What wildlife do you see on your rides?

[7rider]

Yes, what is it with turtles all of a sudden??? There must be a huge migration between Kentucky and Illinois.

My DH stopped (in his car) the other day to escort a LARGE snapping turtle off the road. A guy in a Park Department pickup stopped as well to help him. The turtle didn't appreciate their efforts.

[pfunk12]

I saw a fox on my morning commute last week. I thought it was an unleashed dog. It was standing in the middle of the street at 6 a.m. in a Washington, D.C. suburb so I naturally thought it was a dog. When it turned and I saw its profile and beautiful tail, I was shocked. It went into someone's yard and stopped as I rode by. About 1/2 mile later, I came up on a guy that I sometimes commute with and when he said, "You'll never guess what I just saw!" and I said, "A fox?", I think I burst his bubble.

[PamNY]

Pam, where do you see waxwings in NY?? I love them.

Love raptors too. We have lots of bald eagles around here--I mean, on the bike trails as well as in the general region.

I saw the waxwings near the George Washington Bridge, where there's a lot of parkland. They are seen in Central Park, too. Here's a great photo of one in Central Park.

Between reading about them here and seeing the eagle webcam, I'm developing a serious desire to see more bald eagles.

For those with an interest in raptors, this is a video of the mother hawk attempting to remove her dead baby from the nest (it is sad, but not too graphic).

She uses only her beak and doesn't succeed; there's speculation that her instinct to keep talons away from the babies prevented her using them in this case. This nest is at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine and last I heard, the surviving baby is fine and should fledge any day now.

[marni]

Yes, what is it with turtles all of a sudden??? There must be a huge migration between Kentucky and Illinois. Ha! Ha! I must've seen six box turtles on my ride yesterday. I also saw wild turkeys, deer, rabbits and squirrels. The critters were busy early in the morning.

It's mating season!!!! Down here in Houston the warnings are all out about the american alligators moving out of the bayous looking for mates. Tehy killed a 10" one today that was soaking up heat from a freeway feeder road. I guess they aren't on the endangered list anymore since it was a professional hunter/owner of a alligator farm that sells the flesh, who got the contract.

sigh... I'm all for progress but the poor gators are getting squeezed out and aren't really to blame for the stupid humans who get too close or let their little doggies out to investigate.

marni

[azfiddle]

My DH & I stopped by a park with a fishing lake around sunset- we always see Black-crowned Night Herons there.

[moonfroggy]

I saw a wild turkey today! I saw a hare last week she saw me turned around and hopped away. I always see lots of quails this time of year. In the past I have seen coyotes and foxes and deer and many types of birds I don't know the names of. Oh and I see lots of red wing black birds this time of year.

[makbike]

No turtles today but I did spy a wood thrush, bluejay and yet another eastern cotton tail racing down the road.

[PamNY]

Great bird day. King bird, Baltimore oriole, rufus-sided towhee, catbird, and a sparrow's nest. A mother cat with five kittens living near an electrical substation (employees are feeding them, and ASPCA will try to rescue them on Tuesday). Three snakes -- two garter, one I can't identify with white rings all along his black body (about the same size as the garters).

Best news of all, our mom hawk who lost her babies in a windstorm is showing signs of laying more eggs. She's rebuilt the nest, the birds have copulated frequently for two weeks, and during the past three days she's spend a great deal of time on the nest. Looked like she was going to sleep in the nest tonight.

[salsabike]

That waxwing photo is spectacular! And I totally love that the hawk nests at St. John the Divine, one of the most beautiful churches I've even been in.

It's positively duckling season here. At Logboom Park, where we normally start/end our rides, there were several different batches marching around. Funny how they never lose their cuteness factor no matter how many we may see.

[lph]

It's positively duckling season here. At Logboom Park, where we normally start/end our rides, there were several different batches marching around. Funny how they never lose their cuteness factor no matter how many we may see.

yeah, I was thinking the same thing when kayaking yesterday. A family of Canadian Geese, mom, dad, and three goslings paddling along between me and the shore. We got some waves from a boat, and watching mom and dad and three longlegged lumpy mustard yellow little goslings wobbily hopping and waddling their way up onto a rock had me laughing out loud.

[Bike Chick]

My DH stopped (in his car) the other day to escort a LARGE snapping turtle off the road. A guy in a Park Department pickup stopped as well to help him. The turtle didn't appreciate their efforts.

Oh my! I bet he didn't. My son did that once and the snapping turtle almost took his arm. They aren't very friendly reptiles!

[Bike Chick]

It's mating season!!!! Down here in Houston the warnings are all out about the american alligators moving out of the bayous looking for mates. Tehy killed a 10" one today that was soaking up heat from a freeway feeder road. I guess they aren't on the endangered list anymore since it was a professional hunter/owner of a alligator farm that sells the flesh, who got the contract.

Alligators? In Houston? I had no idea. Guess I live a sheltered life here in middle America.

[Catrin]

Today I saw two things that made me smile - a beautiful red-wing blackbird and a group of children set up alongside one of the country roads that I ride. They were selling Kool-Aid for .10 a small cup and also fresh eggs. They were jumping up and down to get my attention yelling things to me like:

"It's already made!"
"It's COLD!"
"The cups aren't very large!"

I had to laugh and promised that I would stop on my return trip. Not that I needed Kool-Aid! However I did stop, gave them a quarter instead of a dime, and had two sips of it. One of their moms were there and I suggested ice water might be a good addition and she agreed - they will do this every Sunday for the summer.

I should have taken a picture of the little stand, I haven't seen children doing that in years!

[Skierchickie]

I frequently see eagles. Once or twice a summer I usually see a black bear (once it was a mother & 2 cubs that ran across the highway just ahead of me). One time I came around a curve on my mountain bike, only to see a skunk running full-tilt toward me on the trail! I had to make a snap decision whether to keep riding as fast as I could to get past him, or try to get turned around and headed the other way (if there was time).

Last week I had a fox bark at me. I heard a hoarse-sounding bark that sounded like a small dog with a sore throat, and he stepped out into the road. I was wondering what kind of dog it was, as I kept riding, and then it barked once again and ran to the other side. Definitely a fox, but I'd never heard one bark before. It kept giving an occasional bark from the bushes by the road until I was gone. I thanked him (her?) for the wonderful experience, and recommended that he stay out of the road, and be safe. Probably a female with pups (kits?) near by.

[PamNY]

One time I came around a curve on my mountain bike, only to see a skunk running full-tilt toward me on the trail! I had to make a snap decision whether to keep riding as fast as I could to get past him, or try to get turned around and headed the other way (if there was time).

So, which did you do?

I saw Canada geese babies today -- and I cannot top the description lph gave.

Catrin, I love little kid lemonade stands -- most often see them in connection with yard sales (or stoop sales, as they are in NYC).

Our Mom hawk continues to sit on her nest, so we think she's laid a second set of eggs. If they hatch, her babies will be two months behind the usual hawk schedule.