Snowflakes are flying, snowflakes are flying.
Forest paths were covered with snow.
Jackdaws hid in the pipes from the cold.
And the hares put on white fur coats.

For the indigenous inhabitants of forests, winter is a harsh time. The ground was covered with a blanket of snow, and food remained under it. In cold weather, birds and animals need even more food to replenish the energy spent on warming up. Frosts drive forest dwellers closer to human habitation. Tits and bullfinches moved to the cities. In city parks, you can see flocks of squealing waxwings, pecking up rowan berries covered with hoarfrost.
It is more difficult for wild animals. If foxes and wolves sometimes wander into villages in the hope of ruining a poorly guarded chicken coop, then ungulates in search of food have to overcome many kilometers of path through deep snow. Slender roe deer and giant elk are equally afraid of night frosts after daytime thaws. The hard crust leaves deep cuts on the legs.
But such days please light wolves. The ice crust of the crust withstands emaciated predators. It is not difficult for them to catch up with the unfortunate roe deer falling belly up to their belly into the snow. White hares also feel at ease. With giant leaps they rush across the snow-covered field to the nearest copse. There the bitter bark of young aspen awaits them. White skin reliably masks defenseless animals from bloodthirsty foxes and wolves.
Troubled squirrels also changed for the winter, changed their red coats to silver-gray ones. Throughout the fall, the animals have been stocking up on nuts and berries, scattering supplies in hollows, and now they have nothing to worry about. The bravest go to settlements to feast on seeds, carefully poured by people into bird feeders.
The fox is left with only one prey - vole mice. Silently sliding through the snow, the fox listens sensitively to the rustle of the grass under the snow cover. She mouse. Here the red ears with a black spark perked up. Bounce! The fox dives deep into the snow. Another moment, and the prey is in the teeth of the predator.
Meanwhile, the owner of the forest, the brown bear, is sleeping like a heroic dream. All summer and autumn, the bear, who had been eating in the meadows and in the raspberries, has accumulated a supply of nutrients under its thick skin. Now he can rest in his den until spring comes. The badger follows his example. Back in early November, this clumsy animal lay in a hole, where it sleeps until the end of March.