Toni's Territory

Our Immediate Habitat

the Point Reyes Peninsula, northern California

When we bought our property in 1989, we had no idea it was already inhabited. Overrun, actually, by chipmunks. And just about every other type of North American wildlife you can think of. From my office window I can look out and see chipmunks, gray squirrels, skunks, opossums, raccoons, badgers, moles, deer, elk, deer mice, wood rats, cougars, and even bobcats. And this is directly on the other side of the window, on the deck, just inches away from me.

Among the frequent landings on the deck railing are quail, blue jays, Stellar's jays, hummingbirds, chickadees, nuthatches, all types of finches, wild canaries, juncos, woodpeckers, flickers, wood doves, robins, grosbeaks, rufous-sided towhees, eagles, hawks, falcons, and owls. On the way into town (Point Reyes Station), following the creek about 2 miles, you can see red-winged blackbirds, thrushes, grackles, blackbirds, mallard ducks, and occasionally an egret or heron. We live just a few miles from the Audubon Canyon Ranch, where there's a large colony of nesting egrets.

• The Life Cycle of a Chipmunk
• May 95
• June 95
• Bob's Your Uncle