New Animal Friends: BIG update!

My new home has been a challenge because of the downsizing and contractor work being pushed back due to weather and supply issues = my actual new living space still isn't complete... But! One consolation about my move is that my new locale is much more rural and the wildlife appear to enjoy the immediate surrounding property. I often don't get to see them directly, but its a comfort to see traces anyhow.

This is a large mule deer print in the dust of the road from a few weeks ago
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And another from a doe and her 2 nearly grown fawns I keep seeing around (print is by the doe, the fawn prints were muddled by wind and melting)
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A lovely bobcat print!
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cottontail trackway right next to my building
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Then these are either quail or robin prints. I suspect quail as there has been a large family with growing teenagers about and there a fair few trails to follow
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Then some bonus images!
Back in October on my last trip to collect my things, I got a further off glimpse of my new donkey jack friend. I have dubbed him Daniel.
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He was in the exact same area as before.
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An isopod from a quick coast trip circa the same time.
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I have started to see the shy mulies about, but they are difficult to snap photos of before they spook. This is the biggest buck I have seen in my area (there is a smaller 2 point around), but not the biggest I have seen around so far. This buck shortly after joined up with the doe and 2 fawns. I was driving home, mom had crossed the road, 1 fawn was in the middle and smartly turned back down the road bank to join its sibling and the buck was there, seemingly to watch over them. I passed them so as not to over stress them, and saw them all cross safely shortly after.
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Lastly for animals, this is a hereford bull I enjoy seeing on my drive in to town. He is quite massive and muscled but also seems to have a kind looking face. He reminds me of one my grandfather had, Sampson. That bull was almost like a 2,500 lbs puppy!
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Amd the finale:
A sunset from my beach trip. I hope for many more!
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A sunset from my typical view
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And I thought I would share some of my snow with everyone.
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And this was from the middle of the storm.
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You are someone who enjoys each detail and everything assumes mportante to you, I really enjoy it and it shows how special you are. From the prints to the storms and sunsets, everything is so beautiful and probably many people would prefer to ignore it to pay atention to the mobile phone or so.
Thanks for sharing, I loooove that bull!

that's so nice that you got to see Daniel again! I remember the first time you saw him
would he appreciate a carrot left lying for him??

What a stunningly beautiful remote place you live in - that's heaven to me! nature all around.

It's great to see all the pics you took of the prints. The hare one is super - it was in it's loping gait.
I am a rabbit and hare lover and can see it moving in my mind's eye into those impressions.

That's a beautiful mule deer buck! I follow FuzzyFawnWildlife on ig and she rescues, rehabilitates and releases these deer all year round. It's been amazing to see them up close on her account. She keeps them completely away from humans so that they remain totally wild and they are released into a safe area.
I hope you see him again many times!

thanks for sharing a bit of your amazing world Paige!

Wonderful photos,especially the Mule deer and the Hereford bull!

Sooo beautiful!!

Your new home looks heavenly, rural with all the wildlife, and such lovely scenery. And what a bonus to be closer to the coast. In The Lord of the Rings, Legolas is given a prophecy about his fate should he see the shore. True words those. I hope nature can bring peace to you.

Thank you everyone! I am really enjoying my new home. I have never been much in to sticking my face in my phone, unless it gives me access to wildlife (documentaries, articles, this forum...). I don't have any social media. Anywho, I do have a folder in my phone gallery of flowers and natural landscapes I find beautiful (clouds, sunsets or sunrises, geological formations). There's an awful lot of gorgeous nature out in the world if people just look up or drive 20 minutes away from the nearest city.

I love my new bull friend too. :) A magnificent beast he is! Daniel the donkey too! I still can't believe the 2 drives through there I got the pleasure of seeing him. Maybe I will leave him some treats next time.

Annette, we have jackrabbits and cottontails about (I have seen both in the summer). I haven't seen the jackrabbits for a while, but the cottontails have been spotted a few times. Is there any way to tell the difference in their prints? These seemed to have a shorter stride, which I took to be more indicative of cottontails than the giant jack rabbits, but the latter could have shorter stride if not in a hurry...

Kelly, thank you for your comment. I couldn't recall Legolas' prophecy and so I had to google it... and how true it is! I hope that my new quieter home will bring a peaceful future as well.

You are living in a beautiful place Paige, I hope we will see more wildlife pics in the future

A few updates here. I started a new job at the hospital across town and up the hillside. I was out enjoying my lunch in my car when this very bold scrub jay perched on my car mirror and hung out with me for several minutes before flying off.
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This was a cute and friendly little puffer at the local pet store. I have never seen one in person.
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And this is a terrible photo given the light, but a mule doe and her 2 playful fawns were grazing right in front of my car at work the other night when I got off. I approached quietly so as not to scare them too badly, and they peacefully moved off elsewhere for the night.
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I renamed the topic so it better reflects my updates on what animals I come across.

