Rare animals in your yard?

[Trixie]

I had a chipmunk outside my apartment for a little bit. In another place, the cat was sitting in the open window and started growling. I peeked outside and saw a fat raccoon waddling off towards my workplace. Yeah, I lived in a place that I could see my store.

I've seen bunnies, a hummingbird where I just happened to be looking outside. And a very long time ago, we had a small beige dog until one night when he was outside in the yard where there was suddenly two. Except one was a possum. Poor thing got scared and well, played possum.

[dalesys]

Moose, mule deer, wild? turkey, hummingbirds, tree & ground squirrels, raccoon, *big* salamander, fox, skunk, teens...

[Monterey Jack]

I have a warren of rabbits living right next to my apartment complex...in the spring and summer I see them out and about all the time, noshing on the lawn. Cute l'il critters, fairly tame (they'll let you walk up to a few feet away from them if you move slowly enough). Since my apartment won't allow pets, it's the next best thing.

Also plenty of squirrels and chipmunks, usually nosing around the dumpsters looking for something good to eat. Caught a squirrel once sitting on the edge of the dumpster, holding a pizza crust and eating it like a slice of watermelon.

[MoonCat]

A pair of blue tits...


...well it was winter and she hadn't got a nice warm sweater on ��

This is what I come here for, the high-class conversation.

[Mental_Mouse]

A pair of blue tits...

...well it was winter and she hadn't got a nice warm sweater on ��

A year or few ago, there was an actual scientific journal article titled "Bright Blue Tits Make Better Mothers", (and IIRC the Scientific American report kept the title!). Naturally, it was about bird color as a proxy for reproductive fitness.

And speaking of birds reminds me of another couple of sightings which are actually rare critters:

1) When I was visiting my Mom's house (same town as me), a Pileated Woodpecker stopped by and briefly roosted right outside her kitchen window. Flashy dude!

2) On the creek outside my development, I once saw a young blue heron hanging out. After a couple of minutes it took wing and flew off.... brrrr! Watching those things, you know that yes, birds really are the last of the dinosaurs.

[DeltaSierra]

I live in New England, the beasties in my back yard include but are not limited to:
Birds of all sizes shapes and colors
Turtles
Wild Turkeys
Bats (LOVE them - they are the Hoovers of the mosquito eating variety, we put bat houses up to attract them)
Beavers
Possums
Deer
Rabbits
Voles
Moles
Bears
Foxes
Moose
Raccoons
Chipmunks
Squirrels
Shrews
Porcupines
and last but not least, Fisher-Cats, which are more commonly called Land Piranha's

The reason for such variety is our back yard abuts State conservation territory, which I absolutely love.

[Lace Neil Singer]

There's about a dozen slowworms living in my garden. At first I thought they were snakes, but when I picked one up, it blinked as it lay lazily in my hand. They're not too bad in the summer as the heat seems to make them extremely mild mannered. However, in the autumn when it cools down a bit, I always try and give them a wide birth, but once or twice they've found their way somehow into the porch. Then I pick them up by the neck and toss them back into the garden. XD

[Kittish]

There's about a dozen slowworms living in my garden. At first I thought they were snakes, but when I picked one up, it blinked as it lay lazily in my hand. They're not too bad in the summer as the heat seems to make them extremely mild mannered. However, in the autumn when it cools down a bit, I always try and give them a wide birth, but once or twice they've found their way somehow into the porch. Then I pick them up by the neck and toss them back into the garden. XD

I'd never even heard of such a beastie til now. Neat creatures!

[Mental_Mouse]

There's about a dozen slowworms living in my garden. At first I thought they were snakes, but when I picked one up, it blinked as it lay lazily in my hand. They're not too bad in the summer as the heat seems to make them extremely mild mannered. However, in the autumn when it cools down a bit, I always try and give them a wide birth, but once or twice they've found their way somehow into the porch. Then I pick them up by the neck and toss them back into the garden. XD

I looked them up and they seem pretty cool -- as you probably know, they don't bite humans, but eat various pest insects. If you hadn't known, they're a protected species in the UK.

[FormerCallingCardRep]

Where I am at now in Tennessee I have seen deer, a red fox, rabbits, chipmunks, a ground hog and a black bear. Back home in WV I have seen deer, squirrels, chipmunks, beavers and ground hogs

[Blue Ginger]

At my place in the city, I get the usual suspects with pigeons, seagulls and small birds, but no cool animals.

But my parent's place, down the coast, gets much cooler animals. They have 2 small dogs, so most animals are in the front yard.

We have seen possums, magpies, galahs, rosellas, cockatoos, skinks (general nickname for various small lizards), blue tongue lizards, wading birds from the nearby creeks and wetlands, seagulls and the occasional bat. We also had the displeasure of dealing with redback spiders when we renovated. (Autocorrect just made me giggle because it changed 'redback' to 'redneck' both times I typed it. )

So far no koalas or kangaroos in the yard, but that is because they don't live close enough to the edge of town. And, thank dog, no snakes in the yard yet either.

Where we used to live in the suburbs of my city, we had possums in the roof a few times and usual skinks and spiders in the yard.

[EricKei]

Where I am now, we're known for possums (and the occasional unfortunate armadillo). Lots of deer in the area, too, even among residential subdivisions. One time, I was leaving such an area, when I spotted a trio of young ones crossing in front of me. The last one just kinda stopped and stared at me (this was daytime), so I flashed by high-beams at him and he went on his merry way

Back in NOLA: We're a flyover destination, apparently. We got nutria from time to time (picture muscled-up beavers with long, bright orange teeth), and the most exotic critter I ever saw in person was a peregrine falcon that was resting in a tree during a (presumed) migration.

Up at a relative's former place in the foothills of the Blue Ridge, they're known for white squirrels -- note -- NOT albinos, just (mostly) pure white fur.