Within a couple of days, I watched two mammals eating forbs. The striking thing about this pair is that they differed in mass by perhaps a factor of a hundred: The black bear was of modest size and may have weighed about 100 kg; A typical weight for a muskrat is only about 1 kg.
Reputations to the contrary, the diet of each of these animals is primarily herbaceous. Nevertheless, I admit to being unwilling to approach the bear as closely as the muskrat. Neither animal has particularly good eyesight, but the muskrat’s vision seems to be the poorer. I was able to (slowly) approach the muskrat within about 3 meters without it showing any awareness.
A black bear patrols a grassy field for comestibles.
It found what it sought: flower buds.
A muskrat has just climbed out of the Lake and has started to forage.
It soon found what it wants. (Here, it reminds me of a koala.)
In the 2nd picture, the bear looks like he has discovered you. Is that when you slowly back away? Love the muskrat pictures.
Heather, immediately after consuming that bud, the bear could be seen checking an iPhone App about the tastiness of antediluvian bipedals. Deciding I wasn’t worth the bother, it went back to eating flowers.
There’s always an app.