Wildlife, living next to nature
Tyngsborough, Massachusetts, a town of about 11,000 on the New Hampshire border, 28 miles north and west of Boston. A family living there were excited to see a couple of Bobcats hanging out in their yard. So were the
Boston TV reporters.
It's fun to spot something bigger than a squirrel or woodchuck in your yard, or even your town. Fox, Coyote, Big Cats, Deer, Moose, or Bear are pretty rare sightings for most Americans, and that's kind of sad.
Most of us live in pretty close proximity to each other these days. The majority of parents demand any ground the kids can access be made safe from Mother Nature's teeth, claws, hooves, barbs and spines. My god, the children, won't somebody please think of the children.
So I guess if the critters showed up they'd be tarred & feathered, then run out of town on a rail.
Hey look, a critter, take it's picture. I can't, the battery's dead on my phone... of course if the phone wasn't dead, the critter wouldn't have been spotted in the first place. :rolleyes:
I'd love to see bobcats. So far, just foxes (who scream in the most bone-shivering way during mating season ... ), a very occasional coyote, and prey animals. If I could keep the hunters off my bit of land, maybe I'd see a predator.
I've seen both a bobcat and a bear here. It is pretty cool.
The bobcat population is on the rise. Used to be, if you saw a live bobcat, you counted yourself a member of a very exclusive club.
Around here, the increased visibility of the bobcat is not due to habitat encroachment. There's just more of them. Our bobcat season harvest records back this up. The 2013 season shows 3189 bobcats taken in KY. This number astounds me.
Pop caught this one on one of his trailcams several years ago:
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I'm just freaked out by the number of familiar names on that map.
Which is silly, because I've known since I was ?14? and first studied American history that that was the case.
Seems more real when it's on the Cellar though.
I've never not ever spotted even a squirrel in our back garden. That's Skwi-rell BTW, not Skwirl :LOL: I envy the 'rents and their soon-to-be-garden, because I bet they get squirrels there.
But before the housing estate grew up aroud us I regularly saw foxes (not urban, the ones that ate mousies) low-slung grunting badgers, bats which looked like wind-up toys flung into the sky, and rabbits grey as dawn. I miss the connection with nature and with the seasons.
Limey sees more - far more. I saw my first ever hare from her window.
And her whole world changes every month, but every month it stays the same.
Holy cow Digr, PA has grown from 58 Bobcats in 2000 to 1056 last year, but 3189 is mind boggling. :eek:
Oh, we harvested 40,109 coyotes which the state pays a $25 bounty on from a $700,000 fund the legislature set aside. :confused: Couldn't they just start a rumor the Coyotes are moving into the state to sell crack and let the thugs take care of it?
Also 343,110 deer, plus probably another 100,000 on the roads.
Issued 72 Elk permits which yielded 72 bulls, 14 over 700 lbs.
What surprised me was 3,510 bear, 58 over 500 lbs, and one at 772 lbs.
A 772 lb black bear!! That's a Sasquatch.
KY killed 20 bears.
Interestingly, we just today got a notice from our MUD about coyote sightings and missing/mutilated pets in the area. They claimed that shooting them just makes room for another one to move in, and they will instead be clearing underbrush and generally making the environment undesirable for them so they will go away on their own. I'm dubious.
Predators are necessary for a healthy ecosystem. We ruthlessly exterminate every predator we can and then lament that we're overrun with prey animals.
http://www.wcax.com/story/25028417/vt-woman
Nancy Hill thought the cat needed help.
"It was below zero and I thought the poor cat needs to get in and thaw in warmth," said Hill.
Looking out her Greensboro window on Town Meeting Day, Hill said she saw the animal sitting under her bird feeder and sprang into action.
"I used to have a cat and I had a cat carrier," said Hill.
She grabbed the carrier, dashed out the door, fast approaching the feline and finding something wasn't right.
"There was quite a bit of blood and some fur," she said.
And as Hill got close, she quickly learned the cat was no kitty.
"Well once it got up, it went so fast, it was scary," said Hill.
Hill almost caged herself a bobcat.
We've all held a 2 pound kitten that went batshit crazy, and turned into a furious ball of teeth and claws and owfuckshitgetitoffofme. You can't get rid of one fast enough.
Now imagine if it was as feral as possible, and weighed forty+ pounds.
A healthy bobcat can bring down a half-grown deer.
:eek:
Not all of us ... cats get an undeservedly bad rap.
You've never had a kitten suddenly turn into a buzzsaw? :eek:
So the buzzsaw experience should be on my bucket list? :lol:
I can't help it if cats just love me. Or maybe it's the fact that the kittens I bred were handled from birth and intensively socialized, and turned out to be adorable, people-loving balls of fluff.
Cats do have a different psychology than dogs. You can't attempt to dominate a cat and have anything good happen. Unlike dogs, cats will ramp up the aggression if you become aggressive. Their brains are just wired differently.
Cats are more like toddlers. Redirect, time out, remove from the scene ... they respond to cause and effect as long as it's not direct aggression that throws them into fight mode.
That's how kittens play, suddenly they're all teeth and claws. That's what they do with each other, and you if your handy when they get the urge. I've also had them climb me when I was leaning against the kitchen counter talking with someone. Those sharp little claws go deep, and anything you do to mitigate the carnage only makes things worse.
Those sharp little claws go deep, and anything you do to mitigate the carnage only makes things worse.
That is when you stop playing with them.
Like a buzz saw, you can't stop fast enough, and you stopping doesn't necessarily mean them stopping. They'll stop when they get bored, but in the meantime they can do considerable damage. Older cats are a little faster stopping, but cat or kitten, if they've decided to climb you they won't stop half way without serious opposition. Of course once the claws are dug in, I don't want them to stop and think about it. :haha:
Drop Bears! Drop Bears everywhere!
[YOUTUBE]CpueTOCRrxc[/YOUTUBE]
You've been hanging out with the wrong cats, man ...
Normal cats, not raised like a bunch of pussies Canadian cats.
Not quite in the same league as big cats and wolves, but we do have a breeding pair of Peregrine Falcons in the locality. Their favoured nesting location is a cliff face.
We have something of a shortage of cliffs in Buckinghamshire but we do have an acceptable man made substitute.
For several years a nesting platform has been provided on the County Council HQ buillding in Aylesbury. It is an architectural abomination but the Peregrines seem quite happy there.
You can see the webcam here:
Aylesbury Peregrines
Aylesbury's Peregrine Falcons Lay First Egg Of The Year
Should you wish, the architechural abomination can be viewed here:
Street View.No! Is old enough now to be a folly (Pooley's).
I love it.
You have to learn from your mistakes, and to learn from them they have to be visible.
From miles and miles and many miles around.
No! Is old enough now to be a folly (Pooley's).
I love it.
You have to learn from your mistakes, and to learn from them they have to be visible.
From miles and miles and many miles around.
Some years ago it was rumoured to be sinking.
I'm still waiting...
That's big plus for Aylesbury. Most large cities here have peregrines nesting on tall buildings. Like Aylesbury, pigeons supply unlimited food.
Absolutely. The Cathedral of Learning in Pittsburgh has a pair of nesting peregrines. A few years ago a second pair attempted to move in lower on the tower ... the first pair killed them. :(
But the original pair apparently successfully raise young each spring. There are local ordinances protecting them.
Normal cats, not raised like a bunch of pussies Canadian cats.
Ha! Apparently you've never met any Canadian cats. We raise 'em wild and smart, feisty and opinionated. Canadian pussies are
very difficult to tame, although utterly worth the effort.
Canadian cats? No. Canadian pussies? Plenty. Half my father's family live in the Kingston Ontario area.
However, your description of kitten behavior doesn't jibe with dozens I've raised or met, south of the 49th parallel.
You can only have met feral or poorly socialized kittens, seriously. Cats have to be socialized just like dogs. Imagine trying to cuddle up to a feral dog. Probably wouldn't go well, no? So why do we criticize poorly socialized kittens and cats?
Cats who are socialized from birth are immensely human-oriented. I've raised numerous generations; this is my experience. I've gotten breeding kittens from other breeders, and they were (with only one exception) never as well socialized as mine. I put the time in. Again, consider how much time we spend with puppies and young dogs. If you spend the equivalent time with a young cat, you'll have a loyal companion who loves you every bit as much as a dog, but is FAR more intelligent.
eta: besides: dogs can't purr.
You've raised generations of cats and never had a kitten cut you up? Bullshit, your memory is shot. Sounds like you raised generations of inbred retards, real cats don't do that.
It's not a matter of socialization, reread what I wrote. They're not attacking, it's the way they play. Unfortunately we don't have fur to absorb most of those sharp little claws and teeth. They scream at each other when play gets too rough, and will stop if you scream too, but by the time they realize playtime is over the damage is done.
They can do a lot of damage in milliseconds. Sundae knows, so does Fargon, and Gravdigr.
Some dogs can purr.
Pugs are pugly.
And sorry Bruce, but you don't know what you're talking about! My cats were not inbred; I deliberately crossed lines that weren't accepted by the powers that be. I took traditionals, who had major dollops of American Shorthair genes, and crossed them with moderns. I had intermediates that I bred back to traditionals, and intermediates that I bred back to moderns. I kept the best of all of the litters and worked toward an intermediate Siamese cat that wasn't 90 % American Shorthair and wasn't susceptible to the ills of the moderns. I bred shorthair traditional Balinese as well as longhairs. I mixed up the gene pools as much as possible.
It IS a matter of socialization. My kittens climbed the bookcases, and they loved to climb the 7' tall queening enclosure ... but they never, ever launched themselves onto me and left me bleeding after they'd had their fun. They followed me around the house, climbed all over me, and learned to obey quite a few commands. Just like intelligent puppies. Would you think it normal for puppies to attack you and rip your arm or leg to shreds? Not likely. Good kittens don't do that either.
Why are we arguing about this ... ?
Yeah, yeah, yeah, breeders always claim their widdle kitahs would never do anything bad, then release their hellspawn on unsuspecting children of the world. But anyone who's lived with kittens/cats, no matter how much they love them, ain't buying your bullshit because it has has more holes than a screen door.
...or nylon stocking in kitten territory.
Ah, but I am not the average breeder of widdle kittahs. I gave it up after a few years. I bred the best cats I've ever known, but I couldn't stand the breeder
'culture' and I didn't like selling the babies to strangers.
My contract stipulates that I'll take back any kitteh that people don't like/find inconvenient/any other reason. I've stayed in touch with my owners and they know it's true. I consider any creature that I've caused to be born to be my responsibility for life.
I call YOU on bullshit, Bruce. You haven't ever encountered a socialized cat. They are the best, the most loyal, the most intelligent animals around. I hear that rats are very intelligent, too ... but I prefer cats. Dogs are nice, and I've loved many of them. No dissing of dogs here.
See there, you claim "not the average breeder"... just like every other breeder. :rolleyes: Breeders have no credibility.
You can make all the claims you want about your special kitties, anyone with a history of cats will simply laugh in your general direction.
Why the fuck do we need cat breeders, they seem to do quite well on their own. Matter of fact, they'd overrun the whole damn town if we let them.
That's big plus for Aylesbury. Most large cities here have peregrines nesting on tall buildings. Like Aylesbury, pigeons supply unlimited food.
I understand that a pigeon met its doom at the talons of a Peregrine on the ground in the town centre last year but most are taken in flight.
I've never knowingly seen the Aylesbury Peregrines although I've had the occasional sighting here five miles south of the town of what I assume to be other than the birds in question.
You know when something fast and deadly is about as even the corpulent Wood Pigeons are startled enough to get themselves airborne pronto.
Of possible interest is the work of the wildlife hospital at Haddenham.
It's known by the rather twee name of 'Tiggywinkles' but is formally known as the Wildlife Hospital Trust. A TV series was made about the hospital a few years ago and I think that it was also shown on PBS.
Anyway, here's the video. It won't win an Oscar but it is a gentle amble describing their work and worth a few minutes of your time.... I hope!
[YOUTUBE]yln5rJLApWw[/YOUTUBE]
The Red Kites shown at about the 3.00 mark are wonderful creatures. Only a few native birds remained in the UK in mid-Wales until about twenty years ago when a reintroduction program was started.
Chicks were brought in from Scandinavia and Spain over a number of years in an attempt to increase numbers. When the birds were released into the wild those from Scandinavia tended to go home but those from Spain had a touch of mañana and mostly stayed put. Their numbers have gone from strength to strength and we even had one land in the front garden the summer before last.
Unfortunately, I once found a Red Kite that had collided with a power cable and severed its wing. The staff at Tiggywinkles expected it to survive as the wing was lost at the very point where amputations are normally made and it hadn't lost much blood. They have a large aviary for Kites that cannot be released and it was expected to have a future there. Sadly, it succumbed about ten days after I took it in.
You know when something fast and deadly is about as even the corpulent Wood Pigeons are startled enough to get themselves airborne pronto.
Ha ha, I think if I knew this sumbitch was coming at me at... ahem,
389 km/h (242 mph on this side of the pond), I might be able to fly. :eek:
Ha ha, I think if I knew this sumbitch was coming at me at... ahem, 389 km/h (242 mph on this side of the pond), I might be able to fly. :eek:
A bit like hanging... it concentrates the mind wonderfully! :eek:
(With apologies to Dr Samuel Johnson)
ETA: Keep going with the Imperial units, Bruce. I haven't been metricated yet.:):)
You can make all the claims you want about your special kitties, anyone with a history of cats will simply laugh in your general direction.
I get it, I get it: you hate cats. No animal is going to be calm and loving around someone who hates it. I'm sure you and the cats are happiest staying well away from each other. It's win/win. ;)
No, you don't get it at all. I don't hate cats, I've had dozens of them, spent dozens if not hundreds of hours watching TV with one in my lap, and know goddamn well what a normal... and a few abnormal... cats act like. I kid Sundae that dogs are better, and do prefer them, but those Frankenstein cats you describe don't exist in anybody's world but yours.
So I :lol: in your general direction.
I don't think Ortho has ever played with a cat. Or a kitten. Or she's confused as to what, exactly, a cat/kitten is.
This is the animal we're talking about:
[ATTACH]47242[/ATTACH]
At the end of each of those four legs is a chainsaw, and just below the nose is a wood chipper.
This animal will happily claw out your liver and smother you with it.
Vicious, vicious little beastie.
It can be said without contradiction that, in this thread at least, the cat has been set among the pigeons.
I'll see myself out...
Ha ha, I think if I knew this sumbitch was coming at me at... ahem, 389 km/h (242 mph on this side of the pond), I might be able to fly. :eek:
I'd damn sure be trying! Or I might make like a mole -
dive! dive! dive!Simon knows...
[YOUTUBE]l5ODwR6FPRQ[/YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBE]w0ffwDYo00Q[/YOUTUBE]
Elk
[YOUTUBEWIDE]hIEIU9S30l8[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
There is one in every crowd.
There nearly wasn't.
Poor baby.
I have kept Cats all my life and have the scars to prove it.
Cool wapiti vid, Bruce.
__________________________
Bees. On a Hornet.
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See there, you claim "not the average breeder"... just like every other breeder. :rolleyes: Breeders have no credibility.
You can make all the claims you want about your special kitties, anyone with a history of cats will simply laugh in your general direction.
Why the fuck do we need cat breeders, they seem to do quite well on their own. Matter of fact, they'd overrun the whole damn town if we let them.
You, sir, are an asshole. Or have been behaving like one for the past week.
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Me before my diagnosis.
Me during chemo, when my first queen slept with me every night. She followed me around the apartment, fussed at me until I got into bed, and stayed with me every moment when I was too ill to reach out and turn off the bedside lamp. 'Why the fuck do we need cat breeders'? We need
good cat breeders because this is what I produced. And dozens more like her.
I assume you had a bad week, Bruce. You're better than the bullshit you doggedly pursued in this thread.
You've have a loyal pet, you bred/raised yourself. Big fucking deal. :celebrat:
Plenty of others have, or have had, loyal pets, like elspode, UT, Gravdigr, Griff and plenty more. You know what? They did it without breeding their own, without adding to the
2,700,000 that are
euthanized every fucking year, in this country.
Oh I know, your special kitties go to special families, and you'll take them back if necessary.
Yeah, fuck that shelter cat that was killed because that special family bought your special spawn instead of rescuing them.
But you're little kitties are special, different, not like everyday cats.
Well, duh, that's what I've been trying to get through your thick skull. You have no idea what real cats are like, not a clue.
I'll put it another way, you've been spoiled with Blizzaks most people can't afford, so you've out of touch with how hazardous winter driving is for real people.
Oh, and bad week? No, I'm always an asshole, fuck you very much.
You think I have no idea about shelter cats, Bruce. You never bothered to inquire whether I've adopted any.
You're so sure I have a thick skull that you really believe I don't know what 'real' cats are like. From my experience with shelter cats, feral cats, and purebred cats, I can tell you things about cat psychology that you haven't the least clue about.
Yes, feral and shelter cats are fucked up, because they've been fucked over by the human species. They're a pseudo-somewhat-domesticated version of bigger cats that never trusted humans, and when they're fucked over by humans once again, why, they escalate to whatever it takes to protect themselves.
They're not dogs. They don't roll over in the face of aggression; they escalate. You will never resolve a 'situation' with a cat by becoming aggressive, even if that means just raising your voice. They aren't wired like dogs.
I've had dozens of 'real' cats, twelve-toed barn cats, black amazing mousers, cats that live in the barn, the feral queen who jealously guards her kittens. What makes you think you're the King of Knowing About Cats?
No, I'm not some Queen with Blizzaks who doesn't know the first fucking thing about cats. I've spent more time with them than you ever will. I've rescued more kittens than you ever will, I'm willing to bet. I don't buy the invalid argument that we should all give up on cats because so many fucking ignorant and greedy people refuse to neuter and spay. Should we just accept that the worst of random feral offspring are all that should represent domesticated cats and dogs? Or should we continue to push for spay/neuter programs and come down hard on the assholes who let unneutered/unspayed cats run around freely breeding?
Responsible people neuter and spay their cats (and dogs). I made sure my kittens were spayed/neutered. But you don't want to hear about that; you think everyone who is responsible with respect to cats is an elitist. No.
My cats stay with me when I'm sick. Cats are well known to do that.
Fuck you very much as well, Bruce.
eta: the crisis of shelter pets/kittens/puppies arises entirely out of the transgressions of ignorant, asshole people who are too lazy to spay/neuter their pets and who then dump them in the ditch, with random acquaintances, etc. These are HUMAN problems, not cat/dog problems. REAL cats are fantastic; abused PTSD cats, not so much. Why are you blaming them, or blaming me for producing loving, attached kittens who become lifelong companions?
Abuse the ones who deserve it: the asshole humans who abuse and abandon dogs and cats every day. THEY are the assholes who don't know what a real dog or cat is like.
And don't present yourself as the champion of all domesticated cats, while simultaneously presenting them as psycho-buzzsaw homicidal killers. I'm glad you and grav and others have taken in feral/damaged cats. You guys deserve a big high-five. You're good guys for doing that. But don't confuse having taken in feral/damaged cats with the 'reality' of most domesticated cats.
And, I'm done.
Well, I guess you told me. :mock:
Had you been a cat, that would not resolve the situation ... you dog, you. ;)
@Bruce ... I've been told numerous times ... doesn't mean I don't love you. xx
@sexobon ... my cats have always been better than me. I yam what I yam ... ;)
Cat fight! ;)
Thread drift back to original ; There are coyotes here bobcats, foxes and almost every kind of water fowl. The latest are the sandhill cranes that stand almost 4 ft tall and make a hell of a lot of noise. My friend came to pick me up one day and could not believe the racket early in the morning. She was also treated to the sight of a bald eagle and I can't tell you how rare that is as well as some white swans and coots.
I came home from buying feed the other day and a pheasant was out near the road strutting around with his 3 ladies. These are all common sights for me. I am also pretty sure by the tracks he leaves there is a coy dog living near by we only see him once in awhile at night in the glare of the headlights. My cattle dog will soon be old enough to be out on his own and he will drive him off.
side note: I have had all kinds of cats the buzz saws and the couch ornaments, as far as my options go I like couch ornaments. [/ of opinion no one asked for]
I will bet both balls and all of my cock that those "special kittehs" will claw you to fucking ribbons and smile the whole time.
And, Ortho, if you still refuse to acknowledge that fact, well, you're just refusing to acknowledge facts.
That's where all this started. We said "cats scratch" you said 'no they don't. y'all got poor people's cats. rich people's cats are purebreds and don't scratch." Which is complete and utter bullshit. We've had purebreds, paid for them, too. They scratched every bit as much as the adopters, and adoptees. That's because they're cats.
And everyone who has ever owned a cat of any kind is asking themselves why you refuse to admit that cats scratch. And laughing like hell at you.
My cats have always been companions, playmates, not home decor.
Allow me to ask a control question:
Do dogs bite, bark, and/or shit?
I need to know your answer to this question to better react to your assertion about cats.
Yes, feral and shelter cats are fucked up, because they've been fucked over by the human species.
No they are not. Some of them are. Just as some doctors are geniuses, and some are not. Some doctors can fix ya from a laundry list of symptoms, some couldn't pour piss out of a boot with the directions on the bottom of the heel.
Here's a pic, pre-2009, of Slick lying on me...and I ain't even sick!:eek:
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Your black cat reminds me of a friends cat, who every time I would go there would jump on my lap as soon as I sat down. He'd look me in the eye then press his forehead against mine as hard as he could, then wander off. I'm used to the normal scent marking rub their head on you but this was very different and very strange.
I had a cat that I trained to ride around on my shoulder, even when I rode my bike to the post office a block away. (Country, not city) When she was a kitten it was winter in VT and I had on a duofold union suit, wool pants and wool shirt and sometimes a sweater. She'd just climb up my leg, up my chest or back and perch next to my ear.
When summer came she got pretty good about not using her claws, instead, she'd hunch down, make eye contact as if to say, "Here I come!" then she'd leap from the ground to my shoulder in one spring. She was pretty cool. I also taught her from very very early, the Helicopter manuever, where I'd put one hand on the lfet sode of her near her chest and the other hand on the right side of her near her haunches, lift her slightly and giver her a twirl. She got up to being able to do 2 1/2 360s. She'd do several rounds of them. The trick is to start them young and they just assume that is what normal is.
Her cousin, on the other hand was a high strung airhead who was basically a salad spinner of razor blades.
Hi my name is Footfootfoot and today I'm 5 years. 6 months and 21 days cat-free...
Hi my name is Footfootfoot and today I'm 5 years. 6 months and 21 days cat-free...
Hi, Footfootfoot. I see you're a cat-holic.
The trick is to start them young and they just assume that is what normal is.
This should be a cookie quote. It applies to so much.
What I have learned from this thread is that different people have had different experiences of cats - and that's just that.
...and that's just that.
I think it's more than that. Or less.
I confuse easily. Were we talking about tater tots? I like tater tots.
Tater tots are in the oven right now in the glatt household. And a sweet potato for me. But I'll have some tots too.
*scurries off to google tater tots*
Ahhhh. We have something similar. They're deelish.
Tater tots are in the oven right now in the glatt household. And a sweet potato for me. But I'll have some tots too.
"Napoleon, gimme some of your tots!"
This is more 'Surfing Next To Nature'...
A mammy humpback and her calf wave riding in Hawaii:
[ATTACH]47324[/ATTACH]
WTF? Humpbacks are 40, 50 ft long.:eek:
it's in the hotwash by accident
Oh my, hector's loyalties would be so torn on that one...
That's a cool shot. I'm rooting for the eagle.
Apparently they both taste like chicken.
I'm rooting for the eagle.
Damn straight.
OK Hector's rooting for Snakey
Snake-wrapped eagle with a watercress dressing?
I will bet both balls and all of my cock that those "special kittehs" will claw you to fucking ribbons and smile the whole time.
And, Ortho, if you still refuse to acknowledge that fact, well, you're just refusing to acknowledge facts.
That's where all this started. We said "cats scratch" you said 'no they don't. y'all got poor people's cats. rich people's cats are purebreds and don't scratch." Which is complete and utter bullshit.
Sorry you took my comments as 'rich vs poor', grav. I never said 'y'all got poor people's cats'; I shared my experience. I regret so much that I shared a pic of me with my cat when I was sick with chemo; I haven't shared any pics from chemo before. Not sure how that translated into your interpretation, or why Bruce saw it as fodder for more hostility, but it is what it is.
Never share, that's the lesson.
Be well, guys.
Snake-wrapped eagle with a watercress dressing?
Eeeewwww, snake and eagle deserve something more ballsy, maybe Chestnut.
Sorry you took my comments as 'rich vs poor', grav. I never said 'y'all got poor people's cats'; I shared my experience. I regret so much that I shared a pic of me with my cat when I was sick with chemo; I haven't shared any pics from chemo before.
Why, we all know you've been there, done that, pictures make no difference.
Not sure how that translated into your interpretation, or why Bruce saw it as fodder for more hostility, but it is what it is. Never share, that's the lesson.
Be well, guys.
Bwahahahahaha, you wussie. You ain't seen hostility from me, ask anyone what that looks like... it ain't pretty. :lol: Matter of fact, I haven't seen you receive any hostility, other than a couple of snide potshots from northern climes.
Why, we all know you've been there, done that, pictures make no difference.
Thanks for the 10-4, I'll never reference it again. Fuck you.
Bwahahahahaha, you wussie. You ain't seen hostility from me, ask anyone what that looks like... it ain't pretty. :lol: Matter of fact, I haven't seen you receive any hostility, other than a couple of snide potshots from northern climes.
I came here to learn, to engage in conversations with people I'd never otherwise have met. Didn't think that being a 'good sport' about taking shit in the eye was a prerequisite. Thought that was done with middle school. I was looking for adult conversation, not what you represent this place to be, stupid me.
I'm an Aspie. I don't always get the subtleties you and the others pride yourself on. You'll say you were just prodding/joshing/joking, or maybe you won't. I wouldn't know the difference, and it doesn't matter. Thanks for the experience, I think.
Why, we all know you've been there, done that, pictures make no difference. Bwahahahahaha, you wussie.
You know, you all know I'm no perfect person. I've whined, I've wept, I've cried and cringed and made a fool of myself over the past two years. I've been angsty, I've made myself vulnerable. People here have been kind and tolerant, for the most part. I appreciate that.
I'm moving forward, doing better, and I appreciate all the support that folks here have given. I'll be fine.
I regret so much that I shared a pic of me with my cat when I was sick with chemo; I haven't shared any pics from chemo before.
Why, we all know you've been there, done that, pictures make no difference.
Thanks for the 10-4, I'll never reference it again. Fuck you.
I have no idea what the fuck you're on about. Sounds like you posted the pictures to garner pity and are pissed because they didn't, at least from me. Like I said, we all know what you've been through and cheered you along. We've seen plenty of pictures of bald women wearing bandanas, why the fuck would yours be special to a bunch of people that have seen way too much of this shit?
Thought that was done with middle school. I was looking for adult conversation, not what you represent this place to be, stupid me.
Yes, stupid you, the world you describe doesn't really exist, they just pretend in polite company. Tea and sympathy? No, tea and treachery.
You know, you all know I'm no perfect person. I've whined, I've wept, I've cried and cringed and made a fool of myself over the past two years. I've been angsty, I've made myself vulnerable. People here have been kind and tolerant, for the most part. I appreciate that.
OMG, you acted like a normal human being, welcome to the club.
I'm moving forward, doing better, and I appreciate all the support that folks here have given. I'll be fine.
Of course you will, you're not going to fold because you got your ears pinned back for trying to be a cat know it all.
Oh, and another thing, I AM NOT the CELLAR. Nor do I play one on the internet.
Ortho, I hope you're feeling better this morning.
Was all this from a disagreement about cats? Cats?
As least get worked up about something important, like if vice grips are a hand tool.
And it's too bad you regret sharing something about yourself. I suppose it comes with age, but I don't regret anything I share about myself. If somebody doesn't like it, then screw them. That's their problem. My biggest concern, if you can even call it that, is sharing stuff that bores other people, but even then, I can't control what other people find interesting. I find it interesting and share it, and either others dig it, or they don't. It's up to them.
I don't know what I'm trying to say with this post other than it's all good. Keep on sharing.
Don't take it to heart Ortho. I've no idea why they're ragging on you like this. But it ain't nothing really.
Thanks, glatt and Dana, I appreciate it.
No, it wasn't about cats, nor was I looking for sympathy. It was a big deal for me, maybe not for some but for me, to post a pic from when I was sick. If some interpret that as messed-up I can't help that, but that's my reality. But the whole thing was my fault; the only point I originally intended was that my experience was not theirs. I should have left it at that.
...No, it wasn't about cats...
No, it was about your refusal to admit that cats (read that as
cats, not any one kind of cat, breed of cat, adopted cat or purchased cat, purpose-bred cat, or naturally conceived cats,
just cats) scratch and bite. Which they do.;)
That's what this has been about from your first comment on the subject.
And just so you know, 99.999999% of what I post has humor as the motivating factor.
Also, I think absolutely no more or less of you than I did before this cat-astrophic series of posts.
That don't mean you get a pass when you step in catshit, though.:D
So you were not automatically believed* that you could breed out standard feline behavior... and instead of arguing your point, you were goaded into oversharing to try to teach an unwelcome, off-topic "lesson" in Humanity 101, that proved nothing and that everyone already knows...
...how terrible that must be for you?
The only worse thing would be having to play the victim card on it all.... you avoided that pothole
On the bright side, this thread is now about YOU YOU YOU! A thread about YOU! That's gotta be nice.
*otherwise an entitlement for all Cellar users
... On the bright side, this thread is now about U U U! A thread about U! ...
I know you're talking about me. I must've done something to merit that. Well, I am what I am. This isn't about me anymore than it is about everyone else's mistaken perceptions of facts. I was just trying to share. Everybody should have learned to share in kindergarten. That doesn't mean I don't still love you, XX Tony.
Grav gets it, so does UT, but when it's all said and done everybody's cool with everybody else... except Monster, but she's just a grouch. :haha:
wait while I extract myself from under this cat....
Just because I live in a trash can and collect things doesn't mean I'm not cool with everybody. it's true, but has nothing to do with my hoarding behavior.
As a fellow hoarder, I represent that.
Snapped this at The Shack:
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"Hello my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."
"Hello my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."
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Better?
A family of chickadees nested near my front door. The wee ones were very friendly.
[YOUTUBE]P0V0BxD6kPA[/YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBE]o3-Lb6IECHg[/YOUTUBE]
I hope they come back this year.
Squirrel Selfie Goes Terribly Wrong
One moment:
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The next:
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Here's my wildlife report.
Yesterday I was hanging out the washing when I hear a strange chuntery-growly noise behind me. I looked round and all I saw was a hare, and didn't think it had anything to do with him because it was too low in pitch for an animal that size. Back to hanging the washing and there's the noise again. I look round again and this time there's three hares chasing each other all around, boxing, and one attempted ... uh ... bonk. And the noise. That's the noise they make when they're feeling feisty, and they were so feisty they didn't care that I was just a few feet away, oh no!
This morning out of my office window I've been watching an epic stand-off between a hare and a crow (hooded crow). I presume there was a leveret (baby hare) somewhere (my cat has already brought one home this year :(), in fact I saw the hare return to the same spot in the field more than once, and so did the crow. It kept "buzzing" the hare, and the hare kept chasing it around, leaping up at it, standing on its hind legs to keep it at bay. At one point a second crow joined in, and I thought that they were going to succeed in wearing the hare out and that it, too, would become crows' breakfast. But second crow lost interest, and first crow eventually decided that there was easier meat elsewhere. And hare is now resting, presumably keeping little one warm.
Pictures of different hares, same field, probably grandparents to today's wee hero ... (the blob in the foreground of photo 3 is my garden fencepost).
Saw my first hare from your kitchen window.
Beautiful animals.
And beautiful photos.
Fingers crossed for the leverets in the forms this year.
RFtwenty mins ago:
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Having some fun...
[YOUTUBE]1LNzLafAx1M#t=47[/YOUTUBE]
@ 2:16:
I got one!! I got one!!
I sent it to Leah, she said that's at the elephant park where she goes every year.
The bald eagle that soared overhead as we walked back to our car in the parking lot of Safeway went unphotographed but not unnoticed.
Wildlife, it's everywhere, even in the Safeway parking lot.
Eagles are a regular sight around here, and I always find them beautiful.
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Meanwhile, I found these two rascals in my driveway the other day. They were checking out something interesting in a pile of weeds and grass I'd recently dug up. Either that or the one on the left is taking a dump in my rosebed.
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Then, they moved away from the car, not a care in the world, enjoying the sunny day.
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There was some discussion in the middle of the street,
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Which was resolved as they decided to go check out the backyard of my neighbor across the street.
I've never seen a raccoon in the wild. I've only seen them in urban areas.
On Saturday I saw a black bear on the hillside maybe 100 feet from the road. It was pretty cool, I hadn't seen one in decades. This was in Shenandoah National Park. No pics, but it did happen.
I think raccoons like to be around foodstuffs, garbage cans and the like. I had one raid me until I got a better trashcan. I let him raid, I ain't messin' with those big mean mudderpluckers.
People are starting to see bald eagles around here. They're really making a comeback (like their latest album was really GOOD) and my brother saw one in his field. Someone says there have been sightings along the river, so I'm keeping my eyes open.
Raccoons are nocturnal. I'd be nervous seeing them out in the day, something's not right there.
I agree. I've seen them in my yard before, during the daytime. I wouldn't even go near them, not even to shoo them away unless it was some kind of emergency. No thanks. I took all these pictures from inside my house.
Probably a good practice.
As with all wildlife, raccoons should not be approached or handled by humans. One reason for leaving raccoons undisturbed is their susceptibility to numerous diseases including canine distemper and parvovirus, in addition to zoonotic diseases (humans can get from animals) such as rabies and raccoon roundworms. Even though raccoons may be carriers of rabies, not all raccoons have rabies. Typically, rabid raccoons will exhibit aimless wandering and lack of coordination, or they will exhibit aggressive behavior that can include attacks and self-mutilation.
from
GeorgiaWildlifeWe've had a young raccoon hang around the backyard for 18 months now. Last year he/she sat on our back deck in the sunshine, leaning back against the full-glass door into the dinette and scratching his (I'm going to use the male pronoun here) belly, oblivious to six cats who were climbing on top of each other on the inside of the dinette door, goggling and hardly able to contain themselves.
The young'un came back and did the same thing repeatedly in the afternoon sunshine.
This year, he's back and trying to reach the birdfeeder in the cherry tree outside the dinette. He reaches, stretches, doesn't quite make it, and finally gives up. He seems quite comfortable in our backyard in full daylight, and after all this time he can't have rabies ... but we just watch and enjoy ... and are happy that he scampers back into the woods, and not onto our roof!
The reason they're primarily nocturnal is the danger to them from all their daytime predators. They'll come around during the day if they don't feel threatened.
This morning it was a flicker breakfasting on some ants in approximately the same spot where the racoons had their discussion in the middle of the street.
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Surprise!
[YOUTUBE]vT12MTZmJT0[/YOUTUBE]
From what I can see, he had good taste...I don't know about her.
This is a surprise to me, didn't know Wolves and Ravens got along. I think that's very rare in nature for species to share a carcass willingly, maybe the Wolves learned they were wasting their time/energy trying to chase the Ravens off?
Link viaHe thought it was a possum.
During a party at Mr Mororó's home, one of his son's said that his pregnant wife was afraid to enter the house because the animal was sitting on a wall by the entrance stairs.
So, in a bid to remove it, Mr Mororó slapped the animal, resulting in him receiving a handful of quills. He was taken to the Emergency Unit of the local hospital and despite three shots of anaesthetic, the pain continued.
When will they learn... touching any wild critter with your bare hand is asking for trouble. You may get away with it a few times, but it'll get you in the end.
OWWWWWWWWWW!
Don't slap nature, it's designed to slap back.
There's a den of fox kits under a rock behind my house. No success getting a pic yet... amazingly cute sneaky little chicken stealing bastages.
Griff, my buddy spends 5 days a week down in DE and 2 days up here. A fox has taken advantage of his absence and moved in up here. It leaves nasty poops that look and smell like Canadian geese. Very nasty to step in. Have you seen this?
New squirrel in mah 'hood. You make kissy sounds at this squirrel, he don't look at ya wonderin' "Whirr mah cookeh?", he goes straight for the tiptop of the tree. No passing go, no $200 or nuttin'. ZOOM!!! To the top!
