Snappers & Snakes & Bears, Oh My!

OK, I haven’t actually seen any bears, but apparently one black bear was seen in West Warwick and another in North Attleboro recently, so I guess it’s just a matter of time. How are these bears, presumably young males looking for new territory, getting across all the major interstates in SE Massachusetts without getting killed? All the videos of bears on the sundeck, in the swimming pool etc.  are funny until they aren’t. Yes, please take down any bird feeders in the spring and don’t leave any pet food outside. You can find lots more advice online about dealing with bears.

The trouble with observing our backyard animal visitors is that you can get too invested in the story. You get attached to the critters and when they disappear, you miss them and wonder what happened. Where did the bunnies that were hopping around the yard go? Why does mother duck seem to have one fewer duckling every time we see her? Haven’t seen the woodchucks lately. Oh, there they are. Skunks, raccoons, coyotes – the woods are full of predators.

It’s easy for me to talk about animals in the yard; we don’t have a garden except for a half-dozen big pots of herbs that remain untouched except for that one bug that seems to like basil. Dedicated gardeners undoubtedly feel different about all the wildlife.

I haven’t seen many deer lately. The most we’ve seen in one spot was in Colt State Park last winter after that awful snow. It was like a drive-through safari park with the deer practically coming up to your car. Then I saw that people had left the animals cracked corn and other edibles, which is a big no-no.

After the snapper laid her eggs (apparently eaten by a skunk soon after) in our yard, two more painted turtles did the same in different spots with the same result. Female turtles have a wonderfully casual attitude toward motherhood. Lay a whole clutch of eggs in what seems like a good spot and then amble away, hopefully away from the road.

 I hate to see all the roadkill this time of year. For all my complaining about snakes I did feel bad when I saw a dead eastern milk snake (the same one I’d been seeing?) with its head crushed, at the side of the road. Though some of this critter carnage is unavoidable, I do wish people would stop driving likes bats out of hell, but it’s only gotten worse, which is a topic for another time.

Worth Reading
On another subject entirely, The Fourth of July is the time of year we think of America and its extraordinary 250 years since 1776. Surely one of the most notable events of the young county was the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804-1806. Although this expedition has been covered extensively for the past 200 years, there is new book out that is worth reading: “This Vast Enterprise: A New History of Lewis & Clark” by Craig Fehrman (available from the library).

Since “Undaunted Courage” by Stephen Ambrose was published and made into an excellent PBS series by Ken Burns a few years ago, you might think that no more can be said about this important part of American history.  

This new book looks at this bold expedition from the viewpoint of ten different people on the expedition, giving new perspectives to the story. I was especially interested to read about Sacajawea, who I have always admired. This teenage Shoshone girl who had been sold into “marriage” to a tough French trapper, crossed the greater part of this vast continent, by boat and by foot, carrying her baby Pahmpi, who was growing heavier every day. Not only was she a good mother, she played an absolutely vital role in making their journey a success.

Another troubling part of the story (aside from Lewis’ eventual decline into depression, alcohol and suicide) was how Clark treated his enslaved man York, who had contributed so much to the journey. No, he would not be freed after all he contributed to the expedition. York was whipped for insubordination and never saw freedom. Even by the standards of 200 years ago, this is a shameful part in the story of our country’s most famous explorers.