Wildlife Gone Wild [Midwest Uncensored]

I have been amassing this collection of images for several years. It’s a long habit to save any interesting image to post later on our Facebook page, but sometimes I can’t fit them in. We try hard to avoid over-posting, and limit ourselves to 2 or 3 a day. Rather than let these fascinating images rest in the limbo of Google Photos, I decided to put my favorites in this little slideshow.

Since I am missing a source or attribution for many of these photos, there will be no ads or links in the slideshow. We don’t want to get sued and recognize that profiting off the work of others is immoral. Sites have stolen our work before and it’s frustrating.

Enjoy nature, uncensored!

Bald eagle are opportunistic feeders and will eat virtually anything they can carry (a maximum of 3 to 4 pounds). A study of the bald eagle’s diet in the 1980s showed that 28% of our national bird’s diet…is other birds.

Hummingbirds burn energy so quickly they must slow their metabolism by over 90% in the evening or when facing a food scarcity. They need all the energy they can get. A male hummingbird will announce his interest in a female by diving over her head at 27 meters per second, generating around 10 g of force as it pulls out of the dive.

Blue jays are so adept at living alongside predatory raptors that they have been observed imitating the calls of hawks to discover if one will reveal its position by answering. They will viciously and mercilessly attack any animal (human, hawk, cat, bear) that approaches its nest.

Honey bees cease flying when temperatures fall below 50 degrees F. Instead, they retreat to their hive and cluster tightly around the queen. Their small bodies shiver so powerfully that even in freezing temperatures, they keep the center of the hive between 81 and 93 degrees F.

The Great Blue Heron’s diet is based almost entirely on availability. If prey is there, the heron will attempt to eat it. Because of their large size (a wingspan up 6 or 7 feet), the species has few natural predators. Bald eagles are the only species known to hunt the heron from cradle to grave.

The Bald-faced Hornet is an aggressive wasp (but not a true hornet) species native to North America. It can do a lot more than simply sting predators or intruders: this insect has the unique ability to spit a blinding venom into the eyes of nest-invading animals.

Red-tailed hawks have a habitat preference for forest and field landscape: forest for nesting, and field for hunting prey. This characteristic has allowed them to thrive in the presence of humans, especially along our national highways. Their speed and agility helps them dodge traffic, and the surrounding stretches of open field present plenty of feeding opportunities.

The eastern spotted skunk stores roughly 1 tablespoon of defensive oil in a pair of glands on either side of the anus. When threatened, it will first warn predators by shuffling its front feet, lifting its tail and hissing. It will then spray a fine mist of “stink” up to five times in a row…but needs a week to refill the gland.

In the wild, few animals (besides humans) pose a risk to the American black bear. Only the immensely strong jaws of the jaguar (aka mountain lion, puma, catamount or cougar) could turn the largest predator of the eastern United States into prey, and that’s only in ambush or if the bear is a juvenile. In an even match, no animal in North America, save another bear, poses a risk to a healthy, adult American black bear.

Only a few animals with albinism can survive long in the wild, since the lack of pigmentation not only exposes them to sunlight’s harsh UV radiation, but eliminates any natural camouflage that disguise the prey from a predator. Some animals, such the albino crow above, surmount this by relying on the strong social bonds of their species.

Few animals have mastered their environment as well as the North American river otter. Equal comfortable on land, water, and anything in between, it also possesses some of the densest mammalian fur, keeping it warm even in freezing water. In its mid-back, the fur averages almost 58,000 hairs per square centimeter! Pollution is the greatest threat to the river otter today. As an apex predator in river systems, it quickly accumulates toxic metals like mercury in its body.

Before fur trappers swarmed the United States, between 100 and 200 million beavers populated the country. Today, around 10 to 15 million remain, largely because of efforts to preserve marshes and wetlands. Their largest dam—found in Alberta—spans over half a mile in length.

To attract Canada lynx for observation, researchers used trial-and-error to concoct a unique mix of items that seem to fascinate the curious creatures. Skunk scent and/or catnip is blended together and smeared on an object, then a flashing item is placed on top, mimicking the fluttering of a wounded bird.

The impressive wingspan and threat display of the sandhill crane is intimidating to most predators, and few directly attack a crane’s nest or fledglings. If needed, the sandhill crane will charge a predator and stab its long, sharp beak down and, with the help of its powerful neck muscles, pierce an opponent’s skull.

Elk retain their massive antlers for nearly six months a year, using them in mating displays as well as for defense against its natural predators—bear and wolves. While sporting antlers, bull elk are aggressive and solitary animals. Once the antlers shed, the bull elks form small collectives, relying on one another for protection from predators until the next mating season.

A familiar sight even in urban areas, the coyote has adapted to humans better than most animals, and is the only large predator left in many parts of the United States. Attacks on humans have increased in the last forty years. Humans have expanded their cities and suburbs, and coyotes are rapidly losing their natural fear of humans. From 1986-2006, USDA Wildlife Services counted 160 attacks on humans in the country, although only two were fatal.

The northern raccoon isn’t built for speed but agility and adaptation. Its top speed is only 15 mph, slower than a fast human, but it can easily climb objects and can climb down a tree headfirst by rotating its rear feet. Its best information-gathering tool is its front paws, which contain high concentrations of nerves. Its brain is uniquely suited for interpreting tactile information.