Critter Count

Don't know what the weather has been doing in other areas but around here we've had a long warm summer. So much so that I heard on the radio that the feral cats have had an extra litter this year.

Other things I've observed;

Although our house is high and dry, there is a lot of low wet ground in our area. I've never seen a Chipmunk in the 20 years we've been here. I have recently seen our first in the backyard.

Grey squirrels don't seem to do well away from towns. I've seen one out here about every 5 years or so. They don't seem to last long. Lately, I've been seeing them all over the countryside.

In a normal year, we might catch 1-3 mice in the house. I've caught 7 in the past month.

Just thinking, if feral cats have had one extra litter, how much extra have some other critters reproduced.

Anyone seeing anything similar in other areas?

I saw my first Monach butterfly in Alberta this year. All butterflies, even the Swallowtails vere very numerous. More ravens, less foxes and coyotes. The toad population exploded. I must have caught 50 in the window wells and transplanted them to safer places. Also saw chorus frogs this year for the first time in this new location.

We have had fewer meadow voles and mice, but more muskrats and weasels. Fewer mice in the house, but we have been working to make the house more mouse proof of I guess that doesn't count.

The one animal we have much more of this year is CHICKENS! You sure can hatch a lot in a Brinsea!

It is a strange year.
We had very few toads and hummingbirds,swallows
were down a bit bats population was good and I think
they are still here.
My hoya in the livingroom is still blooming and
has been for months and the cactus in the kitchen
sink window is blooming again with two blooms.
Had a terrible year hathcing bought eggs but my
own did fine.
Hubby has had 3 surgery's in three months.
I am looking forward to next year hope it is better.

Almost no wasps, which was nice. Water in all sorts of unusual places in the fields. Lots of thistle.

Gee Fowler, I thought you were going to make us count our chooks and I NEVER do that! With no real count, when hubby asks how many chickens I have I can honestly say 'I don't know, hun'. (really need the sweet, doe eyed smiley now)
I can tell you how many pullets I have or how many of a particular breed, but an overall count.......just don't know.
So glad you weren't asking how many chooks I have.

I'm the same way with horses. Husband says "is that a NEW black horse in the trailer???"

I would never do that because I don't count my own. If I don't know, I can't lie. Plausible deniability.

There are strange things done in the midnight sun...

What a weird year eh? I don't count my chickens either, so thanks for not asking for a head count, I could, but do I want to . Nope, better let that sleeping dog lie.

This was a year here for green caterpillers (how do you spell that? my speller says it is wrong, oh well)on the black elderberry shrubs. Nearly defoliated the entire trees before I would go every day and shake the blinkers out of the trees for the worms for the chickens (thank goodness for chickens that love to free range . Elderberry grows about 10 feet or more in a season, so it wasn't long before all the leaves had grown back. I think the caterpillars were (there spelled it right) in massive growth this year. Blah. Other than that, I don't think there was anything extraordinary about bugs. Lots of grasshoppers, but that is regular. Had a few tomato hornworm larvae, never developed past the large larva with the horn on the tail, I got them, but certainly more than I had seen in prior years. Think that was about it. I remember in 2010, the year we moved here there were thousands of brown stink bugs EVERYWHERE. They would even land on the human body, there were so many. Now that certainly was interesting, such neat bugs. My experience with weirdness, not so weird, but kind of weird to me. Beautiful day wishes for us all, CynthiaM.

Count chooks I always tell the DH they won't stand still long enough for me to count
I have noticed that there were loads of dragonfly's and a fair amount of bee's but not those big ones they looked like little baby bees.
As for the fur lots of voles, shrews, and field mice which is okay because Ms. Cleo has to do something with her day.Lots of squirrels and munks as well.

Oh yes, you are right, LOTS of dragonflies!

Hmmmm good point. I hadn't noticed but you're right. There are tons of dragondlies around of all different sorts.

Wonder if this could indicate that it was a big year for the bugs they eat.

Me had way more frogs here than the last couple of summers we have been here. Hear them all the time this year and hadn't heard any before.
Lots more butterflies as well.
Interesting about the dragon flies, haven't noticed that here, but will keep and eye out.