9/14/20 As per my note to PLowrie today, here’s the buck that showed up with Starr Buck the other day looking for a “hand out”. Pete

9/14/20 Starr Buck really likes his tomatoes. The other day I put a pile of a variety called Black Plum by the compost cam that we’re too soft and close to rotting and he “inhaled” them. Took him 10 minutes. Here it is in a 4 second Timelapse Video. Pete

8/6/20 Here’s a look at Starr Buck eating tomatoes and clippings. Our garden tomatoes are so thick I need to trim them just to be able to get to them. Note the other mule deer in the background. Pete

7/30/20 A little Fence Lizard I found in one of our buildings which I caught and brought outside to where I’m sure it would rather wanna be. And another look. I love these guys. I see them all the time. Every day for a few months now an adult Fence Lizard has been on our stoop in the exact same place every day sunning itself. It’s becoming more and more less startled when I approach it. I love that too. Pete

7/27/20 I thought you’d enjoy a few minutes of Starr Buck munching on some large chard leaves and then kindly trimming our garden fence. You should also see some ground squirrels doing their part, too. Pete

7/17/20 Bat Cam I just finished trying to set up the best view of the Starr Ranch Workshop Bat Box, which is currently populated with a LOT of bats. Best views will likely be at dusk or later when they start coming down and taking off for a night of hunting. And then, of course, whenever they start coming back, which I have no clue when that might be.

Also, because the BNOW PTZ is having problems that I still need to address, I’ve temporarily taken it off line and put the Bat Cam in it’s place. As soon as I can get the PTZ fixed it will be back in it’s usual spot as well as, hopefully, a better aligned bat cam in another view. But the Bat Cam view you’re seeing right now might well be as good as it gets. Pete

7/13/20 Cam Updates:

Bat cam: I have two cams that I’m having trouble getting to work properly. I know they’re both really good cams, but both will just not play properly right now on the network so I can stream them. I’m sure I will figure out, but for now please bear with me.

PTZ cam: I was up there the other night while cavity was vacant. Cleaned static cam lens and went through the wiring for the PTZ. Became clear to me that I really need to clean up the two junction boxes that provide all the power, audio and video connections for both the PTZ and Cavity cam. Because I’ve found that one seemingly minor, yet poor or loose, connection can cause widespread problems. Again, please bear with me on this fix as well. Pete

7/10/20 Troubleshooting the PTZ cam is going to take me a little time. In the meantime, I’ll be shutting it down. Will try to get it back up ASAP. Am also hoping to reactivate the “BatCam” at the bat box by our workshop. Last I looked it appeared to be housing at least 20+ bats! But right now it’s also been really, really hot and working at that location is not a lotta fun. Reminds me of what a buddy said to me once: “Dang, it’s hotter than a Texas toolshed!” Yup, EXACTLY. Pete

6/26/20 Look WHO showed up today. Did see him yesterday at a distance after a long time not having him around. Today he was eating some oranges and wasn’t startled at all when I walk out – we talked… He looked healthy and has clearly added to his antler array. But really, I so enjoy him and the rest of the deer being wild but still knowing when they’re safe and need not bolt. Pete

5/14/20 In light of so many of us staying at home and perhaps participating in numerous Zoom meetings, I thought that you would appreciate this little TEST about when to choose joining with video or audio only… Pete

5/5/20 Yesterday around 6:15AM Sandy was walking north up Bell Canyon Road just north of the main house and a cougar came trotting down the road from the north. At about 20 feet away it veered off in the direction of the trail cam (about a quarter mile away). Less than 15 min later, I got THIS CLIP on the trail cam. Interesting thing is that it may not have been the same cougar. Sandy’s seen several, and the one she saw she said was huge, or at least bigger than the one in this video. And we have been seeing at least two different individuals lately. Pete

4/27/20 Tomorrow, Tuesday April 28, our electricity will be off from around 9AM to 4PM so SCEdison can work on some utility upgrades. I’ll get the cams back up as soon as it’s restored. Pete

4/20/20 House Finches are, as usual, nesting on the beam under our office overhang. Yesterday they had 2 chicks and 3 eggs. Today I put a cam back on it. It’s to the right of the trail cam. Pete

4/13/20 I’m fairly certain that the cougar in this VIDEO from the trail cam is the same one that Robert videoed as it checked out his cabin the other day, which is close to the trail cam. Sandy posted that clip on the Starr Ranch FB page. Anyway, it looks like it may be pregnant, and the “sagging” abdomen looked the same as the one Robert videoed. Pete

4/9/20 All the chicks, except maybe the youngest one, should be able to fly by now. But if not would certainly not “drop like a stone” if they made a misstep trying to reach the limb or some other perch. They would flap their wings and, if they can’t sustain flight, would glide to the ground. Basically, this is all playing out exactly as it should and usually does.

I realize that the cavity cam is blurry due to all the rain we’ve been having, but I can’t go up there to clean it right now. Doing so would likely make any/all chicks in the cavity bolt. So, as in the past, once they are all flying I’ll go up there when the cavity is vacant and tidy up. Because typically they will continue to come and go for a while. Pete

4/2/20 It just occurred to me that even though the audio isn’t great on the TURKEYS (from 4/1/20 below) you can still hear a distinctive bird call during it (starts at around 1min35secs). It’s a species we don’t have in CA, but do have one closely related. So if you’re game, play it again. First person to guess what it is gets a Starr Ranch T-Shirt.

This also reminds me that scylla was the first to correctly guess the Band-tailed Pigeon on the trail cam yet offered her t-shirt to someone else. OK scylla, you lemme know who you want me to send it to and I’ll make it happen. Pete

4/2/20 Here’s another scene from our family home in CT you may enjoy. Black Bears are becoming more and more common there. Back in the 70’s there were few to none. Same with turkeys. Pete

4/1/20 I thought you might get a kick out of this flock of TURKEYS at our family home in CT. Some of the toms are really struttin’ their stuff! Pete

3/23/20 Things are pretty crazy at Starr Ranch right now trying to adjust to the Covid issue. Sandy’s had to cancel all her programs for the next several months (which are many) and is also working hard to keep resident seasonal staff safe during these troubled times. In the meantime I’m trying to keep the wheels on the day to day admin and maintenance and lately this seems to be a bit more trying than in the past. So with that said, I may not band the BNOW chicks this year. If I do, I will let you know and provide video if possible. But for now it’s all hands on deck here focusing on getting through this difficult situation. Pete

3/12/20 In light of all that’s going on locally and globally regarding trying to reduce the spread of Covid-19 I will not be holding a banding event this year for the BNOW chicks. If I do band them I will do my best to video it and share with you all later. Thanks for your understanding. Pete

3/7/20 Here’s a short video of the BNOW chicks when I was up there tonight to clean the cavity cam lens and “tidy up”. And please be sure to check out below for the opportunity to join me for banding them on 3/21/20. Pete

3/7/21 SAVE THE DATE! If all continues to go well I’m planning to band the Barn Owl chicks on Saturday, March 21.

