Showing posts with label critters. Show all posts
Showing posts with label critters. Show all posts
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Saturday, December 15, 2007
tree frog on tree man
I took this photo of an unusually decorated tree along side West Cliff Drive in Santa Cruz, California.
The tree frog critter was created by Adam Bowman -- a very clever javascript programmer.
The tree frog critter was created by Adam Bowman -- a very clever javascript programmer.
Saturday, December 01, 2007
Friday, November 30, 2007
scooter the blue fronted amazon
Introducing Scooter the blue fronted Amazon
This is Scooter, a Blue-Fronted Amazon parrot. He's about 28 years old and has been with our family for most of his life. Our children have grown up and started families of their own, so he finds it much too quiet here. His cage is by a sunny window looking out at the front yard so that he can keep an eye on what's going on in the neighborhood. A fairly good watch bird, he lets out sounds at the approach of strangers that are different from his sounds at the approach of friends and really raises the roof when he sees our grandchildren getting out of the car. Although he likes to be around most children, our grandkids have a special place in his heart, as does the daughter in whose bedroom he sometimes stayed when she was growing up. (She now has a parrot of her own -- a Moluccan Cockatoo named Peaches.)
After children, his favorite things are showers, music and having his head scratched. He also likes to watch TV and seems to pay special attention to the Food Network. And speaking of food, he always expects to get a little something extra when we have our meals and clucks at us until we give him something. I am sorry to say that his favorite treat is scrambled egg.
Though Scooter can be pretty good with sound effects, he's not a great talker. Sunrise and sunset are usually greeted with enthusiastic noise, and anyone who laughs or sings around him almost always inspires him to join in. He coos, crows and trills in response when someone talks to him, mimicking a conversation. He likes to have the last word.
This is Scooter, a Blue-Fronted Amazon parrot. He's about 28 years old and has been with our family for most of his life. Our children have grown up and started families of their own, so he finds it much too quiet here. His cage is by a sunny window looking out at the front yard so that he can keep an eye on what's going on in the neighborhood. A fairly good watch bird, he lets out sounds at the approach of strangers that are different from his sounds at the approach of friends and really raises the roof when he sees our grandchildren getting out of the car. Although he likes to be around most children, our grandkids have a special place in his heart, as does the daughter in whose bedroom he sometimes stayed when she was growing up. (She now has a parrot of her own -- a Moluccan Cockatoo named Peaches.)
After children, his favorite things are showers, music and having his head scratched. He also likes to watch TV and seems to pay special attention to the Food Network. And speaking of food, he always expects to get a little something extra when we have our meals and clucks at us until we give him something. I am sorry to say that his favorite treat is scrambled egg.
Though Scooter can be pretty good with sound effects, he's not a great talker. Sunrise and sunset are usually greeted with enthusiastic noise, and anyone who laughs or sings around him almost always inspires him to join in. He coos, crows and trills in response when someone talks to him, mimicking a conversation. He likes to have the last word.
peaches the moluccan cockatoo
Heather introduces her new cockatoo
Here is our new 'baby' - Peaches the Moluccan Cockatoo. She nestled in very well to our home last month and provides no end of snuggles and laughter to the household. Lately she's been experimenting with being 'batwoman' and hanging upside down (completely!) from her play top. She holds a fork with food on it and is many other ways quite the clown. She loves her sentinel perch, goes through toys like crazy (we should have named her 'Chewy') and thinks it's great fun to play 'catch' with our daughter. (She gives ball, Peaches hucks ball to ground with gusto. She picks up ball and game repeats while Peaches mimics her laughter.)
Peaches transitions in mood swings almost as much as she does in height (when 'compacting' herself she is at about a foot long but when she is animated and the crest goes up she grows to two feet!) She's loud and boisterous one moment, and 'melted butter' wanting to snuggle the next. The woman who hand fed her did a beautiful job in encouraging such a trusting creature.
My favorite vocalization of Peaches is her attempt to sing opera. They weren't kidding at the pet shop; she does get LOUD, but thankfully it's contained to 10-20 minutes of late morning and early evening vocalization.
