strange bird

[tornado]

Or better yet......just dont read any of my stuff.. ;DNo offense taken  of course.

[Ray Ford]

Dang, people! LEARN TO SPELL! If you actually think you're gonna convince people that you saw one, LEARN to spell! It goes a long way towards credibility. Well, maybe not if you're actually stupid enough to believe your own lies.

    Anyways, here's how ya spell it: pter⋅o⋅dac⋅tyl

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Pterodactyl

For future reference, when you know  you're not even getting any of the letters right, click here: www.dictionary.com

    I know, I'm a jerk. But if this post offends you, you're an idiot. My condition is a choice.

I, at one time, taught English, and I sometimes get a little aggravated at poor spelling and bad grammar. But there are a lot of good and decent and intelligent people who are not highly literate.  I'm not the best speller in the world--when you get right down to it.  I, at one time, was also a preacher, and there is a Biblical passage that says that anyone who calls another a fool is agoin' to hell.

[scootrd]

Dang (slang. more proper "Darn), (do not need comma) people! (improper use. Use Comma)LEARN TO SPELL! If you actually think you're gonna (slang. Use more proper going to) convince people that(word "that" not needed) you saw one, (Use semi-colon)LEARN to spell! It goes a long way towards credibility. Well, maybe not(need comma here)if you're actually stupid enough to believe your own lies.
 
    Anyways,(drop the "S") here's how ya spell it: pter⋅o⋅dac⋅tyl
 
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Pterodactyl
 
For future reference, when you know  you're not even (not needed) getting any of the letters right, click here: www.dictionary.com
 
    I know, (not needed)I'm a jerk.(use comma) But (use lower case) if this post offends you, you're an idiot. My condition is a choice. (Kind of a run on sentence, but what the heck)

Darn people, LEARN TO SPELL!  If you actually think you're going to convince people you saw one, LEARN to spell! It goes a long way towards credibility. Well, maybe not, if you're actually stupid enough to believe your own lies.

    Anyway, here's how ya spell it: pter⋅o⋅dac⋅tyl

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Pterodactyl

For future reference, when you know  you're not getting any of the letters right, click here: www.dictionary.com
 
  I'm a jerk, but if this post offends you, you're an idiot. My condition is a choice.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I, at one time, taught English, and I (do not need to use "I" twice) sometimes get a little aggravated at (improper use of the word "at". Should use with) poor spelling and bad grammar. But (should never start a sentence with conjunctions) there are a lot    there is a lot of good(Singular subject "lot" conflicts with plural verb "are.) and (use comma not and)decent, and (use comma not and)intelligent people who are not highly literate.  I'm I am (avoid contractions when possible) not the best speller in the world--when you get right down to it. (THIS WHOLE SENTENCE SHOULD BE RE-WORKED) I, at one time, was also a preacher, and there is a Biblical passage that says(should use the word states if you are quoting) that (don't need to use the word that twice)anyone who calls another a fool is agoin' Going to hell. (trying to Join two totally separate independent thoughts together. Need to re-work this sentence as well, or use semi-colon or start new paragraph) and should use quotes if properly quoting .

I, at one time, taught English, and sometimes get a little aggravated with poor spelling and bad grammar. There is a lot of good, decent, intelligent people who are not highly literate, and when you get right down to it I am also not the best speller in the world. 

At one time I was a preacher; there is a Biblical passage that states "Anyone who calls another a fool is going to hell."

Sorry Travis and Ray; could not resist.  Just poking fun. 

Just Remember! If you walk a mile in another mans shoes; your a mile away and you are wearing his shoes.

[streak]

There have been reports of eagles carrying off lambs, babies, etc.  All have proven to be false.  Tests show that an eagle can lift only three or four pounds and carry it for any distance.  Urban rumors. old wive's tales, folk tales, campfire tales, etc.  Usually told to kids to keep them in line. i.e. "If you don't stop that, you'll go blind."

Loader,
Do not know what type of eagle they used in the test but the Golden Eagle is capable of taking young mountain sheep, or mountain goats and carrying them down mountain slopes.There was a documentary on this I believe on the Discovery Channel a couple of years ago. Pretty impressive what those birds could.

