More Twee than Thou

Speaking of Hipsters, I was in Uptown the other day meeting up with some old buddies. Went by the Oaklandish storefront, who happen to make some of my favorite T's, and ran across some stickers/pins/magnets by Birdvs.Bird. Hot damn these things are ridiculous. I had to buy a 12-pack of stickers and a pin. They also have some sets that are particular to birds of Lake Merritt. Hell yes, Black-crowned Night Heron.

Which brings us to another topic Christian and I have spent the past few months discussing. What I like to call Twee critter art. Here are two more of our favorites.

Zoo Portraits by Yago Partal.

And some similar stuff, but all hand drawn, by Berkely Illustrations.

If any of the artists see this post, feel free to send us some free stuff/sponsor our camera trapping adventures. We'll gladly talk up your art.

Follow the links and let us know what your favorites are.

Alert the Hipsters

WTF.

There is a wild marmot in the San Francisco neighborhood of Bernal Heights. The yuppies must be very confused. Probably hitched a ride back to town with some 30-somethings after their rock climbing adventure. Because apparently everyone is a rock climber these days.

Below is not the SF Marmot (Does it have a clever name yet, a la Sutro Sam? Has it gotten gay married yet? I hope so on both accounts), but a Marmot from when we went up to the Codger's pre-class set-up in the Sierras.

Thanks to Randomtruth for doing some excellent captaining of the car as I shot photos out of the open window.











I used to see Marmots all the time in Yosemite Valley as a kid. We made an annual Spring Break trip to Curry Village with old family friends. It was always a great time and this old Marmot brought back some great memories.  Now we need to get him on camera trap.

Camera Trapping Hawks

For the past three or four years that the Red-shouldered hawks have been nesting alongside my school, I have wanted to capture them on camera trap. Questions were always present in regards to feasibility (climbing eucalyptus trees) and most importantly, disturbance of the animals. Because of these obstacles, there have not been any realistic attempts to set cameras.

This June, that finally changed. Ever since the kiddos left the nest, they have been chilling in a hillside grove of eucalyptus and oak trees on the other side of our school.

It was a windy morning when one of our PE teachers noticed a couple of them hanging out on the ground and quickly alerted myself and chum Ryan (a should be blog contributor).

Upon investigating the area, he discovered the hawk had been snacking on a snake, which appears to be a CA King.

A camera was deployed and the hawk "performed" beautifully.

showing its mug

Feathered Friday

A new feature as we have run dry of coyote images. !

I was stoked this spring to see the return of the Red-shouldered Hawks to their nest by my school.

Their adventures have been chronicled here over the years, with last year's duel with the owls a truly fascinating experience. It unfortunately resulted in disaster for both birds. The hawks did not nest successfully and I learned through Wildcare that the owlets that fledged did not survive very long.

Three young hawks fledged this week and have been gliding and screeching over the hill above campus, thrilling students and staff alike.

More to come from this crew next Friday...

More of the Redwoods: 'Possum style

More from the winter season in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

Such a California setting, right?

This time our culprit is not a critter we should find in California. The Virginia Opossum, Didelphis virginiana, was introduced to California in the late 19th Century. It was first introduced to Los Angeles in 1890 and then near San Jose in 1910. Opossums were brought to California as a cheap fur-bearing mammal, but also as a food item. The California opossums may have originally hailed from South Carolina, rather than Virginia.

Sexy Opossum or Sexiest Opossum?

Almost cuddly

Why go around a log when you can just lumber over it? And look at that nice tail!

With a purpose

Does anyone know if that pink ear pattern can be used to identify individuals? Unfortunately during the first visit we get a good look at its left ear and in the second visit its right ear, so comparison is a moot point on these images, but my guess is that it is the same guy or gal.

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Opossum introduction information from: The Opossum: It's Amazing Story By William J. Krause and Winifred A. Krause, Dept. of Pathology and Anatomical Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri; pages. 23-24 (.pdf link)