Here's link to general idea of what Citizen Scientists are, do...
http://www.scientificamerican.com/citizen-science/
and I had to drill down a bit to find where the Russian kid that spotted Hagfish being slurped up by Elephant Seal, story on web front page tonight, got the clip, and it is here:
http://www.neptunecanada.com/
very cool 'backyard' science!
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Bobcat Coast
and Blog of the Day...very cool...
http://www.ibabuzz.com/garybogue/
and on the mast is listed Critters...clicked on Bobcats:
http://www.ibabuzz.com/garybogue/category/bobcats/
cool...but needs more Bobcats!
Flammulated Owl
Monday, January 14, 2013
Sunday, January 13, 2013
Cabins' Coyote
The Red Canoe has been an Ornament of sorts in the Backyard for a very long time...Coyote and Raccoon tracks all over...sunny today, blueblue...neighbor gave me headsup while on way to work that Coyote was about...quick pics and clip....and the new Valley Plan, Plans, have been posted...
story:http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2013/01/08/yosemite-plan-would-ease-traffic-shut-ice-rink/
plan: http://www.nps.gov/yose/parkmgmt/upload/mrp-deis-maps-alt5.pdf
quote
1. West of Yosemite Lodge
• Parking: Redevelop area southwest of Yosemite Lodge to provide an additional 300 day-use parking spaces. This
will include 15 spaces for tour bus parking. Parking redevelopment will incorporate best management practices
to protect water quality.
2. Yosemite Lodge
• Ecological restoration: restore riparian and floodplain ecosystem at the site of the former Yosemite Lodge units
and cabins (those that were damaged by the 1997 flood and subsequently removed). Delineate one service road
to the well house and parking. Remove non-native fill, decompact soils, and plant riparian plant species (10.9
acres).
• Lodging: Retain the current 245 units at Yosemite Lodge.
• Services and Facilities: Retain Yosemite Lodge Food Court and Mountain Room bar and dining service.
Re-purpose convenience shop and nature shop. Relocate Yosemite Lodge maintenance. Remove Yosemite
Lodge post office, swimming pool, bike rentals, snack stand, employee housing (called Thousands Cabins),
Highland Court employee temporary housing, and the NPS Volunteer Office.
• Tour Buses: Remove temporary housing complex at Highland Court and establish a tour bus drop-off area with
three bus loading spaces.
• Concessioner Housing: Construct two new concessioner housing areas for 104 employees and construct 78
employee parking spaces. (Common to all alternatives is to remove housing at Highland Court and at the
Thousands Cabins.)
3. Yosemite Falls Intersection
• Traffic Congestion: Construct a pedestrian underpass to alleviate pedestrian/vehicle conflicts and associated
traffic congestion at the intersection of Northside Drive and Yosemite Lodge Drive.
4. Residence 1
• Residence 1: Relocate Residence 1 (the Superintendent's House) to the NPS housing area and rehabilitate the
building per the Secretary of Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties and the Historic
Structures Report. Ecologically restore associated informal trails in Cook's Meadow and address continuing use
patterns to enhance black oak woodland and meadow habitat.
end quote
Common to all the plans is removal of the Cabin and neigboring Cabins, there's like six plans with different takes....I haven't sorted through them....but they look to be toned down from the previous plan released back in 2004 about, and toned up in some respects, like the removal of Bridges...the one abiding concern of the Blog has been the Creek from the Bridge to the Merced, and '10.9' acres--Owl Woods...the government has a lot of money, and private business will always lobby to have the government spend it on some enterprise--the pitfall of having a govenrment that subcontracts everything, even the plan formulation I suspect was farmed to a subcontractor--seems I studied out the old plan and found that to be the case....now the public will be allowed to comment, and nowadays a very large public has a very hard time finding the small representative that will fit in such discussion....hmmph
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Road Pics
http://youtu.be/gcfXrbmVcU0
Along the Coast Road there are Tsunami Warning Signs whenever the Road dips down to the Ocean from the High Bluffs...I thought them a bit of an exaggeration, until friend the other day regaled me with the Cascadia Fault!...anyway, I like taking pics of contruction....Tunnel Landside Fix is what may be in mind for 140's....hereabout it is still frozen, and Last Chance has no heat--Heater broke...hmmph...'coldest winter that I ever did see'
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Carrizo Plain Hawks
Redshoulder was overhead while getting Gas in Town that Morning, calling calling...Hawk on Watertank is Pergine Falcon...not much to perch on on the Carrizo Plain!...hereabout it is coldcold!, some snow last night and this morning....this Morning, Coyote Tracks about the Cabin, and when coming back from Work Tonight, sighted Coyote, and Coyote persited in being near...neighbors pointed to Raccoon by the Kitchen Cabin-reason why!...blurry dark clips and pics...and have clips of all Carrizo Hawks...clip up is Hawk I last saw thereabout...the Little Hill Hawk flies over is the View Kiosk Hill, and I rolled around, and was able to get another clip!....usually at Carrizo I see Harriers, but quietquiet, and as can be seen, drybrown in mid-december....and the Road thereabout is a washboard misery!, but wonderful place!....on leaving the Plain I took note of the Solar Panel Farm that has suddenly appeared...here's story:
http://www.kcet.org/news/rewire/solar/photovoltaic-pv/carrizo-plain-solar-ranch-starts-pumping-power-into-grid.html
hmmph...
