Fowl Weather

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newtonian

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TFWThom - YOur pictures are still awaiting approval- I look forward to them.<br /><br />We also have a very few hawks in our area, south Louisiana. The most abundant carrion birds are crows and turkey vultures.<br /><br />Yesterday we saw a huge great blue Heron fly right over us while we were gardening- awesome!<br /><br />I would have missed it if it were not for Mary (my wife). <br /><br />There is something like loons visiting a pond in our wooded, sheltered, pond way back in our yard (about 1200 feet back). The sounds they make sure are looney!<br /><br />Do you know if it has been confirmed that black-cap Chickadees have a DNA star map inherited?<br /><br />Years ago studies were done that indicated these amzing little night migraters can navigate when it is partly cloudy but not when it is overcast.<br /><br />And chicks born in captivity and not exposed to the night sky did orient the right direction in an artificial sky in a planetarium at migration season - evidence they know where the stars are from conception, inherited in the DNA!<br />Have more recent studies confirmed this?
 
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nevers

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Same here - Pictures still waiting for approval. But I can't wait to see them.<br /><br />"Fowl Weather", that's hilarious. I didn't know you had it in you! And yes, the weather has been atrocious. Maybe we could coin a new word for when the weather is not favorable to astronomy: Astrocious. You know it's getting bad when the "Picture of the Day" at Astronomics is a picture of a bird rather then of some beautiful DSO!<br /><br />Will check back...
 
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vogon13

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Birds of prey know they are cool.<br />Larson <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#ff0000"><strong>TPTB went to Dallas and all I got was Plucked !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#339966"><strong>So many people, so few recipes !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>Let's clean up this stinkhole !!</strong></font> </p> </div>
 
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tfwthom

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Peachfaced-Lovebird<br /><br />We have a parrot that is living and breading here in Phoenix and have one that visits our feeders.<br /><br />http://mirror-pole.com/collpage/pf_loveb/pfl_1.htm<br /><br />Forgot to say what setup I'm using: <br /><br />The first 2 pics (Hawk) were taken with my Pentax ME Super, 70-300mm zoom, Kodak ISO 200<br /><br />The Peachfaced-Lovebird was a film test Pentax ME Super, Fugi ISO 400, TV-85, Gilbralter mount.<br /><br />I'm not happy with that film. I'm now using Kodak ISO 100 when using the TV-85, don't have to fight the overexposure as much. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="1" color="#3366ff">www.siriuslookers.org</font> </div>
 
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nevers

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Well, with all the bad, wet weather that we've had in the Soutwest, I wouldn't be surprised if a Rain Forest suddenly broke out. Then that little birdy would be right at home!
 
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newtonian

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Nice pictures!<br /><br />Nevers - Hi!<br /><br />The last time I was in Arizona there was a very heavy rain and the deserts blossomed - in some areas flowers as far as the eye could see - it was awesome!
 
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CalliArcale

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<blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr /><p>There is something like loons visiting a pond in our wooded, sheltered, pond way back in our yard (about 1200 feet back). The sounds they make sure are looney! <p><hr /></p></p></blockquote><br /><br />The loons from up here like to winter in your part of the country (and also up both the Atlantic and Pacific seaboards, I'm told). Their winter plumage is gray and drab, and they don't often sing in the winter. In some regions, they are called "gray ghosts" for their muted colors and the eerie way they silently glide through the water.<br /><br />They also sit very low in the water, so watch for that to identify them. Grebes also sit low in the water, however. The best way to distinguish loons from grebes is the bills -- grebes tend to have more color. Anhingas, common in your part of the country but unheard of in Minnesota, also have sharp pointed bills for spearing fish, but they swim submerged, with only their heads and long necks protruding from the water. (This is why anhingas are also called "snakebirds".) Cormorants can also be mistaken for loons, as they too sit low in the water. They are completely black except for their beaks at all times of the years. Their beaks are red, and they have a little hook at the end of their beaks.<br /><br />All of the above are diving birds, and several take off by sprinting along the water's surface, although loons seem to take a particularly long time to get in the air. They are extremely good fliers and extremely good underwater swimmers. It's the bit in the middle that they seem to have trouble with. <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" /><br /><br />Here's a website with information about <i>Gavia immer</i>, the common loon, Minnesota's state bird. <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" /> Common Loon On the right-hand side are pics of the bird in both summer and winter plumage. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>
 
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spacester

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One of the coolest things about my job is the view. I see Bald Eagles on a regular basis, along with all kinds of shorebirds and some songbirds. The place has deer everywhere. I love it!<br /><br />Wait a minute. It <b>is </b> the coolest thing about my job. <img src="/images/icons/laugh.gif" /> A while back I saw a Turkey Vulture (guess) steal a salmon from a Bald Eagle.<br /><br />This thread is cool; I've been thinking about taking up birding. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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nevers

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The weather in my area has also been for the birds. So, I found other objects to take pictures of as well. You can't see it, but across the bottom the text reads "Keep away from sunshine and keep in a cool place". My thoughts exactly. At this point I just wish I could see some sunshine and had a cool place to go to!
 
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yevaud

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While I live deep in the big city, we have around 20 breeding pairs of Peregrine Falcons here. They live on the skyscrapers.<br /><br />About three weeks ago, on one reasonably warm day, one of them landed on a tree branch right across from where I work. Beautiful. Scared the bejesus out of the pigeons and seagulls too... <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Differential Diagnosis:  </em>"<strong><em>I am both amused and annoyed that you think I should be less stubborn than you are</em></strong>."<br /> </p> </div>
 
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ehkzu

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Here's a bird of prey I photographed last October. See if you can ID it.
 
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yevaud

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Mmmm.<br /><br />Eagle of some sort. It has the size, and the short, ripping beak. Not a bald eagle though...<br /><br />No wonder we chose it as our national symbol. Unlike some countries that have the hedgehog, or the droop-jawed civet. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Differential Diagnosis:  </em>"<strong><em>I am both amused and annoyed that you think I should be less stubborn than you are</em></strong>."<br /> </p> </div>
 
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vogon13

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Ring tailed disco hawk. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#ff0000"><strong>TPTB went to Dallas and all I got was Plucked !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#339966"><strong>So many people, so few recipes !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>Let's clean up this stinkhole !!</strong></font> </p> </div>
 
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glutomoto

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Early tuesday morning I was checking out a rainbow, when I noticed a large(300-500) flight of geese headed north. It seemed like they were following the squall line near that rainbow I was watching.<br /><br />sorry no pictures.<br /><br /><img src="/images/icons/smile.gif" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>
 
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nevers

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Ok, I guess nobody thought my "Orion Choco-Pie" was funny. <img src="/images/icons/frown.gif" /> So...I'll play fair. These birds thrive in my backyard. At least I don't need dark or clear skies to see them either! It's a "Morning Dove". (Should be Mourning Dove! <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" />
 
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nevers

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I spotted some other kind of "Bird" lurking around my backyard...
 
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nevers

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The old ladies across the steet have about 25 bird feeders in their front yard. When I open my door to go outside it disturbs all the pigeons (don't count as birds) and they all fly away in one big mass. It's like something out of a scary movie!
 
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claywoman

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Nevers, in my neighborhood, that is called a Ghetto-Chopper...
 
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