tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12247520286633329502024-03-19T05:28:30.808-04:00Watching the Sun BakeThis blog is a repository of observations and random thoughts of someone with a serious case of wanderlustCraig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.comBlogger442125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-32302398030324252812024-02-26T14:56:00.007-05:002024-02-27T08:22:12.501-05:00Stateroom 11082 on the Norwegian Star<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDFnI-hXdnwag1avQT0lTpMyMzAiqg8wghcAVwjcvLQDAoW3BPXRRFw9e4sd0-8ncEbv-3Q5_qZaxTNm0D9wvDZ0o1-wrXE-fIwmkKDw_AipdNk5-0Hzn0WqHGubHYZlJQlH2mvjZ1nOuDPhy6hhHylpvx8czW3DrJMZa78PXYkc48GAormsRfe3q4uWA5/s1920/Norwegian%20Star.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="886" data-original-width="1920" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDFnI-hXdnwag1avQT0lTpMyMzAiqg8wghcAVwjcvLQDAoW3BPXRRFw9e4sd0-8ncEbv-3Q5_qZaxTNm0D9wvDZ0o1-wrXE-fIwmkKDw_AipdNk5-0Hzn0WqHGubHYZlJQlH2mvjZ1nOuDPhy6hhHylpvx8czW3DrJMZa78PXYkc48GAormsRfe3q4uWA5/w640-h296/Norwegian%20Star.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>The Norwegian Star is no longer our most favorite cruise ship</b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">My first clue our
cruise to Antarctica might be fraught with frustration was the immigration line
that seemed a mile long in the Buenos Aires, Argentina, airport on February 3,
2024.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">We had flown from Sarasota
to Charlotte, North Carolina, then JFK to catch an 11-hour overnight
flight to the opposite side of the world. Booked in domestic First Class and
International Business Class with its lay-flat seats, we were treated like
royalty on <b><a href="https://www.aa.com/">American Airlines.</a></b> We even arrived in Buenos Aires early!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">That feeling of royalty
evaporated when we saw that only 4 Argentina immigration officers were working
to handle the influx of 9 jets ranging in mega-size from a Lufthansa 747 to
several Boeing 777’s to Boeing 787s. In the end, we stood in line, moving at a
snail’s pace, and after three hours of shuffling forward finally were able to
talk to an immigration officer.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Retrieving our luggage, we
stepped into the receiving area outside of Customs where we expected to see
my name on a placard for our pre-arranged ride to the <b><a href="https://www.guestreservations.com/buenos-aires-marriott/booking?msclkid=355eac6ff7c8142c8ca3c9b310ccf259">Buenos Aires Marriott</a></b>. We
used Reservas Quickcar in 2023, and found them punctual and highly
professional. Not so in 2024. After walking around the hordes of people waiting
for passengers to arrive we never found Reservas Quickcar. They didn’t show up!
Instead, we found a local transport company, paid them $88 USD for a 30-minute
ride into town, and checked into the Buenos Aires Marriott.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">On arrival at the hotel, I
received a message from Reservas Quickcar informing me that they gave up
waiting for us at 8:00 a.m. and left the airport. I responded with a copy of
the confirmation letter showing we had requested a 12:00 noon pick up. Reservas
Quickcar screwed up, not us.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Sunday morning, Reservas
Quickcar met us at the hotel exactly on time at 11:00 and drove us to the
cruise terminal. A recent violent thunderstorm tore the roof off the regular
terminal building so in response, all cruises now drop off luggage at a “shed”
near the Jorge Newberry domestic airport. From there passengers are transferred
to the original terminal whose roof was supposedly ripped off where you pass
through security, then check in, then clear Argentina Immigration before being
loaded on another bus and driven to the cruise ship.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">If only it was this easy.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">We entered the terminal
“shed” at 11:10 a.m. where, because <a href="http://www.ncl.com">Norwegian Cruise Line </a>forgot to send everyone luggage
tags, we stood in line to have our bags marked for our stateroom. After
dropping them off we were given a number and told to wait until it was called before we could board a bus to drive us several miles to the original
cruise terminal.</span><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Our number was “White
12” and when it was finally called we darted to the bus before anyone could say
“You have to wait for the next bus.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">At the old terminal we
repeated the dance we performed in 2023, jumped through the hoops, and finally
stepped on the ship at 3:10 pm – a full four hours after beginning this
merry-go-round ride. In 2023 it took us 3 hours to get on the ship. In 2024 it
took us 4 hours. Curiously in April 2023, in Honolulu, it took us 16 MINUTES
from the time we entered the cruise terminal until we were standing inside the
confines of the Norwegian Spirit. As much as we love traveling to Antarctica we
will NOT do this cruise again on Norwegian or any other cruise line until the
pandemonium of check in and ship boarding in Buenos Aires becomes more
civilized! I don’t expect much improvement any time soon. In 2025 Norwegian
will be sailing to Antarctica from Ushuaia, at the southern tip of Argentina. Maybe
that will be less chaotic than Buenos Aires. It couldn’t be worse.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrP3fmmtyneQA5dP7562snfpJ0RZw0wqRQlFp7xQRnFANcf1qhoZEmBU1V-8hBDC02SyquWudIKRW1CY_1ZsVb3KFffA1OdUO8vsateMxPValxzJCfZMGOkbfMAHdylweJD53n7EwTnEImlSM3o4GaTtzuG1JE69_CHuXRyuHIXggkoMu84GaVrQlwKqGQ/s900/Antarctica.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="900" height="474" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrP3fmmtyneQA5dP7562snfpJ0RZw0wqRQlFp7xQRnFANcf1qhoZEmBU1V-8hBDC02SyquWudIKRW1CY_1ZsVb3KFffA1OdUO8vsateMxPValxzJCfZMGOkbfMAHdylweJD53n7EwTnEImlSM3o4GaTtzuG1JE69_CHuXRyuHIXggkoMu84GaVrQlwKqGQ/w640-h474/Antarctica.webp" width="640" /></a></div><b>The original itinerary we were supposed to follow was not the one we followed</b><br /><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Hungry, tired, and
frustrated with the craziness of boarding the ship we sought out the
Garden Café on Deck 12 for a late lunch and a much-needed glass of Pinot Noir.
While seated, I saw Dan Bauer walking through the café. Long ago in graduate
school (Biology) I taught a lab in Historical Geology for my former
Paleontology professor. Dan Bauer was one of my students in that class. Like
me, Dan had a double major in Biology and Geology for his undergraduate degree.
I chose the Biology route for my career and Dan chose Geology. After graduation
in a series of scenarios where he was in the right place at the right time, Dan
worked as a geologist in Antarctica during the Austral summer (our winter).
When he wasn’t walking among Penguins on the Antarctic Peninsula, he was
prospecting for precious metals in Alaska, or working on the Barnes Ice Cap near Pond
Inlet in Nunavut, Canada. We hadn’t seen each other in nearly 50 years but the
reconnection was almost immediate.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">About 4:00 pm we received
word that all staterooms were now available and we walked (slowly because of my
knee) down one deck and opened the door of Stateroom 11082, a Club Balcony
Suite starboard and mid-ship. We had sailed on the Star
twice before. First on a 14-day Transatlantic repositioning cruise from
Copenhagen, Denmark, to Miami. It was on this cruise we decided that Norwegian
was out preferred cruise line and the Star was our preferred ship. Later, in
January 2023, we sailed again on the Star during Norwegian’s inaugural cruise
from Buenos Aires to Antarctica.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">On entering Stateroom
11082 we found a message on our bed. It was from Norwegian informing us
of an itinerary change. This quickly became the second omen that our cruise was
not going to be a happy one.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Our original itinerary
took us from Buenos Aires to Montevideo, Uruguay, to Puerto Madryn in Chubut
Province, Argentina, to Punta Arenas, Chile, to Ushuaia, Argentina. After
passing through the Beagle Channel and crossing the dreaded Drake Passage we
were supposed to spend one day in Paradise Bay on the Antarctic Peninsula
before traveling overnight to Elephant Island, made famous by the Shackelton Expedition. From Elephant Island, we were to re-cross the Drake
Passage for one day to the Falkland Islands, then a two-day sail back to Buenos
Aires. The message on our bed told a different story.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">For no clear reason
Norwegian had altered the itinerary to remove Paradise Bay. We would now spend
one day in Admiralty Bay on King George Island and then dash up to Elephant
Island in the latter part of the day. We would still spend a day crossing the
Drake Passage to the Falkland Islands and after leaving them we would spend
THREE days crawling at 13 nautical miles per hour back to Buenos Aires. Frustration
was quickly replaced by disappointment when 2,000 or so passengers learned that
our time in Antarctica was cut in half and in place of it we would crawl like a
slow-moving snail back to Buenos Aires!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">A quick check with the
Customer Service desk on Deck 7 revealed a game of cat and mouse with the
itinerary change. Customer Service claimed it was a “management” decision to
make the change. I asked to speak with an officer and soon the Director of
Operations for the cruise was standing in front of me. I asked him to explain
the management decision to change the itinerary. He quickly recited the words
on every cruise confirmation that the cruise line reserves the right to change
the itinerary as needed. I asked for clarification of why it had to be changed.
He said, “It was a corporate decision made in Miami.”</span><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 16pt;">I worked for the Federal government long
enough to recognize when smoke was being blown up my ass and told the Director
of Operations how I felt. He offered platitudes and thoughts and prayers and
walked away. Perhaps he needs some additional training in customer service
because he received an F from me.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Where I accepted the fact
that we were being screwed out of a day in Antarctica on a cruise billed and
marketed as “Antarctica” many others on the ship were not so complacent. Three
days after sailing out of Buenos Aires word spread among passengers that “Good
Morning America” on the <b><a href="https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Travel/norwegian-cruise-line-passengers-claim-antarctica-voyage-rerouted/story?id=107222296"><i>ABC Network</i> </a></b>was seeking passengers to
speak on the record about losing a day in Antarctica and not receiving a
straight answer. Soon emails from friends arrived with links to stories in the </span><i style="font-size: 16pt;"><b><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2024/02/16/antarctica-cruise-norwegian-star/">Washington Post</a></b></i><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> and the </span><i style="font-size: 16pt;"><b><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/passengers-furious-removing-antarctica-itinerary-norweigian-cruise-line-south-america-2024-2">Business Insider</a></b> </i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">(among others) about the media attention
the itinerary change was receiving. Norwegian Cruise Line stepped on its
corporate dick big time and didn’t have the common sense needed to quell the
uprising of anger over what they did.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">That first night we had
dinner in the Versailles Dining Room then settled in for a much-needed night of
rest after a hectic day. We were jolted
awake at 4:45 a.m. when crew members on the Deck 12 by the pool, a few inches above us, began
rearranging lounge chairs. It seemed that they had to drag every deck chair on
Deck 12 from one end of the pool deck to the other and each step they took made
the sound louder. The night before, as we tried to get to sleep, we heard the
deep bass of music being played on the pool deck for the “sail away” party. This
continued until 11:00 pm under various names throughout the cruise. We assumed, incorrectly, that the
noise was a one-time inconvenience. Nothing could be farther from the truth.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">For the first 10 days of
the cruise, every morning at 4:45, the dedicated staff was on the pool deck
rearranging the deck chairs even though it was 1) still dark, and after several
days we were in 2) air temperatures of 36 degrees F that precluded anyone
laying out on the pool deck on the recently moved chairs. Not to be outdone,
once the deck chairs were moved waking up everyone on the Starboard side of the
ship under the pool deck, the Chinese couple in Stateroom 11080 started hacking
up their lungs and sneezing. They had COVID or RSV or the Hong Kong Fong and
they spent every waking moment from the second day of the cruise coughing and
sneezing. This wasn’t normal sneezing or coughing. This was deep and hard
coughing that sounded like a cat being strangled.</span><span style="font-size: 16pt;">
</span><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Every day this went on from the moment we were jolted awake until the
end of the cruise.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">On the 10</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> day
of being blasted out of bed by deck chairs being moved at 4:45 a.m. I trotted
down to Customer Service and said, “I don’t want to seem trite, but is it
really necessary for the crew to be moving deck chairs on the pool deck at 4:45
every morning?”</span><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Customer Service
apologized and sent a Housekeeping Department manager to our room at 5:00 a.m.
to continue apologizing. Eventually he told me that the unwanted 4:45 a.m. wake
up calls from moving deck chairs would stop. And it did. For the rest of the
cruise the crew moved them at 3:30 a.m.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Concerned about the
hacking and sneezing from Stateroom 11080 we told our room steward about our
concerns for the people in the room and for him having to clean their room. Our
room steward admitted that the occupants of 11080 refused to let him in the room
to clean it! They would bring a garbage can to the door and hand it to him then
quickly close the door and lock it. We suggested that the room needed to be
fumigated at the end of the cruise. Thankfully, our room steward wore a mask
each time he opened their door to take the garbage. I feel sorry for the
passengers who were stuck in 11080 after this cruise.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_2t0R2rsvRuhAa5mk2Os6-3nrIJTdxeKlFp6Ti2jcVnxhJarXHTouGRTg0IXoY47NQ2fPnAqFczhec0Wc4R7MvWW2bJ1wFopuNjTSKiHu-XU7IbWg-M-XlfbxEbFi9x4Y7c-sdaduYgCPVfwmfbl2CO3ed-GkBXoHrBo7Ex7emYftyKV12YDLYOJFWpBm/s4032/IMG_9414.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_2t0R2rsvRuhAa5mk2Os6-3nrIJTdxeKlFp6Ti2jcVnxhJarXHTouGRTg0IXoY47NQ2fPnAqFczhec0Wc4R7MvWW2bJ1wFopuNjTSKiHu-XU7IbWg-M-XlfbxEbFi9x4Y7c-sdaduYgCPVfwmfbl2CO3ed-GkBXoHrBo7Ex7emYftyKV12YDLYOJFWpBm/w480-h640/IMG_9414.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><b>Replica of the James Caird, the 22 foot sailboat that Sir Ernest Shackleton and 5 crew members sailed 800 miles from Elephant Island to South Georgia on the start of their quest to save the remainder of Shackleton's crew</b><br /><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Other than these
annoyances the cruise was enjoyable and educational. When we anchored in Punta Arenas, Chile we
took part in a shore excursion to the Museo Nao Victoria where we examined
replicas of the ship Magellan sailed when he discovered the Straits of Magellan.
Also here was a replica of the HMS Beagle that Charles Darwin sailed through
here on his way to the Galapagos. Most importantly was a replica of the James
Caird, the 22-foot boat that Sir Ernest Shackelton and 5 of his crew sailed in
for more than 800 miles to South Georgia Island where they started the effort
to rescue the remainder of the crew of the Endurance camped on Point Wild on
Elephant Island. </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXECGB2Ld9_jjKspNktGf80SeqQcimVujlz-dSd9l8mAAsiuLngDpejSA69aXy3HUD1nC-Z5Etm9CfSWjb5L4JHMQWSNYQMCWdr-1O1DmU4k5OL3auS3nJNAivKxZiKk3GO5U6nvhCAPmsQuf3wstL0QDTNIGsaffAZXavRocGckwabpb8mewJNkqCWzNn/s4032/IMG_9442.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXECGB2Ld9_jjKspNktGf80SeqQcimVujlz-dSd9l8mAAsiuLngDpejSA69aXy3HUD1nC-Z5Etm9CfSWjb5L4JHMQWSNYQMCWdr-1O1DmU4k5OL3auS3nJNAivKxZiKk3GO5U6nvhCAPmsQuf3wstL0QDTNIGsaffAZXavRocGckwabpb8mewJNkqCWzNn/w480-h640/IMG_9442.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><b>Point Wild, Elephant Island, Antarctica. Imagine 22 humans "living" on this narrow stretch of beach for 4 1/2 months during the Antarctic winter eating penguins and seaweed and burning seal blubber for food. The next time you think you have it rough just think back to the Shackelton crew and what they endured, and your concerns will disappear</b><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">After looking at the Caird I have even more respect for
Shackelton and his crew. Sailing over 800 miles across the Drake Passage with
no modern navigational aids. Their only instruments were a sextant and dead reckoning.
How they made it over the treacherous seas of the Drake remains a mystery but
they did it. Upon his return to Elephant Island four months later, none of
Shackelton’s 28-member crew had perished including the 22 who remained on Point
Wild eating seaweed, Chinstrap Penguins, Southern Elephant Seals and burning
blubber for heat.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1jymdtV9xZoosXrWgprVHz5ZNRSxRN3l-BvJOOCJSk8nMDY1NAPXgWxXVqUn0xUGepGuPpIBybnmH3WKcV8gMjwOlKUvUJzxJBxLXWLudym2LNP2aIAFnaqdRlmYIKmtApVCRZj5jt6bzjOZRwAZF5AOqva4oqfmUx2AZ4c8KLqWwgBEF19G6dj1qhrXJ/s1200/Shackleton's%2022%20foot%20boat.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="1200" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1jymdtV9xZoosXrWgprVHz5ZNRSxRN3l-BvJOOCJSk8nMDY1NAPXgWxXVqUn0xUGepGuPpIBybnmH3WKcV8gMjwOlKUvUJzxJBxLXWLudym2LNP2aIAFnaqdRlmYIKmtApVCRZj5jt6bzjOZRwAZF5AOqva4oqfmUx2AZ4c8KLqWwgBEF19G6dj1qhrXJ/w640-h360/Shackleton's%2022%20foot%20boat.webp" width="640" /></a></div><b>Actual photo of Shackleton and crew departing Elephant Island bound for South Georgia 800 miles away</b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Our hurried itinerary
through the South Shetland Islands archipelago allowed us time to explore Admiralty Bay with its large concentration of Chinstrap Penguins. </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir_J_HiHIKsehA_8qtmM1uZ5JVKpTnhcg8XtJeBqdtZDa4WzvcwBzw1aR1vmth1nNEwtvuk-0CsinOHmRrzeyhw-JFkCnUsnxQ76c8mR2LItDKtAX3qe7mYdSbW92OSO0mErePHEaeq5o4i0uKNkEgbyXylh4dXQOSJGoKhn-5yyOkmXary2Js19ncvAiC/s4032/IMG_9439.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir_J_HiHIKsehA_8qtmM1uZ5JVKpTnhcg8XtJeBqdtZDa4WzvcwBzw1aR1vmth1nNEwtvuk-0CsinOHmRrzeyhw-JFkCnUsnxQ76c8mR2LItDKtAX3qe7mYdSbW92OSO0mErePHEaeq5o4i0uKNkEgbyXylh4dXQOSJGoKhn-5yyOkmXary2Js19ncvAiC/w480-h640/IMG_9439.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><b>Ancient ice fields were a prominent part of the King George Island landscape</b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">At
one point not far from Elephant Island we encountered a feeding frenzy of
whales of several species and observed more than 30 spouts over the ocean at
the same time! Then not to be outdone, while eating dinner off Elephant Island
a flock of 300 Cape Petrels, my most favorite Antarctic bird, appeared as the
sun was fading for the day.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVPIDv7eJlGUqxHRtV_wzs3OiXcDzwqBrYGV9MoD89pIKcyqk9IG4K7o5NoI_PjPTsbBoo9wYjLyPM5xynAspmDTk27SfRQReFqL4U0518MpWZyTcOEDSsaYQp8SdzWGn5yF9jCrfAezxEpGBjV8pACvtnTN_IOkeTOf9EjNckiddpYLWuILpplCuS5P7A/s4032/IMG_9433.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><b><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVPIDv7eJlGUqxHRtV_wzs3OiXcDzwqBrYGV9MoD89pIKcyqk9IG4K7o5NoI_PjPTsbBoo9wYjLyPM5xynAspmDTk27SfRQReFqL4U0518MpWZyTcOEDSsaYQp8SdzWGn5yF9jCrfAezxEpGBjV8pACvtnTN_IOkeTOf9EjNckiddpYLWuILpplCuS5P7A/w480-h640/IMG_9433.HEIC" width="480" /></b></a></div><b>Icebergs were abundant off the South Shetland Islands in February</b><br /><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Return northward over the
Drake Passage began about 10:00 p.m. and was uneventful. The wind was only
about 20 mph and wave height was 8 feet.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Several days earlier when
we arrived in Punta Arenas, we learned that ours was only the second Norwegian
Cruise Line ship since November to be able to anchor and bring passengers
ashore in tender boats. Luck also was with us at Stanley, Falkland Islands where our
ship and a Viking Cruise Line ship anchored 25 minutes from shore.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Our objective in Stanley
was to visit the penguin colony at Bluff Cove, a 24-minute drive from the
cruise terminal. There we were told to expect King Penguins, Gentoo Penguins
and maybe Magellanic Penguins. We found all three species plus a Southern Rockhopper
Penguin that had swam to the cove to molt. Adding to the excitement was several
hundred Upland Geese and offshore from the cove was a similar number of
Southern Giant-Petrel.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlT-00NZijBEJRGp4c6_aKVC3RQa96iGNmsN71WE8qNF5qmIoyN_oh5p9XUD-QtG7IzYyldqfmAdBwmmymkRh6NUwlFK1f7aqO_tByTCQ_5vVYjnbwa0Ln8ek5JamyEEuocwUe1ckox47bf2pUZSGXcDJ_Lr1CmOVM9DVQeN_LSulZ2NASg5LcW_KXuvvr/s4032/IMG_9457.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlT-00NZijBEJRGp4c6_aKVC3RQa96iGNmsN71WE8qNF5qmIoyN_oh5p9XUD-QtG7IzYyldqfmAdBwmmymkRh6NUwlFK1f7aqO_tByTCQ_5vVYjnbwa0Ln8ek5JamyEEuocwUe1ckox47bf2pUZSGXcDJ_Lr1CmOVM9DVQeN_LSulZ2NASg5LcW_KXuvvr/w480-h640/IMG_9457.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><b>When I first saw this Gentoo Penguin I thought it was a decoy!</b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1blYQh1XW_De6kxgzcUrhB2i7dh56tV6ah6YDpNMcJxoLYfggiUyy1-G07oG-1HhqpuQ0eyMC-OMAREVX2dAoCEvdeCkwlM3fq4xn11xeV_HEErsL58zlB5cKk9WcVCMsZaTZocIDe2dTF7OdZe-bNI11TfqTY5fw0GC3BwC8hyphenhyphenbmJrZJumkYwsVUYuat/s4032/IMG_9466.HEIC" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1blYQh1XW_De6kxgzcUrhB2i7dh56tV6ah6YDpNMcJxoLYfggiUyy1-G07oG-1HhqpuQ0eyMC-OMAREVX2dAoCEvdeCkwlM3fq4xn11xeV_HEErsL58zlB5cKk9WcVCMsZaTZocIDe2dTF7OdZe-bNI11TfqTY5fw0GC3BwC8hyphenhyphenbmJrZJumkYwsVUYuat/w480-h640/IMG_9466.HEIC" width="480" /></a></div><b>The appropriately named King Penguin</b><br /><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">We spent three days at sea
moving at 13 nautical miles per hour to kill time on the return to Buenos
Aires. On arrival on February 18, we disembarked at 5:30 a.m., took a bus to
Jorge Newberry domestic airport then flew on American Jet (Argentina) a life
airline to Iguazu Falls for a long day trip visiting the spectacular waterfalls
on the border of Brazil and Argentina.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmRwbF-YyLlnHQLgkdTwVQeDeNes8VGS7rrNBftJ-MMIXHm-Dc3m2o-DU73MbtE1XnrNDC0be7nPcC23bZgjCMbBrbMrRNoNGlO8sWWzi-Mjk6e8gCUS3LdIRwKRxpLfHdm6-zGQ9R9K5WOZAOZi7p_0WBhY3Ph6PIyQFcgfse-8Vv-W78boM80hDxa0NZ/s4071/Iguazu%20Falls.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2909" data-original-width="4071" height="458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmRwbF-YyLlnHQLgkdTwVQeDeNes8VGS7rrNBftJ-MMIXHm-Dc3m2o-DU73MbtE1XnrNDC0be7nPcC23bZgjCMbBrbMrRNoNGlO8sWWzi-Mjk6e8gCUS3LdIRwKRxpLfHdm6-zGQ9R9K5WOZAOZi7p_0WBhY3Ph6PIyQFcgfse-8Vv-W78boM80hDxa0NZ/w640-h458/Iguazu%20Falls.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><b>When she first saw Iguazu Falls, Eleanor Roosevelt said "Poor Niagara". Why these falls are not considered the 8th wonder of the world remains a mystery</b><br /><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">I slept in on Monday while
Cathy walked to Ricoletta to visit the famous grave of Eva Perone then on
Tuesday we caught an American Airlines flight to Miami, then Charlotte and after 21 hours of travel arrived in Sarasota.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Despite the disappointment
of losing a day in Antarctica our trip results in 2024 were similar to 2023. Last
year we saw 5 species of whales including Blue Whale. This year we saw 6
species of whales missing Blue Whale but seeing Pilot Whale. Last year we saw 5
species of Albatross and in 2024 saw 6 species. We had the same number of
Penguin species both years. One obvious difference this year was the huge
number of icebergs that we did not see in 2023. This year we were there in
February (our equivalent of August) after three months of melting so it was
expected there would be more icebergs. They were fun to watch and many of them
had Penguins or Leopard Seals hitching a ride. However, I could not help but
think about the movie “Titanic” as we weaved among the floating mountains of
ice.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">The mechanics of this trip
were disappointing and Norwegian needs to do some damage control because there
were many irate passengers. Norwegian also has to do something about the
musical chairs in the middle of the night on the pool deck. We are booked on
another cruise on the Star in July 2024 from Reykjavik Iceland to New York
City. As bad luck would have it we are again in a Stateroom on Deck 11 but
theoretically forward of the pool deck. Regardless, the Iceland trip will be
our final jaunt aboard the Norwegian Star.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Marine Mammals Seen
from the Norwegian Star in the Atlantic Ocean, Straits of Magellan, Beagle
Channel, and the Southern Ocean, February 4 to 17, 2024</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Southern Elephant Seal</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Antarctic Fur Seal</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">South American Fur Seal<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Leopard Seal<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Weddell Seal<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Atlantic Minke Whale<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Fin Whale<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Southern Humpback Whale<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Orca<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Southern Right Whale<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Bird Species Seen in
Uruguay, Chubut Province Argentina, Punta Arenas Chile, Ushuaia Argentina, the
Drake Passage, Antarctica, the Falkland Islands and the Atlantic Ocean,
February 4 to February 17, 2024<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">DUCKS, GEESE, AND
WATERFOWL<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Upland Goose<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Kelp Goose<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Flying Steamer-Duck<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Flightless Steamer-Duck<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Falkland Steamer-Duck<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">White-headed Steamer-Duck<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Crested Duck<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Spectacled Duck<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Silver Teal<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Chiloe Wigeon<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Yellow-billed Pintail<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">GREBES<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">White-tufted Grebe<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Great Grebe<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Silvery Grebe<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">PIGEONS AND DOVES<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Rock Pigeon<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">SHEATHBILLS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Snowy Sheathbill<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">OYSTERCATCHERS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Magellanic Oystercatcher<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">PLOVERS AND LAPWINGS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">American Golden-Plover<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Rufous-chested Dotterel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Southern Lapwing<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">SANDPIPERS AND
ALLIES<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Red Phalarope<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Baird's Sandpiper<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">White-rumped Sandpiper<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">SKUAS AND JAEGERS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Long-tailed Jaeger<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Pomarine Jaeger<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Chilean Skua<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Brown Skua<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">South Polar Skua<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">GULLS, TERNS, AND
SKIMMERS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Brown-hooded Gull<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Dolphin Gull<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Olrog's Gull<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Kelp Gull<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Snowy-crowned Tern<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Arctic Tern<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">South American Tern<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Antarctic Tern<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">PENGUINS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">King Penguin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Emperor Penguin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Adelie Penguin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Gentoo Penguin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Chinstrap Penguin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Magellanic Penguin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Macaroni Penguin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Southern Rockhopper
Penguin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">ALBATROSSES<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Northern Royal Albatross<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Southern Royal Albatross<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Snowy Albatross<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Light-mantled Albatross<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Gray-headed Albatross<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Black-browed Albatross<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">SOUTHERN
STORM-PETRELS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Wilson's Storm-Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Gray-backed Storm-Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Black-bellied Storm-Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">SHEARWATERS AND
PETRELS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Southern Giant-Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Northern Giant-Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Southern Fulmar<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Antarctic Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Cape Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Snow Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Kerguelen Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Soft-plumaged Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Atlantic Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Blue Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Antarctic Prion<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Gray Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">White-chinned Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Spectacled Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Great Shearwater<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Sooty Shearwater<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Manx Shearwater<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Subantarctic Shearwater<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Magellanic Diving-Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">CORMORANTS AND SHAGS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Magellanic Cormorant<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Imperial Cormorant<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Antarctic Shag<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">NEW WORLD VULTURES<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Turkey Vulture<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">FALCONS AND
CARACARAS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Striated Caracara<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">TYRANT FLYCATCHERS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Dark-faced Ground-Tyrant<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">SWALLOWS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Southern Martin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Brown-chested Martin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Blue-and-white Swallow<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Barn Swallow<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">MOCKINGBIRDS AND
THRASHERS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Patagonian Mockingbird<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">THRUSHES AND ALLIES<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Austral Thrush<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Chiguanco Thrush<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">OLD WORLD SPARROWS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">House Sparrow<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">NEW WORLD SPARROWS<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Rufous-collared Sparrow<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">TROUPIALS AND ALLIES<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Long-tailed Meadowlark<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Austral Blackbird<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: 16pt;">-------- STATISTICS
--------<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Species seen - 89<o:p></o:p></span></p><br /></div><p></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-49092399009268441882024-01-10T09:57:00.005-05:002024-01-23T07:03:57.119-05:00Antarctica Bound - Again<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvZ2mqWMTlwIfU9ORn3eD5Atf4yiHfw3nfs_YHsXNUiFxzDLKYvZad1Py0s5pgMl11LnvwK00V6YHtaL6lz12h8w5cWrWs7Z95mlgyCXESzrqtv8YWbyDzjGgKsz6icBDm_dLphb3oaZ-TH19eaIg0sYN-mrlaPRi3PY0BW9s6VMkycfRtLLRmn0v4EjoD/s900/Cruise%20Itinerary.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="900" height="474" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvZ2mqWMTlwIfU9ORn3eD5Atf4yiHfw3nfs_YHsXNUiFxzDLKYvZad1Py0s5pgMl11LnvwK00V6YHtaL6lz12h8w5cWrWs7Z95mlgyCXESzrqtv8YWbyDzjGgKsz6icBDm_dLphb3oaZ-TH19eaIg0sYN-mrlaPRi3PY0BW9s6VMkycfRtLLRmn0v4EjoD/w640-h474/Cruise%20Itinerary.webp" width="640" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The itinerary of the Norwegian Star sailing from Buenos Aires to Antarctica, February 4 - 18, 2024</span></b><p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">When American Airlines
flight 997, a fully loaded Boeing 787 lifted off from the Dallas-Fort Worth
airport on January 13, 2023, bound for Buenos Aires, Argentina, we thought we
were departing on the trip of a lifetime. Once in Buenos Aires we would board
the Norwegian Star cruise ship (our most favorite Norwegian ship) on a 14-day
adventure to the littlest of latitudes – just a few miles from the Antarctic
Circle. We were seated in first/business class with the much needed lay-flat seats - a requirement for a nearly 11 hour flight! As usual on American we were treated like royalty in First Class.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjReEL5J2h3FGeKsnNXkYxW8yep2-XNIFslVDImCL2HFH9AeJXnG0PvuQb0CDcCBdoDMXXkF_WxAevLkAkwJsSHnC5OJDWEq5jj9NnR3y9LsmGwmWH9ZEydQcv4X0P-EZdLQR4CT7_Z76WtRiUA1IcypOATjqHxfzpY1ueIrjnA5YufY7_JKGv_-hAb5cti/s1920/Norwegian%20Star.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="886" data-original-width="1920" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjReEL5J2h3FGeKsnNXkYxW8yep2-XNIFslVDImCL2HFH9AeJXnG0PvuQb0CDcCBdoDMXXkF_WxAevLkAkwJsSHnC5OJDWEq5jj9NnR3y9LsmGwmWH9ZEydQcv4X0P-EZdLQR4CT7_Z76WtRiUA1IcypOATjqHxfzpY1ueIrjnA5YufY7_JKGv_-hAb5cti/w640-h296/Norwegian%20Star.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The Star is by far our most favorite ship in the Norwegian Cruise Line fleet. We first sailed her on a 14 day Transatlantic cruise from Copenhagen to Miami. Then there was 14 days to Antarctica in 2023 followed by 14 days in February 2024. We will meet up again with her in Reykjavik, Iceland on July 1, 2024 for a short 12 day trip to Greenland, Maritime Canada, and docking in New York City.</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Our itinerary took us
first to Montevideo, the colonial capital of Uruguay then on to Puerto Madryn
in the Chubut province of Argentina (which just so happens to be the only known
home of the White-headed Steamer-Duck). After a day at sea, we were in Punta
Arenas, Chile (my third time there), then through the crushingly beautiful
Chilean fjords to Ushuaia, Argentina, the southernmost city in the world and
the southernmost commercial airport in the world. It was in Ushuaia in 2003
that I was banned for life from ever again renting a car from Hertz Rent-a-Car
but that is a different story.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRpDV1WEwh_ckJDMNnJPPWbmL6YLjv5urnC2CVKptcYBwvX0ccEFB5VtSImltM7Ld_hiTXzuhSSTTZBfRylQWVpFmCcXw3-uuAaW6fEeeTmuuOXoPXwqO7Pc-egfYdU0eWA3gl3kXGn356T6YIKBWP5jOq8wS0eIjXLk6tl-1RQoBLPRIS6fnf7rnSgV4R/s3283/Chilean%20Fjords.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1277" data-original-width="3283" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRpDV1WEwh_ckJDMNnJPPWbmL6YLjv5urnC2CVKptcYBwvX0ccEFB5VtSImltM7Ld_hiTXzuhSSTTZBfRylQWVpFmCcXw3-uuAaW6fEeeTmuuOXoPXwqO7Pc-egfYdU0eWA3gl3kXGn356T6YIKBWP5jOq8wS0eIjXLk6tl-1RQoBLPRIS6fnf7rnSgV4R/w640-h248/Chilean%20Fjords.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>The beauty of the Chilean Fjords along the Beagle Channel and the Straits of Magellan will bring tears to your eyes Photo by Dan Bauer in 1985</b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">We spent a day crossing
