Mystery Photo
Can you identify what is in this photo? Submit answers on the Naturally Curious blog site, under “Comments.” I.D. will be provided tomorrow!
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Mystery Photo
Normally I am well acquainted with the natural history of any Mystery Photo I post, but today is an exception. I have no idea whose scat this is, nor the origin of its color. A forester, Adam Riquier, discovered it in Lake Placid, NY. He writes that “The forest type is hardwoods (maple beech, birch with some red spruce) right at an edge where it transitions to a cedar forest. It was taken three or four days ago, so there are no berries out yet. There is some blue stain fungus on downed hardwood nearby. The scat is roughly golf ball sized.”
In hopes that a Naturally Curious reader might be familiar with this oddity, I secured Adam’s permission to post his photograph. If you think you know whose scat it is, and/or the origin of its color, please share your expertise with us! (The scat was found at least a mile from any houses, not eliminating the possibility of (blue) rat poison having been ingested, but making it fairly unlikely.)
Naturally Curious is supported by donations. If you choose to contribute, you may go to http://www.naturallycuriouswithmaryholland.wordpress.com and click on the yellow “donate” button.
Mystery Photo
What are these holes and who made them? Please post your answers on Naturally Curious website under “Comments.”
Naturally Curious is supported by donations. If you choose to contribute, you may go to http://www.naturallycuriouswithmaryholland.wordpress.com and click on the yellow “donate” button.
Mystery Photo
Who has been digging here, and what have they been digging for? This hole is roughly 4” wide at the surface of the ground and about 2” deep. There is a marble-size indentation in the soil at the bottom of the hole. Careful scrutiny will give you another hint.
Please post your answer under “Comments” on Naturally Curious’s blog site. (Difficulty: 10 on a scale of 1-10, 10 being most difficult)
Naturally Curious is supported by donations. If you choose to contribute, you may go to http://www.naturallycuriouswithmaryholland.wordpress.com and click on the yellow “donate” button.
Mystery Photo
Do you know what these yellow “worms” are?
Naturally Curious is supported by donations. If you choose to contribute, you may go to http://www.naturallycuriouswithmaryholland.wordpress.com and click on the yellow “donate” button.
Mystery Photo
Whose tracks are these? (Hint: front track is on left, hind track is on right – both between 2″ and 3″; black portion of photo is water) Please go to http://www.naturallycuriouswithmaryholland.wordpress.com and submit your answer under “Comments.” Thank you.
Naturally Curious is supported by donations. If you choose to contribute, you may go to http://www.naturallycuriouswithmaryholland.wordpress.com and click on the yellow “donate” button.
Coyote Tick Update
For those of you who might be interested, I heard back from the TickEncounter Resource Center (www.tickencounter.org/) after submitting my photograph for identification.
Their response: You’ve encountered an adult female blacklegged (deer) tick. These ticks typically become very abundant after the first frost and remain active all winter whenever temperatures are above freezing. You might be interested in checking our hyperlink to see how much ticks can change their appearance the longer they’re attached and feeding. It appears your tick was attached and feeding for about 5-6 days and then it detached from whatever it was feeding on–we’re wondering how you knew it was from a coyote and not a deer; maybe the footprints in the snow?? Autumn IS peak adult deer tick season but the activity of these ticks typically slows as it gets colder. They don’t die though.
This site is a great resource on ticks, tick-borne diseases and tick prevention provided by the University of Rhode Island.(I sent them the photo of the coyote bed so they would know how I knew it had fallen off a coyote, not a deer.)
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