SNN (ScrollingNetworkNews) ✿ ✿ Our Mel and Sydney returned to their nesting box with plenty of bonding occurring..but after 2.5 months of Sydney in the box from Dec 2013 to mid Feb 2014, the lack of prey gifts from Mel ( perhaps due to the severe and historic drought underway in California)and they have forgone the nesting process this year as many other raptors ✿ Compared to other owls of similar size, the Barn Owl has a much higher metabolic rate, requiring relatively more food. Pound for pound, Barn Owls consume more rodents – often regarded as pests by humans – than possibly any other creature. ✿ We remind viewers that sometimes owlets may not survive - the parents will dispose of things in "The Owl Way" -viewer discretion is advised, this is nature and the "Owl way". ✿ ~ ✿ “Animals, like us, are living souls. They are not things. They are not objects. Neither are they human. Yet they mourn. They love. They dance. They suffer. They know the peaks and chasms of being.” ― Gary Kowalski, The Souls of Animals ✿ Each species is a masterpiece, a creation assembled with extreme care and genius." ~ E.O. Wilson

Friday, October 12, 2012

THE PLOT THICKENS AS THE DAYS GET THINNER

A little Oceanside trivia for those who may wonder, as the sun may wander, heading towards winder.. ooops, make that Winter:

As we head towards Winter, the sun is setting further and further south each day, evidenced by the trees and other horizon features seen on the boom cam sunsets. At noon, the sun is also not as high - right now it's about 48 degrees above the southern horizon, and heading towards mid-December it will be at its lowest noon altitude of only about 33 degrees in Southern California, and even lower if you live further north (compare that to Summer when it's almost 80 degrees angle high in the sky).

 See the chart (click to enlarge) for the the full story - the blue curve reads to the left axis, and the red curve to the right.
When asked how it all works, Kanga pondered for a moment, shook off the bewildered look, and was reported to have said "Simple, when things get hot they expand.... so, in Summer it's warmer and therefore, the days are stretched longer."