Nature Watch, Your Flora and Fauna Photos and Stories

I prefer the mallow found in the marsh...



😉

If you are like myself and enjoy gardening but your knowledge of plants is limited you may like this app ? Free version but if you like you can upgrade for a cost.

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/picturethis-plant-identifier/id1252497129



Edited to add that this is also available on Google Play - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=cn.danatech.xingseus&hl=en_GB&gl=US

So, more fall clean-up today. Up on the roof cleaning the leaves out of the many valleys, and then cleaning out the eaves (we have leaf guards but still debris will accumulate on top of the leaf guard).

So I sometimes take a snap from the roof - this one was back in 2018:



Our back yard, and the farmer's field beyond that, and it was the same up until this year. These were from today...







Large subdivision going in behind us, will be 335 homes when done. Smaller lots than ours, so we have two new homes that will back onto our property (the two that are just poured foundations right now), but the neighbours who have wedged shaped corner lots will have in some cases 8 new houses backing onto their property. In the 25 years we have been here, this has been good productive farmland. Here in my province of Ontario, we lose on average 175 acres of farmland each day to developments like this - prime farmland that is some of the best in the country.

Anyway, once that job was done, we had to deal with just one of the impacts this new development has brought, so inside to the bedroom where we took apart the gas fireplace:





Masked up and gloves on, because we were fishing these out of that fireplace...dead field mice:






The construction in the field has driven them all out looking for new places to winter, and our house is apparently a nice spot. Our main wood burning fireplace backs onto this gas fireplace, and when we had a few fires recently, we noticed a smell...some mice (we found 5 in total) had not fared well with the heat, but at least we will sleep better without them scurrying around making noise all night. Finishing the cleaning:





Of course Remi was there for moral support through it all...

New Year’s Eve winter Rose. It’s been a very wet and mild Xmas break in the UK.
.

An unusually large snowfall for Vancouver this week. Went for a walk and enjoyed seeing the snow on the log booms



And I never realized what a straight line coyotes walk in. Just one foot right in front of the other...


View attachment 1343968

And on a hike in the mountains two days ago we came across a hockey rink some folks had set up. There’s nothing more charming than this

New thrift store find EOS 50D, 70-300 IS USM, 28-135 IS, and a 50MM USM for $59. Taken with 50D and 70-300.

Deep in thought...

My wife and I made a 5ft tall snow bear today! This ferocious beast is prowling under a grove of apple trees that are descended from Isaac Newton’s apple trees - so that’s kinda interesting

Still very mild December weather in the UK. Spring will be sprung a bit too early unless we get a cold snap.
.

A couple from todays walk. There was some fauna but I need to break the good camera out and be less lazy.
.

Beautiful, I am fortunate to have a magnolia and it is looking as if it may bloom early this year, fingers crossed.
Unfortunately I can't get these lyrics out of my memory https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/louisarmstrong/mame.html 🤦

Some of these may be posted elsewhere here, but most appropriate for this thread.

Rabbit runway in the back yard...

Hacked feed from the Perseverance rover ....
.

A few.

Shot this photo out my shop window a few days ago...