Urban wildlife (Sandy Springs: how much, house, neighborhood)

[arjay57]

What all have you seen living in your neighborhood?

We've had deer, foxes, squirrels, chipmunks, raccoons, beavers, moles, geese, robins, hawks, bluebirds, cardinals, nuthatches, herons, owls, pileated woodpeckers, bluejays, brown thrashers, finches, house sparrows, cedar waxwings, king snakes, copperheads, water snakes, moccasins, coyotes, rabbits, garter snakes, earthworms, wrigglers, caterpillars, butterflies, pine beetles, mosquitoes, gnats, wasps, hornets, yellow jackets, grasshoppers, walking sticks, ants, garden spiders, granddaddy longlegs, bumblebees, honey bees...

Well, the list goes on an on. You can't forget the fish, and of course our beloved domestic animals.

It's really quite amazing how much life there is in the city in addition to humans.

[Eresh]

There's a rabbit living in my back yard, and sometimes I see deer wander by. We have all kinds of birds, insects, arachnids, and lots of squirrels. I'm sure there are a lot of snakes too, but I try to avoid running in to them. The other night I heard a really odd screech noise, but I'm not sure what it was and didn't want to wander into the yard to investigate.

[oakhurstlauren]

Bats, don't forget the bats. Also our neighbor has a goat lol. The coolest thing we've watched this summer is a baby hawk grow up. It's been in our backyard (fairly wooded) all summer, so cool.

[lorilove]

I have a bat house but no bats - still waiting. I once saw a big frog (toad) in my yard.

[RoslynHolcomb]

We see hawks and owls all the time. Our neighbor has a pool and we're near the reservoir so we get geese, ducks and at least one heron. We have rabbits in our back yard (surprising considering the number of hawks.) Chipmunks, squirrels and coyotes. We've got hornets, wasps and honey bees. Somebody around here must have a bat house because we've got more bats than I've ever seen. Not that I'm complaining, they keep the mosquito population down considerably. We've got moles too, but as my husband gets a grasp on the lawn situation and the grubs the moles are gradually going away. I'm sure we've got snakes. I haven't seen any, but with the rodent population we have there have got to be snakes.

[arjay57]

Wasn't there another bear sighting the other day? I don't remember where it was.

[Nast]

Originally Posted by lorilove

I have a bat house but no bats - still waiting. I once saw a big frog (toad) in my yard.

Lori, how long have you been waiting? We put one up in the spring but I understand it can take up to a year.

At our birdfeeder we see a lot of goldfinches, blue jays, cardinals, woodpeckers, nuthatches, wrens, thrashers and a few others I haven't yet been able to identify. We often hear a couple of different types of owls in the wooded yards of the mansions on Ponce, too. We also once watched a Great Blue Heron stalking frogs in our neighbors koi pond, which was fascinating.

[Mattie]

I think the bear was spotted in Sandy Springs. This is the first year we haven't seen any snakes in the yard, I'm not sure why. We haven't heard much from the coyotes either. But, the deer walk up to the bird feeder every night and lick it clean. I've started to just refill it enough for the birds to eat during the day. Otherwise, all of the above are pretty common here.

Hummingbirds love our yard.

[lorilove]

Originally Posted by Nast

Lori, how long have you been waiting? We put one up in the spring but I understand it can take up to a year.

I have been waiting several years. It was always low odds that I would get bats - I am not near any water to speak of.

I put one up after reading how important they were to our environment so I figured I had nothing to lose. I have heard in some cases it can take several years.

It is possible I have bats and don't know it. I am not out in my yard or deck much at night. I have guests coming soon, and new furniture on the patio so if the weather is nice perhaps I will do some bat spotting.

[Nast]

Originally Posted by lorilove

I have been waiting several years. It was always low odds that I would get bats - I am not near any water to speak of.

I put one up after reading how important they were to our environment so I figured I had nothing to lose. I have heard in some cases it can take several years.

It is possible I have bats and don't know it. I am not out in my yard or deck much at night. I have guests coming soon, and new furniture on the patio so if the weather is nice perhaps I will do some bat spotting.

Wow, I hadn't heard it could take that long. We were told to make sure to put it in spot that is sheltered yet gets a lot of light during the day so that it stays warm. Who knows, though.

I think you would be able to confirm if any moved in by checking the ground under the box!