Swarm!

While, yes, it is WARM, so I might say " 'swarm!",

what I mean is there is a SWARM of BEES

in a small Ponderosa pine,

outside my garage,

RIGHT NOW!

All those tiny dots are NOT dirt specks.
They are bees!

Crap lighting, but you get the gist.

Same bees, hours later:

Freaky day.

Earlier chased a bobcat (who'd attacked our hens) away,

so now our hens are, sadly, confined to coop,

for their own good.

For now.

And, so far, the bees have issued no demands,

so all is well.

For now...

=)

xoxobb

p.s. Next morning:

Woo-hoo! =)

I'm a stick; don't see me... (quiz 4 u)

 I will hold my legs next to my side, and not move.

Rock as pillow, 'cause I'm tough.

 I believe this is a San Diego alligator lizard, Elgaria multicarinata webbii,

based on the distribution map here, and eye color.

If you check out that map, it's cool, 'cause I learned these guys

IN San Diego, then moved up north, RIGHT where they extend north.

=) An old friend.

Though this guy was LONG, but not big,

so I think "old" is inaccurate.

Because of my time spent inventorying herps,

I have a habit of looking at the tail of any lizard to see

if their tail is the original, or if it's regenerated.

If you see the nice pattern going all the way down the tail, it's original.

If the pattern basically stops at the tail and becomes just plain, it's regenerated.

QUIZ: So, what do you think? Original work, or re-tread?

This guy was right in the trail.

I 100% did NOT see it, but Bear did, and pointed it out.

Total stick impression.

I had been looking for mushrooms (in vain) to the side of the trail,

'cause that's where I've seen them, frequently.

Not now. Too dry.

But, it's never too dry for an alligator lizard.

Tough puppies.

And this creature NEVER MOVED during the photo shoot.

Good one, lizard! You won.

You're a stick, and we are leaving you alone.

xobb

raptor equivalent of staring into the fridge

This red-shouldered hawk (Buteo lineatus) was looking for food,

perched in a big Ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa)

on the south side of the open field next to our house (couch photos).

Watching it look all around,

I realized it was doing what we do:

looking for something to eat.

Can you imagine being hungry,

and having "outside" be your refrigerator?

hawk puzzle -- how DO I get that tasty morsel?

Moments ago, a hawk landed on something outside the garden,

but then danced around the fence for SO LONG,

I thought it might be stuck.

I want to EAT you!

quiz answer: what's up, buck?

In short, this is the answer to the quiz re: what the above creature has on his mind is

Romance.

As many of you guessed, this buck was lookin' for love.

The doe seemed mostly to be interested in this:

"yum."

The buck also spent time standing very still, not looking at the doe.

Among the other things he'd detect are rivals (far right is another buck).

"Hey, wait a minute..."

Reaction:

"Oh, hell, no."

"And stay out!"

(pardon reflectiness--windows & sun...)

Que macho hombre, no?

=) Vanquished.

So, CONGRATULATIONS to everyone who was correct!

And thanks, as ever, to EVERYONE who submitted a guess--

y'all are brave, smart, funny, and creative.  Nice!

And thanks to Sue for the detailed info re: such behavior.

Gotta love a "guess" where the questioner learns from the questioned. =)

Caveat: I must admit, it is possible that

a) someone was (per Hugh) holding chocolate chip cookies offstage

to get the buck to hold his original pose, and 

b) I actually really hope that he was attempting to plank,

as Sue posited. It could be the new sexy.

Come to think of it, maybe this is where PEOPLE got the idea.

Planking = Sexy.

Who knows?

xoxobb

photo quiz: check this buck out

What do you think this posture means, re: this buck's current focus?

He walked around with his head straight out like this (and lower) for a while.

You can learn a lot from body language in many species besides our own,

so it's nice to pick some of these things up whilst ogling wildlife.

Please submit guesses in the usual way (comments),

and you are, as ever, welcome to fling guesses wildly,

without a thought about consequence.

And here's a bonus shot, just for fun. Cutie, eh?

=) Good luck!

BOBCAT! In da SNOW. TODAY!

OMG.

I am SO glad I skipped "Game Night" (w/ pardons to my lovely friends).

Look who visited my kitties and I!!

Max is back!

I timed this guy (or, er, gal?),

and in SIXTEEN MINUTES

it detected (through SNOW, mind you),

caught,

killed,

and ate

THREE rodents.

UNbelievable efficiency.

This next sequence is 27 SECONDS long:

Twenty-seven seconds.

And that's a fatty rodent in his fearsome maw.

Then he came back and hunted more,

but it was too dark for photos,

and I wanted to leave it alone,

so it'd head to my ground squirrels.

No luck there.

Just now, writing this,

talking w/ Bear about the opossum he saw here Wednesday night,

scratching at our back door (how very odd),

a skunk walks past our back door.

RIGHT by the door (snow-free zone).

"Doo-delee-doo-delee-dum."

Word must be out that we have no dogs.

I LOVE LIVING HERE!

And am so glad Max seems to find it rewarding, too.

=)

xobb

Heaven: amazing footage of Galapagos, on the rocks & in the sea

 

Galapagos 2010 from Darek Sepiolo on Vimeo.

If you don't have 6 minutes, take it a minute or 2 at a time.

60 second therapy doses: so soothing...

Even just the shot of schooling fish,

after the first bit of shark footage,

is unlike any I've seen.

SO LOVELY.

And, may I just say, that unlike SO many films of nature, this one represents what is going on out there most of the time? Stuff (wildlife) hanging out, sunning, swimming, grazing. If THIS is what people saw on TV, I don't think they'd be so afraid of nature and wildlife.

If all you know of nature and wildlife you learn from TV, vs. actual time out there, you'd think it's all charging bulls, giant snakes striking at you, lions ripping at entrails, etc.

While of course, those things do happen, it's a TINY percentage of the time. Most the time, animals are just like us (animals, too). Doing their version of hanging out, commuting, chatting with friends, snacking, snoozing, grooming, cleaning, etc.

Life is not a cage match.

Just sayin'... =)

bb

Cherchez la femme: wild turkey toms workin' it!

  

From just this morning:

The ladies.

As ever, leading the parade.

Gee, can you tell they TOTALLY KNOW I'm staring at them (from inside a house, behind a camera, crouched behind tall dresser)? I bet they've made many a hunter feel like a bumbling, crashing-through-the-woods amateur. They are so sharp.

Their suitors are not far behind...

 Mr. Poser on the right, looking spectacular.

Now cruising to catch up with the ladies...

... who are already exiting stage right...

Looking fabulous while speedily passing by.

Now the toms are stage right (in better light),
keeping a wary eye on me...

Oops, someone's hunkering down to pose, again.

And... here it is!

CHECK ME OUT!!!

Yeah, baby!

Oops, now it looks like the non-poser is gaining ground

due to his competitor's posing-obsession...

Denied! Poser POWER walks to retain his lead,
hugging the inside track.

And the chase continues, toward another patch of land.

The ladies leading the way, and Poser still workin' it.

Ah, spring!

And this completes today's installment of:

"Turkey Splendor in the Grass"

brought to you by our two sponsors,

Spring and DNA.

bb