Since absconding with my game camera the Rodent of Unusual Size has been unobserved. He probably sold it on ebay and used the proceeds to fund a vacation in Cancun. Well, partially funded anyway. But the puddle has remained at its elevated level so I decided to venture into the swamp and see what I could see.
There was no sign of the waterlogged rat anywhere but his handiwork was all around.
Here are some photos of his tree chopping abilities.
And here is a mess he left while chewing the bark of sticks. I should turn him into the Staties for littering.
And here is his Lodge (what a dump).
And here is the much vaunted dam. Well, as a fellow engineer I can only say he’ll have to do a lot better than this if he expects to get his P.E stamp.
And here’s a close-up of his handiwork.
Disappearing like this leads me to believe either he has been eaten by one of his woodland brothers (coyote would be my guess). Or he’s gone completely nocturnal. I could test this theory out if I still had a game camera. Oh well, maybe Santa will come through.
S/He could be in the lodge, mostly sleeping, eating and trying to mate if he/she can attract a partner. They become almost exclusively nocturnal in winter. They don’t hibernate but slow down considerably. All their food is stashed underwater so they seldom need to show themselves during daylight. I see our local tribe after dark when I’m lucky.
I hope you’re right. Even though I’m sore about losing my game camera I would like to see it in the spring.
“And here is the much vaunted dam. Well, as a fellow engineer I can only say he’ll have to do a lot better than this if he expects to get his P.E stamp.”
I want to see the Geotech study and load calculations on that.
I’m just afraid his budget for next year has already been appropriated for out of my property taxes. I suspect he’s a Bernie Bro.