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doofgoblin
Joined: 01/21/02
Location: charlottesville, va
Posts: 191
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so around this time last year, I picked up a field guide to birds of Virginia for Erika and quickly became a little hobby, identifying the many types of birds that inhabit our area.
taking it one step further this year, I got her a three audio cd training/reference set for bird calls/songs of our region. it's totally amazing. aside from the fun that it is just to listen to birds on cd, they give you phonetic and mnemonic devices for ear training and do a fine job of grouping songs for comparison.
now here's what was really cool (call me a dork why don't you): two nights ago, heading outside to repair the car, I heard two owls in our yard calling to eachother. I love the sound of owls. then one of them took flight from the tree and flew to another tree, about 200 feet away. beautiful. it was very dark, so I only caught the silhouette. called Erika out to listen, too, and we listened for a few minutes.
after completing the job on the car and going back inside, we cued up the chapter on owl calls to help us identify what was out there in the night. two Great Horned Owls! cross-referencing this info with that owl's listing in the book, we learned that this is the time of year when they get to egg laying. aww. they are also known for being able to take down skunks and rabbits. we told our cat to be careful of the Great Horned Owl, which can hear a mouse moving under two feet of snow!
I found this recording of it's call online. this recording doesn't capture the deep body resonance of its call that you sense when you actually hear one outside, but still...perhaps you've heard one before.
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(((stereofect)))
Joined: 09/02/01
Location: Ontario, Canada
Posts: 1333
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When I studied botany at Lambton College (back in 1981) the professor was a huge bird nut. He used to build platforms up in trees to watch and film the nests of owls. He was watching a pair of Great Horned owls this one time when the female decided she'd had enough. She attacked and did some pretty serious damage with those talons of hers. Swooped in and tore the s**t out his shoulder during one of her attacks. It was quite the battle apparently. She tore through several layers of clothing and drew some serious blood. Nearly knocked him out of the tree. He managed to get one picture of her coming straight at him. Wings spread out, coming at him feet first.... The scars were pretty impressive. It was quite the story.
Don't see many round here. Lots of Red-tailed hawks, though. They get pretty scrffy lookin' this time of year.
“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction.” Albert Einstein
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Kylo
Joined: 02/16/05
Location: San Francisco
Posts: 787
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Of course I laugh again at that story. What comes to mind, is how "much" of an avid 'birder' you'd need to be even think about getting a shot while in danger... Oy vey... 
Nice Owl picture Doof~
Have any of you guys seen an actual bald eagle? The first time one flew over my head, I was in a little fishing raft in the middle of lake- I "heard" that guy fly over me!! It was like an emu going over- they're enormous too, no wonder they were used to represent~ Freaked me out a little bit because I didn't realize how large those puppies got.
It was like, 10 chickens pressed together in an eagle form... 
"Energizer bunny arrested- charged with battery."
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(((stereofect)))
Joined: 09/02/01
Location: Ontario, Canada
Posts: 1333
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RE: bird watching
Saturday, January 6, 2007 at 12:01 AM
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THAT would be cool. Freaky, but cool.
My mother lived in an apartment next to the Grand River (in Paris, Ontario). Across the river from her place the river bank extended up about 200 yards and was covered by a dense stand of trees. For the three years she lived there, each summer a bald eagle would make that stand of trees his? hers?  home. Lots of fish, frogs, snakes to catch and chow down on. Beautiful sight to see. Had to watch through binoculars though. Too far away to catch on film. My mother loved watching that bird. Gave her great pleasure seeing something so majestic just living free and unhindered.
As a botany student I got to spend a summer studying a pair of Great Blue Herons. I fell in love with those birds. Still am. I see lots of them to this day on my way home in the morning, along the river banks and streams. Anyway, I would sit for hours along the edge of this marsh/pond they called home, watching them fish. I remember one time, sitting in my usual spot waiting for nature to present itself, when this big arsed water mocassin slithered past. Must've been four feet long and really thick. Scared the bajesus out of me. Lots of frogs too. And there was this family of painted turtles that used to sun themselves every afternoon on a log that floated in the middle of the pond.
Ah, that was a great summer.
“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction.” Albert Einstein
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Kylo
Joined: 02/16/05
Location: San Francisco
Posts: 787
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RE: bird watching
Saturday, January 6, 2007 at 1:05 AM
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Holy sheet! Aren't those snakes 'the' most venomous there is?? Correct me if I'm wrong... Glad you made it ay~
Yes, for some reason the bald eagle likes it around the willamatte forest area in Oregon. (now that I think about it there are multiple lakes & streams up close) I've seen several but not like I did when I was fishing that day.
Blue herons are cool- hehe, once again I have a story about this type of bird:
I had an RC plane that was really easy to fly,(:lol but it only had steer/yaw control, no pitch. A blue heron was flying in circles over our pond (which is his home really) and I took the liberty of invading his fly zone... (I had to do it)
Nothing happened really, he just flew away but it was fun to fly with him.
I could tell he was like "wtf is this guy doing??" and his wings folded up like a hawks' and he was gone; just jetted right outta there.
Now that you guys know I like to fish, there's more of a chance I might tell a tall tale. Just kiddin.
"Energizer bunny arrested- charged with battery."
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(((stereofect)))
Joined: 09/02/01
Location: Ontario, Canada
Posts: 1333
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RE: bird watching
Saturday, January 6, 2007 at 1:27 AM
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Hehe... yeah I suppose they are.
I didn't move... didn't budge a inch. The snake was more interested in catching frogs than me. 
Not much a fishing (or hunting) type dude, myself. I don't seem to have the instinct for it, you know?
My brother, OTOH, is the great white hunter. I've been out with him a few times (up north of Elliot Lake) tramping around in the woods, canoeing, etc. I prefer to just smoke a joint and take in the scenery.
My brother says I'm better at shooting off my mouth, than shooting a gun.
“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction.” Albert Einstein
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Kylo
Joined: 02/16/05
Location: San Francisco
Posts: 787
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RE: bird watching
Saturday, January 6, 2007 at 12:49 PM
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Quote:My brother says I'm better at shooting off my mouth, than shooting a gun.
Sounds like a typical 'older' brother right? If no, nonetheless- he's a bro, giving bad 'info'.
I never liked hunting, I did it once. I just don't get that feeling of excitement while going after something dumber than me. (Now humans on the other hand) 
omg I'm dumb... just kidding.
Fishing's fun-- if you own your own pond. Everywhere else you'll have loud campers & frying pans floating around your boat. Bobber fishing just sucks- you have to use lures!! That's where the fun is... You can feel how hard a fish strikes etc. like that- and it's funny how hard a strike a lil' guy can do compared to a lunker. It feels like you're pulling in a big piece of weed with a big guy. (I'm talking about largemouth bass)
I could go on about this too. Creek fishing's crazy- you'll drop in some live bait and let it simply drift down the stream... then you pull out and you've got a trout popping out of a rock grabbing it- That's fun to see too. 
"Energizer bunny arrested- charged with battery."
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(((stereofect)))
Joined: 09/02/01
Location: Ontario, Canada
Posts: 1333
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Brothers....
Last time I went fishing I was still in High-school. And that was the seventies. 
Man, I'm old.....
Hey Doof. Look around for owl scat. It's pretty neat stuff. All bones and fur and whatever else the owls upchuck.
Keep an eye on your kitty.
“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction.” Albert Einstein
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Michael Chocholak
Joined: 01/14/04
Posts: 135
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RE: bird watching
Sunday, January 7, 2007 at 12:07 PM
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Misha & I used to do raptor rehab for the Fish & Wildlife dept. so between that & the farm we've got plenty of bird stories. they'll probably come out one day in one of Misha's books.
I've got two Great Horned stories that stand out though. the first started with a weekend call from ofwd. we arrived in the backyard of a yuppie family that lived just off the freeway. there were a passel of little kids gathered around this great horned perched on their picnic table. it had apparently been clipped flying at the lights on the freeway, but seemed ok other than a gimpy wing. the kids were poking peanut butter crackers etc at it - a nightmare in the making.
so we wrapped him (her?) in a blanket a stuck it in the cage and brought him back to the barn - which wasn't escape proof by any means - but hey, it couldn't fly right? wrong. this was just supposed to be a temporary stop until the next work day. what ensued was a keystone cops variation involving a quickly impressed bird squad posse with blankets and long poles crashing and tripping through the barn - probably quite entertaining for the owl.
we'd previously talked with the ofwd folks about raptors and their intimidating beaks. we had been assured that we needed to stay away from the talons but they seldom attacked or defended with the beaks. what we failed to consider was that this was not a raptor.
it finally perched close to the cage door and Misha started to gently coax it in with a large branch as we surrounded it with a towering wall of blankets. just before it ducked into the cage, it turned and bit the tree branch... and snapped it right in half.  after that, even the clacking sound of it's beak as it perched in the cage would give me the chills.
this was reinforced when I dropped him off at the ofwd rehab yard. I had him in a cat carrier. the guy on duty asked what I had, looked at me and said, "ok, just let him out in there," pointing to a huge cage. I said, "no way, that's your deal, I just rescue and transport." so the guy took the carrier and went into one of the cages, but left the front gate open - which I thought was strange. he opened the cage... and nothing happened. just a pissed off looking eyeball staring out the side. he picked the cage up and started to shake it opening downward. nothing. shook it harder. nothing. then he came back out and asked me, "well what do you think we should do?" ha! I'm thinking, 'hey, you're the dude with the name tag and the wildlife biology degree.' anyway, I suggested he unscrew the top of the carrier & let it out that way, which is what he did. but when he got the top off, he RAN out of the cage and slammed the gate - just as the owl burst out of the carrier and swooped directly at the recuperating barn owl in the next cage - which freaked and flew to the farthest side of its cage. that's when the guy explained to me that owls are not raptors... and will gladly tear you a new one with any of their equipment given half a chance.
happy ending was that the barn owl was scheduled to be put down as it was not responding to treatment and apparently had given up - but had found a new will for life in that one moment when the great horned was released.
about the same time, when we were still living in the mobile with its paper thin walls, I had this thing called a 'blinky' - a hollow plastic sphere with two holes in it and elastic strings on either side. you pulled the strings and it spun around making a 'whoo whoo' noise. I sampled it and was playing with the sound running through a guitar amp. after about 45 minutes I quit and shut everything down, but was amazed at the fact that the sound continued. I finally figured out it was coming from outside. I opened the back door and there were three great horned perched in the trees calling back to the sampler. considering how turfy they are I can only guess that I sounded pretty owl sexy. I called the final track Hibou which came out on my Owl Man Dreams. 
Que la musique sonne - Edgard Varese
You don't need a mouth to communicate, you don't need rules to create. Anything is a potential instrument. Play it. - MC
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Kylo
Joined: 02/16/05
Location: San Francisco
Posts: 787
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cool. I'm glad those kids w/the peanut butter cookies didn't get theirs.
And the blinky whoo whoo thing- I remember those!
I've already told my owl story a couple months ago. We finally figured out that he came through the bathroom screen window from upstairs. Big ol' hole in it-
"Energizer bunny arrested- charged with battery."
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(((stereofect)))
Joined: 09/02/01
Location: Ontario, Canada
Posts: 1333
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Kylo wrote:he came through the bathroom screen window from upstairs. Big ol' hole in it-
Must have got his inspiration from the Beatles.
“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction.” Albert Einstein
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Multi-Panel
Joined: 09/23/01
Posts: 217
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RE: bird watching
Monday, January 8, 2007 at 12:27 AM
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i thought this was about the dexter metorphan track 
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doofgoblin
Joined: 01/21/02
Location: charlottesville, va
Posts: 191
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RE: bird watching
Tuesday, January 9, 2007 at 7:02 AM
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Kylo - I didn't take that photo...
Steve and Michael - LOVE the stories!!
We had a great time Saturday morning. The day before, there were tens of thousands of starlings (we think they're starlings) flocking from field to field. Sounded like an ocean, and when they take off, sounded like thunder. We decided to take a walk out across the corn fields and make our way into the flock, a bit.
Along the way, we heard a red tailed hawk. It's amazing how many times I've heard that sound before, but until recently never thought anything of it - damn these cds are fun! anyway, we did manage to get to the edge of the flock and they were all in the trees, like leaves. Loud. very cool. and, we spotted a red tailed hawk landing on top of one of the trees for a few seconds, then taking off again. wild.
I took some video, but then the batteries on the camera ran out. I'll post it in here tomorrow.
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(((stereofect)))
Joined: 09/02/01
Location: Ontario, Canada
Posts: 1333
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RE: bird watching
Tuesday, January 9, 2007 at 7:24 AM
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doofgoblin wrote:I took some video, but then the batteries on the camera ran out. I'll post it in here tomorrow.
Too bad about the batteries, but lookin' forward to the video for sure!
“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction.” Albert Einstein
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doofgoblin
Joined: 01/21/02
Location: charlottesville, va
Posts: 191
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RE: bird watching
Thursday, January 11, 2007 at 1:34 PM
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okay, here's a little taste of that saturday morning with the starlings (and a couple extra surprises).
sorry for the hand-held shakeyness of the video, it was an afterthought to take the camera along in the first place.
enjoy
edit: nevermind, I had to take it down...the quality of the .mov encode is terrible and it's too pixelated. let me figure out the best way to encode this. it's 4 minutes total.
sorry for the false alarm...it will arrive.
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doofgoblin
Joined: 01/21/02
Location: charlottesville, va
Posts: 191
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RE: bird watching
Friday, January 12, 2007 at 7:55 AM
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okay, now it's really here:
starlings.mov
complete with random studio outtakes for a soundtrack and gratuitous cat footage.
sorry the quality isn't great. but you can get a sense for what was going on.
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(((stereofect)))
Joined: 09/02/01
Location: Ontario, Canada
Posts: 1333
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RE: bird watching
Friday, January 12, 2007 at 5:44 PM
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Great video. Looks fine to me.
Yup... that's a lot of birds in one place.
And that's one fluffy kitty alright.
That was fun. Thanks for sharing.
“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction.” Albert Einstein
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Michael Chocholak
Joined: 01/14/04
Posts: 135
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RE: bird watching
Sunday, January 14, 2007 at 12:10 PM
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great video. not a big fan of starlings but I always get mezmerized by huge flocks of birds flying in unison like that. cute kat too
angus cows? how many head do you have?
we rehabed a redtail once and the fish & wildlife folks released it on our property. ever since we've had a member of the extended family nesting in the cottonwoods up at the pond. took this pic this morning after feeding;
looks pretty gothic, eh? actually the sun is currently winning out over the clouds. we're in the midst of a heatwave - it's 10 degrees! been below zero the last few days.
yeah, lots of stories... the 'eagle' in a shoebox, capturing a peacock in a mirror, wanda the duckling sitting on the couch with the kids watching saturday morning cartoons...
Que la musique sonne - Edgard Varese
You don't need a mouth to communicate, you don't need rules to create. Anything is a potential instrument. Play it. - MC
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Multi-Panel
Joined: 09/23/01
Posts: 217
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RE: bird watching
Monday, January 15, 2007 at 12:48 AM
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woah amazing bird footage
the cat is... like a lion! 
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doofgoblin
Joined: 01/21/02
Location: charlottesville, va
Posts: 191
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RE: bird watching
Monday, January 15, 2007 at 5:26 AM
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thanks for checking it out guys
yes, our cat is furry all right.
Michael - awesome photo man. I am merely a bird-watching amateur.
the cattle are not ours. we're just renting at this place. it's a small farmhouse on a 2,100 acre farm. I'm not sure how many heads there are in total, but I would guess, on our end of the farm, there are about 150. I've been trying to get close to them, perfecting my call, hehe. It's more of a moan that I have used to get their attention. if I squat down, the younger ones get curious and come over. I touched a cow's nose once at this place, but that's the best I've been able to manage
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