Also, around 6 AM on my early days for work, there is a hare that sits at the bottom of the driveway and follows the road a little before escaping into the brush. Because of the poor light and his wise skittish nature I have yet to get a good picture of him. But someday...

Hard to go to work so early in the morning but you had a little reward! :)

Your lunch friend was very beautiful and familiar!

Great local wildlife and lovely pics!

How wonderful to come so close to all these animal friends! Especially to have that scrub jay on your wing mirror, that must have been breath-taking!

While some people at this time of the morning goes completely grumpy to work, you enjoy the little things of life as I said before and it is very generous from you that you take your time to share your joy with your forum friends. Finally a creature who knows the real use of a car mirror.

Saarlooswolfhound wrote:

Annette, we have jackrabbits and cottontails about (I have seen both in the summer). I haven't seen the jackrabbits for a while, but the cottontails have been spotted a few times.

Is there any way to tell the difference in their prints?
These seemed to have a shorter stride, which I took to be more indicative of cottontails than the giant jack rabbits, but the latter could have shorter stride if not in a hurry...

yes you are right about the shorter stride - and rabbits being smaller than hares will have smaller foot print impressions too -
their back feet are probably the size of your index finger and their front paw prints will be around the size of your thumbnail to the first joint (under 3cm)

(I have a rescue rabbit free roam house bunny and spent my whole life with rescue buns )

hares will have much bigger print impressions

hares can easily be the size of small dogs, and most hares when they 'lope' along keep a straight back - they appear to 'float' above the ground when moving in this gait

compared to rabbit prints in the snow, there will be a longer length for one full gait (4 paw prints) for hares

You are very blessed to have a hare near you!
Hares are normally very private and discreet. I am sure that with your very respectful personality this hare will soon come to be your new friend.

Just a small habit I have when I am out spending time in the wild - if I see an animal or bird, and they may or may not have noticed me. Then to let them know I am here, and before I make a move, I always make a small noise - like a 'kiss', just low and quiet and a couple of kiss kiss sounds. That way I am alerting them to my presence, and when I have their attention then I slowly move off.
That way I don't startle them, and this level of respect instantly creates a bond between us. They see that I am holding them in regard.
Infact I do this with all animals at all times. (the humans never notice )

I do this every day with the wild birds that I feed, and they all know my calls. I even have a 'warning' call for them, should I see any danger approaching (another human )

Thank you everyone! And thank you Sunny for the info! 

I realized last week that my scrub jay friend is one half of a mated pair. :)
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Here they are perched on either side of the same tree, possibly with their old nest soon to be filled with new life.
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Then this morning there was a mule deer traffic jam!
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I think it was 2 does, a fawn, and a pair of twin fawns.
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I slowly herded them across the road safely.
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very very wonderful

Superb!!wonderful

nice to see the jays are a couple, and the nest! and those deer are magnificent! glad you looked after them:)

The new area I live in is apparently a location of hundreds of bird migrations during the year. This winter there were tons of different species of waterfowl I have been aching to go photograph but haven't had the time to. I finally got to it, on one of the coldest days of this winter so far, and although my photos aren't perfectly clear from my oooold camera you can make out some of the species anyhow. I will need to remember to grab my longer lens for next time. It was really fun to photograph them because even being about 100 yards away they KNEW I was there and were careful to keep their floating distance. And alas, several of the species I saw several weeks ago are now gone. Probably migrated once again and I won't see them until next year.
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And then, a ways from my house there is  small property whom owns 2 Chinese geese (exciting for me as I have never seen them in person!). There is a handsome pair of domestic mallards too (one common colored drake and one with splashes of white). Anyway, the geese are funny because a Canada goose, presumably wild, follows them around and didn't migrate this year. Not sure if its a case of wrong paternal identity or just a wild goose who has discovered the benefits of living an urban life. This house is on a rather busy rural corner so again... sorry for the poor quality of photos from my phone.
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And another sighting has been had of the doe and her 2 fawns that live near my place of work.
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So many friends, I just hope that doe is not looking for a job, she has kids to look after.
Some Canada geese are resident and they do not migrate. It happens in places where there are enough sources of food. The same happened in my country with white storks. They were common a long time ago but 30 years ago they almost desapeared from my country and the few existing pairs always migrated. Now they are abundant again and as the places where they use to eat are much cleaner and full of food source, we have now many resident couples. Strangely, the return of the white storks give me a feeling that the world is regenerating.

Wonderful photos, and some great wildfowl!

Very belated thank you guys! I did read the comments at posting back then, but hadn't responded.

In town this house likes to feed deer right in front of the picture" window as my Mom calls it. I LOVE Mulies for whatever reason so sometimes I drive by to briefly check them out. I drive slowly so as not to spook, but fast enough not to bother and disturb theme either. A good chance for a closeup!
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