General Cycling Discussion - Wildlife??

Anyone see any interesting wildlife on their rides??

So far, in the last couple of months, numerous deer (saw eight tonight), coyote, several foxes, smell of a skunk, all sorts of rabbits and squirrels, a whole "flock" of circling raptors (I counted 12 circling at one time), many, many birds, horses, cows (including one dead one being devoured by vultures). MIssed a mtn lion by a few minutes.

So, how about you??

Lots of deer and turkeys, a couple of raccoons, several snakes, and the usual gazillion squirrels.
Had an interesting but sad event last week. I was riding at Rock Bridge State Park and saw a guy standing next to the trail looking at something so I stopped. There was a yearling deer hung in a cattle fence by it's hind leg. Very much alive yet. So I climbed the fence and the other guy stayed on that side and we lifted it out and laid it on the ground. It was too exhausted to run. It was scarred up from the fence but nothing seemed broken. Reported it to the local Rangers. When I went back two days later to ride again, it was still there, dead.:( No good deed goes unpunished I guess.

In the last week: Dozens of cows, horses, birds, I saw a hawk grab a mouse just a few feet from my bike, it was awesome. I also saw a skunk spray a kid when he tried to push it away with his fishing poll, luckly, i was up wind for that event! :)

I just 'bout got knocked right off'n my very bike by a dad gummed deer..TWICE dag nabbit!! And then ther was an ole snake, that made the lead rider slam on the ole brakes and just about made near everybody crash.:D And then ther was a turtle I near ranned right over the top of.;)

Mainly kangaroos and wallabies on my weekend rides. I also see a few brush turkeys, which is scary because they know no fear! I actually have seen some deer around here on occasions (only in Numinbah Valley, strangely), and it wouldn't be Queensland without canetoads :cry: .

On my night commutes I see quite a few bats.

Originally posted by Chris L
Mainly kangaroos and wallabies on my weekend rides. I also see a few brush turkeys, which is scary because they know no fear! I actually have seen some deer around here on occasions (only in Numinbah Valley, strangely), and it wouldn't be Queensland without canetoads :cry: .

On my night commutes I see quite a few bats.

Geez ChrisL, you make us American's animals look domestic.

I do get around a bit.

Well, have you run into that strange type of animal they call Steve Irwin?

Originally posted by fubar5
Well, I have you run into that strange type of animal they call Steve Irwin?

Much much worse... How about Warwick Capper :eek:

Well, let's see...too many deer to count, racoons, possums, and was once chased by a big black bull. Pheasants, geese, turkeys, red-tailed hawks, and a flock of circling turkey buzzards. That last one had me worried...I know I am old and slow, but I'm not dead yet! I was worried that they knew something I didn't!!

Seeing wild life is really fun. I still remember the day I was having a particularly good ride, and I crossed a little bridge, and happened to look to the side, and there were two pairs of eyes looking back at me! Two yearling does laying in the deep grass next to a creek! As I silently slid past them, they were as curious about me as I was of them!

Deer, Porcupine (dead), skunks, squirrels, 1 coyote, jackrabbit, prairie dogs, 1 snake, lots of horney toads, bats, ravens, turkey vultures, horses, TONS of bees (one was down in my shirt today for a long time and I didn't know it), um, that's about all I can think of @ the moment.

I recently saw seven bucks "after" one doe and they DIDN'T CARE WHO saw them, why were all of their tongues hanging out?
I've seen herons, buzzards in summer, Bald Eagles, various hawks- ospreys,peregrines, owls, and too many other various birds to mention, marmots, ground squirrels, coyotes, racoons and moose etc.
Rdie with the animals
Pat

Most of the wildlife here is pretty tame. Lots of sheep, goats, cows, horses, deer (domestic), chickens, and the odd peacock.

But we do see many species of waterfowl - swans, geese of many kinds (including Egyptian), quite a few duck species, grebes, coots, herons, cormorants, etc.

But my personal favorite is that quintessential English bird, the hedgehog. Many little Erics running around here, mostly at or after dusk. I just love those little critters. And they help keep the enormous slug population (somewhat) under control.

Cheers...Gary

Originally posted by fubar5
Well, I have you run into that strange type of animal they call Steve Irwin?

All hail Steve Irwin "Hey, whadda we got here little fella???"

What a guy! :thumbup:

Rich

We have a saying in Australia- 'Mad as a cut snake'.
That describes that very wild and stupid animal called Steve Irwin.

Sorry if you don't understand the above :) , I could explain it simply as -Steve is an idiot!!! Well that is the general consensus to most Aussies. Who else would walk up to a quiet sleeping venomous snake, then prod it with a stick until it rears up and then exclaim 'Woo look at him, Geez he's a cranky fella!!' - No bloody wonder Stevie boy!!

