What wildlife do you see on your rides?

[dachshund]

Yesterday I rode by wild turkeys, a deer, and a squirrel, all hanging out at the same part of the road. Does that count as a trifecta? None of them seemed the least bit perturbed by me. The squirrel was in the middle of the road sniffing at the plastic divider thing. I was thinking, "dude, don't spend too much time on that..."
Later when I came back, a squirrel tried to race across the street in front of me. Run!! He made it.

I also noticed some llamas at one of the farms, but I suppose they don't count as wildlife.

[RolliePollie]

Your neighbours keep a peacock??

Yes...unfortunately!

He technically "lives" at a small farm about 1/4 mile from here. But evidently he prefers my street. He roosts on my next door neighbor's roof, digs up my yard, poops an awful lot, and screeches. His "owners" bought him along with his mate...and supposedly they mate for life. But I guess he doesn't like her because he won't stay with her. I'm not sure what's going to happen to him when it snows.

[crazycanuck]

Icky & rather annoying are the terms I use for cycling in Western Australia during our warmer months. Since we're surrounded by sand..we have oh so many flies, cockroaches, etc etc... My ride along a particular train line is littered with dead cockies..blech

It's not really summer yet (officially anyways) & my legs are already chewed up...

Ya can't cycle slowly either..all the flies hang around! One hand on the bar & the other swatting

Oh yay, i can't wait until the Marchflies appear...

[salsabike]

Today we saw these guys at Logboom Park, the place at the north end of Lake Washington where we begin and end our rides:

[crazycanuck]

I was out doing a practice lap for the 12hr event at the end of the month & encountered a roo. Right in front of me as I zoomed up a little hill and around the corner.

It was huge! The roo bounced away to the left into the bush, we both stared at eachother for a few minutes and went on our merry way.

I sure hope I don't encounter any when i'm doing a night lap on the 12hr..It's freaky enough hearing them rustle in the bushes!!!

[SouthernBelle]

Not wildlife, but still cute:

[7rider]

Oooo.
I had a fox pass in front of me and a car today on Sligo Creek Parkway.
That was a first for me.
Cool.

[xeney]

Oh, neat, I've only seen foxes twice (and never from a bike).

We saw two coyotes on our ride Sunday. One of them was really aggressive, too, snapping at a person walking a dog.

[batsheva]

vultures, cranes, loads of squirrels, occasional armadillo and occasional tortoise/turtle

[Trekhawk]

vultures, cranes, loads of squirrels, occasional armadillo and occasional tortoise/turtle

How cool to see an Armadillo!
That is one weird looking animal.
When we were on our last driving holiday in the States I told my kids I would give 20 bucks to the first one that saw an Armadillo in Amarillo. LOL - I still have my 20.

[jobob]

melissam, dachsund, aka_kim & I saw a bald eagle and a bobcat a couple of weekends ago on Calaveras Road in Sunol (east side of the San Franscico Bay area).

We watched the eagle soar from it's nest and fly over the Calaveras reservior, and then I spotted what looked to me like a very large housecat crossing the field nearby. Didn't occur to me at first that it was a bobcat. D'oh.

[7rider]

Back in December, DH and I went out for a ride with a couple of friends from the LBS rides. We stopped at the top of a hill to re-group and chit-chat, and - as usual - I start scanning the sky to see what was flying. I saw this bird coming toward us. We often see turkey vultures in the area....and I was thinking...Boy...that is one BIG vulture! Now, vultures are big birds, but this thing was markedly bigger - and it soared differently. As it got closer, I could see the white head and tail of a mature bald eagle. It was the first time I had ever seen one in Howard County (I've seen them elsewhere - including while paddling the Potomac). Very neat.

[OakLeaf]

There's an old school grounds on our regular route with a bald eagle nest in one of the tall pines, just about 50 feet from the road (and 50 feet up!). We haven't seen the eaglet(s) yet - we don't always stop long enough to look for them - but mom and/or dad stay close to the nest. Those are big birds.

[PamNY]

Reviving an old thread so I'll have an excuse to post my photo of a raccoon in Central Park. He or she was bold, retreating when a crowd gathered but returning quickly when the coast was clear.

A Google search revealed that raccoons are quite common in Central Park, but I'd never seen one.

Pam

[salsabike]

I know I'm not supposed to like raccoons, really, but I do.

And not on a ride, but on a run in Annapolis last weekend, I saw a fox for the first time in nature! Tried to take a cell phone pic but it was much faster than I.

Looks like a NICE day in Central Park.