Why do you need so many?

Collection Manager, Jim Dines, shows off some bats

Thursday I visited the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and was treated to a behind the scenes look at the ornithology and mammalogy departments. Kimball Garrett, Collection Manager, Ornithology and James Dines, Collection Manager, Mammalogy, took us through drawers full of well preserved birds and mammals of all shapes, sizes and colors.

The ornithology collection was started in 1913 with 250 specimens and has grown to more than 104,000 over the years. Mr. Garrett admitted that now a days, most of the birds are donated from zoos and rehabilitation centers and citizens turning in "window kills" rather than full scale collection trips. Each specimen is meticulously preserved with information about the location found, behavior prior to death, stomach contents and a staggering number of measurements.

The Pelt Room

So why do they need so many? Science, that big amorphous entity which encompasses both people and ideas, is constantly evolving, developing new methods and techniques. Every new discovery opens more doors to be explored. Mr. Garrett told us about a newly developed test that is allowing researchers to track migration routes based on contaminants in the tissues of a bird. With access to carefully prepared and cataloged collections like those at the Natural History Museum of LA County, researchers are able to map how migration patterns have changed over a larger period of time thus identifying trends that span further than one human life time.

Collection Manager, Kimball Garrett reads about a yellow-bellied sapsucker

The down side is that the process is destructive. A feather plucked here and there might not seem like much but over the course of 50 years, no more feathers will be left. The challenge is to selectively allow specimens to be used and yet preserve the collection for whatever tests science comes up with in the next 100 years.

My visit was just a little bit creepy but mostly fascinating, educational and inspiring.

Yellow-bellied sapsuckers all in a row

Taking Time to Get Lost

One of my favorite activities growing up was our Sunday "getting lost" drives through the country. We would all pile into the car and dad would pick a road out of town. At each cross road we would shout out "Go left, Go right" and we would discover new and exciting places. Sometimes we ended up in obscure state parks getting the car stuck in mud bogs and other times we found apple orchards where we could pick more apples than we could possibly eat in weeks.

Yesterday my husband and I packed our dog in the car and headed out on Highway 101 to visit my in-laws in Los Angeles. We have driven this route many times and the highway is very familiar... we stop at all the same gas stations, we eat at the same restaurants and Milo has marked the same trees over and over. This trip we took the time to get lost.

I detoured onto Highway 46 and turned off on a road called Bitterwater Drive. Immediately, the rush of the city, the urgency of the highway melted away. The hills were covered with yellow and orange, the trees were covered with colorful lichen and the sun streamed over the hills setting the grass aglow. Our GPS had no idea where we were and neither did we. It was wonderful! We stopped beside a dry creek bed and Milo raced from the car, sniffing and exploring every nook and cranny. Meadow Larks were singing, bugs were buzzing and the wind was blowing softly. It couldn't have been more peaceful or beautiful and by the time we had found our way back to the highway I felt recharged and relaxed.

I think it's important to take time to get lost, to explore new areas and find those out of way places that are unique and beautiful.

Predator vs. Prey

We had the privileged of photographing from Jean's backyard today and I learned that Jean helps more than just eagles through the cold winter. She also feeds an enormous flock of Grey-crowned Rosy-finch. These tiny birds swarm together and are very skiddish. One false move can send the entire flock into a panicked flight. I watched them soar through the sky as the eagles ignored them. They poured over the roof and descended on the feeders full of sunflower seeds as if they were one large organism.

Then, seemingly from nowhere, a large blur appeared in their midst and the flock disbursed, scattering it's members left and right. I didn't think any bird could be faster than these tiny little finch but I was wrong. A Sharp-shinned Hawk had found the flock and was determined to make a meal of at least one of these finches. It happened so quickly that I can't be sure if the hawk was successful or not. A local passing by said he had not seen a hawk out on the spit in the 8 years that he had lived there.

When compared to the eagles he seemed so tiny and yet, he was just as fierce a hunter as the eagles. I feel very lucky to have seen this hawk let alone to have the pictures to prove it.

Eagles of Homer, Alaska

Located on Kachemak Bay, Homer, Alaska is the southern-most town on the Alaska Highway system. Despite the recent uproar about feeding, Homer is still the premier location for viewing Bald Eagles up close and personal. Jean Keene aka the Eagle Lady, feeds the eagles from December to April in an effort to help them make it through the hard winter months. Though she is in her 80's, she is out there every day, rain, snow or shine.

I had no idea what to expect when I flew in from Anchorage. It was a clear day and the mountains were covered in snow. I made it to my hotel on the famous Homer Spit and watched the setting sun as it lite up the mountains and made them glow. Long-tailed ducks, Glaucous gulls, Common goldeneye, sea otters and of course, eagles, could be seen right out the window of the Lands End Resort.

This morning was a different story. A thick cloud cover rolled in overnight and the entire spit was covered in a layer of white snow. It was beautiful... beautiful and COLD. Bundled in my trusty thermals I headed out to the beach to photograph the eagles for the first time. In the low light shutter speeds were too slow to keep up with the birds as they soared and swooped so I pushed my ISO up to 1600 and found my shutter speed. It was amazing to see these enormous and majestic birds flying and perching.

Once the feeding was over the birds dispersed though a few remained on the beach, happy to digest while they watched us crawl ever so slowly closer to their position. One eagle in particular was extremely accommodating and posed for wide angle shots, close head shots and mid-range full body photos. He seemed to know exactly when I had enough of one pose and he would switch to another. I don't think a professional model could have done a better job. Once he was board (or perhaps when he realized his performance wasn't going to get him any more fish) he retired to a perch high on a rooftop to preen and nap.

I can't wait to discover what tomorrow will bring!