Take It Outside!: We're Havin A Heat Wave!!

         So this weekend is set to be warm!! FINALLY a break from the sub zero arctic temps! In continuation of the winter time critter watch I thought we could focus on some on the animals that we may not think about because we don't see them regularly in the winter!
         Winter is a great time to talk about camoflage. If you're a small animal that is preyed on, it is definately to your advantage to blend in with the white of the snow, where there is some!
         A fantastic example of an animal that changes its appearance every six months are the three types of weasels we have in our area.

Wisconsin DNR photo

We have three species of weasel in our area: Least Weasel, Short Tailed Weasel and Long Tailed Weasel.

All of these little creatures are pretty rare to see when you're outside exploring for a number of reasons. First of all, they're pretty tiny. The largest of them, the Long Tailed Weasel, is a maximum of 16 inches and the smallest, the Least Weasel, is a maximum of 8-9 inches. No wonder we don't see them, something this small is pretty easy to hide! If you add that with the fact that every fall they lose their brown summer coat and don a pretty white winter coat, they're even harder to see! I've lived in this area my whole life (26 years) and have yet to see one of these little critters in the winter.

Long Tailed Weasel

If you think you might see one of these animals there's a few things to look for. First and foremost, the size. Like I said before the largest of these critters are about 16 inches, next thing to look for would be the color of course, white in the winter; and the last thing and possibly the most tell tale sign is the black tip in the end of their tail!

Another animal that blends in well in the winter snow is the aptly named snowy owl. These large beautiful birds a truly a sight to behold.

Snowy Owl

While the snowy owl is a somewhat rare sight in this area, if you're lucky you'll get to see one. They aren't usually seen perching in places that seem natural where they'd be hidden, like in trees. When they are seen, they're on top of hay bales, sitting in a field or even just hanging out on the ice. You can see from the photo above that they easily blend in with the snowy areas in which they live. They don't breed here so when they are seen it's only for a brief amount of time and then they'll move back north for the breeding season.

These haunting critters are also carnivores, meaning they like to eat meat. Their favorite meals include weasels, rodents, rabbits, and even waterfowl. They aren't a small bird either, which may help with their food habits. Their height ranges anywhere from 21-28 inches and can weigh up to 6.5 pounds.

These are just a couple of the animals that change their appearance for the winter season. Go outside today and see if you can find any other animals that have changed appearance for the winter!

Here's some more coloring pages too!!

http://www.supercoloring.com/pages/weasel-1/

http://www.turtletrack.org/Issues02/Co05042002/Art/Weasel_bw.gif

http://www.coloring-pages-kids.com/coloring-pages/animal-coloring-pages/owls-coloring-pages/owls-coloring-pages-images/owl-coloring-page-21.gif

http://www.coloring-pages-kids.com/coloring-pages/animal-coloring-pages/owls-coloring-pages/owls-coloring-pages-images/owl-coloring-page-20.gif

Here's a great way to get involved with an ongoing scientific study!

http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw/?utm_source=aab&utm_medium=banner&utm_campaign=CrossPromoteAAB_PFW_20100201