the infamous Drake Passage, home of some of the most wicked sea currents and
massive waves on the planet before spending two days in and around the South
Shetland Islands of Antarctica. We didn’t step on the Antarctic continent (that
would cost about $20,000 USD for 8 days) but we didn’t need too. From the
comfort of our suite on Deck 9 aft we saw 5 species of Penguin (including
thousands of Chinstrap Penguins doing their signature porosing “flight” through
the water), 5 species of Albatross and 5 species of whales. At one point we sailed
into a whale feeding frenzy and saw 20 whale spouts at the same time – they reminded
me of miniature tornadoes on the Nebraska prairie.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDNTIeGq-zi5hkI2euCG5enDGz6IM9EwGI7uVJ-L7P0rHwIZsnOSFn5JTHqm4Nj-XCfeJZ_YAbepMKk8zsRxRsUJgUYZTPO8EngL3XySWgC1mSHTwGlXHQQM-oRICl2OsXgTmDB9VFBpHOo4-rQT7KqNl-4YW9DrG8r615ZhChbqQz9k3zquIfLOEW8f5I/s1079/Drake%20Quake%20-%20Dan%20Bauer.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1079" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDNTIeGq-zi5hkI2euCG5enDGz6IM9EwGI7uVJ-L7P0rHwIZsnOSFn5JTHqm4Nj-XCfeJZ_YAbepMKk8zsRxRsUJgUYZTPO8EngL3XySWgC1mSHTwGlXHQQM-oRICl2OsXgTmDB9VFBpHOo4-rQT7KqNl-4YW9DrG8r615ZhChbqQz9k3zquIfLOEW8f5I/w640-h428/Drake%20Quake%20-%20Dan%20Bauer.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Experienced travelers will tell you that the Drake Passage between southernmost Argentina and Antarctica comes in two forms. Its either the "Drake Lake" when its calm or the "Drake Quake" when the seas are a bit nasty producing waves to 60 feet high. This photo of the Drake Quake was taken by Dan Bauer from a ship much smaller than the 965 foot long Norwegian Star we will be on.</b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">The owner of a bookstore
in Anchorage Alaska once told me you should only see Alaska as an old person because
if you see it when you are young “you have nothing left to look forward to.” He had obviously never seen Antarctica!</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Mile thick glaciers. Unscaled
and unnamed mountains. Whales everywhere you look. Cape Petrels by the hundreds
surrounding the ship. It was and remains unforgettable.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQT-ZjESRzL3_SSgZWwNoPOrofYnytyvflLiP-HyZ_2cZrZIl9CIHzKERfi-6q16Y48StW_ytjddszUJy3QvXBDwFhDZ4GIsC2u8K9WMQU7FXg_srWEJ5y_RX_EqRTwKiTwBfVq8-li-nEYddmbqJ0NNAbR0vSOmdtY6dLy88J_D53xwanbg1_-GMgkdzO/s1800/Cape%20Petrel.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1350" data-original-width="1800" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQT-ZjESRzL3_SSgZWwNoPOrofYnytyvflLiP-HyZ_2cZrZIl9CIHzKERfi-6q16Y48StW_ytjddszUJy3QvXBDwFhDZ4GIsC2u8K9WMQU7FXg_srWEJ5y_RX_EqRTwKiTwBfVq8-li-nEYddmbqJ0NNAbR0vSOmdtY6dLy88J_D53xwanbg1_-GMgkdzO/w640-h480/Cape%20Petrel.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>It is shocking how stunningly beautiful a completely black and white bird can be but that is the story of the Cape Petrel (also known as the Pintado Petrel). Cape Petrels love to follow ships. In January 2023 we had a flock of 60 following our ship and one came so close I could reach out and touch it! Penguins and Albatross aside, Cape Petrel is my most favorite Antarctica bird.</b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Those interested in
Antarctic history know the story of Sir Ernest Shackleton and his harrowing escape
from the ice of the Weddell Sea. This was followed by most of his crew surviving
on the shore of Elephant Island (where they ate seal and penguin and used their
fat for heat) more than a year, followed by Shackleton’s courageous transit of
the Drake Passage in a 22-foot boat to a whaling station on South Georgia from
which plans were eventually made to return to Elephant Island to rescue his crew.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsGIFOCgclGGCL1KLCA4d87bRgDETakuvB4QZ57iDwsBR_Wk4E_ichyZ80vnitcWvGTPyTZFv6wN8tjqpGvsMjw42bcNFBdXJ-MtVZQnPHBqdvWfM2H5p5cJPgZhIoo_yHKlDTnbFZ6Gb96xOdlUJDJkWi93-vMJOANTr94DwASwEOgWQvr8l1RbXjBFHw/s1200/Shackleton's%2022%20foot%20boat.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="1200" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsGIFOCgclGGCL1KLCA4d87bRgDETakuvB4QZ57iDwsBR_Wk4E_ichyZ80vnitcWvGTPyTZFv6wN8tjqpGvsMjw42bcNFBdXJ-MtVZQnPHBqdvWfM2H5p5cJPgZhIoo_yHKlDTnbFZ6Gb96xOdlUJDJkWi93-vMJOANTr94DwASwEOgWQvr8l1RbXjBFHw/w640-h360/Shackleton's%2022%20foot%20boat.webp" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Sir Ernest Shackleton and 5 of his crew members sailed in this 22 foot boat from Elephant Island 800 miles to South Georgia island where they began arrangements (eventually concluded in Punta Arenas Chile) to return to Elephant Island to rescue his crew. A replica of this 22 foot boat is on display at a museum in Punta Arenas and we plan to visit it.</b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Luckily for us, Norwegian Cruise
Line spent the better part of a morning cruising around the beach on Elephant
Island where Shackleton’s crew miraculously survived. The temperature was 36
degrees F, there was a light mist falling, and we were in the comfort of a 965-foot
ship. It was almost impossible to imagine the misery Shackleton’s crew endured
on that beach for over a year. Surprisingly, not one of his crew perished during
their year-long wait for Shackleton’s return.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Reluctantly leaving
Antarctica we steamed north for a day to the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas
if you are from Argentina) which reminded me of North Dakota because of all the
wind. While I took off looking for Cobb’s
Wren, a single-country endemic, Cathy hiked 11 miles to Gypsy Cove where she
found and photographed a colony of King Penguins. Just like with Antarctica at
the end of the day we did not want to leave the fantastic Falkland Islands. I fell in love with the Falkland Islands and joined the <a href="https://falklandsconservation.com/">Falklands Islands Conservation Trust </a>while there. You should also!</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDq38uzTFsui9oxlU12CrsRcjDe-OfXgtA9D8SRVewB44XsFdOvyewbTm_RnTgzQsWvkOq0H4QcZQs71sx8hP9kClyNMuyavz7IbRI8Xdq5MN0A6LFyZDaMxq8dPSNBesCylyMFBDavq1Jsc8sL5sWuTBRq2kcEaakN1Gr2Y9jxwv5YdR-21wDKnxa1L40/s4032/IMG_0806.JPEG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDq38uzTFsui9oxlU12CrsRcjDe-OfXgtA9D8SRVewB44XsFdOvyewbTm_RnTgzQsWvkOq0H4QcZQs71sx8hP9kClyNMuyavz7IbRI8Xdq5MN0A6LFyZDaMxq8dPSNBesCylyMFBDavq1Jsc8sL5sWuTBRq2kcEaakN1Gr2Y9jxwv5YdR-21wDKnxa1L40/w480-h640/IMG_0806.JPEG" width="480" /></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Cathy Hayslett walked 11 miles roundtrip from the cruise terminal to Gypsy Cove on the Falkland Islands where she photographed this King Penguin. In 2024 we are taking a shore excursion in a Land Rover to go look at Penguins.</b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">We sailed north for two
days from the Falklands and reluctantly returned to Buenos Aires. When we
returned to Buenos Aires (the cruise terminal there is an absolute zoo!) Cathy said,
“I want to do this cruise again.” A week
later I was on the phone with Norwegian Cruise Line booking a return trip to
Antarctica on February 4, 2024. So much for it being a once-in-a-lifetime
adventure.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">On February 2, 2024, we
depart Sarasota bound first for Charlotte North Carolina and then to JFK for an
11-hour overnight flight back to Buenos Aires. This will be my 7</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 16pt;">
and hopefully not final trip to my most favorite South American country.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">After a day of recuperation,
we board the Norwegian Star again and depart on the same itinerary we followed
in 2023. This will be the first time in 22 cruises together that we are
following the same itinerary as any previous cruise. That should tell you a bit
about how fantastic Norwegian Cruise Line, the Norwegian Star, and Antarctica
are! Our itinerary includes:</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 4</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – Depart Buenos Aires</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 5</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – Day in Montevideo, Uruguay (pairing Uruguayan beef
with Uruguayan craft beer)</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 6</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – At sea</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 7</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – Puerto Madryn, Argentina (after an abysmal shore
excursion there in 2023 we are staying near the pier drinking Malbec rather
than wasting money on a totally unprofessional excursion)</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 8</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – At sea</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 9</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – Punta Arenas, Chile. We will visit a museum housing
a replica of the 22-foot boat Shackleton escaped from Antarctica in and a
replica of the HMS Beagle that housed Charles Darwin on his expedition to South
America. Chuck’s birthday will be on February 12. We might have to drink a beer
for him while looking at his ship.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 10</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – Ushuaia Argentina – a city that reminds me of
Anchorage, Alaska, so much I think I am looking at the Chugach Mountains as I
walk among the Kelp Geese and Southern Giant Petrels cruising the waterfront.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 11</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – Crossing the Drake Passage</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 12</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – Paradise Bay, Antarctica</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 13</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – Elephant Island, Antarctica</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 14</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – At sea</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 15</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – Falkland Islands (with an excursion to a penguin
colony supporting 3 species of penguin)</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 16</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – At sea</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 17</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – At sea</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 18</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – Reluctantly return to Buenos Aires. But quickly
transfer to the nearby domestic airport for a 90-minute flight north on a day
trip to Iguazu Falls on the Argentina-Brazil-Paraguay border.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5vI4jlXxGzFE__FkWCdFvrg25X02OCtcpkVrWenbQHtgg5_Vro1-LGfqjQ0PMbe5Pll-c9jqsG2Eo4kDndo7KxJizt0CuKI8dVEyP8dXwjA4jNBn3Nuqker1uOT9xPnns5gz7EbrbVc759GZBGDgS8XHr46w74Eiwt0Gts31V8qtiSlXRku5ZRH6pDih7/s4071/Iguazu%20Falls.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2909" data-original-width="4071" height="458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5vI4jlXxGzFE__FkWCdFvrg25X02OCtcpkVrWenbQHtgg5_Vro1-LGfqjQ0PMbe5Pll-c9jqsG2Eo4kDndo7KxJizt0CuKI8dVEyP8dXwjA4jNBn3Nuqker1uOT9xPnns5gz7EbrbVc759GZBGDgS8XHr46w74Eiwt0Gts31V8qtiSlXRku5ZRH6pDih7/w640-h458/Iguazu%20Falls.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Iguazu Falls on the border with Brazil and Paraguay, is one of the most spectacular sights you will witness in the natural world. On my second trip to Argentina I flew up to Iguazu Falls and spent several days hiking the forests and looking at birds. This trip we will only have a few hours there but it will be worth every second.</b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 19</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – Chill out in soccer-crazed Buenos Aires, described
by many as “The Paris of South America.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHMPa483QS-LccS2aGvk61vNJOx3RtLnUTFuukZrIxf1tkMR8xAfAQABKblpeL71ZG5VXZSZ5Oul7KIrL1FgUeptt2vCcQhtad5mycIfd_il4EgVbPOo0OwP2569Ax24FpStNyLo5WOjPInEaGUAL1Q9p-51jkgzn9y8qA3HkIHrq838Bpk1jB9MIOfnBy/s1280/Downtown%20Buenos%20Aires.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHMPa483QS-LccS2aGvk61vNJOx3RtLnUTFuukZrIxf1tkMR8xAfAQABKblpeL71ZG5VXZSZ5Oul7KIrL1FgUeptt2vCcQhtad5mycIfd_il4EgVbPOo0OwP2569Ax24FpStNyLo5WOjPInEaGUAL1Q9p-51jkgzn9y8qA3HkIHrq838Bpk1jB9MIOfnBy/w640-h360/Downtown%20Buenos%20Aires.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b>Driving from the International Airport to the domestic airport in August 2001 I commented to the driver that Avenida 9 de Julio reminded me of the Champs-Elysees. The driver said "Sir, did you not know that Buenos Aires is the Paris of South America?" It certainly is!</b></p></b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">February 20</span></b><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> – Reluctantly leave Buenos Aires late in the evening
first to Miami, then Charlotte and on <b>February 21</b> arriving in Sarasota. Friends
from Rhode Island will be staying at our house while we are gone so don’t think
about stopping by to rip us off. Plus, our neighbor has a gun.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">We already have two more cruises
planned for 2024 (Iceland and Greenland in July and Rome to Miami in November).
Plus 2025 is filled up with Puerto Rico to Lisbon, Portugal in April 2025, the
Greek Islands and Malta in July 2025 and a spin around the Caribbean from San
Jaun to Bonaire in December 2025.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Maybe if my heart hasn’t
given out by then and my ashes aren’t spread over the Amazon, we will try
Antarctica in 2026. I’ll be getting quite feeble by then but it will be worth
the effort to see it again.</span></p><p><b><br /></b></p><p><br /></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-25274631386597420592024-01-05T10:27:00.002-05:002024-01-05T10:59:43.001-05:00The One Place I Was Happy<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD6TX1Bd6GEmMk5nG563qvRA0HYhM0uiJUN0zL-7b56vJPdjGH5jeCMkgl4IFuuPRJAREfbqhx35vTxNdEu2VF6t9ZB8V9LVRS359-psgPfRC4eHU_RrsIr4KAa11232iQm1lhCFcwVQxAvj5_5uh2DaNsf2QizSCe5maeVtgxd5vFpSgxEKpGN0fu99fd/s960/IMG_0128.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD6TX1Bd6GEmMk5nG563qvRA0HYhM0uiJUN0zL-7b56vJPdjGH5jeCMkgl4IFuuPRJAREfbqhx35vTxNdEu2VF6t9ZB8V9LVRS359-psgPfRC4eHU_RrsIr4KAa11232iQm1lhCFcwVQxAvj5_5uh2DaNsf2QizSCe5maeVtgxd5vFpSgxEKpGN0fu99fd/w480-h640/IMG_0128.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><b><div><b><br /></b></div>The "World's Largest Buffalo" is impossible to miss, even at night, as you travel Interstate 94 through Jamestown, North Dakota</b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">A road sign flashed by us
in the middle of an October night in North Dakota. It was 1957 and we were
traveling west to Montana for my dad’s annual deer hunting trip with his uncle.
The sign I saw said “James River” and seconds later, on the same side of the
road, was a giant statue of an American bison referred to by the city father’s
as “The World’s Largest Buffalo.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">This was my instantaneous
introduction to Jamestown, North Dakota, that with 17,000 residents, was the
fifth largest city in the Peace Garden State. Among its many claims to fame,
Jamestown is the home of the Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center which,
in my biased opinion, was the finest wildlife research center in the world.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 16pt; text-align: center;"><span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYO4NWQj_uwmhJ4Uq1SRtD5aPTZxhIYiWxN8zmG6oqHJsl2nH1ffGNmNAcSjuSLOWL_fiGzzNfAz2mvswldfvbTwt2Zwm-HkXzZBr149dCzVlxLXr9OwqEMAZOIF9bICGwHuGw0qXiezsBupkSM1e7HOXkQzQZs-aE_JU7x5KqpBH26kfV2HZnUxCqL6fb/s525/npwrc.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="295" data-original-width="525" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYO4NWQj_uwmhJ4Uq1SRtD5aPTZxhIYiWxN8zmG6oqHJsl2nH1ffGNmNAcSjuSLOWL_fiGzzNfAz2mvswldfvbTwt2Zwm-HkXzZBr149dCzVlxLXr9OwqEMAZOIF9bICGwHuGw0qXiezsBupkSM1e7HOXkQzQZs-aE_JU7x5KqpBH26kfV2HZnUxCqL6fb/w640-h360/npwrc.webp" width="640" /></a></span></div><span><b>Northern Prairie was a dream duty station for anyone who loves wildlife</b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">At six years old, thanks
to a walk in the forest with my grandfather, I knew that I wanted to be a
biologist when I grew up. At nine years old, a female mallard I shot on the
Brill River in Barron County Wisconsin, carried a band on her leg. I sent the
band to the address on it, and several months later a “Certificate of
Appreciation” arrived from the US Fish and Wildlife Service informing me where,
when and by whom the female mallard had been banded. It occurred to me that if
there was an organization putting bands on bird legs I would want to work for
that organization. At 9 years old my goal became the US Fish and Wildlife
Service.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Throughout graduate
school I sat in the library reading volume after volume of the Journal of
Wildlife Management (later I called it the Journal of Metaphysical Wildlife). The
Journal was filled with papers written by people named Cowardin and Johnson and
Kantrud and Stewart and Lokemoen and Duebbert and others. They were each
stationed at the Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center in Jamestown, North
Dakota – the very same city with the world’s largest buffalo. One night in the library I made it a goal to be a biologist at Northern Prairie.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Summer 1976 with a brand-new
Master’s Degree I was working for $3.00 an hour with the Wisconsin Department
of Natural Resources. A car driven by my supervisor Bruce Moss found me counting
ducks at East Twin Lake in St. Croix County. Once the car stopped, David L.
Trauger, the bombastic and egotistical Deputy Director of Northern Prairie
rolled out of the car and began trying to awe us with his vast knowledge of
everything. Something I said or did caught Dave's attention and two years
later, when I was now a wildlife biologist with the US Fish and Wildlife
Service in Minneapolis, Trauger brought me to Northern Prairie on loan for the
summer.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">My task was to work with
world-famous wildlife biologist Harold Kantrud on an extensive research project
he was conducting in North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, and Montana to
develop a grassland classification system based on breeding bird abundance. For
two months Hal and I traveled together counting birds and recording plant
species over the heart of the Northern Great Plains. In mid-July 1978 when my
detail to Northern Prairie was complete I didn’t want to leave. As Jimmy
Buffett sings in a song about Key West, Florida, “I have found me a home.”</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Later that summer, through
the machinations of how government works, a position fitting my exact expertise
became available at Northern Prairie and not by surprise I was selected.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">January 20, 1979, with my
Chesapeake Bay Retriever seated next to me in a U-Haul, and my then-wife and 2-year-old
daughter leading the way in our Ford Escort, we left Hudson, Wisconsin, on the
7-hour drive to Jamestown. When we arrived in the late afternoon, the high
temperature for the day was -24 degrees F. It was an auspicious start to a new
chapter in my life.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">After two weeks in the
Ramada Inn, we found and purchased a home at 1410 11</span><sup>th</sup><span style="font-size: 16pt;">
Street Southeast, not far from the James River sign I had seen in 1957. My goal
of being stationed at Northern Prairie was complete.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Over the next four years I
conducted research on sandhill cranes in Nebraska, and breeding birds along the
Platte River. We did a study of bird abundance and diversity that helped bring
a proposed damn on the Pembina River to its deathbed. Another study examined
the abundance of diversity of breeding songbird using unique woody habitats in
western North Dakota that were scheduled to be consumed by coal production. Probably my most valuable contribution was a
study of the behavior and mortality of birds at powerlines in central North
Dakota. Despite the study area, the research had implications for
protecting birds from collisions with man-made structures from Switzerland, to Fairbanks, Alaska.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">When I wasn’t working we
were out exploring. Another daughter arrived in June 1980 and 6 weeks after her
birth we were on a train to Churchill Manitoba in Canada’s Arctic. A year later
we were camping in southeast Arizona. There were trips to the Turtle Mountains
and to Teddy Roosevelt National Park and not-often-enough returns to Wisconsin.
Mid-September brought the beginning of hunting season. First it was mourning doves
and then sharp-tailed grouse and on October 1, ducks and geese became fair game.
My Chesapeake Bay Retriever was ecstatic because nearly every day he was
tromping across a prairie or swimming in freezing water retrieving something we
had harvested. It was impossible to be happier than I was in Jamestown, North
Dakota.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsJSQ-Dg5Y8QOOAOEybc7g-pRvKqR0llNM8IHLcFNTnSnGI-j93_rlKEk159xjeoNnC-PZeQgPT8I7cPK7ZQsRPg-EnMUt052rB90roKELKvGTrqd_YX0upU1aIPGV6lupcmB15dAPywml/s720/STGR+-+Wisconsin+Joanne+Bartkus.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="720" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsJSQ-Dg5Y8QOOAOEybc7g-pRvKqR0llNM8IHLcFNTnSnGI-j93_rlKEk159xjeoNnC-PZeQgPT8I7cPK7ZQsRPg-EnMUt052rB90roKELKvGTrqd_YX0upU1aIPGV6lupcmB15dAPywml/w640-h480/STGR+-+Wisconsin+Joanne+Bartkus.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span><b>There are many things to hunt in North Dakota. None, however, was finer than Sharp-tailed Grouse</b></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">It was an idyllic life. I
was happy as the proverbial clam then on March 5, 1983 it all came
crashing down. Two months to the day after “it” happened a Stutsman County
Sheriff Deputy showed up at Northern Prairie and in front of all my colleagues
served me with divorce papers. Four months later we sat in the divorce court in the Stutsman County Courthouse where I learned firsthand how
much “justice” there is in the justice system.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">To say I was rudderless
was an understatement. Because of new living arrangements I had to take my Chesapeake
Bay Retriever back to my parents farm in Wisconsin and leave him there. I still
dream about that dog every week. Not only had I lost a family but I lost my
best friend, a curly-haired dog who lived to hunt.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Jamestown, North Dakota,
with its 17,000 people, was too small a town to live in without running into a former
wife who took great pleasure in reminding me often that we were no longer
married. Thanks once again to bombastic David L. Trauger, now director of the
Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Laurel, Maryland, I transferred from Jamestown
to a field station of Patuxent in Athens, Georgia. There for 3 years I spent my summers in northern
Michigan and my winters in the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands studying
Kirtland’s Warbler. After three years of
nearly constant travel (it was more running away than travel) I moved to Grand
Island Nebraska, the Florida Keys, Ventura, California, and eventually
Washington DC. </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">None of those places were
ever where I wanted to be. None of them were ever “home.” I lived in many houses but not one of them
has been home. My home was on the pass
at Chase Lake National Wildlife Refuge in North Dakota with my daughters
watching ducks and geese pass 50 feet over our heads. Home was the forest of
McElroy Park along the James River dripping with warblers in the middle of May,
home was a near collision with a startled moose in the Pembina River valley, and
home was a camping trip to the Turtle Mountains.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Since leaving my home on
the prairie, the only other place I have been happy is at Barrow, Alaska, at 71 degrees North latitude, on the
shores of the Arctic Ocean. There I am on my own, counting birds, looking for
polar bears and 500 miles away from the nearest road. The habitat, when the
snow finally melts in June, looks surprisingly similar to the Missouri Coteau of North Dakota. As with North Dakota, those Arctic wetlands are
teeming with birds. The sad thing about Barrow is that I am only there for a
few days and then have to leave.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 16pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWFW5di6UGtfrKCw4K4onvPprpBgmuMI237an-FsLPf1wXV8Dp90J8oOdL2ee-hUt7L11J5TrJFXERqbFaNZlWcAuPzhVcC8eg3R6M2fFT4QeakngnO8AKl3pIueT61SBePpeBN5SRd5wirWlDJtpFQB-wHRg66nHmfSIFNFjQGsQZk9dHTO-6AsYkWaSn/s4032/Tundra%20Wetland.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWFW5di6UGtfrKCw4K4onvPprpBgmuMI237an-FsLPf1wXV8Dp90J8oOdL2ee-hUt7L11J5TrJFXERqbFaNZlWcAuPzhVcC8eg3R6M2fFT4QeakngnO8AKl3pIueT61SBePpeBN5SRd5wirWlDJtpFQB-wHRg66nHmfSIFNFjQGsQZk9dHTO-6AsYkWaSn/w480-h640/Tundra%20Wetland.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><b>Palustrine emergent wetlands like this one are almost too numerous to count at Barrow Alaska. Their abundance reminds me of North Dakota's Missouri Coteau 45 years ago</b><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 16pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 16pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Dorothy, in the “Wizard of
Oz” transported herself to where she was happy by clicking the heels of her
ruby slippers and saying “There’s no place like home” until she was home. I don’t
have that luxury and quite honestly after living under a Florida palm tree for
16 years I could never live in North Dakota again. However, just like wolves and
fishers in northern Wisconsin I may never see one, but a glimmer of joy overcomes me when I remember that the North Dakota I loved was once there providing me with
happiness.</span></div><p>
</p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> </span></p><p><br /></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-67145574035522689532023-12-30T13:25:00.004-05:002023-12-30T13:33:19.742-05:00My Sector of the Sarasota Christmas Bird Count December 30 2023<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjctzKtqQgGztOT9AyvhSltKdYGvz9-T15I1A-EhRdcJbP-nfDZyU9dsSI_QyP_Nc1RhloMF096taRf2jkZZC_KV6Oy0fssJX4bLmLPtYbgHlOZAhdGCRGGLCYLUJDhx4x0pNpIv5VzaAvwowYqL_X4S-d3n_ma9Mfwgk9dkvfbBfOwCGvh7KvOEiDJ2rY1/s1280/Royal_Tern.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="802" data-original-width="1280" height="402" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjctzKtqQgGztOT9AyvhSltKdYGvz9-T15I1A-EhRdcJbP-nfDZyU9dsSI_QyP_Nc1RhloMF096taRf2jkZZC_KV6Oy0fssJX4bLmLPtYbgHlOZAhdGCRGGLCYLUJDhx4x0pNpIv5VzaAvwowYqL_X4S-d3n_ma9Mfwgk9dkvfbBfOwCGvh7KvOEiDJ2rY1/w640-h402/Royal_Tern.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><b>Totally by surprise was a Royal Tern flying overhead 6 miles from the ocean! A first for my sector of the Christmas Bird Count</b><p></p><p>By Nicholas Atamas - Photograph taken with EF 70-200mm F/4 L on a Canon EOS300D at 200mm, F/6.3 exposed for 1/1600sec, CC BY-SA 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=678974</p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><div data-setdir="false" dir="ltr" style="outline: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">Here are the results from this morning's run of my 2 square mile chunk of suburbia inside the Sarasota Christmas Bird Count circle. 70 species plus the confusing Mallard/Mottled (here called Muddled Duck) Duck complex makes this the best year by 5 species for my count. I now have 86 species plus the hybrid duck in my sector over 5 years.</span></div><div data-setdir="false" dir="ltr" style="outline: none;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br style="outline: none;" /></span></div><div data-setdir="false" dir="ltr" style="outline: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">New species for my sector included Pied billed Grebe, American Coot, Royal Tern (complete surprise inland) Black-crowned Night-Heron, Red-headed Woodpecker, Brown-headed Nuthatch (at the southern limit of its range here) Eastern Towhee, Orange-crowned Warbler and Summer Tanager (heard first using its classic "pick-it-up" call)</span></div><div data-setdir="false" dir="ltr" style="outline: none;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br style="outline: none;" /></span></div><div data-setdir="false" dir="ltr" style="outline: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">Oh, yes, and the annual Cottonmouth with a shitty attitude was curled up by his favorite wetland in Deer Hollow. I think that snake waits there all year long for me to show up so he can scare the trump out of me.</span></div><div data-setdir="false" dir="ltr" style="outline: none;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br style="outline: none;" /></span></div><div data-setdir="false" dir="ltr" style="outline: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">Major misses include Common Ground-Dove -- they nest in our development just haven't started to call yet. White-winged Dove - there is usually one or two by Gecko's Restaurant wetland but nobody showed up today, and Glossy Ibis!! There were more than 100 of them in the area 1-2 weeks ago but they all disappeared today.</span></div><div data-setdir="false" dir="ltr" style="outline: none;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div data-setdir="false" dir="ltr" style="outline: none;"><table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody><tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-firstrow: yes; mso-yfti-irow: 0;">
<td nowrap="" style="border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Black-bellied Whistling-Duck<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-left: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">21<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 1;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Blue-winged Teal<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 2;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Mottled Duck<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">8<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 3;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Ring-necked Duck<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 4;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Hooded Merganser<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 5;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Pied-billed Grebe<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 6;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Rock Pigeon<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">81<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 7;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Eurasian Collared-Dove<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">6<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 8;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Mourning Dove<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">8<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 9;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Common Gallinule<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">9<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 10;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">American Coot<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 11;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Limpkin<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">4<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 12;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Sandhill Crane<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 13;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Laughing Gull<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 14;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Royal Tern<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 15;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Wood Stork <o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 16;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Anhinga<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 17;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Double-crested Cormorant<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">7<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 18;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Black-crowned Night-Heron<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 19;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Little Blue Heron<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 20;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Tricolored Heron<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 21;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Snowy Egret<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 22;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Green Heron<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 23;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Western Cattle Egret<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">11<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 24;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Great Egret<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 25;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Great Blue Heron<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 26;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">White Ibis<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">147<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 27;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Roseate Spoonbill<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 28;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Black Vulture<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 29;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Turkey Vulture<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">18<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 30;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Osprey<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 31;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Cooper's Hawk<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 32;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Bald Eagle (Subadult/Adults)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2/1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 33;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Red-shouldered Hawk<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 34;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Belted Kingfisher<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 35;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Red-headed Woodpecker<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 36;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Red-bellied Woodpecker<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">7<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 37;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Downy Woodpecker<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 38;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Pileated Woodpecker<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 39;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">American Kestrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 40;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Nandy Parakeet<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 41;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Eastern Phoebe<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 42;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Blue-headed Vireo<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 43;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Loggerhead Shrike<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 44;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Blue Jay<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">37<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 45;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Fish Crow<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">30<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 46;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Tufted Titmouse<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 47;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Tree Swallow<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">84<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 48;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Ruby-crowned Kinglet<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 49;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Brown-headed Nuthatch<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 50;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Blue-gray Gnatcatcher<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 51;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Carolina Wren<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 52;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">European Starling<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">23<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 53;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Gray Catbird<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 54;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Brown Thrasher<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 55;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Northern Mockingbird<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">11<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 56;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Eastern Bluebird<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 57;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">House Finch<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 58;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Eastern Towhee<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 59;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Red-winged Blackbird<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">19<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 60;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Brown-headed Cowbird<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">7<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 61;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Common Grackle<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">37<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 62;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Boat-tailed Grackle<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">117<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 63;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Orange-crowned Warbler<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 64;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Common Yellowthroat<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">4<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 65;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Palm Warbler<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">44<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 66;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Pine Warbler<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 67;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Yellow-rumped Warbler<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">31<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 68;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Summer Tanager<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 69;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Northern Cardinal<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 70;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Total Individuals<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">854<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 71;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Total Species <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">70<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 72;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Total Party Hours<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">5.5<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 73;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Party hours on foot<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 74;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Party Miles on foot<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2.7<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 75;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Party hours by car<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">3.5<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 76;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Party miles by car<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">11.7<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 77;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Start time <o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">655<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 14.5pt; mso-yfti-irow: 78; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes;">
