February #SuperSnap
February #SuperSnap goes to these white-tailed deer fawns spotted in Columbia County! A female deer, also known as a doe, will give birth to her young in May or June and will typically only have 1 fawn the first year of mating. In subsequent years, she will likely give birth to 2 fawns, and in rare occasions up to 3 or 4! White-tailed deer have special adaptations and behaviors to help the young survive from predators. For instance, the young have a reddish-brown coat color with small white spots, which helps them blend in with forested areas. Additionally, the doe will only visit their young 3-4 times a day to avoid leading predators to their location!
A huge thanks to Zooniverse participant @charleysangel for this #SuperSnap nomination.
Continue classifying photos on Zooniverse and sharing your favorites with #SuperSnap – your submission might just be next month’s featured photo! Check out all the nominations by searching “#SuperSnap” on the Snapshot Wisconsin Talk boards.
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January #SuperSnap
The January #SuperSnap goes to this beaver spotted in Ashland County by a Snapshot Wisconsin trail camera! Beaver, the largest rodent in North America, have unique features that help them conduct their favorite activity. Gnawing on sticks, of course! Their large, round tail helps with balance on land, and they will use their tiny front feet to carry and hold sticks. In the fall, they will often begin to prepare food caches of their favorite woody items. If the area is relatively free of predators, the beavers will take their supplies a farther distance from the water to gnaw the pieces into shorter lengths. Afterwards, they will begin carrying the pieces back to their underwater storage area for easy access during the winter!
A huge thanks to Zooniverse participant @cjpope for this #SuperSnap nomination.
Continue classifying photos on Zooniverse and sharing your favorites with #SuperSnap – your submission might just be next month’s featured photo! Check out all the nominations by searching “#SuperSnap” on the Snapshot Wisconsin Talk boards.
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December #SuperSnap
The December #SuperSnap goes to this raccoon and her four kits captured in Jackson County! Four kits are an average litter size for raccoons, and they are typically born in April or May. Kits are born helpless with their eyes closed, and they only weigh a few ounces. By late summer, the raccoon young are much more independent, but they will stay close to their mother throughout their first winter. When a new litter is expected the following spring, the previous years kits are ready to move out on their own!
A huge thanks to Zooniverse participant @momsabina for this #SuperSnap nomination.
Continue classifying photos on Zooniverse and sharing your favorites with #SuperSnap – your submission might just be next month’s featured photo! Check out all the nominations by searching “#SuperSnap” on the Snapshot Wisconsin Talk boards.
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November #SuperSnap
The November #SuperSnap goes to the couple of otters captured by a Snapshot Wisconsin camera in Vilas County. Otters are semi-aquatic and have many features that make them excellent swimmers, such as their webbed feet, narrow body and strong tail that helps them propel through the water! They can stay underwater for up to 8 minutes and are able to do so by closing their nostrils to keep water out during these longer dives. They can detect prey in dark or cloudy water with their long whiskers, then use their clawed feet to latch on to their favorite food items, such as bass or sunfish!
A huge thanks to Zooniverse participant @bzeise for this #SuperSnap nomination.
Continue classifying photos on Zooniverse and sharing your favorites with #SuperSnap – your submission might just be next month’s featured photo! Check out all the nominations by searching “#SuperSnap” on the Snapshot Wisconsin Talk boards.
Sources:
https://www.eekwi.org/animals/mammals/river-otter
https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Mammals/north-american-river-otter
October #SuperSnap
The October #SuperSnap goes to this porcupine that made a point to be captured by a Snapshot Wisconsin camera in Marinette County! Porcupines have as many as 30,000 quills on all parts of its body, except the stomach. Unlike the common misconception that porcupines can shoot the quills at predators, they swing their barbed-quill tails as defense which can cause their quills to become embedded in their predators. Porcupines are not an aggressive animal, but they will use this unique defense when threatened, especially from their main predator, the fisher!
A huge thanks to Zooniverse participant @AUK for this #SuperSnap nomination.
Continue classifying photos on Zooniverse and sharing your favorites with #SuperSnap – your submission might just be next month’s featured photo! Check out all the nominations by searching “#SuperSnap” on the Snapshot Wisconsin Talk boards.
