Photographic Blog Stew

¶ The short list for best wildlife photographer of the year, at New Scientist

¶ Tracking a peregrine falcon's migration online. (Via Doctor Hypercube.)

¶ Longmont, Colorado, photographer Bill Schmoker
has a blog and a license plate: BRDPICS.

A Blue Line on the Map Does Not Mean Water

Yesterday was a perfect fall day, and M. and I plus two friends were out in the Wet Mountains with shotguns, three dogs, and picnic ingredients. Only one grouse was seen, but the picnic part went well.

We are easing along a narrow, dusty Forest Service road in two dog-packed Jeeps when we encounter a 4x4 coming the other way. A man and a woman are in it.

They want directions to "Spruce Creek." They are both wearing chest waders.

For starters, they are up on a ridge at least 1,000 feet above the stream. And at first I muddle the directions for the hair-raising road that will get them down to it, but eventually we work out that part.

I do not have the heart to tell them that even if they find the creek, there is no way that they will need the chest waders. Just because it has "Creek" in the name does not mean that there is much water there.

Tamarisk-Eating Beetles Expand Territory

A little progress in the war on tamarisk -- imported tamarisk-eating beetles are spreading in Fremont County.

Tamarisk-eating beetles found in Fremont County likely are the descendants of bugs that were released in a nearby area two years ago, providing some hope that beetles released elsewhere in Southeastern Colorado could turn up later.

You go, beetles.

CSU to Study Herbal Remedies for Arthritis in Dogs

The Denver Post reports on a Colorado State University study planned on herbal remedies for arthritis in dogs -- such as Zyflamend, I suppose, although no brands are named.

CSU's vet school is seeking volunteer dogs.

Jack, our 13-year-old Chessie, is showing some arthritis in his hips. He also may have a bladder tumor. We went through a whole series of vet visits, urinalyses, etc., last spring because he was occasionally passing blood and showing a high bacteria count in his urine..

Two courses of antibiotics and about $400 later, that was the diagnosis: maybe a tumor. His urine showed some "transitional cells" and a possible "mass" was seen in the ultrasound examination of his bladder, which I witnessed.

The vet wanted to try Previcox, a non-steroidal anti-inflmmatory drug, because it apparently has slowed tumor growth also.

M. quickly Googled it and saw all the "Previcox killed my dog" stuff. So she put him on Zyflamend, which might maybe possibly has some anti-tumor properties.

As with all herbal remedies, you hear some exaggerated claims about it. On the other hand, you don't hear about liver and kidney damage.

The bottom line for me is that Jack is a 13-year-old big dog. He still gets around pretty well if he is allowed to have extra rest between trips afield. And he is still enjoying life, although I am assuming that this may well be his last hunting season.

MTV Trashes an Island

Here is how it looks when MTV films a reality show and then leaves.

Things I have learned in my life: You don't loan anything to a theatrical company. And you don't want movie-makers anywhere near where you live.

A Taste of Winter

We woke this morning to big, fat snowflakes. The temperature is a smidgen above freezing, so there will not be much accumulation, but still, it's a warning.

Sometimes I wonder if I would trade our six months of potential winter (since snow can fall any time from September into May) with a climate that offered a short, intense, definable winter season.

But I have also come to expect the breaks in the winter, when it's warmish and sunny, and you can catch up on outdoor jobs. One year I painted most of the house in November.

Today, though, looks like a day for a damp walk in the woods with the dogs and then desk work!

"Why Men Shouldn't Own Action Figures"

I do not know where this came from, but I have received it now from two friends, and it made me laugh.

A Little Hypocrisy from the World Wildlife Federation?

I can see why this juxtaposition of World Wildlife Fund advocacy and high-priced recreation causes sarcastic reactions. James Rummel is astonished too.

If you had $65,000 lying around, would you go on the trip?

Blog Stew with Predators

¶ I saw this sign in the Lamar Valley at Yellowstone. I know that when when wolves arrived, they killed coyotes. So what is happening now? I did see one set of what looked like coyote tracks along the Lamar River, but saw only one individual coyote elsewhere in the park.

¶ Now this is what I call optimistic: a large carnivore initiative for Europe. Check the link for various news items.

¶ A video on the wolf controversies in North America.

The Mammoth Hot Springs Elk & People Rodeo

Elk wandering on the lawn of Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel in Yellowstone National Park. Note the bull on the left. Click to embiggen.

