Animals | wordsfromanneli

September 7, 2025
by wordsfromanneli 36 Comments

Pronghorns, the Not-Antelope

Pronghorns are not really antelopes. They are related more closely to giraffes and okapis. I’m not big on trophy hunting, but I took this photo at the home of someone who is, and I find it useful to show what a pronghorn looks like up close. Apologies to the non-hunters. I have mixed feeling about the whole thing, but it’s not the purpose of this post to start a discussion of the topic of hunting. It is a natural thing for animals (including man) to hunt for food, but nowadays we let someone else do the killing for us. I like my steak once in a while, just as most people do, and yet I cry if I see an animal get hurt. So where’s the logic in that? And to be fair, the person who shot this pronghorn most likely ate the meat the way we eat beef.

As you can see, they have horns with a prong on them, but they don’t bother anyone unless they are desperate or trapped, perhaps up against a fence that they don’t like to jump. They prefer to crawl under fences, but that slows them down in their attempt to escape predators such as coyotes.

If necessary, they can run at close to 90 miles per hour for a short distance, but around 60 mph for a prolonged run. Since they are, otherwise, rather defenseless, it’s a good thing they are considered North America’s fastest land animal.

These pronghorns happened to be near a pullout on the highway in eastern Montana. I got a couple of quick photos but they didn’t want to hang around or come closer for a better picture.

The grasses taste like cereal,

What kind is immaterial,

But forbs, those leafy, juicy plants,

Are lovely, when they’re found by chance.

While munching herby sagebrush here,

Our leader raised his head in fear,

Beware the tourist, here she comes,

With fumbling camera, she’s all thumbs.

Let’s smile and let her take her shot,

But wander farther at a trot.

One never knows where danger lies,

When people one of us espies.

If need be, we can all take flight,

Across the fields with all our might.

The photo op will have to wait,

Just save your lives, it’s not too late.

And yet, she looks so harmless there,

Let’s pose for one and be more fair,

We have a good head start from her,

And we can leave her in a blur.

September 4, 2025
by wordsfromanneli 44 Comments

Backyard Eateries

Oh, good grief, those squirrels are such messy eaters.

What do you think I should do? Such a mess!

It even spilled over the edge of the table!

I’ll just take this one sunflower seed. I wouldn’t want anyone to see me here and think it was me who made this mess!

Uh-ohhhh! The Steller’s jay is at my dining room table.

I have to hide these nuts I just got off the hazelnut tree.

That’s good. I’ll push it down with my nose. I still have one nut for my lunch. Think I’ll eat it now before that jay finds it. They are such thieves!

First, to get the shell off. Good thing I have really sharp teeth. I tried them out on Anneli’s thumb one time. I felt bad later, but what does she think? I need to be fed?

Oh, yes, now this is looking better. The shell is off and I’ve worked up an appetite.

Can’t wait to bite into this hazelnut!

I found a new place to eat. As you can see, I’ve switched to walnuts. They’re not so messy. But I still have to keep an eye out for those jays. I think I’ll have a quick bite, and then take the rest to my secret stash deep in the wood shed.

Life is never easy. You always have to be on your toes and have an alternate plan in case something goes wrong.

August 29, 2025
by wordsfromanneli 46 Comments

Harvest Time

The squirrels have been harvesting hazelnuts from the trees and hiding them to be retrieved in the winter.

Along comes Woodrow the Woodpecker, innocently looking for bugs.

Ronald Rabbit knows the squirrels wouldn’t like their stash to be unearthed, but, “What to do? What to do?”

“Mind your own business, Ronald,” says Woodrow. “That’s “What to do’!”

“I’m telling,” shouts Ronald. “The people will let their dog out and then you’ll be sorry.” Meanwhile, I have one leg raised and ready to make a run for it.

“Look out, you guys! Here I come. And don’t forget! I may be a teddy bear in the house, but I’m a wolverine in the field.”

“Are you serious?” Woodrow calls to Ronald. “Now that the dog is out, we’ll all have to make a run for it.”

“Aw, do what you want. I’m going up here to higher ground and — oh! What have we here? A hole in the tree. Anybody home?”

And so life goes on … unless you’re a bug in that tree.

August 22, 2025
by wordsfromanneli 21 Comments

Warming Rays

Sun that warms us,

Loved by most,

Soothes without fuss,

Feels like toast.

August 19, 2025
by wordsfromanneli 37 Comments

King Parrots and Crimson Rosellas

These king parrots seem to tolerate the two crimson rosellas at the left of the photo (sent by Leslie from Australia). I’m not sure what would happen if there were a shortage of seeds on those brick pavers, but as long as there is enough for everyone, there doesn’t seem to be a problem sharing.

Bright and beauteous, that we are,

Folks admire us from afar.

If they put down seeds for us,

And come closer, we won’t fuss.

August 14, 2025
by wordsfromanneli 49 Comments

You and Me and Rain on the Roof

A young eagle on one of his first outings.

