Oh deer...

One of the best parts about living in a national park is the wildlife you see on a daily basis. Of course we get the typical chipmunk, squirrel, and insect sightings, but we are also treated to a variety of animals that simply do not appear on the east coast.

On Thursday night, as I was reading in bed, I was disturbed by a great commotion coming from outside my cabin. It was a combination of growling, munching, and scratching and of course I automatically thought that my mice had mutated and become one-hundred times their original size.

Then I heard doors open from graduate cabins around me and as we peaked our heads out of our doors we realized that we were being visited by four enormous buffalo. Our interest did not seem to disturb them, however, seeing a bison ten feet from your bed is quite impressive.

The next morning, on my walk to the bathroom, I was pleased to see three mule deer grazing on the plants around the graduate circle. They were beautiful and the buck had a full set of antlers on his head. After a while they loped into the woods. In the next few weeks, as winter blows into the Tetons we will be visited by moose, elk, and wolves who come down through Jackson for their winter migrations.

Lastly, I have the animals who come and visit me in my cabin. For the past few days my mice problem has abated and I was relieved to get a few good nights of rest in my own bed. Last night, I heard the familiar scratching and gnawing coming from my loft. Intending to capture and kill the mouse that was making the racket I boldly headed up the steps only to find two bats having their nightly meal. They had made my loft their home and were nestled in a corner enjoying the warmth. I calmly walked down the steps, so as not to disturb them, and then not so calmly ran to Jamie's cabin where we proceeded to look up bat removal techniques. In the end, I slept in Jamie's cabin and the bats slept in mine.

Having had a few hours to reflect upon the bats I have decided that in the hierarchy of "animal pests" bats are no so bad. As long as they stay in the loft and eat my mice and insect visitors, we are going to have a wonderful year together.