Schedule will be:

12:00 – 1:15 PM : Lunch and owl biology talk with live rehab owl from the OC Bird of Prey Center.

1:15 – 2:30 PM : Band the Barn Owl chicks.

This is an important fund raiser for Starr Ranch. To attend it will be $100/person. But trust me, if you haven’t done this before (or even if you have) I think it’s an incredibly unique experience unlike many ever get to be part of. You will see these Barn Owl chicks up close – very up close, And you will, of course, be at Starr Ranch which is an amazing place! And lunch will be provided.

I will soon post the link to the website to sign up. Hope you can make it. Pete

BTW, It appears that the cavity cam got quite blurry. I suspect the female might have done a little “excavation” lately like she has in the past and kicked up some debris on it? Any case, I will try to get up there tonight and clean things up when I see she’s flown off for a “stretch” or maybe to hunt. All the chicks are big enough now so she can be away for some time without them getting too cold.

2/27/20 A shout out to Patti for providing the laying and hatching dates/times! Pete

Egg #1 – 1/6/20 – 2:49 pm

Egg #2 – 1/8/20 – 4:07 pm

Egg #3 – 1/10/20 – 3:30 pm

Egg #4 – 1/12/20 – 2:25 pm

Egg #5 – 1/15/20 – 12:28 am

Egg #6 – 1/17/20 – 3:52 pm

1st Hatch – 2/8/20 – 4:50 pm

2nd Hatch – 2/10/20 – 6:39 pm

3rd Hatch – 2/12/20 – 10:38 am

4th Hatch – 2/14/20 – cams down

5th Hatch – 2/17/20 – 5:28 am

6th Hatch – One egg never hatched

2/13/20 Tomorrow, Friday 2/14/20, SC Edison will cut our power for most of the day to change some poles and do other maintenance. So CAMS WILL BE OFF from around 8:30AM through around 3:00PM. Pete

1/30/20 I’m pretty sure it’s the same big COUGAR from 1/23 that just walked by the trail cam again around 6:30PM today. He/she is clearly larger than any cougar we’ve ever seen here before. Pete

1/23/20 Well, less than 24 hours after I got the oak limb cleared from the trail and reactivated the trailcam, you can watch a male or female cougar walk by HERE this afternoon. We’ve been seeing some HUGE cougar tracks around our HQ lately so suspect they belong to this one – because this one is WAY bigger than what we typically see. That is, on the cams. It’s a rare treat to see one in the wild. After almost 35 years at Starr Ranch I’ve seen, maybe, a dozen and it’s usually them leaping across the road or just a glimpse. Also, pardon the long pause in the video as it sits on its haunches. But I left in this part because I thought it was really very interesting to see how it spent some time “looking around” before moving on. Pete

1/18/20 Emma asked me to post the egg dates:

Egg #1 – 1/6/20 – 2:49 pm

Egg #2 – 1/8/20 – 4:07 pm

Egg #3 – 1/10/20 – 3:30 pm

Egg #4 – 1/12/20 – 2:25 pm

Egg #5 – 1/15/20 – 12:28 am

Egg #6 – 1/17/20 – 3:52 pm

Regarding one of last year’s fledlings found dead as I noted below, keep in mind that a few years ago I documented that the adult male at the cavity was banded 9 years previously – and right here about two miles south in Bell Canyon. So enough of them – at least for now – seem to survive to keep their species viable. But I gotta say, things are changing fast and who knows what’s next? Climate change is real and were already seeing how it’s affecting/changing so many natural processes. Pete

1/18/20 One of the two BNOW chicks from last year was found dead on 8/6/19 about 2 months after I banded it as a chick on 6/2/19. As we all should now know by now mortality is routinely high, so this is not unexpected. But finding a banded bird is not commonplace. So this is more info about how soon and how far they disperse. It was found about 13 miles as the crow flies from the cavity. Pete



1/12/20 Tomorrow from approximately 9AM to 4PM PST the CAMS WILL BE DOWN. SC Edison needs to do some maintenance on our main power line so our electricity will temporarily be off. Pete

12/12/19 OK, new mic installed and appears to be working. The rest is now up to them… Pete

12/12/19 I’m rewired new mic so going up now to replace it. In meantime PTZ will be off. If all goes well, we’ll have sound again at the cavity. And methinks it’s time to start guessing when the first egg will be laid. Winner gets a Starr Ranch T-shirt. Pete

12/01/19 Got lucky. Cavity cam apparently just needed connections cleaned. Next is replacing the mic. But this will have to wait until mid-Dec. I’m going outta town next week and will be back on 12/10. But I now have the bad mic and know what I need to do to wire the new one so that next time I go up there it will be a quick reinstall. Pete

12/01/19 I’m going to try to get up there after dark when they’ve left or it wouldn’t be a big deal if they got “bumped” a little early so I can check out the cam connections and to also remind myself how the (currently) bad mic is hooked up. Because the leads on the new mic are too short so I have to extend them. But I first need to make sure they have the correct ends on them for a quick “plug and play” replacement. I’m also hoping that the cavity cam is just down because of a bad connection up there and that I don’t need to change it. I have a replacement, but it will take a lot longer to change it if needed. And until I get to all this I’ll leave the PTZ on the cavity for a while. Pete

11/29/19 Scylla informed me that the cavity cam is down. Unfortunately I think the problem is at the cam and not at the server. So I will go up there in the next day or two to try to fix. Might have something to do with all the rain we just had. Pete

11/24/19 I just got the “watering hole” cam backup. Right now is on a little pot of water that our RO unit drains into. But Goldfinches and other birds have been coming to it. Will eventually get the ol’ watering hole set up again and move the cam to it. And also deal with the annoying horizontal lines in the view that you may see. Also high on my list is to clear the oak limb from the trail cam and get that back up. But sigh, not always enough hours in the day to deal with all of this… Pete

10/31/19 I thought you might get a kick out of this two minute VIDEO of “trick or treaters” at my family’s home in northwest CT. Unfortunately, no one was home to greet them… Pete

10/29/19 We had an unannounced power outage today to fix fauly equipment. Whenever that happens and the power comes back on I have to reset a lot of electonic equipment – and some that I can’t do via my PC. This includes the PTZ cam. So I will do that now. But so you know, we are facing more frequent power outages due to potential for high winds wreaking havoc on high voltage lines and causing sparks.

