Cuchi Time: Campus Fauna

After sending a final email, turning off my laptop and packing up my things, I stepped out of my office door late Friday afternoon to see this: 

Two Bambis, ambling along.

You know, just some deer roaming around the university footpaths, nibbling on the lawn and landscaping. They generally come out to feed in the early mornings and later in the afternoons.

People are surprised when I tell them that I teach at a campus with half-domesticated deer roaming around. I tell them that they're our version of the pigeon. Only bigger. More dangerous. More on that later.

New students, particularly, are delighted to see the deer when they first come to campus. "How cute!" they say! "They're adorable!" they insist!

Doe and fawn. "Super cuchi!!!!" yell my students.

My students think I'm a super weirdo when I first share my disdain for the campus deer population. But, in time, they grow to understand.

The deer are just everywhere. And lots of them. And they aren't scared of humans, so they just wander in and out of foot paths and -- worse -- bike paths and roads. This doe below had just waltzed out into the road in front of my moving vehicle before I stopped to take her photo. Here she is, grazing along the side of the road as my car idles alongside her. Could. Not. Care. Less.

Much like pigeons, deer are a lot mangier and not quite so Bambi-adorable up close.

I know I sound like a crazy old person, but I think that the deer population on campus is a major liability -- not only do they cause bike and automobile accidents -- and the bike accidents are particularly devastating -- but they attract large predators as well. I've seen a handful of mountain lions on campus over the years (I don't have any photographs, but that probably has to do with the fact that I was too busy pooping myself each and every time), all drawn to "lower" campus in search of an easy snack. And have I even told you about how aggressive and scary young bucks can be? Especially during mating season? Scary, scary, scary.

Magical 7pm light cutting across the great meadow. 

The photos above and below, of young bucks grazing in the great meadow, were taken from super far away, using my camera's zoomiest digital zoom.

Yes, they're beautiful. I can't deny that.

Yes, magic.

I just wish that they weren't such a nuisance.

Grumble, grumble.

At least the cattle that are brought to campus to graze every summer and fall are fenced in.

Quintessential campus view. Those familiar with the UC Santa Cruz campus will
immediately recognize this view across the Monterey Bay. 

FYI: The photos of these multitudes of deer (and the final photo of the cattle ) were all taken in the span of 15 minutes late in the afternoon, Friday, July 20. Fifteen minutes!!!

I was lucky enough to leave before dusk and not run into any marauding raccoons (our version of the gutter rat?), by the way. I won't even get into the raccoons...