Greetings! First the marvel - Ospreys have arrived! Last Sunday I
predicted they would be here within the week, and while I was at work
yesterday my wife saw one here (Jug Bay; and Fred Shaffer saw one at
School House Pond). This morning I got to see my first one of the year;
it's sitting on a nest platform on the river behind the house right now.
These big raptors are a great bird for all levels of birders to enjoy, and
their arrival is a source of joy for me. I should take no credit for this
prediction though, they have been very consistent on spring arrivals here.
As for the "mischief" - last night we had a 4-legged thug loot one of our
suet stations, which is about 8 feet up and on the side of a big maple
tree. Surprisingly, this is the first time it has happened! We have deer
in our bird feeding area almost daily at night, but they have never
bothered the suet - they like the sunflower seed. Some critter took the
new suet cake that I put in the feeder at dusk, and either ate all of it
or left with it. I couldn't find it around the yard this morning and
there was no pile of crumbs. I doubt it was a deer, but there is some
dirt around the trunk below the suet container, and there were fresh deer
tracks there; and, I have seen deer stand up to eat foliage. With the way
I have th ecage rigged, it would be quite a trick for a deer to undo the
suet cage with their mouth, but it's possible- Hmmm. The other suspect is
a raccoon; there were no tracks, but this is also inconclusive. I will
try to solve the mystery this weekend.
Cheers!
Jeff Shenot
Croom, MD |