<td nowrap="" style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 188.75pt;" valign="top" width="252">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">End time<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td nowrap="" style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; height: 14.5pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 45pt;" valign="top" width="60">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">1230<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table></div><div data-setdir="false" dir="ltr" style="outline: none;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br style="outline: none;" /></span></div><div data-setdir="false" dir="ltr" style="outline: none;"><br style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; outline: none;" /></div>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-64730461948911402792023-12-05T07:35:00.010-05:002023-12-05T08:00:05.262-05:00Holiday Greetings from the Little Latitudes<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBkuVS2bHYksC6rskgLHjlkauXQHl16pw6ah23EmRl1VUfi50uhYAPQVA36SQ6sw6yw7k1RjBk7kDW0j0xQzw2skfs88-XtFu8vCxAA-GURiXb8XKCmZDQZt3Cy99WgMTUAfyq1tGaJFGK_osyaDCAVPisj9Sz4fVTj9sMzvEeLMfsyaaAt5hQAxRoY1KS/s800/Los%20Arcos.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="600" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBkuVS2bHYksC6rskgLHjlkauXQHl16pw6ah23EmRl1VUfi50uhYAPQVA36SQ6sw6yw7k1RjBk7kDW0j0xQzw2skfs88-XtFu8vCxAA-GURiXb8XKCmZDQZt3Cy99WgMTUAfyq1tGaJFGK_osyaDCAVPisj9Sz4fVTj9sMzvEeLMfsyaaAt5hQAxRoY1KS/w480-h640/Los%20Arcos.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>A pirate ship passing Los Arcos, Cabo San Lucas, Baja Mexico, November 4, 2023 (Photo by Cathy Hayslett)</b></span></p></blockquote><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>I remember as a child thinking that it took forever to pass from one duck hunting season to another. Now in the not-so-golden years it seems like years </span><span>pass by us in a flash. 2023 was no different.</span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">As proof of the golden years, Cathy reached the age of enjoying all the benefits of Medicare, and Craig had his left knee surgically replaced. Recovery was amazingly quick and my knee is about 98 percent back to normal. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Cathy's rambunctious grandson Channing spent about every other weekend with us when we weren't traveling. At 6 1/2 years old (don't ever forget to add the "half" or you will instantly be corrected) he is growing up too fast. Math and Science seem to be his preferred classes in first grade and I hope that continues as he becomes older. Minecraft and the skate park in Sarasota seem to be his favorite forms of recreation although I continue to subject him to identifying birds whenever possible.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Living in the Hurricane Zone we had only one brush with nasty weather this year as the persistent drought continues to dry out South Florida. In September, Hurricane Idalia passed by just offshore from Sarasota. It caused the loss of one palm frond here but did substantial damage in the Big Bend Region of North Florida where it made landfall near Steinhatchee (pronounced "Steen-hatchee), one of only 3 "Old Florida" towns remaining in rapidly developing Florida.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Cathy and I began 2023 with a journey aboard the Norwegian Star cruise ship from Buenos Aires Argentina to Antarctica. I thought it was going to be a once in a lifetime journey. However a week after returning Cathy said she wanted to repeat the trip in 2024 so I dutifully called Norwegian Cruise Line and booked a return trip for February 2024.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">In late April we flew to Honolulu (aboard Alaska Airlines of course) and did a 16-day cruise aboard the Norwegian Spirit to Southeast Alaska and the Inside Passage to Vancouver, British Columbia. Then in late October we flew to Seattle and enjoyed a 21-day cruise from there to Miami via the Panama Canal. I have a newly found respect for and awe in engineers after experiencing the 12-hour transit of the Canal and its 6 humongous locks.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">About the only other travel in 2023 was Craig's annual pilgrimage to Barrow, Alaska, to conduct a Breeding Bird Survey route there. Sadly no Polar Bears put in an appearance this year as they have in 3 of the 7 trips I have made to my most favorite town in Alaska.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">We have three big trips and at least two surgeries planned for 2024. Three days after returning from Antarctica Cathy will have surgery to repair her right hand from the ravages of Dupuytren's Contracture, an insidious condition that causes fingers to become permanently bent in an uncomfortable position. Five days later Craig is having his right knee replaced thereby removing some more osteoarthritis from his aging skeleton. If nothing else I'm looking forward to another hospital-grade Fentanyl buzz before the Jackson Juice puts me to sleep for a couple hours.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">In mid-May I am spending a week in North Florida conducting 4 Breeding Bird Survey routes and checking on the damage wrought by Hurricane Idalia. There have been three wicked hurricanes here in the last few years. Each of them (Irma, Ian, Idalia) begins with the letter I. Perhaps in 2024 the National Hurricane Center will pass over I in its hurricane naming scheme.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">In late June we travel to beautiful Reykjavik, Iceland, to reconnect with the Norwegian Star on a 12-day cruise from Iceland to Greenland, Newfoundland, St. Pierre et Miquelon, Nova Scotia and finally New York City. From there we travel to New England for a few days, stopping to see friends in Newport, Rhode Island and near Portland, Maine. Finally in late November 2024 we travel to Rome for the start of a 15-day repositioning cruise from Italy to Miami. Prior to the cruise we are traveling either to Malta or to Tunisia to add a new country to our respective country life lists!</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>Jimmy Buffett's untimely death on September 1 reinforced the words in one of his songs that go "As the winds of time pass over my head, I'd rather die while I'm living than live while I'm dead." Its a philosophy I prefer to follow as eternity quickly approaches. </span><span>Part of that philosophy suggests to me that its pointless to hold on to old grudges and enjoy what little time we have left with friends and family. </span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">If your travel plans include Florida (they seem to for 99 percent of the population of the East Coast each winter) be sure to let us know. It would be a pleasure to see you again.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">Happy Holidays.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-24450479917106823612023-04-03T07:38:00.003-04:002023-04-03T08:28:24.282-04:00A New Pelagic Bird Book<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX6KJyKCTj9ItuQDarUFTj15pCkH8e8e-k_jt5JIVD_psTMpMlB1YSR1b8bg--4k7O9R5xGlJzqBvMDZXPkc-52bM7t181nMmuo0AaiHb8wadf2xCpIpSpnlK75MIruS5dhTfO1sMZ1xFAVwKFCS0IaIiV-zopyb8X8badV1fazkQ2AxvUYVwKqQ5ccg/s640/IMG_7658%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX6KJyKCTj9ItuQDarUFTj15pCkH8e8e-k_jt5JIVD_psTMpMlB1YSR1b8bg--4k7O9R5xGlJzqBvMDZXPkc-52bM7t181nMmuo0AaiHb8wadf2xCpIpSpnlK75MIruS5dhTfO1sMZ1xFAVwKFCS0IaIiV-zopyb8X8badV1fazkQ2AxvUYVwKqQ5ccg/w480-h640/IMG_7658%20(1).jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"> I made my first pelagic birdwatching trip in September 1978. Our scheduled trip from Cape Hatteras, North Carolina was blown out by a hurricane so we scurried down to Wilmington, North Carolina and got on a deep sea fishing boat. We made it to the Gulf Stream where I saw five species of seabirds (<b><a href="https://ebird.org/species/wispet">Wilson's Storm-Petrel</a></b>, <b><a href="https://ebird.org/species/greshe">Great Shearwater,</a></b> <b><a href="https://ebird.org/species/corshe">Cory's Shearwater</a></b>, <b><a href="https://ebird.org/species/audshe">Audubon's Shearwater</a></b>, and <b><a href="https://ebird.org/species/briter1">Bridled Tern</a></b>) and I was hooked on pelagic birds and birding.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Since that first trip I have spent more than 300 days on the ocean looking for birds. My first overnight trip was a 10-day excursion with Chris Haney aboard the University of Georgia's research vessel the M/V Bulldog. We assisted a fisheries biologist studying tilefish, and Chris and I counted seabirds as part of his PhD research.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">In subsequent trips I have traveled from the Maldives in the Indian Ocean to Australia, to Fiji to Chile and north in the Pacific Ocean to Alaska. In the Atlantic I have looked for seabirds in the Southern Ocean at Antarctica, the Atlantic Ocean from the Falkland Islands to South Africa, to the Canary Islands. In the Mediterranean Sea. In the Baltic Sea (Sweden to Finland and Finland to Estonia) and in the North Atlantic in Iceland. The Arctic Ocean is the only one of the world's major oceans that I have not been out on looking for seabirds although I have watched them from shore at Barrow, Alaska.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Cathy and I have done two Transatlantic crossings on cruise ships. One from Denmark to Miami, and the other from Barcelona to Port Canaveral, Florida. I always chuckle on deck when we are in the middle of the ocean and someone points at my binoculars,, making a snide remark about looking for birds on the ocean. Then a shearwater flies by and I show it to them and they say "I had no idea."</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">In the past I have hauled with me bird books for whatever nations I will be visiting to get an idea of which pelagic species are possible to find. Some times I think I am going to exceed the weight limit of my checked baggage by the airlines just from my bird books. That issue was recently solved when I discovered "<i>Oceanic Birds of the World - A Photo Guide</i>" by Steve N.G. Howell and Kirk Zuefelt. This 360 page gem is crammed full of images of every known species of seabird anywhere in the world. Also for some species like <b><a href="https://ebird.org/species/wanalb">Wandering Albatross</a></b> there are images showing the progression of plumage change over the period from being juveniles to becoming adults. Many birds that have not yet been split by taxonomists are also included along with information about their known or suspected ranges.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">We have a 16 day cruise coming up in late April and early May that takes us from a week among the Hawaiian islands then five days north over open Pacific Ocean to Southeast Alaska then down the inside passage to Vancouver, British Columbia. In late October and early November this year we are on a 21-day cruise from Seattle to the Panama Canal, to Cartagena, Colombia and then to Miami. I think with the discovery of this excellent book on the pelagic birds of the world I will only have to bring one bird book along with me on these and future pelagic adventure.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-44348341038020149912023-03-27T15:46:00.003-04:002023-03-27T15:46:54.080-04:00The Mass Shootings Network<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcFLWdc61ZMk-6qZbsyrUqk_QFg5Q2KNAk3h4yQQkCevGhrS900X3nlgYPZI1ksRDHVkByLfhl8nXmB-JZkr1wyEfkdzMw8ZCtlffreh30-HMdWg8OArCKMkDGUahodZ_MJ9UcJ02b8ENTWthaz1CAlPpGYg7oqCETadbJZRTEDG3aVeWCJKM0fO7URg/s890/Mass.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="501" data-original-width="890" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcFLWdc61ZMk-6qZbsyrUqk_QFg5Q2KNAk3h4yQQkCevGhrS900X3nlgYPZI1ksRDHVkByLfhl8nXmB-JZkr1wyEfkdzMw8ZCtlffreh30-HMdWg8OArCKMkDGUahodZ_MJ9UcJ02b8ENTWthaz1CAlPpGYg7oqCETadbJZRTEDG3aVeWCJKM0fO7URg/w640-h360/Mass.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xdj266r x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">I have decided to create my own television network. It will be called MSN - the Mass Shooting Network</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">For my on-air talent I will hire the same talking heads from CNN and MSNBC who ask the same meaningless questions of the same law enforcement and legislative consultants every day when there is a mass shooting.. Which, unfortunately, is every fucking day.</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">The recurring 24-hour format will include 10 minutes at the top of every hour showing the grisly scene from the most recent <a style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer;" tabindex="-1"></a>senseless killing or killings if its a really active day like most are. This will be followed by five minutes of insight from the paid consultants. </span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">At 20 after each hour there will be 10 minutes of advertisement from the National Rifle Association, from the gun manufacturers, and maybe a brief talk with Jonathan Lawson from Colonial Penn to tell us about $9.99 life insurance.</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">At 30 after the hour there will be 8 minutes of video from the story at the top of the hour followed by 7 minutes of video from mass shootings yesterday and the day before and the day before and the day before that. </span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">At 45 minutes after the hour there will be 10 more minutes of advertisements from the NRA and gun manufacturers and in this segment we will ask if you drank any water at Camp Le June North Carolina from the 1950s to the 1980s. </span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">The final 5 minutes of the hour will be video of Mitch McConnell, Kevin McCarthy and other politicians in the pocket of the NRA sending their thoughts and prayers to the victims of the most recent senseless slaughters.</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">By creating this network I will take pressure off the main stream media who can then devote their air time to the size of tRump's penis, when he took his last shit, and who he most recently demonized in a Tweet. You know. The sort of news that's really important to patriotic Americans.</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">With the ad revenue I take in from my network I should be able to retire in five years to a place like New Zealand that takes gun control seriously. Sadly, the United States does not.</span></div></div>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-7599121146437748532023-03-26T10:13:00.000-04:002023-03-26T10:13:13.542-04:00The Avocado Bears of the Los Padres National Forest<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhovA-HxYsaXItF7STq5Em2JsII2k3nXKQ8gpVJ5fbQJAZDJ1kkNaCDox3GObHuKsLbZfuImoVWIKXqLIyyMAHbB8ifa6NmquYgDg0K0dtaetzlDP2zfRN7u8DuobI01I0cZ5MA9d8LAgAH3YlALevQywWHr58XOpSqeZ_FNV64JckoZKNgI00GKph_2g/s578/Black%20Bear.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="578" data-original-width="427" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhovA-HxYsaXItF7STq5Em2JsII2k3nXKQ8gpVJ5fbQJAZDJ1kkNaCDox3GObHuKsLbZfuImoVWIKXqLIyyMAHbB8ifa6NmquYgDg0K0dtaetzlDP2zfRN7u8DuobI01I0cZ5MA9d8LAgAH3YlALevQywWHr58XOpSqeZ_FNV64JckoZKNgI00GKph_2g/w472-h640/Black%20Bear.jpg" width="472" /></a></div>Unattributed photo from Wikipedia<p></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Animals that eat meat are called "carnivores" and are referred to as being "carnivorous.". Those that eat plants are called "herbivores" and are referred to as being "herbivorous". Those animals that eat plants and animals, like humans, are called "omnivores" and referred to as being "omnivorous."</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixn8cA_939iV4x8WLP3uORr64j_ZcpgCrIA5WOQE-aLdMqLDdiQ3jLwCq8ApAitpxQIbWcOmCYRqIWk8KT6YftzvCP_mGGjdFo_zEPuMnlEgAUrhv0dxAJdPBnNn4Ikzchf-Czr8ZwOzFmfhXVXd-t7H4xDBGcGC_BFTnfuifm6wdLmJSoeJA-ZgWtyA/s2245/Los%20Padres%20National%20Forest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2137" data-original-width="2245" height="610" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixn8cA_939iV4x8WLP3uORr64j_ZcpgCrIA5WOQE-aLdMqLDdiQ3jLwCq8ApAitpxQIbWcOmCYRqIWk8KT6YftzvCP_mGGjdFo_zEPuMnlEgAUrhv0dxAJdPBnNn4Ikzchf-Czr8ZwOzFmfhXVXd-t7H4xDBGcGC_BFTnfuifm6wdLmJSoeJA-ZgWtyA/w640-h610/Los%20Padres%20National%20Forest.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>Geographic location of the Los Padres National Forest in human-infested Southern California</p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Encompassing more than 2 million acres of public land in Southern California the Los Padres National Forest above Ventura, and Santa Barbara, provides an abundance of habitat for carnivores, herbivores, and omnivores. Although not overly common, there are plenty of Black Bears in the rich forests of the Los Padres, and it pays to be aware of the sound of large animals crashing through the trees. Most often it will be a deer but if you are lucky you might encounter a Black Bear or better yet a Mountain Lion</span>.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii3CWvK3NNiCl1gOxUKOjPNH6ZKSuJ12Kbp6BJVx8UxC95ao2daxawwxOp7lyRT8HEqAPjaIBKoRpAW8PgCJrk9fkGM2_ePBUKrMDC9bqvdWrsT7NKPthoNU_vLQRGWBZeVtZBpG6YqtHnyaQhvhTxfKw3fD2756lu_V-AD3UUOz377JrQka9GxdN7mw/s1446/Los%20Padres%20Habitat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="705" data-original-width="1446" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii3CWvK3NNiCl1gOxUKOjPNH6ZKSuJ12Kbp6BJVx8UxC95ao2daxawwxOp7lyRT8HEqAPjaIBKoRpAW8PgCJrk9fkGM2_ePBUKrMDC9bqvdWrsT7NKPthoNU_vLQRGWBZeVtZBpG6YqtHnyaQhvhTxfKw3fD2756lu_V-AD3UUOz377JrQka9GxdN7mw/w640-h312/Los%20Padres%20Habitat.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>The Los Padres National Forest provides habitat for an abundance of wildlife species including the endangered Red-legged Frog and the iconic California Condor. Photo by US Forest Service<div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">During the late 1993-early 1994 hunting season someone on the <b><a href="https://www.fs.usda.gov/lpnf/">Los Padres National Forest </a></b>encountered and shot a massive Black Bear. After field dressing the bear and removing it from the forests, biologists estimated that its live weight was somewhere around 800 pounds which, for a Black Bear, is enormous.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">When the hunter opened the bear to clean it he noticed a distinctive odor from the entrails and saw that the thick layer of fat under the skin was entirely green. Concerned that the bear was ill, he contacted the <b><a href="https://wildlife.ca.gov/">California Department of Fish and Wildlife</a></b> and reported his unusual finding. A biologist, the one who estimated the live weight at around 800 pounds was baffled by the odor and the green fat. Cal Fish and Wildlife took samples of the fat tissue and submitted it to both the National Fish and Wildlife Health Laboratory in Madison, Wisconsin, and to a California state crime lab for analysis.</span></div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6eBWbSPDwmQErpmnngH7icKwqIXiNPHU0OQkGv0boKkCdvp0ejEjVVjvmE_NAFYMT1c9wu68pd6Qq00EmnZlUKwYHEZgaWpfygs_qBbIPuTjX9C_1VfHi3GZH5R7Y4NJ5XK4dcZrVMkMING8O-bncJFuHJW2RrzmXcp1UQhuK_CaXMMhhgn7I-ciHfQ/s1200/Avocado.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6eBWbSPDwmQErpmnngH7icKwqIXiNPHU0OQkGv0boKkCdvp0ejEjVVjvmE_NAFYMT1c9wu68pd6Qq00EmnZlUKwYHEZgaWpfygs_qBbIPuTjX9C_1VfHi3GZH5R7Y4NJ5XK4dcZrVMkMING8O-bncJFuHJW2RrzmXcp1UQhuK_CaXMMhhgn7I-ciHfQ/w640-h480/Avocado.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">The conclusion from both scientific laboratories was that the green color of the fat and subsequently the strange odor of the entrails came from a chemical found in avocados. This set Cal Fish and Wildlife off on another investigation where they discovered from talking to residents living adjacent to the National Forest that Yogi Bear wasn't the only bear who steals from picnic baskets</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLmGATzwSokLAGNAQYTCcmFFxseRQnhwG0S-ojYRnRcGsDNNEAbVa1jwxyUKXuQviv2TCi2_bFCMS-tc6JhCu3tnUhUByiIel5JVnVU-l_wD_q760G3o6EcdJJoEAP58YR5c8Cru5dwERkeLi4HnXzxX0MhmJSfYsmiJlnJl81PZJRpvBXRdnFOH28Xw/s2048/Avocado%20Grove.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLmGATzwSokLAGNAQYTCcmFFxseRQnhwG0S-ojYRnRcGsDNNEAbVa1jwxyUKXuQviv2TCi2_bFCMS-tc6JhCu3tnUhUByiIel5JVnVU-l_wD_q760G3o6EcdJJoEAP58YR5c8Cru5dwERkeLi4HnXzxX0MhmJSfYsmiJlnJl81PZJRpvBXRdnFOH28Xw/w640-h480/Avocado%20Grove.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>A California avocado grove</div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Investigators discovered that there was a small cadre of Black Bears living in the Los Padres National Forest that had developed a healthy appetite for avocados. Apparently the 800 pound Black Bear and probably partners of his had been traveling between avocado groves near the forest and gorging themselves on ripe avocados! </span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #212121;">One-half of an avocado (100g) provides 160 calories, 2g of protein, 8.5g of carbohydrates, and 14.7g of fat. So every time a Los Padres bear scarfed down an avocado it was consuming 320 calories. You can do the math for how many more calories were being packed on with each additional avocado. Luckily for the bears, avocado are largely cholesterol-free so they weren't clogging their arteries. But this bunch of laid-back Southern California Black Bears was consuming fat-producing calories at warp speed.</span><br /></span><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p></div>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-66517918378795990312023-03-26T08:26:00.003-04:002023-03-26T08:44:19.719-04:00The Missouri Mule Hunter<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL_UYVdvSk3Kue1p6w9vrawMy4ljctdbHZh8uKSNDjhfXXi_WKtTW4LaeYUtqpt2xlJvU1nyarJT-v36qehlDE6uDC5K6BCVbVdSsE_rLLKLNeeQKqe9pwLJ8sS6R--ImhsJD3I3cU8IM5MRDyo3GCgAC2gQKss-HEYBNfP4F-zU9NijUN7qZy1eO9Lw/s1024/wapiti.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="1024" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL_UYVdvSk3Kue1p6w9vrawMy4ljctdbHZh8uKSNDjhfXXi_WKtTW4LaeYUtqpt2xlJvU1nyarJT-v36qehlDE6uDC5K6BCVbVdSsE_rLLKLNeeQKqe9pwLJ8sS6R--ImhsJD3I3cU8IM5MRDyo3GCgAC2gQKss-HEYBNfP4F-zU9NijUN7qZy1eO9Lw/w640-h426/wapiti.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>Photo by Montana Department of Fish and Game<p></p><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xdj266r x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">Just before my 14th birthday I went elk hunting with my dad and my great uncle in a mountainous area south of Bozeman, Montana. The area has now been desecrated by the Big Sky Ski Resort but in 1965 it was pristine mountain habitat</span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihn6rSXZh3PpFT6VZ7X-X0Q_KZaJaf0-_Tu0ExcIwaa8Vmc7AUIZ0xcLtRFJn43ZbCf7laJvLkBOT624AO2LAU5ki83SPVEps79WKFWPERKSvPxYh-QK5QCDwwemCcEvSHnC8Y5AB9ZkwYAfrkxN9nme8au255R3AwoCE3dCJfHM3XjlkNrLRHlHnk7g/s2048/big_sky_resort.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1150" data-original-width="2048" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihn6rSXZh3PpFT6VZ7X-X0Q_KZaJaf0-_Tu0ExcIwaa8Vmc7AUIZ0xcLtRFJn43ZbCf7laJvLkBOT624AO2LAU5ki83SPVEps79WKFWPERKSvPxYh-QK5QCDwwemCcEvSHnC8Y5AB9ZkwYAfrkxN9nme8au255R3AwoCE3dCJfHM3XjlkNrLRHlHnk7g/w640-h360/big_sky_resort.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>Where I hunted elk in 1965 has been "improved" and now looks like this<br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">We camped by a rock-strewn stream, a tributary of the Gallatin River, where I caught my first cutthroat trout although most of our time was devoted to hunting. Each morning after breakfast and coffee I was given a topographic map and a compass, instructed on which ridge line to hunt, and <span style="font-family: inherit;"><a style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit;" tabindex="-1"></a></span>told not to get lost.</span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6DST0Y9SJHXMP3RXiIls7PdEXpuYyqb1-QzDKLVf2dPuDRYPnwsE0yCuLJAY29Ow2fvXoMVF2zzcadnljnKIKhNZZemVuLF27grj0CzvIuMONBV2oOBdmCJp83S526yNxGN0boDWQM7EnyCGWm_zROn8menMTQY1OfI26afG9a0J7LmckkImA24Tfpg/s670/Cutthroat.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="485" data-original-width="670" height="464" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6DST0Y9SJHXMP3RXiIls7PdEXpuYyqb1-QzDKLVf2dPuDRYPnwsE0yCuLJAY29Ow2fvXoMVF2zzcadnljnKIKhNZZemVuLF27grj0CzvIuMONBV2oOBdmCJp83S526yNxGN0boDWQM7EnyCGWm_zROn8menMTQY1OfI26afG9a0J7LmckkImA24Tfpg/w640-h464/Cutthroat.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>The appropriately-named Cutthroat Trout. Photo by US Geological Survey<br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">After a week in the mountains we left our camp empty handed although I did see my lifer <b><a href="https://ebird.org/species/dusgro">Dusky Grouse</a></b>. On the way back to my great uncle’s ranch we stopped at a Montana Fish and Game Department hunter check station to see if others had better luck than us. </span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik_EdU_-xDWaflU6PBDVYqq9jvLrCmlFEjX2bNcdpc9uapNXDMPE91atDUpCjg4CmfcdCtElXu5a28pMZ0Wrk8SjbaRXTthIp272iADrvbSMMz2ypXUiSJ4qRDxfmGwmp4ddjd59ZYCTs6M9b1iOi8SJDsmUoo01j6z8JpQTo9VhcF3EMP3FTHE--ehw/s1400/Blue%20Grouse.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1082" data-original-width="1400" height="494" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik_EdU_-xDWaflU6PBDVYqq9jvLrCmlFEjX2bNcdpc9uapNXDMPE91atDUpCjg4CmfcdCtElXu5a28pMZ0Wrk8SjbaRXTthIp272iADrvbSMMz2ypXUiSJ4qRDxfmGwmp4ddjd59ZYCTs6M9b1iOi8SJDsmUoo01j6z8JpQTo9VhcF3EMP3FTHE--ehw/w640-h494/Blue%20Grouse.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>There is a very good reason the colloquial name for Dusky Grouse is "Fool Hen". <br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">As we looked at someone’s bull elk, a car with Missouri license plates pulled in. Attached to his roof was a fully dressed out hoofed animal containing a tag identifying his quarry as a cow elk. What he had shot and prepared to haul back to Missouri was a mule. </span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-wsJWcD2WD4FHMxoTvMQO2nfqJ0jSxn2gC-uG5C5_5brBXu0KhidyTQ0S5dOhv0OENT-MS5FVTtmnQWoyI6RgUzdDPo6_4WI17-rLJGi-cQGx2n4uU1RIjTmlsfIkalL9nnFhbydkzqmDkJEIt2U-l0V38rtXB0Cz7TuRWQPpSrl8nQ4Bhm-iYkRZcQ/s640/Mule.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="477" data-original-width="640" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-wsJWcD2WD4FHMxoTvMQO2nfqJ0jSxn2gC-uG5C5_5brBXu0KhidyTQ0S5dOhv0OENT-MS5FVTtmnQWoyI6RgUzdDPo6_4WI17-rLJGi-cQGx2n4uU1RIjTmlsfIkalL9nnFhbydkzqmDkJEIt2U-l0V38rtXB0Cz7TuRWQPpSrl8nQ4Bhm-iYkRZcQ/w640-h478/Mule.jpeg" width="640" /></a></div>Nearly 60 years later I remain amazed that someone could misidentify a mule in a farm field and think it was a cow elk!</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">I wish Montana Fish and Game hadn’t told him about his mistake and instead let him take it home and cook a couple steaks. His view of eating “elk” likely would have changed</span></span></div></div><p><br /></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-70763403208723757862023-03-22T11:24:00.006-04:002023-03-22T12:03:33.573-04:00LeConte's Sparrow - A Denizen of Wet Meadows<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrZIWYCm9QifUKLQ4QDf0J_JTz8W7ComW7Tzm5H0kYc2l0C1Fxo8_UQF2TRSZeWpRpVQqfempwRPMQ8NmUuw6xLlmN-ae6JRbR2ODFDEAf4gOkxdZinn8gA8uehoNnCrd3oCTGt4TSEaMYBMPWadeZm903E_WOmRG6O4zX28BGrEs6KuCRzwN4TdXb0A/s1280/Le%20Conte's%20Sparrow.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrZIWYCm9QifUKLQ4QDf0J_JTz8W7ComW7Tzm5H0kYc2l0C1Fxo8_UQF2TRSZeWpRpVQqfempwRPMQ8NmUuw6xLlmN-ae6JRbR2ODFDEAf4gOkxdZinn8gA8uehoNnCrd3oCTGt4TSEaMYBMPWadeZm903E_WOmRG6O4zX28BGrEs6KuCRzwN4TdXb0A/w640-h480/Le%20Conte's%20Sparrow.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /> Photo by Brian Sullivan<p></p><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xdj266r x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">LeConte’s Sparrow is a denizen of wet meadows and abandoned hayfields (assuming some nimrod hasn’t built a house there yet) throughout the Upper Midwest and Prairie Canada. They winter in the southern and southeastern United States and seem to be particularly fond of wire grass prairie in the Florida Panhandle in winter </span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Their distinctive voice, if you can still hear it, sounds like the bird is saying “Chick-eeeeeze” with a sharp emphasis on the “Chick”. Like it’s cousin <a style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer;" tabindex="-1"></a>Henslow’s Sparrow, LeConte’s has an excruciatingly high pitched voice, well above 10,000 cycles per second. </span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">I heard and saw my first one on a chilly May morning in 1974 in Chippewa County, Wisconsin. The Wisconsin Society for Ornithology held its annual convention in Chippewa Falls (home of Leinenkugel’s Beer) and Sam Robbins was leading one of the pre-convention field trips. </span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Sam was legendary. Not only was he author of the authoritative “Wisconsin Birdlife” published by the University of Wisconsin Press, but he also had the most acute hearing of any person I ever knew. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyk4Cg1ORjBoSv56cgUY1pM2y-3BQTDkU__CXNUvsAHchIcKEyUMGcSvbg1wETcZIkw1DR_9d87_gJuak2RRiZUIDeMhh6jDjnph8Onqjqdf5Qgp92QR_x0txCEBR2YxYWOT_nlrCdeLLuLCLk8HOXl3-gAtJiBduHAT-EIaci5IFfJHONBJIPrjyQ6A/s499/Wisconsin%20Birdlife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="374" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyk4Cg1ORjBoSv56cgUY1pM2y-3BQTDkU__CXNUvsAHchIcKEyUMGcSvbg1wETcZIkw1DR_9d87_gJuak2RRiZUIDeMhh6jDjnph8Onqjqdf5Qgp92QR_x0txCEBR2YxYWOT_nlrCdeLLuLCLk8HOXl3-gAtJiBduHAT-EIaci5IFfJHONBJIPrjyQ6A/w480-h640/Wisconsin%20Birdlife.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">On the morning of our field trip we were standing by a wet meadow by 4:30. The eastern sky was just turning a faint light when Sam’s hand shot up in the air “LeConte’s Sparrow!”, he declared. We mere mortals listened and heard nothing </span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">A few minutes later Sam said “There it is again!” We all heard nothing. The bird was off to the east and a gentle breeze was blowing from the west. Sam surmised that the LeConte’s Sparrow was facing east as it sang so it’s voice was being carried away from us by the wind.</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">“Don’t worry,” Sam said. “The bird will soon turn around and you’ll hear it.” A couple minutes later we all heard the faint but emphatic “Chick eeeeze”. Sam smiled and said “It’s turned and is facing us”</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Despite being obligate to wet grassy areas for nesting they use multiple habitats on migration. I will never forget the day in early October 1981 when my then four year old daughter Jennifer and I were hunting Sharp-tailed Grouse near Chase Lake National Wildlife Refuge in North Dakota. A recently harvested sunflower field next to the refuge was alive with hungry LeConte’s Sparrows. I counted 210 of them before Jenny became bored and demanded that we go back to hunting grouse. </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd2-Efu69hqGqx7tawMKjIC4clCmuxe_sRUEqKALxQCyp55QPp4y3VQwKnZV010EAxQLRG8AmrCxc39LwmpgecJ0s9ljs8f_mAGEqFxyf_LuMLBS24DDOObg0vcrdAv00XuBX2X6eZpOG-L6YNGMxdHi4fdrier24ypupG4rNCIJ73V-d9yNALv4UlzQ/s1206/Bear%20Lake.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1206" data-original-width="1019" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd2-Efu69hqGqx7tawMKjIC4clCmuxe_sRUEqKALxQCyp55QPp4y3VQwKnZV010EAxQLRG8AmrCxc39LwmpgecJ0s9ljs8f_mAGEqFxyf_LuMLBS24DDOObg0vcrdAv00XuBX2X6eZpOG-L6YNGMxdHi4fdrier24ypupG4rNCIJ73V-d9yNALv4UlzQ/w540-h640/Bear%20Lake.jpg" width="540" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Photo by Connie Cady<br /></span><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">If you live in LeConte’s Sparrow nesting range look and listen for them beginning about May 10. The Bear Lake Sedge Meadow State Natural Area just west of Haugen, Wisconsin, is the best place in Barron County to find them. Bob Janssen, co-author of the “Birds of Minnesota” holds the honorable distinction of having recorded LeConte’s Sparrow in each of Minnesota’s 87 counties. I bet nobody will ever tie that record!</span></div></div><p><br /></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-54045650251422109912023-03-22T06:21:00.000-04:002023-03-22T06:21:05.203-04:00Drivers Are The Latest Targets of Fuhrer Ron<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCvODXdNO29dmCVPNbtXvWjG8s-OHSzIFbBnBf9Tz-CrX7IRlY46hQkI4blhKkTY79_TFqMyqxkyj5r1CXPVAM5taAuIGAd-OqolBwYDWyd-M6Q-4Ge2znemCo4oEE2l0o-s9Tht_JPLeT1t9qg2ydEFMm0E_IOACN-__E2i5CycnVaIZd1cjmGnYJhQ/s533/Ron%20as%20Hitler.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="463" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCvODXdNO29dmCVPNbtXvWjG8s-OHSzIFbBnBf9Tz-CrX7IRlY46hQkI4blhKkTY79_TFqMyqxkyj5r1CXPVAM5taAuIGAd-OqolBwYDWyd-M6Q-4Ge2znemCo4oEE2l0o-s9Tht_JPLeT1t9qg2ydEFMm0E_IOACN-__E2i5CycnVaIZd1cjmGnYJhQ/w556-h640/Ron%20as%20Hitler.jpg" width="556" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Ronnie!!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">WTF is wrong with you? ABC7 News in Sarasota, a staunch supporter of you and the Republic Party, reported earlier this week you have introduced legislation that will make it illegal to "cruise" in the passing lane on freeways in the Free State of Florida. It will remain ok to drive in the right hand lane but if you stray into the passing lane then the state gestapo will be able to cite you for "cruising". This of course is not to be confused with Republican politicians cruising streets looking for underaged girls</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">That's a noble gesture, Ronnie, but how will the skinheads from the Florida State Patrol, or any random steroid-soaked Nazi on a local sheriff's department tell a "cruiser" from any other driver? Did you think about that before proposing this latest attempt at freeing Florida.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Look at this picture of rush hour on Interstate 95 in Miami. All the lanes are full. Which driver is illegal under your new law and which one is just trying to get from Point A to Point B? Or don't facts matter any longer in Free Florida?</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBCCNFQmK6d40jjDJAbqyEXleFxL6WfIf1bpuc8dnPXKIiDh1yqP9vwS8AGLKTKmdO88pV8tP2YRWnEtwhynaAc3HEEe8BA7rvX0vJ9epvDftXOMbrB4Ac63xFB8WXDyXfbAFdEeIPJQPNw04t7NUnUFCTCybFQbKsqtMTj373mqZ4BUGAD3zel7-T6A/s1199/Miami%20Rush%20Hour.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="899" data-original-width="1199" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBCCNFQmK6d40jjDJAbqyEXleFxL6WfIf1bpuc8dnPXKIiDh1yqP9vwS8AGLKTKmdO88pV8tP2YRWnEtwhynaAc3HEEe8BA7rvX0vJ9epvDftXOMbrB4Ac63xFB8WXDyXfbAFdEeIPJQPNw04t7NUnUFCTCybFQbKsqtMTj373mqZ4BUGAD3zel7-T6A/w640-h480/Miami%20Rush%20Hour.