A few less than normal this year. We normally get a few of nest a year in our back yard. This year only one and the wife's dog ate those babies. The dog is a beagle, basset, wiener dog mix. Wild life is not safe in our yard.
The fox population has gone down around here so the rabbit/squirrel population has gone up.
Rabbits - and every other animal on the bottom of the food chain - experience a population cycle.
Lots of rabbits - the predators move in and clean them out. Once the rabbits are thinned out, the predators go hunt somewhere else.
Once the predator population is down, the rabbits repopulate.
I had feral cats here for a year or so, never saw a rabbit or squirrel. Several of the feral cats (that breed like....well...rabbits) died from copper-plated lead poisoning. The rabbits and squirrels came back.
The cats, not so much.
Lots of rabbits - the predators move in and clean them out. Once the rabbits are thinned out, the predators go hunt somewhere else.
Once the predator population is down, the rabbits repopulate.
I had feral cats here for a year or so, never saw a rabbit or squirrel. Several of the feral cats (that breed like....well...rabbits) died from copper-plated lead poisoning. The rabbits and squirrels came back.
The cats, not so much.
Squirrels is the worstNot so much around here this year, ours was two years ago followed by a bumper crop of squirrels last year. Still finding things those little btards chewed up on the outside of the house.
We were out driving around last night and I probably 30 deer just out milling around. A couple here, one over there, some more there.
I have had boom of cottontails this year also. On the mornings I don't leave before daylight, which is few, there seems to be a half dozen running around. The other evening got home about 6pm there was one in the yard and seen two enjoying the shade under my farm truck. I think I helped them out last year creating brush piles after taking out some dying trees. Was gonna burn them but fire danger was to high so I just left them for now.
I have seen more rabbits than I ever have at our place. Walking in the dark I can easily see 5-10 in 100 yards. I have wondered what is going on, but glad to see them.
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