Sunday, October 25, 2015

October 24


Out of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of a vole that had wandered into the roadway near the break line of woods just uphill from the Cheney Farm. The morning was yet dark, and the movement was highlighted by the yellow streetlight that shone downward onto the road. A tiny thing, maybe just smaller than a field mouse, but it scurried with such a frenzy, first weaving outward into Grove and then returning to the curbside. It was trapped here, not able to negotiate the curb height, and so it resigned to frantic movement up the roadside. I half expected an owl to swoop down for an easy catch.

We don’t often see the voles, save for the presence of their winter tunnels that form near the surface pack and curiously in the proximity of the feeder. Their coat reminds me of the velvety brown of a domesticated rabbit, and I am curious if it feels the same.

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