Seen in local traffic
Looking out the door, while I added the leash to the dog, I spotted it going by on the highway. It was moving in the correct lane, at just below the usual speed limit. Brown and white, possibly. I’m not great at model identification, but it could have been a Rabbit; recent model. No, no, not a VW product. A hare. But moving fast. In the country, even small things take on great importance.
We’ve seen an uptick in our local hare population. Probably carrying ticks; that’s their main scourge, after coyotes and harriers. Anyhow, at any given time there’ll be some in the yard, and if (ever) a garden gets planted, we’ll have to remain vigilant. That nickname, “Nibbles”? Appropriate.
With just one dog in our household, the outside wildlife is important and appreciated. Puts motion in an otherwise static scene. I don’t hunt them, and I think they are aware. Opening the front door might startle the starlings, but the hares and squirrels are oblivious to my presence. Perhaps I’m just part of their TV programming.
I’ve read a number of books, over the years, dealing with wildlife and their local humans. Watership Down, certainly. And the different Peter Rabbit and other books for the young at heart. Is it anthromorphism? Yes, but without the coloration of the world of fiction. I don’t “dress them for the occasion”, and the imagined dialog is low key. Harmless. In fact, my confusing one with a model of automobile shows that I’ve been influenced by marketing (confession: I have driven a Rabbit, for my boss).
Under cover of darkness, the family tree database moved on past the 95K mark.