Starr Ranch gets it electicity via a 12KV line that crosses a lot of dry habitat before it gets to us. So we understand the need to shut it down in high wind situations. But I gotta say, it really is time consumming to deal with restarting some hardware after the power comes back on. Pete

10/10/19 We’re expecting high winds – meaning high fire danger – today and tomorrow so there’s a possibility that SC Edison will be turning off power in this area of SoCal – there are many high voltage lines running across open space. So much like PG&E is doing in NoCal, power companies are opting to shut off power to lessen the risk of these high voltage lines starting a fire as they get whipped by the wind and possibly create sparks. So if the cams are down, this is likely the reason.

Also, I’m still waiting for a part to fix a piece of machinery I would like to use to clean up the downed oak limb that knocked out the trail cam. As soon as I get it and fix the machine I’ll get this cam back up ASAP. Pete

9/1/19 Look who showed up after being AWOL for, I think, a couple of months! He was munching on some orange tree leaves by our compost piles. Starr Buck

8/15/19 Power back. Cavity cam back up up. I need to do some other stuff to get the PTZ back up. Standby. Should be back up shortly. Pete

8/15/19 More pole maintenance at Starr Ranch today so power will be out from approximately 10AM-5PM PST. So cams will be down during this period. Pete

7/24/19 Well, it looks like were at the time when the BNOW chicks are now on their own and not returning to the cavity and the adults are not coming back to it, for now, to roost. So, in the meantime, HERE’S a glimpse of a mule deer doe trotting by the trail cam with her two fawns (now sans spots) following. I’ve always found it interesting that in a lot of videos I’ve captured of does and fawns it often seems to show a doe with one fawn closely following behind and then the second one scampering to “keep up”. Almost comical.

BTW and in general with deer, a doe having twin fawns is more the rule rather than the exception. Pete

7/2/19 Cougar and Bobcat on the trail cam in the last two days. A shout out to Wynne for alerting me to the Bobcat! Did not trigger the normal email alerts I get when something happens there. Love the Bobcat trying really hard to get some of that “perfume” on itself. Not sure I told all of you, but the few drops of we put on that rock – which is made from fox urine, skunk, etc. is the foulest smelling stuff ever! We’re VERY careful handling it. Pete

6/27/19 Tomorrow – Friday, June 28 – SC Edison is going to cut off our power to do some maintenance on the 12KV line that provides SR with electricity. It’s scheduled from 9AM-3PM. So during this time, give or take, CAMS WILL BE OFF. (Note to Scylla – I’m about to go clean the trail cam lens and also adjust it so it hopefully shows more of the gypsum “scent station” that the “Bobfox” has been frequently visiting lately.) Pete

6/5/19 Here are Part 1 and Part 2 of banding the two Barn Owl chicks on June 2, 2019. And HERE is the discussion on owls that we had after lunch. This rehab Great Horned Owl was on loan from the Orange County Bird of Prey Center. My apologies for some cam and audio problems. Pete

6/2/19 While it’s misty and grey out, ALL SYSTEMS GO for banding today. We’re not expecting more rain or drizzle, but if so, there are several spots we can have shelter. We also might get some sunshine later in the day. Pete

6/1/19 There’s still a lot of opportunity to attend the banding tomorrow, Sunday 6/2. If you want to come, click HERE to sign up. This is a really important fundraiser for Starr Ranch and proceeds help me a lot in being able to keep these cams going. But if you can’t make it, please consider a donation to Starr Ranch.

In the meantime, I just set up a cam so those of you who can’t attend the banding tomorrow should be able to watch the goings-on. I tested and the A/V seemed to work well, but one never can tell what might change… This cam, which you should be able to see right now in the lower left video feed, is at the picnic table area where we’ll have lunch and talk about owls tomorrow. And then I’ll move it to the cavity tree when we’re ready to do the banding. Note: I WILL BE SHUTTING DOWN THE CAVITY CAM AROUND 1PM TOMORROW because it will just cause too much overlap with the “banding cam” and possibly present me with a few tech issues I’d rather not deal with. In fact, if you’re watching now there are TWO audio feeds – one from the cavity and one from the picnic area. So I would advise muting the one by the picnic area until tomorrow. Feel free to email me with questions/comments. *protected email* Pete

5-20-19 If all things continue to go well I’ll be banding the two Barn Owl chicks on Sunday, June 2 from 12PM to 2:30PM. As most of you know, this is a fundraiser for Starr Ranch with the proceeds allowing us to do many things here at Starr Ranch, which includes providing the cams. Lunch will be provided, which will be from 12:00 to approximately 1:15PM. During lunch I’ll talk about owls and also have at least one live owl to show you. Around 1:15PM we’ll band the chicks and we should be done by or before 2:30PM. To get “tickets” for this event, go HERE. Once you sign up please note in your confirmation email how to get a pdf map to get to Starr Ranch – we are not easy to find by using a GPS. Also make sure that you check back here the morning of June 2 in case there are some last minute changes – like needing to cancel due to rain. If so I will put that info in this same spot. Pete

4/22/19 Just a heads up that tomorrow, 4/23/19, from 8AM-4PM PST our power will be out for some maintenance. So cams will be down during this time. Pete

04-17-19 Final egg laying and hatching dates/times. Pete

Egg # 1 – 3/08 – 10:10 a.m. – hatched 4/08 between 7:17 am and 7:39 am

Egg # 2 – 3/10 – 10:56 a.m. – hatched 4/10 between 9:00 am and 10:00 am

Egg # 3 – 3/12 – 12:55 p.m. – hatched 4/12 approximately 3:00 am

Egg # 4 – 3/14 – 02:04 p.m. – hatched 4/14 approximately 3:35 am

Egg # 5 – 3/16 – 07:08 p.m. – hatched 4/16 approximately 9:15 am

04/15/19 I just took down the Bell Creek cam and replaced it with the House Finch nest cam they just started building a few days ago at our office. Pete

04-12-19 Egg laying and hatching update provided by emma. Thanks, emma! Pete

Egg # 1 – 3/8 – 10:10 a.m. – hatched 4/8 between 7:17 am and 7:39 am

Egg # 2 – 3/10 – 10:56 a.m. – hatched 4/10 between 9 am and 10 am

Egg # 3 – 3/12 – 12:55 p.m. – hatched 4/12 approximately 3 am

Egg # 4 – 3/14 – 2:04 p.m.

