Critter Cam Action Update!

Skunk versus Fox!! - Meadow Vista, California

Buck-deer on his 15 minute break! - Meadow Vista, CA

Cute Fawn Babies!!! - Meadow Vista, CA

Deer Chasing Coyote!!! - Meadow Vista, California.

More Critter Cam Photos

Trophy Cam Critter Update

Our Meadow Vista night-vision robotic motion sensor camera has been pretty busy lately. These pictures were automatically taken in September and October 2010. There are definitely advantages (and disadvantages) to knowing what the local fauna are doing late at night and early in the morning when you're not looking.

Some of the forest creatures are pretending to be super cute!!





But some night creatures are not quite-so-cute (or they forget that they're on camera):








See our full gallery of trophy-cam photos at our popular Rural Mysteries Flickr Page.

Inovative Deer Wrangling Techniques

This really happened, and it happened by accident. Really.

Here's the series of events, as best as we can piece them together, that led to what you're seeing in these mysterious pictures:

1. A semi-anonymous Meadow Vista resident disconnected one end of a dog-run and coiled the cable next to a tree in a flower garden in his side yard.
2. A few years later, a hungry and distracted buck decided to eat some plants from the flower bed.
3. When the full and satisfied deer started to leave for another neighbors garden, he notices a tugging on his antlers.
4. Soon, the human heard the struggling and noticed that one end of his dog-run was still attached to the tree, but the other end of the cable was tangled in the rack of a humongous buck's antlers!
   
5. The human called his neighbor and said, "I think we're going to need a bigger boat... load of courage and ingenuity to untangle this buck."

Stay tuned for part six of this story...

Rare Chinese Golden Pheasant Sighted in Meadow Vista

Another amazing creature recently migrated to the North Fork Polygon. On November 17, 2008 a rare Chinese Golden Pheasant was sighted in Meadow Vista, California. The gallinaceous bird has since been sighted in two other locations, both far away from it's native mountain forests of western China.

Photos by Richard, Natbarn.com

Here's a summary of Chinese Golden Pheasant (CGP) sightings gathered through the Rural Mysteries Emergency Broadcast System:

November 17th: Rippy Hill Area, Meadow Vista

"2008.11.17 - The majestic bird almost seemed intelligent as it searched for a roosting tree at sunset. Looks like a cruel mutated cross between a chicken and a parrot."

November 18th and 19th: Coyote Mountain Area, Weimar

"Mysterious Golden Pheasant also sighted on 11/18/08 on Arnold ranch, Placer Hills Rd. Evidence attached. Creature was still around the following day but has not been seen since."

November 30th: Placer Hills Road near Crother Road

"This bird was seen today (November 30)! I thought for sure it would have become 'Fox Food' by now! Seen near Placer Hills Road near your home. I guess it's not straying too far..."

Photos by Richard, Natbarn.com