Eastern Chipmunk by Gilles Gonthier
It’s time to prepare for winter. At least the chipmunks and squirrels in my back yard think so. This year the white oak tree has produced a massive crop of acorns – I’ve never seen it produce so many. But until last Friday the animals completely ignored the acorns, letting them fall and lie untouched on the grass. Where were the squirrels who should be hiding acorns? Where was the cute, hyper little chipmunk who always appears in fall?
Suddenly, on Friday the chipmunk appeared and the squirrels got busy. Fall is here in Eastern Kansas. The animals know it. I sit at the kitchen table distracted by their antics. Squirrels climb head first down the swing set frame, then back up again, bushy tails twitching. The chipmunk races across the patio, his cheeks bulging to a grotesque degree. He hyper-leaps through the grass. He must have a good stash by now. On Friday I saw him every few minutes, today, not so much. The squirrels are playing tag up and down the cedar picket fence and across the oak branches as I write.
Yes, fall is here, the animals know it. It’s time to slow down (that’s me), or speed up (that’s the animals), start preparing for winter (all of us), and get out the knitting needles (me)! What do you do when fall comes?
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I LOVE fall! The beautiful colors, the bounty of the harvest, pumpkin pie… Thanks for this lovely reminder to slow down and enjoy!
I love to watch chipmunks. They are so funny. We don’t see them here at the house, but we have plenty of squirrels. Not so much fun, in my opinion, because they break into the bird feeders and knock them down and break them.
My favorite fall activity is watching the migrating warblers and other songbirds moving south for the winter. This is a time of high activity as the birds shift location.
It is good to be reminded to slow down. Thank you.
Ah, pumpkin pie and fall colors, I’m with you on those Wendy
It’s true Carole, squirrels can be pests. The worst I’ve had them do is chew my deck railings – a few times of yelling at them seemed to do the trick.
Not all bird feeders are equal. I’ve not been feeding the birds recently. Last year I put out black niger seeds, thinking that would be good because the squirrels don’t care for them, but the chipmunk figured out how to leap over onto the feeder, which was a sock type, chewed a big hole, and made off with a giant stash of seeds. The oak didn’t have many acorns last year so I’m sure the chipmunk was really glad for the seeds.
Fall for us this year means an insane schedule of baseball games for my two boys, but it also means planting in a fall crop or two (I’m trying a garlic planting this year), the return of soup, and the inevitable day when I have to finally give in and leave my sandals in the closet and go for closed toe shoes. I haven’t given in yet.
My garden is definitely showing signs of fall. New flowers on the tomato and pepper plants are few and far between and all the herbs are going to seed. Since my backyard is full of squirrels, chipmunks and rabbits constantly, I haven’t noticed an increase. But I have noticed different sounds in the evening that come from the trees above.
Happy Autumnal Equinox! I wonder why the chipmunks and squirrels were late in their activities, perhaps they were just taking the easy route and letting the acorns fall to the ground first.
I get excited when fall comes because it means that the end of triple digit temps are near. The average high is 98 (or so) but we still get some triple digit days into October. However, fall means that it cools off at night – into the 70s (as opposed to the 90s). We’re taking a trip next month to the eastern part of the state where it will be very cool and the leaves will be in full color.
Ah, soup and putting the sandals away! I have to admit I didn’t totally give up soup over the summer, but I did let it cool to a lower temperature before serving it. Also, it just wasn’t welcomed by my family in the same way. Yes, my tomatoes are slowing down too – I suspect red ones may be few and far between from this point on.
Melissa, your planned trip sounds like it will be really welcome. I lived in Texas for a couple of years; I greatly missed having a proper, cool winter with a chance of snow. I love cool evenings under the stars. Somehow, it’s not autumn/fall without that so I’m glad for you that you get cool evenings.
I think the animals started gathering acorns in earnest after we had a lower overnight temperature. Maybe that is their trigger rather than the availability of acorns.
This first fall day I delighted in watching more than a dozen American goldfinches and a lone Carolina chickadee feasting on the various seed heads in our garden. (Their visit coincided with my own lunch hour.) Reckon some passers-by would prefer I clean up these “spent” plants, but when bird visitors arrive, I’m happy to have food to offer them in exchange for the joy they bring. Happy autumn, Alison!