When the snow lay round about, deep and crisp and even

 

Sunrise on the day before Christmas reveals a newly fallen 20 inches of snow

First use of the Kubota tractor and its snowblower this winter

Even, except for the drifts. They sort of undulate.

We just had two days of snow here in this part of Northwestern Ontario and the result is 40-50 centimeters  (18-20 inches). And just like the song goes, it is crisp, -22 C or about -5 F. It was our first major snowfall of the winter. I had only put the snowblower on the tractor a day earlier.

We weren't in danger of having a brown Christmas, however. There were about three inches of white stuff that had gradually accumulated over December before the big blast.

Say, did you see the conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn? Me neither. It is preordained that celestial events like this only happen during cloudy skies.

Brenda and I wish you a safe Christmas. That is about the best we can give each other right now. We will make merry next year.

 

Is that a wolf or a coyote?

Taller, heavier canine is certainly a wolf

Smaller animal is a coyote although a big one

 When you see one of these canines by itself, it isn't easy to tell which species you are looking at. Is it a big coyote or a small wolf, or the opposite? Some of my decision-making comes from the animal's behaviour. Coyotes are far more likely to be seen in the open, in fields, than wolves which stick to the heavy cover. Still, even wolves must cross roads and if you see them doing it, what were they?

One of my trailcams caught both a timber wolf (aka grey wolf) and a coyote at different times but in similar positions and light. The coyote is the same animal shown a posting or two back crossing our field. It is a BIG coyote. It reminds me of the Littlest Hobo. The wolf is obviously heavier and larger and he too is of good size, probably larger than average. His tracks are about four inches wide. The coyote's are just two inches.

Some timber wolves reach extraordinary size and I have never heard a good explanation for it other than it must just be the genes. These wolves measure eight feet from nose to end of the tail, stand about four feet tall and have footprints nearly six inches wide. They are "super wolves."

Wildlife biologists I have spoken to don't seem too interested in the size disparity which baffles me. The super wolves are double the size and weight of ordinary wolves. What if they were a game species? Would a biologist study whitetail deer that reached 600 pounds? 

A super wolf crossed the road right in front of Brenda's car one time and she gasped at its size. When the canine's nose was at the center of the road, its tail was still at the shoulder. My God!

Lots of people wonder what wolves and coyotes weigh. The wolf in the photos might be as heavy as 120 pounds. I would say the average wolf would be more like 80 pounds. The "super wolves' can weigh 200 pounds.

The coyote pictured is probably about 40 pounds.

 

Same wolf as top photo but at a different location and better light conditions

Something to ponder this Christmas

If I could give all the people of Canada and the United States a gift this Christmas it would be this: understand the difference between morality and ideology.

If we could all clearly make that distinction I believe we would immediately begin to make the world a better place.

I bring this up now because it is the "Season of Giving." No child should have a Christmas without a gift. No family should have a Christmas Day without a feast of turkey and cranberries. Undoubtedly all true. Our moral backbone won't stand for anything less.

And the rest of the year? We become spineless jellyfish. We let ideologues tell us how to think and feel. These can be politicians, business leaders and their associations, even clergy. They tell us that people are homeless because they are lazy and don't want to work; that people are hungry because they would rather be addicts. This is ideological nonsense. 

Let us give ourselves a gift this year. Let us give ourselves a voice to shout down these nincompoops. Let us build our nations up on morality. That is what Christmas is all about. Peace and Love. Every day. Every occasion. Every choice.

Grey fox a nightly visitor now

 This Grey Fox visits our bird feeder every night. It is a new species for us, probably an example of climate change.