Egg # 5 – 3/16 – 7:08 p.m.

04-08-19 Thanks, Emma, for the heads up on the first egg hatching this morning between 7:17 and 7:39. I also noted a comment about a GHOW hooting nearby. Well, just this weekend Robert, our seasonal ornithologist, noticed they had a nest in the eucalyptus tree at the far end from the cavity euc – about 50′ away. They should have chicks by now. Anyway, some of you may recall that several years ago GHOWs nested in an old RSHA nest on a limb in a euc NEXT to the cavity euc. The line of site between the cavity and the GHOW nest was not more than 20′. Yet both the BNOWs and the GHOWs successfully fledged chicks. Amazing since GHOWs are know predators of BNOWs (even though we haven’t seen that happen here much if at all by looking at prey remains in GHOW nests). But I’m quite sure that the GHOWs back then could see BNOW chicks in the cavity. Who knows why they didn’t prey on them?

Last, check THIS out. Early evening yesterday and one of the best views I’ve been able to capture in a long time. Pete

03-25-19 Thanks to all who pledged to donate to the 2019 Starr Ranch Barn Owl Egg Pledge!

You’ll soon receive an email from me coming from *protected email* (so check your spam folder if you do not receive it) with how to fulfill your pledge if you haven’t already. Also remember that those who pledged $10 or more/egg or $50 or more as a flat pledge are entitled to a Starr Ranch T-Shirt. If so the email will tell you how to get me your size, address, etc. info so I can send you one. Thanks! Pete

03-18-19 Egg dates UPDATE:

Egg # 1 – 3/8 – 10:10 a.m.

Egg # 2 – 3/10 – 10:56 a.m.

Egg # 3 – 3/12 – 12:55 p.m.

Egg # 4 – 3/14 – 2:04 p.m.

Egg # 5 – 3/16 – 7:08 p.m.

Please consider helping Starr Ranch pay for these cams, maintenance and streaming. You can do so here: Egg Pledge

Thanks! Pete

03-16-19 Egg dates as of this writing:

Egg # 1 – 3/8 – 10:10 a.m.

Egg # 2 – 3/10 – 10:56 a.m.

Egg # 3 – 3/12 – 12:55 p.m.

Egg # 4 – 3/14 – 2:04 p.m.

Please consider helping Starr Ranch pay for these cams, maintenance and streaming. You can do so here: Egg Pledge

Thanks! Pete

03/10/19 Looks like there are now two eggs. Let the games begin for another year! And hey, a reminder that it costs us bucks at Starr Ranch to keep these cams streaming. So if you’re interested in helping us do this you might want to jump in on the Egg Pledge. All donations are really appreciated. They are what allows us to provide these cams, fund habitat restoration, provide nature education programs, advocate for more habitat protection, and more. Thanks, Pete

02-19-19 One of the BNOWs (At least I suspect it was one of them) caught what appears to be a woodrat at the trail cam around 4AM. CLIP I’ve been following discussion about the male apparently being not the best provider. Perhaps this is due to lack of prey and not his lack of “skill”. In any case, I think that there may be a relationship between both male and female energy levels and things related that may cause them to delay egg laying until conditions are better for them to pull off a successful clutch. We shall see… Pete

02-14-19 I took the cam from Watering Hole #2 and put it on Bell Creek to let you see the water coming down the canyon. Still way less than we’ve seen in the past, but nonetheless a lot. Got 4″+ rain today. Pete

02-01-19 Cougar last Thursday night on our trail cam around 11PM. Starr Ranch staff also found fresh tracks by the outhouse today. All good to see because it’s been a while since we’ve noted one here. (And the video also prompted me to clean the cam lens… However, seeing it tonight shows me I didn’t do a very good job. Will revisit tomorrow.) Pete

11-07-18 Some of you may have already seen some video I posted of a juvenile Ground Squirrel that showed up a couple of months ago completely unafraid of me. This is really atypical for them. They are routinely extremely shy. Anyway, since it seemed so calm around people I started offering it some nuts and eventually got close enough to watch some really interesting behavior up close. Like how its nose is constantly testing the air, how it is so incredibly dexterous, how it can store an unbelievable amount in its cheeks, etc. As most of you know, we don’t feed wildlife here. However, in this case I thought I could learn something by offering this GS some nuts (Pistachios. And of course organic and unsalted) and eventually get closer to it.. And I used Pistachios because I knew it would have to spend some time dealing with them. I’m also quite sure as this squirrel matures it’ll eventually move on. Anyway, watch THIS. Look for all the things I mentioned above. Methinks pretty cool. Pete

10-25-18 I was just sent this link on Hummingbirds and it’s a really interesting video, to say nothing of some awesome photography. Worth a 5 minute look. Pete

09-28-18 Here’s what I pulled from the trail cam from our latest cougar “drive by”… reported by emma.

9-28-18 Cougar

Pete

09-10-18 I’m shutting down the spa cams for a bit this afternoon for some maintenance. And tomorrow our power will be out ALL DAY from around 9AM-4PM PST for a fix. Pete

09-02-18 4:30 PST I just moved Watering Hole #2 cam to a tighter view. Hopefully a better look at what might be in it as well as who/what visits. Pete

08-26-18 6:15PM PST I just installed a little 4W recirculating pump at Watering Hole #2 to better discourage any mosquito breeding. The little solar pump I previously installed wasn’t getting it done well enough. But if anyone has a birdbath that is normally in full sun most of the day, that little solar unit would work great to keep the water moving. In fact, if you want it, I’ll send it to you. Just send me an email and I’ll make it happen. I can’t think of any other use I’ll have for it. Pete



08-26-18 3PM PST Both Watering Hole cams will be off for a bit while I do some maintenance. Pete

08-21-18 Perhaps a new job applicant for natural trail cam lens cleaning? Watch . Pete

08-16-18 It’s dry as a bone here and we luckily dodged being affected by the SoCal “Holy Fire” that has now burned some 22K acres and is around 80% contained. It started in Trabuco Canyon which is directly adjacent to us. But now looks likes we’ll be OK. However, it’s been really stressful lately.