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Hawk's Perch Whales
Rolling along the Big Sur Bluffs, I sighted Hawk perched on a Rock Outcrop, and pulled into the pullout, and tried for pics and clips through Silver's Windshield...blurry faraways...tried to roll close, and Hawk soared off out of sight towards the Ocean below...parked, gathered the gear, and went to looksee...no luck...but a wonderful view!...so, gathered the bag of potato chips and bottle of water, and sat a long while...set up the tripod, and Pelican clips on faraway Rocks...for sometime...about to pick up, I thought to take a memory pic of Hawk's Perch, and 'thar she blows!'....I have looked and looked on the Coastal Rollabouts for Grey Whales' Spouts, and this time, some luck!...see clip....have another longer clip, for sometime...I hadn't thought to continue as far as Big Sur, but that Morning it was sunny blueblue, a Day one can't plan on for Big Sur!...some more pics and clips for sometime..
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Kite Sunset
At the North of Ft. Bragg, between the Long Hotels, there's a Vacant Lot, for sale I think!, and it is Kite's favorite, along with the Snag in the Vacant Lot on other side of Road, and it's fine spot to walk out to the Bluffs, and an Old Road now a Path is thereabout too for Evening strolls...anyway, I'd been taking clips of Kite on the Snag several times during the Day, and Kite's Soaring, and I'd been hopeful Second Kite would be about like Evening before, posted earlier, but no luck...Kestral showed up and perched on the Snag too..for sometime...and having lost sight of Kite, I thought to walk out to the Bluffs, and thereabout Kite was perched on the Wires....see clip....hereabout, it's still cold frozen, snow from Xmas Time hasn't melted off....but, made a short forary after Breakfast...heard Hawk, Redhshoulder, Cedar!, and sighted soaring to perch in the Two Tall Pines by the Rooms and Path...and pic, but with the waterproof, all I had with, too faraway blurry....at the Cabin, sighted Pygmy Nuthatch, I think, hopping about the Cabin Cedar, but again no luck with pics, Battery low...
Monday, January 7, 2013
Hawk Flying
http://youtu.be/eQI1wRL229k
quote
from wowwiki
quest:earning your wings
So you wanna join the Skybreakers, eh? You've certainly proven yourself an able Dragonmaw but that means nothing in the skies of Outland. The question has to be answered: CAN YOU FLY? And I don't just mean being able to mount up on a nether drake and delivering a shipment of crystals to the fort like those transporter scrubs. I'm talking about being the best... The top orc... Over to the west there are six riders. Defeat them all and I will grant you Skybreaker wings.
unquote
quest:earning your wings
So you wanna join the Skybreakers, eh? You've certainly proven yourself an able Dragonmaw but that means nothing in the skies of Outland. The question has to be answered: CAN YOU FLY? And I don't just mean being able to mount up on a nether drake and delivering a shipment of crystals to the fort like those transporter scrubs. I'm talking about being the best... The top orc... Over to the west there are six riders. Defeat them all and I will grant you Skybreaker wings.
