2 is the leading stud of the pack. In all of the study areas he's had the most girls, partly I think, to luck, but partly because he's one mean dude, at least when it comes to other males. In the past weeks, I've seen him get into fights where he rolls into and down things, where he comes back bleeding profusely, where he chases other males for yards, and through the sage, coming back worse for wear when he left, and yet he seems to always land upright; be in a position to pull himself together, and be attractive enough to get the girl. Well, maybe not physically attractive enough, but strong enough to be able to strut without embarrassing himself by limping..
I felt it important to highlight his strengths, before explaining what happened today. 2 was doing his usual strut around; which means he was trying to control two territories that are unfortunately bisected by another males space, who doesn't take kindly to virile personalities. As these two were having it out (yet again), I noticed a new head coming out of a burrow. I left the boys to their land issues, and watched as a somewhat squat dog emerged from burrow XP. She turned around after she came out, so her back was to me, and I realized that with her low center of gravity and her particular marker, she looked like a tiger. Her identifier is 5STR, which stands for 5 stripe. She sat in the snow, looking around dazedly, as most dogs do upon first awakening, and then started to eat.
2, of course, spotted her almost immediately. He finished his business with 29, i.e sent him running, and swaggered over to 5STR, where she promptly tried to bite him, then lunged, as the winner of all fights male took off as fast as he could go. She stopped after a few feet, but he must have thought she was going to do serious damage, because he didn't stop until he'd entered the sage..where I think upon arrival he realized he needed to do some serious re-thinking of strategy...
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
prints, prints, everywhere
Today started out slow, with the two girls in front getting up early (as in 9 am), along with 29, and the posse in back waiting until a more reasonable hour, rousting out at 10. I watched 92, 2, 30, and then observed X6un emerging. Upon her emergence, 2 trotted over, gave her a thourough once over, and followed her back down her burrow. Figuring she was going, I waited for her to come back out, and for the circus to begin; for males to start fighting, and for dogs to be running everywhere. It never happened. 2 would stick his head casually out, and then go back down. As for everyone else not interested in bloodshed, or passing genes along, they contributed to the running around. At this point, watching 30 chasing 92, and subsequently 92 chasing him, I realized that my weeding job had missed a few spots. The dogs kept disappearing at key points in their interactions..Say, for example, 92 was jumping (jumping because she couldn't just walk through the 2 inches of snow, as it came past her chin) towards a dog that I needed to identify to complete the interaction notes....aaaand they'd both disappear behind some weeds and down a burrow that I hadn't known was there. My personal favorite was when 2 decided to come all the way out at days end, and then just stood in a spot where, not only could I not see him, he managed to just disappear as Erica was watching him from her tower. Combining both the visual losses of interacting dogs, and 2 and his disappearing act, I decided I needed to familiarize myself with all the burrows, and mark a few new ones as well. At the end of the day, I climbed out of my tower to determine which burrows were the most used; surprisingly there were two that were in obvious extreme use, so I placed markers at them. Yes, I also did some more weeding of the prairie, and as for 2, let's just say the deuce is good..
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Boy am I glad I weeded...
I am sooo glad that I weeded yesterday; 92, who I haven't seen since she got up a week or so ago, went today. All the boys agreed that she was lookin' good, and decided that she was worth fighting over. 15 was the first to realize she was hot, and immediately booted lowly 30 out. He then had sleek and sexy 92 to himself until 2 caught wind that she was available. He first tried the direct route, and got lucky. 15 was off beating up on 30, so 2 was able to sneak over to burrow ZQ. Up until this point, I wasn't sure that 92 had gone; 15 hadn't actually been with her, and 30 didn't have a chance. Knowing this possibility, I carefully watched 2 approach the burrow, and he gave himself away. He wagged his tail enthusiastically when he went down, a sure sign that he found a female, and liked what he discovered.
2 was only down for a few minutes when 15 came bustling back, and immediately caught wind of what was up. He shot down ZQ, and kicked 2 out. At this point, I knew for certain that a female was down ZQ, I just wasn't sure which one. RR2 and 50 had already gone of course, and they're in the front of my tower anyhow. That left me with the possibility of 92, RR6, and an unmarked dog that I'd taken to calling X6un (after the burrow she originally came out of). With this dilemma in mind, I carefully watched not only burrow ZQ, but all the others connected to it. My answer was forthcoming while 15 and 2 were fighting, 15 having caught 2 again as he tried to sneak in. 92 stuck her sleek head out of ZQ, and it was at that moment that I knew it was her. That mystery solved, I turned my attention back to the boys.
2 had just been booted, but he was learning, albeit slowly. Instead of the direct route, he darted into the sage, coming in behind 15 and his girl, thus surprising them. This tactic worked, but it also led to a colossal fight. 15 chased 2 out of the burrow area, and towards my tower, where, at the height of suspense, they disappeared into the sage....and....2 emerged triumphant ten minutes later, to have 92 for the rest of the day and into the evening.
Don't feel bad for little 30 though. As John so aptly put it, he "got his first score" while the big boys were off fighting in the bushes. Yeah for the little guys!!
2 was only down for a few minutes when 15 came bustling back, and immediately caught wind of what was up. He shot down ZQ, and kicked 2 out. At this point, I knew for certain that a female was down ZQ, I just wasn't sure which one. RR2 and 50 had already gone of course, and they're in the front of my tower anyhow. That left me with the possibility of 92, RR6, and an unmarked dog that I'd taken to calling X6un (after the burrow she originally came out of). With this dilemma in mind, I carefully watched not only burrow ZQ, but all the others connected to it. My answer was forthcoming while 15 and 2 were fighting, 15 having caught 2 again as he tried to sneak in. 92 stuck her sleek head out of ZQ, and it was at that moment that I knew it was her. That mystery solved, I turned my attention back to the boys.
2 had just been booted, but he was learning, albeit slowly. Instead of the direct route, he darted into the sage, coming in behind 15 and his girl, thus surprising them. This tactic worked, but it also led to a colossal fight. 15 chased 2 out of the burrow area, and towards my tower, where, at the height of suspense, they disappeared into the sage....and....2 emerged triumphant ten minutes later, to have 92 for the rest of the day and into the evening.
Don't feel bad for little 30 though. As John so aptly put it, he "got his first score" while the big boys were off fighting in the bushes. Yeah for the little guys!!
Saturday, March 28, 2009
prairie grass doesn't stomp
Today was somewhat slow as far as days go; the boys griped at each other, the girls were stuffing their faces, and no one thought about getting with anyone else; in other words, no one was 'hot' today. You gotta have at least a few of those days though, so it was fine. My girls ended up going to bed fairly early at 4:30, quickly followed by the boys. This gave me almost two hours to enjoy in solitude while everyone else's dogs chased girls and fought amongst themselves. I decided to take some sky pictures, since the clouds were amazing..
