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| Mr. Scruffles, North Lake |
As soon as I saw this young mangy coyote I knew it was the same one I saw scampering down a trail on January 19th at Middle Lake. It seemed to be enjoying the sun's warmth, and maybe even the scent of wafting molecules of mite-killing eucalyptus oil. A park ranger on the scene had called animal control, but the coyote left the area before anyone came. Probably just as well since Animal Control wouldn't treat the coyote's mange anyway, and the animal wasn't being a nuisance.
One bright spot is that if Mr. Scruffles can beat the mange on his own, he'll have gained some immunity to better fight off any future mite-infestation.
As the coyote left the area heading south around the lake, I got to talking with a guy who had just photographed a barn owl in a nearby tree. Unfortunately it wasn't so nearby that he could point to it, and I was unable to find the owl based on what I could recall from his directions. The sight of a barn owl rising from my neighbor's oak tree like a ghost in the night, then circling a couple of times before flying out of sight, is one of the coolest things I've ever seen out our back window. I'd love to see one of these owls again, even sleeping in a tree.
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| The sun backlit the huge leaves of this unknown plant in the Fuchsia Dell and created an irresistible glow. |
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| A different frame on the same leaf. |
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| Backlight on the bison was a little tougher to handle. If I exposed for the shadows of the bison, the mustard flowers blew out. Lightroom allowed me to pull more shadow detail from the file than I thought I'd get. |
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| I had stopped by the Bison Paddock fence to check on one of the nest boxes that had three Western bluebirds standing on it. I didn't even notice the bison for a minute. This one was very close -- just behind the twiggy pokeberry bush. |
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| Mr. Scruffles at Rest |
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| While I was looking for the owl I got sidetracked by my first brown creeper sighting of 2026, and a downy woodpecker that flew away before I could photograph it. |
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| The creeper was moving so fast I'm not sure if its beak is open because it just snagged an insect from that crack in the stump, or what. |
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| Ruddy Duck Hen, Blue Heron Lake |
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| Ruddy Duck Drake, Blue Heron Lake |
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| Bufflehead Drake, Blue Heron Lake |
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