I generally try to sample delights throughout the neighbourhood of Kootenay Lake — a rather substantial area. However, the neighbourhood sampled for today’s posting is rather constrained: things seen in or from my yard over the last few days. Of course, there have been the usual collection of yard birds: Steller’s Jay, Black-capped Chickadee, Song Sparrow, Northern Flicker, Tree Swallow, Bufflehead, Common Merganser, and Robin. Here are a few others.
That so much wildlife is willing to share its space with me is reason enough to live here.
I usually think of Mallards as being fairly gentle creatures, so this couple’s recent behaviour was unexpected. A few weeks ago, two Mallard couples would visit. Then the male of one couple was killed (by what, I don’t know) and a Merlin had it for breakfast. That left its female partner to fend for herself. This couple have mercilessly abused her. Each has attacked her and driven her off from good feeding spots, even to the extent of ripping out some of her feathers. Apparently, they want to preserve the resources for the development of their own chicks, not hers.
A White-tailed Doe and her two yearling fawns are frequent visitors.
The Snowshoe Hare seen earlier about my yard is continuing its moult into its summer coat.
It will be interesting to watch a Canada Goose sitting on her nest in the open. I look forward to the emergence of the chicks.
The Merlin that ate the Mallard has appeared repeatedly atop a tree and spent its time making a call that I had not heard before. Another Merlin responded to it and they mated (twice). It seems that this Merlin was a female seeking some company.
Now and then, I see a Ruffed Grouse in my yard. This one looked as if it might be nesting. Alas, it has not been seen there since.
Clearly, not in my yard, but seen from it at dawn, a Common Loon languidly drifts along the Lake.
Tomfoolery
I commented that we should keep an eye out for male Wild Turkeys in display. It is that time of year. And there they were: not one, but two.
After watching the two toms for a while, it struck me that there was something odd about their behaviour. Each was decked out in its striking courting plumage and there were a number of females in the neighbourhood. Yet, rather than seriously approaching the ladies, the two toms stuck so closely together that they were almost always touching.
Were they more interested in each other than the ladies? Well, sort of. Neither seemed interested in the other sexually, but saw him as competition. It seems to have been a example of
which was memorably stated by Micheal Coreleone in the movie, Godfather, Part II (1974), but which originated in Niccolò Machiavelli’s, The Prince (1513).
The two turkey toms appeared inseparable.
Females were plentiful, but so obsessed were the males with blocking the other’s access, that neither made conquests. It was all rather funny and pathetic.
So the toms wandered away loveless, each presumably pleased the other had been thwarted.