After amusing myself with the sky, I still had some time, so I asked John if he needed any help with anything at days end. He responded by asking me if I could see interactions okay behind my tower. I told him not really for burrows XF, ZQ, and XN, due to the grass. He told me I could go ahead and get down to stomp the grass down. Five minutes into fruitless stomping, I realized two things: I probably looked like some four year old having a tantrum as I literally jumped up and down, and prairie grass does not 'stomp'. Especially dried out straw-like prairie grass. I needed to see the dogs, so I resorted to weeding prairie grass. I had another revelation as I did this as well: what looks like just a few patches of grass from a tower is an entire field at ground level; a wispy, prickly, get in-your-eye field of splintery grass. I made it through ten minutes of snapping/bending before John asked me if I was almost done. I stood up from where I had been face level with several weeds, and spun in a helpless circle. Glancing at Erica, (who'd come to stare at my antics) I said as evenly as I could: "Well, there's a lot of grass". That struck everyone as funny, but I knew I'd be out pulling for a few more days..
Friday, March 27, 2009
how many assistants does it take to carry a stack of cones?
Today was better than yesterday, in that it was not disgustingly cold; I found I could sit in my tower comfortably without wanting to curl into a ball. The dogs were more interesting also, in as much as they came up. Aside from that, with both my girls done, the business is now eating as much as possible; and figuring out who's the boss male:
In the first picture, we have stud of the year, aka 2, and 29 coming upon him...following that goes a natural succession of events, that is. with 2 coming out as top dog.
Following this enjoyable run of events, Erica and I pulled a surround, re-stacking traps and cones alike. Cones, as stated before, are much heavier than they look; add snow and mud from being down pd burrows, and its that much more fun. They were also frozen in weird angles, so the stacks of them were not exactly neat. It took two of us to manhandle one stack on ten twenty feet...
Thursday, March 26, 2009
brrrrr..its cold outside!!
Today was a disgusting day for sitting out in the cold; it snowed overnight, and completed the travesty (again as far as sitting still goes, not for skiing) by adding high winds to the mix. We pushed the day back several times, managed to not get stuck driving into the refuge, and sat in the car for the next two hours waiting for a dog to come up. We finally gave up on that idea, making our way over to our towers, knowing that while we might be getting extremely cold in the next few hours, that was as long as we were going to be out...which is exactly what happened. I did have a few dogs poke their heads out of burrows, but they all decided to go back in; especially quickly to do so was 50, after she got a face-full of blowing snow right after sticking her head up...
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
fight and make up
Let me just start out by saying that I was verrrrry happy that I had my sleeping bag today in my tower, as it snowed. We're not talking a little snowstorm here either. We're talking snow that blotted out the mountains, the pond, and the other towers. I cuddled into my bag, and watched the snow accumulate on me; up to three inches. My pens were freezing even as I wrote, and the snow was blowing across the pages. Wheeee.
On to the dogs. As it turns out, 50 didn't go yesterday, so all the boys thought she was lookin' pretty good today. Not quite the circus of yesterday, due in part to the weather, but almost as bad. The highlight for me was a chase between 2 and 29; they are so funny when they're mad, which is all the time for the two of them. Before talking about their latest episode, I want to add something John told me a few days ago: When pds are fighting/chasing/playing with each other, they tend to not really pay attention to the details (hence falling in holes), which aside from the usual, include burrow markers. I now have two things to look for: pd's that are airborne for some reason, either playing or chasing, getting ricocheted off a burrow marker tag, as the anchors are bendy, and stronger than a dog hitting the tag...and dogs plowing into the base of a burrow marker. Which, although I'm sure I'll feel bad for the injured/dazed, it should be pretty funny to watch.
Moving on to the boys; 2 and 29 both wanted 50, so they were having issues most of the morning. These issues included several chases, one that had two very intense fights. It went like this: 2's seducing 50 when 29, who's been watching and waiting for his break, edges too close. 2 shoots after him, chasing him halfway across the study sight before he catches up and they get into a pd ball, which then breaks out into another chase, which leads into another ball, which bounces into a bush. The bush doesn't have much give, as its winter, so the ball breaks, the boys pick themselves up, only to realize 45 has moved in. 2 sprints back, sends 45 packing, and chases 29 again. 50 meanwhile is looking for other available bachelors for some alone time while 2 is busy. 2 comes trotting back completely full of himself, interrupts a dreamy 50, who is staring in 45's direction, and tries to mount her, which leads to a fight (as in pd ball) between the two of them.....and 30 seconds later they go down a burrow together to make up, as I would assume...
The storm hits, everyone clears out to go hunker down in burrows, and 2 comes back up out of the burrow, oblivious to the howling wind and snow. He starts singing (the mating call sounds like chirping), and is obviously so pleased that he doesn't notice 50 join him...he continues to sing, she nudges him to follow her back down, and even then he's so into himself he doesn't notice...until she starts to leave..he pulls himself together, and follows her back down.
On to the dogs. As it turns out, 50 didn't go yesterday, so all the boys thought she was lookin' pretty good today. Not quite the circus of yesterday, due in part to the weather, but almost as bad. The highlight for me was a chase between 2 and 29; they are so funny when they're mad, which is all the time for the two of them. Before talking about their latest episode, I want to add something John told me a few days ago: When pds are fighting/chasing/playing with each other, they tend to not really pay attention to the details (hence falling in holes), which aside from the usual, include burrow markers. I now have two things to look for: pd's that are airborne for some reason, either playing or chasing, getting ricocheted off a burrow marker tag, as the anchors are bendy, and stronger than a dog hitting the tag...and dogs plowing into the base of a burrow marker. Which, although I'm sure I'll feel bad for the injured/dazed, it should be pretty funny to watch.
Moving on to the boys; 2 and 29 both wanted 50, so they were having issues most of the morning. These issues included several chases, one that had two very intense fights. It went like this: 2's seducing 50 when 29, who's been watching and waiting for his break, edges too close. 2 shoots after him, chasing him halfway across the study sight before he catches up and they get into a pd ball, which then breaks out into another chase, which leads into another ball, which bounces into a bush. The bush doesn't have much give, as its winter, so the ball breaks, the boys pick themselves up, only to realize 45 has moved in. 2 sprints back, sends 45 packing, and chases 29 again. 50 meanwhile is looking for other available bachelors for some alone time while 2 is busy. 2 comes trotting back completely full of himself, interrupts a dreamy 50, who is staring in 45's direction, and tries to mount her, which leads to a fight (as in pd ball) between the two of them.....and 30 seconds later they go down a burrow together to make up, as I would assume...
The storm hits, everyone clears out to go hunker down in burrows, and 2 comes back up out of the burrow, oblivious to the howling wind and snow. He starts singing (the mating call sounds like chirping), and is obviously so pleased that he doesn't notice 50 join him...he continues to sing, she nudges him to follow her back down, and even then he's so into himself he doesn't notice...until she starts to leave..he pulls himself together, and follows her back down.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
pds, pds, everywhere!!
Today both my girls went. At the same time. Translation: two female dogs, two constantly dueling resident males, immigrant males dropping by and getting kicked out all day long. This, of course, is super interesting, but when there's two different copulations going on in two different places, and both need to be recorded, then things start getting crazy. As all of the above was happening today, I'm going to just highlight the best parts.
