Wildlife Sightings: November 1 - 13
The last reptile sighting of the year? Tom Hals found this garter snake up a tree.
As the hours of daylight recede each day, reports of wildlife observations have diminished proportionately. This article contains what I suspect will be the last reptile sighting until March or April of 2020. Readers, cold weather and shorter days challenge you to sharpen your focus and watch the natural world more carefully as fauna become less apparent.
My own outings have been unproductive. I haven’t seen the beavers in weeks, but newly gnawed-down trees continue to provide evidence of their presence. The beaver dam that spanned Crum Creek was breached approximately three weeks ago, probably by heavy rains from a storm. The beavers haven’t made any apparent effort to rebuild that dam, but instead appear to be working on another lodge or dam approximately 100 yards downstream on the Nether Providence side of the creek. Time will tell if the structure will span the entire width of the creek or if it is a just another lodge.
Molly Scott saw a hermit thrush in the rear yard of her property on the unit block of South Princeton Avenue.
Winner of the most interesting submittals in this week’s article (IMHO), Mary Hasbrouck saw a bobwhite quail in the rear yard of her property on Dickinson Avenue. Check out the video below.
Tom Hals submitted a photograph of a common garter snake coiled in a tree in the Crum Woods. He said that the snake appeared to be several feet long. While garter snakes tend to be smaller, they can grow as long as five feet, so this one must have some longevity.
David Dee of Rose Valley said the he observed a “juvenile [red-tailed hawk] eating a squirrel in the driveway of Thunderbird Lodge in Rose Valley. The bird spent at least 45 minutes on its meal before flying onto a branch just above me.”
David Henderson of Swarthmore has set up a trail camera in the back yard of his Ogden Avenue property. He said, “There is a crew of four raccoons that have come through a couple of times. We also have a fox that makes an appearance about once a week.” See videos at swarthmorean.com.
Laynie Browne of Wallingford has heard recurring great horned owl calls near Pendle Hill over the last month.
Please continue to send your observations and photographs of wildlife species within the Wallingford-Swarthmore School District area by clicking/tapping the button below.
