Grays vs Goundhog - who knows best?

[airiscool]

I heard that Puxatawny Phil saw his shadow and went back in for six more weeks of winter.

This morning I was checking on my Gray herd and noticed they are not so "Winter gray" anymore. Their coats are starting to show more brown down the middle and their "snow tufts ", the white fur they get in Winter on the tips of their ears, is all gone.

Not to say that our neighbors to the south faith in their critter is wrong, but I hope that means we're getting an early Spring !!!

Maybe the 'shadow' that Penn State Woodchuck was so scared of was our own "Shadow Ed" looking down the barrel of an AG      

Anyway here's a picture of seven of the herd out by the wall having their Sunflower breakfast. Harry's two were chasing each other up in trees overhead. Those two haven't let up since they got here !!!      

Paul.

[dk1677]

Great picture! Yes you might be right The one I saw today had some brown ( This picture must drive Harry nuts LOL )

[shadow]

hehehe I brush up on my Farmers Almanac, keep a eye on the critters coat's and see what kind of bird's are starting to come into the feeders.   Ed

[airiscool]

Dave,

"..................... This picture must drive Harry nuts LOL ........"

   

No more so than WadeS's pictures were getting to me a few days ago !!! Going from light to heavy pellets only to see Starlings rolled and fly off - I thought I was gonna have to use my 18 pounder  large bore round  

Paul.

[dk1677]

Yea that would do it! Been times I wanted to use my 12ga or 45cal Muzzle loaders ; )

[only1harry]

Nice pic Paul!  You definitely have a lot of squirrels.  Too bad there is a house back there in the background.  I 'd be shooting them left and right : )  But you are doing the right thing!  Please trap them and I 'll come up to pick them up since you 're not shooting them  

Yeah my 2 squirrels that left here were too oppressed.  They rarely left their dens afraid they would get their head blown off  This is why they are letting loose in your yard.. too many years of living in fear on my property  I just hope you can trap some of their offspring in the summer time so I can release them in my trees, hehe.

[airiscool]

If the kids are anything like the their folks, I don't think they'll ever slow down enough to be trapped. My trapping efforts would probably look like something out of a Road Runner carton.

 May just have to saddle up, round up, and have a little critter drive down that dusty trail your way.  

Get along little nutters ....

Paul.

[jake]

yeah, ive noticed that too. how could you just shoot them with the camrea instead of an airgun? if i had that many in my backyard i would do nuts lol

[airiscool]

Jake,

I have been ...but I don't want to wind up like Harry wishing I had more Grays !!!! Sorry Harry, couldn't resist the jibe !!!:D      

We were over-run with them this year like I've never seen before. Way more than past years when we've also had as big a black walnut crop as we've had this year. Sitting out back early last fall, it was easy to count  12 or so without having to swivel around in the lawn chair. One afternoon, about the end of August, we counted 14 on the property, all visable at one time.

And they were building nests everywhere possable. Two ate holes into my attic, and several others kept plugging up my stove chimney. Everytime I'd put one in the freezer and clean the chimney nest out, shortly after another one would build a nest there again.

 Since the begining of Sept when small game season started, 20 have gone into the freezer. Everytime I'd shoot a couple, within days more would come in. Once I thinned out the herd and the deep cold set in, not knowing how many mother nature would take over the Winter I switched to going after the Reds. Thinned out the Reds, then got into Starlings.

This morning I counted 10 visable here all at one time.  The freezers now empty, the herd has grown and needs some thinning before the season ends in about 2 weeks.

My main concern is I don't want to take out either of Harry's "two" - they're in love !!!!

Paul.