African Wild Dogs at the Wilds

As promised, it's time to start wrapping up my report on my time at the Wilds.

One of the more fascinating animal species that I encountered during my photo camp outing at the Wilds was the African Wild Dog. Their scientific name (Lycaon pictus) translates to "painted wolf", and is a direct reference to their spotted coat.

At first I thought they were hyenas and that this was just some other name for hyena. Their vocalizations even sounded like something I would expect from a hyena. Ooops! Hyenas, turns out, aren't dogs at all, not even in the same family. Just another notch in my nature education belt there. Hyenas are scavengers, picking up the scraps left behind (if there are any) by hunters such as the African Wild Dog (hereafter noted as "AWD").

An interesting characteristic of the AWD that we were informed of is that they take special care of their own. Apparently, most pack animals don't want to be burdened with sick or wounded pack members, so they leave their weakest links behind to fend for themselves (and most likely die). The AWD, though, will leave a guardian behind with these frail members during a hunt, and those who participated will come back afterward and feed regurgitated kill to all those left behind.

I also learned through some research online that they are not territorial animals, so the territorial urine marking that is common among most canine species is not present among AWDs. (Urine marking, instead, is used to demonstrate which are the dominant male and female of the pack.)

It is said that they tend to prey on animals about twice their size, although they may sometimes go for even larger prey. I suspect it depends on the size of the pack - seems a larger pack would have a better chance of taking down an animal such as this Common Eland, another species managed at the Wilds.

Being canines, they were easier to "relate" to than, say, a giraffe, given that their domesticated counterparts are "like family" to so many of us. The pack currently managed at the Wilds is a family unit, with mom, dad and either 4 or 6 pups. I appreciated the mostly quiet, seemingly easygoing nature that they seemed to exhibit when we able to observe them. I saw them play with each other, gnaw on old bones, and hide from the sun on that somewhat balmy day.

Unfortunately the AWD is an endangered species, due to habitat loss in its native Africa, and hunting by humans. There appear to be several conservation organizations working to reverse this trend, and the Wilds is certainly one of those organizations. And it's right here, in southeast Ohio.

Give the gift of life

I gave blood today.

Something to keep in mind is that there are some folks out there who want to donate, but can't for one reason or another (I couldn't donate for a few years after I came back from France on the off-chance that I had come in to contact with Mad Cow disease or something like that). So, all the more reason to go out there and do it if you are physically able. And, it just makes you feel good!

Call your local Red Cross office, or visit the American Red Cross online, for more information.

Go ahead, be a hero - save a life.

Project Feederwatch season begins

Project Feederwatch (aka PFW) started this weekend. For those of you unfamiliar, PFW is a citizen science program run by Cornell University's Lab of Ornithology. Here is the basic summary from their overview page:

Project FeederWatch is a winter-long survey of birds that visit feeders at backyards, nature centers, community areas, and other locales in North America. FeederWatchers periodically count the highest numbers of each species they see at their feeders from November through early April. FeederWatch helps scientists track broadscale movements of winter bird populations and long-term trends in bird distribution and abundance.

Project FeederWatch is operated by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Bird Studies Canada.

The program is entering its 21st year, I believe, and this is my 4th year participating. I didn't get the weekend off to the roaring start that I would have liked b/c we were traveling yesterday and busy doing other things today, but I was able to spend a little time counting. I really look forward to getting up early on weekend mornings again to be with my winged friends - to count them, observe their actions, and to tune in to nature during a season when so much has gone dormant.

I will surely see and count trusted friends:

Mourning Dove

Northern Cardinal


Carolina/Black-capped Chickadee


Tufted Titmouse


White-throated Sparrow


American Goldfinch (feeding frenzy)


Dark-eyed Juncos

And new, if only fleeting, friends

Pine Warbler (new visitor, early 2008)


Northern "Yellow-shafted" Flicker (random guest)


Red-winged Blackbirds (new visitors, early 2008)

And simple reminders of their presence

Feederwatch helps get me through the dreariness of winter. Here's to a new season!

Pocket of blue in a sea of red

History has been made, and I am happy that it was made in my lifetime.

Image courtesty of fanpop.com

I'm not normally one to publicly air my political views to a broad, unknown audience, but I am very excited at how this year's presidential election turned out, as is, it would seem, much of the world.

I just finished watching and listening to both McCain's concession speech and Obama's acceptance speech, and I have great respect for what both candidates had to say. I was very moved by Obama's powerful speech, and I am hopeful that he will lead us in a new direction. I appreciate his candor - that he has acknowledged that change will not happen overnight, and that it will not necessarily be easy, but I am hopeful that with his win, our nation might embark on a new mindset. I was not hopeful 4 years ago, nor 8 years ago, but today I am hopeful. And it doesn't even necessarily have to do with party affiliation, but with the ideals and goals the candidates have brought to the table.

I place a lot of value in how people present themselves, and if Obama's actions turn out to be as good as his presentation - which I view as genuine, calm and confident - then I think we have good reason to be hopeful.

map courtesy of CNN.com

I am proud to be resident of a county that helped elect Barack Obama as the 44th president of the United States. And I am thankful that I have the right to be a part of the democratic process.

And now that we know who our next president is going to be, these questions have come to my mind:

• What's next for Sarah Palin? Will she fade back into Alaska, never to be heard from again?
  
• How could so many counties in Ohio have voted for McCain?
  
• Back before technology (internet, TV, radio, telephone), how long after election day did it take before the nation knew who their president was?

Election 2008

All I have to say is get out there and vote on Tuesday!

Think of it as a birthday present to me (my birthday falls on election day this year)!

Happy Birthday mutts!

Emmett and Jupiter turned 12 a few days ago (they are brother and sister).  They spend their days "confined" to roughly 6 acres of our land, free to roam within their electronic fence range, so I thought it would be a nice birthday treat if we took them for a walk along the path in the woods across the road.

These are some shots (taken from a dog's-eye view) from our walk today.

Hmm... something smells very interesting.

Some Jupito tail

Here Emmett kicked up a big Sycamore leaf, but the perspective makes it look like he's carrying it in his mouth.

I was (almost) always bringing up the rear, so I got lots of butt shots.

On the move...

Oops... Emmett got himself wrapped around a tree.  Poor Dopey Dog.

Nice legs!

Family photos

The walk tuckered 'em out, but I hope they enjoyed it!  It was a beautiful Indian Summer day, so I know I did.