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">I'm not sure anyone has told you this before Ronnie, but your anti-woke effort to make Florida "free" continues to erode freedoms that most people took for granted. I guess you already know that but being a power-hungry asshole is what gets you out of bed in the morning.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-4610517485045092252023-03-18T05:29:00.001-04:002023-03-18T05:29:22.890-04:00Will Cheerleaders Be Next Ronnie?<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhePbuugfQ1r0qLm94UU0dZ6tywoxk-6wWDQxKyFDWQEL3283qP05usonsjOmAM5gkoQcheihFpM6mYAqLK6kAlaMi4SpQD0u5vlwd95YPqoOtAyS_Xe6ptnXww-Vv988qwdRtqRXNPl3bzvENTs-9n3ffYzX4Ca_RsSqGSaRmAoYLbZxHOOb2SdAZrg/s1324/IMG_0931%20(1).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1324" data-original-width="1294" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhePbuugfQ1r0qLm94UU0dZ6tywoxk-6wWDQxKyFDWQEL3283qP05usonsjOmAM5gkoQcheihFpM6mYAqLK6kAlaMi4SpQD0u5vlwd95YPqoOtAyS_Xe6ptnXww-Vv988qwdRtqRXNPl3bzvENTs-9n3ffYzX4Ca_RsSqGSaRmAoYLbZxHOOb2SdAZrg/w626-h640/IMG_0931%20(1).JPG" width="626" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">A cornerstone of fascist governor Ron DeSantis's culture war philosophy of not only making Florida "free" but also to shore up support among the redneck supermajority in the state, has been his attack on drag queens and drag shows. Somehow this sophomoric twit thinks that being exposed to drag queens harms children.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Ronnie conveniently forgets that he grew up watching episodes of MASH where Corporal Max Clinger regularly wore women's clothing. So too did Flip Wilson as he assumed the character of "Geraldine" on his long-ago variety show. Did Ronnie himself become a sexual pervert because he watched men wearing women's clothing? No more so than anyone else but attacking people for being themselves seems to be a hallmark of Republican authoritarianism.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Through all of this, Ronnie and the rest of the Republican Party have failed to focus on a real issue. Cheerleaders. A friend recently pointed out that Cheerleaders are much more scantily clad than drag queens and they make many fewer suggestive moves. Children of all ages are exposed to Cheerleaders at all sort of sports events. I remember as long ago as the 5th grade when girls in my class were practicing to be Cheerleaders. Could it be that Cheerleaders are the ones grooming children? When will Ronnie and the Republicans stop them?</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7TO6aE9_WoeChsO2xQftQIqzJfATkU5QtZ9nvjWk7xFdyIRkiN7k5mYV6KPQ5MC6sL92PAQIRzx0NEHv1-lQQaDRtivTLXHCkdeA7hYUyP_L0PdT1pIW4OCjQvflg8ynGNQ5v3rtKfJI59rgG0Y4msuFNJAyjQE7oZwc65tHkODCmf2L5LJCYsGJydQ/s620/Cheerleaders.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="351" data-original-width="620" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7TO6aE9_WoeChsO2xQftQIqzJfATkU5QtZ9nvjWk7xFdyIRkiN7k5mYV6KPQ5MC6sL92PAQIRzx0NEHv1-lQQaDRtivTLXHCkdeA7hYUyP_L0PdT1pIW4OCjQvflg8ynGNQ5v3rtKfJI59rgG0Y4msuFNJAyjQE7oZwc65tHkODCmf2L5LJCYsGJydQ/w640-h362/Cheerleaders.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div><p><span style="font-size: large;">Not to be outdone in the grooming department, the Carolina Panthers football team recently hired its <b><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-news/carolina-panthers-hire-nfls-first-transgender-cheerleader-rcna32167">first transgender cheerleader.</a></b> The horror! And what about this shocking revelation that the National Football League maintained a video <b><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/02/28/nfl-films-maintained-database-of-cheerleaders-buttocks-breasts-and-cleavage-shots-lawsuit/">database of cleavage shots, butts, and breasts of cheerleader</a></b>s! I don't think I have heard of any databases of cleavage shots among drag queens. Why the difference?</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Its high time that the fascist Hitler-wannabe in Tallahassee and his henchmen took action to protect children from cheerleaders! In its infinite wisdom the Florida legislature is proposing a bill that would impose a $10,000 fine on people who take children to drag shows. Once it passes lets have similar legislation that imposes the same fine on adults who take their children to watch the suggestive moves of cheerleaders. They too are posing a public menace and only Republican authoritarianism can put a stop to this.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-90785573109317071992023-03-17T07:36:00.003-04:002023-03-17T07:58:12.284-04:00More Freedom in Free Florida<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM8yGLPvnz0IpQ9NB1HS1r5MYvh61hLLLMfyxJ6cdfx8piPh1CvZeI_tbWkqrrgmXE4frQTFr27mnvnjI-qFqefc6XNG0m64z3y910Zozp9XaoqxiA-oO7mi-Q7rlhzU_X5jRBFb2EmuiyuXjecStKHItBFsypqcp5o7OG9e20AnB1tCSEMEhgBw2IdA/s1324/IMG_0931%20(1).JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1324" data-original-width="1294" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM8yGLPvnz0IpQ9NB1HS1r5MYvh61hLLLMfyxJ6cdfx8piPh1CvZeI_tbWkqrrgmXE4frQTFr27mnvnjI-qFqefc6XNG0m64z3y910Zozp9XaoqxiA-oO7mi-Q7rlhzU_X5jRBFb2EmuiyuXjecStKHItBFsypqcp5o7OG9e20AnB1tCSEMEhgBw2IdA/w626-h640/IMG_0931%20(1).JPG" width="626" /></a></div> <span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">This week, the spinless prick living in Florida's Governor's mansion puffed out his little chest and <a href="https://www.nationalreview.com/news/desantis-pulls-hyatt-regencys-liquor-license-following-drag-show-with-children-present/"><b>revoked the liquor license </b></a>of the Hyatt Regency in Miami. Why? Because the Hyatt held a drag show with children present. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">What the spineless child in the Governor's mansion failed to take into consideration is that the laws of his own fascist state of Florida ALLOW parents to bring children into establishments serving alcohol. Your fucking law allows this Ronnie. But to appeal to the brainless redneck voting block in the Free State you pulled this childish move on the Hyatt. I bet if we checked the records, Hyatt never contributed to your re-election campaign did they?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Why does Ronnie have such a hard on for drag shows? He doesn't have to worry about abortion with drag queens. He doesn't have to worry about drag queens reading books to children. He doesn't have to worry about Critical Race Theory being taught (because it never WAS taught). Drag queens have a right under the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States to be themselves. They have the right of freedom of assembly. They have the right of free speech and free expression. They have the right to wear false tits and a bra if they want Ronnie. Its called Freedom. As governor of an alleged free state you should understand this.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">If you are worried about children Ronnie, I would keep them away from Catholic Priests, and from perverts like Congressman Matt Gaetz. Did you hear about the attorney in Oklahoma who was arrested because he thought he was going to have <a href="https://okcfox.com/news/local/michael-lunday-oklahoma-city-attorney-sex-child-canadian-county-sheriffs-office-viagara-confidential-informant-lewd-acts-prostitution-detention-facility-crime-chris-west-sheriff#:~:text=Live%201-,Authorities%3A%20Oklahoma%20City%20attorney%20drove%20to%20Mustang%20to,sex%20with%205%2Dyear%2Dold&text=Michael%20Lunday%2C%20a%2055%2Dyear,MUSTANG%2C%20Okla."><b>sex with a five-year old</b></a>? I will bet you $1,000 this pervert is a Republican like you are Ronnie.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">For a politician who likes to espouse "freedom" you certainly are doing your best to destroy freedom in the free state of Florida Ronnie. I can't wait for the national media to hound you on your double standards on the campaign trail. It will be fun and freeing to watch.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-5044051401789804882023-03-09T06:24:00.003-05:002023-03-09T06:24:35.425-05:00I Thought Florida Was a Free State Ronnie<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBxAPhR2zTfs7Yl1kMxQwTpOiZ_YZaPYuIqYw8bOo_2Hgx4lzL4KS3vBAurp5B31kHqAYeYJ-ZlZ7EKy201NMhiIA-ZkPnFQfjxbzbjC35TpFlqkFFxucIy5uH_xMxd05oTNMCBA8VR5iVD0u8iOlbMVPNUyhKpA2A8e_G6JomAck19hRvVT3gObGvJw/s1324/IMG_0931%20(1).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1324" data-original-width="1294" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBxAPhR2zTfs7Yl1kMxQwTpOiZ_YZaPYuIqYw8bOo_2Hgx4lzL4KS3vBAurp5B31kHqAYeYJ-ZlZ7EKy201NMhiIA-ZkPnFQfjxbzbjC35TpFlqkFFxucIy5uH_xMxd05oTNMCBA8VR5iVD0u8iOlbMVPNUyhKpA2A8e_G6JomAck19hRvVT3gObGvJw/w626-h640/IMG_0931%20(1).JPG" width="626" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Ronnie! During the height of the COVID-19 epidemic you made it abundantly clear that Florida was "free" and you removed restrictions on wearing masks. You figured that more people sick from the virus was good for your political future so with little droplets of testosterone flowing through your arteries you declared Florida "free" and removed restrictions. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">That was in 2020.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Yesterday, March 8, 2023, I visited my dentist's office here in Sarasota and he has a sign prominently posted in the front door advising all who enter that it is mandatory to wear a mask in his office!</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Why are you allowing this Ronnie? I thought we were free?? My dentist must be a liberal imposing his will on his patients if he requires us to take steps to protect our health.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Is there any chance you can send the jack booted thugs from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to my dentist's office and have them teach my dentist about freedom in Florida? This outrage can't last much longer Ronnie. What will MAGA voters think of you if you let a health care professional put public health ahead of your political agenda.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Hurry. Do something today.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-82556997038347669872023-03-09T06:18:00.002-05:002023-03-09T06:43:25.898-05:00Ron DeSantis is Spineless<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivUkmDt3MrapSFnlPTU39-KjPcuVMbMZYyb6IV0fif1duh-fBNlP-V6Ud9op6bhSIGIyKPa2Z-5kOUNoU-cQE36U-JdQEIc7uT-Olisl1LAnam6WFXJmNYS9azJyKVMv1noTwf7k91PZ6i_VDY18CsSKgnSxXFT1XhFFH_68uDESPGZdGLws_AVeosFQ/s1324/IMG_0931%20(1).JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1324" data-original-width="1294" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivUkmDt3MrapSFnlPTU39-KjPcuVMbMZYyb6IV0fif1duh-fBNlP-V6Ud9op6bhSIGIyKPa2Z-5kOUNoU-cQE36U-JdQEIc7uT-Olisl1LAnam6WFXJmNYS9azJyKVMv1noTwf7k91PZ6i_VDY18CsSKgnSxXFT1XhFFH_68uDESPGZdGLws_AVeosFQ/w626-h640/IMG_0931%20(1).JPG" width="626" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Ronnie!! I am shocked. WTF happened to you Ronnie? You were a real man when it came to harassing gay people ("Don't Say Gay") and you were a real man when it came to banning books that you likely can't read. You were a real man when it came to punishing Disney for opposing you, and you must have been soaked in testosterone when you removed the State Attorney in Hillsborough County who wouldn't prosecute discriminatory laws with which you approved. You even lied through your teeth during the 2022 governor's race and said you "cleaned up" Florida's water quality (have you seen all the dead fish on the beaches down here in Sarasota - dead because of Red Tide which is a water quality issues?)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">You were the ultimate tough guy Ronnie. But now you have backed away from <a href="https://www.mediaite.com/politics/not-a-concept-i-support-desantis-calls-out-media-using-his-picture-for-more-clicks-on-blogger-registration-bill-he-doesnt-advocate/"><b>legislation requiring bloggers</b></a> who don't like you to register with the state. I was really looking forward to the jack-booted thugs from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, backed up by the steroid-soaked skinhead Nazis of the Sarasota Sheriff's Department, kicking in my door and arresting me for failing to register with you.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">What will the uneducated MAGA miscreants you so desperately need for your unsuccessful bid for the White House in 2024 think when they learn you backed away from legislation that would make bloggers who don't praise you register with the state? You had a perfect opportunity to further your Hitler-like agenda in the state but you folded after taking a little heat.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">Ronnie you are spineless. Like a jellyfish adrift on the Gulf Stream. I would call you a cunt but at least they have a purpose.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">What is the next thing you are going to run away from? You can bet that the Ultra-MAGA, the Golden Turd of Mar-a-Lardo, would not have backed away from this bill. But you did.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: large;">One last question, Ronnie. Republicans continually say that they want less government intrusion in people's lives but you and the rest of your ilk keep imposing the government in our lives. Why is that Ronnie?</span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-51096002180108720742023-03-04T06:24:00.002-05:002023-03-04T06:24:31.692-05:00Florida Style Fascism<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZt__DiXlz4Z7SW2uThiHpIE8ks_Lm8CBpmeBSBKiLKVwcFZ8tsmOS-YNuykLLQrl9iB790HVRjv6eSN0SLTFNosh4DmYkuHRwrX08fRm9xVfElP6ZZG-AWcyu5hY_0vPlmGorSodUBruPEhrQtd0qbWbkMwjyWsRj3EIBxRw9tMZxzFNc5MC0HJ__ow/s2500/Fascist%20Ron.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1665" data-original-width="2500" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZt__DiXlz4Z7SW2uThiHpIE8ks_Lm8CBpmeBSBKiLKVwcFZ8tsmOS-YNuykLLQrl9iB790HVRjv6eSN0SLTFNosh4DmYkuHRwrX08fRm9xVfElP6ZZG-AWcyu5hY_0vPlmGorSodUBruPEhrQtd0qbWbkMwjyWsRj3EIBxRw9tMZxzFNc5MC0HJ__ow/w640-h426/Fascist%20Ron.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">Florida has a reincarnation of Adolf Hitler as its governor. His name is Ron DeSantis and Ronnie thinks he will become President of the United States after the 2024 election. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: x-large;">Ronnie believes this because of his "Florida is a Free State" mantra that he concocted during the Covid-19 epidemic. Ronnie, in all of his wisdom, fought against Covid restrictions claiming that wearing a mask to protect yourself and others infringed on your "freedom". More than 80,000 Floridians died because of Ronnie's petulance. Sadly a majority of the residents of Florida believed that Florida is "free" and re-elected Ronnie as Governor in a landslide in November 2022.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">In recent weeks, a bill has been introduced in the Florida legislature that would declare the Democratic Party as non-existent in the state. In the free state of Florida. Also, and more disgusting, the same legislature has<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/florida-bill-require-bloggers-write-governor-legislators-register-stat-rcna73191"> introduced a bill </a>that would require bloggers who say bad things about the Governor and the legislature to register with the State. Apparently Ronnie and his supermajority Nazi legislature forgot about Freedom of Speech in the Free State of Florida.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">The original purpose of this blog was to tell stories about birds and about travel. The focus of the blog has now changed to pointing out the absurdity of Ron DeSantis and his "Free Florida" mantra because nothing is free here any longer. And as I write about Ronnie I will refuse to register with the State. I still believe in the First Amendment even if our mini-Hitler in Tallahassee does not.</span></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-65679804468299020272023-02-02T12:09:00.010-05:002023-02-03T11:42:02.010-05:00A Visit to the Ice Continent<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKWh8KLKO9paL1JSRnXkvMHEaibi0vUwBEsKM21bidECvBKhcim3ojhfMNL2mF4bXPAkMdi4Df1YYk_8uzlb4GXYP_SPnr1KDWw7PFT35BDrzyplZTrjrwzWf-U9prPjS1H_mv4e5llx9Zi_eb3aSyiSKDGrXtrE2407SSbDPJLG6ZCrmlfQmq_TZ5tg/s728/1%20-%20Antarctica.gif" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="728" data-original-width="728" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKWh8KLKO9paL1JSRnXkvMHEaibi0vUwBEsKM21bidECvBKhcim3ojhfMNL2mF4bXPAkMdi4Df1YYk_8uzlb4GXYP_SPnr1KDWw7PFT35BDrzyplZTrjrwzWf-U9prPjS1H_mv4e5llx9Zi_eb3aSyiSKDGrXtrE2407SSbDPJLG6ZCrmlfQmq_TZ5tg/w640-h640/1%20-%20Antarctica.gif" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">When Sir Ernest Shackleton set sail from London in the
ice-worthy ship “<i>Endurance”</i> he had visions of being the first person to
cross Antarctica from one end to the other. Already beaten by Roald Amundsen in
the quest to be the first to the South Pole, Shackleton was compelled to out do
his rival (they pretty much despised each other) and be the first to traverse
Antarctica. He never made it, but his failure became one of the greatest
stories of success in human history.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>On January 24, 1915, while trying to negotiate pack ice
in the Weddell Sea, the </span><i>Endurance</i><span> became trapped in ice. Shackleton's crew worked diligently to free the ship but their efforts were to no avail. Eventually
the shifting ice began to consume the </span><i>Endurance</i><span> and she sank in ocean
water later measured at 3,000 meters deep.</span><span> </span><span>Attempting to rescue themselves, the crew
began the arduous task of dragging the ship’s three life boats over miles of
treacherous sea ice eventually reaching open water.</span><span> </span><span>From there they rowed across the ocean to
Elephant Island where all but six of the crew were left behind as Shackleton and
6 crew members set off for a whaling station on South Georgia Island.</span><span> </span><span>From Elephant Island the 6 men rowed a
22-foot boat through treacherous waters for more than 800 miles landing on the
south shore of South Georgia.</span><span> </span><span>From their
landing site they climbed over mountains and glaciers for three days
before finally reaching the whaling station.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOMt1Ir5rbdnqqIHKY3iKsg5CU7uO4YTgud59zP_De2dBq3hmwUeDFl-IEGds201L11nyas8ASKbG0q0CyyHP0Z8P4mFy7WChX2cCFWNiTWE6r2_sNEftDKfYGifFvL8jRs9vT7wa3coW3DK5uu2fQqd50A71JyIX4H55KoeeyY-jjq6ekrZZj6S1fXA/s614/2%20-%20Endurance%20by%20Frank%20Hurley.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="614" data-original-width="450" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOMt1Ir5rbdnqqIHKY3iKsg5CU7uO4YTgud59zP_De2dBq3hmwUeDFl-IEGds201L11nyas8ASKbG0q0CyyHP0Z8P4mFy7WChX2cCFWNiTWE6r2_sNEftDKfYGifFvL8jRs9vT7wa3coW3DK5uu2fQqd50A71JyIX4H55KoeeyY-jjq6ekrZZj6S1fXA/w294-h400/2%20-%20Endurance%20by%20Frank%20Hurley.jpg" width="294" /></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>The Endurance trapped in fast ice in the Weddell Sea - Photo by Frank Hurley</b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>Beaten, bedraggled, and probably tired of a diet of
penguin and seal meat, Shackleton and his men set sail in a sea-worthy vessel
first to Stanley, Falkland Islands, then to Ushuaia, Argentina, and finally to
Punta Arenas, Chile, looking for a ship that would bring them back to Elephant
Island to rescue the remaining crew.</span><span> </span><span>A
Chilean ship the </span><i>Yelco </i><span>set sail from Punta Arenas. On August 25, 1916,
Shackleton returned to Elephant Island to rescue the remaining crew members.
Astonishingly, not a single member of his 28-men team died during the nearly
two years they were stranded. More than a century later, Shackleton's ship, the
</span><i>Endurance,</i><span> was finally found.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>Possessing a vague bit of knowledge about Shackleton's voyage, I almost fell out of my chair one night while checking the Norwegian
Cruise Line website (</span><a href="http://www.ncl.com/">www.ncl.com</a><span>) where I found
a cruise leaving Buenos Aires, Argentina, in January 2022, that traveled to
Ushuaia, Punta Arenas, Elephant Island, and the Falkland Islands (Islas
Malvinas).</span><span> </span><span>With the exception of the
site of the place where the ship sank in the Weddell Sea, and a visit to South
Georgia Island, Norwegian’s cruise route mimicked much of the route Shackleton and his men traversed on their heroic endurance test of survival. I had to go
on that cruise.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>We reserved a balcony stateroom on the Norwegian Star for
a January 2022 departure then purchased tickets on American Airlines from
Sarasota to Buenos Aires and waited for departure day.</span><span> </span><span>However, in 2022 departure day never arrived.
At first there was a change in itinerary dropping the Falkland Islands because
of port issues. Next was the decision by Norwegian Cruise Line to cancel the
cruise because of lingering COVID issues. Our fare for the cruise was refunded
but not the money spent on two Business Class seats to Argentina. Instead, we
exchanged itineraries and went to the Galapagos Islands in March 2022 and
waited to see if Norwegian would offer the cruise again.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>Not long after returning from 8 days aboard the bed bug
infested </span><i>Golandrina 1</i><span> in the Galapagos, I checked the Norwegian website
and learned that they were again offering the opportunity to visit Antarctica. We
booked a balcony stateroom, bought roundtrip tickets (again) in Business Class
on American Airlines to Buenos Aires, and waited pensively for January 15, 2023
to arrive so we could sail out of Buenos Aires harbor on what will probably be
the singular adventure of my lifetime.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Ship</span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu3goEHiyBRLNNawr64da83KhMRFrKGLuzbeLBz579rEj8O_MGNx-yQ9dMsNaMwJZgvQquHggb16-FPl66Q5a0t8kysTQOdTUeXKBfmlLuE4DtJJWBWmK6MXpjW-z-Pw8a-N-vcKO9HjRTqPvgJK4zA_fVuGOyzPbWSIv9B1gpQ5M07K_HDWn8A_BAFQ/s4032/3%20-%20Norwegian%20Star.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu3goEHiyBRLNNawr64da83KhMRFrKGLuzbeLBz579rEj8O_MGNx-yQ9dMsNaMwJZgvQquHggb16-FPl66Q5a0t8kysTQOdTUeXKBfmlLuE4DtJJWBWmK6MXpjW-z-Pw8a-N-vcKO9HjRTqPvgJK4zA_fVuGOyzPbWSIv9B1gpQ5M07K_HDWn8A_BAFQ/w480-h640/3%20-%20Norwegian%20Star.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>The Norwegian Star at anchor in Punta Arenas, Chile, harbor. This is by far our most favorite Norwegian Cruise Line vessel</b></span><br /><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">In October 2015 we sailed from Copenhagen, Denmark on a
14-day transatlantic cruise to Miami aboard the 965 foot long Norwegian Star
cruise ship. Two days out of Copenhagen we encountered the remnants of a
hurricane that produced 40 foot waves as we crossed the North Sea. We slept like babies as the tempest roared
outside. Knowing that about the Star we were relieved to discover that the Star
was the ship used for the Antarctica cruise. In March 2022, we booked a Club
Balcony on the 11<sup>th</sup> deck then bought our plane tickets to Buenos
Aires. This would be my 23<sup>rd</sup> trip to South America and 6<sup>th</sup>
trip to Argentina.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>About 3 months before departure but after we had made the
final payment on the Club Balcony, I began searching the Norwegian website to
see how much fares had changed from when we made the original purchase in March
2022.</span><span> </span><span>Imagine my shock and surprise when
during one of my daily searches of the website where I discovered that an
Aft-facing Penthouse (about 500 square feet) complete with a personal Butler
and a Concierge, was $199 more than what we had paid for a balcony. I quickly
called Norwegian to ask if the rate was correct and learned that it was $119
more, not $199.</span><span> </span><span>We instantly upgraded to
a plush penthouse on the stern of the 9</span><sup>th</sup><span> deck.</span><span> </span><span>This was a perfect location for continual
seabird watching.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>We arrived in Buenos Aires after a 10-hour flight from
Dallas. A driver for our pre-arranged car from Reservas Quickcar was waiting
for us in the arrivals hall. He escorted us to the parking area and then the 45-minute
drive to the Marriott on Avenida 9 de Julio in the center of Buenos Aires.</span><span> </span><span>Despite Cathy having lifetime Gold status
with Marriott, they put us in a room whose view was a blank cement wall. So
much for the perks of Marriott loyalty.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>On Sunday January 15, another driver from Reservas
Quickcar picked us up at the hotel and drove us to the cruise ship port along
the Rio De La Plata in Buenos Aires. When we checked in for our stateroom a
Norwegian employee escorted us through Argentine immigration and to the bus
that took us to the ship. There on entering the Star we were met by another NCL
employee who escorted us to the aft-facing penthouse where our luggage was
already waiting for us.</span><span> </span><span>After settling
in and enduring the mandatory emergency briefing, the Star pushed away from the
pier at 6:45 p.m., the exact time stated for departure.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><br /></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Cruise<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcjSyc0_YIOO9umLPbCxp2qO-H9Kqf0km-Ou0hN2HGXOgptJWK-omXtOfWheLiB4WAgBhB_jEfp9xq6BihazZG_dgtoPzQAuB5Jnoy7uvsOOIvauUyTB6W2jGzE7vLrb3NypJNm-IsymAlnfoQjH_ajxK9qc6QtlzVyrOzAZrXZrRqWYVgnmUwWSHrfA/s900/4%20-%20Cruise%20Map.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="900" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcjSyc0_YIOO9umLPbCxp2qO-H9Kqf0km-Ou0hN2HGXOgptJWK-omXtOfWheLiB4WAgBhB_jEfp9xq6BihazZG_dgtoPzQAuB5Jnoy7uvsOOIvauUyTB6W2jGzE7vLrb3NypJNm-IsymAlnfoQjH_ajxK9qc6QtlzVyrOzAZrXZrRqWYVgnmUwWSHrfA/w400-h296/4%20-%20Cruise%20Map.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The itinerary covered by the Norwegian Star on its virgin voyage to Antarctica. Ships data said we covered 5,060 statute miles on the cruise visiting 4 countries and one new continent</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><span>Olrog’s Gull, Brown-hooded Gull and South American Terns
were a common sight as we steamed out of the harbor bound for </span><b>Montevideo</b><span>,
the beautiful colonial capital of Uruguay.</span><span>
</span><span>After a day here we set sail for Puerto Madryn in Chubut Province,
Argentina. That journey required two nights and one full day at sea.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKuT8K0K3xZoIxIaUmS_wd-_RTuqC5WaNWlLU-SlIzoGTNSB8DfOgFsuXcg3sQQcKcGhlIfFrk14Ec6SNjtHS7s_KgFoGC_o9gdQJDftkac3qGyN_qN-ij_FmRwxqhmhz2fGa8sEHvNLDkQWYIgHmJ9ccA2at3KPVZITHU_U5B5T48-WFi-8VQd2QYqg/s4032/5%20-%20Montevideo%20Wheel.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKuT8K0K3xZoIxIaUmS_wd-_RTuqC5WaNWlLU-SlIzoGTNSB8DfOgFsuXcg3sQQcKcGhlIfFrk14Ec6SNjtHS7s_KgFoGC_o9gdQJDftkac3qGyN_qN-ij_FmRwxqhmhz2fGa8sEHvNLDkQWYIgHmJ9ccA2at3KPVZITHU_U5B5T48-WFi-8VQd2QYqg/w300-h400/5%20-%20Montevideo%20Wheel.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Welcome to Uruguay! </span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">Puerto Madryn, Argentina</span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>We arrived in Puerto Madryn a little ahead of schedule on
January 18. Imperial Cormorants littered a piling to which the ship was tied
off. Here we had a pre-planned shore excursion to Punta Loma to look at
Southern Sea Lions then a visit to a paleontological museum to view dinosaur
fossils.</span><span> </span><span>As we drove off the pier to
begin the excursion, I saw a White-headed Steamer Duck foraging in the water
off the beach.</span><span> </span><span>This was the main reason
I was happy the ship stopped in Puerto Madryn.</span><span>
</span><span>White-headed Steamer Duck is endemic to Chubut Province in Argentina and
is found nowhere else.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisHCdFxlicKRv_Syl8z5bGw4Sqjq174zepCHALLd6i4_dx-d4bHhf1OlZz5aE6X9J_IfBWeLkENrPQZYerYR9J9TJbR0jc0tqnlk89jqh9dfVtM3vglLFv74H_I7JiAt2I95URWDWHNGPRdN2U-sMGAcvzG9yy_Fi1tFi0byS0DZR4RmEMPA9v_AgcvQ/s4032/6%20-%20Patagonian%20Vegetation.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisHCdFxlicKRv_Syl8z5bGw4Sqjq174zepCHALLd6i4_dx-d4bHhf1OlZz5aE6X9J_IfBWeLkENrPQZYerYR9J9TJbR0jc0tqnlk89jqh9dfVtM3vglLFv74H_I7JiAt2I95URWDWHNGPRdN2U-sMGAcvzG9yy_Fi1tFi0byS0DZR4RmEMPA9v_AgcvQ/w300-h400/6%20-%20Patagonian%20Vegetation.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Stunningly beautiful Patagonian scrub provides habitat for Lesser Rhea, Patagonian Canastero, Rufous-collared Sparrow and many more unique species</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Our four-hour shore excursion turned into a 6 ½ hour
ordeal because of poor planning on the part of the tour operator who failed to
tell us that after looking at Southern Sea Lions for 15 minutes we would spend
most of the rest of the excursion driving up and down National Highway 3 to and
from Trelew and its paleontological museum. </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHNMrHDHEZqOmCNanZPxL4HgDRhVFgxN2YRysZTCh_XvChKBTtsjI8kTlcVO1samqDo4arBp3loXBpe490hhfDi8EXZYUrfYomTyEuUVycKIZcL4xEwlYc2hdImL53M2fOcaRN2sMs_l7No-ZSjswO2tJlLRDfz517SNxxVZxF_jwgKpM0WXj_XucF0A/s4032/7%20-%20Brontasaurus%20at%20Trelew.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHNMrHDHEZqOmCNanZPxL4HgDRhVFgxN2YRysZTCh_XvChKBTtsjI8kTlcVO1samqDo4arBp3loXBpe490hhfDi8EXZYUrfYomTyEuUVycKIZcL4xEwlYc2hdImL53M2fOcaRN2sMs_l7No-ZSjswO2tJlLRDfz517SNxxVZxF_jwgKpM0WXj_XucF0A/w300-h400/7%20-%20Brontasaurus%20at%20Trelew.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>The first indication that you are approaching Trelew, Argentina, is this replica of a Brontosaurus</b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>The tour operator also failed to
tell us that 4 bus loads of people off the cruise ship (that’s 160 people)
would be crammed into a tiny building with horrific acoustics where a tour
guide with a soft voice tried her best to be heard above the din of the 160
cruise passengers.</span><span> </span><span>I sat in the lobby
and drank a beer until the ordeal ended.</span><span>
</span><span>I am glad I saw White-headed Steamer Duck so I never have to return to
Puerto Madryn.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">Punta Arenas, Chile</span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9qSQF74alcOVj6u-8H_oSu4eYw-p56-uX7mSLIiBuAx_Xg9uNO58lF_fy62X6HYrFS8sphPoAaqkpKM95dCnottHnt9_yZ1qVBeEk2Cd_tq3eir0HeJaX5ibrkJ1g9UceU6GvCOrqs2WZPZx6lmZmat0og205U_KXkbWHeL4DG6RWio262jlDx5wdsA/s4032/8%20-%20Punta%20Arenas.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9qSQF74alcOVj6u-8H_oSu4eYw-p56-uX7mSLIiBuAx_Xg9uNO58lF_fy62X6HYrFS8sphPoAaqkpKM95dCnottHnt9_yZ1qVBeEk2Cd_tq3eir0HeJaX5ibrkJ1g9UceU6GvCOrqs2WZPZx6lmZmat0og205U_KXkbWHeL4DG6RWio262jlDx5wdsA/w400-h300/8%20-%20Punta%20Arenas.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">My first trip to Chile was in July 1999, when I spent 10
days near Santiago, Valparaiso, Concon, and in the Andes east of Santiago where
I scored Diademed Sandpiper-Plover. I
returned to Chile in June 2009 flying first to Puerto Montt and continuing on
to Punta Arenas to visit a National Park and its breeding colony of King
Penguin. When the Norwegian Star sailed
into Punta Arenas harbor, via the Straits of Magellan on January 20, it was
almost like returning home. The morning
began while sitting on the balcony drinking a cup of coffee and seeing a
chocolate colored Albatross with long pointed wings following the ship. It took about 3 seconds to confirm that I was
looking at my lifer Light-mantled Albatross, one of the species I hoped I would
find.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu9HLf_BskGZWNLvXV-X5baxzCHGePNCq3zG-L4BF9N8sgLxc-l56wYHfKfidI4iZYxY8TIvgetYnes9Imxvbx7I3zc2qyvYDSSwKE3OWGvcRaqTb81OAp7aezUSOh0vD63tOO3AJDaeUBPGaoB1DqjANfdt5NqUrca6tAuvQbZDfXjMIpduKB-7miqA/s4032/9%20-%20Crossing%20Straits%20of%20Magellan.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu9HLf_BskGZWNLvXV-X5baxzCHGePNCq3zG-L4BF9N8sgLxc-l56wYHfKfidI4iZYxY8TIvgetYnes9Imxvbx7I3zc2qyvYDSSwKE3OWGvcRaqTb81OAp7aezUSOh0vD63tOO3AJDaeUBPGaoB1DqjANfdt5NqUrca6tAuvQbZDfXjMIpduKB-7miqA/w300-h400/9%20-%20Crossing%20Straits%20of%20Magellan.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><b><span style="font-size: medium;">International certification in both Spanish and English proving that we safely crossed the Straits of Magellan </span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">After a day of birding and being a tourist in Punta
Arenas we departed under brilliantly clear blue skies and began our traverse of
the Beagle Channel. The scenery here, at
almost the southern tip of the Andes was spectacular with Mount Fitzroy being
the most memorable feature.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNmhxtRb-gnLv345yrpUqcLWLo4F-7CNwpx_pdklESDVaA6a_hVbBTr0ZgLcef2DqvwUIiRVT4mxQASPJP74EjkANWmDgXcuPBrZqDcY4kEgiXFuA2PMPwzW0VbC2u3tNSRe_8ifgb_wkkV_6IASRXE9PCFtxqKI_JME3ji7blCm3C5bz0CfaD8rbWkg/s4032/10%20-%20Mount%20Fitzroy%20in%20Beagle%20Channel,%20Chile.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNmhxtRb-gnLv345yrpUqcLWLo4F-7CNwpx_pdklESDVaA6a_hVbBTr0ZgLcef2DqvwUIiRVT4mxQASPJP74EjkANWmDgXcuPBrZqDcY4kEgiXFuA2PMPwzW0VbC2u3tNSRe_8ifgb_wkkV_6IASRXE9PCFtxqKI_JME3ji7blCm3C5bz0CfaD8rbWkg/w300-h400/10%20-%20Mount%20Fitzroy%20in%20Beagle%20Channel,%20Chile.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The southern tip of the Andes mountains are stunningly beautiful as evidenced by Mount Fitzroy that straddles the Beagle Channel east of Punta Arenas</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">Ushuaia, Argentina<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">What I enjoy most about Ushuaia is that the mountains
surrounding it remind me of the Chugach Mountains above Anchorage Alaska, and I
feel like I am back in Anchorage when I am there.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyNijTfs6sPU4XMSgoFbM0ZTJciPA4ENh4d39i_8H_1aITgR-BP8Z8xUCXrjTPoVFmco4C3aatC-BxM1cJ_jkqFYhmAlvtI5gwOLBuxbJHtN8mmpjZsvJoQdQRoRKnu6jfarU3gUHnK_xJnkpJG7ro5oIeSvUMcfvUozTSBW5uKBhc33mwof_mkJXsmw/s4032/11%20-%20Mountains%20Above%20Ushuaia.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyNijTfs6sPU4XMSgoFbM0ZTJciPA4ENh4d39i_8H_1aITgR-BP8Z8xUCXrjTPoVFmco4C3aatC-BxM1cJ_jkqFYhmAlvtI5gwOLBuxbJHtN8mmpjZsvJoQdQRoRKnu6jfarU3gUHnK_xJnkpJG7ro5oIeSvUMcfvUozTSBW5uKBhc33mwof_mkJXsmw/w300-h400/11%20-%20Mountains%20Above%20Ushuaia.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">I have traveled the entire length of Argentina, from the border with Bolivia in the far north to Ushuaia. This is by far my most favorite Argentine town</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">In January 2003, during my fourth trip to Argentina, I
boarded an Aerolineas Argentinas 737 at the domestic airport downtown for the 3
½ hour flight south to the end of the world at Ushuaia, the southernmost city
in the world and also the southernmost commercial airport in the world. In 2003 I stayed at the Familia Patti Bed and
Breakfast on the edge of town that cost me $20 USD a night. Now its $193 USD a night! I’m glad we were on
a ship. I spent 10 days in and around
Ushuaia in 2003 visiting Tierra del Fuego National Park for Magellanic
Woodpecker and Austral Parakeet (the southernmost parrot in the world). I
also drove north across Tierra del Fuego where I found an Andean Condor ripping
apart a road-killed vicuna (I think it was that species). I also went out on a charter boat to visit a
Magellanic Penguin colony where 6 pairs of Gentoo Penguin had established
nests. At the end of my time in Ushuaia there was an incident involving Hertz
Rent-a-Car at the airport. They charged
more than my confirmed reservation said I was supposed to pay. On my return home and after a few letters to
Hertz asking for a refund, and me finally cutting up my Hertz Number 1 card, returning
it to the Vice President for Customer Relations at Hertz and politely asked her
to shove the card up a very specific part of her anatomy. This resulted in a lifetime ban from ever
again renting a vehicle from Hertz which is fine with me.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>I was a regular visitor to the Restaurante Volver along
the waterfront in Ushuaia where you could eat fresh seafood while watching Kelp
Geese, Flightless Steamer Ducks, Black-browed Albatross and Southern
Giant-Petrels between bites of your meal.</span><span>
</span><span>Remembering how good the food was I wanted to return to the Volver but
discovered it opened at 5:00 p.m., the exact time our ship was leaving.</span><span> </span><span>Although disappointed I had to laugh at this
sign posted in a window of the Volver.</span><span>
</span><span>In local lingo it means that the Ceviche was spectacularly good. However,
when you go to Google Translate and put in “Puta Madre” it has an entirely
different meaning.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7g-q63xwVRrP5Q71rorPqJtgh4-yiP_X0I6fl0QfTmWL17JnoRB6EBvnr52uCJ2rCAuw30pmXuR2pv5EqymOUKzPxfEvF7XNp0imVphMVmbXn0Im0O-u_mw-b_fJ4HiaTcwd0Qiji7AOm7yhd6uUw0K7pVxkS5W8Q5LEJ9W2wB0t9NrFRcQDklbqJvQ/s4032/12%20-%20Puta%20Madre.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7g-q63xwVRrP5Q71rorPqJtgh4-yiP_X0I6fl0QfTmWL17JnoRB6EBvnr52uCJ2rCAuw30pmXuR2pv5EqymOUKzPxfEvF7XNp0imVphMVmbXn0Im0O-u_mw-b_fJ4HiaTcwd0Qiji7AOm7yhd6uUw0K7pVxkS5W8Q5LEJ9W2wB0t9NrFRcQDklbqJvQ/w300-h400/12%20-%20Puta%20Madre.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><b><span style="font-size: medium;">"Puta madre" has one meaning when describing the quality of some foods. It has an entirely different meaning when you translate it literally. Hurry. Go to Google Translate and you will discover what I mean!</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">The pier in Ushuaia held our ship and 4 other much
smaller vessels that are used for Antarctic exploration. These are very high-end
trips, many of them costing $20,000 per person for an 8-day trip. The advantage
of those trips is that you get to physically stand on Antarctica. We paid about
$3,800.00 US per person for a 14-day cruise that resulted in us seeing almost
the same wildlife as the $20,000 people did.