He does come down for the cookie later, if he sees you toss it, so, maybe we can still win him over. We now have two different squirrels at The Shack that will take the cookie from your hand, and a few that really want to take it from you, but, they just can't get past those last couple hops.
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He's a juvie.
Griff, my buddy spends 5 days a week down in DE and 2 days up here. A fox has taken advantage of his absence and moved in up here. It leaves nasty poops that look and smell like Canadian geese. Very nasty to step in. Have you seen this?
No but I was keeping my distance. I'll let you know if it starts getting nasty up there.
New squirrel in mah 'hood. You make kissy sounds at this squirrel, he don't look at ya wonderin' "Whirr mah cookeh?", he goes straight for the tiptop of the tree. No passing go, no $200 or nuttin'. ZOOM!!! To the top!
Gorgeous photos.
Moar plz.
I make kissy sounds at every squirrel I come across, even though none of them here seem to understand.
I have Squirrel Mix* in my bag for when I walk through the churchyard.
Even if I scatter it and sit and wait for half an hour they still don't show. They are there, I've seen them and I hear them when I am sitting and reading.
But I think the birds mob the place when I leave and laugh behind my back.
It's hard to get squirrels used to being fed in a public place when you have to work
and are the only one doing it. The ones in Greenwich and Valentines Park had generations of it to draw on.
Maybe I should make it a community project.
Except some silly person would let their toddler try to pet one and end up in A&E...
* no, really.
Nuts, seeds and dried fruit. RSPCA approved.
If I'm going to have to scatter it, it may as well be the right stuff.
* no, really.
Nuts, seeds and dried fruit. RSPCA approved.
If I'm going to have to scatter it, it may as well be the right stuff.
Yet you'll give bread to the birds ! :p
No! Funny you should say that.
I bought duck food after reading how well-meaning people like me feed bread that fills their bellies with empty calories and can lead to vitamin deficiency.
And unlike the warped ducks in Valentines Park (Ilford) who didn't know what was good for them, Otley ducks, swans, pigeons and seagulls fight for the pellets the same way they do for the unhealthy bread. As long as it's thrown in a nice high arc so they can see it, and lands with a splash in the water, they will come...
I got the two types of food on a deal from the local petshop (because I bought them together)
Less bread for me these days, and no bread for birdies.
Expect bakers to go bankrupt.
Slowed motion of a Hummingbird Moth
[YOUTUBEWIDE]S0qm_L_HPdM[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
Brown Bear.
[YOUTUBE]MVhrN2pI2X8[/YOUTUBE]
I like the yawn, and the slow deliberation before deciding to collapse into a sit.
Yeah, because he can do any damn thing he wants. :haha:
He's faced huge bears, wolves, and tap-dancing Moose in the wild, those puny humans are no threat.
I shot the latest intruder, Monax marmota, the other day. Brazen bastard made a nest/hole right in the middle of my garden. I was too lazy/depressed to deal with it right away, certainly didn't bother skinning it. A couple of days of resting in the sun and heat and it was time to stuff it back into its hole. Pretty stinky. I dragooned the kids to help fill it in since I am off shovel duty for a few more months while my shoulder recuperates. Even shooting with the rifle on a rest was a bit much. Anyway, after a bit of inspired whining and claims of enslavement and imminent death by heat stroke they got the hole filled in and raked. I collapsed as much as I could with my feeeeeeeeeeet and then I wondered if maybe I could collapse the entire gallery...
Suppose I was to snake a hose into the tunnel and then filled the tunnel with a lot of propane and maybe a bit of O2 as well, and then detonated it from a presumably safe location (HA woodchuck roulette!) by means of a wire fed into the hloe along with the hose. Maybe that would make enough of a bang to collapse the whole gallery. Proapne is lighter than air and thus sinks.
Is this maybe the most brilliant idea you've heard from me? Maybe I can time it with the 4th of July festivities.
Could I make a convincing case for "I had no idea that would happen." if things go south?
Depends on if they search your internet history. It would make a good story though.
Proapne is lighter than air and thus sinks.
:eyebrow:
As long as the gallery doesn't extend under your house :eek:
We had a chicken massacre here in which we lost all layers to the foxes. Benny was doing his best when out and about but when he's inside he can't enforce the rule of law. The plan was to lock up the chickens as soon as we saw predation but teh fox was too efficient. I made a long covered run for the turkeys because I know they're dumb but the chickens lack of wit around predators surprised me.
Chlorine. Sinks because it's heavier than air.
www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/chlorine/basics/facts.asp:eyebrow:
The other lighter than air. I meant that other thing than air.
Chlorine. Sinks because it's heavier than air.
www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/chlorine/basics/facts.asp
No recipe for how much turpentine to add to make it explosive. I suppose I'll have to do the stoichiometry myself, then?
... but the chickens lack of wit around predators surprised me.
Chickens have been resting on their wit laurels since the days of vaudeville. We haven't heard anything funny from them since the crossing the road joke. Not that that excuses the fox's behavior.
No recipe for how much turpentine to add to make it explosive. I suppose I'll have to do the stoichiometry myself, then?
If you insist on going BOOM, stick with the propane, *something* will eventually work. But the chlorine does have the advantage of NOT blowing up your house, and working continuously down, down, downward. You can get an almighty-motherfuckload of chlorine fumes from a tablet of chlorine used to disinfect swimming pools. I nearly killed myself fucking around with that shit. I was intent on bleaching a colored shirt to whiteness. I broke up a good chunk of one of those hockey-puck-sized tablets in the bathtub with water, knocking it around and briskly rubbing the shirt in the little bit of water. And then, all of a sudden like, I couldn't breathe. I mean, maybe the muscles were working, but just pumping the poison around with vigor proportional to my rapidly escalating panic. I staggered outside and lay in the junipers, gasping. It took a few hyperventilated trips back into the house to open ALL windows and doors and turn on every fan I own. It seemed like a very long time before the air was breathable again, much longer than it took to just drain the tub.
There's no doubt that such an event in the burrow would render it unlivable, driving them out to be shot if they didn't die underground.
The other lighter than air. I meant that other thing than air.
Um. What the hell are you talking about? Do the stoichiometry by all means, but do please give us the detailed equations ... or, hell, just blow stuff up. If you want anything of value left afterward, consult a female. We'll do the calcs for you. ;)
Sarge ... no, please withdraw this video. This is a snuff film of a blue canary, and why you posted it is beyond me. Please take it down.
Yes, anhydrous ammonia will kill us - humans, animals, all of us.
You have control of this video and I don't ... just asking you to consider the consequences to others and not post it in this way.
you are correct. I am rather macabre due to some events. As many have guessed I can have an extremely dark side. I apologize and thank you
Chickens have been resting on their wit laurels since the days of vaudeville. We haven't heard anything funny from them since the crossing the road joke. Not that that excuses the fox's behavior.
I dunno, I distinctly heard an old hen start with, "So a horse walks into..." I figure the fox was within her rights.
V, the chlorine, even better when mixed with ammonia!, is fine and dandy but the guy is dead already. I want to collapse the gallery so it is uninhabitable. More of a pipe dream really since a major part of the gallery is under my shed and my and my contiguous neighbor's lawns and gardens. The last infestation was a few years ago and my neighbor at the time gassed them in their dens. I think the corpses kept the galleries vacant for a few years. Anyway, shooting them is all good fun and practice for the Woodchuck Zombie Apocalypse.
Ortho, thanks for the offer to help with my quackulations. :D
If you want anything of value left afterward, consult a female. We'll do the calcs for you. ;)
If you want anything
at all left (and I ain't talking about blowing shit up),
leave the calculating females out of it entirely.I want to collapse the gallery so it is uninhabitable. More of a pipe dream really since a major part of the gallery is under my shed and my and my contiguous neighbor's lawns and gardens.
How far down in there could you stuff a spewing can (or 5) of Great Stuff Insulating Foam Sealant?
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Ortho, thanks for the offer to help with my quackulations. :D
Any time; I'm a fan of quackulating.
Unrelated to blowing stuff up, our barn swallow brood has fledged, leaving a gawdawful mess right in front of our front door (the nest was directly OVER the front door). Never mind. They've been perching on the porch chairs, preening, doing little practice flight circles and swoops and coming back ... this morning none of them were in the nest. Unsurprising, since there are 5 and they were sitting on top of each other before. This afternoon they were all swooping around the front area catching bugs, babies as big as the parents, one huge gorgeous roundabout of swallows (cynics, cue
Circle of Life here).
AND ... a hen turkey brought her brood of 12 chicks into our backyard today to hunt bugs and grubs. Too much cuteness. Then the big-ass groundhog that naps under our deck ran out and sat right in the middle of them, taunting us. Next time, groundhog!
Twelve?!
I saw an old hen with nine poults once. I was stunned. As was everyone (turkey hunters, mostly) I told about it.
You rarely see more than a half-dozen in these parts.
Must not be many predators around there.
I believe they have a different sub-species that far north. Like most of the squirrels being black (can I say that or is it racist?)
Ortho - Are there any neurotoxins you could slip 3F to take care of his ground hogs? I was talking to some guys on the internet from Yemen or something and they were more than willing to mail some bio toxins.
Are there any neurotoxins you could slip 3F to take care of his ground hogs?
The solution is obvious.
Pee down the hole. Regularly.
I have a friend who tried that and pooping down the hole. It just pisses them off and makes them vengeful.
Yes, but how do you get their tiny legs apart?
Hah! My brain. It is teh awesome. Sometimes.
On the thinnest of hunches, I went Googling for a product I thought up. And, lo, and, behold, there it was plain as the [Strike]mole on yer[/Strike] nose on my face.
Dearest Foot, I present to you, Critter Ridder from Havahart:
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Also comes in a spray. From
here (or pretty much anywhere else, really)
If it comes in a spray, you might consider loosening your grip.
That took just a second...:lol2:
...well, longer than a second...
Hornets...
[YOUTUBEWIDE]v4h_DIQKPPI[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
As a person who is interested in interesting stuff, that was pretty damn cool.
As a person who is allergic to bee stings, and such, fuck that shit, which way to the diesel fuel?
I take issue with White Faced Hornets not being aggressive, though. I had some work me over as a youth, take my wallet, and leave me for dead. It couldn't have been my fault, I was a lovely lad. My eyes were swollen shut for two days so I couldn't pick them out of a lineup.
Who told you White Faced Hornets weren't aggressive? They're the worst of the lot. You can't trust a' one of 'em.
When I posted I thought that statement was at the beginning of the video, but it was really at the youtube page...
I have learned that white-faced hornets are actually a type of yellow jacket. They are only found in North America. They are not aggressive unless their nest is disturbed.
My bad.
Grr. Something chewed through the spout of my plastic gasoline can that I've stored under the deck for the past 15 years. So I bought a fancy new one that met current regs and was pretty expensive. That just got chewed on too, as well as the gas tank on the lawn mower. I think it's the chipmunk that lives in the nearby hole. This is war. Pics won't be following, out of respect for the sensibilities of animal lovers here. Hatching a plan now. Trip to the hardware store planned for later in the day. (They seemed indifferent to the poison pellets I dropped down their holes.)
It couldn't have been my fault, I was a [strike] lovely[/strike] tasty lad.
Very interesting insight into the nest.
Although one of the most interesting things for me was hearing someone give the word "nest" more than one syllable :p:
If you want a gas can, buy it on eBay and get the old style that doesn't meet current regs. Get one with the nipple on the other side from the spout.
The new ones absolutely suck. Trust me on this. If you don't trust me, ask the gallon of diesel fuel on the lawn under my oil tank.
Although one of the most interesting things for me was hearing someone give the word "nest" more than one syllable :p:
Now you know how
we feel when Brits use the word 'fire'.
;)
Very interesting insight into the nest.
Although one of the most interesting things for me was hearing someone give the word "nest" more than one syllable :p:
Hmm....I only hear one syllable. :confused:
Says Wyoming but I think she's from much further south.
This turtle is famous here. I can't believe I got close enough to take pictures like this because despite what many think...turtles are fast. Once she got sick of me she ran like a rabbit! This was right behind my house, next to the river.
I put my sandal next to her for perspective. I wear a size 8 and a half. LOL
What kind of turtle is she?
She's some sort of softshell turtle. Maybe Midland Smooth...but none of the cursory research I've done has definitively said they should even be found in my county. She was attempting to lay eggs when I came upon her, and that was a bad spot where cars park. Maybe the rain we'd had had made the river too high for her to find any good spots nearer to the river.
That's a cool looking turtle. We don't have any like that around here, as far as I know.
Fresh turtle eggs taste pretty good.
The soft shell turtles can be pretty fast. It's the other ones that are slow.
[YOUTUBE]hyUmGHdK9e8[/YOUTUBE]
I think it's the chipmunk that lives in the nearby hole. This is war. Pics won't be following, out of respect for the sensibilities of animal lovers here. Hatching a plan now. Trip to the hardware store planned for later in the day. (They seemed indifferent to the poison pellets I dropped down their holes.)
Several years ago, there was a chipmunk population explosion here in my neck of the woods. Little fuckers were everywhere, making all sorts of odd and annoying noises, day in and day out.
One morning, I was in my garage (really just a three-sided, 24 x 24' metal shed), and heard all this furious scrabbling and scratching over in one corner. I carefully approached the sound and quickly realized it was coming from an open/empty garbage can I'd stowed in the far corner. Above the garbage can, on either wall, were high wooden shelves. Inside the garbage can, beneath the gap between the shelves, were seven - count 'em, SEVEN - freaked out chipmunks.
They'd apparently tried to jump from one shelf to the other and missed - one after the other - and fell into the garbage can below, which was too slick/tall for them to climb out of.
Proof that chipmunks do
not have an effective warning / communication system.
:D
The soft shell turtles can be pretty fast. It's the other ones that are slow.
That is how fast she was the first time I saw her. Running down the grass towards the water. I was like 'WHAT'? ;)
Several years ago, there was a chipmunk population explosion here in my neck of the woods. Little fuckers were everywhere, making all sorts of odd and annoying noises, day in and day out.
One morning, I was in my garage (really just a three-sided, 24 x 24' metal shed), and heard all this furious scrabbling and scratching over in one corner. I carefully approached the sound and quickly realized it was coming from an open/empty garbage can I'd stowed in the far corner. Above the garbage can, on either wall, were high wooden shelves. Inside the garbage can, beneath the gap between the shelves, were seven - count 'em, SEVEN - freaked out chipmunks.
They'd apparently tried to jump from one shelf to the other and missed - one after the other - and fell into the garbage can below, which was too slick/tall for them to climb out of.
Proof that chipmunks do not have an effective warning / communication system.
:D
I only found out a while ago that some people call chipmunks 'ground squirrels.' I think that's weird. Maybe it's a local thing. But it totally fucks up Alvin et all if you call them that. And don't get me started on Chippendales. (Apple core! Who's your friend?)
And don't get me started on Chippendales. (Apple core! Who's your friend?)
What about Chip and Dale?
Yep, that was my 'funny' reference. Glad someone remembers that! Makes me feel less old. ;)
Yep, that was my 'funny' reference. Glad someone remembers that! Makes me feel less old. ;)
You can't be old, you must be younger than me.
Nah ...you're old.
Not that that's a bad thing.
Yesterday, there was a young deer in my front yard (still had spots), and I see adult deer on my property with some regularity. I don't mind that they wander through my yard, but I'd like them to leave my fucking rose bushes alone! They eat most of them down to sticks. GRRR.
Bees...
[YOUTUBEWIDE]9_OHvrGhL3E[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
Well living next to nature if you're a
photographer/fishing boat deck hand, in Alaska. :D
What, they let him get away without talking to coach Sherrill ! :haha:
Measuring 15 feet long and weighing in at a staggering 1,011.5 lbs, this giant alligator was pulled out of a river in Alabama on Saturday morning, becoming the largest ever caught. The woman who did so broke out her special pearl necklace to celebrate.
http://indefinitelywild.gizmodo.com/the-largest-alligator-ever-caught-1624521405
LArgest? Maybe.
"hooked and then shot" would be more accurate than "caught."
But it's still impressive
Brother-in-law hooked it at 10:30 am Friday, presumably after fishing at least a little while. She shot it at 5 am on Saturday, then came the described difficulty getting back to their take-out point. So the family, 2 girls and 3 guys spent about 24 hrs in that 17 ft boat, most of it attached to a recalcitrant gator. :eyebrow: Can't wait for the encore.
"hooked and then shot" would be more accurate than "caught."
But it's still impressive
Wanting to boat a thousand pound gator,
alive, are ya?
:mg:
lordy, god must look out for fools. anybody else would have probably ended up as a snack
Twil and I were on a road trip recently. So was this guy.
[ATTACH]49080[/ATTACH]
Is that a Condor, or a vulture?
It's a
turkey buzzard.
Apparently, he's shopping for roadkill:
The turkey vulture is a scavenger and feeds almost exclusively on carrion.[4] It finds its food using its keen eyes and sense of smell, flying low enough to detect the gases produced by the beginnings of the process of decay in dead animals.
It was very exciting watching him fly. He was soaring overhead, pictures through the sunroof were not very successful, and repeatedly swooping along the road, just in front of us. I stopped the car and watched and took his picture. He was right there, like he was playing chicken (there's a chicken joke in there somewhere...).
neat pic BigV...
Imma guess Vulture
The best view I ever had of a Turkey Vulture was in SD when I was driving from Hot Springs to Edgemont.
It was in the road, presumably scavenging, and showed a marked reluctance to fly as I approached.
I slowed right down and off he went in his own time, affording me a wonderful view.
It was what is known in ornithological circles on this side of the Atlantic as a big bugga.
I saw a road kill bald eagle recently. They love the scraps of dead critters so I guess it makes sense. (shitloads of bald eagles around here now so don't freak out.)
Used to see a lot of vultures when we fished in southern Delaware. They were especially dense around the big chicken farms of Purdue and Tyson. If they were eating roadkill and saw us coming, they would waddle to the shoulder of the road and glare at us while we went by. I always thought if they could they would fold their wings like an angry schoolmarm folds her arms. :haha:
Yesterday, on my way home, I saw like ten or more buzzards circling over the old folks home down the road.
Had a private chuckle at that.
you could just LOL, y'know. they probably can't hear you.
But Karma hears you, Karma hears everything. :haha:
I see what you did there...
...but, who'd blow a hornet?
Living with nature often means trying to avoid running into it... getting tougher, too.
It's a jungle out there so be careful, the fender you save may be your own.
Hooray for us, hooray for you, PA jumped from 5 to 2, go team!
I knew they were working together. :eyebrow:
Is that 1 in 85 drivers will hit a deer in a year?
I only personally know one person who has hit a deer. He's actually hit two of them, and he lives in PA. I'm aware that it happens, but I would have thought it it was much rarer than 1 in 85.
Or is that 1 in 85 accidents involves a deer?
It must be 1 in 85 accidents involves a deer. That sounds more in line with my observations.
I have a friend in Doylestown PA who drives A LOT! He has personally hit at least three. His wife one and he tells me frequently about people hitting them - we have a standing joke about venison jerky...
Oh, I hit one in DE when I was 16 and my daughter hit one a few years ago.
I've hit two. The PA Game Commission is utterly incompetent when it comes to controlling deer population.
How about some oceanic mammals?
[YOUTUBEWIDE]mHyTOcfF99o[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
Hawg. Outside of my window, at work
This is why I was late for school.
Nine-year-old Axel Moss faced a staunch obstacle on his way to school in Orlando, Florida, yesterday.
The Sandhill Crane lunged forward to protect its young, but did not attack him.
Big buggers, aren't they?
If he can make it here, he can make it anywhere.
Big City, Big Surprise: New York City's Newest Species Is a Frog
The amphibian stayed hidden in plain sight for decades, only to be discovered on Staten Island.
[ATTACH]49448[/ATTACH]
Big buggers, aren't they?
Kentucky Sandhill Crane Hunting Season Dates: Dec 13 2014 - Jan 11 2015.
Just sayin'.
Hawg. Outside of my window, at work
I surprised one going out the front door today.
I was going out the door, not the Chuck.
I surprised one going out the front door today.
Was he wearing the tophat and monocle?
Groundhogs wear tophats and monocles when people ain't around.
What? I assumed everyone knew that.
So that's what he stuffed in his briefcase before he split. :idea:
Osprey full tilt boogie...
Place yer hands together, and prey.
ETA: I just noticed that bird is banded.
Oh shit Oh shit Oh shit
No, you aren't a bird dog.
Hey Squirrel, get a load of this badass.
Fantastic pics! I have no fabulous pics to contribute, just a sighting of Mr. Bambi crossing my driveway, trotting up the property line, and stopping to give me a long look (sorry, but I knew that if I moved for my phone he'd be gone instantly) ... the MOST gorgeous, cutest young buck ever, rambling around my few acres. He's just a baby, his rack isn't worth anyone's wall. I hope he finds deep cover before Thanksgiving. What a treat this morning, though.
This Bald Eagle has been hanging around all day. I will try to get a better pic. My friend took that with his iPhone.
Nice! You have a pretty clear view with the leaves gone from the branches. Around here, the evergreens make shots like this rare, though we certainly have plenty of Bald Eagles. They're majestic.
We have them around
Land Between The Lakes Nat'l Recreation Area (about a hundred miles west of me) and over at
Lake Malone State Park (about forty miles).
If I ever see an eagle in one of my trees (they
have been seen around here), Ima have a plaque made, and put it on the tree.
On Nov 4th there was a BBC Report from West Virginia about your mid-term elections.
I always take an interest in events on your side of the Atlantic but there was a small bonus in the form of two Bald Eagles perched in a tree beside the railway, sorry 'railroad'. :)
You can see them at about the 1.20 mark in the video.
US mid-terms 2014: Is West Virginia on the right track?
Incidentally, it's the Potomac Eagle Train of the South Branch Valley Railroad.
This afternoon whilst walking my canine guest, I was aware of a number of Red Kites close by. They were unusually vocal and it was difficult to see them all at once.
On returning home I could see that four of them had settled in a big Ash tree in the paddock at the bottom of the back garden.
They are birds which were persecuted almost to extinction by Victorian game keepers and a small number in mid-Wales were the only surviving examples of the species in the UK for decades.
In 1989 a re-introduction project was started with chicks brought from Spain and Scandinavia. Since then numbers have increased markedly.
They are not a species inclined to move too far from their breeding grounds but when numbers become too great for the available food they tend to spread out.
The local site for the initial release was the John Paul Getty Estate in South Oxfordshire about twelve miles from here and since then they have slowly spread along the Chilterns escarpment.
We've become used to seeing them in the last few years but to have them perch so close to the house was a privilege. They tend to follow the plough and upwards of twenty can be seen in such circumstances.
As my neighbour's back lawn was reduced to the state of a ploughed field by marauding Badgers last night, this might explain their presence.
Unfortunately I wasn't able to get a photo but these two are included by way of illustration.
Magnificent creatures.
Feeding red kites: a view from the ChilternsLovely... when they're ripping the flesh from your screaming, writhing, carcass. :eek:
Lovely... when they're ripping the flesh from your screaming, writhing, carcass. :eek:
They're mostly carrion feeders, but will take small birds and mammals from time to time.
Your humble correspondent isn't into either writhing or screaming. Far too much effort involved. :eek:
But we're all only one breath away from carrion. :haha:
But we're all only one breath away from carrion. :haha:
I know. Bloody frightening, isn't it? :eek::eek::eek:
To be given a sky funeral by such gorgeous birds would be a win.
To be given a sky funeral by such gorgeous birds would be a win.
Yes sir.
And you can do good at the same time in a
body farm.Here is a not very good pic of the last loon. It should have taken off last week with the rest of them, but it stuck around.
Yes sir.
And you can do good at the same time in a body farm.
Nooo. Nope. Nuhuh. Not the same, not even close. :headshake
Nooo. Nope. Nuhuh. Not the same, not even close. :headshake
I suppose it depends on
the farm.
“You have fields, just open fields, where recently deceased human bodies have been laid out for scientific study,” she tells Here & Now’s Peter O’Dowd.
One of the researchers’ most popular experiments is the so-called vulture study, where bodies are picked clean by the birds.
Mar said after word of the vulture study got out, one out of three donor inquiries the lab received asked specifically to be part of the vulture study.
“Something about this ritual taps into something that’s also relevant in some part of this country,” Mar said.
The practice of “sky burials” is found in some Native American and Buddhist traditions.
“It’s not legal in this country, but it’s happening by default for scientific rather than spiritual reasons in San Marcos,” Mar said.
Texas? You'll get cats and rats and elephants, as sure as you're born. Not to mention flies and worms and maggots. Tibet doesn't have that problem. Besides they have dudes crushing bones and flesh to mix with flour, butter and tea to feed the crows and birds of prey, after the vultures are done. Much more gooder then Texas maggots and cats.
I see. Good links, xoB, thanks. I see some important differences in the two scenarios. The first and most significant difference is that the sky burial has a substantial spiritual component and that aspect is missing entirely from the operation in Texas (and other body farms in the US). The two different procedures spring from different motivations. In Texas, there's no shortage of resources to bury the dead unlike the steppes of Mongolia. There isn't the necessity in Texas to process the bodies in this way that there is in Mongolia.
But the process is largely the same. I don't know what happens with the skeletons in Texas, though I'm sure they're under continued observation. Both processes serve a higher purpose. Both processes are deliberate. Both processes involve the knowledge of the deceased. I think they're more alike than they are different.
I'd read several articles about Tibet's sky burials, it was a coincidence I ran across those links last night. No, not the same. Not because of the spiritual aspect of proper disposal, but the method of employing the body breakers, who are basically lunch ladies for vultures and other flying creatures.
I don't condone trapping, but, goddamn look at the size of these wolves!
[ATTACH]49669[/ATTACH]
Northern Minnesota.
Take out the apex predators, destroy the ecosystem.
This is cowardly and disgusting, MN. Nothing justifies this.
They (the wolves) are eating all the moose and [Strike]squirrel[/Strike] deer. Like, way, way too many.
The wolves are too successful/efficient for their own good.
Take out the direwolves and you get left with the lions
(apols to Griff who was being more subtle)
Walked out on my porch the other afternoon and there was one of my squrls. He sat up on his hind legs, looked me straight in the eye, and said "Cookie, motherfucker!"
[ATTACH]49691[/ATTACH]
I got him a cookie. Best not to mess with them thug squrls.
You're his bitch now, grav. Stock up on those cookies.
Teach him to catch Blue Jays.
Wild Canadian horses...
[VIMEO]28996785[/VIMEO]
It's worth seeing big...
vimeo
The national government just took control of the island from the province and had a $35,000 study done on the welfare of the horses. the result is the horses "may face extinction".
OH my, oh no, why, pray tell?
1- If we have a bad winter and the food gets covered with ice/snow they'll starve, even though they haven't since the mid 1700s. :rolleyes:
2- Inbreeding may have weakened the herd. May? :eyebrow:
Guess the author had to make them feel they got their $35000 worth.
I just learned about Sable Island, its horses, and watched that very video recently.
They're Lovely!
Wild horses on Dartmoor:
[youtube]qO69D08Pek8[/youtube]
[YOUTUBE]abJ664UfzlM[/YOUTUBE]
[youtube]Q6OOB_ddR2I[/youtube]
(not truly 'wild' so much as* feral)
*bloody furious
Last time we camped on Assateague (in September) one of the wild horses came up to our hard plastic cooler and opened the lid with its teeth. It was one of those hard plastic lids that kinda pushed over a bump in the body of the cooler to snap closed on the other side of the bump. So not an actual latch, but more like a snap. Anyway, the horse opened the rigid plastic cooler with its mouth and grabbed a big plastic bag of grapes and started chewing the bag and sucking the juice out of the holes it was perforating in the bag. They were obnoxious creatures, those wild horses. It was against the law to touch them, and so you just had to keep your wits about you when they were around. Yelling at them and waving your arms and banging pots and pans in their faces did absolutely nothing.
I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat...
I saw dat puddytat and thought, that has GOT to be in Canada.
Nope, Colorado.
Nevermind that link, go to
this one.
Gramma set up 3 birdfeeders...
I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat...
Ohmigod look at those paws! Beautiful!
Gramma needs to get some vaseline. Oh, and move them further apart.
Gramma needs to get some vaseline. Oh, and move them further apart.
Well that's just sick.
Bwahahahahahaaaaaaaaaaa I forgot to post the video ..
Wait - that sounds gross too....
Here...[YOUTUBE]O9-rE5RBZvU[/YOUTUBE]
Well that's just sick.
It just *sounds* sick.
If that hadn't happened, none of us would be here, posting. Hmmm?
Bwahahahahahaaaaaaaaaaa I forgot to post the video ..
Wait - that sounds gross too....
Here...[YOUTUBE]O9-rE5RBZvU[/YOUTUBE]
We have done this IRL.
I wonder why they felt compelled to sedate him/her, just for a routine physical?
Agreed, he doesn't look the least bit aggressive, more like a wise and patient old soul.
Reminds me of Barf from Spaceballs
Agreed, he doesn't look the least bit aggressive, more like a wise and patient old soul.
yes...
Some suggestion from the net...
The term albino catfish can refer both to an albino specimen of any catfish species or to a particular species of catfish the Albino Cory Catfish
But the Cory a pet trade creation that only grows to 2.5 inches long. I wonder what kind of catfish they are, they have a strange shape.
Limey keeps the wolves away in the wilds of the distant ...stans.
That's exactly how I do it!
Sent by thought transference
Dear customer,
as your electricity supplier we have always tried to give the best price, best service, and best advice. In that vein we must inform you we will no longer supply electricity as we can not access the meter. Our best advice is to burn the house to the ground, and get far, far away.
Good Luck, The Electric Company
Oh come on now. Motherhood is a wonderful thing.
A clerk in the Goodwill Store in McMinneville, OR made a negative remark
to a mother who was breast-feeding her baby in the store. It made the local tv news.
Today, it became a cause célèbre, with the towns women bringing their babies to the store to protest.
The clerk was let go, and motherhood survives in all it's forms.
.
If that mother brings her brood, I'll offer them a drink... of Molotov cocktail. :flamer:
:eek: Yeah, that pic should be in the nightmare thread.
Thank you very much!
This is the lady that I posted about whacking off a breast by mistake. Western PA.
Glad T-Rex isn't around.... just his teeth.
The proper way to unbox your turtle... even not box turtles. :p:
[YOUTUBE]rS4JXnULUcs[/YOUTUBE]
Alligator hazard is par for the course at Florida golf club
There must be something in the local rule book to cover this eventuality.
So there I am, driving down the country road, minding my own bidness...
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[ATTACH]50640[/ATTACH]
He wasn't being particularly photo-friendly. Very short video to follow in the not-too-distant future.
[Size=1]Shitty-camera-through-the-dirty-windshield pics.[/Size]
May be a shitty camera and may be through a windshield, but they are great pictures anyway. I've never seen a wild turkey from that close before.
I was using most of the 24x (optical) zoom.
Anyway, here's the driving, rolling down the window, videoing a turkey, short, shaky video I mentioned.
[YOUTUBEWIDE]bjJIBG6QSEo[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
That's about a eight inch beard on that there turkey. This time next month, turkey season, he'd be a shooter.
Since the seventies MA has been actively building the wild turkey population(feathers not bottles), and they've become a huge pain in the ass.
The flockers travel in feathered biker gangs, think they own the joint, eat everything in sight, treat bird feeders as private stash, attack pets & kids, and will take out a windshield in a heartbeat. The damn things can run about 25 mph and fly at over 50 mph, so a 15 or 20 pound bird can hit hard. They're vying with deer to be the biggest pain in the ass.
The various breeds of wild turkeys are one of the great success stories of wildlife restoration.
As are whitetail deer.
And don't think I ain't made a mental note of where I saw that one up there^^^.:shotgun:
Attacked and bitten on the leg by a
rabid Raccoon, she did what any seventy five year old lady would... she strangled the sumbitch.
Well then unlike normal people, she felt bad about being forced to do that. What?:shock:
[YOUTUBE]C2ft7DyG2Yo[/YOUTUBE]
After the strangling, shoot it :rattat:
axe it :behead:
sledgehammer it :bonk:
crush it :footpyth:
burn it :flamer:
and send it to raccoon hell. :redcard:
Speaking of Racoons ... this guy/gal was in my parents backyard yesterday. He/She was on their front porch last week. They live in suburbia! There should be no racoons around, let alone in the middle of the afternoon. I was 10' from it as it barely walked away from me. Thats as high up the tree as it could go. I walked away and it just hung there for maybe 2 minutes and then came back down and meandered away.
These two were sharing the feeder at my brothers place in CT last weekend. Never again will I wonder if it was a Hairy (left) or a Downy (right) woodpecker. He is ginormous compared to her.
Where's the weasel when you need 'em? ;)
That fella has seen better days.
Speaking of Racoons...
That raccoon is either very old, or fairly sick. Of course, raccoons can be lighter and darker than the norms, like skunks.
Not too long back I saw a road-killed skunk that had no white on it at all. Everything that would normally be white was as yellow/blond as could be right out to the top of its head.
Canal & River Trust says stop feeding the ducks bread.
Every year over 6 million loaves of bread are thrown into our canals and rivers by well-intentioned people feeding the ducks. However, this bread isn't great for them or their habitats and so we’re asking you to swap the bread for healthy snacks and to exercise some portion control.
Send that bread to Sally Struthers instead.
That last one ... I can't identify it. Looks like a sitting bull, but I'm not positive.
Srsly, great pics! Love the Eagles.
That is a lot of bull sitting there.
[ATTACH]50759[/ATTACH]
I spotted this Roe Deer about half an hour ago when out with my canine guest.
It was taken in a bit of a hurry with my phone camera so results were never likely to be award winning but there we are. :)
Fargon, you've got a nice view from you patio. Great pictures!
And Carruthers, good job spotting that. I guess it wasn't that far away if you got the shot with your phone, but still, I often don't see a deer until they move.
And Carruthers, good job spotting that. I guess it wasn't that far away if you got the shot with your phone, but still, I often don't see a deer until they move.
It was pure luck that I spotted the deer. I was walking from L to R as you look at the picture and just happened to glance to my left and saw the deer watching me. It was only five or six yards away.
I had to take the photo in some haste and in the end had to crop it quite considerably so it isn't exactly a work of art but I think it was worth including here.
Taken from my patio
More than a little jealous, right now.
Also, I see what's beside the Sun Drop...:D
Also: That eagle in flight in post #322 is outstanding!
Carruthers, what an excellent catch!
I take it that's a fairly rare occurrence where you are?
I spotted this Roe Deer about half an hour ago when out with my canine guest.
It was taken in a bit of a hurry with my phone camera so results were never likely to be award winning but there we are. :)
Carruthers, what an excellent catch!
I take it that's a fairly rare occurrence where you are?
It is a fairly rare occurrence but deer numbers have been increasing quite markedly in recent years.
However, I think most people only know that deer are around when they spot one at the side of the road which has perished in a traffic collision.
This morning's sighting was only about a quarter of a mile from home on the edge of the town and I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.
We also get the
Muntjac which was an ornamental species introduced to large country estates in the Victorian era. Inevitably, many escaped and they've been breeding over much of southern England for the last century or so.
Its origins are in SE Asia and the Indian sub-continent. It isn't a particularly attractive animal but it's probably the one most often seen.
I certainly wouldn't swap a hundred Muntjac for this morning's
Roe Deer.
ETA Thanks Bruce! You posted that as I was typing.:thumb:
Thanks for posting those images, fargon.
The highlight of my visits to the USA was seeing the wide variety of wildlife you have.
I shall never forget the flight of Pelicans I saw as I was driving north through Wyoming and the Ospreys in Yellowstone and near the Buffalo Bill dam.
I hope to return one day and with luck I shall add the Bald Eagle to my list of sightings.
I hope to return one day and with luck I shall add the Bald Eagle to my list of sightings.
It's easier than ever. They have really made a comeback. I saw one on Sunday morning.
There is always at least 25 to 30 around here all day.
I like the word for them... a "convocation"
... much more intriguing that a "murder" of crows
... but not as poetic as a "charm" of hummingbirds
Alaska's the home where the Buffalo roam.
Two wood bison bulls weighing upward of 2,000 pounds move toward higher ground at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center on Sunday, March 22, 2015, in Portage, Alaska. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game on Sunday moved the first wood bison to a staging area in Shageluk, Alaska, for reintroduction in a few week to their native Alaska grazing grounds. Wood bison, which are larger than plains bison native found in Lower 48 states, disappeared from U.S. soil more than a century ago.
