This was taken in December of 2018. I can't help but wonder if this is the same Coyote I've been seeing on our Trail Cam recently. It appears to have the same dark tip on the tail…but perhaps that's so common as to be meaningless.

You can see that this animal is very wary. Being this close to houses in daylight is not in its comfort zone. I really got the feeling that it knew it was being observed and couldn't quite figure out where I, the observer, was.

Video taken: on the slope of the Higgins Way trailhead down to Mill River.

John Brady captured this intense male bluebird coming home to feed the kids. They were probably all pressed up against the entry hole and the only way to offload his catch was to hover with his feet gripping the edge of the nest box hole. He clearly looks relieved when he finally gets to settle on top of the hanger pole.

Video by John Brady

I NOTICED THIS TRIO OF BEARS moving through the understory from my kitchen window. I stepped out on to our deck and watched as they ambled by until the cubs decided on a quick game of "king of the mountain" on a fallen tree. Either that or "lets sumo wrestle!" I love the moment when the less aggressive cub bites on to the other cubs ear and they tug back and forth. Then he/she gets pummeled for their effort!

I apologize for the washed out video but Black Bears in deep shadows on a sunny day are nearly impossible to capture on video. I've applied filters to reduce the contrast and lighten the image so the bears are visible, but the foliage looks pretty wonky.

Video taken: on the slope of the hill overlooking the Smith Voc School cornfields.

This was taken this past summer, on June 5th 2019. I have a friend who views deer as spirit animals of the forest. Her family is Abanaqui from the northern part of Vermont.

Deer are strikingly beautiful animals. They move with a grace that's hard to describe. They're very "fluid." Funny thing is they can also be quite noisy. This deer was making a racket as she moved through the brush. She was completely silent when she stopped, but then it was "crash, bash, and on my way."

Video taken: on the slope of the hillside overlooking the cornfields.

This is a time-lapse movie of the NEOWISE comet that passed through our solar system during the summer of 2020. As the sky darkens the comet becomes visible above the house left-of-center (Eric and Beth's house). Our rotating Earth creates the appearance that the comet is descending in a curving arc. Clouds obscure the comet for a few moments, then it reappears briefly before disappearing below the rooftops and horizon. The solitary night sky is equally beautiful as the night progresses toward a new day's dawn.

This spring I was thinking about the remarkable range of wildlife that lives on, or passes through Village Hill in Northampton. I remembered seeing a trail cam video online from Westhampton that someone had posted a few years back. It featured the regular cast of characters such as coyote, fox, deer, bear, and such, but it also showed a Bobcat. It got me wondering if Bobcat made their way up on the hill too. I know there have been many sightings of Bobcat in the area, but nothing that I was aware of around here.

Today my neighbors Tom & Beth sent us a video captured by an outdoor camera at their house. It was recorded recently on May 5th at 4:30 am. The Bobcat slips into the field of view on the left, passes in front of the tree in the mid-ground and then melts into the darkness of the woods.

So now we know! They live among us!

Video taken: Above the cornfield on Higgins Way