She's still a babe - a one year old with a 75+ year life span, and not quite full grown. Her breed is the largest of the Cockatoo species and known more for being a good mimic of human behaviors (hence eating with fork) than for language imitation, though her breed does some talking, too. Her short stay in the pet shop next to a VERY vocal African Grey parrot seems to have made an impression on her and it's quite interesting to hear her now imitate another bird who's imitating humans (and everything else.)
I'm pleased to officially introduce her. She's a very special bird and very dear to me as my friendly companion.
Here is our new 'baby' - Peaches the Moluccan Cockatoo. She nestled in very well to our home last month and provides no end of snuggles and laughter to the household. Lately she's been experimenting with being 'batwoman' and hanging upside down (completely!) from her play top. She holds a fork with food on it and is many other ways quite the clown. She loves her sentinel perch, goes through toys like crazy (we should have named her 'Chewy') and thinks it's great fun to play 'catch' with our daughter. (She gives ball, Peaches hucks ball to ground with gusto. She picks up ball and game repeats while Peaches mimics her laughter.)
Peaches transitions in mood swings almost as much as she does in height (when 'compacting' herself she is at about a foot long but when she is animated and the crest goes up she grows to two feet!) She's loud and boisterous one moment, and 'melted butter' wanting to snuggle the next. The woman who hand fed her did a beautiful job in encouraging such a trusting creature.
My favorite vocalization of Peaches is her attempt to sing opera. They weren't kidding at the pet shop; she does get LOUD, but thankfully it's contained to 10-20 minutes of late morning and early evening vocalization.
She's still a babe - a one year old with a 75+ year life span, and not quite full grown. Her breed is the largest of the Cockatoo species and known more for being a good mimic of human behaviors (hence eating with fork) than for language imitation, though her breed does some talking, too. Her short stay in the pet shop next to a VERY vocal African Grey parrot seems to have made an impression on her and it's quite interesting to hear her now imitate another bird who's imitating humans (and everything else.)
I'm pleased to officially introduce her. She's a very special bird and very dear to me as my friendly companion.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
the not so wild turkeys of lockhart gulch
Heather sends this photo/description of some pesky residents
This crew is frequently found roaming our neighborhood, and often in the middle of the street. The years of people accommodating them have given them a very arrogant complex. The family of 15 or so don't sense any urgency in the slightest with a car approaching and will flamboyantly settle down to rest in front of one. Honking your horn is apparently taken as a sign of aggression to the males. They stand up defiantly in front of your vehicle and flare their tails making menacing sounds. I've learned that they utterly snub you if you try to feed them. At least with food agreeable to chickens. I rolled down my window and cooed at a family, flinging some cracker crumbs out and expecting them to appreciatively gobble. The leader of the pack barely cast an eye toward the flung crumbs and truly did give me a dirty look before sauntering away disinterestedly. What do turkey's eat, anyway?? They're very amusing with their regal complex. We in the neighborhood have learned to simply drive around them and let them have the run of Lockhart Gulch (near Santa Cruz, California).
This crew is frequently found roaming our neighborhood, and often in the middle of the street. The years of people accommodating them have given them a very arrogant complex. The family of 15 or so don't sense any urgency in the slightest with a car approaching and will flamboyantly settle down to rest in front of one. Honking your horn is apparently taken as a sign of aggression to the males. They stand up defiantly in front of your vehicle and flare their tails making menacing sounds. I've learned that they utterly snub you if you try to feed them. At least with food agreeable to chickens. I rolled down my window and cooed at a family, flinging some cracker crumbs out and expecting them to appreciatively gobble. The leader of the pack barely cast an eye toward the flung crumbs and truly did give me a dirty look before sauntering away disinterestedly. What do turkey's eat, anyway?? They're very amusing with their regal complex. We in the neighborhood have learned to simply drive around them and let them have the run of Lockhart Gulch (near Santa Cruz, California).
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