That's a lot of cheeseburgers.
Burgers? Fuckith not with my people.
The housing estate deer
Deer go in search of food in the gardens of an Essex housing estate as the residents sleep.
The herd of Fallow Deer was photographed wandering the streets and grazing on lawns from around 11pm to 4am, before returning to nearby woods.
That's just NE of London and the deer have probably come from
Epping Forest which is described as 'London's largest open space'.
wandering the streets and grazing on lawns
Interesting, I think of deer(whitetail) as browsers and elk as grazers, but Fallow Deer swing both ways.
I think of them both as steak.
And the occasional casserole, or, meat loaf.
Some think of you as steak.
I'm always thankful that, as I step out of GCOne on the riverbank at night, I don't have to worry about bears, cougars (well, pumas, anyway;)), crocogators, and the like.
Around here, the only thing you need to worry about is be sure to kick some dirt/gravel around when you get out of the car at night. Runs off those pesky cotton-headed-rattle-moccasins.
Walking along the riverbank at night, if you smell cucumbers, stop, and go back the way you came, slowly, and in the same footsteps. Copperheads smell like cucumbers, and they don't run away.
[ATTACH]51090[/ATTACH]
Yep, that's a bobcat dragging a shark outta the ocean!
Link[ATTACH]51090[/ATTACH]
Yep, that's a bobcat dragging a shark outta the ocean!
Link
That's a dolphin
[SIZE="2"]Look what the cat dragged in![/SIZE]
[ATTACH]51097[/ATTACH]
(South Devon beach)
[COLOR="White"].[/COLOR]
[ATTACH]51090[/ATTACH]
Yep, that's a bobcat dragging a shark outta the ocean!
Link
I just found that pic here
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/
About a quarter of the way down the page.
I stepped out this morning to get the paper, and the birds were going nuts just after a rainstorm. I decided it was because they had been hiding from the heavy rain, and now that it was clear, so they were all happy.
But then I realized it was a murder of half a dozen or so crows making all the noise, and they were cawing frantically, like it was a warning. I was watching them, over my neighbor's house, when a fox walked up the neighbor's driveway onto our property and trotted casually along our fence. Too fast for me to get the phone out to get a picture, but in no hurry at all. I clapped my hands loudly to see if I would spook it, but it just ignored me and continued slowly on its way.
The funny thing was, the crows kept pace with it and were cawing a warning the whole time. After I couldn't see the fox any more, I could still see the crows circling and cawing their way slowly up the neighborhood.
I wonder who the crows were trying to warn? Was it just a general warning for all birds in the area, or for other crows? I thought it was pretty cool. A coordinated defense. Seemed awfully charitable of them, since they were in no threat of the fox.
I was watching them, over my neighbor's house, when a fox walked up the neighbor's driveway onto our property and trotted casually along our fence.
What did the fox say?
A fox at home is pretty cool. Most people go their entire lives without seeing a live fox. Even in the country, it's pretty rare to see a fox.
Was it a red fox, or a gray fox? I'm assuming it wasn't a Redd Foxx. Or a Jamie Foxx.
I started to ask if it was a Michael J. Fox.
But, I thought that might be a little shaky.
Made me remember this:
[YOUTUBE]YNHXFviVb8I[/YOUTUBE]
[SIZE=4]The bald eagles land: New York city awaits first birth of national bird in 100 years[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Bird enthusiasts in raptures about return of nesting raptors to New York city as further sign of the bald eagle's comeback from near-extinction[/SIZE]
A pair of Bald Eagles, the majestic raptor that is America's national bird, is nesting in New York city for the first time in more than a century.
The young couple appears to be about to start a family on the south shore of Staten Island as they have been spotted by engaging in the sort of brooding behaviour associated with birds incubating their eggs.
The exciting announcement was made by the New York branch of the Audubon Society, America's leading bird conservation organisation.
The height and location of the nest means that it has not been possible to confirm that there are eggs inside, but the society is confident that New York will soon gain notable new addition to its feathered ranks after an incubation period expected to end next month.
The species appeared to be heading for extinction a few decades ago, but has made a recovery in some more remote habitats. But these would be the first since 1914 to produce offspring in the urban jungle of New York, even in one of its less densely populated areas.
"We're thrilled to have bald eagles possibly raising their young in New York City," said Tod Winston, a spokesman for New York City Audubon.
Another bald eagle couple was spotted in the same area two months ago, but although they were seen moving nesting material to an unused dock, they then left the area.
The species nearly died out as a result of shooting, habitat destruction and the widespread use of DDT insecticide, which is poisonous to the bird. The US ban on DDT and the passage of the Endangered Species Act are widely credited with helping the bald eagle's comeback from brink of extinction in North America.
The powerful bird of prey was removed from the list of endangered species in 2007 as the numbers thrived.
Daily Telegraph
I hope that this pair breed successfully. It's an eye opener how some raptors have successfully adapted to urban surroundings.
I posted somewhere on the Cellar about the Peregrine Falcons that have nested on the County Council tower block in Aylesbury in recent years.
They have also flourished in London and provincial cities with church and cathedral steeples being favourite nesting spots.
Member Seakdiver says in Alaska they call them tree rats. Most wild life shun the cities not only because of danger but lack of food. For rats and raptors that's not a problem... garbage for the rats, and plump juicy pigeons for raptors.
I am now feeding the birds on my windowsill. Well, they're nesting in the tree next to my window. Mostly I attract woodpigeons - possibly my least favourite bird - but I have seen the occasional crow.
I have to scatter the seed late at night, as it's quite a thin ledge and half of what I dole out bounces into the courtyard two floors below. This is birdseed bought when I was in the nuthouse, so even if I only attract woodpigeons it's at least being used.
I saw my first woodpecker up on the Chevin in the last week. And hear them nearly every time I use the outside gym in the park (it's close to a small section of woodland).
Very pleased with myself.
I still have to hear a cuckoo though.
I hear they sound like a clock. you're not missing much.
Our (Eastern US) cuckoos can be listened to
here and
here. I see a lot of the yellow-billed here but the black-billed are around as well.
Aha, so it was a black-billed Cuckoo I was hearing. :idea: Thanks Griff.
[YOUTUBEWIDE]CgHNiKT3gI8[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
I just saw the full video, I wish it had been subtitled. The story is cute. You just have to watch out for the wheel loaders.
Man. I hate when
this happens.
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That little bit of flesh color under the seals whiskers? Yeah, that's dude's hand.
On today's episode of Find The Turkey:
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How do I claim my prize?
You already have it, my friend.
Pride of Turkeywing Findership.
An inch to the right and you coulda had Pride of Turkeyhead Findership.
:D
As with any animal you're looking for anywhere...
...look for the eye.
you are one funny jive turkey, Grav.
I was recently reminded of turkeys when I watched "Life", the "Birds" episode when they discussed White Pelicans. They're large birds, about 10 kilograms, and I thought, huh, about the size of a big turkey. What was shocking about the segment was
SPOILER
[COLOR="LemonChiffon"]The pelicans were filmed preying on crested gannet chicks, about the size of a chicken. The pelicans attacked unattended chicks, SWALLOWED THEM WHOLE, then flew back to the pelican nesting site. At the feet of the pelican chicks, the momma/poppa pelicans disgorged the gannet chick, alive but partially digested, presumably to be re-eaten.
WTF.
[/COLOR]
END SPOILER
[YOUTUBE]QNNl_uWmQXE[/YOUTUBE]
Uh, yeah. I was about to post that today I saw oven birds, cowbirds, goldfinches, a gazillion robins, cardinals, yada yada at the feeder, and our male fox hanging out on the back slope - this year we've seen the foxes (dog and vixen) frequently, very unusual ... but that pelican thing sort of took the blush off.
Dammit. You're making me learn stuff.
Again.
I had to know about the ovenbird, never heard of it. Having seen a pic of one, I've never seen one live and in person before, and, according to wikipedia's range map, they should be, literally, in my backyard.
I was wondering how they got their name. It's from the shape of their nest. It resembles a kiln, or a dutch oven:
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I also came across
this.
[COLOR="White"]rolleyes[/COLOR]
I'll admit to going there first.
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A pair of House Sparrows has built a nest in a working traffic light on New York's Upper East Side.
I suppose that the warmth generated by the light was one factor in them choosing this site.
The signal appears to be on a pole rather than suspended above the road, so the proximity of pedestrians and vehicles can't have been of too much concern to the birds.
Releasing an ungrateful young moose from barbed wire. About 1:20 he shows why Moose are so dangerous, they're not satisfied to knock you down they want to tap dance on you. I imagine a 1500 pound Bull Moose, or even a 1000 pound Cow Moose, tap dancing on you, might be uncomfortable. :eek:
[YOUTUBEWIDE]2VL0f47Cuo0[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
Suggest full screen.
My Adobe flash crashed and I couldn't see your video, Bruce. But ... they exist independent of us, as they should. If they tap dance on one of us from time to time, it's just the universe talking. ;)
I helped you, ya bitch.
He coulda been talking to Baby...
that's awesome.
foxes are really adapting to living in people's back yards. It's kind of unreal.
When I was on Cape Cod a month ago, I saw several in broad daylight, in residential neighborhoods, beside the road. They showed respect for cars but no apparent fear.
I was on photo safari the other afternoon, and happen to see a couple of turkeys in a field. I stopped and snapped a couple pics, and thought, this road curves around this field, and gets closer. So, I pulled down the road a piece and did get a little closer, about ~200 yards away from them.
It was readily apparent that one of them was a tom because as soon as I stopped GC1, he went full thanksgiving turkey on me and started swelling up. He strutted (literally walking back and forth, vogue-ing in front of his intended), and drummed (that's when the tom drags his wingtips on the ground, while stomping his feet rapidly. This is what makes the hen say "He's for me!!".) for the hen. Every time he got close to her she would lay down almost flat on the ground. He would drum up near her and she would jump and trot a few steps away. She's not quite 'ready', so to speak.
Meanwhile, in the bushes, another hen was taking all this in. She wasn't nearly as picky about things. She came right out and just took the cock, took it, I say. She laid down, and, when tom came up to her she didn't haggle at all, she said "Get after it!", and he did, too.
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Now, I'm sure there are lots of pictures of mating wild turkeys, but, I consider myself very lucky to have photographed a mating pair of turkeys, in flagrante delicto, no less.
Hand-held, full 24x zoom, ~200-300 yards out.
Here's an unprocessed screen cap of one of the failures to launch:
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That's so freaking cool. Not many wild turkeys around these parts.
I glanced at the second picture and thought it was a turkey on a gorilla. :lol:
(sooo sleep deprived I'm hallucinatin')
I've had a little trouble sleeping for the last several days.
Sleep is highly overrated.
Were you at my house Grav? :eyebrow:
Had 4 eggs but only 2 birdies[ATTACH]51473[/ATTACH]
Were you at my house Grav? :eyebrow:
[SIZE="1"]I didn't think anyone saw me...:unsure:[/SIZE]
This little guy was chillin' outside the Laundromat the other day. I think he might have hit the window and was stunned. He was moving his head around but wasn't flying away. I've never seen a hummingbird standing still. I wasn't sure what to do with him but my brother (biology major type kind of guy who knows a lot about birds) later said it was best I just left him alone. Anyway, he's a beauty.
Very nice!
Slick caught a hummingbird once (Once!), and I managed to get it away before the final blow was dealt. One wing was twisted around on his back, and I put it back gently as I could. It made a little, teeny tweet, and sat there, in the palm of my hand, for just a moment and then flew away.
That was so ƒucking awsome!
He is a beauty. I've never seen one perched.
I had one land on my finger once. He came in the house and got behind a window and couldn't figure out how to get out. I very carefully lifted my finger under him as he hovered. He perched on my finger and I walked him outside. He flew off but circled back around and hovered at eye level inches in front of me. His thank you complete, he blew out of there.
Good boy!!!
[YOUTUBEWIDE]oiqMXPOkRU4[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
That kitteh deserves extra treats tonight!
OOhhhooo, fukkin' dope!
These three hares are sitting in a line about ten, 20 and 30 feet from my house. They seem to be placed along the line of the outpipe to the septic tank and the last one is more or less on the septic tank hatch. Maybe it's a little bit warmer along that line?
No Grav!
NONONONONONO.
I love cats and I love bats and now I'm all confused as to where my loyalties lie...
Limes, gosh I love your hares.
Saw some gorgeous handcarved moongazers at the Show. Couldn't even take their photographs in case they drew me into a bank balance defying purchase.
Maybe it's a little bit warmer along that line?
More likely the grass is a little sweeter.
Due to the 'honeypot' you mentioned.:D
Shouldn't make any difference to the grass between the house and the tank, the leach field after the tank would feed the grass. Maybe that pipe is providing warmth but it's probably down three feet or more. It could be creating a vibration or magnetic line to attract them. Or they might be look-outs for the crew tunneling into your pantry. :unsure:
Limey's pantry is worth burgularing...
some pictures of geese and baby geese...and R the Wonder Dog from my dad's lake. This is the southernmost of the two lakes...not even the pretty one but he and the other partners and my brother were discussing a business venture involving the land near that lake. I was impressed with the huge amount of baby geese (goslings? ryan?) but my other brother was impressed because they'll make for good shootin' next goose season. :eek:
If'n they survive. A friend had a duck hatch 17 (seventeen yes SEVENTEEN) ducklings the other day. Within less than a week they'd all been taken by the gulls and the ravens.
And look at that Dawg's expression gazing across the water - he's thinking about they little ryans 'n'all ....
Yes, probably. :)
However, she is unaware that she can swim. She's only a year old, and she'll get into the water but not swim out. Her cousin, otoh, is a crazy swimmer so here is a pic of J dog chewing a stick he fetched out of the water and R dog wanting that stick, then walking away like "hmmmph...you can keep your stupid old stick you retrieved."
I was impressed with the huge amount of baby geese...
They appear in large numbers like that because of the vibrating, magnetic water.
Even I can see that R is a pearl of a dog.
These are the good guys.
[VIMEO]67425463[/VIMEO]
They appear in large numbers like that because of the vibrating, magnetic water.
I have no idea what that means.
Even I can see that R is a pearl of a dog.
She is, very sweet and good.
I love it that you are posting pictures, Infinte Monkey. New camera?
Nah, I'm just realizing my phone takes some really good pictures!
One day I will post my Giant Abe pictures.
I have no idea what that means.
These three hares are sitting in a line about ten, 20 and 30 feet from my house. They seem to be placed along the line of the outpipe to the septic tank and the last one is more or less on the septic tank hatch. Maybe it's a little bit warmer along that line?
More likely the grass is a little sweeter.
Due to the 'honeypot' you mentioned.:D
It could be creating a vibration or magnetic line to attract them.
Do try to keep up.
:p:
The older I get the denser I get. :blush:
:thumb:
These are the good guys.
[VIMEO]67425463[/VIMEO]
Very cool. Thanks.
im, the dogs are lovely, they look like they're having fun and looking forward to having more fun soon.
as for the canada geese. you're welcome to them. I despise them. they're terrible pests here, shitting on everything.
Yeah, it's pretty much dog heaven down there. They love it.
Goose poo everywhere but I still think they're pretty. They have conventions on the river behind my place sometimes, and boy do they get loud at happy hour. They sound like we did at FA conferences. :)
Fucking starlings and house sparrows, and a squirrel
HATE Grackles! My squirrels don't visit anymore. However, I was just out back enjoying my newly stained deck (lotta work) with Daniel. For the first time some birds were on the feeders while we were out there. We were about 10" from them. Very cool.
Lots of wildlife here - helping itself to my new garden!! We have several rabbits, one an adult plus several teens. Somehow neither the turkey vultures nor our pair of red foxes have taken them out yet, as they did in other years. The little furballs (rabbits, not foxes) have eaten ALL my fernleaf dill and almost all the cilantro. Parsley went but was clearly a third choice. Up against it here, shopping for fox urine/coyote urine granules, whatever. I sprayed and shook blood/egg solids all over tonight but have my doubts.
Anyone know of a foolproof rabbit deterrent? I think I need to have words with our foxes.
Anyone know of a foolproof rabbit deterrent?
Yosemite Sam?
Slow roasted rabbit infused with parsley, dill and cilantro surrounded by colorful fresh baby potatoes & carrots... Add a nice La Griveliere Cotes du Rhone Tete de Cuvee 2010 (bursting at the seams with barnyard manure and leather, perfectly smooth with modest fruit and a finish of leather - old world style for sure.)
Oh my ... I'm on m way!
La Griveliere Cotes du Rhone Tete de Cuvee 2010
Yeah, no. I ain't drinking nothing that takes that long to say.
Google translates that as
The Griveliere Cotes du Rhone Tete de Cuvee, btw. Hell, even
I knew that much...
Anyone know of a foolproof rabbit deterrent?
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♪ ♫1 Something's got to give♪ ♫
♪ ♫2 Something's got to give♪ ♫
♪ ♫3 Something's got to give♪ ♫
♪ ♫Let the bodies hit the floor♪ ♫
♪ ♫Let the bodies hit the floor♪ ♫
♪ ♫Let the bodies hit the floor♪ ♫
~ Drowning Pool "Let the Bodies Hit The Floor"Yeah, no. I ain't drinking nothing that takes that long to say.
You get a special exemption then. Drink some ripple.
Fuck a bunch of Ripple.:lol2:
I been drankin' that clear shit lately. Y'know, comes in a mason jar? With no label? And high-triple-digit proof?
Wabbit. Baby wabbit, actually.
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Remember, as summer looms beware of ticks and Buffalo.
Do Not Approach Buffalo
... but, but, but... what if you live there?!
Ticks, buffalo, and now flea-bearing squirrels.
Plague in Idaho squirrels prompts health warning
Boise, Idaho • Ground squirrels south of Boise have tested positive for plague, and humans and pets should avoid the area, Idaho health officials say.
The bacterial disease can be spread by the bites of fleas or by direct contact with infected animals, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare said in a statement Friday.
"We would probably advise people not to go out in that area," said Tom Shanahan, spokesman for the agency. "If you go out there, you need to take precautions."
Officials said that includes insect repellent and staying away from dead animals. Pets should be protected with flea-repellent products and not be allowed to roam free, which increases the chances of a pet rolling on a dead ground squirrel or picking it up.
Mike Keckler of Idaho Fish and Game said the agency investigated earlier this week after receiving reports of dead ground squirrels and found 24 die-off sites. Seven dead squirrels were sent overnight to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, he said, and researchers confirmed on Friday morning to Idaho officials that plague caused the deaths.
Our cilantro-loving rabbit has been permanently deterred. :(
I hate that, but I blame it on the fox pair that didn't step up. Or the hawks/vultures that scour our place but didn't pick off the bunny. I'd much rather the natural order take care of things, predator/prey-wise.
So I'm going to plant more dill, a few other herbs, and continue sowing beans for the next 3 weeks. I've started sprouts in the past few days and am reaping the benefits from today - alfalfa, tomorrow lentil sprouts, the next day bean and chickpea sprouts. Lots of protein, mmm!
That rabbit was all protein. :yum:
How did you guys take care of the rabbit? Living here in the close in suburbs, we're not allowed to do anything to wildlife. Live traps are even against the law unless you are a pro. Do you live somewhere where you can just shoot it?
Do you live somewhere where you can just shoot it?
They're not even allowed to have knives.
No knives in PA? What you talkin bout Willis?
My word, I thought I was in the myxomatosis thread!
Maybe her staff wanted the rabbit dead? :eek:
My word, I thought I was in the myxomatosis thread!
Yeah, I suspected you were thinking Old Blighty. :haha:
On my way to a wildlife rehaber. This little red tail appeared on my front porch this morning. Seems to have a head injury, I hope they can help him..
..[ATTACH]51827[/ATTACH]
Can someone fix my photo sorry it's so big!
I have been corrected by the rehaber he is a screech owl and she thinks he will be OK :)
Tough picture to work with.
Maybe it got hurt swimming with Meeses.
A few days ago, a number of UK newspapers reported how a Badger had entered a house via the cat flap and had stolen food from the fridge.
Prior to this video he had opened the fridge and helped himself to half a dozen eggs.
When the house owner heard a repeat raid in progress he was greeted with the following scene:
[YOUTUBEWIDE]twttj5bAiIU[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
Just put up a mirror.
[YOUTUBEWIDE]GaMylwohL14[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
They look as though they are watching TV and being wholly unimpressed by the experience.
That badger musta been one of themthere punk-ass badgers.
An American badger wouldn't have left without the 'fridge. Plus, he woulda mussed ya up on the way out.
:jig:
They look as though they are watching TV and being wholly unimpressed by the experience.
Yeah, I'm not into reality tv, either.
Dragon, the Michigan Piebald fawn rejected by it's mother.
Bat of Prussia!
Bat has tooken up residence in one of the tight little nooks of my roof. I'm like
what's all these turds at this corner? Bat, is what.
I'm like what's all these turds at this corner? Bat, is what.
Don't let it bother you, you don't want to be batshit crazy.
Bat, is what.
Skeeter eater, is what.
Encourage him to stay. Buy/make a batbox, might get him off yer house.
Captain coon of the good ship Gator.
I'm trying to put a video in here. Can someone fix, if no workie? And tell me how to do it?
Can't really do it from a facebook video I think
Ok. A link then.
It's Unbelievable What Comes Out Of The Woods To Greet This Woman Every Day...And Then Comes Into Her House!
https://www.facebook.com/angiewardonline/videos/10153104610714699/?fref=nfwow. I guess when you start them young...
There's a colonial house in
Old Sturbridge Village with Chestnut clapboards that have never been painted.
Sometimes nature lives next to us.
They had to build a squirrel bridge to stop the carnage crossing the street from a city park to the Park Plaza office building.
Why did the [strike]chicken[/strike] squirrel cross the road?
Because the stupid people at the Park Plaza office building fed them. Well, duh!
For just a second there I thought that snake was a politician, because I thought he was speaking out of his ass.
Nothing like sitting quietly listening to the buzz of a feeding Hummingbird.
Now I know you guys are always dreaming of a wet pussy...
be careful what you wish for.
It's been a minute since I seen one, but, I remember it looking different than that.
Damn Roadrunner must have descended from Dilophosaurus.
[YOUTUBEWIDE]3LE78eJx5hg[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
He dies a virgin.
:eek:
Well, shit, man! I was all for the bastard dying a painful death, beat his brains out, but, let him get laid at least once, anyway, damn!
:(
From a friend in Sparta, NJ, this morning.
Is that a compost heap? We had a bear visit a couple weeks ago but not since. Now that we're back in the bee business its more than a interesting occurrence. I've got a strong fence but I'm going to have to add electric and sardine cans.
I was guessing a fire enclosure, but I don't know, you may be right.
and sardine cans.
What does this mean? Are you talking about real sardine cans or is that slang for something?
Is that a compost heap?
She says it's a fire pit.
What does this mean? Are you talking about real sardine cans or is that slang for something?
Maybe the sardine cans are for hanging on the fence, to rattle when the bear comes over/under, might turn him around, I suppose...I'd think the sardine stank might actually draw the bears.
I was thinking the sardine smell would cause the bears to snuffle and maybe lick, the electrified can?
There's a thought. A jolt to the tongue would deter me.
Well, from most chicks, anyway.
:D
I was thinking the sardine smell would cause the bears to snuffle and maybe lick, the electrified can?
Exactly. There is almost no fence that can stop a determined bear so you have to scare the bejesus outa them. Electric does not deter someone in a bear suit unless they make wet tongue contact or are convinced to pee on it.
Be vewy, vewy qwiet...I'm feeding wabbits.
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He (she?) seems rather fond of grapes...yeah, not the cheapest rabbit chow.
Name's Pete.
The White-throated Needletail - the world's fastest flying bird - was thousands of miles off course after turning up at Tarbert on the Isle of Harris. It was first seen by two bird spotters from Northumberland on Monday. There has not been a sighting of the species in Britain since 1991 when a single bird was seen four times - in Kent, Staffordshire, Derbyshire and finally Shetland.
Twitchers are Brit bird watchers who upon hearing of a rare bird sighting, will travel to the location to trying to notch their binocular belt. This is the ninth sighting in Britain since 1846.
"Once the news was spread on the evening, many birders started preparing for the long journey north in the hope of catching up with the bird," said Mr Duffield. "Unfortunately after showing very well to the delight of all present yesterday - probably around 40 people in the morning with others arriving in the afternoon - it was seen to hit the blade of a small wind turbine in Tarbert and was killed.
He added: "The corpse will be sent to a museum but obviously this is just terrible. Some people will have lost the cost of their flights.
linkGrav, that's such a slice of gorgeousness!
(Slick would have thought so too... in a different way)
Bruce, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Poor birdie.
Wind power's unintended consequence. Happens pretty frequently.
I've read the stats on bird kills from these things and don't get it. I've seen a lot of wind turbines and they look like they're turning very slowly. I've also seen a lot of birds and most of them look like they can move and maneuver pretty quickly. I guess the turbines are moving faster than they look because they are so big...
...and the birds don't avoid them because they're busy texting.;)
Pretty much. They're massive. I saw one (in pieces) on a trailer on the highway.
I was amazed at how big - shocked really.
OK, I found this for a NJ wind farm.
Depending on wind conditions the blades turn at rates between 10 and 20 revolutions per minute. Considering the length of the blades, at average wind speeds of 13 to 15 mph, the tips are traveling at 120 mph. At maximum wind speeds, the blade tips are spinning at an estimated 180 mph.
Reminds me of the Chinook blades spinning at 102 rpm, with a tip speed of near 500 mph.
Pretty much. They're massive. I saw one (in pieces) on a trailer on the highway.
I was amazed at how big - shocked really.
Caught this coming off I-65 back in 2010:
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yes yes yes! You posted that then. thanks for reposting.
And to think that is just ONE blade. smh
I'm always a little amazed by the size of the hub to which that blade must bolt.
Grav, that's such a slice of gorgeousness!
(Slick would have thought so too... in a different way)
Glad you liked it. Those are grapes we've been feeding them, in the pic and vid, not the world's largest rabbit droppings.
Slick used to sit in the window and watch the rabbits, squirrels, and birds, and give out these little tiny
barks, for lack of a better word, a quiet, abbreviated, little chopped off beginning-of-a-meow.
He tried a squirrel once. He didn't think too highly of the experience.
They're getting so big if we put power to them so they spin backward, we could speed up the earth rotation. :haha:
What a croc..
Police have been alerted after a scaly reptile was apparently Spotted in a stream between Clevedon and Kingston Seymour, along Lower Strode Road.
Hang on tight to that leash, Carruthers. :haha:
Mountain lion stories are increasing again. Oddly two cats have been called black which isn't supposed to be a thing among mountain lions but who knows? The other two had typical coloration. I know one guy very well who saw a dark one recently on his way home from work. He was very impressed with the size of the tail. That was around Speedsville, NY and I think the other was near Springville, PA. I've got to get some googly eyes for the back of my helmet.
Or a generator on the pedals for a perimeter wire. :speechls:
I should think a big cat around your way would have plenty of food sources, and although you're quite handsome, I don't think you look tasty. But what do I know, you might taste like chicken.
Still, a cat's a cat, so they just might fuck with you for shits and giggles.
Would that be KO-52?
I notice they didn't manage to de-claw a honey badger.
:eek::3_eyes::eyebrow::eek:
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CBSNews articleDamn straight they're dangerous, they're after my nuts, Chipmunks too. :unsure:
Less-cropped version of the snake-eater squirrel:
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"...down to the last two inches..."
That must have filled that squirrel to the gills.
sounds like he stopped at the snake's ass.
"ew, it's bad now. ptui!"
sounds like he stopped at the snake's ass.
Or he stopped at the cloaca.
Some squirrels just don't go downtown.
:jig:
Damn straight they're dangerous, they're after my nuts, Chipmunks too. :unsure:
All sensate creatures want your nuts, hon.
A juvenile great white beached itself while trying to catch seagulls off Chatham, Massachusetts. Thanks to the harbor master and beach-goers, this shark was saved.
[YOUTUBEWIDE]p444Zf-gcHU[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
I've heard of jumping the shark, but that's the first time I've ever seen someone jump-starting a shark.
Good job.
Living next to nature, coexisting with respect, but don't overdo it.
A tow-fer, today...A drunk squirrel (no pic), and a guy sees a super-rare English pine marten.
Squirrel Has Too Much To Drink, Gets Thrown Out Of Bar
From HuffPo:
We've all gone a little nuts at a bar.
An English squirrel broke into a Worcestershire pub, causing more than $400 in damages after going on a drunken tirade, the Western Daily Press reports.
Sam Boulter, the 62-year-old owner of the Honeybourne Railyway Club, walked in Sunday night to see the rodent ransacking the place. Beer and smashed glass bottles littered the floor, according to the BBC.
"There were bottles scattered around, money scattered around and he had obviously run across the bar's pumps and managed to turn on the Caffrey's tap," Boulter told Western Daily Press. "He must have flung himself on the handle and drank some as he was staggering around all over the place and moving a bit slowly."
The squirrel, who refused to leave the premises or pay for damages, was eventually ejected from the establishment through a window.
"It's safe to say he is now barred from the club for life," Boulter told the paper.
A close friend of the squirrel (and totally real source) told HuffPost Weird that his buddy was on a bender, having recently gone through a divorce and forced to take out a second tree mortgage. His kids never call, but still come by once in a while to take his acorns.
The peanut packing plant he worked at shut down, and the only way for him to cope with his own miserable existence has been to drown his sorrows in booze, according to the source.
From YahooNews:
The First Sighting of This Small Carnivore in a Century Is a Big Deal
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For the first time in a century, a pine marten has been spotted in England, roaming the forested hillsides of Shropshire along the country’s border with Wales.
The cat-sized member of the mustelid family (mink, weasels, etc.) was photographed by amateur wildlife enthusiast David Pearce, who sent the photos in to the Shropshire Wildlife Trust last week. There Stuart Edmunds, the Trust’s communications officer and an avid pine marten searcher was able to verify the discovery.
Though native to England, Pine martens have been extinct in the country since 1915, mostly due to forest clearing (they like nice, heavy tree cover), fur trappers, and systematic eradication (farmers and landowners saw them as varmint). Still, pine martens are thriving in Scotland, where 4,000 are estimated to roam, and a smaller population persists in Wales, where the Shropshire marten is thought to have originated.
So, Why Should You Care? While pine martens are still common in much of Europe, the animals’ disappearance from England has left a hole in the country’s ecosystem, and American gray squirrels have filled it. The nonnative rodents have taken over much of the territory of Britain’s native red squirrels. They also destroy young trees, hindering the establishment of new forests.
In Ireland, where some 2,700 pine martens reside under legal protections, gray squirrel populations have crashed wherever pine martens have expanded. At the same time, red squirrel numbers have risen in areas once dominated by the gray squirrels. The reason? Gray squirrels are just a bit slower and heavier than their red counterparts, and that makes them easier meals for pine marten.
Edmunds, who runs the Wildlife Trust’s Shropshire Pine Marten project, has been on the hunt for a true sighting of the animal the past five years. He’s investigated multiple supposed pine marten sightings, but they’ve all turned out be cases of mistaken identities—cats, mink, and even squirrels—or unverifiable until now.
“Many people have questioned my sanity for a while now for dedicating so much of my time investigating sightings,” Edmunds said. “Although two other photos [of pine martens] have been taken in the last decade, those cases were thought to be photos of escaped pine martens that escaped wildlife parks/sanctuaries. It is likely that this marten is completely wild, so this is a very important record.”
Important because it shows that England can once again provide habitat for the pine marten, which is thought to have been once the second most common carnivore in the country.
Edmunds hopes this most recent sighting will rekindle interest among conservationists to restore the species in England. Early plans have looked at capturing martens from Scotland for re-release in potential pine marten habitat sites in England and Wales.
Leggo my mama, you bastard.
I almost put this in the 'What Is This' thread...
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So...What is it?
Is it a bear? Is it the most muscular fucking mountain lion that ever lived?
Arnold Schwarzencougar?
It's hanging around Milwaukee, and they're not sure what it is, either.:yelsick:
Looks like a fuzzy bear to me.
Fuzzy wuzzy was a bear.
Fuzzy wuzzy had no hair.
Fuzzy wuzzy wasn't very fuzzy.
Wuzzy?
Fuhget about the lion! We need to take care of the crazed deer population NOW! Run, don't walk, to your nearest home improvement superstore to find a bag of Uncle Ian's Crazed Deer Repellent! Or maybe the deer just got ahold of those wax lips/teeth things we had as children.
(This is actually on a bag at the store. I have pointed it out to cow orkers, none of whom had ever noticed it before. One dum bass (not on our crew) got all puffed up as he explained to me "it's photoshopped, see? it's supposed to look scary, see?" To which I pointed out there's a FLUFFY BUNNY [fluffy bunny not pictured] and a FRISKY SQUIRREL right next to it, and THEY don't have Crazy Mouth.)
So off I went looking for "deer teeth" in google....
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Musk deer:
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Also try
water deerFrom HuffPo
Baby Owl Questioned In Owlbsolutely Adorable Police Encounter
[YOUTUBEWIDE]4J3lPssz1Ms[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
Whoooooo's this shady character?
A sheriff's deputy in Boulder County, Colorado, came across this suspicious baby owl last week. As you can see in the clip above, she proceeded to interrogate the little bird.
After a brief and clearly tense standoff, it seemed clear the northern saw-whet owl was guilty of being owl-bsolutely owl-dorable.
One Twitter user asked if the owl revealed how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop.
"The owl wouldn't give anything up," the department wrote in response.
They also wrote that the encounter took place near the Rainbow Lakes Campground in Nederland.
"After some curious head twisting (on both sides) it safely flew away," the agency wrote in its YouTube description.
Fly like an Eagle.
[YOUTUBEWIDE]Pv20ojSPr_M[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
Please don't tell him I LOLed. I don't want my eyes pecked out.
We kid the Aussies about Drop Bears and all the deadly wildlife they have.
Well, be that as it may, we've got a few ourselves. :blush:
Crikey me, is that Arizona?
Not going there, no thanks.
Crikey me, is that Arizona?
Not going there, no thanks.
Yes, but look at dear old Wyoming. Another good reason to like the place. :thumb:
To be fair, Wyoming might be packed with species we don't know about because there aren't any damn people there... What is it about hot desert-y climates like Australia and Arizona that lend themselves to venomous evolution?
That chart must include insects and arachnids. Virginia has like 2-3 species of poisonous snakes, but that's all I can think of without getting into bugs.
And why the hell would the eagle video get deleted by the owner?
Not only that, but I'm pretty sure it includes species that are technically venomous but could never really hurt something as big as a person, like Daddy Long-Legs spiders.
That chart must include insects and arachnids. Virginia has like 2-3 species of poisonous snakes, but that's all I can think of without getting into bugs.
Not poisonous, venomous. Bugs? Absolutely. Plus ex-wives, and politicians. ;)
VENOMOUS SPIDERS FOUND IN EACH STATE
That's incomplete because PA has recluse spiders also. One of the guys I worked with got bit. Nasty results. And climate change will see all of them moving north.
VENOMOUS SNAKES FOUND IN EACH STATE
VENOMOUS SCORPIONS FOUND IN EACH STATE Fly like an Eagle.
This video has been removed by the user.
:mad:
The Eagle video was evidently sold to CBS News.
It's here, but with commercials. :(
Bat of Prussia is still hangin' in there, six weeks later.
"Are you laughing at ME? Because I don't see any other bats here."
Great work Grav
B-o-P did turn his head and look at me photographing him. I'm three feet away here with an 8x zoom.
Since January of this year, the Montgomery County Health Department has received reports of 7 positive Animal Rabies cases in Montgomery County: 3 raccoons Salford Township (1), Perkiomen Township (1), and Towamencin Township (1), and 2 skunks Upper Merion Township (1) and Upper Moreland Township (1), and 2 bats Horsham Township (1) and now in Upper Merion Township (1).
Bat of Prussia is missing his Bros he had wild and crazy fun with. :haha:
Aw crap. Well what do you think I should do?
They are close, but Bat of Prussia doesn't seem distressed, and you don't have a pet, so just don't handle him. Or train him to attack JWs and salesmen. ;)
I read up and bat to human rabies transmission is very rare, like one case per year or so. You pretty much have to be bit, and in order for that to happen they pretty much have to be in the house.
That's what I understood, the big danger is them getting indoors and freaking out.
It didn't click when Digr posted the don't care picture, went right over my head. :o So I did a Google image search and got nothing.
Then I Googled Bat of Prussia, and half the links on the first page were companies who do bat removal in King of Prussia. That warranted further investigation.
HeyIfoundyourkeys!
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Go ahead, pick 'em up...Whaddya mean 'you don't want 'em'?
I tawt I taw a puddy tat
[YOUTUBEWIDE]rNO2CUGPSl8[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
I LOL'd, loudly, @ the 10 second mark..."Ah, shit!!"...:lol2:
That cougar looks to have an abscess/cyst or something on his neck/jaw area. Some kind of swelling.
ETA: Deer get those in the lower chest between the front legs sometimes. Usually filled with liquid (colloquially called a 'water cyst'), and harmless.
Life in Africa... notice the perimeter of pointy stones to discourage animals.
Bet they wish it was just the dog. :haha:
Loved that vid, Grav.
That walker has balls of steel - does all the right things.
Bruce, I have always had a slightly shuddery reaction to elephants. Even those I met close-up in Sri Lanka. That photo, to me, is more unhappy than most of those in the nightmare thread.
Score one for nature.
[YOUTUBEWIDE]Al1oJddw3JM[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
That's a well-done newscast by ABC.
But maybe the Ranger saying "Yellowstone is wild" is something of an exaggeration.
And a collar on a predator (1:40 mark) is not a Yellowstone pet tag.
I had to play the bit around the 1.40 mark a couple of times as I couldn't believe how close to the bear those people were in the hopes of getting a good photo!
Couldn't they just leave these things to National Geographic or the Discovery Channel? :eek:
It's funny, those folks wouldn't have paid $50-$100 to see a bear, but yet, they're willing to put their life and/or the lives of others on the line...People are stupid.
But maybe the Ranger saying "Yellowstone is wild" is something of an exaggeration.
:eyebrow:
The animals are wild, plus the interaction of wildlife and people along the road are pretty wild in another sense. Especially Asian tourists, as every time they take a picture of some special attraction like a historic building, monument, or scenery, they have to be in the picture. Forerunner of the selfie, I guess.
The best one was the Ranger telling about a woman smearing peanut butter on her kids necks so she could get pictures of a bear licking them. :facepalm:
Not only are the animals wild. The RV camps get that way after dark.
And here is a "something of an exaggeration" to the other side...
Old Faithful Geyser
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Winter in Yellowstone
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That's a pretty good argument. I hadn't thought about it like that.
Parking at the most popular attraction, and snowmobiles on the road in winter, where cars would be in summer. But neither show hiking the 3500 sq miles of back country. Most people never see anything they can't see from the road.
Don't eat the [strike] Daisies [/strike] carnations and chrysanthemums.
Grieving families have been urged to only choose certain funeral flowers for Earlham Crematorium in Norwich, Norfolk, because squirrels are munching their way through the tributes. The animals have become such a problem that bosses at Dignity, which runs the crematorium, have put up signs warning mourners about the squirrels.
“It’s soul-destroying to see them nibbling away. I’ve seen tributes put down on the Friday morning and by the Friday afternoon they are in pieces because of the squirrels.” Mr Barrett said some of the flowers on his daughter’s memorial had also been damaged. He said: “I like wildlife, but you have to draw the line somewhere.”
linkI suppose if I spent good money on a floral tribute, I would resent having it eaten the same afternoon. But it does mean I know what to plant on Mum's grave if I outlive her. She would love the idea of squirrels coming to visit her.
She would love the idea of squirrels coming to visit her.
I put a bird feeder on Slick's grave.
:)
Florida is holding their first
bear hunt in 21 years, $100 in state, $300 out of state, and may have more hunters than bears.
Now Florida has everyone worked up about bear hunting just hope it doesn't lead to a tragedy like this one
in Alaska.
Drive-by shooting claims teddy bear
Drive-by shooters took aim at an unusual target in a residential Juneau neighborhood early Thursday morning: A giant stuffed teddy bear being used as a driveway marker.
Police received a secondhand report of the shots fired on Point Lena Road about 5 a.m. and later learned that the homeowner had found a “small tiny bullet hole” in the stuffed animal’s face.
I got a hat like that.
Please use it responsibly.
I'm not really sure. I've consciously avoided the things most of my life.
:)
While shooting a Teddy Bear, even a huge one, might be extreme, real Black Bears are vicious killing machines as
show here.
Awww. He's just playing.
(I used to say that when Diz cut me to ribbons too)
Remember
this little fella?
He took a grape out of Momdigr's hand yesterday.
She said "I just about squealed!".
:D
That's awesome. It's the little things like that that make life good.
Wow, Momdigr's lucky. Pete's kind love human blood you know, go for the throat. :haha:
Wow, Momdigr's lucky. Pete's kind love human blood you know, go for the throat. :haha:
You mean
these, from "The Lone Ranger"?
Family of bears enjoys a Rockaway Twp, NJ pool.
[YOUTUBE]wCpi_IzAP28[/YOUTUBE]
Closer up.
[YOUTUBE]dB3XzIrvFHE[/YOUTUBE]
Five cubs! :eek: That poor bear, I wonder if she knows octomom?
[YOUTUBEWIDE]JlGfi2ofzFc[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
The cat whisperer will end up getting mauled. Mark my words.
I went through my vacation photos yesterday and got them organized over lunch.
This wildlife isn't exactly living next to nature.
What do you do when you come across a dead whale on a beach? Poke it with a stick, of course.
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It's much better to see living whales. Especially a rare Baluga. And a mommy and baby Right whale pair.
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Once I chose to mute the bear video I adored it.
Whiny child-voice made me want to bleach my eardrums. How did such a grounded-sounding Mum get such hideous children? ("My floatie, my floatie!")
Looks like the glatts had a whale of a time. :thumb:
Oh, a dead fish with bugs on it. Wait those aren't bugs, they're grizzly bears.:eyeball::eyeball:
Cardinal chick on Popdigr's tree stand:
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Mama was fluttering and bouncing around the yard squeaking at the top of her lungs whilst I was taking the pix, trying to lure me away from her babby. I took a short video of it, but, I'm sure you've seen it happen. This was like that.
Believe it, or, don't, but, that teensy li'l feller flew away when mama came out. I was surprised he could fly as well as he did.
Oh you've got a little piece of - here, let me get that for you -
Reminds me of a dog thinking he's hidden behind a curtain. Yep he can't see me since I hid under this stick. :haha:
Some birds make sounds that are pretty strange, here's five of them.
[YOUTUBE]VlquMm_e4y0[/YOUTUBE]
Cardinal chick on Popdigr's tree stand:
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Mama was fluttering and bouncing around the yard squeaking at the top of her lungs whilst I was taking the pix, trying to lure me away from her babby. I took a short video of it, but, I'm sure you've seen it happen. This was like that.
Believe it, or, don't, but, that teensy li'l feller flew away when mama came out. I was surprised he could fly as well as he did.
Fear--It gives you wings! (apologies to Red Bull)
Damn dirty Crows, murder is common and sometimes arson. A thatched roof is especially vulnerable to their wicked ways. ;)
Perhaps they smoke to suppress their ravenous appetites.
Thanks, I'll be here all week. Try the blackbird pie.
Crows am too clever to smoke.
Smart crows.
[YOUTUBE]BGPGknpq3e0[/YOUTUBE]
Momdigr's wascally wabbit. At my feet.
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Weird angle is due to Pete being on his hind legs, directly under the camera.
Here comes Peter Cottontail hoppin' down the bunny trail.
I don't know how to make those musical notes, Oh Well.
Remember this little fella?
He took a grape out of Momdigr's hand yesterday.
She said "I just about squealed!".
:D
Got it on video the other day:
[YOUTUBEWIDE]es9mOVT6v3Y[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
She's worked on that wabbit for a good couple months, and, now, he comes to us when we don't even know he's around. Just happen to look down, there's a wabbit at your ankle.
I named him Pete. Not after Peter Cottontail, but, after Pete Hogwallop in "O, Brother Where Art Thou?".
'Course it's Pete. Look at 'im.
Outstanding, patience and kindness sooths the savage beast.
but be careful, when you least expect it they go for the juggler.:skull:
...when you least expect it they go for the juggler.:skull:
Thank goodness none of us are jugglers.
:jig:
OMG.
I rewatched that about twenty times.
I can see where you get your loveliness (and love of animals) from now.
Give your Mum my love.
Lucky capture 'cause they be really fast. ;)
Give your Mum my love.
Done.:D
Working through my photo blog of my visit to Harewood House.
You'll get why I've left you hanging there if you read other threads.
Not-so-good family news means I'm not up to happy jolly rememberings of a day out.
But I came across these and I did smile.
Because I'd mentioned in the Nightmare thread that I'm quite fond of the little old English (British? European?) wasp.
With my stupid immune system - even before I compromised it with cirrhosis - I get a horrible reaction to a sting. But it's nothing really. Not like people who have to have epi-pens for bee stings or owt. I just itch longer and harder than most people, swell more and get oozy. Ditto cat bites, ant stings, nettles bramble scratches etc etc. Yeah, it's really classy.
AnyWAY.
Had a cream tea. Part of my birthday treat.
It was ridiculously expensive and I savoured every mouthful.
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So why not share it?
Mr Wasp came looking.
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I moved the pot of jam away from me (see above re itching and oozing) and said, "Have at it, mate."
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Mr Wasp had a mate. As in a pal, a chum, a bromance. Wasps don't do the sexy thing. But I'd've been down with gay wasps if it had worked out that way.
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Not waving, but drowning.
Actually, no Stevie Smiths were harmed in this series of photographs. Both of them were probably sugar-high, but neither were trapped.
Buy one, get a half-dozen free.
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Snake is in big trouble. Maybe dead snake slithering.
Guineas are good for that. They make excellent watchdogs, too. No kidding.
I saw this elsewhere (I think it was elsewhere) and people worked out that the snake was a rubber snake, but if you look at YouTube you can find many examples of birds taking on snakes and usually winning.
Snake is in big trouble. Maybe dead snake slithering.
Somehow it reminded me of this ad...
[YOUTUBE]34wJt3pRY0w[/YOUTUBE]
Some are just sore losers. :haha:
Guess his Mama taught him to keep his tail tucked in. :shocking:
[YOUTUBEWIDE]jbN7CNz7OOQ[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
A French bulldog named Jewel has been caught on CCTV chasing bears out of her owner's back garden in Monrovia, California.
It is thought the two bears were searching for food after wildfires destroyed parts of their habitat.
Brave dog chases bears off property
US Dwellars....
Can you identify the breed of the bears, please? Ta.
(video etc.)
US Dwellars....
Can you identify the breed of the bears, please? Ta.
Hilarious! Fantastic! It just goes to show that attitude is all!
Hilarious! Fantastic! It just goes to show that attitude is all!
It's the speed the bear goes down the steps at about 0.40 that made me laugh.
It turns Shakespeare's 'Exit, pursued by a bear' on its head somewhat.
Tempted to say California Golden Bears :haha:, but I think they're Brown Bear cubs.
Those are cinnamon-phase black bear cubs, I'm almost certain.
That's interesting, I didn't know they had black bears in CA., only browns. They have two sub-species of blacks. :dunce:
The Story Of A Soldier And The Squirrel Who Never Leaves His Side
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Just seen this. Is it possible to vomit from sheer happy overload?
This level of cuteness needs a warning.
By which I mean thank you for that Sir.
Just seen this. Is it possible to vomit from sheer happy overload?
This level of cuteness needs a warning.
By which I mean thank you for that Sir.
You are talking about the squrl, right?
And not the guy?
I keep warning you about those rabbits, but would you listen... nooooooooooo.
How that bunny has lived as long as it has is beyond me. How can it eat?
It can't and was nearly dead by the side of the road. They surmise it was a pet, abandoned rather than pay a vet to fix it. Rabbits, woodchucks, beavers and others, have teeth that never stop growing. Nature expected their natural lifestyle to wear teeth away as fast as they grew. But incarcerated critters don't lead a natural lifestyle, except some zoos who take this into account during their stay. Pets with this type teeth must be regular vet visitors
That is why my rat boys have wooden chew toys as well as cardboard, wicker, mineral blocks and Uncle Tom Cobley and all. Rodents' teeth don't stop growing.
They might drive me crazy when they noisily gnaw in the middle of the night, but it's all natural behaviour, and necessary.
Poor abandoned bunny.
Shoulda turned him into hasenpfeffer.
They might drive me crazy when they noisily gnaw in the middle of the night, but it's all natural behaviour, and necessary.
They're practicing to gnaw your bones when the rat revolution comes. Viva Willard!!
I took this with my phone when in Orr, MN a few weeks back. As a lefty, I frequently take pictures with the camera "upside down." This would be one of them.
Obviously, the nuclear wind has reached the trees before the water. :haha:
Nice pic.
...
Before I read the Classic's comment, I thought it was from New Zealand.
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Tx ... I wish it was done on purpose. I cold claim some sort of photographic creativity, but alas, no.
My polar bear pictures were stolen when my laptop was stolen out of my stolen car. Did I post some here?
I love you sexobon. Thanks! :)
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They were raised together.[YOUTUBEWIDE]vp_Dw2yH4vM[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
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That is the best frikkin adorable.
These are adorable. I guess I have to get video of the two very hardworking chipmunks who live at opposite ends of our back deck; they've been carrying hickory nuts to their nests for weeks now. Occasionally our neighbor's cat strolls across the yard and the chipmunks freeze; the cat is too well fed to notice. The groundhogs have gone to ground in the past week or so; no more sightings. While the wild turkeys were grazing on the back slope, the groundhogs mingled (safety in numbers) and grazed as well; but now that the turkeys have drifted back into denser cover, all is quiet. The deer were numerous a couple of weeks ago but, thankfully, have now withdrawn. I don't want to see any now that bow season is here.
I should explain that our property is small, only 13 acres, and our house is situated so that it's less than 150 yards from anywhere on the property. Hunters firing rifles at the property line are too close to our house to be 'safe', per PA laws - never mind the fact that almost any rifle used by most hunters will carry farther than 150 yards. Most rifles used will fire a bullet 1-2 miles, as in the fatality we had in our county last year that was ruled an accident.
Three years ago, on Thanksgiving weekend, my daughter and I were decorating the Christmas tree in our home - against a large window in our great room - when we heard a dozen rifle shots close to the house. We looked out the window and saw a man walk up out of the ravine from our creek, into our backyard, literally a few feet from our back deck. He was holding his rifle, dressed in camo. I was livid. I bolted for the back door.
I ran out after the man, who had started up our back slope toward our woods. I yelled at him. "What the HELL do you think you're doing? Who do you think you are? There's a house here! You just shot your gun beside a HOUSE!!" He kept going. My husband caught up to me and grabbed my arm. He pulled me back, saying, this guy has a gun. Come back into the house. I was screaming at the guy. He kept going. I could see his hunting license on the back of his jacket but couldn't read it.
The guy walked away from us. If I'd been able to get a picture of his license, I could've had it pulled. That's the ONLY thing these guys care about. Nothing else matters. They wouldn't mind winging somebody and saying later that it was an accident. They'd get away with it in rural Pennsylvania.
Our 'posted' signs have all been torn down by the local yahoos. The local Walmart is out of them, per usual, and does not plan to order any more. It's another typical hunting season in northwest PA.
That's the ONLY thing these guys care about. Nothing else matters. They wouldn't mind winging somebody and saying later that it was an accident. They'd get away with it in rural Pennsylvania.
You're lumping all hunters together with this jerk.
Please don't do that.
Almost all hunters (I guess that should read 'all
responsible hunters') are extremely accommodating to "No Trespassing" and "No Hunting" signs. It's one of the cornerstones of our hunting culture that plays a very large part in maintaining that culture.
Again, please don't lump us all in with the assholes. We are not all like that.
[COLOR="DarkRed"]***NSFW Baboon Weiner Alert NSFW***[/COLOR]
[YOUTUBEWIDE]Wa0MNv1GEAc[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
:lol2: :lol2: :lol2:
I should explain that our property is small, only 13 acres, and our house is situated so that it's less than 150 yards from anywhere on the property. Hunters firing rifles at the property line are too close to our house to be 'safe', per PA laws - never mind the fact that almost any rifle used by most hunters will carry farther than 150 yards. Most rifles used will fire a bullet 1-2 miles, as in the fatality we had in our county last year that was ruled an accident.
Three years ago, on Thanksgiving weekend, my daughter and I were decorating the Christmas tree in our home - against a large window in our great room - when we heard a dozen rifle shots close to the house. We looked out the window and saw a man walk up out of the ravine from our creek, into our backyard, literally a few feet from our back deck. He was holding his rifle, dressed in camo. I was livid. I bolted for the back door.
I ran out after the man, who had started up our back slope toward our woods. I yelled at him. "What the HELL do you think you're doing? Who do you think you are? There's a house here! You just shot your gun beside a HOUSE!!" He kept going. My husband caught up to me and grabbed my arm. He pulled me back, saying, this guy has a gun. Come back into the house. I was screaming at the guy. He kept going. I could see his hunting license on the back of his jacket but couldn't read it.
The guy walked away from us. If I'd been able to get a picture of his license, I could've had it pulled. That's the ONLY thing these guys care about. Nothing else matters. They wouldn't mind winging somebody and saying later that it was an accident. They'd get away with it in rural Pennsylvania.
Our 'posted' signs have all been torn down by the local yahoos. The local Walmart is out of them, per usual, and does not plan to order any more. It's another typical hunting season in northwest PA.
goddamnit, I replied to this and must have previewed and closed without posting... again.
sigh
OK, what this hunter did was illegal and dickish. He should be punished, and have his license yanked. You have every right to be thoroughly pissed off, I would be too. However, when relating the incident to people, if you rant about hunters in generalizations, there's a good chance someone they love, Dad, Granddad, brother, lover, is a hunter(Not being sexist, there are very few women hunters). That may reduce your story to an anti-hunting rant in their mind, rather than factual incident they're likely to repeat. And you want it repeated often.
The same applies to the guns shoot 1 to 2 miles thing. No matter how much you shit your pants, the fact remains if he shot in your direction you'd have holes in your house. Again, if it doesn't reduce sympathy from the listener, chances are they are already anti-hunting/guns or a bunny hugger. These are not the people you want to win over. You want the pro-hunting/guns person who is a rational human being(I think you'd be surprised what a large percentage they are), to hear your complaint.
By all means, tell what happened, how scared you were, and how pissed off you were and are, but leave out the hyperbole that may alienate the listener before they hear you out.
Or next time just shoot the fucker and report an accident. ;)
A deer in Tennessee runs onto the soccer field. And scores a gooooooooooooooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaalllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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I've seen video, National Geographic I think, of a Vampire Bat actually walking across the ground to reach a sleeping cow. It used wing tips as a substitute for front legs and looked really creepy. The only type of bat that does that.
I gotcher video right here
[YOUTUBE]9Va9ull44yw[/YOUTUBE]
OK, that wasn't the one I saw but it shows how they walk better. Looks like they fold half the wing under and walk on the end of the bone structure, where that hook is at the top of the wing. Cool, thanks UT.
Getting the point. looks like a museum diorama.
Northern Hawk Owl gives no fucks...
of course not. It can levitate.
She said the bear was calm, but they drugged it anyway. Good idea, a bear that size will fuck you up.
Bald squirrel in Britain. See why they're called tree rats.
A bald squirrel that has evaded capture by animal experts concerned it could freeze has been caught on camera.
The unusual creature was spotted in Grove Park, Dunstable, where Bedfordshire Wildlife Rescue has spent the past fortnight searching for it.
Dr Helen McRobie, a lecturer in biomedical science at the Anglia Ruskin University, said its lack of hair is probably caused by a genetic defect.
"This is very rare, I have been studying squirrels for years but I have never come across one without any hair," she said.
"Sadly, the squirrel is probably not going to survive the winter if it remains at large. It needs to be kept in the warm once the temperature drops."
A fortnight? I wonder how money and resources was spent on this one critter to save it from natural selection? :eyebrow:
It doesn't look like a baby, which means it's already survived a winter or two without their help, right?
I've seen squirrels with major hair loss before. They probably want to capture it to definitively diagnose whether it's a mutation, poisoned; or, diseased without alarming the public.
The latter two could be recent.
Dunstable bald squirrel 'safe and alive' after capture
A hairless squirrel which had evaded attempts to catch it after fears it would not survive the cold weather has been caught, a rescue centre has said.
The unusual creature had been spotted in a park in Dunstable, Bedfordshire.
Bedfordshire Wildlife Rescue, which had been searching for it in Grove Gardens, said "the animal is now safe" in a post on its Facebook page.
A centre volunteer confirmed the animal was alive, but would not reveal its whereabouts.
It had teamed up with the RSPCA after receiving several calls from the public and concerns the squirrel could freeze to death.
Temperatures at nearby Luton Airport fell to 0C on Saturday.
A centre spokesman confirmed to the BBC the squirrel was "safe and alive" but could not reveal any further information about what would happen to it now.
'Genetic defect'
The RSPCA said under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 it was generally illegal to release grey squirrels back to the wild once treated by a vet.
Dr Helen McRobie, a lecturer in biomedical science at the Anglia Ruskin University, said she had never heard of a bald squirrel before but it would "need to be kept in the warm once the temperature drops".
"This is very rare. I have been studying squirrels for years, but I have never come across one without any hair," she said.
"If the skin was patchy I would say that it was more likely to have been caused by a disease like mange, but the squirrel is completely bald, suggesting it is probably a genetic defect."
FWIW There's a short video of the creature at this link:
BBC
One of the less endearing habits of squirrels, is their persistent looting of the bird feeders in the back garden.
Dad seems to spend a good chunk of his time shouting to scare them off.
It doesn't work, but the occupants of the nearby churchyard have been known to complain about the noise.
Send someone over to Limey's for a couple of knitted sweaters.
... A centre spokesman confirmed to the BBC the squirrel was "safe and alive" but could not reveal any further information about what would happen to it now. ...
Meh, the squirrel probably just got exposed to some radioactive waste from a containment breach during transport through the area.
Nothing to be concerned about unless the neighborhood children start losing hair.
I think Bruce mighta been right about those blood-thirsty wabbits:
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They picked it up from NYC rats. :eek3:
Forced perspective re: the photo.
A 41 lb rat would be as big as a fair-sized beaver, much larger than this bad boy.
That's an awesome rat, don't get me wrong...
Sundae, what do your boys weigh (I sad 'boys', not the girls, I'm talking about rats, here;))? A pound, pound and a half?
A 41-lb. rat would be as big as a 5-year-old child.
Sundae, what do your boys weigh (I sad 'boys', not the girls, I'm talking about rats, here;))? A pound, pound and a half?
Never weighed the little chaps. And I am completely rubbish at estimating weight.
I just know that when I came back from staying at Mum's, and picked up Otis, he was skin and bone. Broke my heart, especially after what happened when I gave Diz into someone else's care.
Duncan was still fat as butter though.
FTR - Otis has put weight back on. He's looking healthy and climbing around as before. But his breathing is still like someone sawing a log. But I made the decision NOT to take him back to the vets. He's better off with Duncan, with me. Time away from us is punishment in his ratty brain.
But back to the O/P - wow, that's a big-arse rat, forced perspective or not!
A 41-lb. rat would be as big as a 5-year-old child.
...and wouldn't taste half as good.:eek:
Doesn't it depend on whether it a 5 year old boy or girl? I mean sugar and spice vs snakes and snails? :blush:
Beetles be wildlife, and the closer you look the wilder they be, especially in slo-mo.
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Giant goanna gives Australian man a shock after climbing across his house
Eric Holland heard a banging noise and emerged from his shed to discover a five-foot goanna splayed across his side wall
A man who discovered a five-foot goanna climbing across the side of his house in Australia said he “couldn't have been more shocked if a Martian had landed”.
Eric Holland, 80, was working in the shed in his back garden when he heard a banging noise and emerged to discover the giant reptile splayed across the side wall of his house.
He said the creature’s claws “had to be bloody 40 millimetres [1.6 inches] long at least".
"It blew the cobwebs out of me," he told ABC News.
"He climbed up the bricks and got under the eve and his tail was twitching and hitting on the pipe... My yellow streak started to show and I jumped back in the shed."
This goanna was thought to be a lace monitor, a native Australian reptile, which can grow to up to about seven feet in length. For the most part goannas are wary of humans, but are considered dangerous on account of their sharp teeth and claws.
Mr Holland, who lives in Albury in New South Wales, said the goanna quickly left the property and has not been seen since.
He took a photograph of the creature and was surprised when it made the local paper, though the image has since gone viral on social media.
"I couldn't have been more shocked if a Martian had landed," he said.
"I'll be wearing my long pants and my big boots outside, that's for sure.”
Daily Telegraph
Incidentally, the original text said that '...goannas are
weary of humans'. I think they meant 'wary'.
I dunno, though...
Damn, Australia...You crazy!
Fixed it.
Also::3_eyes:
If I walked outside and saw that thing on my house, I'd u-turn between steps, go back in and start packing a fucking bag to GTFO.
Damn Australia...
Well, to be fair, there are 30 species of goanna, but only 25 of them live in Australia. :rolleyes:
Friends of mine emigrated to Western Australia a few years ago.
Initially they rented a house before buying their own.
They visited the dwelling, in the later stages of construction, while the kitchen was being painted.
The painter opened the pantry door and retreated at best speed having found a
Dugite in there.
The world's first formation laundry moment was narrowly avoided. :eek:
Dugite? See? I haven't even
heard of that one!
The venom of P. affinis is potentially one of the most lethal in the world...
Fuck you Australia. You are beautiful, but, fuck you.:lol2:
A dugite can grow up to 2 m (6 ft 7 in) in total length (including tail).
Aren't snakes nothing but tail from, like, the eyes on back?:eyebrow:
Dugites are protected under the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950 and to kill or injure one attracts a fine of up to A$4000.
Welp...
thar's yer problem.
The Aussies all live clustered along the coast. It's easy to see why. :eek:
Just waiting for a boat big enough to get by the sharks and crocs...
The Aussies all live clustered along the coast. It's easy to see why. :eek:
My friends live on the northern edge of Perth.
Conveniently situated between the snakes and the sharks. ;)
Perth, over on the dog's chin. ;)
Fixed it.
Also::3_eyes:
If I walked outside and saw that thing on my house, I'd u-turn between steps, go back in and start packing a fucking bag to GTFO.
I'd lasso it and tame it by feeding it magic mushrooms and boiled chicken. I would name it Sid. Then I would find him 3 female Goannas and name them all Nancy. I'd make him wear a blue and yellow striped knitted sweater and paint his head white. If I lived in Australia. Because I'd be fucking insane to live there, and that's something an insane person would do.
Aren't snakes nothing but tail from, like, the eyes on back?:eyebrow:
I think the tail starts at the cloaca, actually
No, no, they're just a tail that fell off something.
Buster points out this cute video he saw on FB of a raccoon grooming a kitty.
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And he also points out this video.
Deer knows the dog is all bark and no bite.
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Matthias Wandel is always coming up with something good. No mice were injured in the filming of this video.
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Holy shit, is it easy to post a video twice - once regular and once wide. It took like 2 seconds. Literally.
No mice were injured in the filming of this video.
Why not? :eyebrow:
To appeal to a wider audience.
He freely admits that the bucket will normally contain water.
If he's not putting water in the bucket, then sulfuric acid so we could watch it dissolve Terminator style. Or take the live mouse out and draw & quarter, burn at the stake, or live vivisection it, for entertainment value. :Flush:
Ohhhh when I was in the farmhouse I read about this type of trap. I really should have built one, because I could have left it there when I departed.
Now, the water would eventually dry up...
Holy shit, is it easy to post a video twice - once regular and once wide. It took like 2 seconds. Literally.
Wow. How subtle. Better pick up that hint before someone trips over it.:right:
Or killing next to nature.
Yet you slaughter those mushrooms without remorse. Tsk tsk tsk. :p:
Wow, Momdigr's lucky. Pete's kind love human blood you know, go for the throat. :haha:
I think Bruce mighta been right about those blood-thirsty wabbits...
He was! He
was right about those bloodthirsty wabbits:
Psychologist Called After ‘Bloodthirsty’ Bunny Attacks Animal Shelter Staff
:eek::eek::eek:
A psychologist? It's a fucking rabbit, a dangerous rabbit, kill it with fire. How many animals could they shelter with what they're spending on one damn rabbit? :eyebrow:
See, even in the old days this bunny was ready to slice his enemies like hard boiled eggs or cheese.
A buddy built himself a pond/waterfall in his backyard, and eventually put a few little bass in there to have something to watch swim around. He got a duckling later. That duck was pretty good size and the little bass would still try to get him. It was kinda funny watching the fish stalk the duck, then grab him and pull him under by one leg. The duck would erupt up outta the water like he was being eaten alive. He prolly thought he was.
His name was Aflac. The duck, not the fish. The fish didn't have a name, he wasn't going to come to ya nohow.
Small Bass, big duck = dog, car. OK you caught it, what now? :haha:
Momdigr dug up an old Christmas card.
Momdigr dug up an old Christmas card.
At least I can be Elvis' friend. I've caught a rabbit.
♪ ♫You ain't never caught a rabbit♪ ♫
♪ ♫And you ain't no friend of mine♪ ♫
~"Hound Dog"
Sing it brother, and a handsome lad you were.
One can only imagine the time and effort involved in the transition from there to here. :p: :lol:
The Dynamics of a Wolf Pack, or at least this one, according to the guy that took the picture and described what was happening.
I have to question the wisdom of having old/sick breaking the trail, and the Alpha leading from the rear, but what do I know.
I could fake dogging, but wolfing is right out, I've never even played one on TV. ;)
Slight reach advantage...
...that eagle is gonna have to do some serious bobbing and weaving.
That eagle is in way over his head .
And the crane/ibis/whatever has backup.
He just tried to steal a fish, how was he to know it belonged to Rocky Balboa. :haha:
Looks more like Adriaaaaaaaaaan.
Osprey vs. high voltage:
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Shovel lovin' 1-2-16 Bombay Hook Wildlife Refuge
Yup, thats the place. A friend of mine and I went birding this morning. He is very good. I'm a relative beginner.
Looks like the place to go birding.
I look at this picture and think doesn't that Ibex(substitute sheep, goat, or any of the climbing critters), realize how dangerous that is. I know they have the feet and do it from birth, but shit happens. Doesn't he know if he slips, he dies? Then it dawned on me, no, he just may not. He may think if he slips it'll be a pain in the ass to climb back up, but who knows.
I'm sure he doesn't have any concept of internal injuries, fractured bones, long convalescence, or brain dead. That's what humans worry about, in addition to dying, so most of us don't do shit like hang out on the ledge... except glatt's sister and Griff. :haha:
Mine was more get wet lose a toe. Glatt's sister runs with the goats.
Carruthers talked about torn up lawns from, I think, hedgehogs.
These folks have birds tearing up theirs.
Householders of Solihull in the West Midlands are at their wits' end over attacks on their lawns by starlings. Some plots, Yewhurst Road is a particular hotspot, have been totally ripped up as the flocks search for two starling delicacies: leatherjackets and chafer grubs. The result is desirable properties with gardens that resemble a muddy battlefield. Yewhurst Road resident Jean Stenson said: “Both our front and back lawns have been attacked by the birds in recent months.
“They have torn up the grass to leave large patches of soil. Each time we have replaced the patches with fresh grass the same thing has happened.” Pete Swingler, who lives in the same road, said: “Our garden is covered in bald patches. The birds descend in huge numbers and literally rip up the turf.” Buryfield Road has also been blitzed by hundreds of the little sods. And the turf times look set to be endured for some time to come.
Photo safari, Sunday:
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All maximum telephoto, handheld, just after sundown.
My camera has no provision for manual focus:
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Dis m'squrl:
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Dis a different squrl:
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What is that green stuff on your ground?
Nice pictures. I don't see deer that often around these parts.
I'll have to do some serious archive surfing for pics I have of wildlife, but here in MT I have seen the following:
All 3 species of eagle native to North America--baldie, golden, and osprey, all seen from my balcony, and most photo'd at least once. I have photographed a female Northern Harrier hawk at least once, and a peregrine in one of my first favorite trees to get cut down not 2 months later :(. The tree where a baldie let me walk right up to the other side of the dirt road and take pics is now gone too, along with the trees where our kestrels and flickers used to nest. And we have a large owl in the neighborhood, but I haven't spotted it in daylight so I'm not sure if it's a barn or a great horned, the 2 most common locally.
Snow and Canada geese on migration, plus the occasional sandhill cranes and every few years we get swans flying by in October. Can't begin to ID the ducks. Oh, and cormorants! 700+ miles inland, and we have a breeding population of double-crested cormorants, normally a bird of coastlines and estuaries. Also American white pelicans, tho' I usually see those around about Kennewick, WA. I got a pic of the wild turkey hen that roamed through a couple of summers ago. I've seen and photographed brown pelicans on the Oregon coast, along with the highly localized Northwestern crow, smaller than the inland species. And we have ravens. They're camera-shy, but they don't know about the FujiFilm my dad just gave me, which has 32x zoom! And magpies...magpies will TOTALLY mess with you for fun.
I've seen foxes and heard coyotes. None of the something like 16 PACKS of wolves come in close to town so far. And I photographed bear cub tracks half a block from my front door.
We have whitetail deer, which certain factions of hunters are sure are being wiped out by our wolves. Funny thing, a fella not too far from where I live has been doing his own independent study of roadkill deer and found 2/3rds of the bucks have deformed boy bits in some way or another. Wolves do NOT cause birth defects in deer. I got a photo of my first wild elk, a female grazing summer pasture, up in Lost Trail Pass. Haven't seen a moose yet, dangit.
The pic I am including is from year before last if memory serves and is one of the more exotic animal shots I've gotten at home! Most years around October a Little Brown bat (the actual species name) will take a breather under the wooden planks that make up our front porch. The photo is quite a bit larger than life; I think the bolt in the foregrounds is a 3/8ths inch! If they hang around too long, I will often catch them (a lifetime watching nature documentaries taught me how to do so safely) and if a couple hours warming up is all they need I let them go when I hear them rustle in the dedicated container I keep. Otherwise I hand them off to the local wildlife rehabber, who has repeatedly complimented me on my handling of bat rescue. The management here knows to call me if someone finds a bat they want moved :).
If you have a dearth of Eagles, build one. ;)
Cute little bunnies, huh? :eyebrow:
xob, I think the ibex is thinking, "whew, I'll never get eaten here."
grav, you must be kidding about no manual focus on your camera. what is the make/model?
I don't think we have one of these critters yet. Now that seakdivers doesn't post anymore, I think I'm the only one of us who might see one regularly. I saw him from the deck of the ferrey while crossing to Seattle.
Harbor seal.
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There is something real about a seal.
Not to belittle your gorgeous seal pic, BigV, but for full pedantry, I've seen seals in the wild in three places in the UK:
Two of those places were in Scotland.
In one of those places, I saw them multiple times.
That was the Isle of Arran.
Where our lovely Limey lives.
Get yourself to Arran! Eagles, hare, deer, seals, otters. You'd be right at home you Seattelite (and you have far better photo skills than me)
Cape Cod is lousy with the damn things, they've ruined the fishing and shellfish industry, and they're what's bringing the great Whites.
grav, you must be kidding about no manual focus on your camera. what is the make/model?
Nope, not kidding. It's a Fujifilm FinePix S3280. It's a POS bridge camera.
As in drop it off a bridge?
Only if it's a local bridge.
If I ever get another camera I WILL be putting a bullet and/or arrow through this one's lens.
My camera has no provision for manual focus:
does it have focus lock? If so, point it at something else about the same distance and lock the focus, then reframe and shoot.
it does have focus lock, I looked it up. I'm sure grav already does know that. It seems... cruel to offer manual controls for aperture, exposure, iso, but not focus.
I think these would be a better as sprucing up the yard than squirrels.
Bruce has been trying to warn us abut these vicious, heartless, murdering bastards:
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does it have focus lock? If so, point it at something else about the same distance and lock the focus, then reframe and shoot.
it does have focus lock, I looked it up. I'm sure grav already does know that. It seems... cruel to offer manual controls for aperture, exposure, iso, but not focus.
:D
It also does not like to shoot through windows and/or screens. If you get the telephoto out far enough it will, though. Sometimes.
:D
It also does not like to shoot through windows and/or screens. If you get the telephoto out far enough it will, though. Sometimes.
That's probably because it uses an infra-red focus assist. it 'sees' the glass or screen and 'thinks' that must be what you are wanting to photograph.
What camera is it? Fuji finepix S3280?
Yeah, it doesn't seem to have IR focus, it probably uses contrast to determine focus, The screen has obvious contrast, your window glass may have spots on it and it is picking up on them. The reason you can focus past the window when you zoom is because at long lens focal lengths (i.e. zoomed) the nearest focus distance is increased, so since the camera can't focus on the glass even enough to 'see' the spots or the pattern of the screen, it will look for the next best contrasting thing. "HEY! How about those branches against the sky, way in the back, at the edge of the frame, fucking miles from the thing you want to shoot. How about I focus on them?"
I love all auto everything cameras that are smarter than me. Not
You push the button, we'll do the rest. Don't you worry your sweet little head about nuthin.
It depends on the camera.
I'm often amazed at the quality of the exposure/balance/etc of many of the shots I take on auto with my little Canon G7 X. Really.
For what those cost, it'd damn well better amaze.:speechls:
It depends on the camera.
I'm often amazed at the quality of the exposure/balance/etc of many of the shots I take on auto with my little Canon G7 X. Really.
This is exactly the point, They are optimized for
many shots and some of the more intelligent meters will "recognize" a dark central shape surrounded by light that is 10 or 12 stops brighter and figure "hmm. probably a person in front of a window. Let's just ignore the 12 stop brighter light and meter off the dark shape."
Which is great when that's the case. but when you want to go off script, it can be problematic.
This Kodak has "scene modes" for...
Portrait Full-frame portraits of people.
Landscape Distant scenes.
Close-up Close range
Flower Close-ups of flowers or other small subjects in bright light.
Sunset Subjects at dusk.
Backlight Subjects that are in shadow or “backlit” (when light is behind the subject).
Candle Light Subjects illuminated by candle light.
Children Action pictures of children in bright light.
Manner/Museum Quiet occasions, like a wedding or lecture. Flash and sound are disabled. Place the camera on a steady surface or tripod.
Text Documents. Place the camera on a steady surface or tripod.
Beach Bright beach scenes.
Snow Bright snow scenes.
Fireworks Place the camera on a steady surface or tripod.
Self-Portrait Close-ups of yourself. Assures proper focus and minimizes red eye.
Night Portrait Reduces red eye of people in night scenes or low-light conditions.
Night Landscape Distant scenery at night. Flash does not fire.
Panning Shot Emphasizing horizontal motion, keeping the foreground sharp.
My old Olympus has...
(Self-Portrait shooting),
(Night scene shooting),
(Landscape+Scene shooting),
(Landscape+Portrait shooting),
(Sports shooting),
(Portrait shooting, factory default setting)
Plus 4 modes you can preset for conditions you know you'll run into.
Yes, it's true Dwellars, everything in Australia really is out to kill you.
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Good boy!!!
Doggeh shoulda got steak that night.
So, apparently this elephantess was strolling along, minding her own business, when she walked up on, and startled, a sleeping water buffalo.
Now, in case you were unaware, a water buffalo is one of the most fearsome creatures on the planet. A startled one? Yeesh!
This one, however made the ill-advised choice of showing the elephant it was displeased.
If you look closely, you will see the elephantess's single tusk
completely skewering the buffalo, brisket to backbone. Which she then shook around like a ragdoll. Yeah...she wasn't impressed.
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Here's the article.The dog is obviously smarter than the owner who just kept sitting back down in the chair without killing the snake first...
I remember reading about or hearing about a book wherein the author posits that dogs and humans both survived as species because they formed an symbiotic alliance. Now I need to find that unless someone else has mad googling skilz.
Punk kids always more, more, more...
gooooooal! he shoots he scores
Mah squrl:
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Gonna give it diabetes.
Screw him, he's gotta die from something...
Squirrel sex? Oh dear, you are sick. :sadsperm:
In Australia many people have witnessed, and a few even filmed, Black Kites and Brown Falcons setting fires. No, not stealing cigarette lighters, grabbing burning sticks from a lightning fire and flying to unburned areas setting new fires. As if venomous, poisonous, toothy critters, and spiders that eat bats, weren't enough. :eek:
Are they using it to get prey moving?
I was thinking the same thing. Those voles are easier to see when they scurry in the daytime.
Likely they've observed food scurrying away from the fires into the unburned cover, so they're creating there own window of opportunity.
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Warning to those of a nervous disposition:
[COLOR="LemonChiffon"]Beware the snake. Obviously a windscreen viper.[/COLOR]
Ok, that's weird. snakes on a plane, sure, snakes on a SUV, just weird.
I also fine the camera shots a little weird. It appears they have ONE camera, with two lenses, one forward, one rearward. and it's a temporary installation, hence the cable draped over the dash. Why the two cameras? My first thought was that it was a prank. Still. **shivers**. Credit to the guy for stopping the car in a controlled fashion.
**shivers**. Credit to the guy for stopping the car in a controlled fashion.
FFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKK THAT SHIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'd have probably have just gotten out at speed, and let him have the car.
I have had it with these motherfucking snakes in this motherfucking car!!!
Bitey li'l bastidges.
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Looks like someone fed the bunnies their water leaf.
But Honey Badger does care, and aims to change things.
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Move along, sir. Nothing to see here...
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...just a bear, eating a goose on the front porch...
(I tried to embetter this pic, but, it didn't help much.)
Yeah, not much detail in the shadows, but it's definitely bird for lunch.
Now there's a pet that can feed itself, I guess. Looks to me more like a dog that caught a car... what now?
Two rangers release a large pissed off Cougar from a foot trap. Tense.
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That would be freaking intense. You can tell that the Ranger that was directing had done this before, and that the other had not. Talk about on the job training... Imagine the new guy telling his lady about his day that night....
So, how was your day, honey?
Well, I grabbed the tiger by his toe.....
Utah wildlife conservation officer Mark Ekins was called to help release the cougar on December 17 and decided to film the encounter because of the animal's size. The footage, uploaded to YouTube just this month, shows Ekins slipping a catchpole over the cougar’s neck and then working with a trapper to release it. At one point, the cougar leaps as Ekins reaches for its paw, snapping a tree limb the men were using to control it. Ekins then calmly grabes the pole, which is only a few feet long, and calmly reins in the frantic cat. Ultimately, Ekins throws a blanket over the cougar and releases its paw, and after a moment, the animal sheds the blanket and runs away, shaken, surely, but with only a small cut on its paw.
It was purportedly all in a day's work for Ekins, who says that a healthy respect for the animal helps him stay safe when releasing large cougars. He told ksl.com, “I’m nervous and I’m extremely careful when doing it. …I’ve probably only done three in my career that were as big as the one you saw.” Typically, he said, large cougars can free themselves from traps, but occasionally officers are needed. Ekins said that tranquilizers are preferred to catchpoles in these situations, but the drugs aren’t always available in remote areas.
According to the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources trapping guide, cougars must be released unharmed, and authorities are to be notified within 48 hours. Despite the restrictions on trapping cougars, it's legal to hunt them in certain parts of the state.
From Field & StreamI just discovered the inept dude in the video is the trapper who accidently caught the cougar while legally trapping Bobcats in season.
This picture from Utah Game Wardens Magazine had no explanation but I'd guess it's cats taken illegally. :(
It's not easy being a leader...
OMG, she survived, she defeated the voracious beast! Must have been just one of them... or she has supernatural powers. :eek:
Even the medieval scribes knew the danger of bunnies. :yesnod:
What do ya do when Tigger wants to share lunch?
Ya share ya fuckin' lunch.
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Dem hogs...
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:eek::3_eyes::sniff:
They're omnivorous like us, that makes them dangerous... like us.;)
Did you ever want a fawn for a pet? Just dig one up.
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Since reindeer are an active transportation mode in the Arctic, and the nights can be very long, spray reflective material may prevent collisions which the reindeer always lose.
Loving the luminous antlers! I've always said the black unlit cows are the biggest road hazard after dark round here, and suggested we buy them all reflective "Sam Browne" belts:
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Meanwhile, you're saying I should be worried about the neighbours?
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Okay, since this wouldn't post for me in IotD, I'ma try it here.
...Aaaaaand now I see the problem...even scaled down to 800 x 600, it's too big. Any further reduction will lose ALL the detail...rats. I scaled this thing down to 400 x 300 and it's STILL over 300Kb. Never had this problem before, no idea what to do.
Snake, You have to lower the resolution, as well as the size.
Limey, OMG yes. Tell them to be wery wery careful, especially at night. Carry a strong torch and a shotgun, preferably a semi-auto, or they could be torn to shreds. Guard the livestock too, it isn't flying saucers beaming up cows and sheep, it's wererabbits dragging them down. Few people realize the bunnies can strangle you by latching their ears around your throat, or use the ears to hold you while gnawing your jugular.
Okay, since this wouldn't post for me in IotD, I'ma try it here.
...Aaaaaand now I see the problem...even scaled down to 800 x 600, it's too big. Any further reduction will lose ALL the detail...rats. I scaled this thing down to 400 x 300 and it's STILL over 300Kb. Never had this problem before, no idea what to do.
I use Web Resizer by Minos Studio...It resizes the pic's dimensions as well as file size. It works really well, without losing detail, you can adjust the amount of file compression used. I'm not sure they're still around, though.
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Meh...Hit it with a wetnap, and some Febreze, it'll be fine.
Steppe Eagle... looks like a dead Steppe Eagle to me. I guess they killed it which wouldn't make sense except they were working for Joseph Francis Charles Rock was an Austrian-American explorer, botanist, and anthropologist.
[YOUTUBE]e3A6w_scYXg[/YOUTUBE]
Wait till he tries to stand up and finds his legs gone. :eyebrow:
Capybaras in Nagasaki don't like the rain...
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[SIZE="1"]
CapybarasinNagasakiWTF?![/SIZE]
How did Capybaras get to Japan from South America?
How did Capybaras get to Japan from South America?
By boat, of course...
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What? It worked for Thor Heyerdahl...
:idea:Oh, I know. The Japs were chummy with the Nazis, and the Nazis were deep into South America.
What? It worked for Thor Heyerdahl...
Oh, sorry, I was booing UT's pun
capy'd and pasted
Haggis!
Keep an eye on the background. I don't know if the Dwellars By Phone will be able to see it, but, eyes on the background...
[YOUTUBE]vT_PNKg3v7s[/YOUTUBE]
from
hereAw, that poor bear just wanted to be petted. :headshake
[YOUTUBE]sWqg6B-taUg[/YOUTUBE]
Time to clean out the kayak, I guess...
Good thing he wore the brown pants.
Watch out for the Bunnyraptors...
Eagle vs. Cobra in India
Or...
"Slither vs. Soar In Bangalore!!! This Sunday, Sunday, Sunday!!! We'll sell you the whole seat, but, you'll only need...the edddddgggge!"
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Left it big, apologies.
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Hot damn, nice mess, but at least turkey for dinner. When I was a kid we had a Pheasant come through the picture window, early one Sunday morning. Sumbitch made it all the way(18') to the far wall and dropped dead onto the back of the couch.
Ha! thats CraaaaaaayyyyyyyyyZeeeeeeeeee!.
This has me puzzled. The lighter side? cute remarks? WTF, the man died a horrible death. :eyebrow:
The Onion was a real newspaper before it was online.
Onion, those assholes? That would explain this sick shit, thank you.
This from the unimpeachable source of National Geographic.
Look at this frame from a NG video, of a herd of bunnies, Artic Hares to be precise. Now what do you see in the background? Nothing, not a living thing, no birds or bushes, not a blade of grass. That's because the bunnies have ruthlessly murdered and eaten ever living thing. Do you think it's a coincidence the Polar bears are endangered? Thank god the penguins are safe at the southern end.
Ha, do you think you can fool me by flopping the picture and sticking it in the thread before mine? :p:
He was fine, btw...
...it just knocked him off his feet.
Ahshitwegotagroundhog.:mad:
I guess I gotta change m'name to Carl Spackler, now.
And get some dynamite.
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The end. But of whom?
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All I got in my head is "I'm Alright" by Kenny Loggins.
This could easily turn into a nightmare of "Caddyshack" proportions.
:facepalm:
It could be battling the bunnies for your blood. :eek:
It could be battling the bunnies for your blood. :eek:
Well, it's nice to feel wanted, at least...
Here are some pics of his handiwork.
So far.
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These Black-Eyed Susans are supposed to be about knee high, instead, they are ground-hog-head high. Momdigr is somewhat miffed.
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Well there ya go, Momdigr has been luring him in with bait.
I had a chuck with kids down by the creek. One of her kids moved up to under the shed by the plum tree. One day she waddles up to eat some plums and the kid comes out to challenge her. She quickly chased the kid back under the shed, then starting at the base of the tree waddled in a spiral around the tree, picking up plums, taking a small bite, and throwing it back down with gusto. That'll show the kid who's boss. :haha:
[youtube]rbQgaHZOFZ0[/youtube]
Bald eagle brings a cat to the nest, to feed the family... on live Eagle Cam.
http://www.pennlive.com/news/2016/04/bald_eagles_eat_cat_video.html
"After reviewing the footage, we believe the cat was dead when it was brought to the nest," said Handel. ... "We don't know if it was a pet or feral. It's impossible to know if the cat was killed by the eagle or was a roadkill, but eagles are opportunists and just as apt to take something that's already dead as something that's alive to feed their young."
The hawk I saw just sitting by the road the other day was so frickin huge, it could take a beagle.
He brought this big meal home for her and the chicks, but what was her problem? She just sat there like, What, cat again.
hummers, lots of hummers.
[YOUTUBE]g4m8fGTMXHI[/YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBEWIDE]g4m8fGTMXHI[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
That's a fun hobby. I can see myself doing that when things settle down in several years.
Yeah, fuck that. We had two (2) feeders on the patio. Man, you took your life in your hands when you walked out that back door. Those little fuckers would chase each other around blindingly fast, with their tiny little spears out in front just waiting to take out an eye, or lodge in your heart.
I can't count the times I've felt the wind when they went zooming past my face.
That's why he has them in the front yard, to keep bill collectors, Mormons, and JWs away. ;)
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Here's the story.
Dis m'groundhog:
[YOUTUBE]FOLbe64ctT8[/YOUTUBE]
Outside my bedroom window, literally, like two feet:
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Every morning they're cooing, or coo cooing, or coo coo cooing. That's all fine, but, if they ever go Iamthewalruscoocoocatchoo, they gotta just plain go.
That's a white headed voyeur bird.
Popdigr caught a rabbit in his groundhog trap:
[ATTACH]56406[/ATTACH]
See that face? That face is saying
"I'd take pleasure in gutting you, boy."
Let me tell ya, that was one sulled up bunnyrabbit.
He's 23 years old, 1400 lbs, and stands 9ft 8inches.
[YOUTUBE]e4E9yrGczbk[/YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBEWIDE]e4E9yrGczbk[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
:mg:I know a chick just. like. that.
[COLOR="DarkRed"]Properly used NSFW language:[/COLOR]
[YOUTUBE]8ZrT993RZzQ[/YOUTUBE]
White velvet on the antlers? :eyebrow:
Nature isn't always pretty...
Never seen an albino moose before. That's pretty interesting.
And I'd like to know the story behind the hyena and the lion. The lion looks young. Not like it died of old age or disease. More like it died from violence.
And the rattlesnake on the beautiful skull looks posed. That skull looks like it came off someone's wall.
The snake/antler pic may be staged. The antlers look like they may have been stained, the color is too consistent, and the skull looks to be bleached/cleaned.
But, if they belong that fella whats crawlin on em, I ain't gonna argue about it.
Beautiful skull and rack, though.
I think the young hyena got leftovers.
He just wanted some head.
:drummer:
It's the suspense that makes this video so awesome. Who/what is chasing the woman? You have to watch 45 seconds before you see. LOL
[YOUTUBE]nuHD6nIeBoM[/YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBEWIDE]nuHD6nIeBoM[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
[YOUTUBE]krpeIiisTlM[/YOUTUBE]
Fat Bastard living large...
Ye olde scribes, led pretty sheltered lives shut up in monasteries away from the public, hand copying books. But they were able to observe and understand nature. They knew the secret lives of the forest creatures and drew them in the margins. :yesnod:
Scotland says, Nature, I got your nature right here.
This morning I read a piece extoling these people and their hunting preserves, for saving today's parks and green-spaces from being built on. :rolleyes:
Anyway, Kenya was a wild and beautiful place, until those long-haired-hippie-type-pinko-fags*, dodging the draft, joined the Peace Corps.
*Charlie Daniels
those long-haired-hippie-type-pinko-fags*,...
*Charlie Daniels
Uneasy Rider ref - 50 points.:)
Oh sure, feed those pigeons, take bread to the ducks, mix sugar water for the hummers, buy seed for the robins, a friend to our feathered friends, eh. Just wait till they turn on you and leave you for the buzzards. :yesnod:
♫If you go down to the plain today
You're sure of a big surprise.
If you go down to the woods today
You'd better go in disguise!
♫For every vulture that ever there was
Will gather there for certain,
Because today's the day the
Vultures have their picnic.
Watch for the shadow about 1:15
[VIMEO]26135993[/VIMEO]
I really enjoyed that. Thanks, Bruce.
In this corner of SE England the
Red Kite has been re-introduced in recent years having been persecuted almost to extinction by Victorian game keepers.
With a wing span approaching six feet, it's an impressive bird even if it does lack the gravitas of the vulture.
They are so distinctive that people leave out food for them in the hope of getting a closer view.
Unfortunately, this has caused the occasional problem as experienced at a children's picnic. Read on...
A toddler got head injuries when a greedy bird of prey tried to steal a cupcake.
You’d think you could eat a cupcake and have a moment of peace.
That you could eat it at a birthday party without being hassled by worries or stresses. That the universe would allow that. Right?
But sometimes, something comes out of the blue and hits you right in the head.
It might not be right – or even usual – but sometimes that thing is a bird of prey.
That’s what happened to Ava Edgar-Francis, who was just trying to mind her own business and eat her party food when the red kite swooped and sank its talons in, leaving her with head injuries.
The three-year-old has been left terrified of birds after the predator swooped down on the picnic at Watlington Park, near Stokenchurch.
Parents quickly took their children home, ending the party early, as they feared another attack, with more red kites circling above.
Ava’s mum Debbie Francis, of Slade Road, said: ‘She was completely hysterical. It was such a shock and she is now petrified every time she sees a big bird in the sky.’
Ms Francis said: “There is a lot of talk on Facebook about it, and many suspect that other people are feeding them because they like seeing them come down.
The birds were saved from national extinction by one of the world’s longest running protection programmes, and has now been successfully re-introduced to England and Scotland.
However, bird charity the RSPB are now discouraging people from feeding the birds of prey as they continue to thrive across Bucks.
‘We discourage people from feeding the red kites in their gardens and public places,’ a spokesman said. ‘The kites are thriving in their natural environment, eating their natural diet throughout the year.’
Metro
Impressive, to say the least.
[ATTACH]56934[/ATTACH]
In this corner of SE England the has been re-introduced in recent years having been persecuted almost to extinction by Victorian game keepers.
With a wing span approaching six feet, it's an impressive bird even if it does lack the gravitas of the vulture.
Gravitas? Vultures? :haha: Look at the video, 60 Fagins.
Ill mannered, noisy, squabbling, garbagemen. Useful, even valuable, part of natures balance, but they ain't got no stinkin' gravitas. :headshake
Gravitas? Vultures? :haha: Look at the video, 60 Fagins.
Ill mannered, noisy, squabbling, garbagemen. Useful, even valuable, part of natures balance, but they ain't got no stinkin' gravitas. :headshake
Yes, you make a valid point!
Perhaps 'avoir du pois' might have been more fitting!
Even if it is French. ;)
For me, the word Vulture prompts many more mental images than any other bird, none soaring gracefully, and some of them a quite disgusting. :haha:
You don't see the gracefulness of a soaring vulture?:eyebrow:
I said that isn't an image that comes to mind when I hear the word vulture.
I use to do a lot of freshwater fishing in southern Delaware where there are tons of chicken farms. The only things I saw every damn time was vultures and Frank Purdue's trucks. Soaring they looked birdy, but on the ground they look ominous.
If you make them move when they are fine dining on roadkill, they don't fly away, they waddle to the edge pavement, not even onto the shoulder, then turn around and glare at you. Since their head is about window high to a car they look you in the eye and you can almost hear the curses.
Or when there's no roadkill... yet, they'll perch on something by the road and licking their beaks, watch you like a Warner Brothers cartoon.
Did I mention on hot sunny days they shit on their own legs and feet for the cooling effect? :drool:
They're the swamp buggy of birds, all about function, no frills.
Found a feather in the yard, obviously a wing feather. It's a medium brown. 13½" long, about 2¼" wide, has a bow of about 1", and the quill at the fat spot is 5/16". The two notches don't look like damage, but normal for this feather.
As you can see the barbs thin out near the tip. What isn't as obvious, is the lighter shade along the trailing edge curves up toward you about 3/8". At first I thought it was the curve causing the light to make it look a lighter shade but it's not. Holding it up to the light, the barbs, or rather the barbules, are less dense than closer to the shaft. The lighter shade is the paper reflecting light through it.
I tried sticking in my cap, but the tomato sauce ran right off. ;)
Bat of Prussia, my l'il brown bat who lives in the space between the porch roof and the wall, has returned for 2016.
Or a new one has taken its place. It looks like a slightly different bat...
Shitting up the porch as usual! That's the part I don't like.
I have yet to get a good 2016 picture.
A little microcomposting for your banzai?
I'm thinking the story is legit, but I think the magazine made that picture in their photo lab. The cactus is too damn big for the legs.
While driving through Yellowstone National Park, this family encountered a bear on the side of the road, so they stopped to say hello and snap some pictures.
[LIVELEAK]afa_1465599811[/LIVELEAK]
Next week he'll be at the lights in the nearest town offering to clean your windscreen for a dollar. :)
Remember that time we got carjacked by an African-American bear?
Crabs, tasty soft-shell crabs...
[YOUTUBE]iQSHfutIzh8[/YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBEWIDE]iQSHfutIzh8[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
Thanks to Nat Geo, you can be an informed frog voyeur...
All bow before the King Pecker.
I thought that one was
this one.
But, I think my pecker may be bigger than yours.
I've been waiting my whole life to say that to someone.
:D
Our peckers are in different places, too, I think. I hope.:cool:
Different times of year, at the least.
Your pecker has evergreens and snow, whereas my pecker has a warmer backdrop.
I demand a peck-off, high noon at... tah da(French horns), The Tree.
Heh, your peck-off reminded me of
this.
I can't hear that video, even went to youtube. :confused:
It's pretty low quality. Sorry.
That ain't your fault.
I've been trying to warn you, they're right up there with bunnies.
Not every wild creature in Australia is out to kill you by lethal sting or venomous bite. Some are benign to the point of only subjecting you to a little light crushing.
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An Australian woman who woke in the early hours after her table lamp crashed to the floor found a 16ft python curled around her bed.
It is believed the huge scrub python had been living in the walls and ceiling of Trina Hibberd’s house near Cairns for more than a decade.
But on Monday morning – an abnormally cool day in tropical northern Australia – the snake left his hiding place and began to explore Ms Hibberd’s house.
The huge python – estimated to weigh nearly 40kg — slithered along the veranda then up her lounge room wall, flicking the light switch on, onto a painting, and then into a bedroom, where it knocked over the lamp.
Julie Birrell, who was staying with Ms Hibberd, raised the alarm.
“All hell broke loose,” said Ms Hibberd, of the unscheduled 4.30am wake-up call.
The women filmed the snake sprawled across the house, stretching across the lounge room wall and into the bedroom. They called a professional snake catcher after locking the snake in the bedroom.
While the snake’s awakening was dramatic, it was not the first time it had made an appearance.
Ms Hibberd said she first saw it 15 years ago, when it poked its head into the bathroom when she was having a shower, and had nicknamed it Monty.
“We knew the snake was around but I had never seen it inside, not that I know of,” she said. “I’ve never seen it in its full length.”
Monty was still in the bedroom when Dave Goodwin, the snake catcher, arrived.
“We walked into the bedroom and it was hanging from the curtain drapes down to the bedside table — and that was only a third of him,” Mr Goodwin said.
“It was a good monster. We locked ourselves in the bedroom and grabbed him around the neck. He coiled around my arm but we managed to put him a container.”
It is the second biggest snake Mr Goodwin has seen in his career.
Monty was released into a local water treatment plant at Mission Beach which backs onto native bushland.
The TimesYee. Ikes.
I would have had a heart attack. Probably would have died straight away.
There was nothing left but her glasses. :eek:
[YOUTUBE]ktG5VeBt7Qs[/YOUTUBE]
Steamboat Springs, Colorado
Benji The Bobcat:
[YOUTUBE]Gg2HTHt02sA[/YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBE]dBGjcF9sQPk[/YOUTUBE]
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Whatever was in park warden Barrie Shoare’s van was enough to keep this fox intrigued while he took this picture. Mr Shoare, from south London, said: “I have never seen a fox act like that.”
Urban foxes rarely look as healthy as their country cousins as they are very prone to sarcoptic mange.
This animal appears to be in good condition and it's probable that it came from Mr Shoare's park.
Altogether a nicer neighbourhood for
Vulpes vulpes than the industrial areas and railway embankments where they are usually found.
Must be an easier way to load a moose on your trailer...
If deer played basketball...
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...they'd be point guards. For the Milwaukee Bucks.
In the garden tonight after the rain.
sent by thought transference
I think it's a very good sign.
On my way back from the beach this morning, I saw a frog that was no more than a half inch long going just as fast as he could to get to the grass.
:lol2:
[YOUTUBE]zrD945Kbou8[/YOUTUBE]
I just died laughing when the raccoon came back around that corner. That coon was open for business!:lol2:
Oh man, you do not fuck around with raccoons. Vicious little bastards, and their claws are super sharp. They like to make nests in people's attics, around here.
I clicked start on the video, and not 4 seconds in, I see the dude's bare legs.
Dumbass.
OK, now I'll watch the rest
My friend in Nova Scotia on vacation was driving down a gravel road and saw this monster.
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Ok. I lied. I found that picture online and it's a hiking trail, not a road.
But the lack of scale in the picture make this seem scary big. Am I right? That looks like a road, not a path.
Let's have fun with it.
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Am I right?
You are correct, sir.[/EdMcMahon]
At the end of the 'coon video you hear him say, "Is that babies in there?"
Explains the 'coon coming back at him ...
Squirrel steals GoPro:
[YOUTUBE]t6I_Zic29VQ[/YOUTUBE]
So the Mrs and I bought a house last month. It's probably one of the oldest structures in the county (Johnson County, KS, part of metro KC), as Johnson County didn't explode with people until the mid-20th century. It's 90 years old and in one of the older suburbs...there's some interesting hodgepodge housing going on over here.
We're on half an acre abutting a creek and some woodlands...it's very nice. And yet, just across the creek is Interstate 35...and IKEA.
This is the view from my office, where I generally converse with you folks:
I love it. It's so weird to me...in a good way. You have this old farm house surrounded by some newer houses and older dwellings. Then there is the nursing home at the end of the block. Then we have the creek, the trail and the park next to us. Then across the creek is downtown Merriam. Then across the highway is IKEA and a couple of shopping centers. At night, you hear the cicadas...and the trains...and the highway. Mostly the cicadas. :)
I have been lucky enough to have lived in two farmhouses. One had a large barn ( Jersey) pack house ( NC) with all kinds of treasures within. Old is good too.
tarheel
Hi tarheel,
Welcome. Did that NC one have one of those old tobacco drying buildings on the property?
I have been lucky enough to have lived in two farmhouses. One had a large barn ( Jersey) pack house ( NC) with all kinds of treasures within. Old is good too.
tarheel
These folks left us a bunch of wood...it's not usable for firewood, so I'm not sure what we're going to do with it!
Eventually, I'd like to insulate it and create studios (music and painting) for the family. I do the former, the wife and son do the latter.
Oh man, you do not fuck around with raccoons. Vicious little bastards, and their claws are super sharp. They like to make nests in people's attics, around here.
I have a friend that works at a jail, and he snapped this outside the jail last night...the jail is between an industrial and residential area in a large city. He calls them trash pandas.
Hi tarheel,
Welcome. Did that NC one have one of those old tobacco drying buildings on the property?
Thanks. I am Lumber Jim's step pappy. He is 45 and I am 63. You are talking about a tobacco barn. Many have been restored into someone's party house. A pack house is a large barn with a drive through the middle.
tarheel
Hah - trash pandas! Luvvit!
Welcome to the cellar, Captain hook!
Or do you prefer to be addressed as Tarheel?
:welcome: to The Cellar LumberJim's step-pappy!
Are you one of those 'weirdos' he was threatening to start recruiting?
I hope so.
Welcome to the cellar, Captain hook!
Or do you prefer to be addressed as Tarheel?
Tarheel is quicker to type.~laugh ~
tarheel
:welcome: to The Cellar LumberJim's step-pappy!
Are you one of those 'weirdos' he was threatening to start recruiting?
I hope so.
Weird? Not weird. I just think shits funny that others don't think is so funny. Besides I am the only normal person on the planet. Now if you will excuse me I have to shave the hair off the palm of my hand.
tarheel
Oh, you're gonna fit right in.
:D
The first farm house with the pack house was built on a hill next to a swamp. Strange thing was we were never bothered with knats or mosquito. Hurricane Fran came by and a black bear slept in the ivy outback for a week. Everyone had a throw away cat threw them out here. It is Ok everybody needs an extra cat. Snakes was why we moved. I was mowing the grass and there was a curled up rattle snake dead with Goodyear tire tread permanently embedded where my wife parked the night before.
tarheel
Turtle porn on the forum. Shessh.
tarheel
Went out to check our barn this morning...we got a hell of a deluge here in Kansas City last night. No flooding from the creek...but lots of cicadas hanging out.
Helluva flood in Fla. Have to pray for them. Storm is coming our way. Right over the house. I am out in the country. Goodbye cantaloupes. We don't get the flood like in town. Build without checking the elevation. Reroute the creeks. I worry about some of the members I know who also live in the path of this storm. Pray for each other. Amen.
tarheel
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That bull vid reminds me of the time the bottom radiator hose blew off my Blazer (S-10 Blazer). It just so happened that there was a little pull off on the side of the road, right where I needed one. A little off the road there was one of those red tube farm gates you see everywhere. On that gate was this hand painted sign:
[CENTER]KEEP OUT!!!
BAD, BAD BULL!!![/CENTER]
My curiosity was piqued, but, I kept out.
There I was, minding my own business, in my own back yard, when I saw something ... alarming.
Oh, yeah. That's a yellowjacket nest the size is a basketball, hanging off the eave of the garage. My friends on the cellar will *love this*.
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I'll just pose with it so they know I was here, #holdmybeer #whatcouldpossiblygowrong #nobiggie
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Well, it's kind of a biggie. I made three trips with the camera after I saw it for the first time. The first few pics didn't do the size justice so I tried to take a pic without a messed up forced perspective. My palm is on the surface of the nest. I reckon it could hold a basketball if it were completely hollow. That means the ten thousand fucking flying assassins it's filled with gotta go.
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Now I gotta go!
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Wait until night time before you fuck with it, and wear long pants and a jacket.
Good advice. Cooler the better.
tarheel
Stuff a couple M-80s in there... Bwahahahahaaaaaa
Just a can of insect killer right in the hole after dark. The dead bees clog the hole and the rest can't escape the poison.
Killit. Killit with fire.
In fact, just burn the whole garage.
Killit. Killit with fire.
In fact, just burn the whole garage.
Hehe, a less yellow jacket phobic friend of Twil's suggested we burn down just that part of the house.
I kinda like your plan better.
I like the idea of burning the garage, but only if a Victory motorcycle is inside.
tarheel
I love the smell of a burning garage in the morning...Smells like [snniiiiiffff], Victory.
I should have taken a picture, but it didn't occur to me. Last night I was at my dead cousin's vacant house, organizing some stuff, when I heard a rustling from the chimney/fireplace. I had seen evidence (muddy footprints) of a raccoon in the bathtub a week before and searched the house for actual raccoons but found none. Last week I had closed the chimney flue, and closed the glass front to the fireplace. It had been ajar. I put heavy boxes right in front of it.
So last night I heard some rustling from the fireplace, and I walked over there and yelled in my stern voice "Get out of here!" The rustling stopped. So I went back to going through some boxes and a couple minutes later I heard rustling again.
I finished up what I was doing, and went to the store to get a bottle of ammonia. I planned to soak a few rags and put them in the fire place so the eye watering fumes would drive the raccoon(s) out. I pulled the boxes out of the way of the glass door and there was a racoon just sitting there looking at me through the glass. Not in the chimney, in the fireplace. The little shit had pulled the flue open and climbed into the fireplace. He was kinda cute though and I felt sorry for him. A juvenile. Still I went into the kitchen and got a funnel. Opened the glass doors a quarter inch, stuck the funnel in there, and poured a cup or two of ammonia into the fire place right next to the raccoon.
I closed the glass door, put a heavy box of books back in front of it, and stepped away to the other side of the room. The raccoon was doing nothing, so I gathered up my stuff to head out, when all of a sudden the raccoon stated sneezing and kind of retching. I felt bad for the cute little guy, but screw him.
I went home and had trouble sleeping. Thinking about raccoons. This morning, I went back over there before work, and the guy was gone. So I soaked some rags and put them up into the flue that it has pulled ajar. Then I poured the rest of the ammonia into a plastic bucket and left it in the fireplace. Closed the glass doors. Put the box of books in front of the doors, and came to work.
Now I need to find a chimney sweep to put a cap on the chimney. Another freakin' chore.
I felt bad for the cute little guy, but screw him.
Lawyers.
:p:
I should have taken a picture, but it didn't occur to me. Last night I was at my dead cousin's vacant house, organizing some stuff, when I heard a rustling from the chimney/fireplace. I had seen evidence (muddy footprints) of a raccoon in the bathtub a week before and searched the house for actual raccoons but found none. Last week I had closed the chimney flue, and closed the glass front to the fireplace. It had been ajar. I put heavy boxes right in front of it.
So last night I heard some rustling from the fireplace, and I walked over there and yelled in my stern voice "Get out of here!" The rustling stopped. So I went back to going through some boxes and a couple minutes later I heard rustling again.
I finished up what I was doing, and went to the store to get a bottle of ammonia. I planned to soak a few rags and put them in the fire place so the eye watering fumes would drive the raccoon(s) out. I pulled the boxes out of the way of the glass door and there was a racoon just sitting there looking at me through the glass. Not in the chimney, in the fireplace. The little shit had pulled the flue open and climbed into the fireplace. He was kinda cute though and I felt sorry for him. A juvenile. Still I went into the kitchen and got a funnel. Opened the glass doors a quarter inch, stuck the funnel in there, and poured a cup or two of ammonia into the fire place right next to the raccoon.
I closed the glass door, put a heavy box of books back in front of it, and stepped away to the other side of the room. The raccoon was doing nothing, so I gathered up my stuff to head out, when all of a sudden the raccoon stated sneezing and kind of retching. I felt bad for the cute little guy, but screw him.
I went home and had trouble sleeping. Thinking about raccoons. This morning, I went back over there before work, and the guy was gone. So I soaked some rags and put them up into the flue that it has pulled ajar. Then I poured the rest of the ammonia into a plastic bucket and left it in the fireplace. Closed the glass doors. Put the box of books in front of the doors, and came to work.
Now I need to find a chimney sweep to put a cap on the chimney. Another freakin' chore.
What, no bleach too?
You know what my wonderful wife did yesterday? It was a day off and she called a chimney sweep and met him at the house while he put a cap on the chimney. Adventure over. Thankfully.
No coonskin cap for you. I am disappoint.
Was glatt born on a mountaintop in Tennessee?
I'm certain of it. The whole Maine backstory is an attempt at obfuscation.
And it would have worked, if it wasn't for you meddling kids
Big V:
That looks like a hornets nest.
Don't kick it
Hmmm... You know, in college, I had a boyfriend who had a relatively short performance time, but also a particularly short refractory period. Often he'd go once, wait 2-3 minutes, and go again, all the while claiming that we were doing it "multiple times." To me, we were just doing it once with a brief distraction in the middle.
I bet the female grizzly told her friends this was one attack, is what I'm saying.
