Random Picture Thread

That doesn't surprise me.

 

Up until a few years ago these birds were quite rare in these parts but now I have been seeing them often. The Crested Caracara is one of many species altering their range due to changes in the climate. I was able to get a quick shot with my phone of this family while out on my morning bike ride. I usually can't get this close. The juvenile is on the left. Last spring I observed possibly the same two adults gathering sticks for building a nest somewhere.

A closeup from searching the internet.

 

Just back from walking this monster...

That's the Disused Bo'ness Harbour, which used to import the majority of pit props for Scotland, and beyond the Bo'ness and Kinneil steam railway.

 

I guess he's hereby nominated for the title . .

 

I wondered about the picture too, I've grabbed it from the twitter of the Dutch Vogelbescherming (bird protection association), so I'd hoped they wouldn't fool me.

P.S. - here's a large version of the pic for a detailed study of the potential photoshop hokum in it.

 

Southern Pacific Train #19, the Summer Cascade. 1936 near Portland Oregon.

 

I wonder how many crested cara caras are laid low at the Texas wind farms.

 

10 of the Worst-sited Wind Energy Projects for Birds | American Bird Conservancy

GULF WIND
Location: Kenedy County, Texas (Babcock & Brown, now owned by Pattern Energy)

This wind energy project, on the Kenedy Ranch in southern Texas, is located inside the Gulf Coast and Lower Rio Grande bird migration corridors. Many sensitive grassland species, such as Sprague's Pipit, Savannah Sparrow, Horned Lark, Grasshopper Sparrow, and Long-billed Curlew, also use the area and could be harmed through collisions or displacement. The area is also used by several resident raptor species, including White-tailed Hawk, Crested Caracara, and Harris's Hawk.

The region was recognized in the top 500 Important Bird Areas in the United States by ABC in 2003. To the developer's credit, radar units have been deployed to detect and shut down the turbines when large numbers of birds are present, but insufficient information is yet available to prove their effectiveness in preventing bird deaths at this location.

 

Yeah, I often wonder about the forests of giant bird swatters springing up all over the place. Once a year I drive up to Oklahoma City on Interstate 35. A few years ago I was surprised to find a giant wind farm in the Arbuckle mountains that was not there the year before. They grow quick.

 

I hate them. Coal is better.

 

I'm not sure . . .

ICE​

 

I've heard hatred stirreth up strifes . . . .

Also, never hate your (so-called) enemies, as it negatively affects your ability to judge them.

P.S. - Oh well . . . .

 

Here is our presumptive next US Supreme Court Justice during his recent confirmation hearing. Lucky us.

 

Sadly, bats are also taking quite a beating from wind turbines.

Wind Turbines Kill More Than 600,000 Bats A Year. What Should We Do? | Popular Science
Wind turbines kill a rather staggering 600,000 to 900,000 bats every year, according to a new study.

Wind turbines can kill bats in two ways: Blunt force and what’s called barotrauma. A tiny bat stands no chance against a turbine blade two train cars long, whirling at 150 MPH. Even if the bat isn’t struck, spinning turbines create changes in air pressure as they move, which can essentially cause the animals’ lungs to explode.

Bat Killings by Wind Energy Turbines Continue | Scientific American
In what is now considered a classic study at the Casselman Wind Project in Somerset County, Pa., in 2008 and 2009 Arnett “feathered” the blades in the evening hours of bats’ critical fall migration period. Feathering involves turning the blades parallel to the wind so the turbines do not rotate. Arnett feathered blades at wind speeds of five to 6.5 meters per second, slightly above the cut-in speed – the speed at which the turbines connect with the power grid—now typical in the industry, which is 3.5 to four meters per second. Delaying the cut-in speed reduced bat deaths by 44 to 93 percent, depending on the night studied and conditions. And delaying turbine starts until slightly higher wind speeds during this two-month migration period, Arnett estimated, would only reduce annual wind energy production, by less than 1 percent. A flurry of research by other scientists followed, showing feathered blades and higher cut-in speed saved more bat lives than other proposed solutions.


Saving bats from wind turbines is easy | Engadget
A new study in Sweden found that the country's wind turbines kill tens of thousands of bats annually.

The University of Lund study proposes that local governments require nighttime halts to the spinning blades for at least 10 nights between June 15th and September 15th, when wind is low anyway.

 

Bird whackers don't make enough electricity. That train must depend upon fossil fuels.