A porcupine in a tree
Driving through farmland south of Cochrane today, I came across a glowing ball in the top branches of a thicket of scrub bush. The ball was a North American porcupine (Erethizon dorsatum). The glow was from the sunlight reflecting off of the quills.
I knew this was one of the things that porcupines frequently do as they climb up to eat the bark, but it was my first time to see it directly. I had to cross a field to get remotely close and as I drew near, the spiky fellow dropped down lower into the branches. Indicating it was uncomfortable with me coming over for a visit. I waited a hundred feet away for a few minutes to see if it would relax and climb back to a higher spot where I would have a clear line of sight. It didn’t but I was able to find a couple spots where the face and front claws could be seen amid the brambles.
Hopefully next time I can approach a little slower or find a more curious porcupine that will let me take a couple of photographs that better portray these interesting creatures.
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Happy Groundhog Day!
Well the most famous groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil, didn’t see his shadow today which bodes well for an early spring. Unfortunately, Punxsutawney is in Pennsylvania and about 3380 kilometers away so the spring he’s presiding over is not likely the same one we will have..
A bit closer, Manitoba Merv saw his shadow. He’s closer, 1300 km, away but he’s a puppet so I can’t put much stock in his call for a late spring.
So, for the Calgary area at least, it comes down to Balzac Billy. Known as the Prairie Prognosticator, he saw his shadow today. Looks like six more weeks of winter. In Calgary, I think we’d be very happy to only have a month and a half of winter left. We’ll see.
I don’t have any images of groundhogs but here is one of its cousins photographed in a tree in Sunshine Meadows along the Continental Divide in the Canadian Rockies near Banff.
Happy Groundhog Day!
