Wild mammals in my Northern Virginia backyard

One of the perks of living next to Fairfax County, Va., park land is that there’s an abundance of wildlife that lives there and will venture into my neighborhood.
I’ve spent the last week posting about all the bird life in my area. Now, let’s cover the mammals I see in my backyard.
I’ve taken photos of white-tailed deer and red fox in my yard. My Birdfy camera-equipped bird feeder has been visited by Eastern gray squirrels and mice.
And last Thanksgiving, I threw the carcass of our turkey in the backyard to see what creatures would come to eat it. It attracted some ravenous foxes and raccoons who picked it clean. I captured the photos with my Stealth Cam motion-activated camera.

Eastern gray squirrel

Mice

Red fox

Raccoon

Birds of Northern Virginia: Hawks, owls, herons and woodpeckers

My interest in the birds of Northern Virginia expands beyond my bird feeder. I’ve taken photos in my yard of a barred owl, red-shouldered hawk and pileated woodpecker.
My suet feeder attracts the downy woodpecker, but I don’t have any good photos to share.
In my neighborhood and park walks, I’ve seen the great blue heron, mallard ducks and tons of Canada geese (which are a messy nuisance). I’ve seen robins, crows and vultures as well.

Pileated woodpecker

Red-shouldered hawk

Great blue heron

Mallard ducks

Birds of Northern Virginia: catbirds, cowbirds, doves and jays

This is my fourth and last post on the birds that show up to my camera-equipped bird feeder.
These are among the more unusual visitors I’ve gotten. They include the blue jay, brown-headed cowbird, gray catbird and mourning dove.

Blue jay

Brown-headed cowbird

Gray catbird

Mourning dove

Related articles:

Blue jay

Brown-headed cowbird

Gray catbird

Mourning dove

Birds of Northern Virginia: chickadees, nuthatches and titmice

My favorite birds that visit my bird feeder are the less frequent guests. They include little birds like the black-capped chickadee, Carolina wren, dark-eyed junco, tufted titmouse and white-breasted nuthatch.
They are rather timid when compared with the aggressive sparrows and cardinals at my Birdfy bird feeder.
By the way, a useful tool for identifying birds by their songs and calls is the Merlin Bird ID smartphone app from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y.

Black-capped chickadee

Carolina wren

Dark-eyed junco

Tufted titmouse

White-breasted nuthatch

Related articles:

Black-capped chickadee

Carolina wren

Dark-eyed junco

Tufted titmouse

White-breasted nuthatch