#backyardwildlife — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #backyardwildlife, aggregated by home.social.
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last night’s visitor
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omg there’s a pair of #grayfoxes 🥹
and more 7am visits -
here’s the video clip - blink and you’ll miss it #bobcat
#backyardwildlife #trailcam -
Meet my nemesis. This critter is determined to nest under the portion of house that doesn't have a foundation.
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Pipevine Swallowtail on Turk’s Cap
#photography #butterflies #insects #nature #ButterflyPhotography #BackyardWildlife #MacroPhotography
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raccoon and skunk 🦝🦨 #skunk #backyardwildlife #cute #critter #raccoon
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I have no idea why no one has moved into this cat house lol #raccoons #wildlife #raccoonfamily #backyardwildlife #cuteanimals
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Here's something a little different - the two-spotted tree cricket (Neoxabea bipunctata). The two "spots" on the forewings identify females; the males are spotless. They're native to North America; this one probably visited our front door from the deciduous woods nearby. #backyardwildlife #backyardnature #entomology
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Three Good Things
🌹 A romantic date last night. He brought long-stem red roses!
🌹 Summer semester grades have been officially posted. Term GPA: 4.0!
🌹 After exploring our small neighborhood, Wee Bunz has returned to my backyard as his or her familiar thumping ground. Like his or her older sibling, Cottontail, Wee Bunz has taken an interest in my comings and goings, but as always, I stay a safe distance for both of us.
Just a reminder: I do not feed, attempt to handle, or even approach any of the three generations of wild bunnies who have made my yard and my nextdoor neighbor's woodpile their home. They are free to safely live their wild lives here. All I do is document.
#BackyardWildlife #BackyardHabitat
#easterncottontail #wildhares
#wildrabbits #wildbunnies
#NatureLovers #naturephotography
#watershipdown #alttext
#3goodthings #threegoodthings -
This tiny #backyardnature visitor is the peach tree weevil (Pseudoedophrys hilleri). They feed on the foliage of rosaceous plants (e.g. apples, pears, plums, peaches, roses, rowans, etc.) Native to Japan, it is an adventive species in the eastern US. #entomology #backyardwildlife #weevilwednesday
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The gray catbird now comes to the littlebirds’ peanut basket to grab a nut! 🥜🐦🧡
The basket is made of recycled plastic produce bags from supermarkets.♻️
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The Ohio DNR has a wonderful series of free PDF field guides and "Backyard Wildlife" materials, covering everything from reptiles, lichens, moths and millipedes to trees, fish, mussels and wildflowers. #backyardnature #backyardwildlife
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This guy casually rocked up and started munching, two feet away from where I'm sitting. At this rate he'll be on my lap begging for scritches by next week 🤣
He runs off when I make big or sudden moves but he also comes back within a minute or so. Lil weirdo 😅
#hedgehog #egel #igel #wildlife #brave #dapper #brutaal #wtf #alrightythen #spikyfren #wildlife #backyardwildlife #urbanwildlife
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When Linus & I returned from a walk, we found this lovely doe eating the wildlife feed I scatter in the grass.
(Linus only uses the buggy after walking & getting tired.)
She was there for about 30 minutes 🥰
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We came back from vacation and there were not nearly as many eggs as there should have been. I put a camera in the coop to find out what was going on. I was thinking it was a snake, somehow turned out to be a skunk!
I guess today is going to be investigating how the skunk gets in. -
She eats 40,000 grubs and pest insects per family per season. She eats carrion. She buries seeds that become oak trees. She's running a three-shift operation — pest removal, sanitation, reforestation — and she remembers the face of everyone who's ever thrown a rock at her.
#Crows #BackyardWildlife #BirdIntelligence -
Baby chillin' in the grass near the patio while mom grazes in the back.
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Finally got a couple of bad photos of Wee Bunz, who is Mama Bunz' only surviving kit from spring 2026.
As you can see, Wee Bunz has already adopted the family habit of not caring about me or my dog (who is always on a leash when we are outside.)
I do not yet have a guess as to whether Wee Bunz is a male or female. I was about 50 feet away when I took these photos.
#alttext #backyardnature
#BackyardWildlife #wildrabbits
#NatureLovers #naturephotography
#backyardphotography #easterncottontail -
Hot robin just took a bath, grooming on the plant hanger arch. Can’t believe it’s still 99F (37C)… 💦
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A visitor in the #Berkshires.
#BackyardWildlife -
On a personal note, I am so excited to tell you that Wee Bunz is alive and well. I have not seen Wee Bunz since he or she was a tiny toddler who popped out of the nest under my neighbor's tarp-covered woodpile one morning, to play in the spring rain. Mama Bunz moved in quickly to safely relocate Wee Bunz back to the nest, and not long thereafter, the Wandering Fox came through, sniffing for food. I was genuinely concerned that Wee Bunz was no more.
