Urban wildlife interface

Moose and squirrel?

No, cat and squirrel.

Endless entertainment for both parties,

 although the cat swears he's going to gut the tree rat.

A bit of rain

As document at points north, and points north and east, drought hasn't broken but it has at least bent with some storms over the last few weeks. A slightly early monsoon summer that's trying to work up some decent moisture. I hold out faint hopes for quail this fall.

A and I got out and about a bit, heading over to our local mountains:

We found a couple of mushrooms, to wit- shaggymanes, but they were just off a well traveled road, so we admired but did not harvest:

More recently, we hit some of our old stomping grounds with some friends, checking out the fungi scene. A few shaggymanes, some puffballs, some others, but apart from this find:

(you must embiggen, once done, you're looking at a field expedient harvesting tool, a/k/a a knife taped to a stick, used to cut oyster mushrooms just too far up a dead aspen for the unassisted reach of man).


We also saw a couple of grouse, including a hen with chicks and a cock-bird unaccountably strutting back in the trees.

All in all, positive signs. A little more rain and things won't be nearly as grim come fall and winter.

Celebrating Independence Day

and wishing you all a happy 4th of July

(Watermelon, too, is a Chesapeake Heritage Food)