What the melting snow reveals

A backyard that was covered with snow during the winter appeared frozen and lifeless on the surface.  Underneath that snowpack, protected from frigid airtemps, local rodents were busy scavenging.  An early mid-February warm spell has revealed their foraging paths, from the woods and the neighbor's yard to the area under the birdfeeder on our deck, and out toward occasional tossed bread crusts.  Raptors and foxes are able to ambush these rodents.

Related old post: A fox dives into DEEP snow - update #2.  Worth revisiting, if only for the second video showing a domestic dog pouncing a baby's shadow.