Sorry, to answer your question Fubar, nope and I hope I never do.... unless the snake has him pinned to the ground. HaHa.:D

the Australian bushman,....Cor look at that giant croc over there, he must be 20 feet long..now if I can just sneak around to the back of him and jam my thumb in his butt hole, that'll really piss him off ! , shoosh, must be very quite now as not to disturb him... ok I'm now jammin my thumb in his butthole......whoaaa he's gettin very pissed orf now..........

let's see:
northern cardinals
Goldfinches
red-winged blackbirds
pheasants
mockingbirds
canada geese
mallard ducks
slate-grey juncos
house finches
purple martens
an opossum
several woodchucks
chipmunks
squirrels
white-tail deer
redwing hawk
barn owl
coyote
arm-flapping earphone-wearing rollerbladers
all in the last month, while riding.

WOW!!

Lots of animules seen by you posters.

I forgot to mention that during the last couple of months, I have seen NUMEROUS snakes. They sun themselves on the concrete paths. I always try to miss them, but sometimes am not successful. I wonder what it does to a snake to have 250 pounds rolling over its body??

Most not feel too good. But I never see the snake still on the trail after a "hit". I don't know if it kills them eventually or not.

It is quite disconcerting to go around a corner at 20 mph and to see a snake in the trail!!

Fortunately, these have all been harmless snakes.

Not so the rider, however. :(

It depends upon where you get it. If it is over a vital organ, it could be quickly fatal. But it could take considerably longer. In any case, it won't help them any.

Such are the perils of too much exposure to the sun.

Cheers...Gary

Originally posted by sillystorm
We have a saying in Australia- 'Mad as a cut snake'.
That describes that very wild and stupid animal called Steve Irwin.

Sorry if you don't understand the above :) , I could explain it simply as -Steve is an idiot!!!


Well, I don't think anybody in America could charge him guilty of being smart. It just goes to show, you don't have to be smart to make money and be popular.

Crikey!

But his American wife is pretty cute. :) However, she is getting as crazy as him. I guess it rubs off.

Cheers...Gary

Originally posted by fubar5
I just 'bout got knocked right off'n my very bike by a dad gummed deer..TWICE dag nabbit!! And then ther was an ole snake, that made the lead rider slam on the ole brakes and just about made near everybody crash.:D And then ther was a turtle I near ranned right over the top of.;)

Fubar,
Tell your parents I said to get you out of South Carolina IMMEDIATELY!! I detect a definite turn for the worse in your grammar, etc., since you have been posting here. Run. Run NOW! Save yourself! :D

My ride is very urban though I do go through our big City Park and a few miles by the lake. I see squirrels in the park and brown pelicans (our state bird) on the lake. It is good to see so many pelicans. The were considered endangered back in the '70s because DDT caused thin eggshells which decimated their reproduction cycle. I spent many days fishing in the marshes of south Louisiana when I was young and NEVER, EVER saw a brown pelican. Now they are everywhere. It does my ol' pea-pickin' heart good. Damnit, Fubar, now you've got me started!

I thought that, considering how many former governers (guvuhnuhs, in loozyana-speak) were incarcerated, the Jailbird would be the state bird?
:D

squarrel, lizard, the occasional snake.

Originally posted by RainmanP


Fubar,
Tell your parents I said to get you out of South Carolina IMMEDIATELY!! I detect a definite turn for the worse in your grammar, etc., since you have been posting here. Run. Run NOW! Save yourself! :D

My ride is very urban though I do go through our big City Park and a few miles by the lake. I see squirrels in the park and brown pelicans (our state bird) on the lake. It is good to see so many pelicans. The were considered endangered back in the '70s because DDT caused thin eggshells which decimated their reproduction cycle. I spent many days fishing in the marshes of south Louisiana when I was young and NEVER, EVER saw a brown pelican. Now they are everywhere. It does my ol' pea-pickin' heart good. Damnit, Fubar, now you've got me started!

Isn't it groovy?:D

Where I ride most often they are cutting down lots of trees because of some tree infestation. Anyway, all the animals are being displaced and have no where to go :(

I was crusing down the trail, came around a corner and ended up JAMMING on my brakes to avoid this whole deer family. It was neat. They stood there and looked at me for a minute and then when my husband came around the same corner, I yelled to him and they took off.

We see lots of wild turkeys too - big ones!

Originally posted by Buddy Hayden
the Australian bushman,....Cor look at that giant croc over there, he must be 20 feet long..now if I can just sneak around to the back of him and jam my thumb in his butt hole, that'll really piss him off ! , shoosh, must be very quite now as not to disturb him... ok I'm now jammin my thumb in his butthole......whoaaa he's gettin very pissed orf now..........

How real does anyone actually think that Steve Irwin stuff is? To be honest I'm getting as cynical of that as I am about the rest of the so-called 'reality' TV. I think it's a bit like the 'Outback Survivor' thing. Yeah, like Beaudesert is really the friggin' outback. Heck, don't the realise that I grew up in Werris Creek?

