Is that why otters always seem so happy?

A missing link in the evolution of sea otters and seals has evidently been found. The newly found link shows the ancestors of otters and seals walked on land before becoming sea animals. Is that why otters always look like they are playing all day and just having fun with life?

Douglas Adams wrote that the decision of human ancestors to come out of the sea was the big mistake. In one episode of the old Hitchhiker's Guide TV shows Douglas Adams actually appears in the buff walking back into the ocean. Was he right? Darwin thought it was a natural progression - the transition from land to fresh water to the sea.

Did we get it wrong by leaving the ocean, and sea otters got it right by going into the ocean? Have we missed something? Are we supposed to be somewhere... else?

See this link for more information on the progression to the sea: BBC News

How badly do we want to photograph Snow Geese?

At this time of the year there are snow geese in the Vancouver area, but they don't stay around for long, so photographing them can only be done for a short time. We are getting quite into taking pictures of birds, so this sounds like a challenge we need to pursue. But should we?

It is very cold out there right now. There is snow on the ground, so it's difficult to drive safely. The birds are typically found in fields - last year many schools had to keep the children inside because the school grounds were covered in birds. But the fields they like are way outside Vancouver in the suburbs, so that means driving.

We were at the Reifel Bird Sanctuary a couple of days ago, but the birds were not. We did see some flocks of large white birds that were probably the snow geese while we were driving to the sanctuary, but there were no snow geese in the sanctuary, so we missed the opportunity to photograph them that day. On the way home we may have seen a flock flying back where we had just come from, but we weren't sure, so we decided not to go on a wild goose chase.

So now we have to decide how much more effort we will go to for photos of these birds... it is cold out there, but we didn't get any pictures last year, do we wait until next year? That's pretty long term planning for us! And if we get some pictures this year, will we have to get better pictures next year? Such pressure from these migratory birds!

This could be the makings of a multi-year wild goose chase!

What can you buy for 50 cents?

Interestingly, there is no easy key stroke to get the cent symbol anymore. Maybe that was just on typewriters.

So you're probably saying there is nothing you can buy for 50 cents... but there is something very valuable that provides for many minutes of enjoyment. It's bird seed!

We went to the Reifel Bird Sanctuary on Tuesday. It was a frigid -6 degrees celsius (yes, in Vancouver that's too damned cold and no one is used to it) and there was snow on the ground (which also doesn't usually happen in or around Vancouver) but it was sunny and it's a great time of the year to take photos of birds. So we braved the cold to take some photos. Because it is winter and it's very hard for birds to find food under the snow, we opted to get a couple of bags of bird seed at the entrance gate. It was 50 cents a bag!

When we got the bird seed the woman at the entrance said the birds would be happy to see us because very few people had been there in this weather. The mix of seed was good for the birds right now, so they could use the food and we were sure it was all good for them. Typically we don't get bird seed because it's not a great idea to make wild birds dependent on humans. Unfortunately, that's why the birds are at the sanctuary, so they already are dependent.

We saw many little sparrows and chickadees, the ubiquitous mallards, coots, and pintails, and 3 sandhill cranes! The sandhill cranes were almost as tall as me! They are graceful grey birds that introduced themselves by walking on water - the frozen water in one of the ponds. After a great photo shoot they flew off and we followed them. They were near some handy benches, so we got the bird seed out and had a wonderful time feeding the cranes (and some ducks too). The cranes have long thin beaks and very good aim to collect the bird seeds on the ground. So we took even more pictures.

It was good for the birds, and good for us too. So that's what 50 cents will buy.

Why did the pigeon cross the road?

Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to the other side.

The question I have is: Why are those pigeons on the road in the middle of traffic? And if they are crossing the road, why are they moving in odd circles rather than going from one side to the other? And if they are pigeons - which they are - why are they walking instead of flying across the road?

These are the pigeons who usually sit on the power lines that cross the road at the corner just up the hill from us. They are the ones that are known to aim their droppings so that they hit as many people as possible - we have washed off plenty. So they don't seem to be dumb birds.

The weather may have changed rather drastically at the beginning October here in the rain forest (oh yeah, rain forest, I remember that, it was such a sunny summer I almost forgot) but the pigeons knew about this. They've been through this before, the rain comes, it gets cooler, been here, done that. It's fall, it's now going to rain until March.

But the pigeons seem to have, on mass, lost their common bird sense about not walking across roads and into traffic. As we drive onto the ramp down to our parking lot, 3 pigeons decide to walk right under the car! We are going at a crawl and hoping the birds get out of the way of the tires, but why are they walking under the car instead of flying away? A quick look back confirms that no one was hit, but that was a tense drive for us! Are the pigeons messing with our minds?

Has mother nature gotten bored with the using obvious climate changes to wake us up to the peril that faces us and she's now making the birds do wacky things to get us to pay attention? Or have the pigeons upped their consciousness to a point where all of the pigeons have been watching us long enough to get a few ideas on how to make the monkeys freak out?

I don't think it's a random occurrence, I think the pigeons are playing with our minds. Why did the pigeon cross the road? To play with our minds!

Will Crows chase any bird?

While we were in Parksville (on the East coast of Vancouver Island) a couple of weeks ago I witnessed a great display of bird flight while sitting on a bench by the beach. A Bald Eagle was being chased by a Crow.

The fight was not that involved – there was no contact between the birds. The Bald Eagle looked a bit bored. The Crow seemed to be having fun. But when they came within a few feet of where I was sitting the sheer size of the Bald Eagle - and those amazing talons!!! - was awesome! This may be one of those fish stories where the fish gets bigger with each telling of the story, but I swear that bird was as big as me!

I didn't get my camera out in time to take a picture, and I'm still kicking myself for that. My spouse has some good pictures of the Bald Eagles we saw on our trip on his Flickr website.

So a couple of days ago I was sitting in a park in downtown Vancouver, close to home, when I saw a miniature version of the same in-flight battle: a Crow was chasing a Seagull. Neither of them were awesome or huge, and again the Crow seemed to be pestering and playing with the Seagull.

So will Crows chase any bird just for the fun of it?

I thought that the Crow in Parksville was trying to scare the Bald Eagle away from the Crow's nest. Bald Eagles are willing to eat anything, including small birds, so it may have been trying to eat Crow. (No, not admitting humiliation, not that kind of eating crow! Eating the little baby birds.)

But maybe not. Maybe the Crow was just pestering the Bald Eagle for exercise. Just chasing another bird because it likes chasing other birds!

Maybe us monkeys, err, sorry, people, make too much of animal behaviour. It may not be all life-and-death struggles. The other animals on this planet may have a sense of play as well.

What is the difference between a Crow and a Raven?

Two all-black birds, both inhabiting the West coast of North America – the common crow inhabiting all of North America – how can you tell which species you are looking at?

I just stumbled across the answer to that question last weekend!

I was walking in a park in downtown Vancouver about 3 weeks ago and I heard what I thought was someone talking excitedly in a language I didn't recognize. I looked around to see who it was, but there were no people close to me in the park! I followed the voice to a light post. Sitting on top of the light post was a black bird. I stared at the bird, and yes, it was the bird talking! It was all black, so it wasn't a parrot. It had a puffed up throat, which looked odd for a crow. I wondered if it had swallowed something odd that was making the noise, but it seemed to be a happy bird. It was doing quite a good impression of a laughing human actually!

Then last weekend I was reading a book on birds of BC, and I found the answer: I saw a Raven! In downtown Vancouver!

This bird is often found on first-nation totem poles, and it has a long history along the Pacific coast. It is known as the “trickster” bird because it does mimic human speech. And I saw one! I'm jazzed!