I'll let you in on a secret. I love rabbits. Most gardeners I know have trouble with rabbits disrupting their gardens but I get the biggest kick out of the rabbits that hang out at my place. They almost never wreck havoc or even eat food that I want to eat. I've discovered that rabbits like weeds so they are a messy gardeners best friend. I kid you not, the rabbits in my garden never get to the plants I want to preserve because they have this whole feast of weeds to pig out on and they love it. It's a win win situation. I get to say, see that scraggly looking plant, that's rabbit food. I just thought of that this minute but from now on instead of saying, I really need to do some weeding, I'll say ah 
nice to see I have a good crop of rabbit food. I think this little rabbit must be young because it's about half the size of some of the big ones I've spotted in my garden. Also, this one posed for the camera and had zero fear of me unlike the large ones that hop off when I get nearby. It always makes me nervous when animals in the wild are too comfortable being photographed. I fear they will be open season for predators. It's not that unusual to see hawks circle overhead in my garden although I never have a camera at the ready for that shot. At one point there was an owl nesting somewhere in the vicinity because I heard it occasionally. I'm pretty sure that owls and hawks
could make a meal of this little rabbit. In the meantime though it has lots of weeds to fill it's belly and so far it's short life appears to be okay. May has arrived with a blast of heat but a cold front is moving through tonight and we'll have a few days of spring again. We may also get some rain which is much needed. So far we've been getting the bare minimum of rain. It's been enough to keep most of the plants alive but we keep getting warnings that our area is at high risk for fire. The only big fire so far that I've heard about was at a scrap metal plant. Not sure what was behind that. Oh well, hopefully the rains will come and soak deeply into the soil.
3 comments:
Now you are alson growing rabbits? : )
###################################
...Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimmed,
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance, or nature's changing course untrimmed:
But thy eternal summer shall not fade...
from Sonnet 18
Wm. Shakespeare
Isn't this the sweetest to see early this morning for me? I love to see the rabbits, too, and I have even forgiven them for munching off the tulip tops!
As usual, Carver, you have lifted my spirits with your little nature view. Thanks!
CarolA
Although squirrels are my favorite animal I have a rabbit story - a sad one but in line with them getting to comfortable and becoming prey.
Both rabbits and squirrels have become over abundant here in our neighborhood. My grandpup Lucy, being a natural born hunter, loves to chase them both.
One day last week when my daughter let her out to play a rabbit was in her yard as they often are. She chased it a bit and then it excaped through the fence. After my daughter watched the excitement she went about chores and tended to the baby.
When her husband went to let Lucy in about an hour later she was playing with something the way she always does - picking it up, throwing it, then snagging it again. Not knowing what it was he decided to take a closer look.
It turned out to be a baby rabbit. The mother apparently had just given birth and was preparing a nest in the backyard when Lucy came out to play.
Those poor helpless little rabbits. Even though 3 were still alive at the time, the mother never came back and none of them survived. I know it was tragic but I can't blame my grandpup, unfortunately the rabbit gave birth in her territory.
Thanks for sharing your beautiful nature pictures Carver!
Chris
Post a Comment