In all the craziness that occurs every mating season, the girls do have some choice in the males they want to mate with; not a lot, as they're so much smaller, but some. They do what we call a 'solicit', which is essentially this: see a male that looks good, sashay over, bat your eyelashes, give him a nudge, and then trot sexily away. Works like a charm; the male follows along behind panting, and the pair go down a burrow together for some alone time.
Unfortunately for RR2, her timing was not the best. Her two would-be studs were in a disagreement, as in trying to kill each other. 2 and 29 had been eyeing each other for the past few minutes at burrow X1, when 2 exploded, and shot at 29. They rolled around in a pd ball, and quickly fell into X1. They continued their disagreement even as they fell, as evident by the flailing limbs and occasional head that popped up. They started round two just as RR2 strutted over to 2, and managed to flatten her on the way to falling in burrow XJ. She was left looking dazed and disappointed, until 45 stepped in to break her fall, so to speak. The boys continued with some sprints to end their fight.
50, on the other hand, was having other problems. Just as she seduced her guy into a prospective burrow, she was interrupted, as he saw it fit to chase out any competition. They were cosily ensconced in ZW', when he shot out to put some other stud male in his place. Today was just not 50's day, maybe tomorrow?
In all the craziness that occurs every mating season, the girls do have some choice in the males they want to mate with; not a lot, as they're so much smaller, but some. They do what we call a 'solicit', which is essentially this: see a male that looks good, sashay over, bat your eyelashes, give him a nudge, and then trot sexily away. Works like a charm; the male follows along behind panting, and the pair go down a burrow together for some alone time.
Unfortunately for RR2, her timing was not the best. Her two would-be studs were in a disagreement, as in trying to kill each other. 2 and 29 had been eyeing each other for the past few minutes at burrow X1, when 2 exploded, and shot at 29. They rolled around in a pd ball, and quickly fell into X1. They continued their disagreement even as they fell, as evident by the flailing limbs and occasional head that popped up. They started round two just as RR2 strutted over to 2, and managed to flatten her on the way to falling in burrow XJ. She was left looking dazed and disappointed, until 45 stepped in to break her fall, so to speak. The boys continued with some sprints to end their fight.
50, on the other hand, was having other problems. Just as she seduced her guy into a prospective burrow, she was interrupted, as he saw it fit to chase out any competition. They were cosily ensconced in ZW', when he shot out to put some other stud male in his place. Today was just not 50's day, maybe tomorrow?
Monday, March 23, 2009
vacuuming pd's...not what you think
Today was the day that my girls, or at least RR2, were supposed to go; unfortunately today was also the day that it was 19, with a windchill of 5. Needless to say, the girls did not go, and they did not want 2 anywhere near them, all they wanted to do was eat, and go to bed early. Tomorrow's forecast is more of the same..so who really knows? As for 29, he scared me. He came to the edge of the study are, and sort of just keeled over on his side, not moving for 4 hours; when he did finally get up, it was to slowly walk into the sage, not to be seen the rest of the day. Poor guy, hope he's okay. At noon, 43 got up, heard 2 calling, and beat it for the sage, later to be seen beating up on 30 in the adjacent territory. I also had 92 emerge, a yearling female, who after looking around for a bit, went off to eat in the sage, not to be seen the rest of the day.
And so it went, the day was freezing, and my feet were cold. I fully intend to bring a sleeping bag tomorrow to put my feet in. At the end of the day, we checked traps, and found that we had caught 15 and an unmarked. 15 got released, and we went to the warmth of the van to work with the unmarked. I had gotten a good look at his eartags before we went to the van (they were 11 and 12), and since they were only double digit numbers, I knew he was an older guy, as most of the dogs have triple digits in the 500's. Once in the van, 35, as he will be, was determined to be at least 4 years old (old for a male, who usually only make it to 5), and was put into the bag with no issue. It was when we were in position, and John opened the bag that there was a problem. He immediately closed it in disgust, and folded it over for me to hold. I stared at him as he pulled out a portable vacuum cleaner, and plugged it in. He asked me if I was ready, and re-opened the bag. The bag was moving. 35 had so many fleas that the fabric couldn't even be seen directly behind him. I gaped as John first vacuumed them off the bag, and then just put the hose end on the dog himself, and sucked off hundreds more. John estimated 150 fleas, and that's only the ones we saw. All through the ordeal, 35 barely moved, which is an indication of how poor his health probably is; aside from fleas he had super dry flaky skin and a poor fur coat. I felt bad for the old guy, even as we continued to vacuum and drown fleas in alcohol. It was definitely an experience to remember...
And so it went, the day was freezing, and my feet were cold. I fully intend to bring a sleeping bag tomorrow to put my feet in. At the end of the day, we checked traps, and found that we had caught 15 and an unmarked. 15 got released, and we went to the warmth of the van to work with the unmarked. I had gotten a good look at his eartags before we went to the van (they were 11 and 12), and since they were only double digit numbers, I knew he was an older guy, as most of the dogs have triple digits in the 500's. Once in the van, 35, as he will be, was determined to be at least 4 years old (old for a male, who usually only make it to 5), and was put into the bag with no issue. It was when we were in position, and John opened the bag that there was a problem. He immediately closed it in disgust, and folded it over for me to hold. I stared at him as he pulled out a portable vacuum cleaner, and plugged it in. He asked me if I was ready, and re-opened the bag. The bag was moving. 35 had so many fleas that the fabric couldn't even be seen directly behind him. I gaped as John first vacuumed them off the bag, and then just put the hose end on the dog himself, and sucked off hundreds more. John estimated 150 fleas, and that's only the ones we saw. All through the ordeal, 35 barely moved, which is an indication of how poor his health probably is; aside from fleas he had super dry flaky skin and a poor fur coat. I felt bad for the old guy, even as we continued to vacuum and drown fleas in alcohol. It was definitely an experience to remember...
Sunday, March 22, 2009
The deuce moves in
Today was a big day for 2, he got his butt thoroughly kicked by his son, and decided that my area wasn't all that bad, especially since he had two beautiful girls all to himself, or so he thought...He spent the first part of the day hunched over, with his back feet out in front of him, and his front legs propped against his knees. He looked like a blob, a fat blob; he even reached back with one leg to scratch his butt. As he was looking like such a stud, 29 was poking his head out of his burrow. As soon as his head cleared the top of the hole, 2's head came up, and he sprang to his feet. 29 looked like he wanted to shrink back in the hole for a moment, but then gathered his courage, and came out. 2 came at him without a second thought; it was over in seconds, with 29 beating it for the sage. 2 chasing him, and then, obviously quite proud of himself, did something I had yet to see him do; he started territorial calling. Most males will do this as a 'so there' sort of remark, and be done with it. 2 was so full of himself, however, that he kept it up for the next hour, and to make it even funnier, he plopped himself on the burrow that 29 had come out of.
