Noteworthy in Nola » Animals

Lounging Pelicans

Tess — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 03:18:32 +0000

Here’s hoping they and their brethren stay safe. The brown pelican was only recently removed from the endangered list and many are worried that they’re headed right back onto it. Similar Posts:

Aquarium stroll

Tess — Sat, 08 May 2010 02:50:57 +0000

After thinking about the Gulf so much I decided to I needed a little communing with the the Aquarium of the Americas…

Moving quickly past the smiling sting rays…

and the Lionfish being stalked…

beyond the curious penguins plotting their escape…

and the totally unimpressed white alligator…

the jellyfish were the last thing…

…before I reached my favorite Aquarium exhibit- the Gulf of Mexico. A 17 foot high tank holding 400,000 gallons of saltwater, a faux reef, schools of fish, sea turtles, sharks and other native Gulf fish.

I sat on the benches, just watching these amazing animals swim along, for the first time I really noticed the sign attached to the exhibit, and had to laugh out loud at the depressing damned irony:

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Hair, Fur & Nylon Donations requested

Tess — Wed, 05 May 2010 12:26:12 +0000

So when I heard that you could drop off hair, fur and nylon at (of all places) the Ritz Carlton, I was a little confused. It’s meant to absorb the spilled oil in the Gulf, and while anything that helps is worthwhile, I couldn’t imagine how stuffing used pantyhose with cut up hair was going to help.

Here’s how, and it’s all pretty amazing:

Crossposted to DreamyDreamsSimilar Posts:

A bad feather day…

Tess — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 03:27:18 +0000

The herons are busy in Audubon Park these days, molting and nesting on the Island Rookery.

The number of birds on these few trees is staggering- especially when you take into account that each one is around 3 feet high:

I’ll go back in a month or so and see if we can get pics of chicks. Similar Posts:

Nutria teeth

Tess — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 12:51:12 +0000

We headed out to the bayou on a day that was supposed to turn sunny but never did, and on overcast days, particularly early in the morning, everybody and everything tends to sleep in.

Except for this family of nutria who were out foraging. And yes, with nutria, ‘foraging’ means ‘destroying everything in sight.’ Nutria are just eating machines, gnawing their way through the ecosystem, causing ungodly amounts of damage- it’s estimated that they are currently impacting 20,300 acres of marsh.

They look very much like beavers, but with a rat tail and bright orange chompers.

The beasts were intentionally introduced to the area in the 1930s as a source of fur, but the public didn’t like its feel and it never caught on. Their meat is bitter and unpalatable*, so nutria have no natural enemies and they breed like rabbits, in litters of 3 or 4. Hunters had no reason to bother to go after the animals until a bounty was instituted in 2005, paying $5 per nutria tail brought in to prove the kill, though it’s hard to know if the program has really helped very much.

So, yeah, they’re awful. Except, you look at the babies, and they don’t look like evil incarnate:

There’s a new movement afoot to try to make nutria fur fashionable. After all, there are those who’d like to wear fur, but can’t justify the cruelty- here you get to have your fur and feel like you’re helping the environment, too.

* Recipes for nutria meat tell you that you must soak the meat in brine a minimum of 24 hours to make it edible at all- and recommend 3 days in the salt solution if possible. How many people are going to be bothered?Similar Posts:

Even Pratchett’s got “Who Dat” fever

Tess — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 19:26:41 +0000

Sorry, couldn’t resist.

Pratchett stole a Saints clapper and went to town on it pre-game on Sunday. I can’t say he gives a damn about football, but he’s a big fan of anything that makes noise. After the Herculean task of hauling the thing up to his veranda, he got pissy. He thought it worked like a bell and when he couldn’t get it to work he decided to break it instead.

Still. How ’bout dem 6-0 Saints!?

They’re well known for breaking our hearts, but the feeling around here is optimistic. Half the city’s hoarse from screaming on Sunday, and it’s only going to get more intense. Similar Posts:

White tigers at Audubon

Tess — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 14:00:27 +0000

Rex and Zulu, Audubon Zoo’s white tigers, have about the cushiest jobs in the place, whether they’re relaxing in the grotto on a hot day:

Or just striking a pose while semi-hiding in the bamboo and bananas.

It’s clear they’re well named- Rex and Zulu rule over Mardi Gras Day, and these two clearly rule the roost.Similar Posts:

Egret taking flight

Tess — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 04:09:08 +0000

We went out last week, walking in Jean Lafitte park, having realized it’d been way too long since we’d done it. Many (many many many) photos were taken, but these were the prizes, I think- caught by Charlie who very patiently took photo after photo of this bird, waiting for it to do something.

Finally, it obliged, taking a short but glowing flight, and he was there to get it.

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Baby Alligator

Tess — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 00:32:46 +0000

This little guy was sunning himself just beside the path in Jean Lafitte Park, so close that we could have reached down and touched him, had we wanted to lose a finger or two.

After dreaming about them last night, I have gators on the brain.
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And so we begin…

Tess — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 01:38:02 +0000

At great risk of loss of limb we began training Zulu this week. In the same packet that held his beloved caterpillars (only 3 left!) was my secret weapon- a clicker and training book!

Very dutifully I read it cover-to-not-very-distant-cover and felt fairly confident at trying this.

It came with a handy-dandy lucite stick to start with, and it was clear from the outset that he was a pro. Somebody, somewhere, has started this program with him. The first step is to get him to gently nip the end of the rod, click the clicker and give him a treat.

Well, clearly, he belongs in this household. He’s a praise whore who already knew all about grabbing the stick. But the food can disappear for all he cares, just sweet talk him (“Who’s a good boy? A very very smart boy?? Well, YOU are, of course!”) and he’s all yours.

All of this comes, however, at a point where his clipped feather wings are growing in, sparking great debate within the household. There are resources that say birds are happier, calmer, being in their natural state and able to fly.

Then, naturally, there are those who say the first group are crazy, and it’s far far better to keep them calm and clip their wings.

So we’re at an impasse on that one, and at the same time ready to move on to our hands being much closer on an ongoing basis. I have bandages and peroxide at the ready.

I know I cannot show fear.

I am firm and resolute.

Perhaps a small glass of wine before we begin…Similar Posts: