Tuesday, October 07, 2008

Here and there, this and that

Nothing exciting is afoot around here, but I have snapped a few good pictures lately.
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Someone please tell my dog she needs to relax:
Nellies slack jaw
"Zzzzzzz...........snort......Zzzzzz...."

Talk to the paw Buddha
"Talk to the paw."

UPside down Buddha



The last scene of Charlotte's Web is being reenacted on our front door:
Charlottes Web
Tiny, perfect little predators.

Macro baby spider
But zoom in and it's kinda nightmarish. Feel anything crawly on your neck right now?


Oh, here's some fun news. RAPTOR, Inc. has a new program bird:
back of female kestrel
A female American Kestrel. Kestrels are one of the few raptors you can sex by color. Males have pretty blue-gray wings, and females are rusty and barred all the way across.
A very relaxed bird, at least as far as kestrels are concerned. A usually spazzy species, this lady is nowhere near as nuts at Steel.

Hmm. I guess this one needs a name, too? Anyone have any ideas?
She was our kestrel foster mom last year. She came in during the nesting season (blind in one eye) and was still hormonal enough to be able to brood and feed some orphans we had. She decided not to assist us this year. So now she has her spiffy jesses and will soon be on our permit.

Let's just soak in that face....
new program kestrel
That's a fairly adorable bird right there.

10 comments:

Dave Dorsey said...

I guess Dave wouldn't be apropriate for this one. How about Lolita?

Kitt said...

What a pretty bird! How about Jodie? (As in Foster.)

NCmountainwoman said...

I might have thought of a name, but you scared the bejeezus out of me with the spiders.

Of course, it makes a great Halloween picture.

Windyridge said...

Love the pics! I have a similar one of my dog's head hanging out of his crate.

dguzman said...

Kiera? (as in Knightly) I lurves me some kestrels. They're probably my favorite raptor. I once watched one hover and hunt over a field, and I was in love. And I love the easy-to-tell-gender thing too. Makes me feel smart!

Mary said...

I've seen two Kestrels at the Raptor Center - never in the wild.

The highlight of this post? SPIDERS. I HAVE NEVER SEEN SUCH A NIGHTMARE.

NatureWoman said...

Ohh, I love kestrels. I love your very relaxed dog photo! LOL!

Kyle said...

Wow, Susan, she is beautiful! Yet another raptor I've never had the opportunity to see in person.

As for a name, the only one that comes immediately to my mind is "Kessie," which proves that I've watched waaa-a-aayy to many Winnie the Pooh movies with the kids!

I'll take a raincheck on those spiders, tho. One or two at a time don't bother me -- I'm the monster (and bug) slayer of the household. But get a whole horde of 'em together like that, and it's just downright creepy. ::shudder::

Dani said...

Hi Susan, I just found your blog and I'm so glad I did, It's all wonderful!! Have a nice day. :)

RuthieJ said...

Does your dog wake up sneezing after laying like that? One of mine used to all the time.