[243dave]

Watch this  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-ibdPMGC1Y

[scootrd]

BS video. Its amazing how they covered all the camera angles.  come on.

[myronman3]

now who is being rude?      well, at least you are up to a $1.67 now.

[scootrd]

Apparently , I'm being chastised for being rude.
Let me rephrase with proper grammar syntax, so it will provide more clarity of what I meant.

Is this a BS video?. Its amazing how they covered all the camera angles.  Come on,  someones pulling our leg, right?

Does this now pass inspection?.
I've learned in life , Some people feel the need to retaliate, Tit for Tat though a bit childish makes them feel better.

[243dave]

That is a believable video, If you notice the bird can't make any lift or even stay horizontal, its a controlled fall. I have seen a documentry some time ago about a type of eagle that caught small monkeys and could actually bring them to its nest. Of course the monkeys were probably only a few pounds. There are some good videos of eagles catching deer(and killing) and such but I haven't seen one able to take off clutching it.  Dave

[scootrd]

243dave, If it's real it's truly amazing. I have never seen anything like that before.
What do you gauge the weight of the animal to be?

[Blackhawker]

As a past falconer, I can tell you that flying away with an animal this large is near impossible.  Yes, the eagle can drag a goat from a cliff and maybe "coast" or glide down with it but it absolutely CANNOT lift and carry it away. 

The eagle that hunts the monkeys is a Harpy Eagle.  I believe this eagle lives in the Phillipines.  There are falconers around the world (including myself) that hunt larger than normal prey with our birds.  In Mongolia, the natives there hunt wolves with Golden Eagles.  In the states, there are people that have been known to hunt small deer and antelope among other game.  People that hunt with red tailed hawks hunt anything from rabbits to geese.  Again, while these birds in the wild may take large prey such as these, it is highly unlikely unless the bird is near starving.  The risk is too great for the bird to take such a chance.  Typically it is a young bird that takes such chances and many of them pay the price for it.  The typical mortality rate for raptors in their first year is up to 75% and much of that rate is due to the fact that they haven't learned how to hunt or properly hunt for themselves.

Here is a long video with some goat attacks by an eagle:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VklTs-Tid_I&feature=related

You will see that the eagle does not have an easy time with such prey.  I believe this particular eagle was lucky enough to have a nest downward from the top of the canyon which aided it's attempts to carry to a nest sight.  This is NOT typical.  If one has the chance to look into an eagle nest, you'll typically find cotton tail and jackrabbit remains in it, not cows, deer, wolves, and dinosaurs. 

Here is a falconer hunting a small deer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAsXtDKdU0Q&feature=related

Again, this is NOT typical for a wild eagle.

[scootrd]

Blackhawker,
Truly amazing footage,
Though in the initial video posted it looked spliced with the footage you posted.

[Blackhawker]

Blackwater , look at the initial video that was first posted I swear some of beginning footage looks spliced from this more believable video you just posted.

I agree, it does appear this way.  However, about three quarters the way through the video I posted, the goat kill is shown.  It may be botched because the initial attack is at the hind end of the animal and the carry is from the head.  There is definitely a clip missing here.  Also, the sound of the sheep is fake and dubbed in.  How does one get that kind of sound recorded from a bottom of a canyon shot?  There is a lot of "Hollywood" when it comes to making nature films.

Just as a side note on the hind attack vs the head attack.  There are ways to encourage a falconry bird to attack heads rather than tails.  Wild birds learn this normally or starve to death.  A hind attack typically ends in a rough ride, broken feathers or worse, and a loss of the prey.  Head grabs are very effective and there is little struggle.

[myronman3]

the thing is, most raptors dont carry food all the way back to the nest.  i have seen eagles countless times ripping flesh off of roadkilled deer.  they fill their bellies, and then like most birds, fly back to the nest and regurgitate it for the young.  there is more than one way to accomplish a task, and that applies to this situation.  all the bird has to do is kill the animal, then get it somewhere they can safely rip pieces off.   