After he was done with his calls, he checked the ladies out, getting a marginally better reception than the previous days. When he had his fill, he sat himself back down over 29's entrance burrow, and adopted his very attractive hunched over look. While he was busy, I caught another dog, this time to the right of my tower at burrow XL. Upon transport to the van, he behaved himself, only growling once. It was once he was in the bag that I started laughing at him. Once he realized he couldn't get out, he started alarm calling; I actually felt bad for him. He called every time we switched positions with him, as well as when we had to replace an ear tag. I felt sorry for him, but also vindictive towards 2, because it seemed like he finally had someone his size to pick on.
Upon arrival back to XL, 43 shot down the hole, not really to be seen the rest of the day, with the exception of the quick trip up to switch burrows, and the occasional spying of 2. I have a feeling the showdown will happen tomorrow.
Speaking of showdowns....as 2 was staring into space, 29 snuck back in behind him. I could tell he was trying to be stealthy as he came into the study area, but unfortunately the burrows he tried to sneak into were all plugged with cones, so he ended up slightly panicking, hiding behind bushes instead. 2 was completely oblivious; he decided to go for a stroll, and he left the study area. 29 immediately went over to meet the girls, even going as far as going down a burrow with RR2 for some alone time (9 minutes to be exact). While he was making their acquaintance, 2 was getting beat up again by 45, and he came streaking back over with his fur messed up, and wet with saliva. He pulled up short when he saw 29, like he couldn't believe it.
The fight started; since 29 had smelled how beautiful the females were, he had some more nerve...they started off by sparing repeatedly, until 29 panicked, and took off at full speed. 2 shot after him, only to forget to 'mind the holes, and promptly fell in one mid stride, jamming both his face and neck, coming up dazed. 29 pulled up short, and literally turned in a circle, a surprised look on his face..until he saw 2, and took off again. They both disappeared into the sage. 29 re-appeared first, jogging in the other direction with a bloody nose; it wasn't until 2 came out that I realized how bad it was. He had two bloody bites along his left mandible, blood coming out of his mouth, a bloody chin, and two patches of fur gone along his right foreleg; but he had somehow won. He immediately commenced territorial calling, even as he avoided moving too much..
someones going to be stiff in the morning....and he has to face 43..
After he was done with his calls, he checked the ladies out, getting a marginally better reception than the previous days. When he had his fill, he sat himself back down over 29's entrance burrow, and adopted his very attractive hunched over look. While he was busy, I caught another dog, this time to the right of my tower at burrow XL. Upon transport to the van, he behaved himself, only growling once. It was once he was in the bag that I started laughing at him. Once he realized he couldn't get out, he started alarm calling; I actually felt bad for him. He called every time we switched positions with him, as well as when we had to replace an ear tag. I felt sorry for him, but also vindictive towards 2, because it seemed like he finally had someone his size to pick on.
Upon arrival back to XL, 43 shot down the hole, not really to be seen the rest of the day, with the exception of the quick trip up to switch burrows, and the occasional spying of 2. I have a feeling the showdown will happen tomorrow.
Speaking of showdowns....as 2 was staring into space, 29 snuck back in behind him. I could tell he was trying to be stealthy as he came into the study area, but unfortunately the burrows he tried to sneak into were all plugged with cones, so he ended up slightly panicking, hiding behind bushes instead. 2 was completely oblivious; he decided to go for a stroll, and he left the study area. 29 immediately went over to meet the girls, even going as far as going down a burrow with RR2 for some alone time (9 minutes to be exact). While he was making their acquaintance, 2 was getting beat up again by 45, and he came streaking back over with his fur messed up, and wet with saliva. He pulled up short when he saw 29, like he couldn't believe it.
The fight started; since 29 had smelled how beautiful the females were, he had some more nerve...they started off by sparing repeatedly, until 29 panicked, and took off at full speed. 2 shot after him, only to forget to 'mind the holes, and promptly fell in one mid stride, jamming both his face and neck, coming up dazed. 29 pulled up short, and literally turned in a circle, a surprised look on his face..until he saw 2, and took off again. They both disappeared into the sage. 29 re-appeared first, jogging in the other direction with a bloody nose; it wasn't until 2 came out that I realized how bad it was. He had two bloody bites along his left mandible, blood coming out of his mouth, a bloody chin, and two patches of fur gone along his right foreleg; but he had somehow won. He immediately commenced territorial calling, even as he avoided moving too much..
someones going to be stiff in the morning....and he has to face 43..
Saturday, March 21, 2009
You're kinda cute when you growl
This morning, the girls came up about the same time, and set about getting into fight after fight. 2 was around as well, but seemed mystified with all the girl on girl action, so he stayed off to the side. After their fourth and last tiff, RR2 seemed to call some sort of truce, and started allo grooming 50. She was in a somewhat threatening position as she did it (hunched over 50), but there were no serious fights afterwards.
In mid afternoon, right after John and I had discussed pulling down the X8 surround, I caught a dog there. My first dog! He was furious with being caught, and was digging in the dirt, while ramming his head into the end of the trap, to try to get out. As soon as I tagged his door, and picked him up, he turned his attention on me, starting to growl. If he had been a pit bull, I would have been nervous, but as it was, all he succeeded in doing was looking cute. On the walk to the marking van he tried to chew his way out, and continued with the growling.
Once in the van, and after checking his ear tags, we needed to get him out of the trap and into the bag, of which he had no intention of going, now that he was thoroughly trapped. The usual way to get a pd into the bag is to prod him/her with the end of a long paint brush. After whirling repeatedly on the brush, and finally starting to grab and bite it, we needed to try another tactic. We tried a different angle, and finally just had to shove/prod him in. He growled, bared his fangs, and fought the entire way. He lost in the end, being forced into the bag, although he got several points by managing to flip a few times once in. Marking commenced, he was 29, but it was not accomplished easily, as he tried his best to squirm out, although he ended failing at that as well. By the time I took him back home, he was giving me the evil eye; and I couldn't wait to see how he would fare against the deuce (2), as he was much smaller (29 weighed 885 grams, the deuce over 1000), but definitely no chicken. Oooh the drama!
In mid afternoon, right after John and I had discussed pulling down the X8 surround, I caught a dog there. My first dog! He was furious with being caught, and was digging in the dirt, while ramming his head into the end of the trap, to try to get out. As soon as I tagged his door, and picked him up, he turned his attention on me, starting to growl. If he had been a pit bull, I would have been nervous, but as it was, all he succeeded in doing was looking cute. On the walk to the marking van he tried to chew his way out, and continued with the growling.
Once in the van, and after checking his ear tags, we needed to get him out of the trap and into the bag, of which he had no intention of going, now that he was thoroughly trapped. The usual way to get a pd into the bag is to prod him/her with the end of a long paint brush. After whirling repeatedly on the brush, and finally starting to grab and bite it, we needed to try another tactic. We tried a different angle, and finally just had to shove/prod him in. He growled, bared his fangs, and fought the entire way. He lost in the end, being forced into the bag, although he got several points by managing to flip a few times once in. Marking commenced, he was 29, but it was not accomplished easily, as he tried his best to squirm out, although he ended failing at that as well. By the time I took him back home, he was giving me the evil eye; and I couldn't wait to see how he would fare against the deuce (2), as he was much smaller (29 weighed 885 grams, the deuce over 1000), but definitely no chicken. Oooh the drama!
