From My Window

Enjoying the Babies

By Jane Thibodeau Martin,

The woods are lush and most cropland hasn't been harvested, making our yard and the horse pasture little islands of clear "line of sight." But even with the woods and cornfields hiding their secrets, we are getting highly enjoyable glimpses of the newest neighbors.

We have been seeing mama Turkeys and their babies, often in social flocks with friends and their offspring foraging in the fields and along the roads. Turkeys have big families, with Mike counting nine babies with one mom recently. At one point he saw babies out in a field with no parent bird in sight, but surely Mom was nearby, watching for predators.

One morning dog walk on the trail through our woods I was lucky enough to see a mother raccoon with at least one baby. Our dogs hardly know what stimulus to pay attention to on these walks " the scent of many critters who also use the easy walking the trail allows, the smells on the tree trunks and vegetation, the sounds of crashing and skittering as the woods residents flee our arrival or the movement on the ground, trees and bushes as some rush to their sanctuaries in the tree tops. All these distractions meant that for once I was the one who spotted the shape converging on the trail from the right. I stopped and watched, and both dogs, suddenly noticing the raccoon's movement once I halted, watched; frozen, ears up, eyes staring and with a front paw lifted, ready to chase.

A small raccoon, clearly an adult but nothing like the footstool-sized one we see on the trail camera, crossed perpendicular to us, followed by at least one adorable little kit. That's all I saw, because then bedlam broke out. The dogs would have loved to give chase, and I won't allow it. When we crossed the raccoon's scent trail, I imagined the mama, watching fearfully behind and preparing to climb to save herself and her family. You are safe, mama. I'm on your side.

The Sandhill cranes are regulars at "Hank Lake." The parents are hard to distinguish from their youngster now, so tall and leggy is he or she. The parents usually don't alarm or flee from me if I keep at a safe and respectful distance. They either know I mean them no harm, or they think I am a totally inept stalker. They will be soon gone, leading their youngster to better wintering grounds. Our Mom and baby ducks are gone already " flying to other feeding grounds and preparing to flock up.

It is a revelation to watch what seems like a bumper crop of fawns. Early in spring, they are safely hidden away. Our first glimpses of them are usually after Mama crosses our gravel road, or one of the blacktopped roads further away. The baby pauses and looks at the unnatural and open surface in front of it, then over to the mom who usually pauses on the other shoulder to wait and encourage them. Then baby minces, clearly uncomfortable, across the strange surface and into the safe confines of the woods. The youngsters are charming, and so vulnerable.

But now, at 3 or 4 months of age, they flash across the fields and roads as nimbly as Mom. The spots are less and less noticeable. Their growth rates, as compared to human babies, are phenomenal. They must grow up and prepare for adult life quickly, because winter is coming.

We have one bird feeder, up high on our patio and protected partially by four foot chain link dog fence. We have risk-assessed that it would be difficult for the bear known to visit our yard to get to this feeder " we will see if we are right or not as the weather cools. Perhaps he will school us on bear agility and ingenuity. But for now, the feeder hosts many immature goldfinches, grosbeaks, chickadees and wrens. Mom and Dad have shown the babies where the avian "restaurant" is located and we love watching them. They not only still look different than their parents, if the screen door is open, I can hear their baby voices.

A sure sign of fall made its way to my ears this week - the frequent, attention-demanding alarm calls of the Blue Jays. I have no idea why I don't hear much from them in summer. But when fall approaches, they spend hours warning of my presence or scolding someone or something else. Perhaps they are teaching their young of the year of the dangers of life outside the nest. Or maybe they were too busy raising their single brood earlier in the year to serve as the neighborhood watch of the woods. But their noisy racket is a sure sign of autumn to me, like the bittering of the cucumbers as the days grow shorter, and the exuberant Goldenrod. (Goldenrod is an excellent nectar source for butterflies and bees and it does NOT cause seasonal allergies. That's Ragweed, a different plant species. Goldenrod is a solid citizen and killing it should be avoided if possible.)

It is so good to share the land with these babies. It is a joy to have them here, and I wish them well in the coming winter.

Book I am reading: "The King of Confidence: A Tale of Utopian Dreamers, Frontier Schemers, True Believers, False Prophets, and the Murder of an American Monarch," by Miles Harvey. Non-fiction story of the Mormons who settled Beaver Island in Lake Michigan. There were a lot of parallels in this story, set in the times just before the Civil war, with the divisions and uncertainty of our own times. It's also a story of how a powerful but unprincipled man used faith to control people; a story that is not at all unique to Mormons but unfortunately can occur in any religion and or cult.

You can reach me for commentary, alternative viewpoints or ideas at this e-mail address: JanieTMartin@gmail.com.

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