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September #SuperSnap
The September #SuperSnap goes to this striped skunk and her kits spotted by a Snapshot Wisconsin camera in Oneida county! Kits are born in dens by May or June and will begin to wean from their mothers by six weeks. They will then start venturing out on forage expeditions by following single-file behind mom. Striped skunks are opportunistic omnivores and will consume anything from fruits and nuts to amphibians and reptiles, but their favorite food source is insects!
A huge thanks to Zooniverse participant @oregano for this #SuperSnap nomination.
Continue classifying photos on Zooniverse and sharing your favorites with #SuperSnap – your submission might just be next month’s featured photo! Check out all the nominations by searching “#SuperSnap” on the Snapshot Wisconsin Talk boards.
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August #SuperSnap
The August #SuperSnap goes to the Sandhill Cranes captured by a Snapshot Wisconsin trail camera located in Dodge County. Cranes have unique behavior displays that are often referred to as “dancing.” They can be seen dancing when they are seeking a mate, to strengthen the bond between lifelong mated pairs, or to express aggression or territoriality. During these displays, cranes will let out a series of distinctive calls that can be heard up to 2 miles away!
A huge thanks to Zooniverse participant @Swamp-eye for this #SuperSnap nomination.
Continue classifying photos on Zooniverse and sharing your favorites with #SuperSnap – your submission might just be next month’s featured photo! Check out all the nominations by searching “#SuperSnap” on the Snapshot Wisconsin Talk boards.
Sources:
https://www.eekwi.org/animals/birds/sandhill-crane
https://madisonaudubon.org/crane-dancing
https://savingcranes.org/learn/frequently-asked-questions-about-cranes/
July #SuperSnap
The July #SuperSnap goes to this fantastic trail camera image of a fisher from Dunn County! This type of fisher doesn’t require a pole and net to catch their food. Fishers instead use their retractable claws, sharp teeth, and agile body when on the hunt for a meal. They also rarely eat fish as their name might imply. They most commonly prey on other terrestrial mammals, including snowshoe hares, squirrels, and even porcupines. This species is omnivorous, so they will also consume nuts, fruits, and mushrooms when available.
A huge thanks to Zooniverse participant @smeurett for this #SuperSnap nomination.
Continue classifying photos on Zooniverse and sharing your favorites with #SuperSnap – your submission might just be next month’s featured photo! Check out all of the nominations by searching “#SuperSnap” on the Snapshot Wisconsin Talk boards.
Sources:
http://naturemappingfoundation.org/natmap/facts/fisher_k6.html
https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/WildlifeHabitat/furbearers.html
https://www.massaudubon.org/learn/nature-wildlife/mammals/fishers/about
June #SuperSnap
Oh baby! The June #SuperSnap goes to this red fox and their kit captured on a Snapshot trail camera in Price County. Foxes usually breed in mid-January and will have their litter of 5 to 6 pups by mid-March. Staying within their typical hunting range of about 150-400 acres, kits will begin hunting with their parents at 3 months old. By the time they are 7-8 months old, they are ready to hunt on their own! The young will begin to disperse by late fall to search for their own home-range and will usually breed during their first winter.
A huge thanks to Zooniverse participant @MiddleChild for this #SuperSnap nomination.
Continue classifying photos on Zooniverse and sharing your favorites with #SuperSnap – your submission might just be next month’s featured photo! Check out all of the nominations by searching “#SuperSnap” on the Snapshot Wisconsin Talk boards.
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May #SuperSnap
The May #SuperSnap goes to this action shot of a gray squirrel from Dane County! Squirrels make up 9% of the animal photos captured by Snapshot Wisconsin trail cameras, putting them just behind deer as the second largest collection of animal photos in our database. These squirrel detections can be viewed in combination with our chipmunk observations on the Snapshot Wisconsin Data Dashboard. This online tool visualizes the trail camera data collected by Snapshot volunteers found all around the state.
A huge thanks to Zooniverse participant @charleysangel for this #SuperSnap nomination
Continue classifying photos on Zooniverse and sharing your favorites with #SuperSnap – your submission might just be next month’s featured photo! Check out all of the nominations by searching “#SuperSnap” on the Snapshot Wisconsin Talk boards.
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