The only difference is we sailed through Antarctic waters but never
physically touched the ground. Norwegian
went through a long process to get a special permit to bring cruise passengers
to a portion of Antarctica. I am happy
as a clam with that.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Following a low-key day in Ushuaia we sailed out of the
port on time at 5:00 p.m. and followed the Beagle Channel east toward the open
ocean and the much-feared Drake Passage. The Channel was alive with seabirds
including the Penguin colony I had visited almost 20 years to the day earlier.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">Drake Passage</span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>Horror stories abound, especially among people attempting
to sail around the world in a small sailboat, who end up with their boat being
consumed by the horrific winds and huge waves of the Drake Passage.</span><span> </span><span>Long-time friend Dan Bauer has some images
taken while crossing the Drake Passage of 60-foot seas. One of the onboard
naturalists quipped that there are two ways to cross the Drake. Its either the
“Drake Lake” in calm seas or the “Drake Quake” in rougher water.</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxICQodQcEYefclXAjAB63fDT8t3KH4_hzK82tg8p0IVxO8MKjNY9F0KuXz6qjH1VNYDPiRVW5sREENsEs0VXClLxDpT87akR7ghlr5tNfe3p6-2sn5O4gSzRRyvm27QU1ICJQ1oF5x_vky_WYtnWQE7duzwRbBY0dCzDn9MnrKYTYKb-dfhoeAR4BEg/s809/13%20-%20Crossing%20Drake%20Passage%20-%20Dan%20Bauer.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="809" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxICQodQcEYefclXAjAB63fDT8t3KH4_hzK82tg8p0IVxO8MKjNY9F0KuXz6qjH1VNYDPiRVW5sREENsEs0VXClLxDpT87akR7ghlr5tNfe3p6-2sn5O4gSzRRyvm27QU1ICJQ1oF5x_vky_WYtnWQE7duzwRbBY0dCzDn9MnrKYTYKb-dfhoeAR4BEg/w400-h268/13%20-%20Crossing%20Drake%20Passage%20-%20Dan%20Bauer.png" width="400" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">This is an example of the "Drake Shake" as photographed by Dan Bauer. Luckily we crossed it in relatively calm seas that only reached 16 feet in height</span></b><br /><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">It was quickly apparent when we left the protection of
Cape Horn and ventured into the Drake Passage late in the evening of January 21. Luck was with us however and during the
entire crossing that evening and all day on January 22, the biggest waves were
only 16 feet in height. Crossing the
Drake Passage was, as I tell Cathy’s grandson Channing, “a piece of cake.”</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>Birds, especially Black-browed Albatross and the
stunningly beautiful black and white Cape Petrel were common during the
crossing of the Drake. I took my first pelagic birding trip aboard a head boat
out of Wilmington North Carolina in September 1978.</span><span> </span><span>I remember seeing five new species (Audubon’s
Shearwater, Cory’s Shearwater, Great Shearwater, Wilson’s Storm-Petrel, and
Bridled Tern) and was instantly mesmerized by seabirds, both how they can
navigate over a featureless landscape, and how incredibly graceful they are in flight.
Watching Petrels and Albatross glide effortlessly among 8-foot waves is one of
nature’s most beautiful sights.</span><span> </span><span>Research
using satellite telemetry has shown that juvenile Wandering Albatross regularly
fly 75,000 miles each year – that’s at least three trips around the Antarctic
continent.</span><span> </span><span>Many species of Albatross are
able to lock their pectoral muscles with their wings extended.</span><span> </span><span>Then with minimal wing movement are capable
of effortless (and exceptionally low energy) flight for hours or even days at a
time.</span><span> </span><span>There is some evidence that
Wandering Albatross are able to sleep while flying.</span><span> </span><span>All they really need is constantly strong
winds and the Drake Passage is the perfect place to make that happen.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">Antarctica</span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj3mb1OrX6NojxmXIIzUFWld9GfF5MtLHqvsNgOhWECV4bT4af15U9I7rLRbVSveLyBkk1UwvGJeXCoYjA1-hAfCbDsNSizs8Gvqnj3yGpXCvP_tmYLa-GO0V__VKgqfxm9rFzLQ9hu1yjYerlGTZBUD-_rSniRvpNUJsOoSHwFIm-PGCfl6SUnt5XHQ/s4032/14%20-%20Snow%20Island%20first%20sight%20of%20Antarctica.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj3mb1OrX6NojxmXIIzUFWld9GfF5MtLHqvsNgOhWECV4bT4af15U9I7rLRbVSveLyBkk1UwvGJeXCoYjA1-hAfCbDsNSizs8Gvqnj3yGpXCvP_tmYLa-GO0V__VKgqfxm9rFzLQ9hu1yjYerlGTZBUD-_rSniRvpNUJsOoSHwFIm-PGCfl6SUnt5XHQ/w300-h400/14%20-%20Snow%20Island%20first%20sight%20of%20Antarctica.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Our first sighting of Antarctica was Snow Island</span></b><br /><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">We awoke on
January 23, 2023, with Snow Island, Antarctica, off the port side of the ship! We
moved slowly from there to Deception Island where we encountered the first of
many flocks of Chinstrap Penguins doing their “porpoise” feeding technique that
you’ve probably seen on National Geographic specials. Leaving Deception Island we made our way to
King George Island where we spent the afternoon exploring Admiralty Bay. Slightly
south of Deception Island we were at 63 degrees 05 minutes South Latitude;
still a long way from the South Pole but as close as I will ever come to it!<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCwOokOqQ_iFPd14bqcgmi8AC7JatnZrBMdwDcFOPFO-MXD4-ylPYwrCba24kD5lKpLCnuPrPkyT-AOcbCUoaZJZ0nfnyFSLwhgYUOeiFf7pbnszNdmVSV8Vn91-RiteZS0wsYTtW3HzEDk95b_YWOeyV6AXsW9-8UNEo-MI_SvXXEo9g_ldcUtt2VDg/s4032/15%20-%20Glaciers%20of%20Admiralty%20Bay.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCwOokOqQ_iFPd14bqcgmi8AC7JatnZrBMdwDcFOPFO-MXD4-ylPYwrCba24kD5lKpLCnuPrPkyT-AOcbCUoaZJZ0nfnyFSLwhgYUOeiFf7pbnszNdmVSV8Vn91-RiteZS0wsYTtW3HzEDk95b_YWOeyV6AXsW9-8UNEo-MI_SvXXEo9g_ldcUtt2VDg/w300-h400/15%20-%20Glaciers%20of%20Admiralty%20Bay.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The waters of Admiralty Bay on King George Island teemed with wildlife. I vividly recall seeing the spouts of 20 different whales at the same moment in the field of view of my binoculars.</span></b><br /><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"><span>Whales were a constant sight as we made our way through
the 33 degree F water while enduring 36 degree F temperature and the wind at
times howling at 60 knots!</span><span> </span><span>Among whales
we saw Southern Right Whale, Fin Whale, Sei Whale, Orca, and Southern Humpback
Whale. This was only the second time I have seen Sei Whale with certainty.</span><span> </span><span>At one point I could see 20 different whale
spouts in the same field of view.</span><span> </span><span>Almost
all of the large predators in Antarctic waters are feeding on krill, a
shrimp-like creature that forms the second rung of the base of the Antarctic
food chain.</span><span> </span><span>Sadly humans have discovered
uses for krill and now the krill fishery is competing with the whales and the
penguins.</span><span> </span><span>I’m rooting for the whales and
penguins not people.</span></span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">While in Admiralty Bay we found a foraging flock of
Chinstrap Penguins that contained a lone Macaroni Penguin. One of the “crested”
penguins, Macaroni reminds me of a bass guitar player in a punk rock band!</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxqKnBn0hAaQN_soO6be7dxBuog-rHbFcxLseqAlDXfUTXqVBxZhlm8YrNCkEEGJ92CNEUN2CkLHpVUe4LsnVmObl8tcWQhCuRXhZ4SulVo6Q2lvHJDAIBNjOUM_JF9tXd2ugUVif1jiw6c0zif8zMIY3C17C6LDC4lQltf9tdNtpSIupLOoAx0X851A/s600/16%20-%20Chinstrap%20-%20Dan%20Bauer.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="507" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxqKnBn0hAaQN_soO6be7dxBuog-rHbFcxLseqAlDXfUTXqVBxZhlm8YrNCkEEGJ92CNEUN2CkLHpVUe4LsnVmObl8tcWQhCuRXhZ4SulVo6Q2lvHJDAIBNjOUM_JF9tXd2ugUVif1jiw6c0zif8zMIY3C17C6LDC4lQltf9tdNtpSIupLOoAx0X851A/w338-h400/16%20-%20Chinstrap%20-%20Dan%20Bauer.png" width="338" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">These appropriately named Chinstrap Penguins were photographed by Dan Bauer</span></b><br /><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span>Also present on Admiralty Bay was a pair of Emperor
Penguins standing on the shore.</span><span> </span><span>These
are gigantic birds with some of them weighing as much as 90 pounds.</span><span> </span><span>The Emperors were surrounded by much smaller
Chinstrap Penguin. It seemed as if you could shove 4 Chinstrap in an individual
Emperor and still have space left over.</span></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p><span> </span></o:p><span>Words cannot describe the awesome beauty of Antarctica. It
must be seen to be appreciated. On my first visit to Anchorage Alaska in
January 1988, the manager of Mosquito Books in the Anchorage airport said to me
“You should only see Alaska as an old person. If you see it when you are young
you have nothing left to look forward to.”</span><span>
</span><span>The bookstore manager had obviously never seen Antarctica.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>We awoke on January 24 just off Elephant Island where
Shackleton and his men sought refuge after their harrowing escape from the pack
ice. A large area of sea ice remained frozen as we traversed the Bransfield
Strait and the Captain maneuvered us around the ice. On its surface were
several Weddell Seal’s. I searched hard but could not find a Leopard Seal, the
famous predator of penguins. There were also several Southern Fur Seals
including one large male. I found that curious because I thought the males were
supposed to be on the beach watching over and defending their harem of females.</span><span> </span><span>Given the abundance of juvenile seals and sea
lions I wonder how much males of those species have to pay out in child support
each year?</span><span> </span><span>Around the sea ice we saw the
only Snow Petrel of the trip.</span><span> </span><span>Think of
an adult Ivory Gull in the Arctic, give it petrel wings, and that’s what a Snow
Petrel looks like.</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip7zS_XAyNVjc-ZBGVyPV8C0ri2lWmxlc6Ih4IMv4lOfMmiddJN8T_85OyjzgMEr9odCRZjxcjQaBQR1mUB9gag6idBXC7l0tfzlGpotoZxtM5L6hdg6cBf3Q5YXGx4ipvORZn-mNKlCsKmGgMT9ZhNo_fi23nmacAbmxL3oQ-09Afitu056InhvQbGg/s600/18%20-%20Weddell%20Seal%20-%20Dan%20Bauer.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="505" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip7zS_XAyNVjc-ZBGVyPV8C0ri2lWmxlc6Ih4IMv4lOfMmiddJN8T_85OyjzgMEr9odCRZjxcjQaBQR1mUB9gag6idBXC7l0tfzlGpotoZxtM5L6hdg6cBf3Q5YXGx4ipvORZn-mNKlCsKmGgMT9ZhNo_fi23nmacAbmxL3oQ-09Afitu056InhvQbGg/w336-h400/18%20-%20Weddell%20Seal%20-%20Dan%20Bauer.png" width="336" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Weddell Seal photo by Dan Bauer</span></b><br /><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>At some point along the south shore of Elephant Island a
group of at least 140 Cape Petrels decided that riding in the air currents put
out by the passing ship was an energy saving strategy. Over 30 minutes I sat on
the balcony watching these amazingly beautiful sea birds dance their way across
the sky in a howling 60 knot wind.</span><span> </span><span>Some
came as close as 10 feet from us as they inspected these intruders of their
domain.</span><span> </span><span>Then as if on cue, they disappeared
as quickly as they arrived.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkQCQPTSIp2s_xT1efk3L4KmY-gy_t7ZXPQh7kJsfikYmABpDlaMw8HE7hX6eTb8OX7Lf8oqMTSJuoioD_AfgAhxwiYvTBfzLISr_7RIzg9200E8PwtRfIxNotzyteEBoSezhJOF8kvd4ADCCbXXVwiNh8NIDvhUOCAMa_e-kYHO2NCxczNXcUWwKbJQ/s4032/19%20-%20Point%20Wild%20Elephant%20Island.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkQCQPTSIp2s_xT1efk3L4KmY-gy_t7ZXPQh7kJsfikYmABpDlaMw8HE7hX6eTb8OX7Lf8oqMTSJuoioD_AfgAhxwiYvTBfzLISr_7RIzg9200E8PwtRfIxNotzyteEBoSezhJOF8kvd4ADCCbXXVwiNh8NIDvhUOCAMa_e-kYHO2NCxczNXcUWwKbJQ/w300-h400/19%20-%20Point%20Wild%20Elephant%20Island.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Try to imagine a group of 20 men hunkered down on this bleak, cold, narrow beach for more than a year waiting and hoping to be rescued. They ate mainly seals and penguins and burned seal blubber for heat. </span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Eventually we made our way to the northeast corner of
Elephant Island to a place called Point Wild. It was here that Shackleton's men
waited for his eventual return to rescue them. It was also from here that Shackleton set off in his 22 foot boat for the treacherous 800 mile crossing of
the Southern Ocean to South Georgia Island.
After reading the book <i>Endurance</i>, watching specials about
Shackleton on television, and then seeing where his men waited more than a year
to be rescued I no longer have any tolerance for anyone, including me, who
complains about anything. The Shackleton expedition survived in the harshest
conditions imaginable and not one of his men lost his composure and more
importantly none of them died during or because of the ordeal.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">The Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)</span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfYfArgUhqnpBiotDokOaZ4ku05JZDg8f5rg3QlXyylwjNxZsDsD6CLeRx_Hh3vE5zTF9AuNjK32E6LQTKK9Bi1jkjeobWfMUbE8WhITmJUVUZ4lBfW8PGXG2f_k_udxwnsm0-PVyaQIUhCaVystwYXqWMiKEycElbldO3nLU2pwagBmd56UQgvmJUIw/s4032/20%20-%20Welcome%20to%20the%20Falklands.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfYfArgUhqnpBiotDokOaZ4ku05JZDg8f5rg3QlXyylwjNxZsDsD6CLeRx_Hh3vE5zTF9AuNjK32E6LQTKK9Bi1jkjeobWfMUbE8WhITmJUVUZ4lBfW8PGXG2f_k_udxwnsm0-PVyaQIUhCaVystwYXqWMiKEycElbldO3nLU2pwagBmd56UQgvmJUIw/w300-h400/20%20-%20Welcome%20to%20the%20Falklands.JPG" width="300" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Dear old Mrs. Evelyn Moe made a passing reference to the
Falkland Islands one day in her fourth-grade classroom. The context of her
mentioning the islands escapes me now but that night at home I opened a world
atlas I had been given as a Christmas gift the year before and found the
islands in the middle of the South Atlantic Ocean many miles east of South
America and many miles north of Antarctica.
I became fascinated with the islands because they were so remote yet
populated by humans. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">I didn’t pay much attention to the Falklands until April,
1982 when Walter Cronkite on CBS Nightly News told the story of a shooting
match that became a war between the Brits and Argentina over the Falkland Islands.
One theory I was told regarding the genesis of the war was that the new
Minister of the British Home Office (the Secretary of State in the United
States) saw giving the Falklands to Argentina as an easy way to remove one more
far-flung and costly component of the former British empire. The removal of an
Albatross, as it were, from the neck of the British monarchy. The Argentine
government was excited about the idea because they had claimed the Islas
Malvinas as part of Argentina for ages (juxtapose China and Taiwan with
Argentina and the Falkland Islands). Although the two countries talked about
reconciliation in the past, everything changed in 1982. Argentina was led
into war by military dictator General Leopoldo Galtieri. His popularity was
waning and he knew that winning the islands back from Britain would also win
over the Argentines.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTF0E_Ux_m1kgHNCZACy9gIkQaPqUplhvYm1cLh0bK8_CrTEVcHTwrkiQsVBqHoAPXaf-Lx7hRMlr2-N70M7LG4zl1JGD-MhQSHJZtuL0ZsVnRpTPyq5LpJBT8L098RgjGSJ0Q8hD8-yBY76vH0tj58ODoN2IPaMR0rT3lkv9J4bciT0DbZZ-MlcH_tg/s4032/21%20-%20Downtown%20Stanley.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTF0E_Ux_m1kgHNCZACy9gIkQaPqUplhvYm1cLh0bK8_CrTEVcHTwrkiQsVBqHoAPXaf-Lx7hRMlr2-N70M7LG4zl1JGD-MhQSHJZtuL0ZsVnRpTPyq5LpJBT8L098RgjGSJ0Q8hD8-yBY76vH0tj58ODoN2IPaMR0rT3lkv9J4bciT0DbZZ-MlcH_tg/w300-h400/21%20-%20Downtown%20Stanley.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Downtown Stanley, Falkland Islands, reminds me of many seaside towns in Jolly Old England</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Words were spoken and threats were made and soon the
Royal British Navy was steaming south to defend the islands. Mine fields were
laid out. Artillery was set up. Fighter jets appeared on the horizon and soon the
“Falklands War” erupted. The two-month long war ended in mid-June 1982 when the
capital Stanley was surrounded and the Argentines surrendered as the Royal
Marines planted the Union Jack on West Falkland to end the conflict. As with
most wars, an abundance of testosterone and a lack of any cogent thinking
brought the countries to war.<o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYlw6p6uZRdkqX6-STauCt9lqxO64hwQ2hZFcx4ioqKCBCIk4Z7RKl9DcLMe-Ff-ul_sZoqVYjhWWCJx9_1kzoTgZXNVtJF0HJwcYFfGkjkYScwFI7_oq0eLK12TFI9d6IKfccYlgugOazZzYB-6N4FwzJP67-v5uxLrOa_-6neWPCCDOlC3JJih2dgw/s4032/23%20-%20Islas%20Malvinas.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYlw6p6uZRdkqX6-STauCt9lqxO64hwQ2hZFcx4ioqKCBCIk4Z7RKl9DcLMe-Ff-ul_sZoqVYjhWWCJx9_1kzoTgZXNVtJF0HJwcYFfGkjkYScwFI7_oq0eLK12TFI9d6IKfccYlgugOazZzYB-6N4FwzJP67-v5uxLrOa_-6neWPCCDOlC3JJih2dgw/s320/23%20-%20Islas%20Malvinas.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">These signs saying "The Falkland Islands are Argentina's" are a common sight in Ushuaia, Argentina. The Brits on the Falkland Islands would generally not agree with that view</span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">More than 40 years have now passed since the end of the
conflict yet signs saying “Las Islas Malvinas Son Argentinas” abound in places
like Ushuaia. All this over windswept islands that are dripping with penguins
and whose official flag is the Union Jack with a sheep in one corner.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglzLktPCCUqZF2E2QEOrBr8gPJ74HXpIM5NIZp4PdE122C34b4rla8jmSPT8wb-hQ1WwAB9WA17HbYoFzDx1oG9mfOH_fpJDT1pkWi2Ght197q7zEC_W4VBo8gojSBC7F3CnzwPy5jDNd7QC1pYoOWeyiUzxQRyGKrXOUS0PZ0ck8DYPyWKJByI2ZA-Q/s1280/23%20-%20Falkland%20Islands%20Flag.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1280" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglzLktPCCUqZF2E2QEOrBr8gPJ74HXpIM5NIZp4PdE122C34b4rla8jmSPT8wb-hQ1WwAB9WA17HbYoFzDx1oG9mfOH_fpJDT1pkWi2Ght197q7zEC_W4VBo8gojSBC7F3CnzwPy5jDNd7QC1pYoOWeyiUzxQRyGKrXOUS0PZ0ck8DYPyWKJByI2ZA-Q/w400-h400/23%20-%20Falkland%20Islands%20Flag.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">You must have deep and abiding respect for any country that places a sheep on the Union Jack!</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>The bird list for the Falkland Islands holds about 160
species. Among them are two species endemic to the islands – Falkland Steamer
Duck is ridiculously common in the waters of the harbor in Stanley. We saw
probably 20 of them from the tender boat that brought us from the ship to the
mainland in Stanley.</span><span> </span><span>Half of my goal in
the Falklands was over before it began! Cobb’s Wren (think of a House Wren but
with an even more melodious voice) is restricted to tussock grass, especially
on small islands away from Stanley. At one point the population of Cobb’s Wren
dropped below 500 individuals almost entirely because of predation by rats and
cats.</span><span> </span><span>The small but determined Falkland
Islands Conservation Association has been working diligently to remove both
predators from the islands.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9aQpanKvzqrXJDbuG8moytNSGnAxTGQjZ2UuuJWJDlCP5sFB-jlN3yDk9azh9WrmEZiWC_EcFGl0TPDZiEOM3SialHo14kY0imFPwopHKQBj2aDNdQKXX7Nt650z0Es_l6ejHSDC0GRSV8dxNUdDIbNCTHjhH6ugxGIoYFlgqTBso68lOVtTD-t-pnw/s736/24%20-%20Falkland%20Steamer%20Duck.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="577" data-original-width="736" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9aQpanKvzqrXJDbuG8moytNSGnAxTGQjZ2UuuJWJDlCP5sFB-jlN3yDk9azh9WrmEZiWC_EcFGl0TPDZiEOM3SialHo14kY0imFPwopHKQBj2aDNdQKXX7Nt650z0Es_l6ejHSDC0GRSV8dxNUdDIbNCTHjhH6ugxGIoYFlgqTBso68lOVtTD-t-pnw/w400-h314/24%20-%20Falkland%20Steamer%20Duck.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The flightless Falklands Steamer Duck, endemic to the Falkland Islands, was the singular most important reason I wanted to travel there</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Headquarters for the Conservation Association are
directly across the street from the jetty information center and I stopped in
to talk to them about their cat removal efforts. I offered to travel back to the Falklands to
volunteer to kill cats for them. I said,
“Just give me a .20 gauge shotgun and unlimited ammunition and I’ll get rid of
as many cats as I can find.” The gob
smacked receptionist who was helping me said “Thank you sir, but no. I think
you are a bit too eager.” She has no
idea.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRi6ahhXglos6PR-j3xLufrldOWgtLWKgg4WdSfcqhDvp0I2PJEqKtGODbiH2hQu9TBhgwFA2SLbn7RkMNr-kjW2wQzBovznVyIH5GzzjsrbF56tf9yUn8N2CMXgXn14J-6X8FucolubbE2_5leo-1w7NNLwTcacZG-sIcgomFT1nbKCUsj94OQIaatA/s4032/25%20-%20Cat.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRi6ahhXglos6PR-j3xLufrldOWgtLWKgg4WdSfcqhDvp0I2PJEqKtGODbiH2hQu9TBhgwFA2SLbn7RkMNr-kjW2wQzBovznVyIH5GzzjsrbF56tf9yUn8N2CMXgXn14J-6X8FucolubbE2_5leo-1w7NNLwTcacZG-sIcgomFT1nbKCUsj94OQIaatA/w400-h300/25%20-%20Cat.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Give me a shotgun and an unlimited supply of ammunition and the cats that eat the endangered Cobb's Wren on the Falkland Islands will no longer be an issue. Photo by Cathy Hayslett</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Cathy went off to the east of Stanley to visit a beach
with nesting King Penguins and I walked west. I found some remnant tussock
grasslands where, with a little spishing, I had one Cobb’s Wren pop up and
scold me just like a House Wren would do in North America. Arctic Terns
patrolled the beach I walked by, and Magellanic Cormorants were a constant
sight as were the seemingly endless small flocks of Falklands Steamer Ducks.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeQTnLwfKJP4v8gXytxRKBXEnlIdlGBG2SeAOCfNebSTP1PTOQLpYvTAh8LaxXyM_FwvnS9msKuzBU0yHlC-74ZUgy70Y9AWYlnzwG1i-HKuCcEbvsiP8DHbHxAfI6F6sEcj0WSkHADPneVHUagcux7d0883Fqi_3uZ8FrivAjcFSGDlojuR776YMKgQ/s4032/26%20-%20King%20Penguin%20Cathy.JPEG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeQTnLwfKJP4v8gXytxRKBXEnlIdlGBG2SeAOCfNebSTP1PTOQLpYvTAh8LaxXyM_FwvnS9msKuzBU0yHlC-74ZUgy70Y9AWYlnzwG1i-HKuCcEbvsiP8DHbHxAfI6F6sEcj0WSkHADPneVHUagcux7d0883Fqi_3uZ8FrivAjcFSGDlojuR776YMKgQ/w300-h400/26%20-%20King%20Penguin%20Cathy.JPEG" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">King Penguin at Gypsy Cove, Falkland Islands. Photo by Cathy Hayslett</span></b><div><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>Jerry and Peter, a couple from Ottawa, Ontario, had been
planning this cruise for two years.</span><span>
</span><span>Their singular goal was to get to the Falkland Islands. During the
morning of our arrival in Stanley we saw them in the dining area reserved for
penthouse guests. Each was dressed exactly alike. They both had on tall black
top hats, a cream colored shirt, a yellow bow tie and dark black tuxedos.</span><span> </span><span>They looked almost exactly like the character
“The Penguin” from the old Batman series.</span><span>
</span><span>Jerry told me later that they had made private arrangements with a
helicopter pilot who flew them to a huge King Penguin colony where, dressed as
closely as possible to being a King Penguin, they had their picture taken
surrounded by hundreds of King Penguins! I begged them to email me a copy of
the picture because I had many ornithologist friends who would love to see it. Sadly,
the email never arrived but at least I have the picture indelibly etched in my mind.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHYW79U27bVUjIA3uT1cXGt7CaNdoNm2SoosRAXGRQ6nWjwQbtMvyJJHXG4foQiDxeqqHJnR4w3JWHyIwrlNO_rmzp5w_9Vd2s3PcRH1-Vp2yuwjLiNxzcX03DcEdO40firomP2UwrMfDU1kpTHa1_nCpOOrI0VAyCWQy41-95ixFdtUkv_2bdVKO6yQ/s4032/27%20Falklands%20Landscape.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHYW79U27bVUjIA3uT1cXGt7CaNdoNm2SoosRAXGRQ6nWjwQbtMvyJJHXG4foQiDxeqqHJnR4w3JWHyIwrlNO_rmzp5w_9Vd2s3PcRH1-Vp2yuwjLiNxzcX03DcEdO40firomP2UwrMfDU1kpTHa1_nCpOOrI0VAyCWQy41-95ixFdtUkv_2bdVKO6yQ/w300-h400/27%20Falklands%20Landscape.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The Falkland Islands are among the most windy places on the planet - even more so than North Dakota if you can believe that. Trees find it difficult to take root but the grasslands provide ample forage for sheep</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Antarctica was of course the most exciting place we
visited with the Falkland Islands a close second. Everyone I met there was
exceedingly kind but without the stiff upper lip of most of London or Brighton
and they have been cut off from the Brits long enough that the British accent
seems to have almost disappeared.
Getting to the Falklands is one of the most challenging logistical
exercises I have undertaken. Because of
the pissing match with Argentina there is no air connection with Ushuaia or any
other town in Argentina. The only
commercial air service there is a once-weekly (currently on Saturdays) LATAM
Airlines flight from Punta Arenas, Chile.
The other flight option is with the British Royal Air Force who flies
down once a week (with an intermediate stop on Ascension Island) from Brize
Norton Air Force Base in Oxfordshire in the UK.
The RAF flight is aboard a cargo jet so there wouldn’t be much luxury
involved and the flight is 7,861 statute miles.