Friday, March 20, 2009
RR2's bad day
Today started off slow, but didn't end that way, which is always fun. The day started out with a dog on the hill behind me, which we call Buddha's area; it wasn't Buddha, and it also wasn't in a trap, or even a surround. I was dispatched from my tower, snuck through the sage, and ran up to the traps to scare the elusive dog into a burrow. After managing to get it safely into a burrow without killing myself by falling in a hole, I went back to my tower. I took a minute to get situated....and saw a dog outside of my tower, cheerfully scampering around the outside of my surround. I climbed down, set another surround, and climbed back in...only to be called back down, as Buddha had come up, only not in a surround. With Buddha's appearance, we realized we had no more cones close in, so I had to carry another ten over to the area, and as previously noted, traffic cones are deceptively heavy, not to mention awkwardly shaped.
Once safely (finally) back in my tower, I was able to focus my attention on my study area, and for once, things were jumping. RR2 was back up, quickly followed by 50 (another female); soon after the deuce came to visit, and was very happy to find two girls. He immediately set about to get acquainted and make friends. He would sidle up to one, tail wagging, and try to give her a seductive sniff; at which she would either run away, or whip around and bite him. He was so love struck that he continued to advance, all the time wagging his tail (a sign that a female will come into estrous soon), and consistently getting shot down. He finally decided he was done, and trotted to the edge, and then out of the study area, and back home. The girls stood at alert, watching him go, and then...RR2 attacked 50. They got into a pd ball (think of a ball shape, and then think of two pd's wrapped around each other making up that sphere). They weren't able to work out their differences though, and 50 soon went to bed. With no one else vent on, RR2 started to feed, until she came face to face with a ground squirrel. She stared at the squirrel, shuffling side to side (the squirrel meanwhile at first ignored her, and then started shooting her nervous looks over its shoulder), until finally she couldn't deal with it being in her way, and she jumped it. I thought the squirrel would jump away, but I was wrong. The day ended with a pd/gs ball, to which I couldn't stop laughing.
Once safely (finally) back in my tower, I was able to focus my attention on my study area, and for once, things were jumping. RR2 was back up, quickly followed by 50 (another female); soon after the deuce came to visit, and was very happy to find two girls. He immediately set about to get acquainted and make friends. He would sidle up to one, tail wagging, and try to give her a seductive sniff; at which she would either run away, or whip around and bite him. He was so love struck that he continued to advance, all the time wagging his tail (a sign that a female will come into estrous soon), and consistently getting shot down. He finally decided he was done, and trotted to the edge, and then out of the study area, and back home. The girls stood at alert, watching him go, and then...RR2 attacked 50. They got into a pd ball (think of a ball shape, and then think of two pd's wrapped around each other making up that sphere). They weren't able to work out their differences though, and 50 soon went to bed. With no one else vent on, RR2 started to feed, until she came face to face with a ground squirrel. She stared at the squirrel, shuffling side to side (the squirrel meanwhile at first ignored her, and then started shooting her nervous looks over its shoulder), until finally she couldn't deal with it being in her way, and she jumped it. I thought the squirrel would jump away, but I was wrong. The day ended with a pd/gs ball, to which I couldn't stop laughing.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
ring-round-the-rear
Today started out like usual...16 billion gs and no pd's. At 10:25, however, I had an unmarked dog come up behind me at burrow XO. He took one look towards the front of my tower, and decided to go exploring...down the hill and away from me. I almost immediately lost him in the long grass and sage. With John and Erica's help, however, we were able to herd him back up to XO, and trap him there...at least I hope. There are more holes in that area than in any other part around my tower...I was not entirely confident that he wouldn't find a creative way to escape.
Soon after he was ensconced in his surround, I watched a golden eagle that had caught a small bird over the lake. He was flying low to go enjoy his meal when he was mobbed by a pair of crows. They hassled him until he dropped his prey, and then they dove down to enjoy it. Talk about being opportunistic! After the crow incident, it was fairly quiet around my tower, and I say fairly because of all the waterfowl arriving in to the refuge. According to one of the pamphlets, the refuge is home to some 3000 birds from now until early June, many of them rare in other places. I am super excited to see some species of birds that I have only seen stuffed in the lab; so far the majority of the immigrants are Canada Geese and Crows, which are interesting but not really exciting. I'm looking forward to the phalaropes, avocets, and buffleheads to name a few.
At the end of the day, I had a very late pd come up. It was obviously completely disorientated, as it came up at 5:15 pm, and then just gazed dazedly around. It was bedtime for all the other dogs, and so I had to find out who this late dog was. After staring at it for 20 minutes in the fading sunlight, I was able to determine it had a 2 on its side, with a thick black band on its rump. Her official name is Ring around the Rear 2, and she was the first one to mate last year. Can't wait to see if she repeats herself again this year! She might get to, as 2 is being quite the explorer lately, and might come back over to consort with her...
Soon after he was ensconced in his surround, I watched a golden eagle that had caught a small bird over the lake. He was flying low to go enjoy his meal when he was mobbed by a pair of crows. They hassled him until he dropped his prey, and then they dove down to enjoy it. Talk about being opportunistic! After the crow incident, it was fairly quiet around my tower, and I say fairly because of all the waterfowl arriving in to the refuge. According to one of the pamphlets, the refuge is home to some 3000 birds from now until early June, many of them rare in other places. I am super excited to see some species of birds that I have only seen stuffed in the lab; so far the majority of the immigrants are Canada Geese and Crows, which are interesting but not really exciting. I'm looking forward to the phalaropes, avocets, and buffleheads to name a few.
At the end of the day, I had a very late pd come up. It was obviously completely disorientated, as it came up at 5:15 pm, and then just gazed dazedly around. It was bedtime for all the other dogs, and so I had to find out who this late dog was. After staring at it for 20 minutes in the fading sunlight, I was able to determine it had a 2 on its side, with a thick black band on its rump. Her official name is Ring around the Rear 2, and she was the first one to mate last year. Can't wait to see if she repeats herself again this year! She might get to, as 2 is being quite the explorer lately, and might come back over to consort with her...
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
traffic cones are heavier than they look
I ran into the refuge today, as I've been doing for the last week; today was the first day it actually was getting close to being easy, which makes me happy, knowing I'm running at almost 2 miles up. The start of my day was somewhat slow, although it has been getting louder around my tower. The annual migration of some 3000 birds has started, so there's never really a quiet moment from any of the ponds that surround my tower. Aside from the honking, screeching and splashing, there's the near constant high pitched chattering of the territorial gs, which also lend humor to the day. To put it simply, the day started out busily, which is how I like it.
By early afternoon, I had yet to see a prairie dog, until one popped out of XA. Popping is something gs specialize in, so at first I couldn't believe it was a pd. He was on hyper-drive...you could almost see him going: where are they? where are they? where are the girls??? He was running back and forth between several burrows, shooting down them, and then coming right back up. While he was hysterical to watch, even as he chased gs aggressively, we had to put an end to his fun, finally getting him down a hole, XL, and putting a surround up. The fun part came when I started plugging up all his escape routes with traffic cones...the area he decided to hole up in is completely connected, with approximately 25 back exits...which was 20 more cones than I had left from dealing with the surround/ blocking from the previous day with unmarked and 30. I never knew that 10 cones could be so heavy; as I moved them from the barn to my area, while dodging burrows.
After he was ensconced in his little surround, he didn't come up the rest of the day, which is about par. However, I was amused with black billed magpies attempting to land on the icy part of the lake, and instead doing face plants. I spent the rest of the day divided between watching their antics, and looking for dogs from either X8, ZR or XL.
By early afternoon, I had yet to see a prairie dog, until one popped out of XA. Popping is something gs specialize in, so at first I couldn't believe it was a pd. He was on hyper-drive...you could almost see him going: where are they? where are they? where are the girls??? He was running back and forth between several burrows, shooting down them, and then coming right back up. While he was hysterical to watch, even as he chased gs aggressively, we had to put an end to his fun, finally getting him down a hole, XL, and putting a surround up. The fun part came when I started plugging up all his escape routes with traffic cones...the area he decided to hole up in is completely connected, with approximately 25 back exits...which was 20 more cones than I had left from dealing with the surround/ blocking from the previous day with unmarked and 30. I never knew that 10 cones could be so heavy; as I moved them from the barn to my area, while dodging burrows.
After he was ensconced in his little surround, he didn't come up the rest of the day, which is about par. However, I was amused with black billed magpies attempting to land on the icy part of the lake, and instead doing face plants. I spent the rest of the day divided between watching their antics, and looking for dogs from either X8, ZR or XL.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Found at last!
Today started out much the same as previous days; with me hoping that I would see something aside from ground squirrels and hawks, as cool as they both are. At 2:20 in the afternoon, I got my wish. Toward the back of my colony, there is burrow marker ZR, where I've seen several ground squirrels emerge from. So, when I first saw the beginning of an emergence, I wasn't too excited, until I realized how slow and careful the emergent was. He acted like he was timid, not sure of the light or himself in the surroundings. By the time he had his cheeks out, I knew, even from a distance, that it was a prairie dog. Ground squirrels tend to pop up, and pop down. Details don't seem to be a factor for them. As a prime example, I watched two get into a knock down brawl, and when they happened to roll into a rather deep hole, they never paused in their biting and scratching. As I could see down the hole, I watched as they continued to try to rip each other into shreds, albeit noisily.
Back to the dog. By the time he was fully emerged 20 minutes later, I knew he had just woken from hibernation, as he seemed dazed and disoriented, not really even moving as a coyote trotted past 50 yards away, scattering the gs. I watched while he roused himself, and finally began to feed. I was excited at the prospect of putting up a surround, catching and marking him. While I began to plan this, I noticed another head come up on the other side of the burrow mound...it was 30! I thought the badger from late last week had gotten him. I was super excited to see he was alive...although the unmarked dog did not appear to share in my enthusiasm.
The two eyed each other over the burrow mound, each with his hindquarters down a different burrow. Tentatively, they both moved forward, and kissed (which males do to greet each other, either amicably or right before a fight). The kiss quickly disintegrated into a brawl, which ended unceremoniously with unmarked chasing 30 back down his burrow, and me placing a surround over the hole, hoping that they wouldn't come up fighting. They didn't show up the rest of the day.
Back to the dog. By the time he was fully emerged 20 minutes later, I knew he had just woken from hibernation, as he seemed dazed and disoriented, not really even moving as a coyote trotted past 50 yards away, scattering the gs. I watched while he roused himself, and finally began to feed. I was excited at the prospect of putting up a surround, catching and marking him. While I began to plan this, I noticed another head come up on the other side of the burrow mound...it was 30! I thought the badger from late last week had gotten him. I was super excited to see he was alive...although the unmarked dog did not appear to share in my enthusiasm.
The two eyed each other over the burrow mound, each with his hindquarters down a different burrow. Tentatively, they both moved forward, and kissed (which males do to greet each other, either amicably or right before a fight). The kiss quickly disintegrated into a brawl, which ended unceremoniously with unmarked chasing 30 back down his burrow, and me placing a surround over the hole, hoping that they wouldn't come up fighting. They didn't show up the rest of the day.
Monday, March 16, 2009
buddha returns!!
Buddha returned...and then just sat there (as always)...until I accidentally scared him down, and we didn't see him for the rest of the day. whoops.
I am marked...
Yesterday was another slow day for me, as long as dogs were concerned...moving on to today:
Started out slowly enough, ground squirrels raiding my traps, trying to get in my traps, staring at me as I stared at them in frustration (although while trying not to laugh). My colony area was overrun with them..until a prairie falcon flew low, and I watched them all have simultaneous heart attacks as they dove for various burrows. It was hilarious, and I was ground squirrel free for the next 30 min...
The rest of the day passed uneventfully, mainly with me thinking I saw a pd (prairie dog), and having it actually be a gs (ground squirrel). At the end of the day, we caught both an unmarked dog, and 21, who we took anyhow to darken his number. The unmarked one was started first, beginning with ear tags ...they have the tiniest numbers imaginable on them. The technique for putting them in is slightly hilarious; it involves the dogs head sticking out of the bag, with one person holding it behind the mandibles and at the rump, while the other takes a clip, and snaps the ear tags in, where they look like shiny earrings. The dog was not pleased, and grumbled, and frothed at the nose. Afterwards, we checked his sexual status (young upstart), fleas (three), body weight (low), scars (none), and then marked him..he will be 03.
The marking process, as shown in previous pics, is straightforward, with the dogs head in the bag, and the assistant holding it directly behind the mandibles, and mid-belly, also holding the front legs in..my cat holding days came back to me as I took up the position. As John painted, 03 resigned himself to his fate, and stopped struggling. Not so for 21 and his touch-up. He grunted, spasmodically flung himself about, and generally tried to squirm his way out of my grasp; he failed but due to his impatience, I am now also marked, on both hands..although no specific number...
Started out slowly enough, ground squirrels raiding my traps, trying to get in my traps, staring at me as I stared at them in frustration (although while trying not to laugh). My colony area was overrun with them..until a prairie falcon flew low, and I watched them all have simultaneous heart attacks as they dove for various burrows. It was hilarious, and I was ground squirrel free for the next 30 min...
The rest of the day passed uneventfully, mainly with me thinking I saw a pd (prairie dog), and having it actually be a gs (ground squirrel). At the end of the day, we caught both an unmarked dog, and 21, who we took anyhow to darken his number. The unmarked one was started first, beginning with ear tags ...they have the tiniest numbers imaginable on them. The technique for putting them in is slightly hilarious; it involves the dogs head sticking out of the bag, with one person holding it behind the mandibles and at the rump, while the other takes a clip, and snaps the ear tags in, where they look like shiny earrings. The dog was not pleased, and grumbled, and frothed at the nose. Afterwards, we checked his sexual status (young upstart), fleas (three), body weight (low), scars (none), and then marked him..he will be 03.
