What a fun encounter! I spotted these two just a quarter mile away from the house, but they were all sleeping and I wanted to venture out a little further. I stopped for a moment and took a few p...
What a fun encounter! I spotted these two just a quarter mile away from the house, but they were all sleeping and I wanted to venture out a little further. I stopped for a moment and took a few pics and videos – particularly of the young moose whose nose is buried in the snow. He was out cold and dreaming! I have never seen a moose twitching in a dream just like a cat or dog that's deep in sleep. It was really funny, but I left them alone and went on about my way. Later, when I came back home they were still in the same spot so I took a few more pics. Shortly after, a group of magpies came to visit and the encounter got a lot more interesting. I wasn't sure if the magpies were searching for bugs or if they were harvesting fur for their winter nests. Looking more closely at the pics, I'm pretty sure that fur was their interest – but perhaps it was both. In any case, the mother (who I now affectionately call "Maggie") was very annoyed with the birds. The kiddos didn't care at all, but mom kept trying to bite the magpies or shoo them away somehow. Undeterred, the magpies would sweep in and perch on the backs of the moose. Eventually, mother had enough and she stood up and tried to chase the birds off a bit. The calves stood up as well and they all began to graze, even as the birds continued to try and pluck more fur from the moose. In an interesting twist, the kiddos walked off one direction but mother took an interest in me. She slowly began working my direction as I stayed put taking photos. At her nearest, she was about 10 feet away and I was curious if she was using me as a strategic shield – the magpies weren't so bold when I was also so close. I wondered just how close Maggie would come to me when a loud truck approached and scared her away. I saw this group a few more times in the coming days, but this was the closest encounter with them so far. Fun times! Addt'l pics and video coming soon.
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