Porcupine den in fallen tree root ball

Dan went tracking at Quabbin over the weekend with David Brown. We
found red fox, grey fox, bobcat, fisher, otter, porcupine, and weasel
tracks. We also found fresh moose barking, raccoon and otter latrines
(right where Janet would have looked), otter slides, and a hole where
otter were re-entering the beaver pond. One of us (no, not me) learned
the hard way that otter have a knack for finding the weakest spot in the
ice to place their hole. (Walking up to a hole in the ice is a great
way to make a second hole in the ice!)

One highlight of the trip was seeing a porcupine den (complete with
resident porcupine) in the root ball of a fallen tree right at the edge
of a wetland. One side of the root mass had a sheltered opening large
enough for a bear, if you were a bear who liked denning up in porcupine
scat!

David Brown has at least one more Quabbin trip planned for this year.
Visit http://www.dbwildlife.com for details.