Thursday Thirteen 242: Urban Wildlife

My friend L commented last week that I see more wildlife as a city girl than she does, and she actually lives in the country. This does seem to be true.



1. Though I live on the Madison/Fitchburg border, a mixed residential/commercial area, there are several nature preserves in the vicinity.

2. To my north across the highway is more than 1100 acres of the UW-Arboretum, a mix of prairie, woodlands and marsh. As you can probably imagine, it is teeming with a wide assortment of wildlife.

3. About a mile west is Grady Tract, a 100-acre extension of the UW-Arboretum on this (south) side of the highway, which I often walk. It's amazing how fast it can change from week to week, and season to season.

4. South of Grady Tract is Dawley Conservancy/Dunn's Marsh, which is actually part of the Nine Springs E-Way that stretches several miles east to Lake Farm Park. There is a major bike/walking path that is quite nice, and which occasionally affords one the chance to observe wildlife from a close though safe distance.

5. Part of Nine Springs was closed for a few hours Tuesday due to a brush fire. The unusually warm temps (80 degrees in March, a good 40 above normal!) and dry, windy conditions have caused several small wildfires across southern Wisconsin, and Dane County is under a fire warning. Hopefully rain coming in end of this week will help.

6. Due to the proximity of these nature preserves, we do see a lot of wildlife in my neighborhood. For starters, a pair of foxes resides in the narrow strip of woods separating this property from the business up the hill. While I have never actually seen them myself, friends who live on the back side of the building (hill side) report seeing them many times.

7. I have seen deer many times while walking Grady Tract, particularly just before dusk. I have also seen them in my backyard. Years ago as my mom and I were leaving for work early one winter morn, a trio walked out of the woods, came halfway down the hill, then stood looking about for several minutes before turning back the way they came.

8. Then there are the turkeys. I have only seen a few at the Arboretum, usually too far off the paths amidst the underbrush to get a decent look at them, let alone photos. The neighborhood where I live and walk a few times a week, however... I have often seen a solo tom or trio of turkeys walking the streets. Sunday night I saw not one, not three—but ten, all milling about the same yard, before four decided to go on a walk around the neighborhood themselves.

9. Last Wednesday afternoon I was walking the wooded trails at Grady Tract, just approaching the trail to Greene Prairie, when I heard the most awful screeching you've ever heard and knew instantly is was not a turkey. I veered off to the meadow and found four Sandhill Cranes. This is unusual as, though the boardwalk did squish a little underfoot, there is generally not enough water on this side of the highway for them. They usually nest in the marshy area behind the Visitor Center of the main Arboretum, across the highway. So, VERY cool sighting.

10. We also have raccoons, squirrels, turtles, rabbits, skunks (thankfully smell them more than see them), coyotes, duck and geese, moles, woodchucks (we almost smooshed one en route to work Wednesday)—and who knows what else. Plus, of course, a wide variety of birds. There are probably beaver at Dunn's Marsh, and I know there are some at the Arboretum, along Wingra Creek. Oh, and muskrats. You do not want to mess with them!

12. Though I did spy a huge old raccoon in one of the cherry trees at work last year, most of those I see are, sadly, along the side of the road. They're hard to see in the dark, and not so good about looking before they cross.

13. Which brings me to the end of this post and a joke from one of my sisters. Why did the chicken cross the road? To prove to the raccoons it could be done.


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