fwap!

Darwin Award contestant:

The 19-year-old skateboarder was riding westbound on 45th in the street when he entered the intersection at University Way and slammed into the articulated bus, police spokeswoman Renee Witt said.

"The skateboarder ran into the side of the bus and then fell under the rear wheel," she said.

NB: Westbound through this intersection is downhill. He was probably going too fast to stop. The bus had a green light.

In other news:

Yikes!

A shark believed to be a great white killed a 66-year-old swimmer with a single, giant bite across both legs Friday as the man trained with a group of triathletes, authorities and witnesses said.

Dave Martin, a retired veterinarian from Solana Beach, was attacked at San Diego County's Tide Beach around 7 a.m., authorities and family friend Rob Hill said.

He was a veterinarian, so he probably loved animals. How ironic.

More animals!

Pierre was outfitted with the suit about six weeks ago. Since then, he has gained weight, grown back feathers on his hind parts and is again acting like his feisty, alpha-male self.

On a recent visit, Pierre waddled around the tank, taking brief dips and standing on a rock next to his mate. He blended in well, although he was the only penguin with a black tummy.

And do watch the video. Very cute!

Friday wildlife blogging

Last Sunday, we went for a drive up the Skagit River to Rockport. At a park along the river, it is possible during the winter months to see many bald eagles awaiting the winter chum salmon run.

When we arrived, there was heavy fog, but it began to lift even before we got our jackets on.


After seeing some eagles from the nearby bridge, we went for a walk towards the west on the north side of the river. On the way, there was a fellow with a much better camera, attempting to get some photos of this magnificent bird:



This was such a huge bird, perhaps a female. She was facing away from me as I took this, alas.

A great day - it was sunny and brisk, we saw about 20 eagles during the day, as well as large flocks of snow geese and tundra swans while driving through the Skagit valley, many of them just south of Mount Vernon and not far off the freeway.

Trip blogging

I am visiting my parents and took a few photos when I went for a walk yesterday. I just walked around the "block" (which down here is about 2 1/2 miles).

Here is one of the ubiquitous ground beetles. I find them amusing, because they are always walking around with their hind-parts up in the air.


On the next lot west of my parents' I disturbed a cottontail from the spot it had been resting. It scrambled out and then stopped, waiting to see what I would do. I took a few pictures, but as soon as I started walking again, it ran off.


There were also a couple of jackrabbits, but they never stopped to let me take a picture. While I was walking I also noted an abundance of red ant mounds. These mounds can be found every several feet wherever the ground is soft enough for them to excavate. The opening to their nest if off to one side of this mound, which is made up of a very uniform size of gravel. I suppose every ant returns with a piece (several times larger than the ants are) periodically and adds it to the mound. Over time, they can get fairly large, like this one.

godwit migration

The godwit migrates between New Zealand and Alaska, without even stopping to feed. The flight is over 7,000 miles. Simply amazing.

alien!

Something to think about when you're watching those Alien movies...it turns out there really are creatures with those double-jaws – and they're right here on Earth!

whoopsie!

Let this be a warning to you!

A man was bitten by the decapitated head of a rattlesnake on his property near Prosser.

Fifty-three-year-old Danny Anderson and his son saw the five-foot snake Monday evening while feeding horses. They pinned it with a pipe and cut off its head with a shovel.

When Anderson reached down to pick it up he says the snake head twisted around and bit his index finger.

Maybe he should have waited a few minutes to make sure all biological activity, including possible reflex action, had ceased. And just why the hell did he feel the need to pick up the business end of the snake in the first place?

Yes, I'm tagging this as 'funny.' I have a nasty sense of humor.

media overload

For the most part, I don't check out the video clips now being posted on news sites. As poor as the editing is getting on news websites, I usually stick with reading - it's faster than waiting for a video to load. And then when I see a link like this:

Well, I'm thinking, What are they actually going to show here? A clip of a big grumpy croc? Been there, done that. I did watch Steve Irwin on Animal Planet. A clip of a big grumpy croc chomping off someone's arm? Eewww! No, THANKS!

Yes, Virginia, there is such a thing as too much information!

Wednesday wildlife blogging

Just so you know things haven't been all doom and gloom, here are some neat pictures of critters we've seen recently around the place.

Here is a moth that was in the house, trying to blend in on a wall:


And here are a couple of photos of the pileated woodpecker that has been hanging around the past few months, working on a snag left after the mid-December storm:



The woodpecker is interesting to watch - he is perfectly aware that you are approaching, but he's big enough, I guess, that he doesn't seem too concerned about it, and he lets you get pretty close. He's really been excavating this snag, and finding ants and other insects to eat. As the excavation area widens, he strips the ivy down, out of his way.