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Dear All, I saw a comment recently on naturens traffic to the effect that even sitting quietly in the woods may adversely affect birds. And it got buried in subsequent traffic. This puzzles me because if you are really quiet then you become in effect an unusually shaped rock or burl. I have had e.g. a Chicadee land within a few inches of my nose (at most 3" away) and peer this way and that way; no hint of concern just curious. When very slowly crossing a knee-high windfall I once had a Squirrel walk between my legs without indicating awareness. When sitting a foot away from a tiny Spruce (~1" diam. at soil) at dusk I once had a small Mouse slowly climb up the tree saying ek ek ek as nonchalant as could be. And one day while passing time, while I fished nearby, my wife waded out to a small rocky "island" in a brook took both rubber boots off and a few minutes later a Muskrat joined her, smelled the inside of both boots, smelled and crossed her bare legs and then leisurely left the island and proceeded up stream. Twice when sitting in Spruce I had a Kinglet land and hop about within inches apparently unaware I was there. Grey Jays are the exception- they find you; especially when they smell a fire because that may mean a welcome change from a dull diet. Sometimes it seems birds welcome company. One summer I spent many hours thinning an area of woods which was clearly overstocked; cutting and let lie or cutting and trimming for firewood. Regardless where I was working in this ~10 acre area a Robin would eventually show up, apparently unconcerned, and follow me around as I moved. Shortly after I bought the woodlot I would trigger a flyby of one or several Pileated Woodpeckers shortly after I started the chainsaw. One or more would fly in, circle me several times calling (Yak, Yak, Yak....) and then fly away. The woods then had been clear cut only about 30 years previously so Pileated food may have been in short supply and perhaps they wanted a fix on possible exposed food. They are less common now but still often come near where I am cutting and stick around until I pause and look up to e.g. try to take a picture. Sometimes simply by being friendly you see things unexpectedly. One day while eating at a large Cortland apple and splitting wood in a light rain a Squirrel seemed interested so I put a small slice out of my reach. After he ate that I continued feeding him slim slices. When it started to rain quite hard he perched in full view on a Spruce branch with tail up over his back and with the tail end flared out, fan like and serving as an unbrella, protecting his head and front feet from rain. Yellow Jackets naturally get annoyed if you damage their nest but once, while slicing and eating an apple in the yard, a Yellow Jacket flew within a few feet and paused in mid air which I took to mean "May I land on your hand" so I slowly extended my hand to say "welcome" and it landed and proceeded to make good use of the apple juice on my hand. In like fashion, some beetles have come near when having tea in the yard and had a good drink. I don't recall details but I somehow improvised a feeding tube consisting of two flat and pointed slivers of wood. They would fly to the table for 2 or 3 slips, retreat and then come for more. In such interactions one must move but a key factor is to avoid rapid or unexpected motion. Also sitting quietly near sunny warm areas where one might see a snake out hunting will often lead to a snake seen. Enough DW, Kentville
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