and btw I just *now* read the PM. Bad Noid...)Two extensive posts rejected. Strunk version:
I spent fifteen minutes watching people hike near this bird bedded on a busy braided trail of Baldy. No one gave a flicker of recognition or observation, but I fretted that the bird would flee.
Do you see him? He is in plain sight, but you may be looking with plain sight:
The bird's placid behavior was atypical for its breed, which I shall call 'chuckster' for anti-SEO/ protection of potential poachment reasons. He sat tight, undisturbed and unflustered by the tramping hordes.
As a raucous quartet of spandex-clad FitBit hikers clattered near, I broached the subject, and indicated "keep an out for that big bird, there>" They paused, and chittered in surprise and delight when they finally observed the other /feathered/ chucklehead. Bearing to their left, our boid remained undistoibed.
I continued to delay my own interactive engagement with the chuckman, and pointed him out to several more more hikers. Seems that in this stretch of trail, most folks are concentrating on their foot placement and labored breathing. Pausing to observe a sharply marked rara avis was most pleasuresome.
Soon a couple with a canine companion scrambled up the slope, and sure enough, the chuckmeister fled the post. Dogs, leashed or untethered tend to have that effect on wildlife, though their owners may be oblivious to the effect on that which is unseen. Chuckboids tend to ground-run from humans, usually upslope --sometimes sideslope-- and take flight downslope when flushed by dogs. (e.g. with hunters). Uncommonly do they tolerate such proximity to humanoids as this one had for at least twenty minutes.
(see Robert Redford movie note below*, for Ellen)
Canoid aloit, canoid aloit!
Boid in Canoid avoid mode; "Exit, stage right!":
Hoping to short circuit a departure of great distance requiring laborious pursuit, I called the bird with a beckoning cackle. (He did not know I spoke chucklese..) Sure enough, he stopped in his tracks and peered quizzically "What the lectris arytenoid??!!" at the weird apparent source of conversation.
Blah blah etc, and soon he began to scratch and peck for tasty mountain morsels.
From the bottom left of frame, he has moved up and to the right. Do you see him? Do you see the shadowed form? (exercise your Pattern Recognition. plug for my old bud Bill Gibson. check his new book, "The Peripheral" ;}
To the right of the bush line, as I call him; (flick ref for Ellen --> "Are you lookin' at ME? I'm the only one here!" which was ad libbed BTW, not scripted)
Man with two packs; his pace is understandable, his chivalry is commendable. (boid to da right of course; now he is easy to spot, yes?):
I moved in closer for pics, but refrained from pestering with my childish accented chucklese (to whom I owe a debt: my aunt Polly Glot).
Charles ambled leftward, and shortly intersected the path of WearyFoots; time to vamoose, up and to the left, and even his quickstep movements went unseen and unheard by the sloggers. Well, at least no one was slipping and falling.
Whatta dome:
Ducking? Not on my trail!
Hey Chuck, you dolt, I'll creep right up over those rocks and sneak up on your six:
Now, GIT, before someone throws rocks at you:
Looking down the trail, busy with hikers:
One more boid pic from the set:
Another winged specie enjoying summit airspace:
Belated Happy Lunar New Year:
(please be especially courteous and circumspect during lambing season)
*This chuckleknucklehead behaved more like his cousin the spruce grouse, which is well known for being so docile and complacent that such birds can be killed by throwing stones. This was taught to Jeremiah Johnson (played by Robert Redford) by his Flathead Indian wife Swan (another boid!; played by Delle Bolton). JJ prepares to shoot grounded grouse with his .30 cal HAWKen, when she silently demonstrates how to gather their dinner fowl via thrown stone. Touch veritas, by Milius. (I forget which bird was used as a stand-in.) Oh, and Zippetydude and Ze, if you meet up with Milius, he'll smile right up if you surprise him with some Portuguese.
kind regards,
arocknoid
