Happy new week folks! Don't foget to check the last few posts of the previous week. Heron posted a photo of a female reed bunting, AQ saw a "ginormous flock of corellas" (must Google that!), OG has found a nice B&B for her trip, Alan posted a nifty shot of the changing of the guard at the eagle nest, folks are wondering how Diane is doing with the storm the big storm back East, and much, much more! :-) We had almost 2 inches of rain in Santa Barbara today, which is brilliant. Still sorting files and likely to be doing so for a day or three to come. Take care all.
Diane
No need to apologise - I'm fascinated by peregrines too, so thanks for the information. It reminded me to check what my local pair are up to - will go down to see them soon: http://www.chichesterperegrines.co.uk/blog.htm
There are some great photos & videos accessible via the LH bar. A view of the nest site - the nest box is in one of the turrets at the base of the spire. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chichester_Cathedral
This nest has a very high success rate, and I suspect it's because it avoids a lot of the dangers you've described. First, the turret must act a bit like a playpen for the chicks - they have to be strong enough to flap several feet up onto the battlements before they could possibly fall. I can't imagine the Victorian architect George Gilbert Scott had this use in mind when he redesigned the spire after it collapsed in the mid C19! Also, Chichester is a very "low rise" city in which the cathedral is the tallest building. I love watching the peregrines perched on the ornamental stonework like heraldic birds - some pics in the gallery of this.
Thanks OG and Brenda and Sue C. I'm missing the peregrines, and I'm also missing my friends in Indianapolis. So, OG, when you asked me about the birds and the city, the result was blather...blather...blather. LOL LOL
Diane - very interesting info about the peregrines - thanks. I too am fascinated by them and have followed the Derby Cathedral peregrines on the webcam for some time. Owls have always been my favourites closely followed by peregrines - but - I have now become addicted to ospreys as well :))
Joan - avid bird and nature watcher in Northumberland!
Index Thread
Diane - pleased I gave you the opportunity to think about them - but hope I did not make you too sad when you reminisced. I hope you get to see your friends in the city sometimes.
DjoanS - I used to put Owls very much first, but it's now Ospreys first, and Red Kites high up in the order because we have them so near. But all raptors interest me, and I have watched various British Peregrine cams.
Ospreys Rule OK, but Goldfinches come a close second!
Hello all. Couldn't get on the site yesterday until late evening then typed a post, hit the wrong button (don't know which one!) and lost the lot.
Margobird Sorry your cold isn't improving. It must be a real stinker. I take vitamin C every day to try to ward off colds as I am asthmatic. It seems to help. I've just finished collating the paperwork for tomorrow's competition - thought I was on top of it but time passed very quickly Thank you for your good wishes for my sister. She's going to be in hospital over the weekend waiting for a slot to have the pacemaker inserted (or is it installed?) but is resigned to the fact.
Lindybird Thank you for your message about my sister. We are very close so I've been to see her every day. Buzz is a lovely boy and looks really good for his age. Rescue dogs are special, aren't they? Our Tweed and Indy are both from the local animal sanctuary - Tweed at 14 weeks (his Mum was given away in pup - can you believe it?) and Inday at about 8 months - don't know how many homes she had had.
OG Glad you like the new car. I know about the stick problem - OH puts his down between the side of his seat ad the door sill. We have a Citroen Berlingo which may have a different layout from yours, of course. My sister is sitting fairly calmly in hospital, to my amazement, although she is apprehensive about the pacemaker insertion.
Patriciat - I hope your sister soon gets to theatre - it won't do her much good sitting around getting anxious!
Good luck with the dogs tomorrow.
Used to be able to put stick between seat and door in the Fabia Estate. Now got Octavia Estate because it's bigger for my battery scooter but that front space is narrower. I think it might be possible to hold it till the door is shut and then put it down there - need to experiment, but haven't been out since fetching it! Will try tomorrow.
Lindybird - I got the text for the elephant walk/run but the film was an advert for Qantas!!! Drat. I've been censored!!!! My friends & I went to see the film with "Elephant Walk" 3 times just for that music. LOL.
Diane - Thank you. I enjoyed your blather and also the views of the falcons' home territory.
