Just because the regulation hunting seasons for deer, bear, turkey, etc, are months away... It doesn't mean Pennsylvania sportsmen can't track down wild game during the Summer. Now, don't get any ideas here... When I talk about "hunting" this time of year, I'm shooting the wildlife through the crosshairs of my digital camera!
Below are some of the recent shots I've captured on my trail cam... and some nice shots taken by my wife, when we recently started welcoming a new visitor to our backyard.
Enjoy.
The first shot is the most exciting for me... A deer passing within a few feet of the tree on which my motion-sensor camera is mounted in the woods near my house.
These next few shots are the proof that I was looking for... That my new visitor is a young buck who is spending plenty of time investigating his new territory. If you saw the time stamp on the picture above, you'll notice the buck was hanging out just before 4:30 in the afternoon.
The next pictures were taken by my wife at approximatley 8:00pm the same night, as the deer was walking along the wooded tree line in our backyard:
(In the above picture, take notice to the lower right corner, where a bunny is laying low in the high grass.)
But an even closer look (below) reveals that this could be either a four-pointer, or a small six pointer... It can be tough to tell when the antlers are in velvet, but it looks to me like he might be working on some small brow tines...
Okay... So, I'll be keeping tabs on this guy's progress for the next few months. If nothing else, he'll probably be on the losing end of a few turf battles, and I'll be seeing some bigger buck by the time the early archery season rolls around in the Fall.
Next, I've got a few more trail camera shots featuring a fox that I've been seeing for about two years now...
If you remember June 18th, it was one of the recent rainy nights we've had across Central Pennsylvania... You'll notice this fox's bushy tail isn't so bushy when its soaked.
This next picture, two days later, shows that this guy is frequent visitor to this downed log, which I suspect he's using for a hunting perch.
And just to prove that not all of my "wild encounters" are always as exciting... Ladies and gentlemen... a squirrel butt.
Until next time,
-- Mike
