Where the wild things are....

I've mentioned in previous posts that our backyard sits up against the Air Force Base but instead of military buildings and industrial stuff, we have a view of the beautiful prairie. I tell people that we have all of the advantages of living in the country. We have a scenic view and no neighbors behind us, but we are just a few minutes from work and school and Target, all the town stuff. There are a couple minor disadvantages; when the wind howls from the west, our house is the first line of defense and there are many times of the year when that wind is howling. In a month or so, it's Attack of the Giant Tumbleweeds because weed control is *ahem* lacking on the federal land and those tumbleweeds find a nice cosy spot to roost on our front porch. But despite the winds and weeds, one of our favorite things about this house is the view of the prairie off of our back porch and all of the wildlife that lives there.

Here's our resident herd of antelope. We get to watch the circle of life with this herd as the months go by. Well, let me clarify, we don't see the whole "circle" because there's no hunting on the AFB so other than disease or really bad weather, this herd is pretty protected. We get to see the littletinybabyantelopes race around after their mama's in the early summer, watch the males jockey for position during the rut, see the big fat pregnant mom's-to-be's when springtime rolls around, and then it starts all over again.

I've mentioned Banjo (Banjo-te!) in previous posts but he's the resident buck. This time of year is hard on ol' Banjo because he has to be on alert to other manly types coming in and stealing his herd away. He works hard to keep the rest of the herd in a tight bunch and chases any strays back into the fold. He makes me tired just watching it all.

Besides the antelope, we've seen a few foxes, a lone coyote, lots of hawks and possibly eagles, jack rabbits and this cat. I've mistaken this cat for a bobcat more than once and been overly excited for 30 seconds until I pull the binoculars out and realize, "No. Not a bobcat. Just a big fat neighbor cat." Our pretty prairie view. Just another reason why we love living in Wyoming.