......Trail Camera Catch of the Day......

I'm Going with 'Carolina'

2011-12-31T13:54:00.000-05:00

I'm sure this is a chickadee, and until someone corrects me, am going to ID it as a Carolina Chickadee.

Unfortunately, after that photo was taken, something (I suspect a squirrel) moved the camera, so the rest of the snaps on the memory card were like this:

Nuttin' but a Nuthatch

2011-12-30T13:09:00.000-05:00

Birds seemed a bit slow to find the new suet spot, but here's a white-breasted nuthatch that found free food.

Very Quiet Day at the Cam

2011-12-29T13:01:00.000-05:00

You have to settle for a squirrel and a close-up out-of-focus dove today. I set up a suet cam this afternoon, so hopefully I'll have something more interesting tomorrow.

Just One Photo Today...

2011-12-28T13:00:00.001-05:00

...but it's a good one!

Came Back with Bucks...

2011-12-27T10:26:00.000-05:00

...and I'm not just talking about the Christmas money my Mom gave me!

A wide, tall rack on this one.

More points on this one.

I'm pretty sure this one is different from the other two.

Peanut Butter Test Failed

2011-12-22T14:19:00.000-05:00

There were no pics this morning on the camera in the pines where I smeared peanut butter on a tree trunk yesterday afternoon. Meanwhile, at the dry cat food test spot, there was still some cleanup going on last night.

The cat food aroma must linger for a couple of days (and rains), as the whole gang got into the hunt this morning.

Merry Christmas Everybody! I'll have new photos from new locations next week.

Tuna Fish and Dry Cat FoodTests

2011-12-21T12:41:00.000-05:00


Holmes discovers an unexpected treat at the feeder - Friskies!

Meanwhile, at the tuna fish test, after being ignored by bluejays and squirrels, the tuna is scarfed up by an opossum.

Perhaps I Should Rename This Blog...

2011-12-19T19:34:00.000-05:00

...Trail Cam Squirrel of the Day, and once again the weekend brought over a hundred new squirrel photos.

Did you notice the second squirrel in this photo?

I've never been 100% sure what the next critter is. Have seen them in several photos before, only after dark. My guess is that they're young chipmunks.

And finally, for a bit of variety, a rabbit stops by.

I Guess It Doesn't Matter

2011-12-16T21:01:00.000-05:00

No matter how thick the underbrush I pick for the camera is, I guess as long as I'm using corn as an attractant, I'm going to get the same results.

Remember, it's another deer gun season in Ohio this weekend, so be careful in the woods. I may not post any new photos until Monday. Coming next week, though, we'll see what happens when I try different feeds to attract wildlife. I'm thinking tuna fish, dog food, meat scraps, peanut butter...we'll see what I can come up with. Could be interesting.

80+ Photos of Squirrels and Blue Jays

2011-12-15T14:27:00.000-05:00

Don't worry, I won't subject you to all 80 of them, but it's clearly time for another major camera move; these photos are really getting tiresome.

Here's something a bit different today - a squirrel in flight - and then again moments later after touch down.

Can't Say for Sure...

2011-12-13T15:32:00.000-05:00

...but I think these are two different bucks:

Even Deep in the Pines...

2011-12-12T14:02:00.000-05:00

...if you thrown down some shelled corn, the usual suspects will find it.

Even a Corn Dog showed up.

Half the Suet Cake Gone in One Day...

2011-12-11T01:09:00.001-05:00

and here's why:

A Couple that the Deer Hunters Missed

2011-12-10T10:46:00.001-05:00

Here are two bucks that survived gun season. As a reminder, Ohio bow season continues through February 5th, and there is another abbreviated deer gun season December 17-18. Deer muzzle-loader season will be January 7-10, 2012.

Most hunters know these dates. It is the non-hunters who need to remember them before venturing into the woods.

Remember the Sun!

2011-12-09T11:52:00.000-05:00

I thought it might be interesting to hang suet in the woods and see if the birds found it - and they certainly did. I forgot, however, to take the sun into consideration, so I have 90+ photos ruined by the sun - like these:

The one exception - this chipmunk that arrived at 5am.

Oh well, lesson learned (again). I'll move the setup deeper into the woods this afternoon.

Birds in Flight

2011-12-08T12:07:00.000-05:00

There are almost 300 photos on the memory cards for me to review, but sadly the majority of them are daytime flash photos. Between moving the cams into the woods and the low light from 2 days of rain, the cams were very busy snapping photos as if it were night time. Those photos have washed out color like this:

When the flash DOESN'T go off, you get something like this on a rainy day:

When the trail cams catch a bird-in-flight, it's always an accident. Some other creature's movement (in this case, a squirrel) causes the camera to snap. If you're really lucky, it happens while a bird is flying in the area at the same time.

The Path of Least Resistance

2011-12-07T13:02:00.000-05:00

I decided not to open the trail cams today due to the rain. (You have to open the case to retrieve the memory card.) Hopefully that means I'll have lots of photos to pick from tomorrow.

I'm also going to start work on this year's addition to the hiking path in the woods tomorrow. With any luck (and a mild winter), I hope to be able to easily walk to this spot by Spring.

It's a scenic watering hole used by a lot of different wildlife, but right now getting there is a pretty tough walk.

I Promised You a New Background...

2011-12-06T13:24:00.000-05:00

...but I'm afraid it's not a new visitor.

Few From the Weekend

2011-12-05T11:35:00.001-05:00

With deer gun season over, I'll be moving both cams to new locations this week and hope to bring you a greater variety of wildlife pics soon...or at least different backgrounds for the photos.

Please note that the digital display window in the camera used for the photos in today's post no longer works, so I cannot change the AM/PM setting. Pics from that cam will have the incorrect time stamp from now on.

Here's an example of why no-flash infrared cameras are nice:

You get a better look when the buck is not so close to the camera.

Nice shot of a squirrel and blue jay.

Another photo for the 'birds in flight' series.

Reminder: AM is PM and PM is AM

2011-12-02T14:56:00.001-05:00

Don't Give Up

2011-12-01T14:08:00.002-05:00

Some of the guys hunting here this week are getting frustrated that they're seeing very few deer. Here's a video of one that stopped by last night. Don't give up guys!

Click here, Willie Nelson will encourage you.

Corn Eating Contest

2011-11-30T08:50:00.003-05:00

The blue jays seemed to be bored the other day, and decided to drop by the camera to show how much corn they could eat. The first two are clearly amateurs, and tied for 3rd place.

Here's a look at the jay who finished in 2nd place.

And for the grand prize...

Oh yes, I almost forgot. This year there was even an entry in the Team Competition.

ONE-TWO-THREE

2011-11-29T10:28:00.001-05:00

ONE

TWO

THREE

Ohio Deer Gun Season

2011-11-28T08:09:00.001-05:00

Just a reminder: Ohio Deer Gun Season begins today and runs through December 4th. Please be safe in the woods or stay out of them for the next week!

(Also, ignore the AM/PM on this photo. Looks like I need to update the camera.)

No Need To Go To The Trail Cams

2011-11-27T11:30:00.001-05:00

...when I can stand in my living room and take photos like these! The birds came by around 11am this morning.