Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Nature can be brutal...

But nature is also amazing! Something must die so that another may live...
What's the chances of ever seeing a weasel in the night, having killed something way larger than he is and dragging it possibly a good distance so it can feed?! These 4 pictures aren't great, but it was 9 p.m. at night out behind the house and I had only a flashlight to watch this and take pictures. The weasel is brown in summer and changes to white in winter..like wild rabbits do. The grouse feeds normally on the ground, nests in the trees at night, and I have to assume the wily weasel surprised it. Weasels are voracious killers, brave beyond belief.I was taking the dogs out when I heard something odd behind the house and went to inspect. When I got too close, he would leave his kill and run large circles around me. He certainly was not afraid of me, and was warning me not to get too close. He's actually very cute and very fast!I backed off and he went back to the grouse, trying to drag it off the pathway. Where he was going, I don't know. He ended up eating and this morning much of it was still there. I might go out tonight to see if he has come back. If not, something else will come along and finish it off. It's just Mother Nature working her wonders.