For the second year in a row, some Red-winged Blackbirds have decided to call our non-marsh-like neighborhood their home. At least one or two couples are showing interest in raising a family nearby. They’ve started to visit the feeders regularly:
These birds generally prefer fields and marshes, so it’s a mystery to me what they suddenly find so compelling about the habitat in our neighborhood filled with oak and hickory trees and freshly-trimmed lawns.
The second mystery I wish I could solve is why do half of the squirrels that regularly visit my yard have missing or shortened tails? Have they all escaped the same hungry coyote or fox? Is there a new, wily cat or dog in the neighborhood? Did they have a run-in with a city bus?
I’m glad that this squirrel was able to grow some hair on his stump tail because I can assure you that bald squirrel tails are not a pretty sight:
