Raptors at the Falls

Knowing the wind would be cold and blustery at the Falls of the Ohio in November, we dressed warmly and joined the Beckham Bird Club on a Saturday morning bird walk. We hit the jackpot today for raptors, sighting a Peregrine Falcon, three American Kestrels, a Cooper's Hawk, and a Red Shouldered Hawk camouflaged at the top of a tree snag.

It was bound to be a great day when this juvenile Bald Eagle soared over the parking lot as we got out of the car! It was considerate enough to circle around a few times till I got my camera out and turned on.

A few minutes later, we spotted a second juvenile Eagle, and for a while, both were visible at the same time as they walked around on the fossil beds. Remember, it takes five years for a Bald Eagle to mature and get its white head and tale, but until then, they have varying amounts of white on their wings and body. This one has quite a lot of white on its belly.

We only saw one or two vultures this morning, which is unusual for the Falls, but it was easy to distinguish the flat wings of the eagle from the dihedral of the vultures.

Before we left at the end of the morning, one eagle swooped over the water with his feet extended and grabbed a fish out of the water. The gulls scattered thinking he was coming after them instead!

We climbed to the top of the levee, as as we caught our breath, a Kestrel swooped around, flashing his wings, then landed on a perch next to a female which is probably his mate. A third Kestrel flew off in another direction. What a wonderful way to start the day!

Glacier Run

Traditionally, our family goes to the Louisville Zoo in spring or summer, but the sun shined so warm and bright today, that we decided to take the grand baby for his first visit (of many) to the Zoo on his 6-week birthday.  My daughter volunteered there while in high school, and worked during the summers while in college, so she's very familiar with the ins and outs. It was like having a private tour!

The Glacier Run exhibit has been under construction for several years (at least it seems that long to me), and it was well worth the wait. Before, there was simply a large pool for the few polar bears, and they seldom seemed to be out when we were there.

I was surprised to find two grizzly bears when we walked into the surrogate Alaskan village of Glacier Run! They chased each other around, jumping into the water, and vigorously shaking the water off again! The Zoo website identifies them as Otis and Rita, one year old cubs. Their mother Inga lives at the Zoo as well, but she chilled out in her room during our visit.

The Louisville Zoo works hard to keep their new residents engaged. We watched the keepers hiding food around the exhibit for 26 year old Arki to find. They have an excellent sense of smell, so she had no problem finding the food. Sometimes they give her a paper bag with just the scent in it. She stands in one spot just moving her nose around, sniffing, then walks off to find...

...a nice fish, or maybe her favorite un-natural snack - a peanut butter and jelly sandwich! Her tongue and all skin are black to help retain heat. Her fur is hollow and tends to reflect whatever color is nearby, so they don't always look white.

Qannik was born in January 2011 and rescued on Alaska’s North Slope in April. She took up temporary residence at the Alaska Zoo before moving to her permanent home in Louisville in June. She enjoys a constantly changing set of toys and enrichment items in Bear Alley. It doesn’t take her long to figure them out, push them around and make a wild playground of barrels, tubs, balls, igloo, tubes and hay. The windows to Bear Alley were originally completely covered and are still being slowly unveiled to allow for Qannik’s ongoing acclimation to Bear Alley and the full wall of glass windows. This same strategy was used very effectively with the grizzly bear family, Inga, Otis and Rita.

We can't miss the elephant barn on any Zoo trip, since Mary Beth worked there and knows both Punch and Mikki up close and personally! In fact, Mikki gave Mary Beth her ring when Brian proposed.

Remember that song from Oklahoma! about the corn being as high as an elephant's eye?  That's what I hummed as I looked at Mikki's incredibly long eye lashes. But no amount of skin softener would smooth our her wrinkles though.

As we stood by them chatting with the elephant keepers, Mikki moved her trunk around, trying to sniff out a treat from one of the humans. I was amazed at the size and flexibility of her trunk.

Statues of the various animals are strategically placed for good photo ops, and we took advantage of this baby elephant for Kittrick's first photo at the zoo!

Silent Hike

Somehow, I haven't gotten out for a good walk for a long time. The Naturalists in Training at Bernheim enjoyed a fall retreat this weekend, and I joined them for a while. After Dick's presentation on Aldo Leopold, we all went out for a silent hike. It's easy to be silent when you walk alone, but much more difficult when a group goes out.

The first frost of the season coated every branch and twig along the trail. As the sun rose, the frost became shining pearls of dew strung on a necklace of spider webs. Click any photo for a larger version. One of the NIT's share her favorite poem before we set out. I'd never heard it before and want to share it with all of you.

Lost, by David Wagoner.

Stand still. The trees ahead and bushes beside you
Are not lost. Wherever you are is called Here,
And you must treat it as a powerful stranger,
Must ask permission to know it and be known.

The forest breathes. Listen. It answers,
I have made this place around you.

If you leave it, you may come back again, saying Here.
No two trees are the same to Raven.
No two branches are the same to Wren.

If what a tree or a bush does is lost on you,
You are surely lost. Stand still. The forest knows
Where you are. You must let it find you.

Of course, moss isn't always a bright moss green. Sometimes it resembles a lichen more than anything else.

Everyone in the group notices something different, which they are allowed to share with motions only. This salamander looks cold to me. How do they spend the winter? I wonder if this temperature drop caught him by surprise.

Be silent and let the light and colors speak to you as you walk through the forest.

A Word to the Wise

You know how life goes. You get busy, taking trips, volunteering, yoga, a new grand baby , and you get distracted. Housecleaning and dusting can be put off until guests are scheduled, but you must go to the grocery store, put gas in the car, fill the bird feeders and BACKUP YOUR COMPUTER FILES regularly.

We've lived in this house for almost 33 years, and have never had any problems until last Friday.  I was out for about 2 and a half hours running errands and when I returned home, a window in the back of the house was standing wide open with the screen raised. You guessed it, big enough for someone to enter the house, which is what happened. We were broken into and robbed. The first thing I noticed missing was my laptop. I called the police, just fuming. How DARE anyone break into my house! OH NO! I hadn't copied all my Galapagos photos from August to the backup drive yet!! In fact, it appears that I hadn't made any backups since about last April, so most of 2011 is gone. Anything I blogged about is on Picasa, but the original photos are gone along with all the slide shows I'd prepared for various organizations. Laptops and software can be replaced (a time consuming activity), but other things are gone forever.

Accompanied by the police officer, I discovered that my entire jewelry box was also taken, but that's all. Have you ever tried to list the contents of your jewelry box from memory?  The one good piece was individually covered on insurance, but everything else will be subject to the deductible. Most things were gifts, or purchased from the artist and one of a kind. I've been browsing the jewelry websites just to be reminded of what I had and try to get a feel for the prices for the insurance company.

So wake up and hear the rooster crow!  Get busy and back up those irreplaceable files NOW!  A removable hard drive is a good start, but what if the house burns? Then you would be in a worse condition than I am after the theft. Back up your back ups and put them someplace else for safekeeping. Write down the serial number of your computer, camera, etc. and put them in your off site location. That's the first thing the police wanted to know about my laptop. And for God's sake, go lock all the windows in your house!  Nothing like locking the barn door after the horse is gone, I know, but maybe someone else can benefit from my negligence.

Galapagos Islands Revisited

One of the fun things we did in the Galapagos Islands last summer was visiting the Post Office on Floreana. During the years when whalers stopped at the islands, they set up a barrel as a Post Office. Since voyages usually lasted several years before the men returned home, it was difficult to communicate with loved ones. So the sailors would leave letters in the barrel as they headed out into the Pacific. Sailors heading home would stop and sort through the letters for one to be delivered to their destination. Modern visitors have an easier time communicating, but it's fun to leave a post card in the barrel for another visitor to deliver later.

I left a post card for my friend Tavia at Creasey Mahan Nature Preserve, not knowing when or if it might be delivered to her. Last week a mystery caller wanted to know when she could come to see Tavia, but wouldn't say why. When she arrived, she wanted to have a camera ready to take a picture of Tavia's expression when she looked at the post card from our trip in August. Judi Petty actually lives in a subdivision very close to the Nature Preserve. I've always said Louisville is the biggest little town in the world. How true! Thanks Judi!

Raptors at ColorFest

Hagatha the Great Horned Owl

When the sun shines warmly, and autumn colors glow red and gold, everyone likes to get outside to enjoy it before winter sets in. Bernheim Forest takes advantage of this every year with ColorFest, and Raptor Rehabilitation of Kentucky brings a variety of raptors. This year the weather was absolutely perfect!

Miki the Missippi Kite

Miki, our Mississippi Kite, has grown his pale grey adult feathers, and looks so much different than he did last year this time. The only person today who knew what kind of bird he is came from Alabama where they are more common.

Miki spread his wings to absorb the warmth of the sun. Leaves blew to the ground all day, crunching underfoot. One leaf blew right in front of Miki who swiftly grabbed it with one foot, thinking it was an insect. You should have seen the look of surprise and disappointment on his face when he started eating it, only to find his snack to be dry and tasteless! 

Scarecrow Jubilee stars whimsical scarecrows built by many people and organizations. Click Here to see all of the entrants and the winners of the competition. This year I found several scarecrows related to birding, and this is my favorite.  Don't you think the birds get tired of being stared at by birders with binoculars? This giant raptor decided to take action, and carries this birder scarecrow away in his talons! I would have voted this one the winner.

Another group of scarecrow birders hide behind a fence of corn stalks, while the birds perch right under their eyes.

This owl scarecrow is pretty spooky, but I think our Great Horned Owl Hagatha is more intimidating, don't you?

Blue October Sunday

After all the excitement of our new grandson, Dick and I needed some quiet time together, and Sunday morning was the perfect opportunity. The temperature was chill, and heavy dew on the rooftops looked like frost. We bundled up and headed for nearby Anchorage Trail, a favorite among local birders.

The people who come up with names for paint colors need to call one October Sky Blue - if they can match this sky at all! I can't think of any other time all year with such a shade of blue.

Enough talk, though. Just enjoy the beauty of our fall walk.

Yes, now we have the peace and serenity for another week.

New Life and Everything...

Welcome to the World, Kittrick Alan Carson!
Born Sept. 25, 2011 at 5:52 am.
Weight: 7 lb. 15 oz. Length 20 in.

Proud parents, Brian and Mary Beth...

Grandparents, Dick and Kathy.

He's not too excited, is he?

Brian is 6 feet tall, and his dad was 6' 7", so Kit may grow into those long legs!
Now the adventure begins!