2006-04-04 - 8:33 a.m.
Spring is here!
We spent the weekend at the farm, and while not much got done, it was lovely, as it usually is. The last of the daffodils were out, the poison ivy hasn't leafed yet, and the woods are more accessible right now than they are at any other time of year. The weather was *perfect*, the site for the garage, while slightly off-center, will be fixed, and becomes more fully realized each time, and there's always something new to discover. ...Like the collection of deer bones I found in the woods. Now, I knew there was something dead in that general area, since we found about 40 vultures last summer in that spot. We had heard flapping, and made a roundabout foray into that area of the woods until we got to what we thought might be six or seven vultures, but it turned out to be the aforementioned two score. Bob stepped out into the clearing and made a noise, causing a massive vulture fly-by that was... epic. Vultures don't make much noise, but they grunt when they're excited or nervous. There was a *lot* of grunting. I located the something dead that had attracted them by following my nose, and made a mental note to check it out next spring, when the rotting-flesh-that-smells-really-bad-and-attracts-vultures part of the Circle of Life had finished. I found it this last weekend - a juvenile deer, probably less than 6 months old, judging by the size of the bones (and the skull plates that hadn't fused yet). It was scattered over a small area and still fairly together - sort of a "build your own deer" kit (some parts missing - build at your own risk. Manufacturer cannot guarantee all parts have not been carried off by small woodland creatures ecstatic at the thought of a tasy meal). I had been hoping for a skull, but the youth of the animal and the determined work of the many woodland scavengers in the area had destroyed the skull (I found bits, but not all of it) and jawbones (both of which had evidence of being chewed). I got some cool teeth, though, and I have a bag of bones waiting to be scrubbed and cleaned next time I'm down there. You can call me morbid, but I like bones. It's a girl thing. We also have a new clutch of vulture eggs in the barn. If all goes well, they should be all cute and fluffy right around Mousehole, but there's always the chance that the first clutch will be eaten (as happened last year), and the second clutch (Vultures will lay a second set of eggs if the first go missing) won't hatch until June or July. One of last year's baby vultures is still hanging around the house - he/she is a bit smaller than the adults, and isn't as afraid of people. We watched him hop up and down the branches of the black walnut closest to the house, as he decided whether we were too close for comfort or not. We got quite close, but eventually he couldn't stand it, and flapped off. The older vultures will leave as soon as they see movement, so I hope this guy will continue to hang around and not become as shy as his parents. Various vulture sites say you can get vultures used to your presence, and setting up a vulture feeder is easy - just throw roadkill into your yard every now and then. (I imagine this is somewhat frowned on in suburban neighbourhoods.) (But wouldn't that be a *great* clause in a HOA contract? "Members are prohibited from setting up vulture habitats, including, but not limited to, the collection of road kill in their gardens." Hee.) Anyway, the little falling-down barn is now officially the Vulture Barn, instead of the Toxic Barn, even though the smell of baby vultures is pretty darn toxic. I can't wait to see the babies. They are *so* cute. Smelly, but cute. Bring nose plugs.
Dorsal - Ventral
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