In the meantime about two weeks ago I set up a bigger watering trough because a lot more Mule Deer have been showing up which we haven’t seen in a while (and this was pre fire) and they really don’t have many places to get water. And when they have come they quickly drain Watering Hole # 1. So they now have a larger source to get a drink.

Right now during various times at night, but almost regularly during the day between around 3-6PM PST, they have been coming for a drink. I’ve watched 3-4 lined up head to head at the trough. A few days ago I watched two does and two fawns (a button buck and doe) taking a drink at the same time. So today I set up a cam on this “Starr Ranch Watering Hole #2”, which is right next to the “Watering Hole #1”. Here’s the setting. Pete

7/30/18 “Starr Buck” spent some time at the trail cam the other day. See my 6-18-18 comment below about his situation. Anyway, he gave us some really close views of his antlers that you can see HERE. It’s about a 4-5min video and the best view is around the 3:15-3:30 mark. (If scylla already posted this I missed seeing it…) Pete

7/3/18 I’m going to take the now empty tin of canned squid (which scylla posted that I had on hand to try to use to live trap a raccoon that showed up, but that shouldn’t really be here in this habitat) I wound up catching him without this and I relocated him, but just wanted to get rid of this squid. So I put it there to see who might be interested in eating it. A squirrel was not my first guess. I had the Ravens in mind…

Anyway, I just cleaned out the tin and am going to place it by the watering hole. And then from time to time put in it various things to see what might like them. To start it will be some corn grits. Please post what you see. And also post what you might like me to try. I’m always amazed at what various wildlife might do for food – natural or from humans. Recall the recent ACWOs taking chicks from the HOFI nest. Who would have thought they’d do that? There’s a lot we don’t know, eh? Pete

6/18/18 We’re starting to see more mule deer and fawns around the Starr Ranch HQ. Yay! And HERE’S a clip of “StarrBuck” from this morning. Still looking good. He has something called cryptorchidism. Has to do with lack of testosterone and in bucks causes non-shedding of antler “velvet” and abnormal antler growth. But he’s been around at least 6 years now, so this doesn’t seem to be affecting his overall health. Pete

5/20/18 Some recent videos you might enjoy from the Starr Ranch Trail cam:

Cougars…X2!

Hey, wait for meeee…

Starr Buck

Pete

4/8/18 I’m going to borrow the Black Phoebe cam and set it up to try to live stream the banding today. I’ll also use it’s built in mic which hopefully will work well. However, this means that I need to turn off the BNOW cavity cam mic, which I am about to do. Anyway, keep an eye on the lower right cam… Pete

4/7/18 Some of you may know of Sandy’s 4wd accident on the Ranch on 3/27. Well, we got back home from the hospital last Monday and Sandy is doing so well recovering that I was able take the time to BAND THE BARN OWL CHICKS after all. It will be tomorrow – SUNDAY APRIL 8. One session from 1PM TO 3PM. Lunch will be provided and I will have a live Western Screech Owl to show you during an owl talk I’ll give during lunch. So, if you would like to attend there’s still time to sign up HERE. Thanks, Pete

3/23/18 OK, Barn Owl Banding Day is SET. Saturday, March 31st. Schedule of activities is below and lunch will be provided. This is not only a truly unique experience – very few get to see these owls up close, but a really important fundraiser for Starr Ranch. If you would like to join me you can make reservations HERE.

11:00 a.m: Session 1 — Owl biology talk with live owl

12:00 p.m: Session 2 arrives. Both sessions: Lunch

1:00 p.m: Both sessions – Band the Barn Owl chicks

2:00 p.m: Session 1 departs. Session 2 — Owl biology talk with live owl

3:00 p.m: Session 2 departs.

I really hope you can make it. Pete

3/20/18 I just pulled the compost cam because tomorrow morning I’m going to put it on some Black Phoebes who are starting to build their mud nest on the old smoke house by our office. I’ve always wanted to catch them early so I could show you this nest building activity – it’s truly amazing how they do this. Anyway, after checking the site they normally use for the last 10 days or so I saw both male and female repeatedly flying to and from it today. So I looked again and there’s some new mud. So stay tuned.

In the meantime, see below. I should have the page up tomorrow to make reservations for banding the BNOW chicks. Pete

3/18/18 SAVE THE DATE If things continue to go well I’m planning to band the BNOW chicks on Saturday, March 31. As some of you know this is a much-needed fundraiser for Starr Ranch. I’ll soon be providing the link where you can make a reservation. Pete

3/4/18 12:45 PST Jorge has finished setting up and testing the new server and I’m about to give it a try. So you may temporarily lose the video feeds because I have to change how the page loads them. To fix on your end, reload the page. However, your browser cache may want to use the previous codes that tell the page where to access the feeds. If so, try closing and reopening your browser. If this doesn’t bring the feeds back up, you may have to manually clear your browser’s cache.

BTW, Does anyone have the time/dates of the hatchings? I have this sense that there was a 3-4 day gap beteen #3 and #4 which would suggest that since there still is one egg left, #4 may have been infertile and what hatched after #3 was actually #5. Pete

2/24/18 1:45 PST Jorge will be at Starr Ranch soon to set up the new server. I’m also doing some tidying up of cables, connections, etc. So the cams may be down and/or off and on for a while. They will be back up at or before around 5PM. Pete

2/17/18 As we approach when the first egg should hatch below I provided the dates/times already submitted so you can see if your slot was already taken. If so and you would like to make a different guess, go HERE to guess again. Pete

