The circle of life...

I live in the woods up here in Monument, Colorado.  Monument is on the Palmer Divide, about halfway between Denver and Colorado Springs at 7000 feet.  Larry and I personally have a little under three acres of trees, the houses in Monument are either large or small lots, but all are forested and while the weather is much harsher here than down in the Springs, more snow by inches, colder by 10 degrees, we all are here for the wildlife and the trees.

But Mother Nature is harsh.  Many of you heard of the Black Forest Fire we had early this summer, we lost over  500 homes up here from it... by a combination of wildfire and drought.  Larry and I were personally lucky, yes we were voluntarily evacuated, but the fire didn't cross Hwy 83 so we were never really threatened.  Animals fled the area too, those that made it out.  Birds and deer, squirrels and bear, coyotes and fox... all headed north or west to escape the inferno.

In the midst of it all, just after we realized we'd be safe, Larry and I and Juan moved back into the house and started setting out our bird feeders again.  Looking out over the back meadow, we saw a remarkable sight.  A mother and a brand new fawn alone in our trees, taking advantage of the stream bed and the relative safety there. What an affirmation of life we thought! We've been watching the mother and her fawn all summer --- they've joined a small clutch of deer that wander through on a regular basis, marveling at the wonder of life.

But, sadly, we are going to the lose the fawn.  Yesterday the clutch wandered through again and we realized that the little one had a broken leg.  We can't get too close, of course, they are wild animals after all, but from our window we can see that he is not able to use his one leg at all.  At first we hoped that he had just stumbled a bit over the rocks, but no... he is truly injured.

I am heartbroken! The coyotes live up here too, you know.   And they are hungry. I had a favorite black squirrel that hung around last year- his antics were adorable and the fact that he looked different than the red squirrels made him stand out. But he suddenly disappeared... either a car or a coyote... or even a falcon caught him I'm sure.  And a neighbor was out walking his 2 little dogs a while ago, when one was snatched from him just yards away by a coyote running through his field.  And now "our fawn". He isn't gone yet, but the weather hasn't turned yet either, and the colder and wetter it gets, the more the coyotes are on the hunt.  I fear he will be one of the first victims this winter.

I know the coyotes have the right to life too, and that life in the forest is harsh, but I am saddened by this turn of events.  I guess it's good I don't have to live off the land, I would have started out naming all the fawns, kits and baby squirrels. Only to realize that they are not pets but denizens of the forest destined to be food for other larger predators.

Farewell little guy, we will miss you.