Sunday, September 12, 2010

Just Chillin'

Since my cats no longer go outdoors, I seem to have fewer opportunities to photograph them with plants, so there have been fewer opportunities to make weekend pet posts. On the plus side, we also have fewer opportunities to chase live birds, field mice, and chipmunks out of our house, and even better, fewer opportunities to clean up dead ones, either in the house, or outside on the porch.

Another plus side is that I get to see things like this:

Meet Chippie, most likely, Tamias striatus, (Eastern chipmunk) though there are several other possibilities.

Closer view. It is hard to get high quality pictures, since Chippie will flee if I get too close, but this one is pretty good if clicked for full-size.

Chippie has taken to sitting on top of our garden fairy quite frequently, sometimes just hanging out, other times making a loud persistant "chip-chip-chip" sound. Chippie's burrow appears to be under our porch, as there is a hole nearby. We have been wondering if he or she is looking for a new mate, since unfortunately, one of Peppermint's last victims before he became an indoor kitty was another chipmunk, which he left on the porch.

I know I shouldn't like this critter, since like squirrels, they also dig up and eat bulbs. Also, earlier this summer, there was evidence of digging in one of the Hibiscus pots. (I replaced the soil, and there has been no further tampering, even though the Hibiscus are still nearby, as seen in the photographs.) But I'm quite fond of Chippie in a way, and in fact, I'm a bit concerned, since I haven't seen him or her since these pictures were taken last Wednesday.

Edited to add 9/12/10, 2:55PM: Just saw Chippie perched on top of the fairy, as usual.

3 comments:

Nic said...

Chippie is cute. I feel the same way about chipmunks; I know they can do some damage but whenever I am back at my parents' house I am happy to see the little chipmunk that resides in the terraced flower beds adjacent to the deck. My dad likes to observe him and he worries whenever he does not see the little guy for more than a couple of days.

Julie said...

Awe...hi Chippie!!! So cute!!! Glad he came back and is OK. We don't have these here and I find it amazing how tiny they are!!! Cutie-pies!!!

Ivynettle said...

I still can't quite wrap my head around the fact that animals I only know from books (and comics, mostly) are actually real for some people. ;) Ridiculous, I know. Somehow, my brain won't accept the fact that animals that life Far Away live in the same places as Real People.