John Burridge

Monday, Mark and I went to Delta Ponds.  Mark desires to see beavers building their dam, and the best time to see them is at dusk.  The actual moment that is the most optimal is a question:  too early, and they really aren't swimming around in the murky waters; too late and the sun has set and you can't see anything other than wakes in the water (which are most likely nutria).

We keep going to the east end of the ponds, which is optimal for the silhouettes of herons in the trees.  The herons I photographed last time as they did their mating dance in the trees have put up a nest.
Tuesday, I went to the Cascades Raptor Center (partially because it was an annoying day, mostly because the sun was out).  I managed to get a photo of Neville in a new part of his aviary.   I learned (to my dismay) that Neville doesn't like really large camera lenses.
Pip, Peregrine Falcon was eating in the back of his aviary.  I like this particular photograph because of the inner and outer curve of his head.
 Danu, an Osprey, was brought out.  She's very vocal, and chatters to everyone most of the day.  Because her enclosure is roped off, I thought she was slightly upset by the visitors, but I was told that if she was upset she'd make less of a high-pitched keen (which can be heard over rushing river waters) and more of a honk.











I managed to get a photo of Danu's nictating membrane.


Normally, Danu's aviary is set back a ways, behind a rope, so it's difficult to see her, especially in the afternoon when the sunlight is shining on the mesh of her enclosure.


 All of the residents were the most vocal that I've heard them.  Amazon the golden eagle was building a nest (I think) and making gibbering noises like a creature from the Haunted Woods surrounding the Wicked Witch of the West's castle.  Dmitri the Eurasian eagle-owl was extra hooty, and was chattering like a cat as he beaked some gravel a handler put on his roost so he wouldn't tear up the astroturf.  Puck chittered at anyone who walked by his aviary -- I'm not sure if he wanted them to see his mouse or not.

Since the equinox is around the corner, the birds are getting hormonal.  They're also gaining weight since the days and nights have been warmer.
The burrowing owl, Ra, came out while its aviary was being cleaned out.   I managed to take a zillion photographs of Ra, who seemed very relaxed and curious about the turkey vultures flying in the area.

Ra's handler and I had a brief discussion about who was the cuter, Ra, or Ravi, a Western Screech Owl -- they're both pretty darn cute.

I would have stayed a little longer, but I had to go to Dad Taxi duties.

Thursday was slightly stressful, but after work, the sun came out and I went to the Cascades Raptor Center to wind down and photograph raptors.  At one point, I think I was the only patron there, which meant the place was quiet except for passing cars and various wrens, jays, woodpeckers, and other small feeder birds.

I said hi to Aeolus (quietly, because he was sleeping), Atticus (who gaped his beak, which I hope means hi in Bald Eagle), Banjo, Lethe, and Dante.

A little farther up, Amazon, a Golden Eagle, was being fed and weighed by one of the trainers (who I know through Pearwood).  Amazon was playing with something with a lot of feathers.  Archimedes, a Snow Owl, and Neville,  Great Horned Owl, had their aviaries next door, so I went to visit them.  Neville was blinking a lot at me, which meant he was a little cranky or territorial (later on he must have thought I was going to take his enrichment geodesic ball, because he hissed at me, puffed up, and clacked his beak at me).

I managed to see both owls being fed and weighed.  Archimedes typically looks like a milk jug or a bowling pin, so it was fun to see him looking more bird-like as he jumped onto a perch and back.  I took some photos of them with the full knowledge that the grille of their aviary would be prominent, and then mostly stood aside the camera and watched them.

Padawan, a Barn Owl, had come out of his box-perch and was standing on it.  I've usually only seen him from a front-on setting, and I managed to get some photos of him from the side.

Dmitri, a Eurasian Eagle-Owl, was hooting, and I thought maybe he might be outside his enclosure, so I went over to his side of the Center.  He was wasn't out, but Parker, an American Kestrel, was.

The best photos I managed to take were of Parker.  He is about the size of a hand.  He was being fed a mix of mouse, quail(?), and mealworms.  He was so focused on eating that he didn't move around too much (it's possible the trainers train the raptors to stand on a certain spot on the gloves to get fed so the raptors don't attempt a raid on the food pouch).  What was interesting to me was how much Parker used his tail to keep his balance.  At one point, wild raptor (? a red-tailed hawk?) flew overhead, and Parker became very quiet and still until the other bird soared away.

The trainer put Parker back, and went to work with another Kestrel.  I walked around to see more of Dmitri, who was the most active I've seen him.  He was close to his cage's grille, so I didn't bother with pictures; instead I watched him preening and stretching.  When he vocalized, a white tuft of feathers bulged out at his throat, sort of like a bullfrog's throat, and a deep "whooo" came out.

By this time, the clouds had slid in from the west, and everything was going grey again.  I wandered around and visited Newton and Nike and some of the other residents.  The overcast lighting made for some dark photos, and I thought it might rain, so I left for home.