Hmm! Great view from up here.

Kind of windy though.

Yikes! That gust nearly unseated me.

I wonder if I should find a better place. A bit exposed here….

Help! Eeeeek! Eeeeek! Mom!

My feathers are getting all ruffled up.

Starting to rain too.

Here comes the rain. Tiny drops are gathering on my feathers. And then there’s that wind. I think I should find another place to hang out. Lots of trees out there with branches for a better grip.

August 13, 2025
by wordsfromanneli 23 Comments

Mountain Ash and Holly

As I wrote the title to this post, I thought it might be misleading, with all the local wildfires making ashes of some of our “mountains,” but it is the tree that I am referring to in this post.

Each spring, the mountain ash gets clusters of little white flowers. Later in the summer, those flowers turn into red berries that will supply food for birds that are still here in the late autumn. It’s a time of year when the birds are trying to get the last of the summer’s bounty to build up their strength to meet the coming winter, or to make any lengthy flights they might have planned.

On one of those cool autumn days, the flocks (usually robins) will come and occupy the tree like so many shivering ornaments on a Christmas tree. They gobble down as many of these berries as they can. Sometimes it is already late in the fall and the berries are getting a bit overripe. The birds have been known to get a bit tipsy from eating the wine-like berries. Beware the windows nearby, little birds, when you can’t fly straight.

They also visit the holly trees for their berries, but they eat more carefully. Holly leaves can be prickly.

Mountain ash and holly,

They make a late snack jolly,

But berries that ferment,

Can cause flights to be bent.

August 8, 2025
by wordsfromanneli 34 Comments

A Cool Snake

This carpet python is not the same one as in the previous post, but the story happened nearby. My friend noticed the snake lying near the road and wondered if it had been run over. If not, it soon could be. She dropped a stick on it to see if it would move, and as you can see, it did not. In order to move it away from the roadside, she considered picking it up, but, as these snakes can be heavy and she is not a weightlifter, she called on a friend to come and help. (I chuckle when I imagine that these are her excuses for not feeling comfortable handling a snake. I wouldn’t be either.)

As you may know, snakes don’t hibernate in the sense that mammals do, but they will den up and cuddle for warmth. As the weather cools, the snakes tend to slow down if they can’t find a sunny spot to stay warm.

This particular fellow was stranded in a cool place and his already cool blood was not able to keep him active. He was pretty much stuck. You might say he was close to having “viperthermia.”

In the photo below, notice how the snake is just dangling there, not very active. He needed to be warmed up, and what better way to get his blood flowing again than with a nice cuddle. This is what the friend is doing, trying to warm up the cool guy. He walked with the snake to a sunny patch. With about ten minutes of cuddling and two minutes of sunshine, the snake was feeling better and became more lively.

He was squirming all over the place, and although the friend was in no danger of being swallowed, he didn’t want to get nipped either. See him holding the snake’s head away, just in case.

I thank you, Sir, for warming me,

So I can make my way,

To someplace safe where sun I see,

But no one knows I stay.

For snake blood without sun is cool,

My body sluggish, slow,

I’ll lie beside the swimming pool,

But stay! No need to go!

I only want to stay mobile,

And so need to keep warm,

If I can hide in this woodpile,

I’ll be in finest form.

August 5, 2025
by wordsfromanneli 46 Comments

Carpet Python

This carpet python in Australia is very well camouflaged. His head is just to the right of the farthest fern on the left. From there, if you follow his curves along to the end of his long body, you will notice that he gets fatter and fatter. I shudder to think what little animal has been swallowed whole.

Carpet Python, photo by Leslie

Imagine walking down the steps to the back yard to put something into the compost and then, on your return, noticing that you must have walked right over a python of over six feet in length.

Luckily, these pythons are not venomous. They eat small animals like mice and rats, birds, and lizards. They can open their jaws wider than we might think, judging by the size of the head, but after an initial bite, they wrap their body around the animal to constrict its blood flow, and once the animal is unconscious, it is usually swallowed whole.

I spied my meal behind a fern,

And slithered close to see,

But Ratty didn’t even turn,

And soon was food for me.

I wrapped my “arm” around him then,

And told him not to fear,

“It’s just so you won’t feel it when

I swallow you, my dear.”

Though Ratty passed out right away,

And slipped right down my throat,

It would be wrong for me to say,

I didn’t smile and gloat.

He kicked a bit when he awoke,

He scrabbled in my gut,

And rather than to lose the bloke,

I kept my big mouth shut.

July 31, 2025
by wordsfromanneli 50 Comments

The Common Loon

On a small lake in northwestern Washington State, my friend Sonia was kayaking and had a close look at a pair of common loons. One of them is pictured here. I did some digging for information and found out that except for the difference in their size, it is not easy tell male from female at a glance. So whichever it is, he or she would like to chat you up with a poem. Beware! It may be a bit loony.