The other way is a cruise ship. There were three cruise ships in Stanley
harbor including a Holland America ship and one for Antarctica explorers whose
name I forget. We were overwhelmed by
the value of the cruise we took on Norwegian Cruise Line and I highly recommend
it for anyone considering a trip to the ice continent.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix3OFuN8mFWnbe_G2SUgT0FKsBXD1z7jdJHd1dFLcWa_9tiiG8FAhqAJuNu1l3R7XEOYuEfkdNJ8M-DoScI7Fast2mCtw0c6xWDpJeZ1LYM7tNr738xtI92PvZHpba9L-bn53_O_Jn_EBel_DIXTbrg1Mbiejq5dEzcgnO__PlkqSrRWB4AAtZyuD7qw/s4032/28%20-%20Craig%20Ceertificate.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix3OFuN8mFWnbe_G2SUgT0FKsBXD1z7jdJHd1dFLcWa_9tiiG8FAhqAJuNu1l3R7XEOYuEfkdNJ8M-DoScI7Fast2mCtw0c6xWDpJeZ1LYM7tNr738xtI92PvZHpba9L-bn53_O_Jn_EBel_DIXTbrg1Mbiejq5dEzcgnO__PlkqSrRWB4AAtZyuD7qw/w300-h400/28%20-%20Craig%20Ceertificate.JPG" width="300" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLXnTHRz2EqAXwbizwXLRkMd9iC1wW1uwWEAu1j7CILWVUA9fbqjP3cvVQQlzdfjrmdoXPxckF78SARumEg8IUGB0YDOhqCdicsW9zY3yyu0UbEUYpey51rQ1Cfeo8fbvN9DsQzCg5mUepBlI7SRomX9BnsWxIQMh2tScaiyyjRNMFgm3dqH0X686v2g/s640/29%20-%20Cathy%20Certificate.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLXnTHRz2EqAXwbizwXLRkMd9iC1wW1uwWEAu1j7CILWVUA9fbqjP3cvVQQlzdfjrmdoXPxckF78SARumEg8IUGB0YDOhqCdicsW9zY3yyu0UbEUYpey51rQ1Cfeo8fbvN9DsQzCg5mUepBlI7SRomX9BnsWxIQMh2tScaiyyjRNMFgm3dqH0X686v2g/w300-h400/29%20-%20Cathy%20Certificate.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Norwegian Cruise Line presented us with these certificates commemorating our presence on the cruise line's maiden voyage to the Ice Continent</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">Sea Days<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>We steamed on a course of almost exactly 360 degrees for
1.5 days until just offshore from Montevideo Uruguay where we connected with
the narrow navigation channel in the mouth of the Rio de la Plata that guides
vessels into Buenos Aires.</span><span> </span><span>We arrived in
Buenos Aires a little before 5:30 a.m. where we took part in a NCL shore
excursion called “Buenos Aires Highlights with Airport Transfer”</span><span> </span><span>It was a bit disappointing because we drove
by the interesting places, did not see Eva Perone’s grave but we did stop at
two places for shopping. Priorities! We had lunch at Porteno, an upscale
“gourmet” restaurant in the port area then reboarded the bus for the 45 minute
drive to the Buenos Aires International Airport where the cruise officially
ended and pandemonium reigned.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgimugQ99aS2qJ6g2uaWmop1tFhDp5qOXF0ENg9vL-yYHZEMNGR-RQtsphpaRzLhuh3bfltsCpy2w_GdHNp9VgNG9Cqa-EG03bjovC3VBR2kfL4DXzS1IblvbgTIlNGhpjUktClvWIAbsAQ2wZ5zKxkGaQ7yOt6ZfOElkX57Kcr-loI2GqHf_N2pQXpSw/s4032/30%20Rear%20Wake%20of%20Ship.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgimugQ99aS2qJ6g2uaWmop1tFhDp5qOXF0ENg9vL-yYHZEMNGR-RQtsphpaRzLhuh3bfltsCpy2w_GdHNp9VgNG9Cqa-EG03bjovC3VBR2kfL4DXzS1IblvbgTIlNGhpjUktClvWIAbsAQ2wZ5zKxkGaQ7yOt6ZfOElkX57Kcr-loI2GqHf_N2pQXpSw/w300-h400/30%20Rear%20Wake%20of%20Ship.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Every story about a cruise must have at least one photo of the wake of the ship from the stern. This was our constant view from our balcony for 14 days and nights</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><i><span style="font-size: large;">Back from the Argentine<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>Aldo Leopold’s classic ecological bible “</span><i>A Sand County
Almanac</i><span>” contains an essay for May titled “Back from the Argentine.”</span><span> </span><span>It chronicles the journey of an Upland
Sandpiper from its winter habitats on the Pampas of north-central Argentina to
grasslands that existed in Dane or Sauk Counties, Wisconsin, when Leopold wrote
his book.</span><span> </span><span>I first read </span><i>A Sand County
Almanac</i><span> in the spring of 1970 at the end of my first year of college.</span><span> </span><span>It was a required reading for a course called
“Conservation of Natural Resources” that then was a requirement for graduation
from my university.</span><span> </span><span>Almost without fail
every time I have seen an Upland Sandpiper since reading that essay in early
1970 I have mouthed the words “Back from the Argentine.”</span><span> </span><span>In September 2002, during my second trip to
Argentina, I found Upland Sandpipers standing on fence posts in the Pampas just
like they would on a Wisconsin or North Dakota or Nebraska prairie.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>So far I have been lucky to have traveled to every
country in South America at least once.</span><span>
</span><span>Argentina leads with 6 trips, Colombia and Brazil with 5 each, Ecuador
and Trinidad with 4, Chile and Peru 3 each, Uruguay 2 times, and the remaining countries with
single visits.</span><span> </span><span>Among the 132 countries I
have visited, I have had tears in my eyes when I left three of them.</span><span> </span><span>The first was Argentina in 1999, the second
was Australia in 2004 and the third was South Africa in 2011.</span><span> </span><span>There is absolutely everything to love about
Argentina and nothing to dislike.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>With one exception. Ezeiza airport, the international
airport for Buenos Aires was an absolute zoo when we arrived to check in for
our return flight. Several hundred people from two different shore excursions
on our ship all converged on the airport at the same time creating mass
pandemonium especially since American Airlines counters didn’t open until 5:30
p.m. There were zero signs anywhere advising people in Economy Class where to
check in, people in Business Class where to check in, and people with various
forms of priority where to check in.</span><span>
</span><span>Imagine 50 bovines in a cattle truck meant for 35 all jockeying for
position and that’s what Ezeiza was like.</span><span>
</span><span>After we were finally checked in and had our boarding passes the line of
customers waiting to be helped by American Airlines stretched the entire length
of Terminal A.</span><span> </span><span>Not one of them was happy
with the situation.</span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA13DyXwzWf-vVO7sPrSfyC_oi6UCxlfJHMGfti2ARj0bNsCNtI_II4pae2EN39PKAWuliRjSviedOfakvnJo9UZYYX3IXe0RXf-jT4HcRZqQ_XPKewxCU52hdn8OSOLQPRIIcw0bN2l3bRWCUll0FK5fBBCnUWvg79JdB-IRplXhjbZ4ybavRZaHLGA/s2208/31%20-%20Flight%20route%20north.PNG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2208" data-original-width="1242" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA13DyXwzWf-vVO7sPrSfyC_oi6UCxlfJHMGfti2ARj0bNsCNtI_II4pae2EN39PKAWuliRjSviedOfakvnJo9UZYYX3IXe0RXf-jT4HcRZqQ_XPKewxCU52hdn8OSOLQPRIIcw0bN2l3bRWCUll0FK5fBBCnUWvg79JdB-IRplXhjbZ4ybavRZaHLGA/w225-h400/31%20-%20Flight%20route%20north.PNG" width="225" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The route followed by American Airlines flight 996 from Buenos Aires to Dallas-Fort Worth<br /></span></b><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>We spent some time in the Admiral’s Club then boarded
American Airlines flight 996 bound for Dallas Fort Worth. While waiting for
American to open their counters word spread among Dallas passengers that a
massive ice storm was set to smother Dallas on Monday afternoon and the storm
would continue until Thursday. As we sped north through the South American
night I finished my dinner over Cordoba, Argentina, then rolled out the
lay-flat bed seat and went to sleep. I woke up 8 hours later over Monterey
Mexico as flight attendants prepared to hand out breakfast.</span><span> </span><span>Eight hours of hard sleep was the perfect way
to spend most of 10 ½ hours flying north from Buenos Aires in the dark.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>Arriving at the gate early we deplaned on time at 5:00
a.m., then quickly cleared immigration and customs and began the long wait for
our 12:45 p.m. departure to Sarasota.</span><span> </span><span>It
is American’s only flight of the day between the two cities. Air temperature
was 30 degrees F. and the sky looked like Wisconsin just before a
snowstorm.</span><span> </span><span>About 10:00 a.m. American
began cancelling flights. When I saw flights to Tampa and Orlando had cancelled
I was certain we would be spending the night somewhere on the floor of the
Dallas airport.</span><span> </span><span>The plane for our flight
arrived from New York LaGuardia as we sat at Gate A35 watching the departure
board expecting it to switch from saying “on time” to “cancelled”.</span><span> </span><span>It never did. We backed away from the gate
early then waited in line to be deiced. When we finally lifted off 90 minutes
late I counted 24 planes waiting in line to be deiced.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidvR-QPkCiI5a0K85IdPVc77vr-d8FEUSDDlWpuCXXNBrOhTE2lY7UGRQgpP7iA-LOOhy1B1M9VKy9-CNbudIVyvarcu0U_aQmgaGeaH-OUtFSHd1bFDkvirf7fgkLCcjslJ9mYtBKPHPtibQshVagv1OCCwUhP4tzFQO7_psxOvCZVsFMOs8GnRv1VA/s4032/32%20-%20Last%20flight%20out.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidvR-QPkCiI5a0K85IdPVc77vr-d8FEUSDDlWpuCXXNBrOhTE2lY7UGRQgpP7iA-LOOhy1B1M9VKy9-CNbudIVyvarcu0U_aQmgaGeaH-OUtFSHd1bFDkvirf7fgkLCcjslJ9mYtBKPHPtibQshVagv1OCCwUhP4tzFQO7_psxOvCZVsFMOs8GnRv1VA/w300-h400/32%20-%20Last%20flight%20out.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Luckily our flight from Dallas to Sarasota was not cancelled on Monday. However there have been no other flights between the two cities since ours</span></b><br /><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Our flight landed in Sarasota only 45 minutes late. It
was the last flight by either Southwest or American from Dallas to arrive in
Sarasota over the next three days. The next time we fly anywhere in winter we
are making sure the connection is through Miami.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Birds</span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>We saw 133 bird species on this trip which, for South
America, is a small list. Among those 133 species, 17 were new to my life
list.</span><span> </span><span>Considering that most of our time
was on the ocean or connected to the ocean it was a respectable list of
species.</span><span> </span><span>Among major groups we found </span></span><span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span></p><table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody><tr>
<td style="border: 1pt solid windowtext; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 233.75pt;" valign="top" width="312">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Species Group<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 1.75in;" valign="top" width="168">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;"># Species Observed<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 233.75pt;" valign="top" width="312">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Skua and Jaegers<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 1.75in;" valign="top" width="168">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 233.75pt;" valign="top" width="312">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Gulls and Terns<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 1.75in;" valign="top" width="168">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">10<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 233.75pt;" valign="top" width="312">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Penguins<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 1.75in;" valign="top" width="168">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 233.75pt;" valign="top" width="312">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Albatross<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 1.75in;" valign="top" width="168">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">5<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 233.75pt;" valign="top" width="312">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Storm-Petrel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 1.75in;" valign="top" width="168">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">3<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: 1pt solid windowtext; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 233.75pt;" valign="top" width="312">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Shearwaters and Petrels<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: 1pt solid windowtext; border-left: none; border-right: 1pt solid windowtext; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 1.75in;" valign="top" width="168">
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">24<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">If you are interested in species lists for particular
areas let me know and I will provide that information.</span></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p></div>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-3179829832240284922022-12-17T07:23:00.006-05:002022-12-17T08:48:40.867-05:00Season's Greetings from the Little Latitudes<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 20pt;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7xZ4YforEhfKXRFWt3VTM7oWv6C_JGB1KnXhYoUTRXjyGkThibsuwTM9rwhEtZDeYRRzJny71hFhSNi6LmY-h2sqoeWKKbwu6WOR4b2FMNK_k16oOsMks2VfjwtpADem82iVA-vuF2KJMmdN4TucYYMTb8AlcVVIV60jNo2H4mjgaBNArNYiR6W_pQA/s1712/Brutal%20December%20in%20Florida.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1712" data-original-width="1284" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7xZ4YforEhfKXRFWt3VTM7oWv6C_JGB1KnXhYoUTRXjyGkThibsuwTM9rwhEtZDeYRRzJny71hFhSNi6LmY-h2sqoeWKKbwu6WOR4b2FMNK_k16oOsMks2VfjwtpADem82iVA-vuF2KJMmdN4TucYYMTb8AlcVVIV60jNo2H4mjgaBNArNYiR6W_pQA/w480-h640/Brutal%20December%20in%20Florida.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">As we complete our latest
trip around the sun, its time to reflect on 2022 and look forward to another solar
circuit in 2023.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">There were two exciting
developments in our part of the world in 2022 and both were newsworthy in one
way or another. Most importantly, Cathy
took the plunge and joined the ranks of the retired. She had spent much of the last 40 years or so
in some form of computer science but on August 31 she said goodbye to her
company. Now almost every waking moment
is spent honing her skills as a world-class knitter. If you need a sweater or a wool cap made she
will pump one out at warp speed. My
personal favorite is her Fair Isle knitting style. I only wish it was cold enough here more than
2 days a year for a wool cap because I would certainly like one in that style. She also oversaw the torturously long effort
to remodel her kitchen. Its taken more
than 3 months to complete and is still not finished. Cathy served as general contractor for this
effort. She’s not old enough yet for
Social Security so she might want to consider being a kitchen remodeling
manager as a retirement job.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">The other exciting news in
2022 was the unwanted arrival of Hurricane Ian who roared ashore just south of
Sarasota on September 28. Peak winds here
were clocked at 127 miles per hour. We suffered no property damage other than a
couple broken palm fronds, We were among the luckiest of people in Ian’s path. Too many suffered far more.</span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGVTrsTln3eFQnIUzFr-pWn29FzpYskVtVU9G4rU_-_lY-h6dSLnxtBnJFjYLFQ4ZWP3mUyFilqaC2MKLvajBqDbx54bnPCZPcl7OvmZGnzM-MO80wtNGosrRm4PeOlVvXfOI3Uvmbin279MTfLPK_fZt6wkHOlqutiYWxI1pxuLcHg8Londl25rBI5g/s1100/Hurricane%20Ian.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1100" data-original-width="800" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGVTrsTln3eFQnIUzFr-pWn29FzpYskVtVU9G4rU_-_lY-h6dSLnxtBnJFjYLFQ4ZWP3mUyFilqaC2MKLvajBqDbx54bnPCZPcl7OvmZGnzM-MO80wtNGosrRm4PeOlVvXfOI3Uvmbin279MTfLPK_fZt6wkHOlqutiYWxI1pxuLcHg8Londl25rBI5g/w291-h400/Hurricane%20Ian.png" width="291" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Unwanted and unwelcome Hurricane Ian roared ashore about 40 miles south of Sarasota as a Category 4 monster on September 28, 2022. Good riddance</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Cathy’s rambunctious
grandson Channing spent almost every other weekend with us. We spent a lot of time in the pool where he
continues to excel as a swimmer. At 5 ½ years
old we are making plans to build houses for the imaginary 9 families of
muskrats he is convinced live in our pool.
We spend a lot of time watching jets flying over and Channing remains
fascinated by their contrails. His ability to identify birds by their voice is
improving but his wildlife specialty has become rescuing frogs, turtles, and millipedes
that fall into the pool.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 20pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjjIi9casxFayVGYd6-jDa9ThC43NkXFD50-k7pfiaEdwaGOlpWYwnmAX69E140sPhYQf532KigGOQ4UNmgHwkMQWZBUNZM4RG1G8n3T1sQo3NkPz_Y22GAjA--S87CyeUKc0qucB-yiG6qgnLFKQy_aWkHU9BfQtqSmhnWEmONF6c5P6o1mMRAxw1oQ/s640/Channing's%20Turtle.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjjIi9casxFayVGYd6-jDa9ThC43NkXFD50-k7pfiaEdwaGOlpWYwnmAX69E140sPhYQf532KigGOQ4UNmgHwkMQWZBUNZM4RG1G8n3T1sQo3NkPz_Y22GAjA--S87CyeUKc0qucB-yiG6qgnLFKQy_aWkHU9BfQtqSmhnWEmONF6c5P6o1mMRAxw1oQ/w300-h400/Channing's%20Turtle.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">One of several juvenile Red-necked Sliders that Channing rescued from our pool this summer</span></b><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Cathy and I made three major
trips together this year beginning with the Galapagos Islands. The birds, the marine mammals, and the
scenery were almost lifted from an Evolution textbook and it was a huge rush to
be exploring the same waters and islands that Charles Darwin explored aboard
the HMS Beagle. </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOi0QtVVHJkc4P1MqWfVf2FwdpWMtzr9dvqE3tFE0vdT56wvFXv2ArPYubgr7dz-fsKsU1ZfWHRFIDwBm7qVUBy-PQUoh_MVrCbDoxD7qvsySrv-TmTelJ11PNAEmKntHr5SXpIKeH8RmBYJYUBBxn0BdZOVGBzzKYp8rK0Wek93hPx3S3HeJJxIzy8A/s568/Galapagos%20Map.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="568" data-original-width="500" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOi0QtVVHJkc4P1MqWfVf2FwdpWMtzr9dvqE3tFE0vdT56wvFXv2ArPYubgr7dz-fsKsU1ZfWHRFIDwBm7qVUBy-PQUoh_MVrCbDoxD7qvsySrv-TmTelJ11PNAEmKntHr5SXpIKeH8RmBYJYUBBxn0BdZOVGBzzKYp8rK0Wek93hPx3S3HeJJxIzy8A/w353-h400/Galapagos%20Map.JPG" width="353" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The course followed by the Bedbug infested Golandrina I among the islands of the Galapagos</span></b><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Sadly for us, the ship
we were on, the Golandrina I, was not the least bit comfortable. A Galapagos
Sea Lion that hopped aboard and joined us for dinner one night, and a bed filled with
bedbugs were the two most memorable onboard experiences. On our return from the
islands to Guayaquil, Ecuador, Craig misinterpreted the COVID rules and discovered
when we checked in for our flight to Miami that we needed a negative COVID test
before we could depart Ecuador. Eventually everything worked out and we left
Guayaquil 13 hours late.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 20pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfL_JAR2-uJDhCrAkR1KT5OLaFE9LXIVWVW3HoW2kejTmj-v7Ujtajbk7i4p_xAwitBt6w0nMZsWVWhaLaqO-kQ3JogV0w53vlLxBVpSLPEca92bM51Ll9Rgoer0wuH4HLxd5Bb6uVs6KDRr05w-nimZw8ZLe4CTatrwOyBUEgHlYG9NheNQOhasZ01g/s857/Golandrina%201.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="570" data-original-width="857" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfL_JAR2-uJDhCrAkR1KT5OLaFE9LXIVWVW3HoW2kejTmj-v7Ujtajbk7i4p_xAwitBt6w0nMZsWVWhaLaqO-kQ3JogV0w53vlLxBVpSLPEca92bM51Ll9Rgoer0wuH4HLxd5Bb6uVs6KDRr05w-nimZw8ZLe4CTatrwOyBUEgHlYG9NheNQOhasZ01g/w400-h266/Golandrina%201.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Even in your wildest dreams the Golandrina I was not and is not a luxury Galapagos yacht, although the bedbugs were memorable</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 20pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXWeDwmrhAsTyRAXcbiogkizcAME8dbDQoF1ItaLt5g7ZQFkJbaMgnVhbJBAwzR2539g5bNpRw7FNvSSakV5ovSEOzrQRiANUSVr-q4LFcpLzuJL0L3mx-uBn4IKATSw2sVqJapT-0BaqGApOCJHAbqhdAZVbILpT5jIiMp54s8eQL3is9YmIo_Fmafw/s400/Moose%20in%20Jennifer's%20Yard.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXWeDwmrhAsTyRAXcbiogkizcAME8dbDQoF1ItaLt5g7ZQFkJbaMgnVhbJBAwzR2539g5bNpRw7FNvSSakV5ovSEOzrQRiANUSVr-q4LFcpLzuJL0L3mx-uBn4IKATSw2sVqJapT-0BaqGApOCJHAbqhdAZVbILpT5jIiMp54s8eQL3is9YmIo_Fmafw/w400-h400/Moose%20in%20Jennifer's%20Yard.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Moose are regular visitor's to my daughters Wasilla, Alaska, yard.</span></b><br /><o:p style="font-size: 20pt;"><br /></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">We traveled to Alaska and
Montana (on Alaska Airlines of course) in late July and early August. We spent time with my daughter and her family
near Wasilla (without once again seeing Caribou Barbie Palin), then made a day trip
to Nome where we found 22 Musk Ox and $7.00 a gallon gas! Our dinner restaurant, the Bering Sea Cafe where we paid $5.00 for a ping pong ball sized baked potato, burned down the next month when the remnants of a typhoon ripped through west coastal Alaska. Luckily none of the great people working at the Bering Sea were harmed in any way. </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUDJFYJuVG4KcL2fC2bZRXL1wYOiN8We2Eb6BVJwA9UX0U0_XBvfCNJOxdWm67c9cRBA8n1I71uuER2WZoj4pI7epoFCD6WiMBVgqButHKTP2MPhZbbTteJWSTGXce-M-ihPtQSDt97TiSo3bHz1F-qoJABf-EWQtmeyiUBlfbRq4_VyDftKZPOzzhow/s4032/IMG_5973.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUDJFYJuVG4KcL2fC2bZRXL1wYOiN8We2Eb6BVJwA9UX0U0_XBvfCNJOxdWm67c9cRBA8n1I71uuER2WZoj4pI7epoFCD6WiMBVgqButHKTP2MPhZbbTteJWSTGXce-M-ihPtQSDt97TiSo3bHz1F-qoJABf-EWQtmeyiUBlfbRq4_VyDftKZPOzzhow/w300-h400/IMG_5973.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Musk ox are the highlight of any trip to Nome. Seeing 22 of them makes it even more special.</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">From Nome we flew to Kalispell, Montana, and spent a week with our Sarasota neighbors in a house owned by Bob Barker. We spent one day in Glacier National Park where a Grizzly Bear sauntering down the highway like he owns it (he does) and a flock of Bighorn Sheep at Logan Pass were the wildlife highlights.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHPm4lsp6FAQBqY2XLLJeXFjOjgy9fAYajRrFQkbcEkNncRNR6T3t28IHHluMUZh9i6sZUcteSiGU0RSiIc9wNYs4NlTEeCc8QNvoBSqxW_5TN0D6dWsnunSbWU2W63W_BP34CuyEMGpQdoiIiDdTLc9LYSBXT1XdBo9jEUNmZoR2aAGClsTaH4w911w/s640/IMG_6650.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHPm4lsp6FAQBqY2XLLJeXFjOjgy9fAYajRrFQkbcEkNncRNR6T3t28IHHluMUZh9i6sZUcteSiGU0RSiIc9wNYs4NlTEeCc8QNvoBSqxW_5TN0D6dWsnunSbWU2W63W_BP34CuyEMGpQdoiIiDdTLc9LYSBXT1XdBo9jEUNmZoR2aAGClsTaH4w911w/w300-h400/IMG_6650.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Bighorn Sheep at Logan Pass in Glacier National Park, August 2022</span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">On Halloween we flew to New Orleans to
celebrate my latest birthday. We stayed
at the Westin Hotel by the river, ate breakfast one morning at Mother’s
Restaurant, dinner one night at Deanie’s Seafood, and lunch and dinner another
time at the Crescent City Brewing Company.
Once again we are convinced that it should be a requirement of US
citizenship to travel once every 4 years to New Orleans just to eat Cajun food.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 20pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNmpL0b8PRAZn0sbPXFnrwRhE7F-cWP5X3Krkt95mUFoVxpLHOx9INAawJmlbP1_9B5Cf1NrcmA72z5iROg-kCmiyUhuEOoeE7X3nA5L3-xD5bMZRHZW3QCZRDCrBIEu1Uf_vwqLIvZWsbRK7fzYqQhqPPt1SLeF41cLCSHu_X5sAhCeUB1ljtJUB1eQ/s960/Mother's%20Restaurant.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNmpL0b8PRAZn0sbPXFnrwRhE7F-cWP5X3Krkt95mUFoVxpLHOx9INAawJmlbP1_9B5Cf1NrcmA72z5iROg-kCmiyUhuEOoeE7X3nA5L3-xD5bMZRHZW3QCZRDCrBIEu1Uf_vwqLIvZWsbRK7fzYqQhqPPt1SLeF41cLCSHu_X5sAhCeUB1ljtJUB1eQ/w300-h400/Mother's%20Restaurant.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">It's worth standing in line for hours for the best soul food breakfast in New Orleans at Mother's Restaurant</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Craig made a couple solo
trips to Alaska including a marathon “See-Alaska” jaunt in late May and early
June that took him to Fairbanks, Bethel, Nome, and Kotzebue before landing in
Barrow for the fifth time. There he
conducted the Barrow Breeding Bird Survey and saw an Arctic Fox, two curious Caribou, and a Polar Bear that was foraging on a
recently harvested Bowhead Whale.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: x-large; text-align: center;"><span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgajfj7OxInY8EmWgMGn1ildzqTo_N_hHQbu1ggnqXGnX_OAdlYwQ7gSVqdidk8YKEskwBXZ6VZaY8i1jfqNm52ZNLgTgJltFpbO9XXtVasIgruUqdlJXISDtELyFfkUSYHU42hiHvfEPNuJQLqk6LotkrbqNEZO6wcUy-r1EnWXI7Q-KSG9eBvMv7aIQ/s4032/IMG_3276.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgajfj7OxInY8EmWgMGn1ildzqTo_N_hHQbu1ggnqXGnX_OAdlYwQ7gSVqdidk8YKEskwBXZ6VZaY8i1jfqNm52ZNLgTgJltFpbO9XXtVasIgruUqdlJXISDtELyFfkUSYHU42hiHvfEPNuJQLqk6LotkrbqNEZO6wcUy-r1EnWXI7Q-KSG9eBvMv7aIQ/w300-h400/IMG_3276.JPG" width="300" /></a></span></div><span><b><span style="font-size: medium;">There are two hotels in Barrow but my favorite, just a stones throw from the airport is the King Eider Inn. Any hotel named after a way cool duck has to be a place for wildlife enthusiasts to stay while there</span></b><br /><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: 20pt;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 20pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB9BWZZlrJO5t2be0ZFXc_3W_0nSLn02KEccS6xccaPpqNKmPEAhB-e9Pwh_JIfFgXom6ZMpALCOwV4gBnBObRO7uzcne_JE_m7_fu4NGK5D0-34F32lM9vDtoxh7SdRze0U-20ZMk5cgZUpLZSMPlK6If2eNrUCezP0vqnHbNTFUyII9RJYosAQRmPg/s4032/IMG_5920.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB9BWZZlrJO5t2be0ZFXc_3W_0nSLn02KEccS6xccaPpqNKmPEAhB-e9Pwh_JIfFgXom6ZMpALCOwV4gBnBObRO7uzcne_JE_m7_fu4NGK5D0-34F32lM9vDtoxh7SdRze0U-20ZMk5cgZUpLZSMPlK6If2eNrUCezP0vqnHbNTFUyII9RJYosAQRmPg/w300-h400/IMG_5920.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>The runway at Ralph Wein Memorial Airport in Kotzebue Alaska cuts through the middle of a large Estuarine Emergent wetland where flushing flocks of Long-tailed Ducks is a common occurrence each time a plane arrives!</b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: 20pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXeZrfhlc0zzzEwEPUb5hqVyyD-FM8bq3f61JC_rVDjUKTbG1TF88NGmvYKdAreqUBmhjyBfXUxFh8XLLbEzmTNJQkJLyG48LKGBvqwag3GtYq-hOExk7tVXK0CPHCkN8jUs6ISdM0Ur0u5YEV1p8FZPGuxliOKNDGu6S_3KR_yBJ4sFUwBZzKZj8cJw/s2048/Polar%20Bear%20at%20Barrow%20by%20Sarah.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1687" data-original-width="2048" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXeZrfhlc0zzzEwEPUb5hqVyyD-FM8bq3f61JC_rVDjUKTbG1TF88NGmvYKdAreqUBmhjyBfXUxFh8XLLbEzmTNJQkJLyG48LKGBvqwag3GtYq-hOExk7tVXK0CPHCkN8jUs6ISdM0Ur0u5YEV1p8FZPGuxliOKNDGu6S_3KR_yBJ4sFUwBZzKZj8cJw/w400-h330/Polar%20Bear%20at%20Barrow%20by%20Sarah.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">This rather large Polar Bear was dining on the leftovers of a recently harvested Bowhead Whale on the Arctic Ocean ice at Barrow in June. Photo by Sarah Alli Brotherton Guthrie of Barrow. </span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwFJdPDEXqr3qIxlxdBMNPEre76yxyWjnXI2FfafRSi10Pccy0WKfrFT74GuqNSVQIWZzBJfuoO59RTTcYq50KiNSrgCpRb0sfQmExHDGG0XzljJKC5Jd1aZGOjfkoJlQcwJ1fkU9bYq5xm7LrrsVd91WITr65eimw_Ds45vn6cI9UKH1mlxT1q5IhDQ/s4032/IMG_6035.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwFJdPDEXqr3qIxlxdBMNPEre76yxyWjnXI2FfafRSi10Pccy0WKfrFT74GuqNSVQIWZzBJfuoO59RTTcYq50KiNSrgCpRb0sfQmExHDGG0XzljJKC5Jd1aZGOjfkoJlQcwJ1fkU9bYq5xm7LrrsVd91WITr65eimw_Ds45vn6cI9UKH1mlxT1q5IhDQ/w300-h400/IMG_6035.JPG" width="300" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><o:p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">This Caribou was found daily along the route of the Barrow Breeding Bird Survey at Barrow.</span></b></o:p><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Plans for 2023 depend
on whether our respective hearts continue pumping! Too many friends from childhood passed away
in 2022 which is making both of us more aware of our own impending
mortality. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Before that happens we
have a trip planned in mid-January to Antarctica with stops along the way in Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, and the Falkland Islands. Our original reservation was for a balcony stateroom, but Norwegian did some stateroom rate changes and we ended up with an aft-facing penthouse (complete with a personal butler) for less than we originally were paying for a balcony!</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA8wu-LR8IL_5RDq1XnDKF78eW5dIQfZA-T3NVSxH0iOkeh0JYUL0ZluLwN-p2L1l0LYe90UpsJvruZVKaaTe1Xz2wnKnqcf4L183JFeM1n2iP3Gmv_dFgx2-HbJtbgSIspGzHQs2sn-COl8XBhX2I8LHU6b0VTDXsywUWXbwbwbYcJGZ1FprHzM7sYQ/s900/Antarctica%20Cruise.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="900" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA8wu-LR8IL_5RDq1XnDKF78eW5dIQfZA-T3NVSxH0iOkeh0JYUL0ZluLwN-p2L1l0LYe90UpsJvruZVKaaTe1Xz2wnKnqcf4L183JFeM1n2iP3Gmv_dFgx2-HbJtbgSIspGzHQs2sn-COl8XBhX2I8LHU6b0VTDXsywUWXbwbwbYcJGZ1FprHzM7sYQ/w400-h296/Antarctica%20Cruise.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Our most favorite Norwegian Cruise Line ship "The Star" will be taking us to Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, the Falkland Islands. and Antarctica in January.</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>This will be
Cathy’s fifth time in South America, her second time south of the Equator, and
Craig’s 6</span><sup>th</sup><span> time in Argentina.