Mind you, I was for real about Warwick Capper. And let me tell you, he rivals the canetoads for sheer ugliness :eek:

Originally posted by D*Alex
let's see:
northern cardinals
Goldfinches
red-winged blackbirds

...arm-flapping earphone-wearing rollerbladers
all in the last month, while riding.
Watch out for those, earphone-wearing bladers, man. :eek:

Originally posted by Pete Clark

Watch out for those, earphone-wearing bladers, man. :eek:

Roller bladers and drunks... This is what I think of them:



http://forum.****edcompany.com/ubb/yak.gif

:D

Damn! I can't get it to work :mad:

I ran over a squirrel two years ago. It ran off but I can still feel that sick thud.

The usual fauna near me are deer, mallards, chipmonks, racoons, oppossum, fox (occasionally), Canadian geese, bullfrogs, turtles.

Also, Labradors, Rottweilers, Huskies, Beagles, Scottish and Yorkshire Terriers, German Shephards, Boxers, Pit Bulls, Jack Russell Terriers, and the occasional mongrel.

Not a lot this morning - but then visibility wasn't what you'd call good. No gorillas in the mist, just a few sheep, a few cows, pheasants, crows, a wren and some pigeon. Mind you that was the wildlife I saw before I cut through the University :D

Richard

How real does anyone actually think that Steve Irwin stuff is?

Well, it is obviously shot (and reshot, as it turns out) for the cameras. But the snake strikes and such are certainly real. Some of those beggars are right rapid.

I saw one episode of his facility - he is real, as is what he does. Funny too. :p

Cheers...Gary

Originally posted by gmason
Well, it is obviously shot (and reshot, as it turns out) for the cameras. But the snake strikes and such are certainly real. Some of those beggars are right rapid.

I saw one episode of his facility - he is real, as is what he does. Funny too. :p


It just strikes me as strange that this so-called 'reality TV' never existed before computer enhanced footage did. :confused:

It really does'nt matter about computer enhanced this or that the bottom line is that he's a total dickhead,and I don't know one normal Aussie that likes this simple moron !!

Originally posted by Buddy Hayden
It really does'nt matter about computer enhanced this or that

Well it does in a way. It just is yet another way to prove that it's not real. Therefore, he's not only a dickhead, he's also a fraud.

Here's hoping for a nice DEEP fatal snakebite for Mr.Irwin..It will bring some peace to the animal kingdom:D

Well....I still think he's pretty cool...

Handbags at Dawn Buddy if you dis our Steve again!!!

Rich :p

Heheheheeeeeeee:dance:

Irwin makes me laugh. a lot. I think he's a superb showman.

I always think of the Fast Show and "That's Amazing" whenever I see him

Stew

Deer,
Elk (perhaps the most beautiful creature on 4 legs - aside from two women),
Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep
Bison (okay, they are on ranches here...but there are LOTS of em!),
more Deer,
Bald Eagles,
Golden Eagles,
Black Bear,
Coyotes,
Fox

Well, today I got swarmed by Lorikeets and King Parrots. After riding to a place called Green Mountains, I got to the summit and decided to climb the lookout platform that overlooks "Lost world" and some of the surrounding ranges.

Well, I hadn't been up there two seconds when these birds started landing on the platform in large numbers. Then they started landing on me. At one point I had two perched on my head, one on each shoulder and about three on each arm. At least they were able to perch without ripping off a heap of skin (something I definitely appreciated).

No, I won't have any photos because they realised I didn't have any food for them before I could get my camera out, so they decided to go and swarm someone else.

WoW! How very cool. I think you win, ChrisL!

No question of it, at least until someone comes in with a report of a closer encounter. I'm very envious.

Sounds incredibly beautiful. It also sort of makes me think of Snow White holding out her finger, and the birds perching on it. "Hello, little birdie!"

Imagine getting to see beautiful exotic birds like that!

Originally posted by wabbit
Imagine getting to see beautiful exotic birds like that!
The thing is... they're probably not all that exotic in Oz.

Deer, crazy-wild dogs, cats, hawks, squirrels, chipmonks.

Originally posted by velocipedio

The thing is... they're probably not all that exotic in Oz.

Well, they are where I ride. Most of them were bright red, with with patches of either green or blue.

Darn, I know I posted this in here a few weeks ago, and it's gone. Oh well, here is my wildlife story again...

To make a long story short. While riding north of Montgomery Alabama, I had an ostrich run past me going in the opposite direction in the oncoming lane.

alright your all gonna think i'm looney, but sometimes I see strange animals. On this one road I ride i've seen two different animals that i have no idea what they are. The one looks like a small wildcat but has a tail similiar to a fox. The other has the head of a fox and a redish color with weird black markings on it's face and the back half of this animal has a grey mottled coloration. I'm not making this up. I've been within a few feet of both of these animals. I've tried to research what they are but haven't found anything. I'm gonna start carrying a camera with me.

Otherwise the usual stuff; deer, squirrels, turkeys, hawks, falcons, vultures, owls, snakes, turtles, frogs and toads. They're all my friends:)

I keep my eye out for the elusive and endangered Timber Rattler when I'm in the Pine Barrens. I'd really like to see one, I think.