Lately I’ve been a bit lax about my camera trapping — dead batteries, neglected cameras, etcetera — but, last month, I did manage to check the rig I’d had set up for a while at our county’s friendly neighborhood carcass pile, where highway crews and hunters dump the sorry detritus of elk and deer, and scavengers come to feast. I’d been hoping for an elusive mountain lion or late-season bear, but no sooner did the videos upload than I realized it was going to be a rodent-dominated set. I’d unwittingly placed the camera right in the middle of a squirrel’s territory, whose frantic scurrying had triggered its electronic eye every few minutes and drained the battery in about ten days.
In between the rodent captures, I did manage a few nocturnal glimpses of our region’s standard canids: coyote, red fox, gray fox. I love seeing this trio; I have boundless admiration for these carnivores’ stealth, pluck, and adaptability. Apparently a wolf has also recently wandered into our corner of Colorado; with luck, she’ll be next to appear at the elephant graveyard.
And with that, I’m sorry to report that my tenure at LWON comes, for now, to an end; for a variety of reasons, I’ll be stepping away to focus on professional and personal duties. I’ve so enjoyed writing for and engaging with this community over these last years, and offer my deepest gratitude to all you readers and my fellow LWONians (LWONites? I could never get it straight) for making this such a vibrant hub of thoughtful, quirky science writing. See you in the comments!
Thanks so much for your posts, Ben! It’s been a pleasure to get a glimpse of your world and the world of the animals you’ve captured on film.
Ben, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed your writings here, in HCN and in your books, particularly Crossings, which opened my eyes to ideas and data that I’d not previously given any thought to. Good wishes in your next steps.!
Thanks for all your posts, and especially for making me aware of the importance of Beavers/