I don't know how long that semi-tame elk have hung out around the hotel and old Fort Yellowstone grounds. I'm sure that decades ago, it was the easiest way for visitors to see them. But encouraging bears with open garbage dumps made them easy to see too, yet the Park Service abolished that practice eventually.

When we visited on Oct. 3, the rut was in full swing, I could see at least five bulls from the steps of the visitor center (the old Army post's BOQ). Two had harems and were acting acutely aware of each other, with occasional bugling and aggressive body language--at a safe distance.

But the park rangers were in a bigger lather than the bulls.

At the visitor center we had Anna Pigeon with a bullhorn herding visitors around: "You're between two bulls!! Up on the porch!!!"

Someone in a patrol car dashed back and forth, light bar flashing, flicking his siren, and barking confusing orders at drivers over his PA system: "Stop! Go! Turn! Stop!"

Another ranger placed orange cones on sidewalks and driveways, constantly rearranging them as the elk moved around. It was almost an artistic performance.

M. made various dry comments about "testosterone poisoning," referring, I think, to the bull elk.

I thought of UN peacekeepers in Bosnia: Lots of activity, but no real effect on the conflict.

But then the Park Service is 20 percent about preservation and 80 percent about crowd control. (Or maybe that should be 10:90.)

M. and I waited until the rangers' attention was elsewhere, then strolled towards where the Jeep was parked. Someone shouted through a bullhorn--I gestured towards the parking lot and kept going. And we left.

I suppose that if they are going to have semi-tame elk, they could bring in some semi-tame wolves. Then no one would have to leave the hotel to see nature in the raw. Visitors could sit in the lovely Art Deco hotel dining room, listening to the big-band music on the sound system, and watch predation in the parking lot.

Or they could start discouraging elk from hanging around the hotel complex.

UPDATE: Yellowstone's web site has a page of videos of people getting too close to elk and buffalo. You can watch rutting elk attacking cars at Mammoth. But given the road layout, there is no other way for drivers to go, so why does the NPS allow the "tame" elk?

Grus on the Loose

Three southbound flights of sandhill cranes went over us today, as many as 40 in a group, at medium altitude -- loose V's and W's of birds, pale grey flickers as their wings moved.

I can't help but think that their call must preserve the sound of some dinosaur or other.

The local newspaper's "Peaks of the Past" (reprinted news items from earlier times) offered this item from its equivalent 1908 issue: "A flock of wild geese, about 30 in number, passed over Westcliffe Thursday evening."

If a flock of geese was notable a century ago, were there any cranes at all? Fewer than 1,000 in 1940, says Wikipedia.

Some things have gotten better. Bodio might be seeing these birds soon.

Keeping Kids Safe in the Woods (Desert, Whatever)

Here is a commercial site with some useful advice on kid-level survival training.

Built for Comfort, not for Speed

In his novel Ægypt, John Crowley's protagonist sees someone driving a "Bison" station wagon. Evidently it looked like this.

Raven Pillagers

Last Saturday, when M. and I parked at Norris Geyser Basin's lot, I saw a raven burying what looked like a piece of cracker under some gravel. Later we found the source: this pillaged Jeep Wrangler.

The owner and his pal came along while I was shooting pictures. They were astonished to discover that not only had the ravens ripped into some plastic bags, but they had also unzipped some luggage and gotten into it as well.

If ravens are smart enough to play dead, it is not surprising that they can open zippers.

Dining through Yellowstone (and Grand Teton)

Let's face it, national-park food is sort of like Amtrak dining-car food, but with even better views. (I think they serve the exact same "garden burger.") The wine list in the parks is better too.

By the end of our Yellowstone visit, M. and I had developed a routine. First, a leisurely campground breakfast. Then some walks around geological areas -- Norris Geyser Basin, for instance. Then, around 2:30 p.m., a large late lunch at one of the grand old lodges, e.g., Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel or the Old Faithful Inn.

Then fishing and buffalo-watching, or whatever. Back to the campground after dark for tea and whiskey.

Finally, if you are looking for a meal in the Grand Teton or Yellowstone areas, you should skip International Leisure Hosts, Ltd.'s Flagg Ranch lodge.

We tried to eat lunch there today, with emphasis on tried. On a slow day, with only about five tables filled, we ordered sandwiches, waited ... waited, only to be told that, surprise! some employees had eaten them! New sandwiches were promised, right away. (No offer to "comp" our meal though.) We waited ... waited -- and then we walked. You would think that by the end of the season they would have worked out their kitchen procedures.

So forget Flagg Ranch. Go a little farther south to Signal Mountain Lodge, which offers a much better menu, fast service, and the view in the photo above.