Antarctica will also be Craig’s 7</span><sup>th</sup><span> and final continent. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 20pt;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihw4lZhteWpudGjjOYQstB6cRmiX6aEmJRTvMIYdJrqUct3GNXZhFO8_joK2sqLl6a4GOe8HzKk_GAz_s7f0laLoMNjta8nUxovFZD_c5iHR_CygHbXv46Ssg1yy3vPPKtCnxU9o5kf3UYdTQVunzOrpOYaLPVfo6Xhm1uVuLocBCrEBF2rB6Awrux4Q/s900/Hawaii%20Alaska%20Cruise.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="900" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihw4lZhteWpudGjjOYQstB6cRmiX6aEmJRTvMIYdJrqUct3GNXZhFO8_joK2sqLl6a4GOe8HzKk_GAz_s7f0laLoMNjta8nUxovFZD_c5iHR_CygHbXv46Ssg1yy3vPPKtCnxU9o5kf3UYdTQVunzOrpOYaLPVfo6Xhm1uVuLocBCrEBF2rB6Awrux4Q/w400-h296/Hawaii%20Alaska%20Cruise.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Sixteen days aboard the Norwegian Jewel from Honolulu to Skagway, Alaska, to Vancouver, British Columbia, should be a relaxing way to maybe pick up one new seabird for my life list</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Thanks to an email from a cruise broker
we found an astonishingly cheap 16-day cruise from Honolulu to southeast Alaska
to Vancouver British Columbia in April and early May. When we called Norwegian Cruise Line to see
if the offer was legitimate we learned that Norwegian’s price was even cheaper
than the cruise broker. So in mid-April, Alaska Airlines will plunk us down in Honolulu and from there we will begin our
watery trek north before going south.</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Craig’s only other Alaska
trip in 2023 will be a return to Barrow for another breeding bird survey, and to conduct a
new breeding bird survey route on the Nome to Teller Highway. With luck there
will be a Polar Bear on the Barrow route this year, and maybe a Wolverine on
the road to Teller.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6VckQE-6a53ZQKPY5fyeeGOa8Wf79A7HhbX1mGwUM4wBo2j1eVSknxRoU54WxbH4JJfYB-HddkK1Mt21UUfRSiV94OWgw07yq9tWXLuIsC0u1AX5hO12gHwT8cp5l0gZK6R5odu3sKJbcVW6MhQGVMXOPXtYYiZe2zlIlj0GzYTp2ZYQg83HKYSNzoQ/s4032/IMG_5933.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6VckQE-6a53ZQKPY5fyeeGOa8Wf79A7HhbX1mGwUM4wBo2j1eVSknxRoU54WxbH4JJfYB-HddkK1Mt21UUfRSiV94OWgw07yq9tWXLuIsC0u1AX5hO12gHwT8cp5l0gZK6R5odu3sKJbcVW6MhQGVMXOPXtYYiZe2zlIlj0GzYTp2ZYQg83HKYSNzoQ/w300-h400/IMG_5933.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Willow Ptarmigan, the State Bird of Alaska, are surprisingly common and conspicuous along the Nome to Teller Highway (which is a dirt road!)</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUVozOZEMv1WWGkc4myihLik9Xizg4RanNgGZ1k03WFEUYeyMA3dAeP5A7BKx9ukpeAWu05Tp469UopBtwL52gVUrXf1VWtkFOme5V4F-eBJrsmVcMRbDn8mc6LMP4o5LgUdC72b6GTGA3lBe4Sw9HXOZog6RerNkN-95jEYRyls8ANh5QNubfGhtfNw/s4032/IMG_5986.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUVozOZEMv1WWGkc4myihLik9Xizg4RanNgGZ1k03WFEUYeyMA3dAeP5A7BKx9ukpeAWu05Tp469UopBtwL52gVUrXf1VWtkFOme5V4F-eBJrsmVcMRbDn8mc6LMP4o5LgUdC72b6GTGA3lBe4Sw9HXOZog6RerNkN-95jEYRyls8ANh5QNubfGhtfNw/w300-h400/IMG_5986.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The Alaska Native village of Teller, 80 miles northwest of Nome, is one of the most picturesque locales I have seen anywhere in Alaska</span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">As with every year we hope
the holiday season finds you happy, healthy, and looking forward to the New
Year. Its curious how as children it
seemed to take forever to get from one Christmas to another. Now it seems like it was just last month we
were wishing you Happy Holidays from beneath a Florida palm tree.</span></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-5430016221707703182022-10-07T07:23:00.001-04:002022-10-07T07:23:20.295-04:00Duck Hunting in North Dakota<p> <br /><br /><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3NQNHSg8PUjLk71HaaouZrfsYxdkfZWl-XM7oCs8oX6kHfcgtGzagRtoAjQh7Uw5bF8mqR20vLvtz-djSGkEoougpNnGq_vSjBLpomEUQt3iP-dNxwLMUePBvILpps5hCxd3CBNkxGPZRzedzbLFTaXKuTEe30bp8AGhZDOVcNgZnNmNvXwmqdiUqXQ/s1280/American%20Wigeon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3NQNHSg8PUjLk71HaaouZrfsYxdkfZWl-XM7oCs8oX6kHfcgtGzagRtoAjQh7Uw5bF8mqR20vLvtz-djSGkEoougpNnGq_vSjBLpomEUQt3iP-dNxwLMUePBvILpps5hCxd3CBNkxGPZRzedzbLFTaXKuTEe30bp8AGhZDOVcNgZnNmNvXwmqdiUqXQ/w400-h300/American%20Wigeon.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><div class="xdj266r x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Forty-two (42) years ago today, October 7, 1980, the legal time to begin duck hunting on Sibley Lake National Wildlife Refuge in Kidder County, North Dakota was 7:15 a.m. By 7:00 a.m. my Chesapeake Bay Retriever and I had our decoys spread out by a makeshift blind on the northeast shore of the lake. We watched ducks fly past us until 7:15 when a pair of drake American Wigeon flew toward the decoys. Two shots from my .870 Wingmaster 12 gauge and Chester was in the water <span style="font-family: inherit;"><a style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit;" tabindex="-1"></a></span>retrieving them</span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: medium;">No sooner did he return with both ducks when two more drake Wigeons set their wings to land. Two more shots and Chester was in the water retrieving. The bag limit that year was 5 birds and I decided to wait for a drake Mallard to be my fifth and final duck. However a drake Redhead flew in and I couldn’t resist. After Chester retrieved the Redhead I looked at my watch. It was 7:27. We had limited out in 12 minutes. </span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Next we drove to the south end of the lake where a huge flock of Snow Geese was known to roost. Laying under two large white sheets we waited for the geese to return. When they did I stood up and fired. Three Snow Geese fell with the first shot and a fourth fell with the second. With one shell left I focused on a dark goose I assumed was a Canada and fired. Chester jumped in the water and returned with a Black Brant, a sea goose of the Pacific Coast and the only one I ever saw in North Dakota. It was 8:30 and we were limited out on geese. </span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: medium;">From Sibley Lake back to Jamestown took about 1 hour 15 minutes. We followed back roads, stopping at a patch of native prairie where I quickly dispatched a limit of 3 Sharp-tailed Grouse and later we picked up a limit of Gray Partridge simply by encountering flocks along the road. </span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Returning home I dropped off my dog and the bounty of birds I would later clean. Then proceeded to my office where I was sitting at my desk by 12 noon less than 5 hours after the first shot of the day </span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: medium;">There were other great hunting days in North Dakota that kept my dog very happy through 1982. Then the world came crashing down in 1983 and I no longer had a place to keep my dog. He was returned to my parents farm in Wisconsin where he lived two more years. With him gone I haven’t picked up a gun, other than to give away those I owned, since November 1982. </span></div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The best part of living in North Dakota was hunting season each fall. Had things not worked out the way they did I would probably still be living there and this morning I would be shivering in chest waders waiting for the first duck of the day to fly into my decoy spread </span></div></div><p><br /></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-14728810365167556882022-03-29T15:08:00.001-04:002022-03-30T00:02:22.412-04:00This Was Not the Voyage of the Beagle to the Galapagos<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLXAmZoiBT2kJ7RZDr1tcbG1jyTUKENsDIsulM1iONUedF7AaDtjDM2JDOvZzp5QN80X_NHBExnxGn0xvOXTDBBOswP0ZH_4bhBJ8edq-eTGUbMZ4RNRFpIY1aaBoAELswIe-B9rtG66L0ARu60_Bz1jd-0ryN4m5_fz8r8KtnQo9EzjePxmug-lo_-A/s568/Galapagos%20Map.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="568" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLXAmZoiBT2kJ7RZDr1tcbG1jyTUKENsDIsulM1iONUedF7AaDtjDM2JDOvZzp5QN80X_NHBExnxGn0xvOXTDBBOswP0ZH_4bhBJ8edq-eTGUbMZ4RNRFpIY1aaBoAELswIe-B9rtG66L0ARu60_Bz1jd-0ryN4m5_fz8r8KtnQo9EzjePxmug-lo_-A/w403-h320/Galapagos%20Map.JPG" width="403" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Galapagos<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">March 18 – 25,
2022<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">The original plan for early 2022 was a cruise aboard
Norwegian Cruise Line from Buenos Aires, Argentina to Antarctica with a few
intermediate stops. The cruise was paid in full and so were the non-refundable
Business Class tickets on American Airlines from Sarasota to Buenos Aires. At
the last minute, COVID-19 headed its ugly rear just two weeks before departure
and Norwegian cancelled the cruise. Those funds were refunded but not the money
paid to American Airlines. With more than $3,000 in flight credits available we
looked for an alternative destination. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Doing a Google search on the words “Cheap Galapagos
cruises” we were directed to the Golandrina 1, a 72 foot “yacht” that sleeps sixteen
passengers. Many Galapagos cruises were in the $700 to $1000 per day per person
range. The Golandrina was $326 per person per day. We booked the boat, then
bought tickets to Guayaquil, Ecuador on American Airlines and Guayaquil to
Baltra island in the Galapagos on LATAM Airlines and waited anxiously for
departure day.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"><v:shapetype coordsize="21600,21600" filled="f" id="_x0000_t75" o:preferrelative="t" o:spt="75" path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" stroked="f">
<v:stroke joinstyle="miter">
<v:formulas>
<v:f eqn="if lineDrawn pixelLineWidth 0">
<v:f eqn="sum @0 1 0">
<v:f eqn="sum 0 0 @1">
<v:f eqn="prod @2 1 2">
<v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelWidth">
<v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelHeight">
<v:f eqn="sum @0 0 1">
<v:f eqn="prod @6 1 2">
<v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelWidth">
<v:f eqn="sum @8 21600 0">
<v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelHeight">
<v:f eqn="sum @10 21600 0">
</v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:formulas>
<v:path gradientshapeok="t" o:connecttype="rect" o:extrusionok="f">
<o:lock aspectratio="t" v:ext="edit">
</o:lock></v:path></v:stroke></v:shapetype><v:shape alt="Diagram
Description automatically generated" id="Picture_x0020_1" o:spid="_x0000_i1026" style="height: 272.5pt; mso-wrap-style: square; visibility: visible; width: 240pt;" type="#_x0000_t75">
<v:imagedata o:title="Diagram
Description automatically generated" src="file:///C:/Users/parul/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image001.jpg">
</v:imagedata></v:shape></span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Cruise<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">When Charles Darwin arrived in the Galapagos for his
5-week sojourn he found an evolving environment that was as it had been since
the formation of the islands by volcanic activity. With very few exceptions the
islands are today as they were when Darwin sailed among them. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Our Galapagos adventure began on March 18, 2022, when we
landed at Baltra Island aboard a LATAM Airlines Airbus 319 neo after a 90-minute
flight from hot and steamy Guayaquil. We quickly discovered that although this
was the “wet” season there is absolutely nothing wet about the Galapagos. Daily
temperatures were in the low 90s with humidity at a corresponding number. If
the Christians are correct and there is a hell, its going to be on the islands
of the Galapagos!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">From the airport we were transported in a bus to the
yacht terminal where we boarded the dilapidated Golandrina 1 (more on this
“luxury” yacht later). As we pulled out of the harbor we were treated to a very
flavorful lunch as the captain led us to Bachas Beach on the north coast of Santa
Cruz Island. Spending several hours here we departed overnight for the 7-hour
crossing to Genovesa Island.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Day 2 was spent exploring Genovesa and adjoining Darwin
Bay. Day 3 began on Bartolome with the afternoon on Santiago Island. Day 4
found us exploring a large maternity area for Galapagos Sea Lions on South
Plazas Island, then later we explored Santa Fe Island. Day 5 was on and around
San Cristobal with an afternoon excursion on a massively rocky trail on Lobos
Island. We greeted sunrise on Day 6 in a bay on Espanola Island. Day 7 began on
Floreana Island followed by a 4-hour crossing to Puerto Aroyo on Santa Cruz
Island where we visited the Charles Darwin Research Station. Day 8 began with a
short excursion to North Seymour Island followed by a return to the yacht
harbor by 7:30 a.m. and a transfer to the Baltra airport by 8:30 a.m.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">The “Yacht” <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">The Golandrina 1 was not a luxury yacht by any stretch of
the imagination! Each “stateroom” was about 48 to 50 square feet with bunk
beds. There was no room to turn around let alone store luggage! The en suite
bathroom contained a shower that operated like a garden hose not like an actual
shower. We paid extra for a “superior” cabin, and we are still trying to figure
out what was superior about the cabin! Adding insult to misery there was no air
conditioning the first two days and nights. Then when it was finally fixed the captain
controlled the in-room air conditioning and turned it on and more often off at
his discretion. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjton0NGcU9_gGG31_rj3NFk-z4a1rEUvKVXEXINod09wWksPdju-7kWQT7q8cEfXG_Rr58hAre9RzEqYbxqOT6iV9KwsV-v-NsmLQYquzMBpJ-tBw03f6wYgdybiG1QEi5jPz5jKFsa-uYC9ovNagXbdxhPAsxlNGseR3gHha2WehWwkJUdv-_OJ4ZZQ/s300/IMG_5144.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjton0NGcU9_gGG31_rj3NFk-z4a1rEUvKVXEXINod09wWksPdju-7kWQT7q8cEfXG_Rr58hAre9RzEqYbxqOT6iV9KwsV-v-NsmLQYquzMBpJ-tBw03f6wYgdybiG1QEi5jPz5jKFsa-uYC9ovNagXbdxhPAsxlNGseR3gHha2WehWwkJUdv-_OJ4ZZQ/s1600/IMG_5144.JPG" width="300" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"><v:shape alt="A boat on the water
Description automatically generated with low confidence" id="Picture_x0020_2" o:spid="_x0000_i1025" style="height: 168pt; mso-wrap-style: square; visibility: visible; width: 300pt;" type="#_x0000_t75">
<v:imagedata o:title="A boat on the water
Description automatically generated with low confidence" src="file:///C:/Users/parul/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image002.jpg">
</v:imagedata></v:shape></span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Golandrina
1<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">General Observations and Suggestions<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Any biologist worth his or her salt needs to visit the
Galapagos where evolution is not a theory but an ongoing conspicuous process. Visiting
the islands can be blindingly expensive if you choose a high-end boat operated
by a high-end company. You can easily spend $1000 per person per day but all
the companies have similar itineraries. Thus, if you are rich and want to see
as many endemics as possible, go with a Lindblad Explorer or National
Geographic group and pay excessively for comfort. However, you will see the
same species as if you went aboard the Golandrina 1 and were subjected to forty-eight
square feet of space, half of which was occupied by bunk beds.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">The Golandrina would be a perfect boat to charter if you
can get fifteen participants to cover the cost of one trip leader. Birdwatchers
and ornithologists can put up with a lot and come away smiling and they
certainly would on this boat and for a fraction of the cost of other boats.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">I have already been asked if I would do the trip again. Yes
and no. I would go back but not until after the COVID-19 nonsense has settled
down. In the Guayaquil airport 4 hours before our departure, we were informed
that the US government (CDC) requires a negative COVID test before entering the
United States. The only lab in the airport that can give the test did not open
until 30 minutes after our flight left so we rebooked for a middle of the night
flight, got our negative test results, and waited endlessly for the time to
arrive when we could escape and return home. The irony of the CDC requirement
about a test is that we were traveling to Florida which has no restrictions on
anything related to COVID. To make matters more annoying, nobody in Customs or
Immigration asked to see the lab test results when we arrived in Miami!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">When traveling to the islands is sane again, I will go
back. Until then there are other places to visit.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Birds<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">The Galapagos bird list includes 154 species of which twenty-nine
species are endemic to the islands. My hard-fought (and hard-sweated) list
includes 63 species seen of which 28 were new to my world list and among them
were 25 endemic species. The Galapagos Species Checklist project is an
excellent source of information on all wildlife occurring in the Galapagos. <a href="https://www.darwinfoundation.org/en/datazone/checklist">https://www.darwinfoundation.org/en/datazone/checklist</a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">White-cheeked Pintail (Endemic
subspecies)</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> - White-cheeked
pintail was regular whenever we found brackish wetlands. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">American Flamingo</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> - We watched a pair in a brackish
wetland near the north shore of Santa Cruz Island. Our naturalist/guide said
they are widely distributed throughout the Galapagos wherever brackish wetlands
occur.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Galapagos Dove (Endemic species) - </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">My first Galapagos bird. A pair greeted
us as we walked to the terminal on Baltra after exiting the LATAM flight from
Guayaquil. As we waited for other travelers to arrive, we watched more of them
under the shade of the waiting area at the airport. Throughout the trip we
found Galapagos Dove on every island visited.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Smooth-billed Ani - </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">An introduced species in the Galapagos.
Our first one was on Santa Cruz Island. We found a displaying pair on Floreana.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Dark-billed Cuckoo</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> - One bird on Isla Santiago was the
only one seen during the trip. I was surprised by this being the only one
observed. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Black-necked Stilt</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> - Regular wherever brackish wetlands occurred.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Semipalmated Plover -</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> A single bird foraging on the edge of
a brackish wetland on Santa Cruz Island was the only one observed.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Whimbrel</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> - One vociferous individual foraging
on the edge of a brackish wetland on Santa Cruz Island and three in similar
habitat on Floreana.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Ruddy Turnstone</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> - The standard rocky shoreline bird. I
think I have seen Ruddy Turnstone in every country from Mexico south to
southern Argentina except for Bolivia and Paraguay that do not have rocky ocean
shores.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Surfbird</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – I was surprised to find one near
Prince Phillip’s Steps on Genovesa.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Least Sandpiper</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – The only peep identified during the
entire trip. Each individual observed was foraging along the shore of brackish
wetlands.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Red-necked Phalarope</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> - Astonishingly common in large rafts
over open ocean water everywhere we traveled during daylight hours. The minimal estimate was at least
20,000 of them seen throughout the trip. As each flock erupted from the surface
of the ocean, I asked myself if I would be counting any of them at Barrow,
Alaska, when I do my bird censuses there in June.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Red Phalarope</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Not as numerous as Red-necked
Phalarope but still common over deep waters we traversed during daylight hours.
Like with Red-necked Phalarope I wonder how many of the individuals I saw in
the Galapagos will be on my bird census route at Barrow, Alaska, in a few
months.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Wandering Tattler</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Reported by our naturalist/guide to
be regular in winter, we saw three individuals on three islands.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Lesser Yellowlegs</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – I was surprised to find only one
bird during the entire trip.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Pomarine Jaeger</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – The book on the birds of the
Galapagos mentions the paucity of records from the Galapagos and found that
unusual because the islands are near the principal wintering area for this
species offshore from South America. I found one at sea while underway toward San
Cristobal Island.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Swallow-tailed Gull</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – The sea cliffs of Genovesa island
were littered with numerous breeding pairs of this stunningly beautiful gull. We
encountered them at several locations in the Galapagos and always where there
were steep cliffs. Their nesting habitat use seems similar to Black-legged
Kittiwake in the northern hemisphere. I had seen this species previously along
the shore of Ecuador near Mantes but that was a single individual. Here in the Galapagos,
we saw several thousand of them. I think only breeding plumaged Ross’s Gulls
are more beautiful than Swallow-tailed Gull.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Franklin's Gull</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Three birds at sea near Espanola
Island. Franklin’s gull spends the winter in vast numbers along the shore of
Peru and Chile. The book says they are regular migrants in the Galapagos. It
was strange looking at these birds over open ocean knowing that in two months
they will be nesting on prairie wetlands in the Dakotas and Minnesota.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Lava Gull (Endemic species)</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Not as numerous as Swallow-tailed
Gull but seen regularly throughout the islands. Most individuals were found in
rocky shoreline habitat.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Brown Noddy (Endemic subspecies) </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">– Regularly observed over open water
throughout the Galapagos. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Red-billed Tropicbird</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Surprisingly numerous as a nesting
bird especially on Genovesa Island. We found one nest with a nearly fledged
young bird on a flat area on the top of the island. All others were along the
steep cliff faces.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Galapagos Penguin (Endemic species) – </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">The five birds we found on Isla
Bartolome were the only penguins seen on the trip. Their numbers fluctuate
widely based on the availability of prey items; numbers are knocked back during
El Nino years. This penguin looks similar to the more abundant and widespread
Magellanic Penguin that was no doubt the Galapagos Penguin’s ancestral species.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Waved Albatross</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – The entire world population of Waved
Albatross (about 12,000 pairs) nests on Espanola Island. After fledging the
young birds spend about 5 years over open ocean before returning to the island
to nest. That return begins in late March with nesting underway between May and
January. There were no birds on the nesting area when we visited it. I found
one individual at sea (likely a juvenile) near North Seymour Island and another
during the run from Floreana to Santa Cruz Island.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Elliot’s Storm-Petrel</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Numerous and widely distributed at
sea throughout the Galapagos, even found foraging in the harbor at Puerto Aroyo
on Santa Cruz.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Band-rumped Storm-Petrel</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Two individuals over deep water
between Santa Fe and San Cristobal Islands were the only individuals observed.
I always have considered this an Atlantic Ocean bird so finding one on the
Pacific was a treat.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Wedge-rumped Storm-Petrel</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Regular and widespread at sea
throughout the Galapagos. We visited a nesting colony on Genovesa Island that
supports at least 5,000 breeding pairs. We watched the spectacle of them
displaying over land and many people on the trip asked if they were some
species of swallow.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;">[Unknown Storm-Petrel] – On March 20,
2022, I saw a storm-petrel from shore on Bartolome Island that resembled a
Ringed Strom-Petrel much more than a White-faced Storm-Petrel. I have seen
Ringed offshore from Peru and Chile, and White-faced in several locations on
both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Geography suggests this was a Ringed, but
there are no records of the species in the Galapagos. There are records of
White-faced from the islands, but it seems strange to have this species in the
Pacific. I wish I could have had a better and longer look but I was not that
lucky. It knows what species it is even though I never will. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Galapagos Petrel</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Depending on which taxonomist you
listen to, this is either a full species separate from Dark-rumped Petrel in
Hawaii, or the Hawaii form is a subspecies of Galapagos Petrel. I have seen the
Hawaii form at sea offshore from Kauai and it appears indistinguishable from
the one individual I found at sea between Floreana and Santa Cruz. If the two
forms are split, then I have another arm-chair life bird waiting to be elevated
to countable status.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Galapagos Shearwater</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Formerly considered a subspecies of
the widely-distributed Audubon’s Shearwater, Galapagos Shearwater occurs in exceptionally
large numbers at sea and in harbors around every island. It is safe to say that
if you go to the Galapagos Islands and do not see this shearwater then you
never left your cabin or did you look at the ocean!<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Magnificent Frigatebird</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Widely distributed throughout the
Galapagos.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Great Frigatebird</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Slightly more numerous than the
Magnificent Frigatebird. On Genovesa Island we walked among nesting Great
Frigatebirds as close as two feet from us. There it was a major treat watching
males inflate their bright red “balloon” as they tried to attract a mate. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Nazca Booby</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – How strange is it to be walking down
a trail on Genovesa Island and have a juvenile Nazca Booby reach out and peck
your foot with the tip of its bill? This, the largest booby in the Galapagos,
is widely distributed as a nesting species occurring on every island we
visited.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Blue-footed Booby</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – The quintessential Galapagos bird. We
were able to see males trying to attract a female by “dancing” their blue feet
while whistling. It was a comical sight. Every t shirt shop in Puerto Aroyo and
in the Baltra airport has t shirts with two blue feet on the front and the
words “I Love Boobies – Galapagos” written across the front. I was tempted to
buy a shirt but figured someone in the United States would be offended and sue
me for harassment. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Red-footed Booby</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – The smallest of the boobies in the
Galapagos we found numerous active nests, with adults incubating eggs, on
Genovesa Island. Red-footed Booby was also regularly encountered at sea. To
avoid competition with the larger Nazca and Blue-footed Boobies, the Red-footed
spends most of its foraging time far from shore over deeper waters than the
other boobies prefer to forage in.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Flightless Cormorant</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> <b>(Endemic species) </b>– I was
surprised beyond imagination to find a single bird perched on a rocky shoreline
of Santa Cruz Island. The book on Galapagos birds says that this unique
cormorant occurs only on Fernandina and Isabella islands, neither of which we
visited. But it is difficult if not impossible to misidentify a cormorant with
wings one-third the length of any other cormorant. This is especially true in
an area that has only one cormorant species. Regardless of the explanation this
was a real treat to see especially since we were not traveling to the two
islands where it is known to occur.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Brown Pelican</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Regularly seen in the near-shore
environment throughout the islands. Never over deep open water.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Great Blue Heron</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Seen regularly and always as single
individuals on several islands.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Cattle Egret</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – We saw flocks of up to ten
individuals in Puerto Aroyo as we walked from the public dock to the Charles
Darwin Research Center and return. This was the only location we found this
species in the islands.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Striated (Lava) Heron (Endemic
subspecies) </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">– The
distinctly marked and obvious “Lava Heron” subspecies was found along the rocky
shore of at least five islands between Santa Cruz and Espanola. We only saw
solitary birds.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Yellow-crowned Night-Heron (Endemic
subspecies) </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">– We
observed an adult incubating eggs in a nest built in a crevice adjacent to the
Prince Phillip Stairs on Genovesa<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Galapagos Hawk (Endemic species)</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">. My first one was seen soaring with
two Magnificent Frigatebirds on the north shore of Santa Cruz Island. Later we
found other solitary birds on South Plaza, Santa Fe, San Cristobal, Espanola
and Floreana. We were greeted by one perched above a group of Galapagos Sea
Lions at the landing location on Espanola.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Brujo Flycatcher (Endemic species) – </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Brujo Flycatcher was recently split
from the widely-distributed Vermillion Flycatcher. Before the split it was
known by some taxonomists as “Galapagos Vermillion Flycatcher.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Despite being distributed across most of the
islands we found only a solitary bird on San Cristobal Island.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Galapagos Flycatcher (Endemic species) </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">– A pair that appeared to contain an
enthusiastically displaying male and a female who was looking for better
options, was found in some Palo Santo trees on Bartolome. Galapagos Flycatcher
occurs on all islands except Darwin, Genovesa, and Wolf. Despite its wide
distribution we only encountered this single pair on one island. They are
reported to be “common” in lowlands of all the islands, but you cannot prove
that by me. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Galapagos Martin (Endemic species) </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">– We found one individual near the peak
of the “Pinnacle” on Bartolome. Another was heard and seen on San Cristobal. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Barn Swallow</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"> – Is there any place in the western
hemisphere that this species does not occur? We found three obvious migrants on
Espanola Island and a single bird flying over open water of nearby Gardner Bay.
I have seen Barn Swallow as far south as Ushuaia on Tierra del Fuego in
Argentina. Seeing these four birds made me wonder where they had spent the
winter and more importantly on the side of whose house in the United States or
Canada they will be nesting in a few weeks.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Galapagos Mockingbird (Endemic species)
– </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Common, conspicuous,
and noisily obvious like its Northern Mockingbird cousin. The subspecies <i>bauri
</i>was found on Genovesa. Subspecies <i>barringtoni </i>was found on Santa Fe.
Subspecies <i>parvulus </i>was found on Santa Cruz and Baltra. Subspecies <i>personatus</i>
was found on Santiago. Each subspecies was distinctly plumaged, and each had
conspicuously different call notes and different songs (especially their
cadence). With advances in molecular genetics applied to avian taxonomy I would
not be surprised if some time soon each subspecies in the Galapagos was
elevated to species status.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Española Mockingbird (Endemic species) </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">– Obnoxiously bold and conspicuous on
Espanola from the moment we came ashore at both Suarez Point and the beach at Gardner
Bay. Although National Park regulations forbid feeding wildlife its ok to kill
flies and feed them to the Espanola Mockingbirds who eagerly await the sound of
the next slap on human skin.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">San Cristobal Mockingbird (Endemic
species) </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">– One
individual near the shore on Lobos Island near San Cristobal was the only one
we found.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Yellow Warbler (Endemic subspecies) </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">– A conspicuous bird in habitats
adjacent to the ocean especially in mangroves on Floreana. Although the
behavior of this subspecies is similar to the more widely distributed
subspecies in North America and the West Indies, its song is distinctly
different. It retains the “sweet, sweet, I’m so sweet” song but with a markedly
different cadence. Given its geographic isolation I am surprised the Yellow
Warbler in the Galapagos has not already been elevated to species status.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;">DARWIN’S FAMOUS FINCHES<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Green Warbler-Finch (Endemic species) –
</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Conspicuous on both
Santiago and Santa Cruz. When Charles Darwin collected one in 1835, he thought
it was a species of wren. Uncle Chuck made a big mistake in his identification.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Gray Warbler-Finch (Endemic species) – </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">We found the subspecies <i>mentalis</i>
on Genovesa, <i>bifasciata </i>on Santa Fé, <i>cinerascens</i> on Española, <i>luteola</i>
on San Cristóbal, and <i>ridgwayi </i>on Floreana. Gray Warbler-Finch is found
mostly in the shrubland and dry forest of smaller drier islands. Each
subspecies has plumage coloration suitable for their habitat.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Vegetarian Finch (Endemic species) – </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">A conspicuous finch in the lowlands of
Santiago, San Cristobal, Santa Cruz, and Floreana. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Woodpecker Finch (Endemic species) – </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">We found this finch commonly on Santa
Cruz, Santiago, and San Cristobal. Unique among passerines, the Woodpecker
Finch has adapted to be able to use “tools” like small sticks with which they
extract insects and insect larvae from the bark of trees. Sadly, we did not
witness this behavior.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Large Tree-Finch (Endemic species) </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">– The largest and heaviest of Darwin’s
finches, we found this species on Santa Fe, Santiago, San Cristobal and
Floreana. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Medium Tree-Finch (Endemic species) – </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Restricted to Floreana Island where we
saw a male displaying for a female. Given all the energy he exerted, I hope the
male got lucky.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Small Tree-Finch (Endemic species) </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">– This, the smallest of Darwin’s tree
finches, was found regularly on Santa Cruz, Santiago, San Cristobal, Floreana,
Baltra, and Santa Fe.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Small Ground-Finch (Endemic species) – </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Very common in dry transitional zones
of which there is an abundance in the Galapagos. We found this species on every
island visited except Genovesa where it does not naturally occur.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Large Ground-Finch (Endemic species) – </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">The massive and conspicuous bill is a
certain field mark for identifying this common species. We found it on all
islands visited except San Cristobal and Espanola<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Genovesa Ground-Finch (Endemic species)
</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">– Recently split from
the Sharp-beaked Ground-Finch, this species is endemic to Genovesa where it is
conspicuous and fairly common.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Sharp-beaked Ground-Finch (Endemic
species) – </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">We found
two individuals on Santiago. We were lucky to find them.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Common Cactus-Finch (Endemic species) </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">– Also known as “Small Cactus-Finch”
this species is widely distributed and common on most islands except Genovesa
and Espanola. On Floreana we watched an adult tear apart the flower of an <i>Opuntia</i>
cactus and feed it to a recently fledged juvenile that was begging vigorously
to be fed.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Medium Ground-Finch (Endemic species) –
</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Widely distributed on
all the islands we visited except for Genovesa. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Española Ground-Finch (Endemic species)
</span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">– Found within seconds
of landing on Espanola Island where it was surprisingly common in the lower
elevations of the island.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Genovesa Cactus-Finch (Endemic species)
– </span></b><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Common and
conspicuous in the scrubby vegetation we visited on Genovesa. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Major misses from the bird list that we did NOT see include:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Galapagos Rail</b> – it occurs on several islands
visited but only sparingly and in higher elevation wet meadow habitat. We did
not visit its habitat on this trip<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Floreana Mockingbird</b> – Perhaps 150 individuals
remain on two small islets offshore from Floreana Island. Access to both islets
is highly restricted and there are severe penalties if you are on the islets
without a permit. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Mangrove Finch </b>– Perhaps 150 individuals remain in
a few areas of mangrove forest on the west coast of Isabella Island. Our trip
did not take us to Isabella<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Vampire Ground Finch</b> – This bizarrely named
species is restricted to Darwin and Wolf islands in the far northwest corner of
the Galapagos. About the only boats that visit the range of this species are
scuba diving boats and we were not on a dive boat. This bird is most famous for
its unusual diet. When alternative sources are scarce the vampire finch
occasionally feeds by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hematophagy" title="Hematophagy">drinking the blood</a> of other birds, chiefly the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazca_booby" title="Nazca booby">Nazca</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-footed_booby" title="Blue-footed booby">blue-footed
boobies</a>, pecking at their skin with their sharp beaks until blood is drawn.
Curiously, the boobies do not offer much resistance against this. It has been
theorized that this behavior evolved from the pecking behavior the finch used
to clean <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parasite" title="Parasite">parasites</a> from
the plumage of the booby. The finches also feed on eggs, stealing them
just after they are laid and rolling them (by pushing with their legs and using
their beak as a pivot) into rocks until they break.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Mammals <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><a name="_Hlk99454316"><span style="font-size: large;">I am not sure of the correct
taxonomic order of the mammals we observed.<o:p></o:p></span></a></p>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk99454316;"></span>
</span><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Galapagos Sea Lion</b> (<i>Zalophus wollebaeki)</i> –
Some taxonomists consider this a subspecies of the California Sea Lion. The
only excuse for not seeing a Galapagos Sea Lion in the islands is that you had
your eyes closed the entire time you were among the islands. One evening at
dinner we looked up to see a Sea Lion perched at the top of the stairs leading
to the dining area. When it was chased away it went up another flight of stairs
and entered our cabin. Looking around it decided it did not like what it saw
and heaved itself overboard. On Bartolome as I waited at the landing area for
the rest of the group a Sea Lion climbed up the steps to a flat area, then
turned to climb more toward me. Seeing me it stopped. I moved over on the steps
and told it I was not a danger. The Sea Lion then sneezed and laid down on the
steps for a nap.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Galapagos Fur Sea</b>l (Arctocephalaus<i> galapagensis</i>)
– The three individuals we saw hauled out on the rocks at Genovesa were the
only fur seals of the trip.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Bryde’s Whale</b> (<i>Balaenoptera brydei</i>) – About
20 minutes after departing Floreana for Santa Cruz, one of the crew members
yelled “Ballena!!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Off the port side of
the ship were two medium sized whales traveling at an angle toward the bow of
the boat. Based on field characteristics observed including two blow holes and
the smaller size I concluded this was Bryde’s Whale. Ironically, this species
is named after a Norwegian man who established a whaling station in South
Africa. This was a lifer mammal.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><b><span style="font-size: large;">The Reptiles<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">I am not sure of the correct taxonomic order of the
reptiles observed.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Green (Sea) Turtle</b> (<i>Chelonia mydas ssp.
agassizi</i>) – Common and conspicuous throughout the islands. The subspecies
occurring in the Galapagos is sometimes called the “Black Turtle.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whether it is a valid species is anyone’s
guess.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Leatherback Turtle</b> (<i>Dermochelys coriacea</i>)
Two of these enormous sea turtles were seen near shore on San Cristobal Island.
This was a lifer and the last of the world’s sea turtles for me. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Marine Iguana</b> (<i>Ambryrhynchus cristatus</i>) –
One of the classic reptiles to see in the Galapagos, this is the only iguana in
the world that relies on marine environments and marine algae for its survival.
