Forensic Find

Warning :To my readers who are squeamish about skeletal remains,this post isn't for you.
                               

This past week I was meandering across the soybean field that was harvested almost a month ago. I like to watch the crops grow in the Spring,and Summer, but appreciate when the fields open up again for exploration, and hunting in the Fall and Winter.

I am a student of my immediate environment, in hopes of observing patterns from year to year.

On this day, our dog Sadie was off getting her sniff quotient satisfied,as I was taking my time moving from one place to another. My eyes to the ground, I kept scanning the crop debris for interesting rocks that have worked their way to the soil surface, or something out of the ordinary.

I came across an exposed rock, one among thousands in the field. However, this one caught my attention with what first looked like broken egg shells laying beside it. I tried to rationalize that some animal may have carried them away from a turkey nest earlier in the season and they were just now being exposed.

Using the tip of my shoe I tried to turn the egg shell over. It soon became apparent that what I was seeing was most certainly not egg shells, but the top part of a skull. I bent over to get a closer look. Scooping away bean chaff I saw something else that reminded me of a canine molar. Again, after closer examination, I found that it was a bone that would make up part of a spine. Eventually, the total picture of what I had found began to take shape.

The whole find could be contained within my closed hands. Holding the skull bones ever so gently so they wouldn't collapse.

Now, what did I find? The jawbone reminds me of a miniature deer. There are remnants of hair on a couple of pieces of the bone, not enough to be used for identification though.

Inside the jawbone are teeth that had not yet erupted to become useful. I did not find any evidence of sharp,ripping type teeth, that would indicate an omnivore.

The condition of the bones lead me to believe that these remains are from the Spring,because they don't show extreme yellowing,or drying.

It is apparent I am missing  pieces to my puzzle that might more clearly give me the answers I seek. For now it is intriguing to consider the possibilities... ;)

What would you venture to say once owned these bones?

Happy Thanksgiving

Uh Hum! Lovely day...

Tippy toe,tippy toe....

Ignoring the camera,ignoring the camera...

You who? Girls are you over there?!?

Now I hear you. Comin' Tom!

Have a Safe and Happy Holiday All!

Barred Owl Trail Camera Moment

I last posted about my new Bushnell Trophy Cam. At that time I was changing its location every day or two. I have so many places and animals to watch...

When I picked up my memory card on the morning of November 3rd, it took me a minute to decipher the first image, not what I had expected. It wasn't a deer!

It looks like a Barred Owl was doing a little night time hunting in range of the camera.

I have found a website that offers recorded vocalizations of male, and female, separately and an interaction between the two. Maybe you too have been treated to their raucous exchanges on your visits outside? Their range covers half the United States and extends into Canada.

Commonly here at Timber Life about 3:00 or 4:00 in the afternoon the calls start echoing - letting the timber know they are awake, and soon will be leaving their nests to begin the hunt.

There were some extremely early morning hours this past Summer, when I wasn't aware of how close they were until one of their unusual owl calls came slicing through the pitch black darkness to stir my half awake brain cells. If I wasn't awake before, I certainly was after.

I am glad to share the same space and get a chance to see what the outdoor life offers when the Trail Camera brings them into view...;)


Note of Recognition: I would like to thank  Mr. Bob Pearson for granting me permission to link to the Barred Owl vocalizations on his website. I appreciate the work he has done to provide them for public education.

New Trail Camera Part 1

Moultrie Game Spy D40 Trail Cameras

Three years ago I was blessed to receive some wonderful additions to my Outdoor activity supplies.

Hubby saw to it that I was catching a picture of our wildlife even when I couldn't be on the lookout...A 24/7 job.

My two Moultrie Game Spy D40 cameras provided lots of fun, candid shots. Then they started taking pictures of nothing but the landscape. Missing whatever may have triggered them to snap a picture. I must say they withstood some pretty severe winter temperatures before I pulled them back inside the January of 2008. Then I put them back out when things warmed up in March and April. One memorable digital capture was some eye to ear action...

Last month my curiosity to watch deer movement coming into the rut grew to the point I went into serious research

mode for a replacement camera.

My information gathering brought me to the compact Bushnell Trophy Cam. I respect the Bushnell brand name for it's products in the field optics sector.

Next stop eBay. I am all for looking up deals on new merchandise. Yes, I also went to Amazon, and it's seller's page. Then off to Bushnell's website to see what might be of interest there.I ended back up at eBay. 

Qualities Needed for a Camera
1. IR trigger for the nighttime

2. Compact size - not clunky to transport

3. Picture size options

This model seems to be very user friendly. Having some previous knowledge of push button settings it didn't take long for me to work my way through the menu. They do offer a default mode suggested by the manufacturer if you decide not to customize.

I started with some manufacturer suggested settings and then a few days later did some customizing ,only to return to a few of the suggestions put forward in the owner's manual.

A setting I gravitated towards was the High sensitivity trigger for catching pictures. I soon found with the wind blowing the vegetation it was going off too often and filling up my 2MB memory card way to fast. The camera was only good for about four hours at that rate.

Some definite pluses for this camera is the ability for it to hold a 16 MB memory card, three different pixel settings(3,5,8), three sensitivity settings(low, normal,high) , a wide variety of timer options and last but not least the choice of camera or video modes.

I cannot speak for video quality yet, because I haven't tried it. I need to get a larger memory card so I won't miss anything when it starts to record.


Click here for a review by another blogger on the Trophy Cam.

Pictures will be forthcoming. Until then enjoy the outdoors! ;)

Important Update - I was looking over the memory card storage facts and it needs to be Giga-bytes(GB) not Mega-bytes(MB). Thanks! ;)

Winner of China's Got Talent Lui Wei

A few weeks ago I was introduced through the Internet to a very talented young Chinese man who had lost his arms in an electrocution accident.

The dream of becoming a concert pianist remained in spite of his physical challenge. There were individuals along his path that didn't believe he would be able to reach his goal and discouraged Lui Wei from reaching for his star.

I am so happy that Lui Wei wouldn't take the naysayers seriously, that he continued to believe in himself, working hard to move forward. He has become an inspiration to many.

Following is the video of Mr. Wei's final performance in winning the overall competition for China's Got Talent...