The first storm of 2012 dropped four inches of slushy snow overnight. The snow was the perfect foil to expose those who lurk in the shadows of the night.

Living in the Maine countryside means that you share the land with predators. We’ve seen eagles, hawks, fox, bobcats, and bear. At night, we’ve heard the owls and coyotes calling. We know these predators are out there, but it’s another thing to see such irrefutable evidence.

Something is stalking our chickens and ducks. When checking for eggs early this morning, Hannah found these tracks coming out of the woods.

It paced back and forth along the coop and circled the chicken run.

Then it veered across the drive to circle the duck pen.

The ducks seemed quite wary today, spending much of the day in their pen. I think their survival instincts may be a little stronger than that of the chickens.

When I stopped following tracks and finally checked for eggs here’s what I found when I opened the hatch.

A little privacy, please!