Submitted Screen Name Guess 2018-02-13 20:36:41 christhuy 2/19 12PM-4PM 2018-02-07 20:08:31 Lnmay 2/19 8PM-12AM 2018-02-07 06:22:44 Owl Girl 29 2/20 12PM-4PM 2018-02-09 16:48:20 Trish 2/20 12PM-4PM Guess again. 2018-02-10 06:47:35 Owlice 2/20 12PM-4PM Guess again. 2018-02-10 23:26:55 aintthatamerica 2/20 12PM-4PM Guess again. 2018-02-07 00:46:27 hindi 2/20 4AM-8AM 2018-02-07 04:42:43 hundon1 2/20 8AM-12PM 2018-02-07 06:53:28 Lynn 2/20 8AM-12PM Guess again. 2018-02-07 07:20:17 emma 2/20 8AM-12PM Guess again. 2018-02-08 20:18:16 Lynn 2/20 8PM-12AM 2018-02-08 09:10:11 cathi8 2/21 12PM-4PM 2018-02-08 09:52:31 Ruth 2/21 12PM-4PM Guess again. 2018-02-08 11:15:50 Beth1144 2/21 12PM-4PM Guess again. 2018-02-11 16:35:18 Bingos Person 2/21 12PM-4PM Guess again. 2018-02-12 19:49:52 Berly 2/21 12PM-4PM Guess again. 2018-02-08 09:25:17 linda 2/21 4AM-8AM 2018-02-08 09:53:04 yenifer 2/21 4AM-8AM Guess again. 2018-02-07 07:09:24 PLowrie 2/21 4PM-8PM 2018-02-07 19:10:59 Meg 2/21 8PM-12AM 2018-02-08 07:09:50 Becky 2/21 8PM-12AM Guess again. 2018-02-08 15:52:21 BJ 2/21 8PM-12AM Guess again. 2018-02-10 07:46:37 karl 2/21 8PM-12AM Guess again. 2018-02-11 20:33:11 ULLA 2/22 12AM-4AM 2018-02-07 08:17:13 Wynne 2/22 12PM-4PM 2018-02-08 12:54:49 Rex 2/22 12PM-4PM Guess again. 2018-02-13 12:22:14 Jowlee 2/22 12PM-4PM Guess again. 2018-02-14 14:53:29 Busyles 2/22 12PM-4PM Guess again. 2018-02-06 23:07:50 JoAnne 2/22 4AM-8AM 2018-02-08 22:16:23 Tania C 2/22 4PM-8PM 2018-02-06 22:58:01 SueK 2/22 8AM-12PM 2018-02-07 08:14:48 Meg 2/22 8AM-12PM Guess again. 2018-02-08 10:41:34 ksovella 2/22 8AM-12PM Guess again. 2018-02-12 21:53:03 Loveowl 2/22 8AM-12PM Guess again. 2018-02-13 23:41:42 Nighthawk 2/22 8AM-12PM Guess again.

2/12/18 Tomorrow – Tuesday 2/13 – from 8AM to around 2PM PST our power will be out for some maintenance. So the cams will be down during this time. Once power is restored I will get them back on ASAP. Addendum – Tonight Jorge has to reconfigure the cam server. So it may be on/off. Again, cams may be down for a while. Pete

2/6/18 OK everyone, if you want to guess when the first egg hatches click HERE. Pete

2/4/18 About 5 years ago Jorge arranged for his employer – Broadcom – to generously donate two decommissioned PC’s to use as our cam servers. He then programmed them in Linux (he is a whiz at this and many other things) and they have been great. One is always running and the other is a backup (which has been a life saver more than once – has kept the cams running with little interruption). Well, about 2 weeks ago, the backup server died. Jorge and I are in the process of troubleshooting and I have a new, yet inexpensive, power supply ordered. But this is likely not the problem. So given that I’m uneasy about “driving around with no spare” I am ordering a new server that should be here in a few days. Just mentioning that there’s a lot that goes into keeping these cams running, not the least of which is dealing with hardware maintenance, malfunctions and expense. Thanks. Pete (scroll down for “egg updates”)

2/2/18 EGGS! Thanks go to several of you who alert me that eggs are being laid. So far there are 6:

Egg #1 January 21 at approximately 1:00 pm

Egg #2 January 23 at approximately 3:32 pm

Egg #3 January 25 at approximately 9:03 pm

Egg #4 January 28 at approximately 11:07 am

Egg #5 January 30 at approximately 4:35 pm

Egg #6 February 2 at approximately 9:23 am

If you’d like to see an egg being laid click HERE. Although I’m not sure it always happens like this…

Also, thanks go to Patti and Meg for organizing an “egg pledge”. If you want to participate, click HERE. If you already made a pledge, please click that link as well and re-enter your pledge. This won’t double your pledge but just serve as an easier way for us to track.

Thanks! Pete

1/5/18 I bought a new cam for the watering hole and am about to replace the one that’s there. Should be better resolution and also have IR at night. Anyway, this cam will be down for a bit.

New watering hole cam installed and should be up. Am working on eliminating the annoying time/date stamp, etc. Pete

12/18/17 3:20PM PST Since there’s nobody home at the moment I’m going up to try to fix the mic. One or both cams may be off during this. Pete OK, A little after 4PM and mic is working again.



12/12/17 3:00PM PST They’ll be some cam down time since I’m about to go up and try to get the audio working. Shouldn’t be down too long. Nobody home at the moment anyway so a good time for this M&R. Pete

Addendum – I think I cleaned up the little bit of rotten wood at the bottom of the cam to make the shadow seen last night go away. I also reconfigured the mic. However, there are a lot of connections and nuances to getting this working right. But I think I have the mic live to the servers and will now ask Jorge if he can sync it with the cavity cam. Stay tuned…

12/11/17 4PM PST I’m going to go up and realign the cavity cam now. And make some technical adjustments too. So one or both cams might be down for a bit. Shouldn’t be more than 30 minutes. Pete

Addendum – I’m gonna have to work on the audio. For now there won’t be any… Sorry.

12/11/17 New cavity cam should be working now. Nobody currently home, but they were coming and going last night. I’ll go up sometime today and tweak the alignment. It’s pointed higher and more left than I think it needs to be. Pete

12/10/17 6:20 PM PST The new cavity cam is up and working, at least to the basement where the servers are. But I’m having trouble getting it streaming to you guys. Will continue to work on this with Jorge, so please be patient. In the meantime I can tell you that both BNOWs returned to the cavity not long after I came down, poked around in it, and there was some bonding. So this activity had little affect on them. Nonetheless, I hope to get the cavity view back up asap. Pete

12/10/17 3:55PM PST I’m about to go up and change the cavity cam. So both cavity and PTZ will be offline for a bit. Stand by for updates. Pete

12/3/17 Still some technical issues to resolve with the new cams. For any tech nerds, it’s about switching over from analog to HD-TVI cams and configuring the Linux server to stream them at a higher bit rate. This will get resolved, but if not in the next day or two I can go up there and install a separate IR light source for the cavity cam. Things will then be sorta back to normal. However, I really want to get the new higher def cams installed. So sorry for the delay, but as we all know – and in the words of the great Roseanne Roseannadana: “It’s always something…” Pete

11/30/17 I’m still trying to work out some technical issues with Jorge on the two new cams. If things go well I will get them up this weekend. This will mean the cavity and PTZ cams could be down for some time during the swap. If so, please just keep checking in.

