h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Any one remember the cathy come home film type gendre "Kes" i seem to have a vauge recollecting that was "goss hawk" or maybe i'm of track and "goss" being colloqual name for sparrow ,makeing it a sparrow hawk

Jordan

Don't believe everything Heathen Sceptic says - she is having you on, pulling your leg, joshing you...

Goshawks are a species of large hawk, native but rare in Britain.

They nest in the Peak District, and they begin to do fascinating courtship displays at this time of year, including acrobatics and food-passing to their mate.

Their nesta are huge, and they prefer larch trees on sloping hillsides.

The reservoirs up on the river Derwent (where the Dambusters film was largely made) are the local breeding grounds and we have been going up there fairly regularly in the mornings in the hopes of seeing them.

Last Sunday we saw them twice, and today we saw a pair of them out hunting just before we went up to one of the many stone circles on the moors above the village of Beeley.

Jez - happy heathen and walking witch

Jordan

Don't believe everything Heathen Sceptic says - she is having you on, pulling your leg, joshing you...

Goshawks are a species of large hawk, native but rare in Britain.

They nest in the Peak District, and they begin to do fascinating courtship displays at this time of year, including acrobatics and food-passing to their mate.

Their nests are huge, and they prefer larch trees on sloping hillsides.

The reservoirs up on the river Derwent (where the Dambusters film was largely made) are the local breeding grounds and we have been going up there fairly regularly in the mornings in the hopes of seeing them.

Last Sunday we saw them twice, and today we saw a pair of them out hunting just before we went up to one of the many stone circles on the moors above the village of Beeley.

Jez - happy heathen and walking witch

That was funnah reading about the goosehawk....

I like it

Vix - who hasn't seen a sparrow hawk but who has seen a golden eagle once

We used to have a pair of buzzards round here, but I haven't seen them recently. They'd circle over the fields just beyond the house over the road, and once they flew just a few feet over my head when I was out walking. You don't often see things that close up.

Noggin

I have been lucky enuff to see buzzards flying close up and from above looking down

I used to climb up Red Hill, when I was about 8-ish (Cefn Coch) which is quite a steep incline and sit on the boulders at the top and observe the scenery below me. I used to collect their stripey feathers I found too, much to my moms disgust, and put them in my hair...

Quite breathtaking the view.... *wistful siiiiigh*

Well . . . once when I was up on the roof, hanging up my laundry, about 30-40 storks flew by - quite low - and that was an amazing site. It was about this time of year so they were migrating back north after having spent the winter in Africa. What was also amazing to see was the whole flock of them suddenly 'turn left' at a very sharp angle. Like, how do they know?

az

az

>> What was also amazing to see was the whole flock of them suddenly 'turn left' at a very sharp angle. Like, how do they know?<<

Ah - maybe we are back to the purpose of the thread

They know because they are wights who are in tune with the currents of the earth, the magnetic field, the weather and the winds, the experience of the elders of the flock, the landmarks of the ground below them, the feel of the sun on their backs, any and maybe all these things and combinations of things.

They fly in skeins because the physics and the math of that formation reduces the amount of effort involved in flying, they fly together because separately they are unable to make the journey

Isn't life wonderful? And no creator god is needed at all, it can come about through evolutionary pressures.

And the gods fly with them, in cloaks of feathers given by every bird on earth, as a gift of love to their Lady.

Jezreell - heathen and witch.

PS - my love with you, az. Is all well at present?

Az,

Little as far as I know, is known about how specifically how they navigate for sure. Though a combination of your basic navigation techniques are most likely used.

Sighting (they don't call it a "bird's eye view" for nothing) features like rivers, coastlines, and mountain ranges.

Monitoring Earth's magnetic field, apparently with their visual system and with tiny grains of a mineral called magnetite in their heads.

Observing the stars.

Using the sun for guidance.

Smell.

And probably following their neighbors (many birds migrate in large flocks).

For geographical reasons, i.e. mountains, coasts and rivers, many migrating birds travel certain general flyway or routes. In the USA there are 4 main flyways and these are the Atlantic, Mississippi, Central and Pacific flyways. In Europe the mountains do not run so regularly north/south as in the USA, therefore certain passes become funnels through which many migratory birds pass. Also the Mediterranean is a major obstacle to many birds and they veer either left or right to avoid crossing it.

Vix - owner of allot of Natural history and bird books

Heh..basically I just said the same as jez without the wight bit...

~~waves~~ to jez

hi Jez,

Well, it did almost look like someone said - 'hey, turn left at the the next palm tree!' - and they all did. Thing is, they still had quite a way to go as they normally nest in central and northern Spain. There were a lot of them in Salamanca where I used to live. Very elegant looking birds.

Another amazing thing I was told about the storks is that they go back to the same nests each year!

az

ps
things are okay, thanks - will have more news on Wednesday

hi Vix,

It's quite something for a bird to fly all the way from Africa and find the very same nest they had the previous year, say, on the top of a church steeple in Zamora.

I wonder if the group I saw was all headed for the same town.

And speaking of migration, monarch butterflies are even more amazing I think.

az

That is a nice thought, I think more likely they would've smelled something on an up/downdraught...it would be interesting if you noted the day and could watch for them the following year to see if that would happen again.

monarch butterflies migrate?

That's not something I had heard of, rushes off to find out more...

You know I never knew that, and I have a lil book on Butterflies and moths...

Learn something new everyday

...just a lil cute note, my wee man used to call them flutterbys...awwww

Anyone online and want to chat?

http://www.stonehenge.uklinux.net/chat/index.php3

Jez - moderator of this chat area

"God; fact, or fiction"

In my opinion, one can't know, but probably fact. I suspect a deisitic god. What I am sure ofis that if It exists, It is a mathematician.


e^(¶i) = -1

Vix. Even the humble Painted Lady butterfly migrates. It is perhaps the most widespread of all butterflies. British ones go to Southern Europe and Africa for the winter.

toxx

Well there you go!

Something I hadn't picked up on