Rain, rain go away

1.) Have you tasted the ocean water? Not on this trip, but I've tasted the Atlantic before. Tastes like chicken!!
2.) Has it rained much while you have been there? Today it started raining around 10:00am and rained all day. Everyone was wet by the time we got back home.
3.) What is your favorite mammal so far? Out of the mammals we've seen, I'd have to say the beaver. It's amazing to see how they can change their habitat to make it suitable for their survival.
4.) What is a vole, and do you have a picture of one? It's a cross between a mole and a violin. Just kidding: a vole is a small mammal about the size of a mouse. It differs from a mouse in that it has a shorter tail, smaller ears and eyes and it isn't as fast, so it depends on hiding instead of running away to survive. Check out the middle school website to see a picture of one of the vole's we've trapped.
5.) Has anyone been bit by a mammal? So far, no blood has been shed. The mice and voles will only bite if cornered, but the chipmunks and flying squirrels will try to bite if given a chance.

Great questions!! Today we checked our traps at Cook's Lake. This morning we had one vole and this afternoon another vole. It was pretty wet and cold and many of the team members were soaked by the time we headed in from the field. It's supposed to rain all day tomorrow, too, with winds up to 70KMPH We also did 20 quadrants looking for deer droppings. So far it looks like there is a higher deer density at Cook's Lake than at our first site. We found the remains of a porcupine today. It died on it's back, which is a big clue as to what killed it. Any guesses? We also helped clear a trail around part of the property using hand tools. I sure could have used my chainsaw today, but, because of Earthwatch's safety policies, we used bow saws and clippers. We found a bunch of owl pellets under a large pine tree. Owls that eat small mammals spit up a fairly dry ball of bones and fur. The pellets can be picked apart, the mammals identified and the information can be used to validate animal population densities from the trappings.

Keep checking back as we're trying to add a video of the porcupine's mating habits. Very interesting!!