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Porcupine ‘hood
Posted by on February 9, 2010
I went walkabout on the weekend in a woodlot near my property. We have been getting SO MUCH SUNSHINE the past week or so, it’s getting me all antsy and stroll-y (even if it’s still rotten cold). This woodlot is very lightly managed and has some old skidoo trails which make for very pleasant strolling in an otherwise densely forested area. In the midst of a (mostly) cedar and white pine stand, on the west side of the skidoo trail, I came across what appeared to be the home turf of a porcupine. I present the following evidence (click for full size image):
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- Clipped white pine branches littering the ground at the base of the tree.
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- A closeup of a clipped branch-note the tips have been chewed off.
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- Many clipped branches suspended from others – this guy was hungry!
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- A large patch of bark chewed off. The other side of the tree was untouched, but this will attract pests when the warmer weather arrives.
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- Fresh claw marks on the trunk.
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- A single clawed paw print at the base of the tree.
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- Difficult to see, but there were several of these paths; it looked like someone swept a broom over the snow. I think this was its dragging tail.
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- A small tangle of fur on one of the tail-swept paths. (Yes, there IS fur under those quills!)
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- A hard-packed path leading under…a bus? This seems to be the critter’s home base.
The animal had fed extensively on three white pine trees spaced about 5 meters apart; I found smatterings of damage on other trees, but these three were apparently the filet mignon of pines.
How and when that school bus was driven into these dense woods is beyond my comprehension; but there it is. The porcupine seems to think the bus is a pretty fantastic place to hang out. I will be bringing a flashlight next time so I can have a better lookie-loo under the old wreck to see if anyone is home.
Moose… beaver… you’ve got it all!
We’ve supposedly got bobcat, but I’ve never seen one. I did see a black bear about 20 years ago.
We do have more beetles than you 🙂
Ha. I got all excited about a “feline” track I found in the woods last week. We supposedly have bobcat in our range too, so I came home all: “OMG BOBCAT!!!1!!!”
Then I saw my own housecat’s tracks in my yard, and gave my forehead a slap (duh). Clearly too small to be bobcat. Oh well, you can’t stop a geek from dreaming!
I experience great jealousy on a daily basis over your beetle-ey-ness down there.
I’ve decided to go on a slightly more aggressive hunt today…it’s a TEENY bit warmer ( -3) and sunny…I’m going to go look for logs and things to overturn/muck with (but I’m probably pushing my luck, the ground’s still very much frozen). I’m still going to try, though.