Just stopped by to see what’s going on, as I haven’t done so in some time.
Here’s to a speedy and not-too-eventful recovery to
@Septembersrain!
A really belated happy birthday to
@Scepticalscribe!
A not terribly belated happy birthday to
@decafjava!
Interesting and enjoyable reading about the unusual living arrangements exhibited by the three eagles. I have never heard of such a thing.
Which led me to recall something I haven’t thought about for years: a couple of summers, long ago and far away, near the Continental Divide in the south of Colorado, working as a “hack site attendant” for the Peregrine Fund. The job involved a couple of months of being responsible for the transition of four or five captive-bred Peregrine Falcons from silly-looking down-covered hatchlings to full-fledged birds.
Accommodations consisted of a large tent sited below a 1,000 foot cliff, and for a couple of weeks in a much smaller tent, perched on a broad ledge on said cliff. The nearest food market was two hours away. Water was provided by a nearby stream.
The birds were housed in a large wooden crate on a ledge high up on the cliff, accessible only through climbing aided by fixed ropes. Feeding was accomplished by shoving whole quail (deceased) through a opening the top of the crate, performed with stealth so as to not alert the birds that humans were involved. As far as they were concerned, the food simply appeared.
The front of the crate was open, except for bars and mosquito netting, to allow the birds to orient themselves to their new home as their feathers developed, and protect them from the wide range of predators that would like nothing more than to devour the helpless young.
One day the front of the cage was removed, and the nearly-ready-to-fly Peregrines emerged after the humans beat a hasty retreat, blinking and looking about.
At this point, they were quite vulnerable to predation from Golden Eagles and Great Horned Owls, covering the day and night shifts respectively.
Things then turned up several notches, as the job went from strictly feeding to feeding and actively looking for trouble.
But that’s another story, and I’ll not bore you further except to describe my one close encounter with an eagle.
One fine afternoon I had an opportunity, up on that high ledge, to witness a mature Golden Eagle with about a six-foot wingspan, gliding past within twenty feet of me, at eye level, apparently looking for something to eat.
It was huge. Mostly silent in flight, beautiful, and quite deadly-looking. Gliding, not an ounce of exertion or movement evident it its wings, only the wind rippling through the trailing edges and the primary feathers at the tips. An image of a large bomber aircraft immediately came to mind. All business. I stood rooted to the spot as the eagle passed on by, my concern growing for the young Peregrines. Thankfully, the Golden did not return that day.
Thanks
@LizKat for reminding me of that.
The kitten I house-sat for (and ended up sewing a little half-shirt for) had a box that originally housed scratching cardboard, and he'd curl himself up into a little enso inside and sleep for hours. But it's not just boxes, is it? The mere suggestion of a box is enough to attract a cat. My friend sent me this picture recently: I did some reading, and apparently cats that have some sort housing (like a box) or perceived housing (like an outline) "adapted to new situations faster and easier than a control group of felines without boxes.” One would assume it has something to do with the cat feeling as though it's surrounded by a threshold with all else on the other side, but cat's are what top scientists refer to as "****ing confusing." More research is necessary.