Man...I was wondering where you were going for a minute. I thought you'd posted in a wrong thread or something.
But, :D.
Photographers wait patiently to capture that perfect shot during rutting season in Richmond Park, south-west London, oblivious to the large stag behind them.
More than 600 Red and Fallow deer have roamed freely on the national nature reserve since 1529.
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Daily Telegraph
The park is well over 2000 acres in area but it always surprises me that these Deer manage to survive there.
It's surrounded by urban and suburban areas on all sides and is under the constant pressure of humanity.
[YOUTUBEWIDE]3GRSbr0EYYU[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
See what I mean?
Funny. Dogs can't help it. It's in their DNA.
I saw a similar scene a couple years ago, but it was just a couple of deer in a heavily wooded area full of underbrush, and the owner was having a hell of a time running through the woods after his dog.
Why would you bring a dog to such a place? (Richmond Park, I mean.)
Why would you bring a dog to such a place? (Richmond Park, I mean.)
It's a rural fragment in a congested city so people will take their dogs there for exercise.
Whether it's fair to keep a dog in a city is another matter but the least anyone can do when using the park is to keep the dog under control.
When I saw 'nature reserve' I guess I thought 'game reserve'.
Keep your eye on the sinkhole. This is accelerated natural selection.
[YOUTUBE]3lJlFA14rHw[/YOUTUBE]
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The birds don't have it hardwired into their DNA to watch for this threat. Yet.
It's a rural fragment in a congested city so people will take their dogs there for exercise.
Whether it's fair to keep a dog in a city is another matter but the least anyone can do when using the park is to keep the dog under control.
I have lived in several cities and just took my dog to a cemetery. It is usually fenced in. No one complains. Quiet. I told my relatives that I want to be cremated and mixed in with the cat food. I all ways wanted to see the inside of a cats gut.
tarheel
If you had $100,000 they might honor that request. ;)
Keep your eye on the sinkhole. This is accelerated natural selection.
The birds don't have it hardwired into their DNA to watch for this threat. Yet.
Take
that vegetarians.
That was mesmerizing to watch.
I was baffled by the bird who attained safety on a ledge and then flew back again and was "eaten" by the sinkhole. It was like a nightclub for bried, "Oh well, if Bob's going in, it must be okay!"
Re Richmond Park. When Mum and Dad used to house-sit they had a number of customers in the area. The kind with indoor pools and security gates. They always asked if they could let the dogs off the lead in the Park. A surprising amount of owners believed their little darlings were well trained enough to ignore the distraction of a running deer. But it's a natural instinct; I wouldn't have trusted Diz with a spider, let alone a rodent. He'd probably even have tried for a smaller dog, and not just in a territorial way.
I can get remember giggling over my keyboard over a story Mum wrote me about combing an enormous expanse looking for a dog. Sadly I can't remember the details. They caught it eventually - I can only assume the thrill of the chase wore off and it was hungry. Suffice to say, they often used long leads in the Park from then on, but a lead they always used.
[YOUTUBE]y-lp90Zczok[/YOUTUBE]
The canal is
thirty (30) feet across:
[VIMEO]189191210[/VIMEO]
It's better bigger.
Watch baby panther leap across a 30-foot canal in a single bound
A. That ain't no kitten.
2. It damn sure ain't no babby.
/. Upon further review, the canal doesn't really look like thirty feet, either.
Karma -Revenge of the Elk - Paybacks are a bitch
A hunter in OR killed an Elk then tried to drag it up a hill with his 4-wheeler.
But the vehicle tipped up and the hunter was impaled on the antlers.
Quick first aid by his buddies and a helicopter flight saved his life.
I wonder what they were using for bait?
I love telephoto compression. I fucking love it.
Something ya gotta live with living around wildlife:
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The 'living' part is more difficult when a moose is involved:
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Although these accidents appear to have happened in daylight, the increased possibility of a collision with a large animal during the hours of darkness convinced me not to drive at night during my visits to the US.
I visited Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska and South Dakota and saw plenty of wildlife, most of it very much alive. I was happy to keep it that way!
It's a shame you didn't come through Kentucky and run me over with a bull dozer. Could have saved me a lot of headaches.
It's a shame you didn't come through Kentucky and run me over with a bulldozer. Could have saved me a lot of headaches.
I don't think that a bulldozer was on the upgrade list offered by Hertz, so I made do with a Chevy Cavalier. ;)
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Oh, hello...
[YOUTUBE]8BkRgmgwM0U[/YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBEWIDE]8BkRgmgwM0U[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
Thar was a bar in thar!!!
Roooooooooooooooo on roids
The moose is loose...
[YOUTUBE]lPnBAT4sk94[/YOUTUBE]
Tigers in the snow...
[YOUTUBE]Xfk6QcfyxKE[/YOUTUBE]
Q: whats the definition of a tiger?
A: its a 450lb. pussy that eats you.
tarheel
Granny hasn't been seen since October, and is now considered deceased.:(
ETA: When I first saw in Wiki's Recent Deaths that Granny had died, the first thing I thought of was 'Granny' from the Tweety Bird and Sylvester cartoons.
105, daaang. It was a pretty tough year for that pod.
Tilikum's gone, too. He was only 35.
A last, good deed that didn't go bad...
[YOUTUBE]TxK-C2KmBdk[/YOUTUBE]
Canadians are always polite...
That's it, moving to Canada.
But every time you go somewhere you have to chase the goats off your car. :lol:
We used to do that here, may as well do it in a functional democracy. :)
Not a repeat offender though....
Live cam of giraffe who may eventually give birth. I have fed carrots to this particular giraffe.
[youtube]0e33tSR-RQs[/youtube]
What is the legality of attacking a drone that is flying in unrestricted airspace?
Probably similar to the legality of attacking a bicycle parked in a legally unrestricted parking space.
Property destruction risks, perhaps the method of destruction could be problematic
This will make the creationists head spin 360.
What is the legality of attacking a drone that is flying in unrestricted airspace?
Don't worry about it.
You have a trained attack eagle, nobody's gonna fuck with ya.
This will make the creationists head spin 360.
I got NFC what that chart means.
Cows evolved from whale backs?
Then why are there still whale backs?
Nope, cows and hippos branched off before the Indohyus, great(times a bunch) granddaddy of the whale came about.
Nature rarely wins, but sometimes puts up a damn good fight...
That cop on the car may not be high enough.
Moose chases snowboarder.
[YOUTUBE]yPJRN7rVWKY[/YOUTUBE]
Naw, he was just passing the slower vehicle. :lol:
When I pulled in my driveway at 9 last night, I had to stop while to adult Does decided which way they wanted to go.
OK, grab this pussy.
[YOUTUBE]zpADeugoPVo[/YOUTUBE]
Maybe this should be in scary, but it's been rendered harmless. ;)
The piece is 180cm (71 inches) high, and 320cm (126 inches) long.
After Bill ran off with that 43 year old hussy, Ethel was broke and desperate. She needed a job, any job,
but did come to regret taking a job as a Dolphin Reproduction Researcher. :yesnod:
Police said they had been unable to find definite traces of a mountain lion in the bedroom or around the perimeter of Fought's property.
However, she says she is sure she knows what she saw moving out of her bedroom door and that in the morning she found "wet, very clear, large paw prints walking in",
In the morning? In the fucking morning? :facepalm:
Be nice to Mrs Possum, she's your friend.
Hi, Mama Opossum!
That should read "Hi, Mama O'Possum!".
[SIZE="1"]She's Irish y'see.[/SIZE]
Rollin coal? Nonsense.
That there is a steam engine!
This reminds me of some hunting show Popdigr watched years ago. The guy's motto was "I won't hunt anything that can't hunt me back."
Here ya go, pal:
[YOUTUBE]PsCqmotxyME[/YOUTUBE]
Even taking into consideration the possibility of forced perspective,
dayum!!
13lb bullfrog:
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Batesville, Texas
LinkI am Stag, hear me bellow. I ain't scared of no dogs.
He's baaaaack...
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Taken about an hour ago.
They look so much like beavers
This German Boar would fuck you up.
Boar is in front of the fence and they are behind the fence. That cute little boar is like 12 inches from head to toe. :p:
They are standing in a trench or bunker, and the Boar is on higher ground. 12" boars don't have tusks like that. :p:
I'm in the burbs with a big wooden fence so the biggest wildlife I get are possums and raccoons who steal our outdoor cat's food.
This weekend I was out in the yard and saw 3 interesting little guys hiding in (nearly) plain site.
I thought the toad might be trapped in the drain but after I performed a "rescue" he/she promptly returned to this safe/damp/bug infested location.
No matter how charming they are, do not have sex with them, they'll rip your head off. :mg:
Looks like an orb weaver of some variety. Mos def not a widow.
yeah, definitely think it's an orb weaver - first time I've seen one like this, usually we see a yellow/black one that is at least twice this size
Man.
How fast you reckon he was going?:3_eyes:
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Took the curve around the house a bit too close to the corner.
Remember these guys?
Well, they're baaaack.
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For a hot minute.
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They're a lot easier to capture when they're tiny.
I put'em in my hat.
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The only picture missing is the one where I took a hammer and flattened the whole package inside the hat.
Fuckers. FLAT fuckers. See ya next year.
yeah, definitely think it's an orb weaver - first time I've seen one like this, usually we see a yellow/black one that is at least twice this size
Hmm...
I don't understand how he doesn't fall off the tree with balls that big.
The guy that took the picture said she was sitting on eggs, and he was running up and down the tree with leaves from the ground to build a nest.
From zero to [SIZE="4"][COLOR="Black"]g[/COLOR][/SIZE][SIZE="3"][COLOR="DimGray"]o[/COLOR][/SIZE][SIZE="2"][COLOR="SlateGray"]n[/COLOR][/SIZE][SIZE="1"][COLOR="Silver"]e[/COLOR][/SIZE], all the advantage goes to the bush tailed rat. Owls... not known for their pounce.
I don't think Hulk Hogan is that fast but I sure as hell wouldn't get in his face.;)
From zero to [SIZE="4"][COLOR="Black"]g[/COLOR][/SIZE][SIZE="3"][COLOR="DimGray"]o[/COLOR][/SIZE][SIZE="2"][COLOR="SlateGray"]n[/COLOR][/SIZE][SIZE="1"][COLOR="Silver"]e[/COLOR][/SIZE], all the advantage goes to the bush tailed rat. Owls... not known for their pounce.
But, known for their punch. Popdigr was in a treestand once and had an owl come in and punch his hat off his head. They literally make fists with their talons, and punch. Popdigr said it was a helluva lick.
Wow. Never seen that before.
Nope, I wouldn't have believed it possible. Maybe it isn't??
Meat that deer, you don't eat all at once, y'know.
Not a particularly good pic.
[ATTACH]61219[/ATTACH]
When I took this pic I didn't see the Rottweiler on the other side of the yard, staring at that deer with drool running out the corner of his gaping maw. When I started easing away, that triggered the deer to move, which triggered the dog into launch mode (that's when I saw the dog). I thought shit was about to get real, and was trying to decide whether to get the camera into video mode, when the deer turned on the dog after about five running steps. The dog got within ten or twelve feet and made a looping jump and turned 180 degrees in the air and ran away from the deer, tongue lolling out of his mouth. He was playing w/the deer.
When I looked to see the deer's reaction, it was g-o-n-e gone. Nowhere in sight.
The critter was a total, so was the HHR. Such a waste, why can't we all get along. :facepalm:
[size=1]Daaaayyyum...[/size]
Coke-fiending meeses...trying to snort the line off the highway.:headshake
I am depressed.:sadpace:
Worse than coke, worse than crank, worse than crack, worse than heroin...
Salt addiction kills more than any other. :yesnod:
Look who-oo knocked on my window the other night ...
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Millions of critters out there and you end up with a voyeur Owl? I don't blame the Owl a bit. I don't approve, but I understand. ;)
He was trying to catch her owl naturel.
TIHAW, try the wings.
Precisely how cool is that?
It's positively owltstanding.
Precisely how cool is that?
Whoooo knows :unsure:
The owl do... and he's shown great taste.
First she was chowing down on a big tree in the back yard. Sometimes I trim those branches back on that tree to make mowing easier, so I didn't care.
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Then she moved to the vines growing over the stump in the side yard. I was very pleased with that. Saves me serious weeding work.
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I was worried she would find my blueberry bushes, so when she went way in back and lied down, I moved the lawn furniture around my blueberry bushes. She watched me but didn't stir from where she was.
Do you see it? This is our first fawn of the year. Mama left him hiding on the edge of the dirt road down at deer camp.
http://imgur.com/a/uCFpsI spotted it. Spotted. Spots. Get it? See what I did? Are ya getting it?
First she was chowing down on a big tree in the back yard. Sometimes I trim those branches back on that tree to make mowing easier, so I didn't care.
Then she moved to the vines growing over the stump in the side yard. I was very pleased with that. Saves me serious weeding work.
I was worried she would find my blueberry bushes, so when she went way in back and lied down, I moved the lawn furniture around my blueberry bushes. She watched me but didn't stir from where she was.
Dinner!
Right thar in ya yard!
[size=1]Bows make hardly any noise, y'know.[/size]
It always interests me when I see the different color variations in deer from other parts of the country.
:devil:, btw.
It always interests me when I see the different color variations in deer from other parts of the country.
:devil:, btw.
I haven't been ready enough with my camera to catch them when they trespass in our yard, but I see them frequently in the neighborhood.
And one more point... the color of the deer here is a near perfect match for the pictures glatt posted. Are they dramatically different in your area?
A shade or two darker is about it. Dramatically different? No, but noticeable.
Post #1083 would disagree w/me, though. So...:neutral:
:eek:
'She could feel her foot in its mouth': Minn. girl bitten 25 times in lake, possibly by muskie
[COLOR="DarkRed"]***[/COLOR]There is a pic of the girl's foot at the link, not overly gruesome, but, there are a couple of pretty good gashes there.
I'll be fishin' for them in Sept! Yeeeeehaaaawww!!! Bring it!
There's an eagle nest visible from my desk at work. I kind of have to lean down to see it, but standing at the window it's easy to see.
They are spying on the Seahawks.
There's an eagle nest visible from my desk at work. I kind of have to lean down to see it, but standing at the window it's easy to see.
Little bit jealous.
Just took a picture for you.
He wants me to stew in my jealousy for a while.
I'M SORRY!
only have access via phone. Pic are on camera.
[YOUTUBE]uuYmgoAVsnI[/YOUTUBE]
Juvenile humpback whale gets confused in the maze of the Ventura harbor marina. It supposedly found its way back out again.
The video is long at 13 minutes, but I think the best footage is from around 4:20 through 6:00 or so.
Daaad, these people are scaring me.
Be right there, boy.
Please post it.
Sorry sorry sorry
This will have to do for the nonce
Http:\\
www.kitsapdailynews.com/life/this-osprey-is-a-different-kind-of-soccer-mom-kitsap-week/
If you googleate Bainbridge osprey, you'll get some FB hits that are much newer and much more on target.
They're also visible from the brewery, where they have a dedicated telescope for osprey viewing.
Also, obviously, I was mistaken about the nest being inhabited by eagles. They're ospreys, though it's hard to distinguish at a distance.
Cool.
It's not only eagles, ospreys rock, too.
I don't think we have them locally, but, Land Between The Lakes Nat'l Recreation Area, a couple hours west, has ospreys. They nest on the bridges over Barkley and Kentucky lakes, among other places. Repairs to one of the bridges had to be delayed until the ospreys had abandoned the nests for the year.
One of them is a big fat idiot.
Yes but at least the idiot shut it off and put it on the kickstand. :haha:
He needs to be G'ing TFO.
Y'all see mah li'l gangstas?
[YOUTUBE]6HOGejBdeCM[/YOUTUBE]
When I was on this undeveloped island in the Florida Keys earlier this summer, the staff there said that we were encouraged to catch/kill any iguanas we saw. They have big problems with them as an invasive species. Our mate did actually see one, threw his water bottle at it, and stunned it long enough that he was able to pounce and grab it. Our patrol got an extra can of Gatorade powder as a reward.
All you have to do to a wild squirrel in comb it.
http://imgur.com/UPLWSpMWe saw a lot of beaver work last weekend but this guy was the most visionary. There is at least 6 acres of water visible behind this dam. [YOUTUBE]RWbVX8ptDqc[/YOUTUBE]
There is no animal besides man that alter the landscape more.
I saw some beaver last weekend m'self.:cool:
Yabbut. . . Not six acres of it, right?
Oh no, it was just a small patch.:cool:
In other news...
[YOUTUBE]Z6ubjdp9Ecc[/YOUTUBE]
When I was a lad, there was an empty lot across the street from my elementary school. It was full of milkweed. Tons of milkweed. I used to collect monarch caterpillars with some milkweed and try to grow them into butterflies. But the couple times I tried it, they always wound up dead when I neglected them.
Since milkweed was so common in my childhood, I assumed it was everywhere. But I haven't seen any in years. Maybe it doesn't grow this far south.
Sure, they eat American milkweed, turn into Monarch butterflies, then run back to Mexico for orgies.
When I was a lad, there was an empty lot across the street from my elementary school. It was full of milkweed. Tons of milkweed. I used to collect monarch caterpillars with some milkweed and try to grow them into butterflies. But the couple times I tried it, they always wound up dead when I neglected them.
Since milkweed was so common in my childhood, I assumed it was everywhere. But I haven't seen any in years. Maybe it doesn't grow this far south.
My childhood as well. I think milkweed was almost eradicated and the monarchs almost went with it. Surprisingly, the Game Commission here sprayed herbicide on a nearby food plot and drilled milkweed and clover in its place for the last couple years. I've been leaving the patches of milkweed that spread on to my place and we're seeing an increase in monarch numbers.
Dateline: Black Eagle, Montana (why, oh, why, couldn't it have been Black
Hawk, MT?)
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photo by Kyra Vanisko
The acting assistant chief of a Montana fire department has a pretty good idea what caused a fire that burned 40 acres Wednesday.
It wasn't lightning.
It wasn't farm equipment.
It wasn't arson.
It was a hungry hawk with dinner in its claws.
"A dead hawk was found burned and it had contacted the power lines," said Dave Lee of the Black Eagle (Mont.) Fire Department. "The amazing thing is it still had a small snake gripped in its talons."
It isn't unusual for birds and squirrels to cause fires, Lee said.
A bird catching a snake before meeting its fiery end is.
"It was just awesome," said firefighter Kyra Vanisko, who snapped a photo of the charred bird underneath a power pole. "I wasn't expecting to find a hawk with a snake in its claws still."
The bird was toast, but its talons survived, and they remained gripped around a foot-long bull snake even in death.
Because of its condition, Vanisko couldn't make out the species of hawk, which was about the size of small cat.
“He’s a crispy critter,” she said.
Power outages caused by animals and birds in Montana are not unusual, said Butch Larcombe, a spokesman for NorthWestern Energy.
"I have dealt with outages caused by squirrels, beavers, geese, raptors and even snakes," said Larcombe. "But this is my first experience with a hawk-snake combination."
During an outage in the Helena, Mont., area about six years ago, a deer fawn was found in a power line after an outage, Larcombe said.
NorthWestern suspects that an eagle may have snatched the fawn from the ground and dropped it on the power line while in flight.
The collision between bird and power line in Black Eagle didn't cause a power outage, but it did cause a fire, Lee said.
The hawk’s wing span may have contacted the power line, generating sparks that started the fire, he said.
The fire burned in grassland that was once a landfill.
“It was running pretty good. It was spreading,” Lee said. “We got it stopped before it crossed the coulee and got into stubble,” which is stalks of plants left sticking out of the ground.
Five or six power poles were damaged. The dry conditions helped spread the fire quickly.
If it hadn't been contained, the fire would have reached a power company switch yard, Lee said.
from
USATodayIf you don't like snakes just put up barbed wire. ;)
I hope it crawls over a mile of that rusty barbed wire...
...directly into a tub of rubbing alcohol.
It is capable of moving it's skin away from the points.:eek:
Looking at the photo and how nonchalant that snake is, I figured something like that. Snakes! Worse than bears!! :eek: :worried:
Flying Meeses... well one flying moose anyway...
Moose? That ain't a moose.
I wouldn't pick that out of a moose lineup.
It's young or early in the antler season, but the shoulder hump is a give away.
Might be a European Elk though.
It's young or early in the antler season, but the shoulder hump is a give away.
No.
The car and the surroundings don't look especially Murkin.
If it were America, I'd guess a smaller elk species, Tule, maybe. Otherwise it looks like the stags of Scotland and/or New Zealand.
Whatever it is, it doesn't jump like Evel Knievel, nor do they fly.
Tule elk don't quite have the antlers that 'regular' elk and red stags have.
And the antlers of moose show obvious palmation very early.
Our Notamoose does have a fairly prominent hump, though, I'll give ya that.
Here's the pictures before and after that one. The poster claims it's a Red Deer.
But look at the antlers on these meeses.
:eek:That's gotta be a world record leap.
I'm impressed. Really.
[ATTACH]61763[/ATTACH]Not a moose! Not a moose![ATTACH]61764[/ATTACH]
Will you do the fandango?
Ah takes mah victrees where ah finds 'em.:)
It's not certain the chick that posted the pictures know for sure what it was but it looks like it could be a humpy Red Deer. But look at the antlers on the Meeses.
In horse drawn vehicles, and early automobiles, lap robes were a thing. Nature provided those for the rich.
I don't want to live next to this nature. :headshake
Sure, we can box.
But first, meet my manager, Mr. Ruger SP101.
grav, you must be kidding about no manual focus on your camera. what is the make/model?
It seems... cruel to offer manual controls for aperture, exposure, iso, but not focus.
I am sooooo tickled that the new camera has manual focus:
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A bird on the breeze
Shot through the trees
Focused manually
With handheld ease
:jig:
I got this camera this past June. 4 more pix makes one thousand.
I've charged the battery three times.
I don't want to live next to this nature. :headshake
Jesus bro, do you even lift?
Hey Griff, wanna see my skin flap? I look like a flying squirrel. :lol:
Wait for it...
[YOUTUBE]2LPb8NBdCQ8[/YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBE]OtWKRoHg96U[/YOUTUBE]
A buddy down in Texas caught this bad boy, and friends, partying in the attic.
All tail, not much good eatin'.
Tail?
Wait til it gets hard, then use it for a toothpick.
That's what I tell all the girls.:cool:
Thank you, that was a great story. :notworthy
People can be a pretty disagreeable bunch, but it's good to see that there are some decent souls about.
Thanks, Mr G. :thumb:
Quite welcome, sirs, quite welcome.:)
When your Yorkshire Terrier rolls over for a belly rub, he's merely manifesting his inner wolf. Or something like that.
[YOUTUBE]RlBotNP1Vyo[/YOUTUBE]
When your Yorkshire Terrier rolls over for a belly rub, he's merely manifesting his inner wolf. Or something like that.
That's a [strike]Yahoo[/strike] misleading headline. Had nothing to do with the video.
Popdigr said "That's a sturgeon."
Pause while waiting for the end of the clip.
"Eating a moose."
:lol2:
:speechls:
The bidders are using tools now.
We're doomed.:bolt:
Left it big for detail, apologies.
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Those two have been hanging out for a while.
Why yes, yes they do. ;)
Thanks so much for finally answering that question. We now know that, yes, the Pope
does indeed shit in the woods.
You thought I was gonna say bear dinja?;)
I know it's a Pope pooper cuz o' the toilet paper. Bears don't use tp.
Bears use rabbits.
Not according to the Charmin commercials.
Damn! That was Charmin. I was all set to tell you just how fuckin' wrong you were. That they weren't Charmin bears.
But they are.
My apologies for doubting you sir. It'll never happen again. Til the next time.:D
:notworthy
Charmin is made from rabbit fur.
And steak is made from cows, but I ain't eatin' a cow.:p:
Grumble, snort, stupid humans, mumble, bitch...
Nah, he's looking for a victim to lick to get his salt intake.
Nothing about that pic looks genuine. It looks like someone tried real hard, though.
It won a major international photography contest so I guess they tried hard enough.
Or there weren't many entries.:neutral:
You're right, only 320,000 entries.
That's a lot of crappy pictures
Skid marks leading up to the vehicle
In line with the tires
Car was moving away and is still pointing away
Did it leap into the air and do half a barrel roll and then land non destructively on its roof?
Weird
That skid mark is not from the tire, it's only on one side. It's snow pushed aside by the roof.
Somewhere in the beginnings of this thread, I posted pictures of our front and back lawns after they had been raided by Badgers looking for autumnal grubs.
Frankly, they left a hell of a mess. I wasn't too bothered as neither lawn is a horticultural work of art and the turf was mostly left in a state where it could be reinstated reasonably easily.
My biggest gripe was that I never got to see the creatures only the aftermath.
The only time most people will have ever seen a Badger is when one has perished on the road.
I've been fortunate in having access to some private land in recent years, spotting the elusive creatures there but never in our garden.
Fast forward to last Spring. One evening I went out into the conservatory to lock up and normally I would just rely on the light from the living room but for some reason I switched on the conservatory light which illuminated the back garden. There staring back at me was a black and white striped face!
In an attempt to get a better look I started leaving out peanuts in the garden and we've had nightly visits ever since.
They have poor eyesight and it is possible to shine a torch without frightening the creatures so we can get a good view.
I recently treated myself to a trail cam or camera trap which arrived on Saturday.
I didn't attempt to use it that evening as it snowed most of the day and into the night.
Yesterday evening I set up the camera but due to operator error (note to self: read the sodding manual) it didn't work.
This evening I was blessed with more success because, mirabile dictu, not just one but two Badgers turned up!
[ATTACH]63448[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH]63449[/ATTACH]
There's still a bit to do in terms of where to place the food in relation to the camera and adjustments to make for best results but I think I'm off to a reasonable start.
Taken within the last hour, by the way.
Does that camera do video too? Just don't try to direct them, they resent that and can be hazardous to your health. :eek:
Does that camera do video too? Just don't try to direct them, they resent that and can be hazardous to your health. :eek:
Yes, it also does video and time lapse. I'll probably have a go at video in a few days time when I hope to have a better understanding of using it for stills.
After I posted the previous two images I placed the camera in the front garden with a switch off time of 0330.
There is a distinct track on the lawn which could only have been made by a Badger so I placed the camera as best I could in relation to that track.
Results aren't brilliant, I have to say, but they give me something to work on.
[ATTACH]63456[/ATTACH]
Badgers are very territorial and boundaries are often marked by linear features such as hedges, field edges, ditches etc. and I think we might straddle two territories.
Those visiting the back garden arrive from the direction of the stream at the bottom of the garden and return on the same path. I'm pretty sure that they never venture out to the front.
The Badger in the above image is a hefty looking chap and I don't believe him to be one of the back garden regulars.
[ATTACH]63457[/ATTACH]
There isn't exactly a shortage of foxes around here so I'm not surprised that this fellow turned up.
I'll have another try tonight and experiment with the placing of the camera in the hope of better results.
With luck the snow should have thawed by then as well.
I don't know if that affects infra red photography in any way but given the temperature difference between surface and subject I'd be surprised if it didn't.
Incidentally, the crude cropping is due to neighbour privacy concerns. I thought it might be best if I included them out. :)
Awesome! Now you've got me thinking...
that's really cool! I don't think I've ever seen a badger in person in the wild.
Excellent, you live in a zoo. :thumb:
Great job, Carruthers! You certainly have quite a menagerie in your garden. I'd be quite nervous having such critters roaming around my yard - the raccoons and 'possums I see around here got nothin' on a badger!
:eek:
Ain't nothing got something on a badger.
Great job, Carruthers! You certainly have quite a menagerie in your garden. I'd be quite nervous having such critters roaming around my yard - the raccoons and 'possums I see around here got nothin' on a badger!
:eek:
Badgers will, as a rule, avoid confrontation. Once I went out into the back garden and disturbed one who disappeared at a rate of knots.
However, when cornered they'll stand their ground fiercely and are well worth avoiding in those circumstances.
They are now protected by law but badger baiting was once a legal savagery. It probably still goes on in out of the way places.
I've just brought the camera in and downloaded the photos.
It's a bit of a mixed bunch although there are several images of two badgers feeding on the peanuts I left out.
This is about the best of the whole lot although it is rather spoiled by the fact that I was shining a torch from indoors at the time.
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Badger, badger, badger, badger, badger
Badger, badger, badger, badger, badger
Mushroom, mushroom, a-
Badger, badger, badger, badger, badger
Badger, badger, badger, badger, badger
Mushroom, mushroom, a-
Badger, badger, badger, badger, badger
Badger, badger, badger, badger, badger
Mush-mushroom, a
Badger, badger, badger, badger, badger
Badger, badger, badger, badger, badger
Argh! Snake, a snake!
Snaaake! A snaaaake, oooh its a snake!
It's a badger, badger, badger, badger
Bbadger, badger, badger, badger, badger, badger
Mushroom, mushroom, a-
[YOUTUBE]6joOVjEemh4[/YOUTUBE]
I have had great fun with a couple of "Wildview" cameras over the past several years here in Northern California.
They are like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates, never knowing what will show up.
Aside from my own housecats and bovines I have pictures of foxes, raccoons, possums, skunks, jackrabbits, deer, coyotes, neighbors' goats, cats and dogs, vultures, one hawk and a muskrat.
Possibilities for someday are ring-tailed cat, porcupine, elk and otter.
The nearest badger sett is in the next county south.
Last night, in spite of some serious left-overs chumming, I only got my cat Ok at 03:18.
I found one of many Bruce's "Badger, mushroom" video":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NL6CDFn2i3I
I never saw it before and doubt I will again.
Sorry to repeat, or really supplement, fargon's post, but those video links don't work on Internet Explorer and I didn't open Google Chrome this morning.
WOW, Anglerfish in the wild... definitely embiggen.
[YOUTUBE]anDIlMVgNwk[/YOUTUBE]
Key word easily overlooked
Pair
Just as he is easily overlooked
AMAZING video
Well, I've never actually attached myself to a female...
I've tried awfully damned hard, though.:)
I did see some dogs one time that were attached...
...til the fire dept came and put water on 'em.
No matter how many times I see this it fascinates me.
[YOUTUBE]DwLn11KJS9Y[/YOUTUBE]
Due to a marked lack of bison, elk, grizzly bears and timber wolves in this part of the world, we have to make do with foxes and badgers.
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Not the sharpest of images but at least it shows that foxes and badgers generally tolerate one another....
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Brers Badger and Fox...:thumb:
So you've been voyeuring furries... kinky. :haha:
You've been missed, sir.
Thank you, Mr G! :thumb:
So you've been voyeuring furries... kinky. :haha:
It's quite legal as long as you post the required notice.
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They haven't complained so far. ;)
Badger badger badger badger badger badger badger badger badger badger badger badger mushroom MUSHROOM!
Found this big ox beetle on the patio. Apparently not that exotic but pretty damn big for a bug around here. In the past I've only found them dead in the pool skimmer so nice to find this lady (the male has 3 horns) alive and eager to be released back into the yard.
So, as in hoomans, the male is the hornier of the two?
TIHAW, try the bass.
Ontario argument...
[YOUTUBE]eaXmIPHrHmY[/YOUTUBE]
The latest wildlife to appear in my neighborhood is ducks. Ducks on the neighborhood soccer field, which for the last several days has been a huge 2 inch deep pond.
Duck/Goose poop is nasty stuff. :greenface
Came home from running errands yesterday, to find a mama deer and her two youngsters lounging in the grass of my front lawn, having a little lay down under the big apple tree.
Of course, they ran off before I could get a pic . . .:rolleyes:
I find deer in the yard quite often. When I pull in the driveway and stop they give me a casual glance, but when I open the car door they split quickly.:bolt:
Of course, they ran off before I could get a pic . . .:rolleyes:
You say...:eyebrow:
Yeah, sure. They were right thar, under y'apple tree...
Right behind the Bigfoot.
Yeahyeah, suresure.:p:
Helping wildlife with mascara wands...
[YOUTUBE]X0XsrbuLnEg[/YOUTUBE]
[YOUTUBE]enFEPuz36zU[/YOUTUBE]
Two or three weeks ago my neighbour looked out on to her back lawn to see a vixen and six cubs enjoying the sunshine.
I just missed seeing them as I was out treading the well worn path from the pharmacy with another of Dad's prescriptions.
However, it seems that we have inherited at least three of the litter.
On the other hand, it could be a completely different bunch. Who knows?
FWIW, they put in an appearance last night not many minutes after I had set up the camera.
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You live in the wild. :D
Somewhat fitting as I am the original wild child. ;)
Pretty cool C!
A few minutes after the above image was taken, a badger wandered around the corner.
Badgers and foxes seem to get on reasonably well with one another, but this cub seems a bit wary. I wonder where the other two are?
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You live in the wild. :D
Foxes and rabbits are moving into DC, too. I never would have expected my parents to need a rabbit-proof fence for their garden.
We need more wolves and Pumas. ;)
I saw a fox this morning by the dumpster, he calmly walked across the street and vanished between the buildings.
The last fox I saw was also right in town. It was pretty funny, too.
I was coming home in the wee hours, came to the last intersection, and was slowing for the stop sign when I heard a woman scream. I asked myself "Self," that's what I call m'self, "WTF was that?!" Then she screamed again.
I determined to make turn around that block to see if I could see WTF, man.
When I turned, my headlights swept across a large back yard, and there, about twenty feet off the road, was a sitting dog. People, believe me when I tell you that this was the most knackered, worn out, used up dog that ever lived. I was worried about this animal on first sight, it looked that bad.
As I pondered this situation I was still easing through the intersection, when in the continuing sweep of the headlights, I saw a standing red fox. Right as my lights swept across it the fox threw back its head and screamed like a woman.
While grinning like the sly fox it was.
And then the scene was complete for me. The dog was chasing the fox. And the fox had been toying with the dog the entire time, knowing the dog was too big and too slow to be any threat to the fox, and the fox had been playing the dog all along.
And the dog, well, I'm not sure he ever dogged again. I bet he had to give up his card, too.
Fight! Fight!
[YOUTUBE]Zxfwj24-YcA[/YOUTUBE]
I went out to lock up the chickens last night and found a mostly empty coop, a dead hen, and a racoon. I gave him the opportunity to walk away but in the end had to get all 2nd Amendmenty on him.
A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. :cool::cool:
I cannot find a way to stop that motherfucking video.
[COLOR="DarkRed"]DON'T START THAT VIDEO.[/COLOR]
[COLOR="DarkRed"]PLEASE KILL THAT MOTHERFUCKER WITH FIRE!!!!![/COLOR]
Now where'd that motherfucker go?!?!?
I went out to lock up the chickens last night and found a mostly empty coop, a dead hen, and a racoon. I gave him the opportunity to walk away but in the end had to get all 2nd Amendmenty on him.
Make a hat. Maybe they'll write songs about ya. Maybe ya get a tv show.
I didn't think of that, damnit reduce reuse recycle...
In the UK we're not blessed with the wide variety of wild mammals that inhabit North America.
That said, there are occasional sightings of big cats. They tend to be spotted by patrons of the local pub on their way home at about 2300 suitably fortified by several pints of Stench & Dredge's Old Peculier.
So, all I can offer you are Badgers. Having posted similar images before, they are probably of little interest but it's the fact that we now have three of them turning up at once that has prompted me to post.
[ATTACH]64391[/ATTACH]
Re-hide that key to the backdoor. They'll be Netflixing and chilling in ya living room before ya know it.
They're cool, why are they coming around, must be something to eat?
They're cool, why are they coming around, must be something to eat?
They forage for worms much of the time but they're opportunist feeders so will eat snails, slugs, berries, grain and nuts among other things.
I put out plentiful supplies of peanuts for them as they are a proven favourite.
There are two Badgers on the front lawn as I type this. They're just feet away.
I've got the camera set up in the back garden and no doubt they'll put in an appearance there later.
Make sure they aren't salted peanuts or they'll be stealing your beer. :D
Carruthers, Master Badger Baiter.
Find the toad! (the real one not the word)
don't know why the pic flipped, but even sideways you have good eyes...
It's flipped because you posted it from your phone. Don't know why but see a lot of that on another forum.
Deer ravaged my veg garden last night. Ate the tops off the tomato plants and ate ALL of my lettuces. DAMMIT! :mad:
On the bright side they're turning your veggies into venison. :yum:
On the bright side they're turning your veggies into venison. :yum:
The deer population this year has really exploded - at least in my neck of the woods. Over the last few months, I've counted four different mama deer with two babies each, and two bucks wandering around my property. If I wanted to, I could bag one or three from my front or back porch just about any day.
