Where has all the wildlife gone...

In November 2024 as we waited for the demolition crew to get started on our home project, Hiram, our beloved scarlet oak, decided to get started before the humans. He dropped a limb vertically that plunged into our deck's old boards and pierced right through lodging itself with half the limb below the deck and the other half above. I laughed and sent the demolition guys (which included Hiram's arborist) a picture that Hiram was ready to get the machines rolling. The crew laughed too. The demolition of our porch and deck was complete in December 2024. Now the crew could inspect and repair our home's foundation.

It took until June 2026 before the new deck and porch were complete with furniture back in place. Hubby and I and Hiram are glad both complete. But oh, how I missed the deck and porch over those 1-1/2 years! One thing I missed was feeding and watering the wildlife, and there was an abundance. Crows, songbirds, squirrels, foxes, groundhogs, possums, chipmunks, and raccoons. 

When the old porch and deck were still intact, I named one of the squirrels Millet. Sometimes we dined together--Millet on the deck while I sat nearby on a chair inside the screen porch. I'd talk to Millet, and she'd listen as she munched. Sometimes, if there weren't enough nuts, she'd come to the screen door and ask for more. How did she ask? She would either patiently stare and wait. Or, if she got inpatient, she'd climb on the screen door. I didn't mind at all. 

On some nights as I sat on the old porch with no lights on, Racoon would visit. He'd stand up on his hind legs on the deck and peer into the porch. We'd gaze at each other for up to maybe five minutes. The scene still gives me a chuckle because I, inside the screen porch was the one in the cage. 

One day a lone, injured crow visited. As I sat nearby, I talked with him about how I understood injury and isolation, and I know how hard it is and that he and I both were doing our best to care for ourselves. 

This summer, after our new deck and porch were complete, I again spread almonds and walnuts and millet along the deck rail and on the deck steps and floor. But few animals visited. I told myself, "They'll be back once they know they can trust us again. I'm sure the demolition scared them away." 

Now, at the beginning of Fall, some songbirds are back, and of course crows. But they don't yet visit while I'm on the porch. I pray that changes over time. I've only seen a few squirrels and chipmunks. No raccoons. No foxes. No groundhogs. And even though deer don't eat food from the deck, we've had less deer sightings in our yard. And there has been less bird song from the woods in the upper part of our backyard. 

I hope wherever they've gone, that they have found safe places. 

I'm thankful the wildlife is still close by. Maybe I'll make some new deck friends as time goes on. 

But the dearth of wildlife is not just in our back yard. This summer I've noticed the same dearth as I've biked the woods on greenways and rail trails. And I find myself singing, "Where has all the wildlife gone? Birds, squirrels, snakes, and deer. When will we ever learn? When will we ever learn."