day and I felt something brushing against my legs I looked at my feet and it was a cat! He jumped up next to me and everyone else on board was like "why the heck are you bringing a cat on a bus!"
 
^so not exactly unexpected? ;)

Few years back, my wife and I encountered a young male bear on the Appalachian Trail in the Shenandoah.
 
Last week I went out and there was a fairly big bird in a tree in the front yard. I slowly walked to where I could see it better, it was a merlin falcon. He or she sat there without moving for about 15 minutes, then swooped down upon a house finch and flew off. A few minutes later I was in the kitchen and saw the merlin was in a backyard tree, picking the little bird clean.

I've seen birds of prey circling my neighborhood before, in the summer, but they were kestrels. This was the first time I've seen a merlin, let alone one in action.
 
I had parked on the street one evening and was going to play hockey. As I was going down the driveway, I saw a large coyote walking down the sidewalk as if he owned it. I stayed by the garage until he was well past.
 
Only a few weeks ago, I was driving down an open road when an eagle swooped down and flew parallel with my car for a bit before soaring back higher.
 
Captain Picard. said:
I was on the bus the other day and I felt something brushing against my legs I looked at my feet and it was a cat! He jumped up next to me and everyone else on board was like "why the heck are you bringing a cat on a bus!"
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Unexpected, perhaps, but I don't think that counts as "wildlife." Unless it was a bobcat or a South American ocelot.

Finn said:
Few years back, my wife and I encountered a young male bear on the Appalachian Trail in the Shenandoah.
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JOOC, how did you know it was a male? I wouldn't want to get close enough to a wild bear to be able to tell its sex!

J.T.B. said:
I've seen birds of prey circling my neighborhood before, in the summer, but they were kestrels. This was the first time I've seen a merlin, let alone one in action.
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You must really know your birds. I wouldn't know a merlin falcon from a Ford Falcon.
 
Back in college, I was walking to my car, and I had my head down. When I got near my car, I raised my head, and standing roughly 15 feet in front of me on the sidewalk was a giant 12-point buck. I froze. He froze. We stared at each other for a few seconds, and then he ran away. Scared the shit out of me. For a second I thought I was going to be speared by an antler.
 
When I was stationed at Eielson AFB in Alaska, I came out of my dorm to find a Moose and its Calf munching on some grass. It was almost directly in front of the door to the dorm, I had to slide by unnoticed, they are very protective of their young.
 
Few years ago, when I was walking to the university I had a distinct feeling that I was being watched. I stopped and looked around, but there was no one around. Then I noticed a bush next to me. Inside was a small owl and it was staring at me like owls usually do. We stared at each other for a few moments until I continued my journey.
 
J.T.B. said:
I've seen birds of prey circling my neighborhood before, in the summer, but they were kestrels. This was the first time I've seen a merlin, let alone one in action.
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If it's not too personal a question: where do you live?
I'm asking because last Sunday I had a similar encounter. We do have Merlins in summer here in Bavaria, but normally they migrate south during the cold season. It's highly unusual to see one at this time of the year.


About 10 years ago I was on my way to a creek I wassupposed to sample and I had to fight my way through dense shrubbery. When I pulled a few twigs aside, I found a pretty surprised Hazel Dormouse dangling from a twig, right in front of my face. The poor chap was rigid with fear and I managed to take a photograph before he collected his wits and ran. I'll see if I can find that photo in my office's archieves next week. I hope they didn't throw it away when they moved the archives 2 years ago. (The pic was taken before I had a digital camera, else I'd have a copy on CD :( )
 
Rhubarbodendron said:
J.T.B. said:
I've seen birds of prey circling my neighborhood before, in the summer, but they were kestrels. This was the first time I've seen a merlin, let alone one in action.
Click to expand...
If it's not too personal a question: where do you live?
I'm asking because last Sunday I had a similar encounter. We do have Merlins in summer here in Bavaria, but normally they migrate south during the cold season. It's highly unusual to see one at this time of the year.
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Salt Lake City. You're a little further north, we're higher in elevation. I know they're a wide-ranging bird, but that's pretty interesting!

Justin
 
In my former home we had an abandoned over-grown market garden over the back fence. One day the authorities decided to burn it off because it was a fire hazard.

A few days later I heard a noise in my kitchen and I went out to investigate and two bandicoots ran past me. They had been eating a piece of bread that been dropped on the floor.

This was before I had any cats so I started to leave out diced apples, and rolled oats mixed with peanut butter for them. I rarely saw them but the food was gone each day. I kept doing this until there was regrowth over the back fence.

I also found an echidna in my yard once. As soon as he saw me he dug down into the ground so I left him alone.
 
I keep running into a blue heron in the back yard. I have a decorative pond with goldfish and I'm pretty sure it's stalking them at times. A few weeks ago a cop saw it standing on top of the pond's waterfall and didn't even try to arrest or question it. I suppose the heron appeared to be minding his own business so the cop didn't have probable cause, but when I see a heron standing in a pond full of six-inch goldfish my mind would scream "crime in progress."
 
This spring I was attacked by a pair of King Parrots. They swooped me back and forth in tandem. I'm assuming they had a nest near by. I could feel the beat of their wings on my head. I didn't know King Parrots did that, usually it is Magpies that swoop people in the spring. The King Parrots are pretty big so it was a bit unnerving.

Oh and Miss Chicken I had an echidna in my yard once too, in my previous house. I had a massive bull ant nest in the yard which was very hazardous and the echidna showed up, stayed a few days and ate all the bull ants.
 
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