I also made a tweak to our donate pages so it should now accept international donations. Scylla – you mentioned having trouble the other day. Would you like to test the fix?

Thank you ALL for your contributions on Tuesday (and every other day…) They really are deeply appreciated. Pete

10/20/17 A new VISITOR to the compost cam in the wee hours of today. Pete

9/27/17 An EXCITING announcement. Starr Ranch has a new webcam assistant! She will be on hand to clean the cam lenses from time to time. Here is a clip of her doing an incredibly thorough job her first time out. And here is her photo from our staff handbook. So, please welcome…Jane Doe. Pete

9/25/17 The power will be out again at Starr Ranch tomorrow, Tuesday 9/26. Two of our poles need replacing. Will likely start around 8AM PST and be out most of the day. Pete

9/12/17 Our power is back but I’m having a hard time getting the cams back up. Have contacted Jorge. He will likely get this fixed quickly. Pete

9/11/17 REMINDER. See my note below about tomorrow… Pete



9/4/17 Just a heads up that on September 12 from 8AM through 3PM SC Edison needs to fix a main transformer switch that provides all of Starr Ranch’s power. So the cams will be down during this time. I was told that we may be back up before 3pm so I suggest you start checking back in around 1PM. Pete

9/1/17 First off, it’s been blistering hot here lately at Starr Ranch. The last 7-10 days have been 100 degrees plus. So not so much fun doing anything outside. But this evening it was a bit cool (95…) so I reinstalled the compost cam. There have been two juvenile Ravens around who have taken a shine to the compost and like to visit it often. And they are quite animated. I will also be reinstalling the watering hole cam because it is dry, dry, dry here and I’m seeing misc wildlife now even coming in to the drip that is always there. Hopefully this weekend. And while Gretchen, Jorge and I still need to fine-tune some stuff on the new cams for the cavity and PTZ I’m hoping to get them up soon. Pete

6/22/17 After a long absence we finally caught a glimpse of Starr Buck on the trail cam. It’s been months with no mule deer around our HQ. And here’s a Grey Fox “getting into” the scent station on trail cam during the day. Pete

6/1/17 The Starr Ranch Kestrels did not use the box this year. I think they wound up nesting in a cavity somewhere a few hundred yards south of it. Well, at least lately the adults have been flying around calling like crazy so I suspect there are fledglings out. In the meantime, some European Honeybees rediscovered the box and apparently are deciding to call it home again. Check out this 2 min clip from around 3PM on May 23rd of how fast they got to work. (It’s real time not time lapse) Amazing… Pete

5/15/17 Wynne kindly (and gently) let me now that Steve mentioned the 100th Birdtahon species in his recap. Doh! I forgot to hide it there! Nonetheless, those of you who pledged will still get a chance to guess a species. It’ll just be one that I choose. Again, I’ll shortly be emailing the link to do this as well as other Birdathon followup. Pete

05/14/17 Hmmmm, it appears the LED’s that provide the night time infrared view of the cavity are no longer working. So, once the BNOW fledglings are no longer returning to the cavity and it’s vacant for a while – which is what typically and eventually happens – I will go up there and install a new camera (the one that’s there is REALLY old), In the meantime, the cavity is being partially “lit up” by the infrared LED’s from the PTZ cam, so that’s why you can still see a little bit there at night. Pete

5/12/17 Finally – The 2017 Starr Ranch Birdathon Recap is done! As usual, Steve did a great write up – including some really “punny” groaners… Thank you ALL for your support. As the Recap mentions I’ll be sending emails to all who pledged with links on how to fulfill your pledge, give me your T-shirt info, and have another shot at guessing the 100th species we tallied, because no one got it. We had 150 species, which Catherine L. guessed exactly. Congratulations – a Starr Ranch T-shirt is yours. Thanks everyone. Pete

4/21/16 I think you all know that I don’t often make a pitch for support. However, as we approach the end of April, the “2017 Starr Ranch Birdathon Month”, I’m really hoping you will consider making a pledge. The cost of cams and other hardware, plus the streaming are just a part of the expense of keeping everything running at Starr Ranch. We have to annually raise about $175,000 to make it all happen. So if you’re enjoying watching the cams and like what we are doing at Starr Ranch, I hope you’ll help me make this year’s Birdathon a big success. No pledge is too small. The link for info and to make a pledge is HERE. Thanks. Pete

04/12/17 I was pulling in some loose ends of things I needed to get done on Starr Ranch before heading off to MI early tomorrow to do my annual inspection and repair of Osprey platforms on Fletcher Pond, near Alpena/Hillman. I’ll be posting some pics later about all this because it’s a really great project. Anyway, I was doing some mowing and clipped the “Starr Ranch’s Bell Creek” cam cable by accident, so that will be off until I get back. And I’ll likely put that feed on something else when I do. Anyway, just wanted to let you know why it went dark. Pete

4/7/17 In advance of Barn Owl Banding Day tomorrow, I’m shutting down the PSFL cam for now and replacing it with a view of where we’ll be doing the banding. I just set up this cam and am about to make it live in that PSFL spot. You you won’t see much but what’s there right now (chair, boxes, gear) until we all show up there around 1PM PST tomorrow. In any case, if you couldn’t make it out for the banding I hope you’ll get to see as much of it as possible. If you still want to attend the banding you can do so by clicking HERE. and signing up But do so quickly, because this is going to happen less than 24hrs from now. Pete

4/6/2017 I’m FINALLY getting to sending t-shirts to those who get one because they donated $10 or more per egg. Thanks for you patience – and for your donations!

– There are some spots still left for the Saturday, April 8th banding of the six Barn Owl chicks. So, if you want to attend, please sign up by tomorrow afternoon. Details below and to sign up, just click HERE.