[Blackhawker]

Good point myronman.  However, raptors don't regurgitate like robins or passerines.  Typically, they tear off chunks (legs, wings, heads, etc) and leave it in the nest for the young to tear up for themselves.  Believe it or not, that's how young raptors learn to kill and target certain prey species.  If one feeds a young raptor processed food, without identity of what it is or where it came from (rabbit, bird, etc) they'll never know or learn to target prey or kill.  This is a huge problem with people who rehabilitate young raptors.  It's rarely done correctly and the bird ends up starving when released. 

You are right though, typically, a raptor will "stash" a kill and eat in a safe place.  Lots of times they will return to it for several days and feed up.  As much as they are predators, they also scavenge a lot.  I had a kestrel that carried mice and snakes on top of roofs and stash them in gutters.  Every time I took him out he'd go back to that spot and feed up.  I had to stop flying him in the area for at least two weeks when that would happen.

[scootrd]

My wife worked for certified rehabber for a while who specialized in Birds of prey.
I was able to visit the sanctuary once. The huge raptors were amazing .. Turkey Vulture , various hawks , Osprey.
But the three that most fascinated me was a small Saweet  owl (sp?). It had one eye missing.
The other was a very small Kestrel with only 1 and 2/3 wing. (got tangled up with some barbed wire I believe)
Neither could ever be re-released. So they live on the sanctuary and do the grade school circuit educating
young kids about the different species of birds.

She also had a Merlin , that was found injured just this side of the Canadian border.
and was almost ready to be re-released back into the wild.

Don't get me wrong the Big birds were neat,

But those 3 little ones were awesome.
and that little Kestrel was truly amazing.

(First time I ever saw either one).

 

[myronman3]

i have a thing for owls as well.  they are facinating.  from the barn owls, to the great horned owls, and a bunch of owls i dont even know what the hell they are.  i saw an artic owl once in southern wisconsin!  (censored word) huge and white, but it was winter and colder than hell.  beats me what it was  doing that far south.  but is sure was neat to see it.  saw a tiny owl when i was a kid with my dad hunting one day, it was about the size of a robin.
   my brother can call in owls pretty much on demand as long as it is dark out.  i have told people about it and when they express doubt, we take them out and show them.  it is always a very cool thing to witness. 

[Ray Ford]

Sorry Travis and Ray; could not resist.  Just poking fun. 

Just Remember! If you walk a mile in another mans shoes; your a mile away and you are wearing his shoes.
[/quote]

We could discuss some of your corrections to my text, but I'm not going to bore people with it.  Perhaps I'll just say these things:  Your "mans" has no apostrophe.  Your "your" is the possessive, not the contraction of "you are."  I am unaware of a rule that an introductory clause should be set off iwth a semi-colon.  Following this introductory clause, you have two independent clauses which should be set apart, in most cases, with a comma.  Therein, your second "you" is unnecessary.  And, a direct address was set off by a comma when I was alearnin.'  The construction would read better as this:  If you walk a mile in another man's shoes, you are a mile away and wearing his shoes. 

Sorry, Scootrd.  Just poking retaliatory fun.

P.S.  I am a published author on a small scale, but it is also true that I am somewhat rusty in my usage--and I have my own quirks of style.

[Blackhawker]

Yes, raptors are very cool, hawk, owls and the little guys too.  I worked at a nature center for about four or five years and rehabbed raptors.  In fact, that is what inspired me to obtain my falconer's license.  Scootrd, I too took a liking for the little falcons.  I loved our peregrine and hybrids but I really loved our kestrels.  Hence, I flew a lot of kestrels in falconry as well.  They are incredibly intelligent and it's a wonder that they didn't become the dominant species of the world.    I guess size and fingers have their advantages. 

Myronman, the owls are also really cool.  They're hard to train but I think it's mostly because they just operate in their own little world.  Very interesting and tough birds indeed!  By the way, it's one of the few if not the only species that will hunt skunks.  (Raptors have very little to no sense of smell)

[scootrd]

Sorry Travis and Ray; could not resist.  Just poking fun. 

Just Remember! If you walk a mile in another mans shoes; your a mile away and you are wearing his shoes.