unquote
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Tolowa Dunes
The Mill Creek Road, South of Crescent City, whereabout I wanted to hike that Morning, was closed, gated, and only open on weekend, winter schedule I suspect, so so, I went North to Tolowa Dunes State Park, and turned left at the Sign, and then was very lost, but in wonderful open Ranch Land...hereabout saw Elk, some Hawk pics, and Chicken Pics, and Domestic Cat pic, and the Redwood Stumps...I just didn't have a map with, and not knowing how extensive Tolowa is, was a bit lost...anyway, I sighted some more Redwood Stumps, but these with New Redwoods growing out of them--Redwoods do this--and I pulled into a pullout for pics, and found it to be a Trail Head--Coastal Lagoon Loop Lake Earl...so geared up, and walked out...Coastal Forests I find very different from Forest hereabout in the Sierra...Coastal are very wet, and lots of Underbrush, and not being familiar with the Trees and Bushes, it's all a confusion...walk was quietquiet...sighted Big Wings amongst Trees, but just a glimpse...and when I reached the Lagoon, see Bench, Kinglets were about, Song Sparrow, Cormorant, and quiet...I'd thought there would be Rafts of Waterfowl...but no...but what there was, was Persistant Redtail Hawk calling...'declaring territory' another hiker's specualtion...and I think so!...Hawk seemed to take notice...I sat a long while on the Bench, and took long clips...on return, Hawk moved to Pine, and another long clip...clips up just snips...further back on return, sighted Acorn Woodpecker and Chickaree...Chickaree can be heard in Hawk clip...Kinglets too, and Bird I dont know call...later in the Day, near Sunset, so near I had to hurry to get back from Trail, I hiked out to Cadra Point--seen in distance across Lake Earl from Bench vantage (and next pic is from Cadra vantage) ...Redtails and Harrier...but more quiet Wet Forest...Tolowa Dunes will take a lot of sometime to explore!...I did finally that afternoon stop in the Crescent City Visitor Center and get maps, and a headsup of Fallen Giant Redwood from the recent Storm on the Stage Road, which was near where I'd been in the morning!...a fine roll thereabout, but not time to see Fallen Redwood...did see Redwood being picked up off Coast Road by road crews...missed good pic of Redwood in jaws of Steamshovel...well, they're not Steamshovels anymore...hmmph...anyway, made Steamshovel look small...all along Coast, Road repairs...could do Road Repair Week!...and Crescent City Harbor Repairs too...Tsunami pics posted thereabout...oh, for sometime!
And Blog of the Day:
http://larryeifert.com/wordpress/?p=24
Saturday, January 5, 2013
Hawk Week
Although usually a short melody, it can also be a chord progression or even a simple rhythm. Leitmotifs can help to bind a work together into a coherent whole, and also enable the composer to relate a story without the use of words, or to add an extra level to an already present story. By association, the word has also been used to mean any sort of recurring theme, (whether or not subject to developmental transformation) in literature, or (metaphorically) the life of a fictional character or a real person. It is sometimes also used in discussion of other musical genres, such as instrumental pieces, cinema, and video game music, sometimes interchangeably with the more general category of 'theme'. Such usages typically obscure the crucial aspect of a leitmotif, as opposed to the plain musical motif or theme - that it is transformable and recurs in different guises throughout the piece in which it occurs.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leitmotif
unquote
pics up from beginning of vacation...Sacramento, Tule Lake Wildlife Refuges...
pic uploads have become google problematic again...in compose edit, upload pics, there is now no menu selection to select from one's computer...workaround is to go in html edit, and upload old way...
Friday, January 4, 2013
Elk Horn Slough Sea Otters
When the little bluebird
Who has never said a word
Starts to sing Spring
When the little bluebell
At the bottom of the dell
Starts to ring Ding dong Ding dong
When the little blue clerk
In the middle of his work
Starts a tune to the moon up above
It is nature that is all
Simply telling us to fall in love
Cole Porter
http://www.stlyrics.com/songs/c/coleporter5950/letsdoit235318.html
Thursday, January 3, 2013
Sea Otters
more from Moss Landing...as it happens, there is a Sea Otter Awareness Week....
and this bit about Sutro Sam...
S.F.'s only river otter at Sutro Baths
WILDLIFE
Peter Fimrite
Updated 10:56 pm, Wednesday, January 2, 2013
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/science/article/S-F-s-only-river-otter-at-Sutro-Baths-4163180.php#ixzz2GzRcB9SO
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
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