We saw the subspecies <i>hassi </i>on Santa Cruz, <i>mertensi</i> on San
Crisbotal and Santiago, <i>nanus</i> on Genovesa and<i> venustissimus</i> on
Espanola. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Land Iguana</b> <i>(Conolophus sublirstatus</i>) -
Common and conspicuous on most large islands including several that enjoyed
sunbathing on the road to the yacht basin on Baltra.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Santa Fe Land Iguana</b> (<i>Conolophus pallidus</i>)
– Sparsely distributed on Santa Fe.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Galapagos Lava Lizard</b> (<i>Microlophus
albemertensis</i>) – Common and conspicuous on South Plaza, Santa Cruz, Santa
Fe, and Santiago.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Espanola Lava Lizard</b> (<i>Microlophus delanonsis</i>)
– Easily found on Espanola.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Floreana Lava Lizard</b> (<i>Microlophus hobellii</i>)
– We found two on Floreana.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>San Cristobal Lava Lizard</b> (<i>Microlophus
bivattatus</i>) – Restricted to San Cristobal where it is easy to find.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Galapagos Leaf-toed Gecko</b> (<i>Phyllodactylus
galapogensis</i>) – Fairly common on Santa Cruz, Santiago, and Bartolome.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Baur’s Leaf-toed Gecko</b> (<i>Phyllrdactylus bauri</i>)
– Restricted to Espanola<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Santa Fe Leaf-toed Gecko </b>(<i>Phyllrdactylus
barringtonensis</i>) – Restricted to Santa Fe. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Tuberculated Leaf-toed Gecko</b> (<i>Phyllrdactlus
tuberculosus</i>) – Restricted to San Cristobal. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Major misses</b>:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Galapagos (or Giant) Tortoise</b> (<i>Geochelone
elephantopus</i>) – We did not explore any areas that were within the range of
this iconic Galapagos species. We visited a captive breeding facility at the
Charles Darwin Research Center on Santa Cruz where we saw many of them, but
these were not wild animals. After observing numerous adults at the breeding
center, I am now convinced that Steven Spielberg used the head and neck of the
Giant Tortoise as the model for E.T. the extraterrestrial.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-size: x-large;">Completed on March 29, 2022, from field notes taken in
the Galapagos.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-82963497787827580742021-12-17T13:11:00.002-05:002021-12-17T13:11:57.139-05:00Is Medicare Missing The Boat?<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEifzYId7BCo6VqaGTXmToUTI-1fkA5hs_r3fySOimhFgh2ueaedMkmxgsRiny97bx3cch52I4xJawaZtUVSo3rvZU6HizhHY-_6JeIZVEzgk54d-y4sKL2WAJ1y_38FR3HsTYAAeud2Yots5N1r_VEcLKYim8THzi_ahg9f99hXQ0KEHO8MF5-4U4rcvQ=s3840" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2160" data-original-width="3840" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEifzYId7BCo6VqaGTXmToUTI-1fkA5hs_r3fySOimhFgh2ueaedMkmxgsRiny97bx3cch52I4xJawaZtUVSo3rvZU6HizhHY-_6JeIZVEzgk54d-y4sKL2WAJ1y_38FR3HsTYAAeud2Yots5N1r_VEcLKYim8THzi_ahg9f99hXQ0KEHO8MF5-4U4rcvQ=w640-h360" width="640" /></a></div><br /> <p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"></p><p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">December 17, 2021<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">Medicare
Contact Center Operations<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">Box
1270<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">Lawrence,
Kansas 66044<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">Dear
Medicare<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">In
July 2018 I suffered a back injury that likely resulted in me breaking two
ribs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Three months after the accident I
began to experience excruciatingly painful and debilitating muscle spasms in
the area of the broken ribs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I visited
my primary care physician who diagnosed me with injured muscle. He prescribed a
muscle relaxant that did absolutely no good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A summary of my attempts to fix this problem follows<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Primary Care Physician</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – October 2018 – Prescribed
a muscle relaxant that offered no resolution.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Medicare and GEHA Insurance paid for all of this<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Primary Care Physician</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – October 2018 – Ultrasound
of kidney to rule out any issues since the spasms were directly over the kidney.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Medicare and GEHA Insurance paid for all of
this.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Primary Care Physician</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – November 2018 –
Ultrasound of liver and gall bladder to rule out any issues.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Medicare and GEHA Insurance paid for all of
this.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Primary Care Physician</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – November 2018 –
Examination and palpitation to rule out pancreatitis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Medicare and GEHA Insurance paid for all of
this.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Acupuncture Doctor</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – November 2018 to January 2019 –
20 sessions of acupuncture that provided momentary relief. Medicare or GEHA
Insurance paid for all of this.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Massage Therapist</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – February 2019 (I paid for this)
– Two visits that provided temporary relief<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Orthopedic Physician specializing in pain</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – February 2019
through October 2021 – Five trigger point injections of a steroid into the
muscle to relieve the pain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first
two injections each provided 4 months relief.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The third injection provided 3 days relief.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fourth injection provided 2 days
relief.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fifth and final injection
provided 1 day relief.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Medicare and GEHA
Insurance paid for all of this.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Physical Therapy</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – 2020.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Recommended by pain doctor and 8 sessions
(all Medicare would cover) provided no change. Medicare paid for all of this.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Partners Imaging Center </span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">– 2020 - an MRI of
my thoracic and lumbar vertebrae to determine if there were any disc bulges or
nerve obstructions causing the pain. There were none.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The pain continued.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Medicare and GEHA Insurance paid for all of
this.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Emergency Room at Doctor’s Hospital in Sarasota – </span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">2020 – A middle of
the night ER visit because the pain was so intense, I could not sit down or
stand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was given 3 different steroids
and muscle relaxers and the pain subsided long enough to drive home. Medicare
and GEHA Insurance paid for all of this.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Primary Care Physician</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – 2021 – Another
office visit to discuss what options I had to get rid of the pain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The spasms continued. Medicare and Insurance
paid for all of this.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Pain Doctor – 2021 –</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> Another consultation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Medicare and GEHA Insurance paid for this
visit.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a name="_Hlk90631914"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Premier Surgery Center</span></b></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk90631914;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – April 2021 – An epidural spine injection of a
steroid into the base of the nerve affecting the muscle causing the spasm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This provided 4 months relief.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Medicare and GEHA Insurance paid for all the
expenses by the Surgical Center including the Pain Physicians time and
expertise, an Anesthesiologist’s time and expertise and an array of surgical
nurses who took care of me before and after the procedure.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></p>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk90631914;"></span>
</span><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Pain doctor – October 2021</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> - Consultation
paid for by Medicare and GEHA Insurance.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Akumin Imagery Center</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – October 2021 –
Another MRI ordered by the Pain Doctor looking to see if something had changed
in my spine because none of the treatments were working.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Medicare and GEHA Insurance paid for all of
this.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Premier Surgery Center</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – October 2021 –
An epidural spine injection of a steroid into the base of the nerve affecting
the muscle causing the spasm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
provided 3 days relief.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Medicare and
GEHA Insurance paid for all the expenses by the Surgical Center including the
Pain Physicians time and expertise, an Anesthesiologist’s time and expertise
and an array of surgical nurses who took care of me before and after the
procedure.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Pain Doctor</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – October 2021 - Follow up visit after
the latest epidural spine injection that provided 3 days relief.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Medicare and GEHA Insurance paid for all of
this.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Neurologist </span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">– November 2021 - Consultation with a
neurologist who ruled out any nerve problem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Following all earlier physicians, he said the problem was with my muscle
and the scar tissue that would not go away from the injury in 2018.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The neurologist prescribed a muscle relaxant
that did no good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He then prescribed Gabapentin
a drug used for muscle issues related to epilepsy and similar diseases.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It provided partial relief.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Medicare and GEHA Insurance paid for all of
this.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">CVS Pharmacy</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – 2018 through 2021. I have had multiple
prescriptions for drugs prescribed by the above physicians including muscle
relaxants, opioids (Oxycodone), Gabapentin, and others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>GEHA Insurance paid for everything except a
very minor co-pay on my part.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">I
have not kept my explanation of benefits from Medicare and GEHA Insurance for
all of these treatments so I do not know the exact cost of all of the medical
treatment I have received. I would guess given the two visits to the surgery
center, two MRI’s, 2 Ultrasounds, and visits to primary care physicians and
high-priced specialists. that between Medicare and GEHA you have spent at least
$15,000 if not more for treatment of a muscle spasm issue that will not go
away.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">At
my wits end and tired of living with the constant muscle spasms I did a search
on Google using the key words “Deep tissue Laser treatment for muscle
spasms.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Google returned a link to a
laser treatment that is fairly new and shows remarkable potential for
eliminating muscle spasms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only
local source for this specific high-energy Laser treatment is Hudson
Chiropractic in Sarasota.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This brings
us to the final bullet in this letter.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-size: large;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Hudson Chiropractic</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"> – I have had four high-energy
Laser treatments in the last 2 weeks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
have not had a muscle spasm in a week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Before the Laser treatments I was having spasms at least once every hour
and often 5 or 6 times an hour.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now I
have none.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have two more appointments
next week and then we are going into much more infrequent long-term maintenance
treatments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each treatment costs me $60
because neither Medicare or GEHA Insurance will cover them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">After
three long and painful years filled with visits to surgery centers and
specialists and emergency rooms and lots of expensive drugs, the issue seems to
have been resolved with $240 worth of Laser treatments that neither Medicare or
GEHA cover.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">I
was not an economics major or a business major. I was a wildlife biology major.
Despite that lack of business education, it seems to me that both Medicare and
GEHA Insurance would save a tremendous amount of money if you covered several
$60 treatments at a Chiropractor’s office that resolved the issue, instead of
tens of thousand of dollars that you did cover that only helped some physicians
pay for their children’s college education at Harvard or Yale.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">My
suggestion is that you consider covering deep tissue Laser treatments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that’s just me.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: large;">cc:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>GEHA – Government Employees Health
Association<o:p></o:p></span></p><br /><p></p><p></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-89296918981851359792021-12-16T17:08:00.006-05:002021-12-16T17:08:44.702-05:00Holiday Greetings 2021 From The Little Latitudes<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj12zMAPRg1DhXC5ndWOzfauVTTVZzmTaW0uqtKW-i-7ipctf_dXIyNdE2vEiEX0WH4V0kVrbafSSzw29nUjBfsSLZsD8KlDrn_JY5SuSwrGWXQ4OibyGLkVKdYrYQUXTmv38crf8XOlUyD39z4-3ocfmakjIr_swZ713q3iprNUxAo8s3Owgnkz6vRyg=s768" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="432" data-original-width="768" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj12zMAPRg1DhXC5ndWOzfauVTTVZzmTaW0uqtKW-i-7ipctf_dXIyNdE2vEiEX0WH4V0kVrbafSSzw29nUjBfsSLZsD8KlDrn_JY5SuSwrGWXQ4OibyGLkVKdYrYQUXTmv38crf8XOlUyD39z4-3ocfmakjIr_swZ713q3iprNUxAo8s3Owgnkz6vRyg=w640-h360" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">January 1, 2021, arrived with great fanfare and no
hangover (we are too old for those). We
were on the verge of ending Covid and an adult was about to re-enter the White
House. Then the reality of 2021 headed
its ugly rear and the year moved by more slowly and less happily than we had hoped. Plus, the slow pace of aging continued to take
its toll. At least we ended the year
fully vaccinated and boosted against Covid-19.
You should be also.</span></p><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Early February found Cathy in the hospital receiving a
much-needed and long-overdue shoulder replacement. Thanks to superb insurance subsidized all you
great taxpayers, her very expensive hospital stay cost us nothing! Recovery was a long and slow process but at
least now she can move her right arm higher than I have ever before seen it
raised! Then in May, the very tip of her
nose was operated on to remove a basal cell carcinoma. Florida is called the Sunshine State for a
good reason. Its also a Dermatologist’s
playground.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">On July 1, our wedding anniversary, we were in the
emergency room at Sarasota Memorial Hospital dealing with Craig’s 11<sup>th</sup>
episode of atrial fibrillation. It was
his first episode after a cardiac ablation six years ago. Not to be outdone, four months later, almost
on his 70<sup>th</sup> freaking birthday, Craig was back in Sarasota Memorial
with another episode of atrial fibrillation.
This is getting really tiring.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">When we weren’t whining about our latest medical issue we
were being run ragged by Cathy’s rambunctious grandson Channing. Don’t try telling him that he is 4 years old
because you will be instantly corrected “I’m 4 and a half.” Now that his next birthday is on the horizon
his age is officially “I’m almost 5.” We
continue to spend as much time as possible with him in our swimming pool where
we have begun teaching him how to dive – and he is getting really good at
it. I sincerely hope his mother gets
him in a swimming program. He could be
an Olympic swimmer someday – maybe when he is 19 and a half. </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Travel in 2021 was much reduced from normal years in part
because of Covid. Craig was able to
visit Grandson Garrett in Alaska in April.
In June he returned to his beloved Barrow, Alaska, to do research on
birds and he saw 3 Polar Bears! </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhA7nM8zOuxYQS-3Iey_SSilWJHe15kRrqr5SoLFCkfHpInXBCAXyuNomQdqfbQMsjL4aIIHaZfjikpJvvUngvDvNN9CJRaegHVG2pwXwmm6kyFFIonSCkRhzSmEe0uACDFH0xOrDGKAfgGS-SwJqAFsxITYTSzm3AyELFDVh4VqTegvMjUejxHtBwc9g=s640" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="304" data-original-width="640" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhA7nM8zOuxYQS-3Iey_SSilWJHe15kRrqr5SoLFCkfHpInXBCAXyuNomQdqfbQMsjL4aIIHaZfjikpJvvUngvDvNN9CJRaegHVG2pwXwmm6kyFFIonSCkRhzSmEe0uACDFH0xOrDGKAfgGS-SwJqAFsxITYTSzm3AyELFDVh4VqTegvMjUejxHtBwc9g=w640-h304" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">In July
both Craig and Cathy went to Alaska with our next-door neighbors, so Cathy
could fish for salmon with her brother at Seward. That trip was preceded by a day trip to
Barrow so Cathy could see what all the excitement was about. She still prefers Seward where she slayed
several very tasty Silver Salmon. </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhDGA51STLvcjKSJfCg43EGw8pSr5ri-xlLwjTW3JGAgdnWyhr8-F-9ypeKH59d1aiPTYo5mnsayxDUuQyqQVUI7PNYLFCjrC5PBfhrP0ULce2al5ZYF3XO1IFnc7BS9YKePtBxMY7q6Y9FHAaMJiGIJYapUiXKiq9VLq_pnbOZg4ZAh5uVijzHFARpnA=s960" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhDGA51STLvcjKSJfCg43EGw8pSr5ri-xlLwjTW3JGAgdnWyhr8-F-9ypeKH59d1aiPTYo5mnsayxDUuQyqQVUI7PNYLFCjrC5PBfhrP0ULce2al5ZYF3XO1IFnc7BS9YKePtBxMY7q6Y9FHAaMJiGIJYapUiXKiq9VLq_pnbOZg4ZAh5uVijzHFARpnA=w480-h640" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Finally in August, Craig gave his daughter Jennifer, son-in-law Ryan
and Grandson Garrett an early Christmas present flying all of them (in First Class!) to Nome,
Alaska for a few days to look for Musk Ox.
A flock/herd of 23 was the highlight of that trip.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiqZDoVn6kV5saNaLMY1Zs-VsxVck9vqvymxaooUWbRqx3JK9bZH2T4m_Ji9eiuRMghWx-8-qjXHDVwmVDYyicoyt0E58naF05BeVH2C-lxsVDB359ZmDpJu9GmGL_AEjDVC6g9YycAS2nTETNrKq9kSYz4mctMEGzZnntJWbUvHjcD_8n1dXkGyQOTNA=s4032" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiqZDoVn6kV5saNaLMY1Zs-VsxVck9vqvymxaooUWbRqx3JK9bZH2T4m_Ji9eiuRMghWx-8-qjXHDVwmVDYyicoyt0E58naF05BeVH2C-lxsVDB359ZmDpJu9GmGL_AEjDVC6g9YycAS2nTETNrKq9kSYz4mctMEGzZnntJWbUvHjcD_8n1dXkGyQOTNA=w480-h640" width="480" /></a></div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></p>The remainder of 2021 was the usual mundane part of living
in Florida and growing old.</span><span style="font-size: x-large;"> </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">Thankfully
we have great neighbors (although they are from Minnesota and you know which
football team they favor!) and frequent visits and bottles of Pinot Noir next door
helped make the year enjoyable.</span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p>Plans for 2022 are rapidly taking shape. In mid-February we depart for Buenos Aires,
Argentina, for a 2-week cruise to southern Argentina, Chile, the Falkland
Islands, Uruguay, and oh…did I mention 2 days in Antarctica? It will be Craig’s 7<sup>th</sup> continent
and Cathy’s fifth. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgY9GCfLthGzGzjU6D0925g-hME0EF_dEzbLWY3f0EvaCtyGo9nWRTQt7IsdYSlpQEZlICusoPV0jTJduwOZqu2xixoKeBJ2qGd0rEDgVyZ283mziX1ErR_oQZIIo2yhAktz-lNhrbydc8RFmqOWwB6XyEUyW0_6TEa2rDDI5gJZggQmPYim6sBKyqaBw=s900" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" data-original-height="667" data-original-width="900" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgY9GCfLthGzGzjU6D0925g-hME0EF_dEzbLWY3f0EvaCtyGo9nWRTQt7IsdYSlpQEZlICusoPV0jTJduwOZqu2xixoKeBJ2qGd0rEDgVyZ283mziX1ErR_oQZIIo2yhAktz-lNhrbydc8RFmqOWwB6XyEUyW0_6TEa2rDDI5gJZggQmPYim6sBKyqaBw=w400-h296" width="400" /></span></a></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">April will bring a
return trip to see Grandson Garrett in Alaska followed by tundra trip in late
May and early June to Bethel, Nome, Kotzebue, and Barrow. In July we cruise from Vancouver, British
Columbia to Seward Alaska for more salmon fishing on Resurrection Bay. From there we travel to Kalispell Montana for
a week with our Vikings-loving neighbors exploring what few glaciers remain in
Glacier National Park.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">The other exciting part of 2022 is that Cathy plans to “take
this job and shove it” and retire on a soon-to-be-determined date. That will open up many opportunities for
being pummeled by Grandson Channing, and travel to places she has not seen.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">The accelerating loss of friends and family to the march
of Father Time has taught us that life is too short to hold on to baggage from
the past. From beneath a couple of palm trees
on the coast of South Florida, we hope you have a happy and safe and enjoyable
Holiday season. If you suddenly find
yourself in Florida, be certain to stop by for a glass of wine. We would love to see you and get caught up. There is usually a bottle of Pinot Noir
sitting around begging to be consumed.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p> </o:p>Merry Holidays.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p></o:p></p><br /><p></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-27374354191948543722020-12-15T15:52:00.003-05:002020-12-16T06:22:18.975-05:00Happy Holidays from the Little Latitudes - the 2020 Edition<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijuVOoW6YIukWQnqmhdGQw5UHtYVlFd5oiMaDkIrOh0oHm2XQGaU0PT-O-PBqFNQII3qKpxvJ6Ppe_SXQCacw5gaVJYlGvFdqjdb9_jOYAeDGo1E8hVMEqjDuIkCsIV3ld88UthRPrdzqC/s768/Christmas+Palm+Tree.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="432" data-original-width="768" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijuVOoW6YIukWQnqmhdGQw5UHtYVlFd5oiMaDkIrOh0oHm2XQGaU0PT-O-PBqFNQII3qKpxvJ6Ppe_SXQCacw5gaVJYlGvFdqjdb9_jOYAeDGo1E8hVMEqjDuIkCsIV3ld88UthRPrdzqC/w640-h360/Christmas+Palm+Tree.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">The year 2020 began with so much excitement and promise. We
had a scuba diving trip planned to the Cayman Islands for Cathy’s birthday in
February. In July we were flying to
Venice, Italy for a 2-week cruise of the Adriatic and Aegean Seas. Craig had a trip planned to Barrow,
Alaska in June, and another Alaska trip in August to chill out with his grandson.
This was on top of at least one trip to Minnesota to spend time with granddaughters.
Cathy had plans to attend her niece’s
wedding up in South Carolina <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">All those plans and more changed abruptly in February
when “the virus” overtook the world, overwhelmed the health care system, and
generally brought everyone’s life to a screeching halt. We couldn’t even attend the funeral of Cathy’s
father following his death in April because of the virus. It was not a good year!</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">We were able to squeeze in the Cayman Island trip in late
February where we learned that all that advertising in dive magazines about the
pristine coral habitats of the Cayman Islands might be false advertising. Our return from the islands coincided with
the first closures of almost everything, and a week after we returned to Sarasota, the
Caymans were in lockdown. Norwegian
Cruise Line cancelled our Venice, Italy cruise, and British Airways cancelled our
flights there from Miami. Things never recovered. </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">On the positive side having our travel wings clipped
allowed more time with Cathy’s grandson Channing who, at 3 years old, has
the vocabulary of at least a second grader.
We taught him to swim and after his first unassisted splashes in the
pool doing his patented "Shark Swim" we realized we had created a human fish.
It became nearly impossible to keep him out of the water.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Another positive was getting to know our next-door
neighbors through properly social distanced afternoon happy hours on the sidewalk in front of our front porch. The highlight of these
visits was playing Pictionary without a rule book, and laughing at each other’s
drawings on an eraser board. With luck
you might someday see Cathy’s world-famous St. Bernard drawing or Liz’s
sidewalk. Our neighbors are originally from Minnesota; I guess you had to be there to
appreciate the experience.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">An early November hurricane blew through Sarasota at the
same time Craig’s three granddaughters from Minnesota showed up for a week of
palm trees and beaches. Their goal of
seeing a rattlesnake wasn’t met which means they will just have to come back
and try again another time.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">2020 ended with Craig’s knee surgery and with Cathy
preparing for shoulder replacement surgery in early 2021. Getting old is not for the weak.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Development of the Covid vaccine has made 2021 look like
it will be a much better year than 2020. First, an adult will again be residing in the White House on January 20! We might both be able to go off blood pressure medications when that dream comes true. </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><span>We have plans for another Alaska cruise in July that will end in Seward
where we will spend several days fishing for salmon.</span><span> </span><span>Craig has a June trip to Barrow planned to do
the bird census he wanted to conduct in 2020.</span><span>
</span><span>A little farther off we are booked on a cruise from Buenos Aires,
Argentina to Antarctica for Cathy’s birthday trip in February 2022.</span><span> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">As another year comes to a close, we send you season’s
greetings and lowered blood pressure from beneath a palm tree on Florida’s
Suncoast. Let us know if your 2021 plans
include time on a Florida beach. We
would love to see you – well – most of you anyway!</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgr56hSrlVFEF7cpNsTZxTwmaJBmMqU27xsH23SWwmUsvVhRsZHqYwPkUyXfgoz8jUYcAa2PXiHV0zzygv3Ytwl9LWXI1nDUhiLh2uUyGbkfyJ1au1xDDBJUJdC_cxNPim_q_NyoFahHsL/s2048/Lido+Key+Beach.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgr56hSrlVFEF7cpNsTZxTwmaJBmMqU27xsH23SWwmUsvVhRsZHqYwPkUyXfgoz8jUYcAa2PXiHV0zzygv3Ytwl9LWXI1nDUhiLh2uUyGbkfyJ1au1xDDBJUJdC_cxNPim_q_NyoFahHsL/w400-h300/Lido+Key+Beach.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: large;">Happy Holidays<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><p><br /></p>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-51127421422042271832020-10-02T07:39:00.001-04:002020-10-02T07:50:26.613-04:00Donnie Deductions Has Covid-19 !!!!!!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLnwEfeY6Uj9d0OE3tcNepI2lio0SindVYG2iPbUz1rgSBhymmHZ2n2ThmUTr3xB_HhnTumYzBxBSJFxhZ7WteiDbM9IpRx3v3D5eHMWN_gCKBucmxuKkhysZMzpq20CjejPP1UC3OfPIP/s1920/Donnie+Covid.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLnwEfeY6Uj9d0OE3tcNepI2lio0SindVYG2iPbUz1rgSBhymmHZ2n2ThmUTr3xB_HhnTumYzBxBSJFxhZ7WteiDbM9IpRx3v3D5eHMWN_gCKBucmxuKkhysZMzpq20CjejPP1UC3OfPIP/w400-h225/Donnie+Covid.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /> <span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Joyous early morning correspondence with the Porcine Pussy Grabber</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p><p></p><p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Craig Faanes<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Sarasota, Florida 34232</span></b></p><p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">October 2, 2020<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Donnie Deductions</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Chief Pussy Grabber</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The White House</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Washington, DC 20500</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Dear Donnie<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I was mimicking you this morning, sitting on the toilet
(although mine is not made of gold) sending out Tweets, when I learned the
exciting news that you and Slovenian Barbie have Covid-19!!! How ironic, huh, Donnie?</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">After all these months of claiming Coronavirus was a
“Chinese Hoax” that would go away “like a miracle” once the temperatures
warmed, and stating emphatically that masks won’t help protect you from the
virus, you and the First Bimbo caught it!
I have to admit that I spontaneously ejaculated when I read you have the
virus! </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Now that you have contracted the hoax what are your plans
for recovery? Will you be injecting
Clorox bleach? Have you increased your
intake of Hydroxychloroquine tablets? Will Mike Pence shove a bright light up
your ass to cleanse your system of the virus?
There are so many cures you have touted for others to use, I’m just
curious what you will be using.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">As exciting as this news is to me and to the majority of
Americans, I think it comes at a rather ironic time. Just a couple nights ago you made an
unmitigated fool of yourself on international television by acting like a
spoiled brat during the debate with President Biden. During that debate you refused to denounce
white supremacy, and despite Don Junior having an obvious addiction to opioids,
you chose to attack Hunter Biden for his drug dependency. For all of that you received a mountain of
well-deserved criticism. Your poll
numbers tanked and everyone but Fox News claimed you lost the debate
miserably. Then just yesterday it was
revealed that the Slovenian Barbie said “who gives a fuck” about Christmas
“stuff”. This from the wife of the
person who claims there is a war on Christmas.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Now, after these major mistakes on your part you announce
you have Covid and you and the Slovenian Barbie will be in quarantine for 14
days. That will make it impossible for
you to participate in the next debate won’t it?
You won’t be able to make a total ass of yourself again while further
embarrassing the United States. This
begs the question – do you really have Covid or are you claiming this as a way
to get out of a debate? How convenient.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">I won’t believe you have Covid until you release the
results of your Covid test. Will that
release happen soon, or is the IRS also auditing that report?</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Here’s hoping you enjoy being intubated and breathing
through a ventilator (one that you didn’t send to China back in March). It might not cure you but at least you won’t
be able to stand in front of thousands of unmasked fans denigrating everyone
who disagrees with you.</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Today is the first day in your nearly 4-year-old
administration that I find myself doing back flips from the joy I feel. Covid-19 could not have happened to a more
deserving waste of protoplasm. </span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Please spend the rest of the day coughing wildly on
everyone you come near. It would be
especially helpful if you coughed on Stephen Miller. And, what about Lindsey Graham? Can he contract Covid while on his knees?</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Love and kisses,</span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Craig Faanes</span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"> </span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">cc: Secret Service</span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><o:p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">cc: FBI</span></o:p></p><br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2c5zNh1K-y4qLGtjCTd_xkfvmDHNkmXK7DQPUczu956Qm6tfak_Fdtiwg232uk7Ocfjli99mZuG9yAX8bU8BiHwPRwmzx1SPOVdPQPK41AfHC5FMGZtwwFBnzl0Sqh6af9hlR51D__JPY/s640/Envelope.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2c5zNh1K-y4qLGtjCTd_xkfvmDHNkmXK7DQPUczu956Qm6tfak_Fdtiwg232uk7Ocfjli99mZuG9yAX8bU8BiHwPRwmzx1SPOVdPQPK41AfHC5FMGZtwwFBnzl0Sqh6af9hlR51D__JPY/w480-h640/Envelope.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br />Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1224752028663332950.post-69017549942534791912020-10-01T08:02:00.005-04:002020-10-01T08:04:13.828-04:00Sixty Years Ago This Morning in a Wisconsin Forest<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzBinaS3One5nJxJrtqArQYRplbq92ddOb4ytF8VqJA6s5BIPW0M2f4OCTD4JuO7yt-vq1YM3zki1VGYT2h4klN9zJD5PlmvxwbVMPIMOfNvcJdcKEp8feVkqmwGzG741S316_bArLHZxw/s1600/Squirrel.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1231" data-original-width="1600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzBinaS3One5nJxJrtqArQYRplbq92ddOb4ytF8VqJA6s5BIPW0M2f4OCTD4JuO7yt-vq1YM3zki1VGYT2h4klN9zJD5PlmvxwbVMPIMOfNvcJdcKEp8feVkqmwGzG741S316_bArLHZxw/s400/Squirrel.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">
Sixty years ago this morning, October 1, 1960, dawned clear and cool and crisp on my grandparents farm northwest of Rice Lake, Wisconsin. Leaves in the butternut trees across the gully from their barn were turning what Aldo Leopold once referred to as "smoky gold" and the morning air had a distinct feel of the fast approaching (and at the time seemingly endless) Wisconsin winter. </span><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Not only was today the first day of the new month but also the first day of squirrel hunting season in Wisconsin. On October 1 1960 you needed to be 12 years old to be able to obtain and carry a small-game hunting license that allowed you to hunt things like squirrels, rabbits, and ruffed grouse in the state. I was only eight years old and in Mrs. Moe's fourth grade class, but my rapidly approaching ninth birthday was just 30 days away. Despite this slight difference between what was the legal age to hunt and my actual age, my grandparents gave me a single shot .410 gauge shotgun and set me off through the butternuts in search of my first animal. It was a ritual of passage in my part of the state and certainly a ritual of passage in my extended family. Hunting by myself (and not shooting off some appendage) and successfully bagging my first critter was a sure sign that I was on the path to becoming something. Not sure what it was but I was headed there. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">According to the Weather Channel, sunrise that day was at 7:05 a.m. and about 7:15, just as my grandparents were settling in for the daily morning ritual of milking their cows, Craig the intrepid (and illegal!) squirrel hunter stepped into the woods. I distinctly remember walking across the gully and up the small hill to the northernmost point in the butternuts. There, mimicking the way I had watched my dad and my uncles scour the woods before looking for squirrels I set off in search of my first squirrel.
I made a wide swath across the northernmost part of the butternuts making sure to shuffle my feet in the growing bed of leaves that carpeted the forest floor. I had learned that also as a way to spook a squirrel into running for cover in trees. So far nothing worked and no squirrels appeared. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">As I moved south through the butternuts I still remember hearing the sound of the milking machines working away in the barn and caught a glimpse of my grandma checking out the south door of the barn to make sure I hadn't shot myself - yet.
My ramblings across the woods produced nothing until about 7:40 when to the south I caught a glimpse of a gray squirrel as it darted along the floor of the woods headed for the relative security of a butternut tree that had three stumps. I watched excitedly as the squirrel leaped onto the side of the tree and then for some unexplained reason pointed itself down toward the ground instead of up toward relative safety higher in the tree. Standing its ground, the squirrel began saying all sorts of derogatory things at me in squirrel language I moved forward to what I felt was the right distance and I stopped. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">As if it was yesterday I remember quickly bringing my shotgun to my arm, getting the butt caught in the extra clothing provided by my adult uncle's tan hunting jacket (I had to be fashion correct on this important day) and then took sight down the barrel of the gun at the squirrel.
What happened next is a bit of a blur. I remember having the bead of the gun sight on the squirrel's head as I pulled back the hammer on the gun's safety. I sat there and watched. Then out of the blue, just as the squirrel made one last defiant pump of its tail, I fired my only shot. The tiny shotgun made a muffled poof sound and instantly the squirrel tumbled from the side of the tree and lay on its back "tits up on the prairie" as I would later say about ducks when I lived in North Dakota.
I remember racing up to the squirrel and taking it in my hands and looking at it from the tip of its nose to the tip of its tail. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">This was my one of the first (unknown to me at the time) indications of a forthcoming life as a biologist who had to check out everything. I also remember that, despite this not being the first squirrel I had ever held before, this one of "mine" seemed so much smaller when I held it than when I would see them darting around in the woods being squirrels.
The sun had just climbed up over the top of the trees on my uncle's nearby farm and the rays of sunlight were shining across the pasture on my grandparent’s land (where my parents ashes are now spread) and everything was lit up in the butternuts. My grandma had heard the shot and was looking out the barn door again, this time probably worried that I had shot myself. Instead I stood there holding up the squirrel for her to see and for some unexplained reason I yelled and asked what time it was. The clock said 7:45 a.m. Central Time. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">The squirrel was the first of what would be hundreds of them I harvested in my youth. From squirrels I graduated to ruffed grouse and a couple of years later (and still too young to legally buy a license) I started hunting white-tailed deer on my uncle's farm. My success rate with them wasn't like squirrels but it makes for another story.
As I grew through my childhood and my adolescence there were two things that became constants in my life. One was baseball and the other was the annual fall ritual of hunting. It was because of hunting that I developed the fierce desire to protect the earth that led to my choosing wildlife biology as a career and spending almost all my life for more than 32 years trying to protect habitats from the ravages of human population growth. Its something that non-hunters and anti-hunters seem unable to comprehend. "How can you love wildlife and kill it" you're often asked. I'm not sure how. It just is what it is. And it all started with that gray squirrel 60 years ago this morning. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span> I continued hunting until 1982. Those last years were on the prairie of North Dakota where all of October and into November from 1979 through 1982 were devoted to hunting ducks, geese, sharp-tailed grouse, gray partridge, white-tailed deer, pronghorn, and anything else that was legal. The last day I ever hunted anything was in early November 1982 when a group of us went after ducks and geese on the prairie wetlands west of Jamestown. We took along my </span><span>Chesapeake Bay Retriever named Chester. At the end of the day we stopped at a small wetland near Cleveland and Rich Madson took a picture of Chester sitting in the wetland vegetation scanning the sky for ducks. It was his last hunt and mine. A few months later a divorce rocked my world. As part of it I had no place to keep Chester and had to take him home to Wisconsin and my parent’s farm. After Chester was gone my desire to hunt left me and I've never picked up a gun since. </span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">Sixty years ago this morning was a different story. I left my grandparent’s house that morning a neophyte and half an hour later I was a hunter. It was one of the best things that ever happened to me and I relive that moment every year on this day.</span></div>Craig Faaneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00155111070068178215noreply@blogger.com0