But yes! Wee Bunz has grown a lot, and most likely outgrown the nest, so he or she has been making appearances almost every afternoon, in my neighbor's fenced back yard, or in my unfenced one. He or she stays close to "home" and is quite skittish (which is a good, and totally normal behavior for a wild rabbit.)
To be clear, for those reading my bunny tales for the first time: I don't interfere with their wild lives. I don't feed them; I don't approach or talk to them. I've made no attempts to "tame" them by any means. I document their little lives, as they hang out in my back yard, but otherwise, they are free to come and go as they please.
#wildrabbits #easterncottontail
#BackyardWildlife #backyardnature
#goodnewsthread #goodnewsfeed
#goodnewspost #NatureLovers
#WildlifeMoments -
How does #wildlife beat the heat?
Learn the wild ways #Massachusetts critters survive the summer.
7/01/2026"What do wild animals do when temperatures start to climb? Like any good New Englander, our local wildlife is built to survive all 4 seasons. From bizarre bodily functions to wardrobe changes, here’s how they’ll stay cool this summer.
Thermal panting and gular fluttering
You’ve likely seen a dog pant after laying in the sun. Wild animals do this too. Thermal panting increases the evaporation of liquid off their tongue and inside of their mouth, lowering their body temperature. Members of the canid (dog) and cervid (deer and moose) families are especially known for panting to thermoregulate. Certain birds, like owls and cormorants, use a similar strategy called gular fluttering—rapidly vibrating their throat to increase evaporation and cool themselves down.
“Hot yoga” for birds
When it gets hot, great blue herons will spread their wings in a dramatic, statue-like pose. Although it may look like yoga, they are actually striking this pose to release heat from their body and allow a cool breeze to reach areas of skin with fewer feathers. Interestingly, they also do this in the morning sun to warm up their bodies after a cool night.
A messy solution
Turkey vultures purposely defecate on their legs when it gets hot out. As the waste evaporates, it cools the bird down.
Turkey vultures and northern gannets use a unique, albeit gross, cooling strategy called urohidrosis (pronounced yoo-roh-hi-DROH-sis). These birds purposely defecate on their featherless legs to keep cool. The evaporation of the waste along the blood vessels results in a cooling effect. They’re not the only animals that do this. Harbor seals urinate on their hind flippers while sunbathing to regulate their body temperature too.
Shifting scenery and wardrobe
Blanding's turtles often move into shaded areas or underneath leaf litter to escape the summer heat
Sometimes survival just requires a change in routine. Some wildlife exhibit more nocturnal or crepuscular (dawn and dusk) activity so they can rest through the hottest part of the day. When it gets too warm, reptiles and amphibians move to cooler microclimates, underneath leaf litter and rotting logs, or submerge themselves in water. Black bears and moose will seek shelter in forested wetlands and use mud and shallow water to cool down. Occasionally, they come to artificial water sources, like swimming pools or water troughs. If you find wildlife cooling off, always keep your distance and wait for the animal to move on.
Many mammals, like coyote, deer, and fisher, also have thinner summer fur compared to their winter coats. Taking it a step further, bobcats not only have a thinner coat, they also tend to have less spots and more tawny, reddish fur to better camouflage with their summer habitats.
Want to help wildlife stay cool this summer?
Wild animals can care for themselves year-round and almost never need our help, even when it’s hot. However, you can make your yard a natural, cooling oasis for wildlife with these tips:
Note: If there are West Nile Virus or Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) detections in your area, remove all standing water to avoid attracting mosquitoes.
- Grow native plants: For all wildlife, grow native plants, shrubs, and trees that offer natural sources of food and shelter from the sun.
- Bird bath 101: For songbirds, provide a shallow, clean bird bath with 1–2 inches of water. They are especially attracted to moving or dripping water. Be sure to replace the water weekly and regularly scrub the bird bath to remove build up. Learn more about creating a bird-friendly area.
- Be a rest stop for bugs: During droughts, or in areas far from natural water sources, create a water station in your garden for bees, butterflies, and other insects. Fill a shallow saucer with water and place items for bugs to perch on, like small rocks and twigs, in the saucer. Don’t add sugar, but a small pinch of salt can provide minerals that bees and butterflies need. Change the water at least weekly.
- Avoid causing harm when trying to help: Never intentionally feed wildlife. This can cause individuals to gather at the site, creating a place for disease to spread and for wildlife to become less cautious around people. This could further harm the animals you were trying to help."Source:
https://www.mass.gov/news/how-does-wildlife-beat-the-heat#SolarPunkSunday #GardeningForWildlife #GardeningForPollinators
#BeeWateringStations #BirdBaths #Heatwave #Heatwaves #BackyardWildlife #KeepCool #KeepingCool #ClimateChange