Most unusual sight

[Texasmark]

Went out to feed my cows today as usual and part of that was to put out a hay roll (with my tractor......Ha I got it in; I'm legal) Grin.

Looked out in the pasture and there was this big buzzard with a white chin strap. White chin strap on a buzzard? Looked again and I'm looking at a lone goose out there about 30 yards from the cows. I milled around them for a few minutes and it just stayed there standing erect and looking away and back at me several times. Honked a time or two. I walked it's way and got within 15 yards of it before it flew off.

Guess it got disoriented in the storm yesterday and just decided to light here. It flew off about a thousand feet to a neighbor's place and lit back down. Didn't appear to be injured.

Not sure it was a Canadian as it was much darker than I remember them being and it had a white band. Aren't Canadians gray with a black chin strap?

Ok, so what was it? A brandt is dark but doesn't have a chin strap does it?

Mark

 

[rrlund]

Don't know about the Canadians or chin straps,but on a related subject,I saw 2 sandhill cranes yesterday here in Mid Michigan. Bet they were a little confused when they flew back here and had to land in the snow!

 

[Texasmark]

You know they winter on the Texas Coast in the marshes. Every fall the papers usually have a picture and a write up about how the population is doing.

Mark

 

[Anonymous-0]

if they winter in Texas then please keep them there they came back to WI. last week Monday nothing but BIG rats with wings wish we could shot them but they are protected

 

[thurlow]

There's several Canadians (some of 'em are old codgers) on "here", not sure if any of them have a black chin strap.

 

[Texasmark]

Now that's funny!

 

[thurlow]

Maybe what you were seeing were Canada geese???

 

[Texasmark]

I guess you are talking about Sandhills. They weren't ours in the first place. Just a bunch of "carpetbaggers" to me. Grin.

I remember reading about them getting over hunted when I was a kid. No body ever told me why they were over hunted. Feds went nuts protecting birds back in 1917 with their bird protection act. I understand they regularly add birds to it and just added the Cardinal. Now who goes around shooting Cardinals? Sunflower growers?

Buzzards and Blue Herons here are getting to be as much of a nuisance as wolves seem to be in the mountain states. Seems the folks out there have enough sense to back off the protectionism on the wolves. Would be nice if the same were true of the birds I mentioned. Getting to be so many of them here they are a real hazard to your agricultural operation, be it animals or fish.

It's calving season for me and I have to go out several times a day to see if any cows have calved and look for the buzzards, especially the white wing tipped ones.

But one critter I think is beautiful and doesn't bother a thing...the Coopers Hawk. They come down here for the winter and sometimes linger into the summer. Many times I will be hayin and either see the shadow from him being above me, or catch this flash out the corner of my eye where one swooped down and caught a field mouse/rat that I flushed.

Then there are the white (with gold highlights) Egrets that like grasshoppers and the like. They are real companions when you are hayin. I like to watch the way they work around the tractor, right next to you but always stay just out of the way and know when to move over. They also work with the cows grazing and sometimes get on the cows back and catch horseflies which I think is great.

Mark

 

[Texasmark]

Since you said that I went surfing and sure nuf, the Canadian does have the white chin strap and the white V on it's back just forward of the tail which this one had also. The only difference in the pics, what I recall seeing in the past and this one is that where it is supposed to have light gray, whitish, or light brown feathers, it has dark feathers. Must be an "ugly duckling" and was an outcast. Maybe why it showed up here by it'self. Dunno!

Mark

 

[Goose]

I've heard that geese mate for life. Maybe that one got separated from it's mate, or something happened to it's mate.

 

[Anonymous-0]

i wish the da- Wolfs would eat the sandhills but that don't happen ether stupid tree huggers bring this stuff back and we have do deal with it

 

[Keith in Iowa]

Texamart,Cooper hawks are one of the most killer birds around.Here in Iowa they're a big killer of pheasants and other small birds.But if you cook them right they taste just like chicken.Just kidding, but Coopers are just like nnalert,THEY"RE SNEEKY.

 

[Anonymous-0]

Be careful. When you get goosed by a Canadian you can't sit down for a while because your butt is too sore. Dave

 

[Anonymous-0]

Could it be a young canadian? Swans are hatched black (dark grey) and get white over time. But fly long before. Same with geese?

We have crane (the big blue/grey ones), some big white ones that look like crane at a distance, egret(sp?), storck, SEAGULLS, several species of hawks and owls, every variety of the weasel family up to a martin, same with the mouse family. Only real nuisance in this area is the gull and hamsters. Most everyone has nest boxes for coopers hawks and barn owls in the gable of the barn to help control the rodents. Hamsters are smart though. Once you get them, they figure out how to avoid the hunter.

Saw a several storcks doing what you describe the herons doing with the machines and cattle.

we've also got magpies that steal whatever they can carry off.

Dave

 

[Jack a]

Rather be a cooper (DEM) then a vulture (REPUG). LOL

 

[Texasmark]

This was a full grown goose; wingspan estimated at 6' easy. The blue grey stork thing is probably the Blue Heron I mentioned. There is a picture on www of one in a game preserve trying to swallow a 3 lb black bass. Now how they knew that I don't know. Maybe estimated the basses weight. They fish day and night and if they find fish in your pond, they will return till they eat them all.

The egret is a small stork and has a plume from a slick head out the back that has an upward half roll in gold. I have never seen them at water other than to drink. They like insects.

Seagulls are bad too by nature. Haven't personally had any problems with them and seldom does one visit. We get them up here sometimes from the gulf coast. Currently there is a new community landfill and there must be a thousand of them over there.

 

[Anonymous-0]

Yes, Canada geese. Thank you. Sorry, it just bugs me when people say Canadian geese.