Of course, deer hunting season doesn't start here until October 13 . . . I'm just sayin'. :rolleyes:
The deer population this year has really exploded - at least in my neck of the woods. Over the last few months, I've counted four different mama deer with two babies each, and two bucks wandering around my property. If I wanted to, I could bag one or three from my front or back porch just about any day.
Of course, deer hunting season doesn't start here until October 13 . . . I'm just sayin'. :rolleyes:
That's OK, they'll be fatter by then. ;)
A deer visited my parents' place in DC a couple of weeks back. They're at least 7 blocks from the nearest place deer could live (ie a wooded park of reasonable size).
I should get a picture of our tree in the back yard. The branches hang all the way down to the ground, but were stripped bare one day last week from the ground up to about 4-5 feet by a deer. It's pretty remarkable.
The deer didn't touch my blueberry plants, thankfully.
Deer ate some of my ghost pepper plant while I was away...
They're at least 7 blocks from the nearest place deer could live (ie a wooded park of reasonable size).
We think of a wooded park as habitat for them but as long as they can find something to eat/drink and don't feel they are threatened, they can live anywhere.
It's a city; everything that isn't wooded park is street and lawn. They can wander it, especially at night, but they need to be able to go somewhere when the people come back out.
True, but they can cover a lot of ground in a short time. Also if the milkman or someone out early spots them, not likely to freak out like if was a bear or coyote or something bitey.
Maybe the deer are renting an apartment close by. :haha:
I almost hit a deer in my neighborhood yesterday. I wasn't even going fast. Maybe 25? I saw it out of the corner of my eye running along side me and veering toward of me. I knew there was no car behind me so I stepped on the brake, and it veered harder at me, so I stepped harder. The fucking thing finally got me to panic brake by cutting directly in front of me just in front of my bumper.
I saw a nopedeer the other evening. I saw her running toward the road, when she got into the outside edge of my headlights, she said "Nope.", and made the laziest u-turn back into the field, without changing her gait whatsoever.
don't know why the pic flipped, but even sideways you have good eyes...
He is up by the wall next to the curve in the hose.
I saw this the other day. Did you see the part where she did a Vulcan mind meld with it to get it to leave?
That cat looks comfy. There's a certain Harry S. Miller folk song that comes to mind.
I think this cat was someone's pet they turned out in the wild. It saw the door open and went in like any house cat would. Being the cat didn't freak out upon seeing the human tells me it was probably rescued until it could be turned out.
OK. I fee dumb that I never realized this before, but when you are outside at night and are wearing a fairly strong headlamp, those glittering dew drops you see here and there in large numbers on the grass are actually spider's eyes looking back at you. You'll see, when you get closer. And they are everywhere.
If you change your headlamp to red, they glow red.
I have no experience with the phenomenon you're describing, but how do you know it's not actual moisture/dew drops?
Because when you walk up to one, it's a spider. I tried to say that in my post but wasn't terribly clear.
It is a ground spiders web which catches fleas or mosquitoes or whatever. Before morning they collect their web to recycle for the next night. That is dew shining back at you as the spider is so small its doubtful you could see the reflection of its eyes.
That article was so informative. Thanks!
See, I thought it was dew, but upon closer examination it was the spiders' eyes. Dew hadn't formed yet, and the reflection was greenish when the headlamp was in white light mode, and red in red mode. These were the kind of spiders that just crawl around and don't have webs. I always called the bigger ones wolf spiders.
This page talks about it too, although they are in Belize and I was in Virginia.
I have never seen their eyes never paid attention to it. My night visitor built a web from the porch rail to the porch swing. It only took a couple nights for it to learn about the cats walking on the rail for it to adjust its web. Someone visiting at night dispatched him/her. I don't bother the wildlife if it doesn't bother me and I was upset that they killed my spider.
I can back Glatt up here. Seen it many times. What we call 'field spiders/wolf spiders' (brown, can get fairly big, black stripe down each leg) you can pick 'em out at night with a flashlight from a fair distance away by their reflecting eyes.
In the hottest part of summer we got little 'worms' (?) that come out and glow on their own. Well out in the country, away from light pollution, in short grass, ya can see whole fields of them sometimes.
In the hottest part of summer we got little 'worms' (?) that come out and glow on their own. Well out in the country, away from light pollution, in short grass, ya can see whole fields of them sometimes.
We don't have any such worms over here, because of evolution. The Smokies divide KY and NC and the only worms that glow are down by the nuclear plant in Southport.
Then you got all those critters we don't have. Werewolves, we don't have any of them. Those vampires can stay on your side of the mountains too. No bears over here either. I never saw one so there must not be any.
Glowing worms?! Pics or it never happened.
I've seen glowing worms too. In New Zealand. Very cool.
No bears over here either. I never saw one so there must not be any.
Uh, don't you guys got, like, some of the biggest black bears in America?:eyebrow:
I mean, I know they're not as big as our werewolves, but...
I think just the eyes or antennae of those worms glow.
Generally the abdomen. Eyes never glow* (they do reflect, though), it would prevent them from being able to see.
There are many species called glowworms, but the most common glowing thing on the ground in the US is probably a female firefly. They hang out on the ground, blinking, while the males are blinking in the air.
* technically, warm-blooded eyes glow infrared, but are also blind to it.
There must be high ratio of male fireflies compared to the females. If I saw any glowing flys on the ground I probably thought I was tripping.
What I'm talking about aren't fireflies.
It is a glow, though, not a reflection.
In the hottest part of summer we got little 'worms' (?) that come out and glow on their own. Well out in the country, away from light pollution, in short grass, ya can see whole fields of them sometimes.
That would creep me right the fuck out! :eek:
You wouldn't want to live next to these marmots...
[YOUTUBE]s0ngiZD-5bI[/YOUTUBE]
Nice marmot.[/The Dude]
:thumb2:
London is a place I avoid if at all possible. It's crowded, noisy, threatening and generally disagreeable.
However, when considering what to be on my guard for, I have never included itinerant boa-constrictors in my assessment.
Feather boa
The sight of a snake eating a dead pigeon on a busy London street caused a few double-takes from passers-by.
The boa constrictor, which triggered screams when onlookers realised what it was, was rescued by the RSPCA, which said:
“It might be an escaped pet, or more worryingly, someone may have deliberately dumped it and left it to fend for himself.”
Dave Fawbert spotted the snake, which he believed at the time to be a python, while walking home along Leytonstone High Road on Saturday.
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Eating a dead pigeon that it found dead or it made dead? :unsure:
Eating a dead pigeon that it found dead or it made dead? :unsure:
Other reports suggest that the pigeon had already brought down the curtain and joined the choir invisible before it was offered to the snake by a passer by.
Beautiful plumage, though. ;)
Other reports suggest that the pigeon had already brought down the curtain and joined the choir invisible before it was offered to the snake by a passer by.
Beautiful plumage, though. ;)
Class. Pure class! [emoji211]
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Good lord!!
https://www.krqe.com/news/new-mexico/new-mexico-man-explains-how-he-survived-a-bear-attack/1366347597
Bear attacks this guy, bites down on his leg. He shoots the bear dead but the bear's jaw is locked on the guy's leg, and can't be pried open.
So they cut the bear's head off and that allowed them to manoeuver the bear's jaw off the guy. 200 stitches and a week in hospital but the dude survives.
Obviously the bear got lockjaw from the bullet. :blush:
You wouldn't want to live next to these marmots...
[YOUTUBE]s0ngiZD-5bI[/YOUTUBE]
I never could understand Irish. Its all French to me.
How's the bear doing?
Not too good...
The Perils of <strike>Live</strike> Fresh Food, chapter six, Sometimes the Food Eats You.
I think this was posted before but as the Mad Men say, New and Improved!
You're gonna need a bigger boat.
I think the safest boat in that situation would be a Prairie Schooner.
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And Megalodons got eaten by Livyatans...
Captain's Log: Saw a megalodon today. Said "Nope." Decided to go overland.
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Where does a Lion go... anywhere he wants.
[YOUTUBE]Mxib_9yQRZo[/YOUTUBE]
Meals on wheels.
Look, somebody had to say it. :)
Phones interfering with experience? It's always a balance...
Another Squirrel King, pine pitch to blame...
It's not so much living next to nature, it's having nature move in with you...
Stockport woman finds snake in oven
[ATTACH]65163[/ATTACH]
An elderly woman had the "shock of her life" when she found a 3ft (90cm) snake in her oven.
The 82-year-old said she wondered if her "eyes were deceiving her" when she first saw the African brown snake, which is thought to be an escaped pet.
The reptile then disappeared, before turning up in the oven again two days later at the home in Stockport, Greater Manchester.
The RSPCA was called and rescued the snake on 26 September.
The woman, who was preparing to cook some chips, said: "When I opened the oven door and saw it, I got the shock of my life.
"I have recently had a cataract operation and was wondering if my eyes were deceiving me - but my husband saw it too."
The woman, who preferred not to be named, added: "I gave the RSPCA inspector a big hug and a cup of tea afterwards, but I went off the idea of oven chips so sent my husband to the fish and chip shop instead."
[ATTACH]65164[/ATTACH]
Inspector Andy Harris said the species was not venomous and the serpent was likely to have escaped or been abandoned.
He said: "I managed to coax the snake from the oven. It must have squeezed through a wall cavity and there is a hole at the back of the oven so it was probably attracted by the warmth.
"It was lucky the couple didn't preheat the oven first."
African brown snakes are frequently found in homes in Africa and eat rodents, small lizards and birds.
BBC
The Independent (Includes video)It's not so much living next to nature, it's having nature move in with you...
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[ATTACH]65164[/ATTACH]
BBC
The Independent (Includes video)
Oh, HELL no. If I opened my oven and found a big snake inside, :eek: I would slam the door, crank the oven to max, and cook that fucker to a crisp.
ACK!
I'd be more worried about the "hole at the back of the oven." Fire hazard, anyone?
Yeah, that doesn't seem right at all!
Snek door. Work like doggie door.
Yeah, fuck snek.
Never seen an oven door open that way.
A month or two ago I was watching on a webcam, the brown bears in Alaska catching Salmon.
I noticed one huge bear under some overhanging brush against the far bank just below the falls.
Come to find out his name is Otis and this year, for the third year in a row, he was voted via the internet the title of fattest bear.
It's not so much living next to nature, it's having nature move in with you...
Cleaning out the storage rooms in the basement recently, and commenting to each other on the lack of 'mouse evidence' and our obvious success in persuading the mice to depart and live elsewhere in our woods ... we found two LONG (24-36") snakeskins shed against a back wall.
No wonder the mice have departed. The survivors, that is. :eek:
Cleaning out the storage rooms in the basement recently, and commenting to each other on the lack of 'mouse evidence' and our obvious success in persuading the mice to depart and live elsewhere in our woods ... we found two LONG (24-36") snakeskins shed against a back wall.
No wonder the mice have departed. The survivors, that is. :eek:
Now I want snakes again.
Will you settle for a pet Moose? Not this one, he dead.
good lord.
How did he get it in the truck?
Winch it up on a gantry and back the truck under it?
I'd be more worried about the "hole at the back of the oven." Fire hazard, anyone?
Electric stoves with visible elements have the same cabinet as gas stoves. The hole in the back is for the co2 module on a gas stove. My brother had a gas stove and one night we heard a loud boom in the kitchen. The module had enough and exploded. It was an old stove and was time for a new one anyway.
Cleaning out the storage rooms in the basement recently, and commenting to each other on the lack of 'mouse evidence' and our obvious success in persuading the mice to depart and live elsewhere in our woods ... we found two LONG (24-36") snakeskins shed against a back wall.
No wonder the mice have departed. The survivors, that is. :eek:
Got roaches and can't get rid of them. Spray em, fog em, call the exterminator. Nooo go out in the yard and catch a couple green lizards and put in the kitchen cabinet. Sometimes I have to replace one as the cats like lizards to play with.
OK, WTF is a "63 rank moose?"
Don't know, that was the caption on the picture, but I'd assume it's the spread of the rack.
Google doesn't seem to know either.
OK, WTF is a "63 rank moose?"
Never heard that phrase before.
Possibly ranked 63rd in a list, such as the B&C Records mentioned, or maybe Pope & Young Club Records.
I'd go with spread of antler, expressed in inches.
If that's a "journalist's" work, though, they prolly didn't know wtf they were talking about.
Boone and Crockett was my first thought but by their system a big moose would be at least 200.
I wasn't familiar with Pope-Young but they apparently use the same scoring system as Boone and Crockett.
Want to see a Canadian take a record moose with an arrow from 3 yards away?Huntsman spiders eat frogs/toads too. :eek:
With the Cellar's rare failing to come through, I guess that "63 rank" must just mean "dead" in New Brunswick.
Google search for
"63 rank moose"...:yelsick:
In New Brunswick 63 rank means 63 inch spread on the rack.
I was a little chilled when I saw the first Cellar hit on Google.
I like my answer better, though I'll click on a link to Bruce's.
Maybe "rank" is just a typo for "rack."
If that's a five foot spread, that man's four feet tall.
Bucks are usually measured by the number of points on the antlers. I only count 40-something moose nubs from this angle, but maybe there are others that are harder to see.
Points are not counted on a moose, they go by spread, in inches.
And shovels.
If that's a five foot spread, that man's four feet tall.
Clearing some old logs and found a few of these huge guys. I suspect it's the larvae of the ox beetle, previously seen here:
http://cellar.org/showpost.php?p=1008806&postcount=1226
It's not Friday so I don't know how to cook it...
Cook it? What are you, some kind of pussy, or something?:eyebrow:
The deadliest animal (to man and besides man) in Africa.
The deadliest animal (to man and besides man) in Africa.
That's the biggest fucking mosquito
I've ever seen.
Good point. I missed the mosquito modifier, but we kill more of them than they do of us.
Mosquito is not an animal.
It is, by taxonomic, and by 20 questions rules.
Not outside biology texts, and certainly not in conversation. :rolleyes:
Well, mosquitoes ain't rocks. They ain't plants. And they suck blood.
They must be ex-wives, then.
The Hudson's Bay Company records of Lynx pelts reported.
note: it's 10 to the 4th power scale, so the 6 = 60,000.
Damn, that's a lot of cats.
Cleaned 'em out in the "5" years, recovered in 10.
Well, mosquitoes ain't rocks. They ain't plants. And they suck blood.
They must be ex-wives, then.
+1
Nah, them raccoons ain't rabid...
...they're just drunk.[ATTACH]65585[/ATTACH]
Wait'll he finds hisself a shiv and catches ya behind the laundry...
Pretty sure he has Anthrax.
Pretty sure he has Anthrax.
You're thinking of the little ivy-eaters.
This one's secret is
Hantavirus.A bear with a toothache.
That's a pretty frightening thought, right there.
I turn into a bear when I have a toothache.
What do bears turn into? I'm guessing it ain't hugs and kisses.
Well, maybe hugs.
And big, wet, toothy, bloody kisses.
Epic battle, the Grouper escapes but too damaged to swim and get eaten by something else right away...
A UPS truck with a large box marked ACME just pulled onto that road.
Toads little cousin...
It looks like a bud with an eye ball.
A little meat ball that comes with its own salad.
A little meat ball that comes with its own salad.
FTW.
The crows in the back yard are having a party!
Turn up the volume for the full effect. You can see how far I had to walk to get to the party--they were loud enough to distract me from reading at the table in the house with the doors and windows all closed.
[YOUTUBEWIDE]TgkarDWYZ0o[/YOUTUBEWIDE]
It is common for crows to mob an intruder, probably a hawk or an owl, to drive it out of their territory. Usually they succeed and the "party" moves off down the road.
They can get pretty aggressive.
So Benny made a frenemy this holiday season, this little dude decided to spend the night after updating my boy on what a mouth full of quills feels like.
OOOWWCH!!!!
How is Benny?
Of course he stayed, he already cleared the territory. :rolleyes:
I remember Bear coming to the door with a snoot full of quills. I started pulling them out on one side, each one leaving a drop of blood where it was. When I started doing the second side his tongue came out carefully licking the side I had done, avoiding where I hadn't.
I was lucky he had none in his mouth, unlike our asshole cat who got them everywhere.
Benny is well. He was very brave while I pulled quills. The porky is still hanging around...
Interesting side note, I gifted my deer rifle this year assuming I'd switch over to the .243 for all things varmint related. Unfortunately, the missing magazine seems to be a real bastard to replace. So if anybody has a source or a real talented smith, I'd love to hear about it. It's a Browning BLR .243 pre-1981. (Same magazine as the.308 I believe)
I know right? Looks like I'll be conserving ammunition.
Yeah, a little speed reading across various gun forums indicates that Browning long ago sold off their BLR pre '81 parts inventory to a place called Midwest Gun Works. That place sold out of the magazines a decade ago. Back then they were already selling for $80 and steadily rising through to today when it's all north of $250. There are no aftermarket magazines.
The consensus seems to be that garage/estate sales are about the only place left to get them at a reasonable price, possibly even buying the rifle with 2 or more magazines and selling off the extra rifle with magazine.
Damn.
Somebody done gifted you an albatross.
Sorry to hear about Benny's encounter. But glad he came through like trooper. Good boy!!! Please give him a treat for me.
I see those pics on the web and just want to weep for the poor doggeh.
I hate those pics.
No pics from my last encounter with the local wildlife, past tense.
I set a rat trap and baited it with an almond, pre drilled a VERY firmly attached to the trigger. It's outside near a known path to the crawlspace. I have it nestled between two cinder blocks to deter the dog, but it did not keep the little towhee from his last supper.
Sadly, this is the second one lost to the dangers of my backyard jungle. The other day I found a big circle of feathers near the back gate. And a few on the trellis that goes over the gate. I'm guessing some raptor lunched there, spilling the fluffy bits as he dined.
Sorry little birdie.
You were trying to catch a Towhee with a rat trap?
I'm not sure he was trying for the towhee.
End the hunt they said
It's a horrible tradition they said
Naw man, look at that thing, it's beautiful. I understand they stink to holy hell though.
Wildlife update, Benny and the porcupine reached detente and Pete named the porcupine, so barring destruction on his part he has been granted limited immunity.
The mouse situation took a strange turn. We had two traps tripped with no catch so I set up a maze. We then caught one mouse and lost a trap. The caught mouses' head had been chewed though... rat?
Obviously a mouse couple, when he messed up she chewed his head off. :haha:
It's the beginning of the zombie mouse apocalypse … they crave mouse brains.
We've been kicking their collective ass for a long time.
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But some are fighting back with kamikaze bucks.
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I've been slightly worried about the apparent absence of our visiting Badgers.
Due to overnight rain I didn't set up my camera for a couple of weeks and when I did finally have a chance to do so it only recorded foxes.
Last night I decided to change the switch off time from 0315 to 0400 to see if that would help.
As is often the way of these things a Badger put in a welcome appearance well before midnight but a Muntjac dropped in as well at 0326.
They have paid occasional visits in the past but I was pleased to see this image this morning.
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Have you ever heard one bark?
Have you ever heard one bark?
Yes, quite often. In the dead of night you can hear them up in the woods.
It's a fairly high pitched yap which carries for some distance. Opinion seems to be divided as to why they do it.
One school of thought says they do it for no apparent reason but it is sometimes suggested they are seeking a mate.
Incidentally, the Muntjac pictured is quite big for the species and I'd say that it was about the height of a large Airedale Terrier.
Very often they are fairly unremarkable and don't draw attention to themselves.
I learned something new today.
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/mammals/muntjac-deer
I was going to tell you I was pretty sure that wasn't a badger. ;)
I knew about the muntjac...
...I did not know Britain had them.
Blew m'mind a li'l bit.
Incidentally, the Muntjac pictured is quite big for the species...
Reeves' MuntjacI knew about the muntjac...
...I did not know Britain had them.
Blew m'mind a li'l bit.
According to one site I looked at earlier, there's about 40,000 in the UK which surprised me.
They're a timid creature so I've never quite understood why they draw so much attention to themselves by their lengthy barking sessions.
Mind you, the place isn't exactly alive with timber wolves so perhaps they do it out of force of habit.
I read wolves howl to let the world know where they are. If you're a friend I'm here, if you're a foe stay away from here. Maybe the deer do something like that.
They have one thing in common...
Uh, two things in common, they all have six legs.
Compare the ASPCA vs the SPCA, two completely different critters.
ASPCA ~ big bucks and guilt trips. SPCA ~ caring for animals.
The RSPCA has done sterling work since 1824 but in recent years seems to have lost its way.
It was warned by the Charity Commission to put its house in order after an over generous payment to its departing acting Chief Executive.
The Society has had eight Chief Executives in eleven years, so make of that what you will.
I can pick up the TV guide and the chances are that there will be a series about the RSPCA in the schedules.
The lads and lasses who do the job at the sharp end are hard working and dedicated. They deserve better leadership.
Link
LinkFor porkypines every day is a bad hair day.
When I hear the word porcupine, or see one, I think of Family Feud. The question was 'Fill in the blank, pork _____.' And the guy responded with "Cupine."
Got too much money laying around?
Get bit:
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I woulda flipped them that 25 cents and wished them the best o' luck.
I read somewhere that rattlesnake anti-venom is $20,000 per dose. And you might need up to half a dozen doses, depending on the bite.
You gotta change your attitude now your a homeowner with seizable assets.
Up in MA they have a cute setup where if you can't pay your hospital bill the state will pay it for you. That's because they have a soft spot in their heart for corporations. Of course they will seek repayment from you, with all the power of the state. That's a lot.:borg:
Greatest health system in the world!
At $462, 'Special Services' seems to be an absolute bargain.
I just noticed he was in the hospital for five days, must have been serious.
I just noticed he was in the hospital for five days, must have been serious.
Not for the first time, the difference between US and UK date formats caught me out.
I thought it was five
months. IE 7th April 2015 to 7th September 2015.
Heh heh, for 5 months that would be a bargain. :)
Ya know how ya save up for that once-in-a-lifetime vacay, get on the beach, go for the beach selfie, and some asshole in the background photobombs ya?
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Man, I hate when that happens.
It's Australian. It is therefore capable of killing you without reason or notice.
[YOUTUBE]NAmTTCV7GyY[/YOUTUBE]
Tourist picks up deadly blue ringed octopus with bare hands
A shy and tiny, but lethal animal, has once again caused panic after a video uploaded to Reddit showed a tourist holding a blue-ringed octopus in their uncovered hand.
The video was captioned "what a pretty octopus" written in Mandarin as the unsuspecting beachgoer handled and filmed the brightly coloured sea creature.
Marine ecology expert Michael Keough from the University of Melbourne said picking up an octopus exposes the hand to the beak, a few millimetres-long horny barb located on the bottom of the octopus between its tentacles. "It can only bite if it's on top of something," he said.
With a beak that pierces the exoskeletons of crabs, the octopus releases a neurotoxin from its glands that causes paralysis, causing its prey to stop breathing and die "within an hour".
LinkDa Fox...
[YOUTUBE]WWR3ITrJ1wQ[/YOUTUBE]
Da Fox...
Fond as I am of wildlife, I do wish that the local foxes would carry out their nocturnal activities with less noise.
The last few weeks the night has been rent with vulpine screams. It has sounded like mass murder in progress. :eek:
That said, there was a particularly handsome fox on the front lawn at 0530 today.
I'm not sure if this is the same animal, but the camera caught this visitor in the back garden last night.
The date is incorrect as the camera had been without batteries for a couple of days which upset some of the settings.
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Damn, it's warm there. :biggrinba
Damn, it's warm there. :biggrinba
There has been a slight thaw today but overnight the temperature is forecast to fall to -5C.
Driving might be tricky on minor untreated roads tomorrow morning.
It pales into insignificance compared to what vast swathes of Canada and the US have been suffering, but it's still a wretched nuisance.
Thursday night I was driving some back country roads in Lancaster county. These roads were built after the farms were there so they follow fence lines and creeks. You'll be going along and the road will suddenly make a 90 degree right or left at the corner of a field, usually blind and often with an elevation change just for fun.
Anyway the truck is telling me the temperature is between 0 and +3 F as I go over hills, it was very disconcerting the roads in places of up to 100 feet long were wet. Wet as in liquid. According to Google, a 20% salt brine will freeze at +2 F. So it was probably more than 20%. The ocean is 3.5%. That can't be good for the flora and fauna.
I noticed some parts of the ADK have eliminated salt completely. Plow and sand...
Mildly related, I once dumped out the water-and-rock-salt slush from the ice cream maker into the grass in the back yard. The spot stayed dead for like 3 years.
Buy Lancaster County bacon, the meat is cured while the hogs are alive!
On the plus side, the roads taste great.
Did you know Flying Squirrels appear hot pink under ultraviolet light? No you didn't, scientists didn't even know it.
Fond as I am of wildlife, I do wish that the local foxes would carry out their nocturnal activities with less noise.
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Giraffe-snotted mid-flight!!
Not gonna be a good day, Tater...
You extend the hand of friendship to all creatures great and small and this is how they repay you...
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He didn't need it all so he's returning some.
Be glad it ain't your front porch.
Wild fox makes surprise appearance in Philadelphia
"I see what I thought was a cat or small dog coming in front of Independence Mall," White told WTXF-TV, "As it came closer to me I noticed it was a fox."
Video at the link.
Old news in DC. We need the foxes to eat the rabbits.
Couple of days ago, my good neighbor called to say that she and her husband just saw a coyote chasing a big female deer and her two yearlings across their property, heading for mine. I ran to the window to see what I could see, but they must have veered into the woods, 'cause I didn't see them.
But, the thing is, I'm pretty sure coyotes don't chase down adult deer. I'm assuming it was a wolf. :eek:
Coyotes will do that around here, but, it's not the most common of occurrences.
If yours was a 'yote, he was prolly going after the younger deer.
We have larger coyotes up this way because the migrated across Canada then down through New York and New England picking up some wolf blood along the way.
North Carolina Coyotes played nice-nice with red and gray wolves.
I don't know if the Coyote up in the northwest are sluts too.
https://www.pennlive.com/pa-sportsman/2018/02/coyote_of_53_pounds_tops_penns.html
The biggest coyote weighed in an organized coyote hunting contest this weekend - the biggest weekend for organized hunts in Pennsylvania - was a huge canine weighing in at 53 pounds.
The huge male coyote topped a field of 193 weighed in by 4,836 hunters registered for the Mosquito Creek Sportsmen's Association coyote hunt, which is the oldest and largest of Pennsylvania's organized hunts. The Venango County coyote won a prize of $9,672 for hunter Michael Galbraith.
According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, adult male coyotes in Pennsylvania weigh 45-55 pounds. They are much larger than their western counterparts because of their genetical mixing with wolves and dogs as they expanded their range to the east.
The second largest coyote weighed in the Mosquito Creek contest was a 48.65-pound male from Tioga County that won $5,803.20 for hunter Tom Sherman. Third place went to a 45.55-pound male from Susquehanna County that won $3,868.80 for hunter Dustin Holl.
True enough Bruce.
There are usually plenty of coyotes around here, although this winter there have been far fewer (I'm basing this on the fact that most winters, I hear the coyotes yipping and howling at least one or two evenings a week - this year; radio silence). Of those I've seen, they're definitely not in the 40-lb range.
According to the paper, there are coyotes in Arlington (corpses hit by cars have been collected) but I haven't seen any.
Foxes, yes. Not uncommon at all.
I'm pretty sure I saw a coyote (from across a big parking lot) in Falls Church a few years back.
Hot time in Toad Town tonight. :eek:
Kangaroo introduces himself to paraglider...
NSFW language.
[LIVELEAK]BEdW_1552038629[/LIVELEAK]
Fuckin' kangaroos.
His tone of voice made that hilarious.
That was funny.
Skip's thinking, holy shit, we're being invaded by aliens from space! I'll kick his ass!
Koi pond??
You're gonna need a bigger pond.
Good boy. You can go now.
Gimme that grocery bag and nobody gets hurt.
Maybe that pussycat is looking for the bird that got in your house...
If you grab a broom and swing for the cheap seats...
This guy had a terrible accident after a hen took a bad fall last night. I hope bad things don't really come in threes.
This guy had a terrible accident...
Go for a ride in the country, did he?:lol2:
Late Saturday evening I shone a torch out of the front window to see what wildlife might be about and was surprised to see a fox cub.
I didn't want to startle it so moved the beam away sharpish which allowed a quick glimpse of the vixen.
I hadn't set up my camera for a few days but thought I'd have a go last night and these two cubs duly presented themselves.
[ATTACH]67704[/ATTACH]
Awesome.
Do the foxes in your neighborhood scream? Sounds like a woman being murdered.
Awesome.
Do the foxes in your neighborhood scream? Sounds like a woman being murdered.
In a word, yes!
It's absolutely blood curdling and at its worst during January.
I had one scream just outside my window a few weeks ago in the depths of the night.
Frightened the living daylights out of me. :eek:
I set up the camera again last night and I'm slightly concerned that apparently only one cub put in an appearance.
Anyway, this one brought his mum along...
[ATTACH]67714[/ATTACH]
The camera would appear to be of some interest...
[ATTACH]67715[/ATTACH]
I wonder if the kit with Mom at 10:30 was the same one alone at 2:30?
By the way, it's chilly there.
I wonder if the kit with Mom at 10:30 was the same one alone at 2:30?
By the way, it's chilly there.
That crossed my mind as well.
I know that they are pretty territorial so it's unlikely to be an interloper, but I suppose it's possible that the vixen takes the litter foraging in shifts.
My next door but one neighbour saw a vixen and six cubs enjoying the sun in her back garden in early June last year.
Shortly after that four young ones visited us on a nightly basis for a while.
I assume that they were from the same litter.
Chilly here? No, it's positively sub-tropical. ;)
On Saturday we woke up to quite a sharp frost.
One of the pair from the other night was larger, maybe he snuck out without his little sister last night so Mom had to take her.
10 F warmer here at the same time, predicting 76 F today but still soggy from all the rain.
Last night I put out a little dish of leftovers (chum) in my driveway and captured a skunk, a raccoon, a fox and my kitty cat on my WildView camera.
Very much non-Nat Geo quality.
Is there a fairly simple way put them on this thread?
Yes.
How do you view the images captured by your camera?
If they somehow get to your computer for viewing, it's only a couple easy steps further to post them here.
There are details of course, and I'd be happy to walk you through the process. A private message and a way to contact you would expedite the process.
Sounds like it might be video? If it's still shots then they could be posted like any other picture, and that's pretty easy.
The cam pics can only be viewed on my computer and are auto saved in my Pictures, where I can look at them individually and fool around with them.
It seems that a copy/paste thing like text should work if I can just get them and me all in one place.
Another time or five through the FAQs might help.
If they are on your computer then this should work if they are within size limits. pictures people send me from their phones are usually 3 to 4 feet wide and 5 megabytes and that won't fly.
[ATTACH]67744[/ATTACH]
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Thanks, Bruce. I'll give that a try after I get some chores done.
I had another critter last night and if this works, we can call him xoxoxoPogo.
xopogo:[ATTACH]67759[/ATTACH]
Well, sort of.
When my computer stops smoking, I'll try a fox.
OK, those to pictures are 22.222 inches wide, knocked down to 12 inches...
And with some minor editing...
Much better. Thanks.
How do I do it?
That's a fairly good-sized opossum.
Much better. Thanks.
How do I do it?
I don't know, I did it with photoshop but I don't know what tools you have available. I think there's a free program called Irfan that will do a lot of things.
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I haven't left the camera out for quite a while due to the threat of rain but it snapped these three last night.
Just glancing out of the window recently I've only spotted one cub at a time and no adult so feared the worst.
I assume that this is the original family group that appeared a week or two ago.
What does concern me is that the camera didn't record any Badgers.
So many perish on the road and I just hope that fate hasn't befallen any of our visitors.
What are they eating?
I leave out a small quantity of dog meat for them but, in this picture, they appear to be eating the peanuts I leave out for the Badgers.
Easy pickings!
Since you're baiting I guess you can't eat 'em. ;)
Since you're baiting I guess you can't eat 'em. ;)
It tends to be frowned upon in polite company. :)
I leave out a small quantity of dog meat for them...
It tends to be frowned upon in polite company. :)
Yes, but so is butchering dogs to feed wildlife. :facepalm:
Nice pictures, you nailed it, hope your new buddy doesn't nail you. :D
Keep your friends close and your enemies closer still...
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Sorry its just just another badger/fox pic but we don't have the range of wildlife that those of you in the US are fortunate to have.
Generally badgers tolerate foxes but I once saw a fox being seen off the premises in short order when it got too near.
One of the best things my sneaky cam taught me was how my backyard's usual suspects seem to tolerate one another.
I have pics in various combos of raccoons, foxes, possums, skunks and my house kitties.
Hoping for one of all at once, a la:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Edward_Hicks_-_Peaceable_Kingdom.jpgPeaceable Kingdom, no way, best you can hope for is tolerant kingdom. :lol:
Or maybe nature in the raw...
RiiiiiiiiDE, Ride the Tiger...
Cool. I have never seen that before. Never heard of the water tiger.
New extreme sport. After the tiger, ride the bear, the toughest critter of all:
https://www.sciencefriday.com/videos/behold-the-mighty-water-bear-4/Elephant giving birth in the wild. They all stay away until the calf is almost on it's feet.
[YOUTUBE]MSxw6D6Wl4U [/YOUTUBE]
Now, that's a birth cannon.
Almost two years in the oven.
I wonder if any other animal comes close to such a greeting.
Elephants appear to have the longest gestation period, among mammals. Giraffes and some whales go for ~15-16 months.
Backyard game camera in the Southwest. (Photo moved from one spot on the internet to another.)
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When I heard the Frogs were in trouble I was worried about them.
But now I know they are working for the side, fuck those traitors.
Little Benito Mussolinis they are.
For the last few weeks, these guys have been hanging around the neighborhood.
This morning, I looked outside to see
these two motherfuckers on top of my chicken enclosure. :shock:
Don't mess with insects, Gorillas, Crocs, Eddie Hall... or anything.
Yup fire. that hand must burn...
Someone bit off more than they can chew...
Mama deer and spotted baby, munching on treats from my apple tree.
As a rule, I attach the trail cam to a tree or existing post and passing wildlife tends to ignore it.
However, last night I fixed the camera to a stake and placed it in the middle of the lawn quite a way from the house where Badgers, in particular, enter and leave.
It seems to have piqued the curiosity of this one...
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[YOUTUBE]EIyixC9NsLI[/YOUTUBE]
Is it possible that precautions were taken to prevent damage to the thin leading edge rather than from it?
YOU HAVE TO KEEP AN EYE ON THOSE F104 BADGERS!!
As I just mis-posted in the badger thread, ...
The Edit feature also allows you to delete a post. You can give a reason for deletion too if you want. It's nice; because, only registered users logged-in will see where a post has been deleted. It won't be visible to the general public. You're lurking fans will never know and you won't be a litter bug.
That's a great shot. I wonder if I should look into a trail camera...
That's a great shot. I wonder if I should look into a trail camera...
I bought mine from Amazon just over a year ago for £60 ($75) but prices seem to have come down by about 15%.
They are marketed under several different brand names but all seem very similar; badge engineered as it were.
Given the wide variety of wildlife you are lucky to have, I think that you'd find it a rewarding investment.
Just out of interest, have the tariffs on Chinese imports started to bite yet?
An early decision to buy might well pay off!
It looks like they start around $40 American. Which features matter?
That's a great shot. I wonder if I should look into a trail camera...
No, the flash will blind you.:)
Actually yes. They are cheap, reliable and easy to use.
Mine is a C Cell glutton, so think about rechargeable batteries.
Which features matter?
Definition and range. Common specs are 12MP and 1080p.
You can drop the definition right down in steps on mine which is helpful if you wish to conserve battery power but at the bottom end of the scale it's more for gathering evidence of what might be raiding your vegetable patch overnight than serious observation.
Range on mine is said to be up to 65ft and I've no reason to dispute that, in fact it might be a little more.
As mentioned earlier, most examples seem to be 'badge engineered' and will have the ability to vary sensitivity and the number of photos taken at a particular activation.
I tend to keep my camera set on the highest definition and sensitivity which can result in excess of a hundred photos overnight.
If you can place the camera in a convenient position vis a vis a mains electricity supply, it might be worth your while buying a plug in power unit.
Check to see if your chosen model has the necessary socket before you commit $ to the ether.
That's all I can think of at the minute but please feel free to ask if there's anything else I can help you with.
BTW The manual, as is to be expected, is a bit of a puzzle but operating the unit is pretty much intuitive.
One more thing. You'll probably have to buy a memory card separately.
most examples seem to be 'badge engineered'
...badger engineered?
...badger engineered?
Ha! :):):)
Here is an OK video about the cam I have used for maybe ten years.
I think they are discontinued, but there may be new models, including infra-red.
$40 is about average used and probably a good introduction to the sport of sneaky cams.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvUmI1tmiPYWhich features matter?
Just make sure to get one w/the invisible flash.
And a cable lock. In case you have unknown two-legged wildlife coming through the rye.
If you're a pawn shopper, you
can find them dirt cheap occasionally.
If ya want to spend the money, they can send the pics/vids to your cell phone. By bluetooth, or cell signal.
So many potential injuries...
We seem to be well supplied with foxes at the moment.
My neighbour had a vixen and four cubs on her back lawn very early one morning last week and we had the latest in a series of visits from this vixen plus her two well grown cubs last night.
I just wonder where they all go during the day.
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The Edit feature also allows you to delete a post. You can give a reason for deletion too if you want. It's nice; because, only registered users logged-in will see where a post has been deleted. It won't be visible to the general public. You're lurking fans will never know and you won't be a litter bug.
Just trying to be helpful, are you?
People who always log-in to the Cellar can forget that not everything appears to the general public. Conversely, I've had someone say they couldn't see a picture I posted via a link to my Cellar photo album. My Cellar photo album is set for viewing only by logged-in registered users. When they first tried to see it, they weren't logged in.
Poor Wolves get no respect...
Just trying to be helpful, are you?
Careful, your talking to The Post Police, y'know...
Careful, your talking to The Post Police, y'know...
*chuckle*
hashtag understatement
I'm pretty sure I saw Stephen Douglas delivering a sermon while I was brush hogging the power-line this afternoon. He made me for a Lincoln man though, dropped down on all fours, and skedaddled.
Had to be Douglas... short guy, heavy set, dark suit.
I didn't know each rattle overlaps two bumps.
I should think they would get sand in there.
I didn't know each rattle overlaps two bumps.
I should think they would get sand in there.
They just shake it out.
Look at those jugular slashers... :mg:
and the rabies injection probe
I think I read that it's highly unlikely that squrls transmit rabies.
Selfish that way, are they?
Maybe not normally but watch for a syringe tucked in their waistband.
Muthafukkincrackheadsqurls is the ones ya gotta watch...
[YOUTUBE]qsDU_tTgsFw[/YOUTUBE]
That was pretty cool, Glatt.
Makes me want to go camping and hang out by that log. Course, I would disrupt the animals that way.
Probably up in Griff's neighborhood.
He's using a Browning Special opts Advantage camera. Less than $200 with 32 MP
Except for a few startles, that was relaxing.
Prolly just a really fancy g-string...
Was that a platypus?!
At 45 seconds a porcupine, I think.
From The Times this week...
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LEARNING THE ROPES
Sir, The swans teaching their young to ring the moat bell for food at the Bishop’s Palace in Wells (photograph, Aug 21) follow a long tradition: the first swan was taught the skill by a daughter of Lord Auckland, the Bishop of Bath and Wells (1854-69).
It is now encased in the Wells and Mendip Museum. As cygnets fly away and parents die, it is the palace administrator who actually keeps the tradition alive, training new pairs of swans.
Grace and Gabriel, introduced in May, quickly learnt the technique and have produced eggs, ensuring that another generation will delight visitors.
Peter Saunders
Curator emeritus, Salisbury Museum
I think it fair to say that the Bishop of Bath and Wells mentioned above, probably isn't the same chap who featured in an episode of Blackadder.
I saw a thing on tv years ago where a man had trained his goldfish to ring a bell, rigged in a similar fashion as above, when it wanted food.
Please don't let my squrls see either of these...
Check out the Nova on squirrels, them smrt.
Ah yeh, this gentleman saw a log across a stream in remote mountains of Pennsylvania, and wondered what critters were using it to cross. So he set up a wildlife cam.
He shows us all the various critters that have used it, critter by critter. (A list of all the critters appears at the 5 minute mark.)
[YOUTUBE]qsDU_tTgsFw[/YOUTUBE]
Ugh sorry!
Pretty amazing that we both shared it and it only has 6000 views though
I saw it on facebook in a private group, but didn't know how to link to a FB video, so I looked for it on Youtube. It had around 5000 views then, I think.
It's a great video, and I'm glad you found it too.
Yessir I found it through the FB group for the Hanover Eagles.
I have been busy with stuff and haven't paid close attention here!
The previous year on the log is pretty good, too. Not sure if same log.
Ms Coon in her palace with her children...
Even fish cheat on their wives..
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There I was, minding my own damn business, washing the dishes and what do my wondering eyes appear, through the fucking kitchen window?
The doe, moseying around at the edge of the deck next to the hot tub.
She inspected the bird feeder but passed on the apples on the table. Really she was *right there*. Quite a surprise.
A deer passed on apples??
Did you get them from this woman?
There I was, minding my own damn business...
Awesome.
[YOUTUBE]ZXgWsHGN0KQ[/YOUTUBE]
I like how he just freezes and waits for the humans to wander off. Remember you're sharing the road with folks who don't notice a bear on the porch, let's be careful of those Biden voters out there. ;)
The bear saw where they hide the key.
I saw two beautiful foxes last night running quickly across the streets of suburbia about two miles from each other. Both looked really healthy with thick winter coats coming in. Do foxes get winter coats? Normally I don’t care for the foxes because they are so loud and often look creepy, but these two were gorgeous. Quick, confident, determined, and healthy looking.
I have had a bobcat cruising through my property this past week or so.
So far he has killed at least two of my cats, maybe five, recently neutered at substantial expense.
I have had my ranch for nearly fifty years and taken thousands of "trail cam" photographs every place on it without a bobcat sighting.
Now I have two six shot series of one.
I think it is probable that the three recent huge fires surrounding where I live have changed the habitat.
I hate to do it, but I am looking into getting a depredation permit to legally dispatch the SOB.
Haven't seen a bobcat in ages.
Any chance of sharing those pics?
Hit a deer for the first time. They're all over the roadways, here, just happened to be while I wasn't paying 100% attention. I skidded to an almost complete stop, then the deer took off running and smacked right into my car. Turned around and they were gone. Car didn't have a scratch, so I guess I just grazed them.
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Scale: 36" door
Will probably need some posting help
That is a healthy bobcat.
And bold. Most of them smell human scent and head for the tall and uncut.
Armadillo you haven't seen...
That is a healthy bobcat.
And bold. Most of them smell human scent and head for the tall and uncut.
They are being driven out of their natural habitat by disruption of the food chain. My theory. House Cat or Rabbit, he don't care, he's a Bob Cat.
Yeah, those fires are upsetting more than humans.
That's a lot of soup. :yum:
Nice doggie, good doggie...
This is sad... very sad...
That makes me mad. We were always taught to always Pack Your Trash! Especially at sea.
We are headed for a fishing collapse and yet we're killing wantonly.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overfishing
Humans gotta get better.
What, it's only 400 tons of Jack Mackerel in one scoop, and surely it will all be used efficiently with no waste. :rolleyes:
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But that turtle, or maybe terrapin I guess, didn't get caught up in a net as collateral damage of commercial fishing, some bastard hooked him and instead of hauling him in and at least retrieve the line even if he/she couldn't get the hook out, couldn't be bothered so just cut the line to foul the turtle and anything near it. He/she callously killed the turtle.
Make it manslaughter (turtleslaughter) if a hurricane, Iranian torpedo boat, or Monstro the Whale, were bearing down on his/her dingy.
...or maybe terrapin I guess...
Terrapins are only found in fresh water. Jes' sayin'.
Brackish water along the coast also.
Rly? I asked you to stop making me learn stuff...
Can't help it the check bounced.
I only knew that because my buddy has a place in Bethany Beach with a canal in the backyard, and he found two hatchlings in his driveway. They were about the size of a quarter and the seagulls are aggressive & ruthless around there. So he brought them in the house until they were a year or so old. He and I did a lot of web crawling trying to find out as much as possible about water temperature diet, sun vs shade, anything to help because even under ideal conditions the grow real slowly. Have to be judicious about asking for information from vets or government people because it's illegal to keep them. That would be a no good deed goes unpunished. ;)
So he brought them in the house until they were a year or so old....the[y] grow real slowly.
How long did it take them to get a year old?
:p:
Paid our sky tax over the weekend.
Is that a (former) chicken?
A couple of guests have returned for a little snack.
RFN, literally in the yard at this moment.
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Is that a (former) chicken?
Yes, seems to be pining for the fjords
...that I bought in this very boutique not half an hour ago...
Paid our sky tax over the weekend.
Didn't carry it off, just ate in right there?
I think he carried her there from closer to the house. Usually they take them further.
(that's a hawk's wing feather impression in the foreground snow.)
I assumed the picture was backed up from the gore to include the wing print. Apparently the wing came down on the snow then back up to either fold, flap, or shield so the imprint didn't get sullied.
Or it occurred on takeoff after dinner.
[YOUTUBE]z4xZpm5n214[/YOUTUBE]
Glad nature has evolved...
I know Whale Sharks are slow moving filter feeders But I'd still be nervous being in the water with them. :eyebrow:
probably a whale shark orgy
Woodchucks/groundhogs in Maine, it varies with latitude...
I like that. Nice solid data. I wonder how they got it? Thermocouple up the anus wouldn’t work if it’s active at times. Maybe one of those IR thermometers was installed in the den. Or maybe a few.
Actually, they probably just put a collar on it.
I think that might be an average of a bunch of collars, the PA numbers are.
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A tourist poses with a snap-happy pelican in St James's Park, London.
A small flock of pelicans has lived on the lake in St James's Park for many years.
It's in the centre of London close to Parliament and the birds have been known to fly off to the pelican enclosure at London Zoo about three miles away to join in at feeding time.
Link
He's checkin out the chick with the nice big pouch.... as one does when one is a pelican.
Cocks.
Helluva name for a poodle...:p:
He's checkin out the chick with the nice big pouch.... as one does when one is a pelican.
Almost lol'ed.
Woulda gotten me busted. helluva thang, sneaking onto the web in yer own damn house.
I'm sure Mr Squirrel would love to hear what a bad day you had...
Nope, no way, I don't want to live that close to nature. :headshake
In recent weeks our visiting Badgers have been conspicuous by their absence.
The peanuts I leave out would sometimes remain uneaten and on other occasions I'm pretty sure that a fox was taking advantage of them.
We've had so much rain over the winter which meant I couldn't really leave the camera out overnight in an attempt to see what was happening.
However, over the the last month or so an individual creature has been putting in an appearance but this required me to have a look outside every few minutes.
Last Friday was a clear and dry evening so I left the camera out and these two were good enough to turn up along with company.
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thanks for the great pic Carruthers!
side note, wtf is wrong with your camera/enclosure that it can't be left out in case it rains?
side note, wtf is wrong with your camera/enclosure that it can't be left out in case it rains?
Over this winter we have had an astonishing amount of rain.
On more than one occasion a month's worth landed in the space of twenty-four hours.
The seal around the two halves of the camera is good, and certainly water resistant, but I would be reluctant to describe it as waterproof.
For that reason I have erred on the side of caution when deciding whether to leave the camera out overnight.
Additionally, the lens always seems to attract the biggest drops of rain!
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Gimme shelter...
Now there's a thought!
There are a whole bunch of different critters we call badgers, including the ones we see here (American) and the ones I'm glad we don't (Honey).
Yours are weird.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Badger
I've mentioned before how surprised I was to find foxes, raccoons, skunks, possums and cats all in the same frame from my sneaky cam.
Isn't he cute, like a toddler with ice cream all over...
I used to give bats a pass because mosquitoes. Now between Ebola and corona virus they are on my “do not call” registry.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Isn't he cute, like a toddler with ice cream all over...
or Cocaine Trump in the 80's...
Cute puddy tat... and mom. Mom's whiskers are yuge.
I've been leaving out peanuts nightly for three years to attract our local Badgers to the garden but it's pretty clear that they have been visiting for much longer.
A few nights ago my camera recorded an adult and cubs for the first time although the picture was less than perfect.
We did a bit better last night...
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I still haven't seen them in the flesh, but you can't have everything. :)
We followed an eagle in our car for about a mile on the way to work this morning, that was cool, but no picture--driving--sorry.
But I did capture this little guy as he was scampering off to find a different place to finish his nap. Hang out in the yard, be my guest. Hang out in the house, be my trophy.
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If they won't move smack 'em with a broom...
Reckon bear damage is covered by your average car insurance policy?
The night before last at 2340 my iPad pinged a warning that the ISS was about to appear.
I was wide awake so I thought I'd make the effort.
However, when I looked out of the back window I saw a pair of Badgers and three cubs on the lawn which I watched for ten or twelve minutes so the space station had to take a back seat.
Annoyingly, Sod's Law struck and for the first time in ages I'd placed the camera in a different spot which meant that it didn't capture them all in one frame.
I'm pleased to say that in the early hours of this morning mum + three turned up.
They triggered the camera on several occasions but the youngsters move quickly and images are often blurred.
This one isn't perfect but it's not bad.
[ATTACH]70635[/ATTACH]
I've been leaving out food for these creatures every night for three years but it's the first year I've ever seen cubs either in the flesh or on camera.
I saw a scene just like this on the road home this afternoon.
https://media.gettyimages.com/photos/-picture-id10092727?s=2048x2048
I thought the adult had gotten tangled in string or brush, but the chicks were just scurrying around her feet.
All I have is a crummy flip phone for a camera. Gone are the days when I would have chased after them for a 35mm film pic of my own.
As for Carruthers' neat badger pics, Wiki has this:
"They consume them [rabbits] by turning them inside out and eating the meat, leaving the inverted skin uneaten.[64] Hedgehogs are eaten in a similar manner.[63] In areas where badgers are common, hedgehogs are scarce."
As for Carruthers' neat badger pics, Wiki has this:
"They consume them [rabbits] by turning them inside out and eating the meat, leaving the inverted skin uneaten.[64] Hedgehogs are eaten in a similar manner.[63] In areas where badgers are common, hedgehogs are scarce."
I feel that it is important to put the above in context...
European badgers are among the least carnivorous members of the Carnivora;[60] they are highly adaptable and opportunistic omnivores, whose diet encompasses a wide range of animals and plants.
Earthworms are their most important food source, followed by large insects, carrion, cereals, fruit and small mammals including rabbits, mice, shrews, moles and hedgehogs.
Insect prey includes chafers, dung and ground beetles, caterpillars, leatherjackets, and the nests of wasps and bumblebees.
They are able to destroy wasp nests, consuming the occupants, combs, and envelope, such as that of Vespula rufa nests, since thick skin and body hair protect the badgers from stings.[61]
Cereal food includes wheat, oats, maize and occasionally barley. Fruits include windfall apples, pears, plums, blackberries, bilberries, raspberries, strawberries, acorns, beechmast, pignuts and wild arum corms.
Coincidentally, the wholesale ripping up of local lawns in the autumn by Badgers searching for leatherjackets has ceased in recent years since I started leaving peanuts out for them.
As for the part that cereals play in their diet, a few years ago over twenty Badgers were observed, by the local farm manager, feeding on spilled wheat one evening during harvest.
LinkI don't know how many fox families we have hereabouts, but my neighbour saw a vixen and two well grown cubs sunning themselves on her back lawn a few days ago.
We've had cubs of various sizes (different families?) visiting for the last three or four weeks and last night my camera caught the attention of this little chap.
[ATTACH]70668[/ATTACH]
I sometimes wonder about the effects of the flash on the critters, wild and domestic, caught on my trail cam.
This kit was quite close and probably had dilated eyes at the time the camera triggered.
Any worries in the discussions of the hobby?
I sometimes wonder about the effects of the flash on the critters, wild and domestic, caught on my trail cam.
This kit was quite close and probably had dilated eyes at the time the camera triggered.
Any worries in the discussions of the hobby?
I must confess to being a little puzzled.
Are you saying that your trail cam has a conventional flash?
My cam will work during the day but it doesn't have a flash facility.
At night it works in infra red mode so the fox cub above wasn't illuminated by a flash.
The above arrangement seems to be the standard system on trail cams but I will willingly stand corrected.
Boy howdy, does my cam have a flash. That is why I am concerned.
It lights up the whole yard and will illuminate objects 100 feet or more away, even more for reflective things.
Sometimes it will get me good when I am not paying attention.
[YOUTUBE]KSrS7uH3Zfc[/YOUTUBE]
You got me on that one.
I watched the guy in the bear suit put up with the profane family four times hoping something different would happen.
This morning's 8am socially-distanced 5K with a few friends had to take a little detour around wannabe-mama-turtle
[ATTACH]70814[/ATTACH]
... one of said friends is a volunteer turtle-counter and called it in (this is the middle of the busiest trail in the busiest park on the busiest day of the year.....) ...Herpologist visited and reported turtle struggling, no eggs yet, seemed stuck in place daunted by all the traffic, sluggish and has an old crack in the shell, may not be in the best of health. They moved it to the side under the bushes in the hope that it would either give up and relocate to a safer place or try again at dawn before the traffic returns. :fingerx:
And there was this, yesterday evening.
I was sat out in the hot afternoon stillness, reading, chilling in my firepit area under the trees at the end of the yard.... Suddenly, there was a "kerthunk" and a tree behind me shook, Bollywood sex-scene-style.
Then a squirrel darted up the trunk, went out on the first branch and.....
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It always makes me smile when I see squrls lazing around in that pose.
We have been watching a couple of parent catbirds raising their chicks that hatched two weeks ago in our rose bush. Right next to our garbage cans, about a yard off the ground. They started off really kind of gross looking, but now their feathers have really come in. And they look pretty damn cute.
...
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Well whatayaknow...
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Insted of burning or burying all these dead deer biologists let nature take its course and studied how that happens.
Dead plants feed back into the system so it makes sense that animals do too. But we don't know exactly how.
I have a spot on my little ranch, as remote as I can get, where I have left all dead animals including livestock (up to cow size) for almost 50 years.
They are not all still moldering and decomposing into the water table and have fed lots of birds and other critters.
It stinks some, but only for a while.
The spot is currently bare, clean, empty and waiting.
Do the critters carry off the bones?
Pretty much all but the larger skulls.
A while back, before he figured to make a fortune growing wine grapes, a neighbor had what he called his "gut tree" in a back pasture.
It was really just a pit he would fill and re-dig elsewhere every few years.
Everyone could use it and it was simple, except that Turkey Vultures (buzzards) don't like to feed below grade because they can't spot predators as well as needing a runway to get in the air.
Turned in to just being a hole full of offal.
Another tale is when I had a big cow die of old age and I dragged out to my spot. Thinking I would help the vultures and crows and such get into the goodies in her belly, I turned her on her back with her legs in the air.
Usually the sharp-eyed vultures are on carcasses right now (enough so that we joke about not taking a nap in the open), but mamma cow just lay there for days, unattended.
I finally figured out that the cleanup crew was not interested in a four-poster bed and pulled her back on her side. Took about a half hour for the usual proceedings to start. It was a 28-bird feeder at one point.
No shit, they couldn't ID it as a carcass legs up? I guess that's not a normal fall down dead position.
No shit, they couldn't ID it as a carcass legs up? I guess that's not a normal fall down dead position.
Not much of a cartoon watcher, are you?
No shit, they couldn't ID it as a carcass legs up? I guess that's not a normal fall down dead position.
Yeah, that seems to be the problem. Surprised me and a couple of farm adviser types I talked to.
BigV: You need to draw X's over their eyes to attract diners.
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Generally speaking, visiting Foxes and Badgers don't pay any attention to my camera but this one let his curiosity get the better of him.
I think it's one of two cubs, now well grown, that have been visiting for the last couple of months.
They're always welcome and I put out some dog food for them but they also seem to have developed a liking for the peanuts that I leave for the Badgers.
Are they salted peanuts? Most critters will eat anything with salt.
Are they salted peanuts? Most critters will eat anything with salt.
No, they're the same as I feed to the birds (in suitable containers) but, of necessity, bought in bulk.
From the Woodland Trust website...
What can I feed badgers?
If you have badgers visiting your garden, they can make fascinating guests. Their presence produces a wide and varied response from gardeners; some consider them a nuisance as they may root up flower bulbs, eat fruit and vegetables, and dig up lawns.
But if you enjoy seeing badgers in your garden, there's a range of suitable foods that you can put out.
Since they eat such a wide diversity of foods, they will probably eat most of what you put out for them (or for the birds, or hedgehogs, or the dog), but it's best to stick to foods that most closely match their natural diet.
Fruit - grapes, apples, pears, plums
Raw peanuts or brazil nuts (no salt or chocolate)
Dried dog food (muesli type)
Mealworms
Peanut butter (unsalted, sugar-free)
Not quite formation foraging but here's mum plus three sampling my largesse ten days ago.
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LinkI wonder if our raccoons and English badgers fill the same eco-slot.
There are badgers 50 miles or so south of me, but I don't think they are quite as omni as yours.
Raccoons eat everything.
Pete and I saw an Eastern Coyote yesterday. This is the best picture I could get. He was a very tall loping animal, filling that wolf niche...
I wonder if our raccoons and English badgers fill the same eco-slot.
There are badgers 50 miles or so south of me, but I don't think they are quite as omni as yours.
Raccoons eat everything.
I'd assume Badgers are not as graceful as our raccoons for dumpster diving etc?
I'd assume Badgers are not as graceful as our raccoons for dumpster diving etc?
Just looking at the Woodland Trust link in
post #1695 it says that badgers will raid bins in times of food shortage.
I imagine they do this by pulling a bin over as they do not seem to be particularly agile or athletic.
They
are opportunist feeders to an extent and will have what is seasonally available, but I think their opportunism falls into the 'when all else fails' category, earthworms being their first port of call.
I was going to complain about the pic until I realized that I have been surrounded by (western) coyotes for about fifty years and never taken a better one.
I hear them close by every night, but have seen only a dozen or so.
I will try my trail cam again tonight.
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Generally speaking, visiting Foxes and Badgers don't pay any attention to my camera but this one let his curiosity get the better of him.
I think it's one of two cubs, now well grown, that have been visiting for the last couple of months.
They're always welcome and I put out some dog food for them but they also seem to have developed a liking for the peanuts that I leave for the Badgers.
In our local paper there will be an article once in awhile about someone thought they found a puppy. It grows into a fox and is the family dog. Then some dik calls Wildlife and they come to get it for euthanasia. People here have skunks, racoons, flying squirrels, snakes and gawd knows what else, but owning a deer, bear or fox will get you in trouble. It is shameful to make the family cry.
Sent from my moto g(7) supra using Tapatalk
Shameful to give up the family "dog" without a fight.
No problem, that 350 lb bear is sound asleep, we'll just crawl in there, jab him with the needle, and change the collar batteries... piece of cake...
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We don't want to be hanging around...
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I've mentioned before that Benny spends a lot of time killing rodents which is useful since we have chickens and they attract a lot of nuisance critters. Recently, I saw Benny had caught another rabbit. He carried it around a fair amount during the day but settled in behind the house where he began to dissect it. He was joined by a chicken. The dog ripped the carcass apart leaving the head and front legs for the chicken to work on while he ate the rear legs. What a strange little dude he is.
Smart, he knows the chickens bring the toys to the yard so he pays a royalty. :thumb:
"Strange little dude"? I don't know about you but around here almost all of the squirrels come with front and back legs.
Hey Fargon, careful dangling your footsies off that boat.
This woman was standing in chest deep water when a Muskie grabbed her and pulled her under like a gator.
Wild boar steals computer from nudist....
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-53692475
A plethora of the porcine. ;)
Described by a vigorous vocabulary.
Generally our overnight visitors tend to ignore one another.
There's the occasional ill tempered 'exchange of views' but nothing very much.
However, I'd like to know what was going on in the minds of these two last night.
Apologies for the picture quality.
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Is that a Badger and 2 Cats?
Is that a Badger and 2 Cats?
No, just one sitting on the arm of the bench.
Point me in the direction of what might be causing some confusion and I'll attempt to shed some light on it.
In a manner of speaking! :)
Between the bucket and the bench it looks like the eyes of a Cat or other small creature.
There's a darker bucket there with some residual light reflecting off the rim.
Would that be it?
Now I see it. Thank You Sir.
Picture quality is just fine and the composition and story are both very good, thank you.
I do find interesting an effect I see across the whole image when zoomed in very tight. It's like a regular grid of distortion, like the picture was taken from behind a clear piece of plastic with a very slight pattern of raised lines at right angles.
I do find interesting an effect I see across the whole image when zoomed in very tight. It's like a regular grid of distortion, like the picture was taken from behind a clear piece of plastic with a very slight pattern of raised lines at right angles.
Yes, I see what you mean. I haven't noticed that before.
I'm not very well informed about these matters but perhaps it relates to the structure of the component which captures the image.
I don't know if it is relevant but the original image was 4000 x 3000 pixels reduced in Paint to a more manageable 725 x 543.
Those suggestions provided very much on a 'food for thought' basis!
There are internet discussions about this. Seems it's likely to be a byproduct of camera sensors. NOTE: The quote's second enclosed link doesn't work. END NOTE.
[SIZE="3"]What causes this weird grid pattern in my picture?
[/SIZE]
... I found this problem fascinating enough to research a suitable answer.
1) This is NOT Moire interference; as was mentioned above, the grid is far too regular (in both vertical and horizontal direction.
2) This is also NOT noise banding resulting from working the sensor too hard. The banding, again, is far too regular and nothing in the image suggests an unusual exposure which, in fact, looks pretty typical.
3) Some internet sleuthing suggests that this " Grid Banding" processing artifact plagues a few generations of Canon CMOS sensors, going as far back as 2008 and the 5D Mark II (see this link for a cursory description: https://blog.kareldonk.com/canon-eos-5d-mark-ii-barely-worth-it/. According to several users, this grid banding shows up in relatively underexposed parts of an image at fairly low ISO (like the OP's image) and is even worse when recording video.
This link (http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/archive/index.php/t-207542.html) describes a 7D users experience with this problem and what Canon did to repair this "unbalanced A/D channels" issue....at least partially. Apparently, there is no "user error" in creating this artifact, it is a known issue with Canon CMOS sensors, and may be repairable by Canon, or at least partially mitigated.
Cat is thinking: "Well, there goes my might vision."
Except I think you mentioned IR, not visible light for your pics.
I was surprised that the badger is sitting (not setting). You don't seem to have posted this behavior in the past, though Google says it is common.
I was surprised that the badger is sitting (not setting). You don't seem to have posted this behavior in the past, though Google says it is common.
Yes, quite often I look out and see a Badger quite happily sitting while it works its way through the peanuts I leave out although, as you say, I haven't posted such behaviour in the past.
It was something of a surprise when I first saw it as it would seem to risk delaying a necessarily sudden departure.
There are internet discussions about this. Seems it's likely to be a byproduct of camera sensors. NOTE: The quote's second enclosed link doesn't work. END NOTE.
Many thanks for unearthing that explanation, sexobon.
Might even call on cousin Honey Badger...
It's on...
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Fancy Strawberry Squid...
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Yeah it's real, 39 " long and what looks like jewels are photophores.
The Brits have a sneaky Lunar Hornet Moth that passes itself off as a hornet.
But the birds are catching on and now it's awfully hard to hide.
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Of course the Eagles ain't scared of no hornets...
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There goes Peter Cottontail...
We've seen lots of bunnies lately on our bike rides, this just adds to the backstory. Boom times atm.
[strike]Keep[/strike] put your eye on the birdie!
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Taken from the driveway last week.
Good luck.
I found the miniature squirrel in the greenery first.
Your eyes are better than mine then!
I founded the birb (I think), but I didn't see me no minisqurls.
Top half of bird just left of center on the bottom.
Rodent at top 1/4 from left.
Zoom
I see a birb in the top left quadrant of the pic.
I see nothing at the bottom but leaves.
Zoomed 300%.
Bird yes. Tail plain.
Little critter? may be brown spot in leaves right at top 1/4 way from left.
Did BigV give up on his own pic?
I thought Seattle was greener than that.
Classicman, holy crap!!
How goes it, man?
Good to see ya posting!
classicman, thanks for saving me the trouble! Good catch.
Also, really good to see you posting again!
Hey Classic, nice to see you.
I was out in Lancaster County yesterday and we were just sitting in the back yard shooting the shit. Spent half the time swatting or stepping on Spotted Lanternflies. They're an invasive Asian first spotted about 20 miles from the Walmart where Stinkbugs first arrived, but now a third of PA is infested.
The whatever-it-is on the left seems somewhat overmatched by the whatever-it-is on the right.
I think wolf and, based on the cat tail, a badly drawn lion.
Cat tail, maybe paws too, but not even close to a cat head.
This guy was calmly patrolling his neighborhood this morning.
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He only paused and looked up at me when I tapped on the window. Very handsome fellow.
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Wile E.!
Well fed and maintained.
Smoke?
He does look like peak coyote, doesn't he?
Much, much smoke.
Not as big as ours, but that 'yote looks pretty dang healthy.
I glanced at this picture then had to back up and look again because something was wrong about it...
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It took me a couple of minutes to figure out what was wrong.
It was upside down...
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Cats can really get down, they look like that Fordzilla race car where the wheel arch is the tallest thing you see...
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By hanging out in a blind for hours and hours a Dentist finally got this first known picture of a fledgling.
The dark beak is proof it's young.
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After all the King deserves respect...
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I have my trail cam set out, charged up and waiting for a repeat of the evening before last when I got up during the 6 o'clock news and looked out of my living room window at the front lawn and watched a bear walk by. About ten feet away.
I am still a little buzzed by the sight since I have lived in this admittedly rural area for 48 years and never seen a bear closer than ten miles away and then up in the hills.
He wasn't a very big or old black bear, maybe 150-200 pounds and not black but brown.
I closed some doors and followed his wanderings around the yard through different windows. He got to a corner with a closed gate and reversed his route, ending up in a clump of berry bushes.
I alerted some neighbors, made sure the cat was inside, put a ten round mag in the Mini-14 and ventured out with no good plan.
My young neighbor came over with his deer rifle and we tried to locate Mr. Bruin for about a half hour before decided he had left the area the way he came.
Checking with some folks across the road and with a vineyard next to wilder country turned out they saw a family regularly munching their pinot noir.
OK. A bear. My first one, never even showing up on critter cam. Never any scat or overturned trash cans, including the ones lined up every week along the road.
So I guess I will pay a little more attention for a while dusk to dawn.
There will be a related post tomorrow in the guns thread.
My FB people have already seen, the mountains and foliage are not the only beauty we have seen this NH trip. Driving down a back road through the forest and we came across this beast.
Tesla be verwy verwy quiet.
747 won the Fat Bear Contest this year...
Nice work 747!
I saw a fisher cat yesterday, that was pretty cool.
I saw a fisher cat yesterday, that was pretty cool.
You mean one o'these?:
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Yeah, a chocolate brown oversize weasel. I hear they are hell on chickens but security is pretty tight here.
I was neck deep in the river, leaning back against the bank, and one of them (we call them fishers 'round h'yere) came hiking down the creekbank, came within about 6 feet of me. Gave no indication he knew I was there. I think he had somewhere to be.
I hope this poor baby doesn't get carbon fiber splinters in his gums...
Yee. Ikes.
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Link to UPI articleI think my instinct would be to throw rocks immediately, probably get me killed.
She just wanted him gone and her actions were to menace not attack.
Effective as hell, I'd say.
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Caught a flying squirrel in the floor joist cavity. With a towel.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You need to floss your floor joists as well as brush them.
So there had been an occasional rustle coming from the eaves. I thought it was birds in the gutter outside. My wife thought it was a mouse in the eaves. So she got me to set several mouse traps. I also set a big rat snap trap. I was skeptical. That was a week ago.
This morning at 6am we woke to a loud snapping sound and a small animal dragging a trap around in the eaves in our bedroom. We've got lots of suitcases and stuff stored in there, and it was banging its way all around our stuff in the eaves with a snap trap attached to it. Then I heard two more loud snaps as it spasmed into other traps I set.
Not what you want to hear. I was hoping for a loud snap and then silence.
We listened to it drag itself around in the eaves and then it dropped down into one of the joist cavities and started dragging itself across the living room ceiling and across the ceiling in my daughter's bedroom.
I figured it would die in a day or two, and I just wanted to track where it was so I could cut a hole in the ceiling and retrieve the rotting body.
So I began my work day, sitting at the computer in my makeshift office, and just made a point of paying attention to where it was.
Then I heard it from the eaves in my office (my son's bedroom). I had been thinking about how to catch it, and decided a towel thrown over it would be the safest thing. Leather gloves, of course. I moved a shitload of my son's furniture out of the way so I could open the hatch of his eaves, and when I got the hatch cracked open slightly, I saw the flying squirrel just sitting there in my flashlight's beam with a plastic mouse trap clamped to its face. I wasn't suited up yet and didn't have a towel to throw over it, so I closed the hatch and got my stuff together.
I came back and opened the hatch, and the flying squirrel was gone.
So I turned back to my actual job and got a lot of work done. Eventually, in the late afternoon, I heard the squirrel again in the same eaves, so I quietly put on all my gear. I opened the hatch and saw it way at the back of the eaves where a tiny little passage about 4 inches wide leads to the wall behind the bathtub. I climbed into the dusty eaves, and crawled toward the squirrel. It was hung up between a stud and the bathroom vent duct, and was trying to back away from me, but the mouse trap was snagging on the stud.
I grabbed for it and pulled it toward me. In my movement doing that, I knocked the mousetrap clamped to its face right off. It was momentarily stunned, with my headlamp shining right into its night vision eyes, and I grabbed frantically for it with just my gloves on as it tried to start running away. I was able to grab it, and shove it into the towel. I kind of wadded the towel up around it and then backed slowly out of the eaves. Went downstairs, looking like a madman, and asked my daughter to drive me to the local woods, 6 blocks away, where I could release it from my tight grip.
So she did. And when I unfurled the towel to let it go, the dead flying squirrel dropped onto the ground. Apparently holding a squirrel in a death grip for a few minutes will actually kill it.
At least it will rot in the woods and not in my ceiling.
I just bought a real trap on Amazon, so if another one gets in, I can actually trap it in a way that it won't go dragging the trap around.
This is a nice thread :)
you are truly weird
So there had been an occasional rustle coming from the eaves. I thought it was birds in the gutter outside. My wife thought it was a mouse in the eaves.
...stuff happens...
At least it will rot in the woods and not in my ceiling.
I just bought a real trap on Amazon, so if another one gets in, I can actually trap it in a way that it won't go dragging the trap around.
That kind of intimate gruesomeness is an acquired taste. You are so lucky though. My BIL emeritus had a squirrel die in a wall cavity in a bathroom (old victorian house, behind a steam radiator in front of wallpapered plaster and lath wall) He and SIL emeritus decided that it wasn't worth the cost to remove it. That bathroom stank for a decade or more.
I have a woodpecker visiting my house. Disturbingly, the specific area that I just installed new trim.
The horror! Seriously. I would never put up with that.
ETA... the wood pecker just likes hearing himself.
Apparently holding a squirrel in a death grip for a few minutes will actually kill it.
At least it will rot in the woods and not in my ceiling.
This is a nice thread :)
you are truly weird
[SIZE="3"]
LOL [/SIZE] (several times) :rotflol:
Some days you are chronically verbose and some days you just NAIL IT with minimal comment. Love it. Variety is the spice of life and all...
Yesterday, I was walking around the house with binoculars, looking for any little gaps where a squirrel could possibly get in.
I finally found it. Under the valley flashing over our front porch. You don't notice the gap unless you are really looking. I got the ladder out and shined a flashlight up under the valley flashing. In the gleam of the flashlight, you can see that animals have been using it as a highway. There's a dirt pattern that couldn't have been made any other way.
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So I bent a piece of sheet aluminum and riveted it under the valley flashing to close the gap.
bleuch. I struggle to keep the mice out of the basement. And those darn woodpeckers! Pretty and I like the sound.... but not on my house, please?
rats with tails
Aren't those rats?:eyebrow:
they are. rats with wings maybe?
they are. rats with wings maybe?
Those are Bats I think.
if the wings have feathers, it's pigeons
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