We could discuss some of your corrections to my text, but I'm not going to bore people with it.  Perhaps I'll just say these things:  Your "mans" has no apostrophe.  Your "your" is the possessive, not the contraction of "you are."  I am unaware of a rule that an introductory clause should be set off iwth a semi-colon.  Following this introductory clause, you have two independent clauses which should be set apart, in most cases, with a comma.  Therein, your second "you" is unnecessary.  And, a direct address was set off by a comma when I was alearnin.'  The construction would read better as this:  If you walk a mile in another man's shoes, you are a mile away and wearing his shoes. 

Sorry, Scootrd.  Just poking retaliatory fun.

P.S.  I am a published author on a small scale, but it is also true that I am somewhat rusty in my usage--and I have my own quirks of style.

I relent.
I repent.
You definitely win
 
It has been so many years since I had to worry about proper grammatical sentences; Quite honestly, I'm not even sure I am correct with half of what I marked up 
Man, if you don't use it,  you definitely lose it.
I took a second Job for a while technical writing for a large corporation to bring additional monies into the house when my sister had cancer . I can state unequivocally, one of the worst desk jobs in the world!! Whoever  makes up all the darn acronyms corporations use should be shot. Actually now that I think about it more , they should be flogged , then shot. 

Peace

[243dave]

Scootrd, I figure that goat is not much over ten pounds. Like I said before its believable because it seemed like a controlled fall and it didn't achieve no lift. You guys are right about the clip I posted being edited with sounds added and all. You guys have alot more experience with birds than I do, I just thought I'd throw in my 2 cents.  Dave

[Blackhawker]

Scootrd, I figure that goat is not much over ten pounds. Like I said before its believable because it seemed like a controlled fall and it didn't achieve no lift. You guys are right about the clip I posted being edited with sounds added and all. You guys have alot more experience with birds than I do, I just thought I'd throw in my 2 cents.  Dave

Isn't that what it's all about on one of these forums?  Two cent's worth!

[scootrd]

Scootrd, I figure that goat is not much over ten pounds. Like I said before its believable because it seemed like a controlled fall and it didn't achieve no lift. You guys are right about the clip I posted being edited with sounds added and all. You guys have alot more experience with birds than I do, I just thought I'd throw in my 2 cents.  Dave

Not I. I know very little about them. Especially of the large Raptors.
They do amaze me though.

We have a pair of nesting Osprey just a short mile from us. Usually on Sundays if chores get finished in time and weather is good we take the canoe and a few fishing poles. Throw a couple of lines in  and watch them raising their young. It's pretty awesome to see them catch
warm air currents and not only stay aloft but actually rise up and circle over the lake with barely a flap of their wings. Then when they see a fish its a near vertical dive. They almost look look like dart pulling their wings in.
They usually catch more fish than us also.

The past 2 years the wife and I actually started to keep a log of Birds that visit the farm.
When you start looking out for them, It's amazing how many varieties there actually are.

[Travis Morgan]

Goats, sheep, and fawns are all really light when they're first born, as well as some breeds of cattle.

[Glanceblamm]

We see a few of the Great Blue Heron's around here but mainly the Sandhill Cranes. I dont have to go too far to see a Bald Eagle as they winter about an hour to my north along the IL river or 1.5Hr to the sw of me where the IL and the Mississippi  rivers join near Grafton, IL.

Heard a good story once of a Warden arresting a river rat near what we call the Sanganoids for killing & eating a Sandhill Crane. The judge had great contempt for this fellow and sarcastically ask him what a sandhill crane tasted like. Bout like one of them Bald Eagles your honor, our man replied.

[myronman3]

ha! ha!  that is a hoot!   seriously, i believe there are a few places you can shoot and eat sandhills.  word is that they are GREAT eating.   

[Blackhawker]

I was just passing through the North Platte, NE area last week on my way home from prairie dog hunting out west and I heard or read about hunting Sandhills in that area.  I can't seem to remember where I had seen or heard it but I know I've heard of that in the past as well.  Seems weird to have a hunting season on a tallish, skinny bird but I suppose they've got more meat on them then a pheasant.  Plus, being a long distance migratory bird, I'm sure they've got some good dark red meat on them much like duck or goose.  I wouldn't be surprised that they're good tasting.