The marking process, as shown in previous pics, is straightforward, with the dogs head in the bag, and the assistant holding it directly behind the mandibles, and mid-belly, also holding the front legs in..my cat holding days came back to me as I took up the position. As John painted, 03 resigned himself to his fate, and stopped struggling. Not so for 21 and his touch-up. He grunted, spasmodically flung himself about, and generally tried to squirm his way out of my grasp; he failed but due to his impatience, I am now also marked, on both hands..although no specific number...
Saturday, March 14, 2009
ground squirrels..
I ran into the refuge today, which I did yesterday; Erica rides a bike, and I run. It is so amazingly peaceful here, especially in the morning, when the sun is casting a pink sheen on the mountains; which surround me as I run. With the frost coating everything, the prairie shines, and the mountains are snow capped; its incredible. I usually see a golden eagle or two, which add to the beauty of the area.
Once I reached my tower this morning, I was exhilarated, and ready for a day of watching dogs. Sadly it was not to be...today was my day for watching ground squirrels...which although they sort of look like miniature prairie dogs, they act like they're demented, and due to their constant twitching, they're always in motion. They'll go on alert (stand on their hind legs) for .2 seconds, run in panicked circles for 5, and then eat with twitchy little bites, all with their tails flitting up and down. They also are, apparently, not too smart. Who would have guessed? I had a surround set up at burrow X8, waiting for my prairie dog to pop up and decide since he couldn't get out, he might as well check out the yummy oats in the trap. Unfortunately, did he only not show, the ground squirrel did, and he wanted ooooats. Sadly for him, he couldn't grasp the concept of a closed trap door. As the open door was on the inside of the surround, and he was on the outside, he was unable to waltz right in. He was not a quitter, though, and a small thing like a nonnegotiable trap did not stop him. He tried to reach a paw through the mesh end, and when that failed, he attempted to stick his head through (I shuddered to think what would happen if he got it stuck, especially with the badger around). He was finally forced to admit defeat, and I have to hand it to him, trying so diligently for something for 25 minutes and failing the entire time is a great accomplishment for anyone, especially if you're a ground squirrel with an attention span of 6 seconds.
Once I reached my tower this morning, I was exhilarated, and ready for a day of watching dogs. Sadly it was not to be...today was my day for watching ground squirrels...which although they sort of look like miniature prairie dogs, they act like they're demented, and due to their constant twitching, they're always in motion. They'll go on alert (stand on their hind legs) for .2 seconds, run in panicked circles for 5, and then eat with twitchy little bites, all with their tails flitting up and down. They also are, apparently, not too smart. Who would have guessed? I had a surround set up at burrow X8, waiting for my prairie dog to pop up and decide since he couldn't get out, he might as well check out the yummy oats in the trap. Unfortunately, did he only not show, the ground squirrel did, and he wanted ooooats. Sadly for him, he couldn't grasp the concept of a closed trap door. As the open door was on the inside of the surround, and he was on the outside, he was unable to waltz right in. He was not a quitter, though, and a small thing like a nonnegotiable trap did not stop him. He tried to reach a paw through the mesh end, and when that failed, he attempted to stick his head through (I shuddered to think what would happen if he got it stuck, especially with the badger around). He was finally forced to admit defeat, and I have to hand it to him, trying so diligently for something for 25 minutes and failing the entire time is a great accomplishment for anyone, especially if you're a ground squirrel with an attention span of 6 seconds.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Everything but dogs...
Today was slow as far as prairie dogs go...although I did see some other interesting stuff. The elk herd, for one thing, expanded in size, as well as coming about a mile closer in, which made it nice to actually see them, as opposed to black blobs on the side of the mountain. I also spotted a Northern Harrier, which is always fun, since they have a distinctive white butt, which no one else in the hawk kingdom does...
Best part about today, though, were the Swainson Hawks playing in mid air, something I've only seen eagles do. They flew together, one upside down, the other right side up, with their talons interlaced. It was beautiful..
Best part about today, though, were the Swainson Hawks playing in mid air, something I've only seen eagles do. They flew together, one upside down, the other right side up, with their talons interlaced. It was beautiful..
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Buddha..
No Buddha today..so sad. However, as we were joking about him stuck in his hole again, John brought up a story about when that actually did happen...
Apparently in Arizona one year, a female built a burrow into the side of a road, so that part of the burrow was made out of black top. This worked fine until she became pregnant, and would try to go home. She would get her head and shoulders down the hole, but then her stomach wouldn't fit, and her little rear and legs would flail around as she tried to squeeze herself through. John finally took pity on her, and enlarged the hole himself, but he laughed as he remembered that it sometimes would take her 45 seconds to get through the hole before he helped her out.
Apparently in Arizona one year, a female built a burrow into the side of a road, so that part of the burrow was made out of black top. This worked fine until she became pregnant, and would try to go home. She would get her head and shoulders down the hole, but then her stomach wouldn't fit, and her little rear and legs would flail around as she tried to squeeze herself through. John finally took pity on her, and enlarged the hole himself, but he laughed as he remembered that it sometimes would take her 45 seconds to get through the hole before he helped her out.
few more photos
The little guy is getting his 'manhood' checked to see if hes' ready to get some girls. He was not happy about it, but happily, he is ready to go when the chicks come up out of the burrows in the next 10 days or so...
What a cutie....
Getting his number...this is 36.
badger days..
Back to my plugged burrows...Just as I was getting excited, thinking I was going to catch my first dog, a huge badger ran from underneath my tower, and shot toward my colony. I almost fell off my chair. He stopped at my surround, thoroughly checked it out, and then started digging in one of the burrows. After a quick consultation with John over the walkie, it was decided that I get down and 'scare' the badger. With some trepidation I did so, only to have it back into the nearest hole, and stare at me, hissing. I decided to call it a truce, and started to dismantle my surround, so in case a dog needed to do any escape maneuvers, it could. I removed the traps, and pulled the cones, all while keeping a very close eye on the badger. He eyed me the entire time, and I kept one of the cones close at hand, in case he wanted to do more than just stare...
its an art...sort of
So, as said before, we mark the dogs with black numbers on their sides. This video shows a bit of how its done; the dogs' head is being stabilzed by Jane, and John is doing the painting. The dog is partially in the zippered bag that we use to mobilize them when working on them. It minimilizes stress to them, as well as their ability to successfully bite us. This dog is number 36, and although the number as it is painted on is really thin, as it dries, it spreads out, and becomes very easy to read. We are in the back of a van, which is much warmer than outside, so it makes the dye work much better, and turn darker. It also keeps escaped dogs from completely escaping...
plugged up
Today started off fairly slowly, and then at 1:30, I had a prairie dog pop his head and then body out of a burrow right below my tower. I was afraid to move to much, for fear of scaring him. He looked around, and stared directly at me a few times. I was so excited, especially since I had had no dogs at my tower yesterday. As soon as he went down, I set a trap to catch him....
