Wildlife in the woods near the Fenton Inn

                                      

This opossum is pretending to be invisible as it holds to a small tree about four feet up.  We were not fooled, but undeterred the possum kept up the pose for a while until we finally walked away.  I guess he will think it worked and we never found him.  The opossum is a very ancient animal, unchanged for millions of years.  Despite being one of the oldest species of mammals, they usually live only a few years.  They grow fast and mature quickly, having up to a dozen babies in a litter that they carry around in their pouch.

A baby box turtle in its first weeks of life.  Like the opossum, turtles have been around unchanged for a long and move at the same slow pace.  But unlike the opossum, the box turtle can live for a century.

                                                   Another picture of the baby box turtle.

We have a resident male turtle that we have seen in the same area of the woods for years.  Sometimes he  takes a stroll down the Fenton Inn Main Street.  No sign of the rabbit, so we declared him the winner when he went through the arch in the clock tower.

A close up of the adult male box turtle.  Note the red eyes, which indicate his gender or a late night down at the brewery.  Perhaps that is where he lost the rabbit.