Steve posted last month about his delight at discovering that the mascot of the Southern Illinois University athletic teams is the Saluki. We’ve since found more SIU Saluki stuff like this picture of a guy in a saluki suit who prowls the sidelines at their football games. Apparently local saluki owners take turns bringing their …
The Ranch
We often speak of “The Ranch”– Lee Henderson’s acreage of miles of high desert grassland, canyon, and foothill, located on La Jencia Plain under the Magdalenas and not touching pavement on any side. It is an idael place to run dogs and fly falcons. I thought you might like to see a few pix. Here …
Last “Bleg”
Still hoping someone somewhere has an “extra” Goshawk–!! Facts: no more permits available for NM birds until next year. Colorado won’t let its birds out. I don’t have a vehicle that would make it to, say, Idaho even if I had no obligations. I haven’t enough money to buy a breeder’s bird outright (though I’d …
What Remains
Or “Culling II”. I find the specificity of (very diverse) categories left in what I must call my “nature” section fascinating. Before there was so much stuff in there that it would have been hard to see categories beyond that vague term. Maybe negative as in “not too much botany or herpetology” though both exist …
Culling the Library
In a recent discussion with Chas he spoke of culling his library and I recoiled in horror. I do so in an ongoing context, and I thought there was no need to do any more. Then one restless and sleepless night I was prowling my library and realized that there was a corner I had …
California Fall Ritual
The New York Times today tells us of a Fall ritual in the town of Columbia, California: the Annual Poison Oak Show. Apparently there is fierce competition in a variety of categories: Best Arrangement of Poison Oak, Most Potent Looking Green Leaves, Most Potent Looking Red leaves, Best Photo of Poison Oak Rash, Best Poison …
Owl
I saw this Great Horned Owl while driving home from work yesterday afternoon. He (she?) was hanging out on a cottonwood limb waiting to fly out and hunt for breakfast. Connie and I had seen this fellow several times over the last couple of months. These birds are so big they really stick out. Here’s …
Hunting and Alligators
I meant to comment a while back on Patrick’s post here, in which he considers the difference in fatal alligator attacks on people in Florida (a small number) with that figure in Louisiana (none). What’s up with Florida? Patrick says: Perhaps such attacks are not too surprising in a state that has an alligator population …
Science Proves Keen Interest in Animals “Vestigial”
Well, not really. But a conclusion to that effect was drawn from research published recently in the (online) Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. From the story by Jeanna Bryner of LiveScience.com: The research…reveals that humans today are hard-wired to pay attention to other people and animals much more so than non-living things, even …
Bilibin
Artist friend Nance McManus sent me this wonderful image by the 20th century Russian artist Ivan Bilibin. I wasn’t aware of him, but there is a lot on Wiki here, including many wonderful paintings and other images. I won’t be owning one soon– Sotheby’s asking price for “The Hunt” was in the middle hundreds of …