I started a surround, which is exactly what it sounds like. For this particular surround, I had four traps side-by-side (open at just one end) and directly across from the opening of the burrow. The remaining traps were kept closed, and used as blockers for the would-be escapee. These are stacked two high to discourage jumping/climbing over. Apparently this does happen to some extent, as John told us that last year, one dog had to be trapped nine times before he was actually caught, as he kept climbing the traps.
As soon as the surround is completed, the closest burrows are plugged with orange cones to discourage escapes out another entrance. This doesn't always work either, as the dogs are completely resourceful, and will gnaw through cones if necessary. With the stage set, I was ready to go...
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Buddha update
btw...Buddha did not make his way out of his burrow today...several of us speculated that he was stuck in it...
slow day
Sadly, today was not the day for prairie dogs. I was sad about that, as I was in my favorite tower, which has the perfect viewing area for crazy number 30. Without his antics to amuse me, the day stretched out for a long time. While gazing over my empty colony, I did however, see several other animals than what I was looking/hoping for. I counted 6 horned larks, 4 crows, 7 canada geese, and 2 coyotes. The coyotes were the most interesting. They looked like a mated pair, and they were perusing a gigantic herd of elk (perhaps 250 or so) like they thought they'd be able to pull one down. Lucky for them, or perhaps I should say they made the correct choice, they did not attempt to do anything stupid...i.e. something that would most likely cause the wrath of all 250 elk.
Also saw a golden eagle...don't want to leave him out. Hope tomorrows more interesting as far as the dogs go:)
Also saw a golden eagle...don't want to leave him out. Hope tomorrows more interesting as far as the dogs go:)
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
on the road again
So, as I mentioned earlier, we had today off due to weather issues, so we decided we'd go to Laramie (Wyoming) to pick up a bike. On the way there, I was checking out the birds, and we saw two golden eagles, one immature, one rough legged hawk, one swainson hawk, and several black billed magpies, which are super cool looking. We also saw several hundred pronghorns, which look like they came straight out of Africa.
Aside from all the others, I'm extremely interested in the 'pies. They are gorgeous as they fly, but perhaps the most interesting point about them is that they eat carrion from the roadside. It's humorous to me, at least, because you have this elegant looking bird with its head in up to its shoulders in a deer; which is exactly what we saw on the way home. I've added the pic just to add to my point:)
Few more pics...
Starting at the top..
The wagon full of traps is just an easy way to move 24 traps around at a time, much better than carrying the six or so that you can by hand.
The next pic is of Walden as seen from our research area.
The van is our processing area for marking the dogs, flea checks, and weight checks
Our sign
What a burrow marker looks like.
Thanks to Erica for these great pics, and I will be adding a few of my own soon!
Lazy day in Walden
The forklift did all the heavy lifting and moving....just to make a side point about how strong the wind is here, when we arrived the first day, one of these huge cubicles was blown over on the ground..
So, seeing that its 3 degrees, and minus 4 with the wind chill, watching prairie dogs in our towers today would have been freezing cold, as well as the the fact that we wouldn't seen anyone, as the dogs don't like yucky weather. Really though..who blames them?
What I've decided to do then, is to post up some pics of whats been going on, as I have nothing interesting to discuss today:)
The towers, as shown here, were interesting to put together, and required quite a bit of machine power.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Buddha
Today was great…aside from seeing several dogs, I saw a golden eagle, which is on my list of birds I really want to see:) Golden eagle aside, I was in yet another tower today, which is by one of the roads in the park, its ok, although I like the one on the hill better (I was in the hill one yesterday). At 10:30 this morning, dog 15 emerged, and decided to tease us by checking out the traps we’d previously set, going as close as to practically getting in one, and then deciding he wasn’t interested. As he was playing with my mind, on the other side of my tower, I had an unmarked dog pop up, and then sit with just his head and shoulders out…which is comical to look at, and of course you can’t tell if he has a marker or not until he comes out….which took this shy guy 45 min. I set six traps as soon as he went back in, which was as soon as he realized he was the only one out in his coterie. And…he was gone for the rest of the day.
Aside from the excitement around my tower, the fattest dog I’ve seen so far (and thats saying a lot) emerged from a burrow behind the hill tower. He was quickly dubbed Buddha, and will probably have some special number or letter depicting that, as he was refered by that name the remainder of the day. Number 30 was also seen again today, although he kept the running in circles to a strict minimum, instead utilizing his time running up and down the hill by his coterie, and along the frozen pond. Again today we caught no one:( There’s always tomorrow!
One last thing…just going to list what we saw today (from all five towers):
total of six prairie dogs
coyote, horned larks, crows, golden eagle, rough legged hawk, and a green elk
Gopher Girls
I’ve been in Walden since the 4th, and today we got hooked up to the internet. Yeah! It’s been fun and interesting so far out here in the west..and let me just say that Chicago has nothing on Walden as far as the wind goes, it’s insane.
I flew in on several planes to get here on Wednesday, including a prop plane from Denver to Laramie that had a grand total of two other passengers; we sat in the back of the aircraft to balance the weight. Riding in a plane that small is fun, but the wind bumps and are sort of violent, especially over the mountains:)
On Thursday we started the set up of our research stations, which took a total of two days to complete. Essentially, the bases are composed of painters scaffolding, with a wooden box set on top. The scaffolding took one day to set up, and the next a forklift came, placing the boxes on top. We have a total of five stations, one for each researcher.
Saturday was our first real day of watching the (or in our case for) prairie dogs. We’ll be switching towers for the first few days just to see which one we’d like to spend the season in. While I did not see a single prairie dog, I did observe a red tailed hawk, seven geese, three crows, and several (i.e. I think approx. 50 horned larks). If this seems a little extreme as far as observations go, just remember I was in the tower for 4 hours.
Just to take a little leap here…we mark the burrows with cattle ear tags on wire stakes. They’re numbered, and while they flap, well flail, in the wind they’re very easy to read. We do this because when a dog submerges, we have an idea of where to set traps….let me segue into briefly into marking/trapping dogs. We keep track of all dogs by marking them with black dye on their backs. Simply: males are numbers under 50, and females are numbers over 50. We watch to see if a dog comes up, check if its marked, if not we place traps around the burrow it goes down so we can catch it to mark it.
Okay, moving on, Sunday we switched towers, and I actually saw a dog! He was marked as number 30, and seemed to be mentally impaired…he would forage, and then run in aimless circles..we’ll have to see how successful he is as the season continues…..Nother quick jump…all dogs up now are males, the females are not yet out of hibernation..
I’ll post another note about today to keep this one from getting ridiculous:)
Thursday, March 5, 2009
fun fact
Nick came to our trailer today to fix our hot water heater, and told us this fun fact:
We are currently in the largest county in the United States (Jackson County), and while it is 1800 square miles, it has not one stoplight.
Welcome to my blog everyone...
We are currently in the largest county in the United States (Jackson County), and while it is 1800 square miles, it has not one stoplight.
Welcome to my blog everyone...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)