Volunteering for Bliss

Posted on April 6, 2013 by MaryALivingston

Today I had the honor of manning the booth for Red Tail Publishing at the 13^th Annual Run for the Wild and Open House for Shasta Wildlife Rescue.

Shasta Wildlife Rescue provides restorative care to wildlife in Northern California. Last year, this dedicated group of volunteers cared for over 1500 wild mammals and birds. It is their goal to rehabilitate the critter and return it to the wild where it can live out its life. As you can imagine, this takes a lot of time and a lot of funding. Today’s even is their annual fundraiser.

It starts early in the morning with a “Run for the Wild” and “Cash for Critters” followed by an “Open House and Baby Shower.”

A lot of people from the local community turn out for tours of the facility and to view the ambassador animals. Some of the animals rescued are not able to return to the wild, such as a bird that can no longer fly, or a fox that has been so imprinted on humans it cannot survive in the wild.

These are wild animals, they are not pets, and because of their life situation, they cannot live in the wild. These animals are cared for by trained people who are licensed by the State Department of Fish and Game to care for the animals for the remainder of the animal’s life. It is a commitment of heart, time and treasure.

So for all of you out there seeking a little bliss, consider supporting organizations like Shasta Wildlife Rescue in your area.

Even better… volunteer. Your world will be richer for it.

Here are some pictures from today. THANK YOU Norma Livingston, for being a good sport and shooting some candid pictures of the event.

“Sunny,” a turkey vulture too injured to soar with his feathered kind, is a little camera shy.

The care taker of an injured red-tailed hawk answers questions from the public.

This child is very curios about the owl and red shouldered hawk.

A great horned owl

This gray fox was kit-napped as a baby. He is too imprinted on people to live on his own in the wild. As sad, to often occurring situation.

Face painting and other fun for the kids (small and tall). The RTP booth is in the back.

Each exhibit at the event provided valuable information about wildlife rescue.

The Red-tailed hawk is the most common buteo (hawk) in North America.

All of the care takers were happy to answer questions.

Another volunteer helped visitors make pine-cone bird feeders.

One of the volunteers, absolutely ecstatic to purchase a turkey vulture plush.

Usually other illustrators and authors of Red Tail Publishing books attend events. Due to unavoidable situations, I was the only one able to attend today. My MIL, Norma, was kind enough to join me.

Mary and Norma

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Mary and Norma

Great day today at the Shasta Wildlife Rescue fundraising event.

Across the Threshold

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A pair of turkey vultures at the threshold of the nest cavity.

Turkey Vulture Rendezvous

Video

I can’t help but notice, a few followers have dropped off since I started the turkey vulture posts. There is more to come, and on Friday, I will reveal why I have been stalking turkey vultures.

In the meantime, I must get a better system for surveillance. I mounted an old video surveillance camera to view the turkey vulture nest tree in our backyard.

The video is bad at its best. As a backup, I mounted a wildlife cam on a ladder near the nest cavity. Today, the nesting pair gave quite the display. The footage is highly pixelated with poor image quality in general.

I headed out to retrieve the SD card out of the wildlife cam, but it was knocked askew sometime before the mating.

Any suggestions are welcome for a product that will allow us all to view this pair. They should start incubating eggs soon. Typically, their chicks start to fledge mid June around our area.

I know, I know, somewhere in here is bliss, but who can find it amongst the low res pixilation?

I thought about not posting this video, but figured some of you reading this post might have some suggestions.

Here is the video, great content, lousy quality.

Vulture Turf Wars

Posted on February 21, 2013 by MaryALivingston

In my last post, I noted that I was trying to capture a breeding shot of the turkey vultures. As I was cleaning my painting table, I noticed a vulture perched on the gate at the lower field, two on posts, and one on the ground. Surely, there must be a nesting pair amongst this crew.

I grabbed the camera and sneaked out the office door and around the side of the house. The one on the gate spread its wings, as vultures often do when sunning themselves. The posture was a bit more intimidating than the usual bask in the sunshine. Then the one on the ground spread out its wings.

They squared off.

Then the one on the gate literally flung itself onto the intruder. The fight was on. The fight initiator chased the other through the trees, across the big pond, and up the hill. Then the victorious vulture flew into the nest tree and fluffed its feathers in a display claiming the nest site.

Interesting goings-on in my backyard.

Vultures gather by at the lower gate. Two offer a display.

The vulture on the gate pounces on the other.

The fight ensues.

Th vulture delivers a parting shot (bite).

The intruder is chased away.

After successfully chasing the intruder away, the vulture perches in the nest tree.

Fall Salmon Run is Here

Posted on October 22, 2012 by MaryALivingston

Saturday was a busy day along our little one and a half lane, country road. More people work at the hatchery than live on this road. When the local salmon festival occurs, thousands visit in the span of 6 hours.

Although the people arrive in force to view the salmon, their numbers don’t come close to the population of turkey vultures filling the sky. Like the people, the vultures also come for the salmon. The turkey vultures are drawn in with their keen sense of smell. This may also be why the visiting local tourists don’t linger for too long. If you think a spawning salmon looks gnarly, you should smell them.

The malodorous rot of spawning salmon surely does not evoke a sense of bliss.

Giving thanks today for the turkey vultures featured in Wings of Autumn post.

This illustration for a children’s book features Chinook salmon. The salmon begin dying and rotting once they leave the ocean. By the time they reach their spawning grounds they are in rough shape.

Wings of Autumn

Posted on October 9, 2012 by MaryALivingston

The signs of autumn are slowly appearing in the Battle Creek basin. Last week bid farewell the triple digit heat with a final day of 103F (39.4C) on Monday, October 1. This week opened with a high of 80F(26.6C). The temperature drop and shorter days nudge a color shift in the trees.

Kettles of turkey vultures fill the sky. Here along the creek we have vultures year round. They even nest in our backyard. This time of year their numbers increase in the sky as they circle higher and higher on thermals. Vultures gather here for a reason. The fall run of Chinook salmon is underway.

Reviled creatures, most people consider these carrion feeders gross and ugly. If you have ever smelled rotting salmon from the spawn, you may consider these turkey vultures the most beautiful of all. We welcome their presence to keep our little valley clean.

I appreciate these birds.