tracer Posted December 24, 2008 Share Posted December 24, 2008 possums are bizarre, and less than astute. i took for granted one time that a young possum, which was playing possum, would continue playing possum. unfortunately, it chose to bite me, and subsequently to not relinquish that course of action. i give this experience a significant percentage among my other experiences with making me as i am today. i also had been of the uninformed impression that possums primarily fed upon things like wild grapes and persimmons. i'm not sure why i thought that, other than i seem to recall having treed a possum one time in a persimmon tree. but then late one night i happened upon a possum which, when i shone a flashlight on it, turned toward me with it's face covered in gore from the dead deer it had been feeding upon. the main thing, though, with possums is that they just look kind of crazy, which bothers me. i mean, i'm used to crazy looking, but normally all i have to do to avoid seeing crazy looking is to stay away from mirrors... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommabetts Posted December 24, 2008 Share Posted December 24, 2008 Just big rats, nasty little critters. Very greasy meat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted December 24, 2008 Share Posted December 24, 2008 Saw this when I got to work this morning. It didn't like me watching and flew off with it's catch before I could get the camera out. I followed him and got as close as I could. Not sure what type of hawk, but the breakfast is/was a pigeon. The first spot I saw it had a 2 foot wide circle of feathers on the ground. The pics aren't the best because the light was still low and I was zoomed out to 10x on the optical, but it was interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bmorefossil Posted December 24, 2008 Share Posted December 24, 2008 Saw this when I got to work this morning. It didn't like me watching and flew off with it's catch before I could get the camera out. I followed him and got as close as I could. Not sure what type of hawk, but the breakfast is/was a pigeon. The first spot I saw it had a 2 foot wide circle of feathers on the ground. The pics aren't the best because the light was still low and I was zoomed out to 10x on the optical, but it was interesting. dont know what kind but it sure is beautiful Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted December 24, 2008 Share Posted December 24, 2008 Saw this when I got to work this morning. It didn't like me watching and flew off with it's catch before I could get the camera out. I followed him and got as close as I could. Not sure what type of hawk, but the breakfast is/was a pigeon. The first spot I saw it had a 2 foot wide circle of feathers on the ground. The pics aren't the best because the light was still low and I was zoomed out to 10x on the optical, but it was interesting. That would be an adult (after second year) female Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus). "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bmorefossil Posted December 24, 2008 Share Posted December 24, 2008 That would be an adult (after second year) female Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus). cool are they rare to see or are they a common hawk? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted December 24, 2008 Share Posted December 24, 2008 cool are they rare to see or are they a common hawk? I know your question was directed at Auspex, but it's the first one that I know I have seen (at least up close). Most of the time I see red-tailed hawks, some smaller hawk-ish birds and an occasional one that I don't recognize. Maybe they have been these Sharp-shinned hawks. I always wondered what was keeping the pigeon population in control. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted December 24, 2008 Share Posted December 24, 2008 cool are they rare to see or are they a common hawk? The Accipiters are the T-rexes of the bird world. They are ambush predators, and it's a treat to see one. What is really special about this one is that it is an adult; check out the red eyes and blue back!!! "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bmorefossil Posted December 24, 2008 Share Posted December 24, 2008 yea it has a nice color to it, very cool Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest solius symbiosus Posted December 24, 2008 Share Posted December 24, 2008 possums are bizarre, and less than astute. While they might be "bizarre", They are very astute. For some reason, they are commonly misperceived that way... I assume because of their slow movement, but really their intelligence rivals that of a dog. I've had friends that kept them as pets, and they were very lovable creatures. Just big rats, nasty little critters.. Not at all; they are the only marsupial found outside of Australia, and are very social creatures. As an undergrad, there was an exceptionally large one that would meet me lunch everyday outside a friends home. We would set in the yard, and I would share my food with him. I've found that they love twinkies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tracer Posted December 24, 2008 Share Posted December 24, 2008 well, i may have to research possum intelligence more. i was not basing that thought on their speed. one thing is that i had read a comparison about their skull braincase volume being very small compared to say a raccoon. but the other thing is that their reactive behavior seems to lack appropriateness at times, and i can tell they're not chewing gum, so it shouldn't be a multi-tasking issue... i have nothing personally against them, save the "o" in their name, which i conveniently omit. but i must admit to an aversion to being peered at with beady little eyes and a machiavellian leer. that's what's so annoying about tj... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted December 24, 2008 Share Posted December 24, 2008 ...i have nothing personally against them, save the "o" in their name, which i conveniently omit. but i must admit to an aversion to being peered at with beady little eyes and a machiavellian leer.... The drooling is a little disconcerting (re: 'possums, that is). "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
worthy 55 Posted April 18, 2009 Share Posted April 18, 2009 Sundancer73 and I went for a little trip up the Santa Fe river by my house and took some cool pictures. It's my bone!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawkeye Posted April 18, 2009 Share Posted April 18, 2009 Those are great pictures! I love otters. I had a group of 5 pups go back and forth up and down the creek under my tree stand for a couple hours in Iowa last year. They are great fun to watch. If you believe everything you read, perhaps it's time for you to stop reading... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted April 18, 2009 Share Posted April 18, 2009 The otters look like young 'uns; were there just the two? "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
worthy 55 Posted April 19, 2009 Share Posted April 19, 2009 The otters look like young 'uns; were there just the two? Yes, we did not see any others around and yes they were really young ones. You can see a Coors beer bottle there that gives some scale on how small they are. It's my bone!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmorefossil Posted April 19, 2009 Share Posted April 19, 2009 Yes, we did not see any others around and yes they were really young ones. You can see a Coors beer bottle there that gives some scale on how small they are. yeai see that and keep wondering why you were letting the kids drink beer! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted April 19, 2009 Share Posted April 19, 2009 yeai see that and keep wondering why you were letting the kids drink beer! You shouldn't otter do that! "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tracer Posted April 19, 2009 Share Posted April 19, 2009 that just looks like a place i need to be. the worst thing about the forum is the wanderlust it creates. i still want to go on about a year or so long roadtrip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tracer Posted April 19, 2009 Share Posted April 19, 2009 p.s. - a while back solius noted an extraordinarily cool website with amazing photo collections. the latest collection is pictures from the zoo. really good stuff. pictures Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barefootgirl Posted April 19, 2009 Share Posted April 19, 2009 Thanks so much Tracer and Solius for sharing those photos of the zoo animals. Cierra and myself just spent the last 10 minutes thoroughly enjoying ourselves. Were all ahhhhd out now. p.s. - a while back solius noted an extraordinarily cool website with amazing photo collections. the latest collection is pictures from the zoo. really good stuff.pictures In formal logic, a contradiction is the signal of defeat: but in the evolution of real knowledge, it marks the first step in progress toward victory. Alfred North Whithead 'Don't worry about the world coming to an end today. It's already tomorrow in Australia!' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cat shark Posted April 19, 2009 Share Posted April 19, 2009 Thanks for adding to this thread. I love the wildlife photos and hadn't seen most of these because it was started before i joined. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaleoRon Posted April 19, 2009 Share Posted April 19, 2009 Sun bathing turtles. I've seen these guys piled up four or five deep and others that were stacked like dominos. I get a kick out of them sometimes. When the bottom one decides to leave the whole group tumbles into the water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted April 20, 2009 Share Posted April 20, 2009 A friend-of-a-friend photographs the wild goings-on at Viera Wetlands in Florida and emails them weekly. This shot was in today's batch; I call it "'Dilla on the Half-shell" (posted with permission). "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrehistoricFlorida Posted April 20, 2009 Share Posted April 20, 2009 Sun bathing turtles. I've seen these guys piled up four or five deep and others that were stacked like dominos. I get a kick out of them sometimes. When the bottom one decides to leave the whole group tumbles into the water. What's with the clear water, Ron???? www.PrehistoricFlorida.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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