Owls_Rattlesnakes_Coyotes_and_Newts_oh_my!
Greetings woofers fans!
I edited some of the spotting scope/iPhone video of the Great-horned Owl nest many of us watched move along at Batiquitos Lagoon. From talking to others who observed the nest, it sounded like the three owlets all fledged and were being cared for outside of the nest in the area by the adults. The last visit I was at the nest, one lone owlet was left in the nest and the adults were nowhere to be seen. A few of us were a little worried about this little guy! Following the nest was a fun side-track for over a month; visiting Batiquitos once a week or so was well worth the time! I hadn’t experimented with the iPhone adaptor I made for my spotting scope until this owl nest appeared. It is neat to see the system works fine and will improve with more practice. Also, in this little set of videos are the first two rattlesnake encounters I had in my vegetation plots that we are in the middle of doing on Camp Pendleton for a California Gnatcatcher study. Both snakes were literally in the middle of my plots – the first BIG one looked like it had eaten a small rabbit based on the bulge in its mid-section (this was right around Easter time, actually! Uh Oh!). The snake alerted me just in time as I was about 8 feet from it hiking uphill when it rattled. I snapped a little video and let this guy digest its meal. Just a few days ago, I was in another plot and a tiny rattlesnake appeared. This snake had only one or two rattles, so it was a light rattle and, again, I was glad it rattled as I was only a few feet from it. On one of the Least Bell’s Vireo surveys I do at a place called Roblar Creek on Camp Pendleton, I was surprised by the amount of water that was flowing in the creek and collecting in various rocky (granite?) pools. Not only was there water, there were also a number of California Newts breeding in the pools. I will be re-visiting this survey next week and hope to see some development – perhaps eggs or larvae? This past weekend it rained a bit on BASE, so I am guessing the pools and water will still be in good shape up there! The video series ends with a quick peek at one of the 4-5 coyote pups I spotted in the brush in the same plot that had the baby/young rattlesnake. They were tiny little guys – maybe a foot long and quick to scurry of and hide quite well in the ravine brush. As there are some Great Egret nests with nestlings at Batiquitos Lagoon nearby, I will keep and eye on those for fun and take more video. Along route 101 today, it looked like Least Terns were getting active in an area near Leucadia – I plan to visit that group of birds I saw tomorrow! Down in La Jolla, some of the cormorants have 2-3 nestlings along the cliffs…took some photos of them today. Walking on the beach today near Torrey Pines I continually see too much plastic in the rocks and sand. Having worked with sea-turtles in Tortuguero, Costa Rica a small amount and similarly with the Waved Albatross in Galapagos, it is quite sad to always see plastic waste near the ocean. These species (sea-turtles and Albatross) are hit particularly hard by free-floating plastics in the oceans and seas. It is such a wonder to see wildlife going through cycles of life – but – to see what a lot of species are up against in terms of human/wildlife interactions makes one wonder if things are moving forward in terms of humans becoming more conscious/conscientious about living in balance with the rest of the species out there! Anyhow, I like to post photos and videos of mostly nature and wildlife as a sort of celebration for those other species we share the planet with….so, enjoy the video, buy less plastic/packaged goods, re-use and re-use a good coffee mug, and focus on reducing waste (recycling is a good thing, but avoiding/limiting consuming packaged products would be a higher order goal!!). This video is dedicated to the Camden, Maine Kindergarten class and my mom – who has been volunteering in this class for years now (along with her regular work with Habitat for Humanity (among other things)) – at 75 yrs old she seems to blaze through days accomplishing as much as (or more) many of the 20-40 yr olds I know…..How many of you wake up at 5am and are at the local YMCA working out by 530am nearly every day?
This blog revolves around just about anything I happen to be doing, it documents places I travel to, and it is a place to share my interests with others online.
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