The Krenn Hrubec West Virginia Project: Creatures of a lesser god and an encounter with a bear

When the weather is not too cold I like to sleep in a large canvas tent which I set up on a wooden platform in the woods a short hike from the road and the trailer. The platform is about 5 meters uphill from the stream that runs through our property and after a rain when there is sufficient water, the stream can be heard gurgling from a distance. I have a nice comfy bed from Ikea in the tent and even have a writing table with a battery powered reading light. Now it is normally quite peaceful in my tent and I sleep quite soundly through the night. Last night was something of an exception, however. At exactly 3:00 AM I was awakened by a cacophony of rustling through the underbrush outside accompanied by sounds of snorting and grunting. Somewhat concerned as well as curious, I looked out through the window of my tent. The waxing gibbous moon was just setting but there was still enough light outside to make out the outline of a black bear (Ursus americanus) walking rapidly downhill about three meters from my tent. Fortunately, the bear seemed to have no interest in me or my tent in its unsubtle excursion through the woods. Within a few seconds it had vanished completely into the night. I scrambled for my flashlight and shone it around outside but my visitor was already out of sight. In retrospect, I suppose that the objective of the animal was the stream to quench its thirst. I do make sure that I do not keep any foodstuffs in the tent so as not to attract the interest of wandering hungry animals. I am usually thinking of rodents, but now I appreciate that larger critters might also be about.

The warmth of May has brought forth many creatures, mostly small. I managed to get pictures of some of them recently.