New NatureCam with infrared

[Joe Schmoe]

So, the mourning dove and the squirrel get a stare down while the bigger banded pigeon gets the coup de grace?  Odd.

The slow motion wafting of the feathers was very poignant.  Feels like it needs some sad music to go with it 

[Wrightwood]

[ForestGal]

John, this picture of this coyote is so clear and beautiful - this was taken on your cam and not in person with your wonderful camera?  I set this pic for my computer pic for now, hope you don't mind.  (I don't know what you call it, the picture that shows when I first turn on the computer).  Good job!   

[SkierBob]

^^ good looking coyote.  And good quality pic 

My guzzler has been kinda slow lately.  I also dropped one of my camera's so it's out for repair. 

[Wrightwood]

That particular coyote picture was taken with one of the new trail cams.

I've noticed that there are so many different lighting and shadow issues during the day it's difficult to count on good photos time after time.
If you change camera position to capture a cool shot like Bob did with his coyote pup next to the guzzler you then miss anything that's going on 3 or 4 feet to the side or at certain time of the day the sun might be right into the camera lens. It takes a lot of playing around to get the right camera position and when there's a lot of activity with squirrels and birds there's an incredible amount of wasted shots that need to be reviewed.

In general trail cameras are really designed for hunters to determine game habits, not high resolution wildlife photos. The latest trail cameras are getting much better offering 12 megapixel resolution and can take either video or stills.

[Wrightwood]

A Great Horned Owl visited the guzzler this morning at 4 am.

Here's a great page that talks about the owls Eyes and Vision: http://www.avianweb.com/spottedowls.html

Their forward-facing eyes are nearly as large as human eyes and are immobile within their circular bone sockets. For this reason, owls need flexible necks, as they have to turn the entire head to change views. They have the same number of vertebrae in their necks as most mammals and can move their heads 270 degrees in either direction (nearly all the way around!).


<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/ktMQGpbE7Ms?version=3&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;rel=0&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowFullScreen&quot; value=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowscriptaccess&quot; value=&quot;always&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/ktMQGpbE7Ms?version=3&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;rel=0&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; width=&quot;853&quot; height=&quot;480&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt;" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/ktMQGpbE7Ms?version=3&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;rel=0&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowFullScreen&quot; value=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowscriptaccess&quot; value=&quot;always&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/ktMQGpbE7Ms?version=3&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;rel=0&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; width=&quot;853&quot; height=&quot;480&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt;</a>

[Calindy]

So cool, I love owls!

[Wrightwood]

Here's a still from this morning:

[Joe Schmoe]

The Southern Spotted Owl made another guzzler visit this morning at 4 am.

That's hilarious!  You didn't spike the water with meth, did you? 

[ChrisLynnet]

So cool! I kept thinking that he looks like a Disneyland animatronic. 

[Wrightwood]

My neck got sore watching it during editing

[Chesslike]

I thought it looked like he was watching a professional ping pong match. That was some high speed neck turning. 

[Wrightwood]

Note: That video is in real time

[Joe Schmoe]

If you gave it a catchy title and made that video public I bet a lot of people would enjoy watching it.

[Wrightwood]

After checking it turns out that the last owl visit was from a Great Horned Owl.

The great horned owl gets its name from the tufts of feathers on top of its head that look like horns. These tufts are sometimes referred to as ears, yet play no part in the owl's hearing. These animals vary in color and have large talons which usually kill prey instantly. The great horned owl is a solitary bird, and only stays with its mate during nesting season. They are very aggressive and will in fact attack their own species. Like the western screech owl, the great horned owl is an adaptable creature and can survive in various regions.

More on Great Horned Owls:
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birds/great-horned-owl/

[Wrightwood]

This bear showed up at the guzzler on 11-11-12. Either the neighborhood bear that's been visiting for the past few months gained a huge amount of weight or this is a much bigger bear.


<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/Mh8AFzcS5_U?version=3&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;rel=0&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowFullScreen&quot; value=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowscriptaccess&quot; value=&quot;always&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/Mh8AFzcS5_U?version=3&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;rel=0&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; width=&quot;853&quot; height=&quot;480&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt;" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/Mh8AFzcS5_U?version=3&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;rel=0&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowFullScreen&quot; value=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;allowscriptaccess&quot; value=&quot;always&quot;&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/Mh8AFzcS5_U?version=3&amp;amp;hl=en_US&amp;amp;rel=0&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; width=&quot;853&quot; height=&quot;480&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt;</a>

[Nolena]

Possibly pregnant, also.

[Wrightwood]

The big bear gobbles up old apples on the ground

<a href="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=54331460&amp;amp;force_embed=1&amp;amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;amp;show_title=0&amp;amp;show_byline=0&amp;amp;show_portrait=0&amp;amp;color=d01e2f&amp;amp;fullscreen=1&amp;amp;autoplay=0&amp;amp;loop=0&quot; /&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=54331460&amp;amp;force_embed=1&amp;amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;amp;show_title=0&amp;amp;show_byline=0&amp;amp;show_portrait=0&amp;amp;color=d01e2f&amp;amp;fullscreen=1&amp;amp;autoplay=0&amp;amp;loop=0&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; width=&quot;800&quot; height=&quot;450&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://vimeo.com/54331460&quot;&gt;BearApple&lt;/a&gt; from &lt;a href=&quot;http://vimeo.com/user13916752&quot;&gt;John&lt;/a&gt; on &lt;a href=&quot;http://vimeo.com&quot;&gt;Vimeo&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=54331460&amp;amp;force_embed=1&amp;amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;amp;show_title=0&amp;amp;show_byline=0&amp;amp;show_portrait=0&amp;amp;color=d01e2f&amp;amp;fullscreen=1&amp;amp;autoplay=0&amp;amp;loop=0&quot; /&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=54331460&amp;amp;force_embed=1&amp;amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;amp;show_title=0&amp;amp;show_byline=0&amp;amp;show_portrait=0&amp;amp;color=d01e2f&amp;amp;fullscreen=1&amp;amp;autoplay=0&amp;amp;loop=0&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; width=&quot;800&quot; height=&quot;450&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://vimeo.com/54331460&quot;&gt;BearApple&lt;/a&gt; from &lt;a href=&quot;http://vimeo.com/user13916752&quot;&gt;John&lt;/a&gt; on &lt;a href=&quot;http://vimeo.com&quot;&gt;Vimeo&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</a>

[Joe Schmoe]

Interesting that it bites at them from the side....

[Wrightwood]

<a href="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=55646405&amp;amp;force_embed=1&amp;amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;amp;show_title=0&amp;amp;show_byline=0&amp;amp;show_portrait=0&amp;amp;color=d01e2f&amp;amp;fullscreen=1&amp;amp;autoplay=0&amp;amp;loop=0&quot; /&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=55646405&amp;amp;force_embed=1&amp;amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;amp;show_title=0&amp;amp;show_byline=0&amp;amp;show_portrait=0&amp;amp;color=d01e2f&amp;amp;fullscreen=1&amp;amp;autoplay=0&amp;amp;loop=0&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; width=&quot;800&quot; height=&quot;450&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://vimeo.com/55646405&quot;&gt;Coyote at Guzzler&lt;/a&gt; from &lt;a href=&quot;http://vimeo.com/user13916752&quot;&gt;John&lt;/a&gt; on &lt;a href=&quot;http://vimeo.com&quot;&gt;Vimeo&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;" target="_blank" class="new_win">http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=55646405&amp;amp;force_embed=1&amp;amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;amp;show_title=0&amp;amp;show_byline=0&amp;amp;show_portrait=0&amp;amp;color=d01e2f&amp;amp;fullscreen=1&amp;amp;autoplay=0&amp;amp;loop=0&quot; /&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=55646405&amp;amp;force_embed=1&amp;amp;server=vimeo.com&amp;amp;show_title=0&amp;amp;show_byline=0&amp;amp;show_portrait=0&amp;amp;color=d01e2f&amp;amp;fullscreen=1&amp;amp;autoplay=0&amp;amp;loop=0&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; allowfullscreen=&quot;true&quot; allowscriptaccess=&quot;always&quot; width=&quot;800&quot; height=&quot;450&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://vimeo.com/55646405&quot;&gt;Coyote at Guzzler&lt;/a&gt; from &lt;a href=&quot;http://vimeo.com/user13916752&quot;&gt;John&lt;/a&gt; on &lt;a href=&quot;http://vimeo.com&quot;&gt;Vimeo&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</a>