Nature Pics

[yovargas]

I have grown very fond of them because they are clearly a mated couple who have chosen out office area as their nesting grounds. Whenever I see them, the mama and papa are always together. About once a year, they'll show up with one or two fuzzy little ones following them around. I think I've seen maybe four of their younglings come and go but the parents always come back together. I have named them Isabelle and Lawrence and they are great.

eta - and yes, they're sandhill cranes. Another thing I love about them is that they are hilariously fearless. They hang out right around our offices and totally don't care if there are people or cars around, if you need to go by, you're the one moving, not them. I've driven by close enough where I could almost touch them and they're huge, almost as tall as my car!

[Inanna]

They are lovely! I didn’t know they were so tall!

We have two Canadian Geese couples like that back in NY. They can attack though - milking their dinosaurs’ genes.

[Primula Baggins]

Oh, yes!!! You should love them! Sandhills? They fly over in large flocks as they migrate, and they make the neatest sound.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EckKXUersb8


The smaller feathered dinosaurs at work yesterday were very alarmed by (and vocal about) the larger feathered dinosaur perched at the top of a tree, hunting them.

Thank you for posting that, Lali! I've never seen them in nature, and they're beautiful in flight. But the sound they make is stunning. Eerie.

[Lalaith]

You're welcome, Prim. They are an impressive sight, whether they are flying overhead or whether they're walking in a field. I've only seen them once on the ground. I don't think they're normally fond of hanging out in Ohio; they just migrate overhead. When they do migrate, the skeins are enormous, hundreds of birds; and they're flying higher than in this video, so their eerie calls sound eerier, being so far up in the sky and distant.

yovi, I love that you have Isabelle and Lawrence (and their babies)! And I didn't realize they were as fearless as our Canada geese. I swear, the geese are basically like, "F*ck you, #^$&*@! I ain't movin'. You move YOUR f*cking car!"

(I know people think Canadians are polite and don't swear, but Ohio Canadians do.)

[yovargas]

yovi, I love that you have Isabelle and Lawrence (and their babies)! And I didn't realize they were as fearless as our Canada geese. I swear, the geese are basically like, "F*ck you, #^$&*@! I ain't movin'. You move YOUR f*cking car!"

I prefer to think that they are too refined and classy to respond like that. They're more like "Excuse me commoner but we we are currently using this space so kindly be moving along now."

As a general aside, I think it's super interesting that some animals apparently mate for life.

[Maria]

I was surprised to see sea horses on a list of animals that mate for life. Such tiny brains! It's amazing that they manage it.

[Frelga]

yovi, I love that you have Isabelle and Lawrence (and their babies)! And I didn't realize they were as fearless as our Canada geese. I swear, the geese are basically like, "F*ck you, #^$&*@! I ain't movin'. You move YOUR f*cking car!"

I prefer to think that they are too refined and classy to respond like that. They're more like "Excuse me commoner but we we are currently using this space so kindly be moving along now."

No, no the geese are definitely like, "F- you, f- your car, f- your sidewalk and your lawn. You wanna start something, a-hole? Huh? Huh?"

[yovargas]

Oh yes, those peasant geese are for sure. I was talking about the regal and elegant sandhill cranes.

[Primula Baggins]

And then there are the wild turkeys. I truly never knew until I met them in the Safeway parking lot that they really go "Gobble-gobble."

[Inanna]

No, no the geese are definitely like, "F- you, f- your car, f- your sidewalk and your lawn. You wanna start something, a-hole? Huh? Huh?"

“And look at me, I am going to shit all over your place. Whatcha gonna do about that, huh?”

[Inanna]

More on “nature around you”:

[Impenitent]

All the critters were out of view, but these pics are worth sharing.









(I can't tell if these are too big; I'm on Tapatalk and they're automatically resized.)

Sent from a tiny phone keyboard via Tapatalk - typos inevitable.

[Impenitent]

Can you spot Whale Rock? It really is one rock.







Do I count as a critter?

Sent from a tiny phone keyboard via Tapatalk - typos inevitable.

[Primula Baggins]

A lovely one!

And Whale Rock is, well, a whale rock.

[Inanna]

Uzdisprettyperson?

[elengil]

Oh yes! Pictures: it snowed in my area, biggest snow storm since the 90's, most snow in Feb since 1916!

I think we got something like 2' at my place. The snow was dumping down when I took these pictures, several more hours of snowfall than is shown!

[Primula Baggins]

I know living with snow is tiresome, but it’s still pretty, and I still feel a happy echo of “No school tomorrow!” when I look out at falling snow.

[Frelga]

Vacationing in the snow is lovely. Snow in the city is just a mess.

My son is experiencing a real winter now and it's giving me flashbacks.

[elengil]

I know living with snow is tiresome, but it’s still pretty, and I still feel a happy echo of “No school tomorrow!” when I look out at falling snow.

LOL well I took those pictures to justify my "no work today!" message to my boss on Tuesday And yes, it is so peaceful and beautiful to watch the snow fall, and the birds took over the porch feeders - and were very grateful for them! I was even rather productive inside, so it wasn't lost time at all.

This is the first appreciable snowfall we've had in years, so that's good news for summer water supply, too.

[Impenitent]

So pretty! Snow is such a novelty to me. I wonder if there will be snow in New Hampshire when we're there?

Sent from a tiny phone keyboard via Tapatalk - typos inevitable.