OG - I don't like high temps, nor can I stand humidity. Much better weather today, down to 30 C. We had 1.4 mm of rain on Thurs (taking the total for the month to 3 mm). It hardly washed the dust off the leaves. Meanwhile Victoria & New South Wales are having heavy rain and floods.
For Margobird and anyone not feeling quite perky, here is a pic of our sky taken this morn over our crab apple.
I have my knitting ready as the Winter Olympics opening will be on at noon. Terrible news about that luge competitor.
Alan It was the west end nest I was thinking of.
See http://www.hancockwildlife.org/forum/viewtopic.php?showtopic=928
and http://www.iws.org/bald_eagles/nestcam.htm
and http://www.iws.org/bald_eagles/westendcam.html
Tiger Signature
Hi everyone! I'm sorry I caused some concern by going quiet, but all is well here.
We've been having very hot weather interspersed with very precious RAIN, which has meant that stepping outside has been like stepping into a sauna. I got so fed up that I just decided to wait it out by immersing myself in reading. I found a bundle of historic novels written by a recently discovered distant relative going on ebay, and when they arrived I dipped my nose in and was soon well and truly hooked! The historical novels have really been helping with my genealogy too, since they give me a very good idea of how my ancestors must have lived in various times and places. The internet has often been frustratingly slow lately, so I've been giving up and retreating into the books again.
It's a much cooler day today, with drizzle. The forcast is for a week with temps not venturing over 30C, so I am really enjoying the respite. If I could design my own weather, I'd leave out our two hottest months (January and February) and have two each of March and April instead, because early autumn is my favourite time of year. Warm days, cooler nights, no hay fever or hordes of flies as there are in spring, and the bush and gardens spring back into life once the worst of the heat is gone.
It's taken me so long to catch up here today that it's levt little time for writing, so I'll keep this entry short.
Love to all, Jan.
Smiles, Jan.
Hallo all; Couldn't get on last night or this morning, then went to daughter's for day; then lots of running around town; finally got home for nice glass of wine at 6 p.m. - and here we are with a bunch of posts to read. Hope the site is sorted out and that we don't have any problems when You Know Who returns in March!!
"Estate car" sounds so much classier than "station wagon" which is (was?) what we used to call extended sedans, which they don't really make any more; now they're all SUV's of one size or another. Regardless, our old Ford is a truck - not a lot of class but lots of attitude!! :-)
We have quite a few homeless people in Santa Barbara - not to sound cynical, but if you have to be homeless..... I look at them and wonder how on earth they came to be on the streets (many are mentally ill and refuse/can't organize themselves to get treatment), but I always see them as someone's son or daughter. Heartbreaking if you think about it.
Gary: No. Haven't been to "cruises." Our neighbor has a souped-up MGB and he goes to various events (wakes the entire neighborhood when he does!).
OG: What are "white goods"??? Interesting about Edinburgh's Gaelic name. "Scotch mist" sounds alcoholic. Glad your vehicle is working out - hope you find a handy place for the walking stick. That's funny - I also noticed that the entire web seemed slow yesterday.
Djoan: Thanks for pix of food handover (nice for everyone but the food!)
Alan: Thanks for pix of Dunedin ospreys and Santa Catalina island eagles. Catalina Island is 26 miles from Los Angeles; has wonderful 1930s Casino and also used to have great pottery works in the 1920s/30s. It's a nice day-trip from LA. We have the Channel Islands up here in Santa Barbara - it's a continuation of the same outcropping, but the Channel Islands are more nature preserves than weekend trips.
Margobird: Hope you've got Vicks and Vaseline handy for your nose. What a pain! You do have hungry hordes there - topping up three times in one morning. Geez. You'd have to plan your budget around that!
Diane: Interesting - and sad - info about young raptors amid highrises. Hmmm. But what wonderful volunteers! And thanks Sue C for the follow up info.
Patriciat: You're so lucky to have your sister close by - mine is 6,000 miles away. Sigh. However much time I spend with her, it'll never be enough to make up for the time we've been apart.
Hey Wattle! And everyone else who's posted. Take care all and - oh no! - it's Saturday - AGAIN!!