The continuing saga of Weston and Wellesley, MA wildlife sightings by a local Realtor

Did you read my original blog posted September 26, introducing the Suburban Safari concept and why I am writing these accounts?  If not, click here for Volume 1.

One day, I headed down my path to the Weston Reservoir trails and found a baby opossum, and guess what?  It was playing “possum”.  I left thinking the little white critter may actually be dead or injured, and was horrified that I might be compelled to end its suffering if it turned out to be the latter. I dawdled as long as I could, grabbed a shovel and returned to the spot.  Much to my relief, the opossum was gone!  I realized that the mother was probably nearby watching me when I first came upon her baby and I was thankful I didn’t do something stupid that would interfere with her getting the baby to safety.

On my walks, I have stumbled upon a turtle the size of a Land Rover tire, I have startled an owl dining on its prey, and spied a fisher cat slinking down a hillside in the distance.   From my house and yard, I have heard the shrill of a rabbit being killed by a fox or a coyote, and the horrible sounds of battle between an owl and its killer, which is most likely to have been a fisher cat.  My dogs have flushed foxes, one of which ran across my feet while escaping.  On a recent Saturday early morning, I failed to check the yard before I opened the back door to let the dogs out.  A rabbit munching in my herb garden was trapped as the two dogs circled wildly outside the garden fence.  Both dogs are genetically prey driven and no amount of screaming and trying to grab them could bring both under control simultaneously.  When I subdued one, the other jumped into the garden and instantly killed the rabbit.  I decided that the there must be a predator or scavenger nearby that desperately needed a meal, so I donned rubber gloves to protect my human scent from ruining my offering and walked down the path and far into the woods.  I found a small clearing where I placed the rabbit. When I returned a day later, all that was left of the rabbit was the white tip of its tail.   

I have yet to see a bobcat, although clients of mine who live in a house I found for them in Marlborough, MA claim that one appeared suddenly in their backyard, dove into a bush and killed baby birds nesting within.   Having spotted the equally shy and rare fisher cat, I may yet see a bobcat.  I say that with mixed emotion because a sighting would most likely mean, the animal is so pressured to find food, it would risk close proximity to humans. 

I have many more tales of encounters and will continue to blog on.  Let me know if you have questions or want to share your own experiences.

Ann Burford, Accredited Buyer Representative, Pinnacle Realtor

Cell: 781.910.1419

Office: 781.237.5000

aburford@PinnacleHouses.com

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