The light fresh snow revealed there had been an overnight animal visitor, but who? Pairs of circles a little smaller than my dog's prints, set about a third of a meter apart, crossed the driveway and the front yard. When we went out, the dog was fascinated, as if this was a smell he had not met before. He followed the tracks to where they dove into the cedars heading north.
Drifting hid the tracks along the south side of the house and backyard. Although my first sense was that the visitor was heading north, there was no way to be certain which way it travelled. My real question was who had made the prints.
Once last winter, I saw a weasel appear from the spruce trees out back, pass through under the bird feeders where squirrels hang out, dive under the deep, soft snow, and continue south. That visit, it mostly left a smooth trail across the yard, but I remembered its loping gait. I checked what a weasel's footprints look like, and sure enough, at least according to internet research, parallel round prints are characteristic.
How often does the weasel visit? A couple times this past winter, there was a smooth trail across part of the back yard, but I did not go down to check it closely. Much of late winter, snow had a tough crust that showed no prints at all. I don't know if we are on the edge of its territory, or if it visits often without leaving a trace.
That crust on the snow hid any activity underneath. When it melted, I found a couple areas where the tracks of voles could be seen. In the neighbourhood where I walk, they were not as common as last year, but I could see places where they had been active.
Last March, everywhere I went, as the snow retreated, I came across girdled saplings. From the ground to the level snow had reached, bare wood shone, revealing young trees that would never leaf out again. There were two in the narrow space between us and the road, a sizable sumac in front of a neighbours, and many, many others. This year, I have not seen any. A smaller vole population it seems.
The large deer mouse and vole population last year meant abundant food for the many predators we have: fox and fisher, weasel and mink, hawk and owl and bear. A family of foxes had two kits survive the fall and winter. I worry a bit that the smaller populations of small rodents will put pressure on these animals. We do have lots of squirrels still.
Chipmunks also appeared for a few days last week. I saw them darting from their winter hiding places, came across their tiny prints. We will soon see if the ones that feasted on my tomatoes last year made it through the winter.
I have seen no sign of racoon, but I am sure those rascals are around. They will reappear as spring progresses. A neighbour's trail cam caught a picture of a young fisher, and when I came across an unusual print in the snow walking their trail, I first thought bear, then realized it was more likely the fisher. The bears should still be sleeping.
I am keeping an eye and an ear out for the bear sightings. I'll start to wear my bear bell again. More importantly, I would like to fill my bird feeders one more time, but once they are awake, I will not risk it. In spring last year, many neighbours reported them along the shore road. My daughter saw it walk across our property right under the screened in porch where she sat reading. I saw the mother once in early summer come down to the road, came face to face with a young one who bounded up the hill, took one look at my friend and I and the dog, and turned on its heel to disappear back the way it came. Most of the year, there are abundant berries and then apples for them in this area. But in spring, our bird feeders are a magnet.
This is quite a community, down here on the shore. Neighbours are great. But getting to know what the animal neighbours are up to takes open eyes and attention.
Cathy Hird lives on the traditional territory of the Saugeen Ojibway Nation
