New Years Hares
January 1st, 2013
I had a wonderful New Year's morning watching a pair of Snowshoe Hares at Hilda Road. Hares are not rare in Ottawa, but they are often hard to see--they camouflage so well, and they're quite shy! This pair were coaxed out of their usual antisocial lifestyle by the prospect of easy food at a platform bird feeder.
Snowshoe Hares are brown for much of the year and easily mistaken for rabbits, but in winter, they morph into pure snowy white to better blend in with the landscape.
Red Squirrel behind. I wish I'd captured the moment when this cheeky squirrel chased the hare, many times his size, away from the feeder.
Rabbits patronize the Hilda Rd. feeders occasionally too. They're easily told apart in winter, since they don't change coats as hares do.
January 1st, 2013
I had a wonderful New Year's morning watching a pair of Snowshoe Hares at Hilda Road. Hares are not rare in Ottawa, but they are often hard to see--they camouflage so well, and they're quite shy! This pair were coaxed out of their usual antisocial lifestyle by the prospect of easy food at a platform bird feeder.
Snowshoe Hares are brown for much of the year and easily mistaken for rabbits, but in winter, they morph into pure snowy white to better blend in with the landscape.
Red Squirrel behind. I wish I'd captured the moment when this cheeky squirrel chased the hare, many times his size, away from the feeder.
Rabbits patronize the Hilda Rd. feeders occasionally too. They're easily told apart in winter, since they don't change coats as hares do.
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Mustang Sallie
January 1st, 2013 at 8:56 pm
Great pictures, especially the one with the hare and the squirrel!
Mike
January 2nd, 2013 at 4:42 pm
Very cute! These pics catch that wintry light well, too.
Gillian
January 5th, 2013 at 2:07 pm
Nice to see the cottontails with the Snowshoe Hare! I stopped by the feeders around lunch time on January 1st to look for the Hoary Redpoll that was there on Monday. There were 4 cars lined up along the road and a couple of photographers next to the feeder so I even couldn't pull up and to watch the birds (unless I wanted to get out of the car, which I didn't). I'm guessing by the light in your photos that you were there much earlier.
Suzanne
January 5th, 2013 at 4:32 pm
Yes, this was not long after the sun came up. I think it's pretty much impossible to see hares come to the feeders when people are standing right next to them :-( I sometimes look at that crowd and wonder if they realize how much they're missing. Stay in your car for awhile and you could see deer, hares, rabbits, weasels...almost anything. Of course I'm preaching to the choir.
Gillian
January 6th, 2013 at 6:54 pm
Absolutely. By the way, I hear there were three Great Grey Owls today in the location I told you about...and also that the photographers have discovered them, standing close enough to stress them out according to one observer. :( I didn't go today because of the snow. Hopefully they will still be there on the weekend, unless I can manage to take an afternoon off.