Young Foxes at Play

Two of the litter of five gray foxes, Northern California

I am so curious about the foxes' activities. There are long periods during the day when I hear nothing. The young are way too small to hunt with her, but they are so quiet that I think she has carried them off to a new den. Only when she is around are they noisy, like right now. Still, no male to be seen. How does she hunt and make sure her pups are safe? What a responsibility!

I love octopuses. At the Monterey Bay Aquarium, I've stood transfixed by their octopus's grace and perfect ease with the water and rock environment. Octopuses are among the most intelligent of invertebrates (animals without backbones). All animals are intelligent, Plants too, but when I recognize something that matches a quality of human intelligence, I feel especially connected. The octopus can play, problem solve, learn, remember, and communicate. Their intelligence can be likened to that of dogs and cats. This video shows you their amazing ability to camouflage. --> http://www.sciencefriday.com/video/08/05/2011/where-s-the-octopus.html

This is the reason I create interpretive panels. I recently completed an interpretive panel for the Guckenberg-Strum Preserve, owned by the Northeast Wisconsin Land Trust.

People have been sending me wonderful items about foxes and other animals. Here is a funny story about a red fox in Germany. Notice how different this fox looks compared to our gray fox.

Reuters – A fox looks for food along the edge of a farmer's field in a file photo. REUTERS/Andy Clark
Fri Jun 12, 10:39 am ET
BERLIN (Reuters) – A fox has been unmasked as the mystery thief of more than 100 shoes in the small western German town of Foehren, authorities said Friday. A forest worker stumbled upon shoes strewn near the fox's den and found a trove of footwear down the hole that had recently been stolen overnight from outside locals' front doors. "There was everything from ladies' shoes to trainers," said a local police spokesman. "We've found between 110 and 120 so far. It seems a vixen stole them for her cubs to play with." Although many were missing laces, the shoes were in good condition and their owners were delighted to reclaim them, he said, adding that no reprisals were planned against the culprit. (Reporting by Dave Graham; editing by Philippa Fletcher)

Fox Songs

 
















I live in gray fox (Urocyon cinereoargenteus) territory. often, when I come home at night, I am greeted by the fox's bark. If you think foxes are generally quiet, they are. However, it is always a treat to hear the call of a wild animal. In this video, you'll hear several kinds of fox calls from different species. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6NuhlibHsM&NR=1&feature=endscreen. You can see why the scientific name of the gray fox means cinnamon-silver.

Have a look. A client just sent this brief Fox News video about the opening ceremony at a Nature Preserve in Menasha, Wisconsin. It shows a clip of a ribbon-cutting ceremony and an interpretive panel I recently designed for the land trust there.  http://www.fox11online.com/dpp/news/local/fox_cities/area-marsh-made-more-accessible

Trailside Panel created for the NE Wisconsin Land Trust. It's at the Stroebe Island marsh in the Guckenberg-Sturm Preserve.

Photo from National Geographic: Osprey ready to grab a fish.

Ospreys are hawks with specialized attributes that enable them to catch and carry fish. When an osprey dives beneath the water's surface, its long talons and strong toes grab a fish's back, while spiky scales on the undersides of their feet create grip. In this Osprey Catching Fish video, you can watch its great effort to free the submerged wings enough to take flight, and you can see it maneuver it's prey so the fish faces forward in an aerodynamic position. Then, as the osprey clears the water, it'll shake like a dog to release heavy water. All effort must go toward escaping the deadly watery realm with its dinner.