– April is Starr Ranch Birdathon Month! It’s our biggest fundraiser and I’m hoping that if you’re watching these cams and like the other things we do at Starr Ranch you will consider supporting us with a pledge. No pledge is too small. And you also get two chances to win a Starr Ranch T-shirt. Details and how to pledge are HERE. Thanks. Pete

3/27/17 Barn Owl Banding Day Signup is now available. To signup for the event click HERE. This will take you to a page with event details and where you can preregister. When you click Submit you will get an email from me with a link to where you can make your donation. This will confirm your registration. Thanks! Pete

3/22/17 MARK YOUR CALENDAR for BANDING DAY! Just a heads up that if things continue to progress as they have I will be banding the Barn Owl chicks on Saturday April 8th. As many of you know, this is an important fundraiser for Starr Ranch that helps provide funds for everything that goes on here, including running the webcams. This year I will accept 50 reservations @ $100 per person. Lunch will be provided. The way it will work is that you can sign up for the first or second session. Session #1 with 25 attendees arrives at 11AM. Session #2 with 25 attendees arrives 12PM.

The agenda:

11AM-12PM Session 1 Owl biology talk with at least one live owl from the Orange County Bird of Prey Center

12PM-1PM Session 2 arrives. Both sessions – Lunch

1PM-2PM Both sessions – Band the Barn Owl chicks

2PM-3PM Session 1 departs, Session 2 Owl biology talk with at least one live owl from the Orange County Bird of Prey Center.

I’ll have a website up soon where you can make your reservation and your donation. $95 of your $100 donation will be tax-deductible. Pete

3/18/17 While the K-Box is showing little to no activity, I found a Black Phoebe rebuilding a nest on the old smoke house at Starr Ranch. So I put a cam on it to replace, for now, the K-Box cam. Recently the Phoebe’s have added some mud, etc. and were chirping away at me while I spent about 10 minutes putting up the cam. So I’m pretty sure it’s going to be an active nest.

BTW, if you’re having trouble viewing, clear your browsers cache as a first try at fixing. In the post below I mentioned how to do this in FireFox. It often fixes a lot of things in any browser. Pete

3/15/17 The Allen’s Hummingbird cam went down and given it’s a ways away from Starr Ranch I haven’t had time to troubleshoot and fix. And I also think the two chicks have probably fledged by now. This morning I noticed House Finches starting to build a nest under the office eave. So that’s the new cam…

BTW, for those having trouble with viewing in FireFox try going to Tools>Options>Advanced>Network and click “Clear Now” next to “Cached Web Content” (I just had to do this to get the HOFI cam to work. FireFox had cached the setting for the non-working ALHU cam and was ignoring the new settings I had loaded.) Doing this may also help with any comment loading so you get the most current ones, etc. Pete

2/21/17 The last few days I’ve been having some network problems that I’m still trying to troubleshoot. Also, the Compost and K-Box Nest cams are acting up unrelated to this. And finally, the Cavity Cam’s poor quality is likely due to the cams old age and rain related problems, which will be difficult fix given she isn’t leaving for more than a minute or two at a time. So please know that I’m aware of all of these issues and will fix as soon as I can.

I’ll also be following up soon with emails to all of you who egg-pledged or donated to the egg pledge outright. This will include a link to request a Starr Ranch T-shirt if you met the criteria for one. Thanks, everyone! Pete

2/17/17 It appears the female BNOW has finished laying her clutch of six eggs, which is on target for a typical clutch size. Thank you for the egg pledges or flat donations in celebration of the new clutch! Such support keep this and other Starr Ranch cams going. (You can fulfill your pledge or make a donation HERE.) Your generosity also helps keep the rest of Starr Ranch operational. You are all just the best! I also want to thank you for making this cam page more than I ever thought it would be. Among other things, I am so gratified by your thoughtful and educational commenting and the capturing and sharing of vidoes and pics.

Two other things:

I was going through my videos the other day and stumbled on this one of a Pocket Gopher doing, well, what they do. I hope you enjoy it. I get such a kick out of every once in a while catching them unaware while they excavate.

I’m soon going to pull the Compost Cam and reinstall it at Pete Bloom’s where again this year an Allen’s Hummingbird has nested in a plant by his front door. Some of you may recall watching this nest last year.

Pete

2/8/17 OK, the SR Kestrel Box is back in the house. I’ve replaced the trail cam with it. The honeybees abandoned the K-box and I cleaned it out today. And AMKE’s have been flying around and vocalizing lately so maybe they’ll check out the box out and use it. In the meantime, here’s what was in the box. Not a honeybee in sight; it’s clear they bailed on it. But note the wax covering the opening with just a hole left for them to come and go. I have the empty honey combs in a bucket. Anyone want them? If not, I may try to make some candles from the wax. Pete

2/8/17 Cam Change. I recently noticed that there are new sticks on a Red-shouldered Hawk nest from two years ago that already has a cam on it. Also, there are RSHAs vocalizing nearby. So, at least for now, I’m going to shut down the Bat Box cam and use that encoder for the RSHA nest cam. Once up, please let me know if you see any activity at the nest. If we’re lucky, RSHA’s (or something) might use it this season. Thanks. Pete

12-1-16 A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO SUPPORT STARR RANCH!

Valerie Sinex, a great Starr Ranch friend and volunteer, is doing a promotion for Starr Ranch at her Yorba Linda Wild Birds Unlimited store. So if you need bird seed, bird feeders, bird baths, optics, field guides, gifts please shop at WBU Yorba Linda over December 1 through 24 and it will benefit Starr Ranch as below:

Support Starr Ranch Sanctuary when you shop at Wild Birds Unlimited of Yorba Linda December 1 – 24. Wild Birds Unlimited of Yorba Linda will donate 20% of your purchase total (not including sales tax). Spend $50, $10 goes to Starr Ranch—spend $100, $20 goes to Starr Ranch! Just tell the associate you are shopping for Starr Ranch when you check out from 12/1/16—12/24/16. Wild Birds Unlimited 17611 Yorba Linda Blvd, Yorba Linda CA 92886 (714) 985-4928 www.yorbalinda.wbu.com

Thanks, Valerie!!!

Pete

11/7/16 Thank you to everyone who’s pitching in to help support these cams, and Starr Ranch in general! And thank you, Pantha, for making this Thanksgiving Pledge appeal ! I’m grateful for any amount – it all helps and is all important! Pete (Addendum: If you donate via the link on this page or on the Starr Ranch main page you will get an email acknowledgement from Audubon California. But rest assured you entire donation will go to Starr Ranch. This acknowledgment email is also in the process of being changed to reflect your donation going directly to Starr Ranch)

10/28/16 Since nobody’s home at the moment I will be going up to the cavity to do some lens cleaning and also check out and clean up all the connections (it’s possible I have a flakey one or two that are causing the intermittent flickering). It will also give me a chance to trim some euc suckers. Not just because they may be blocking some of our view, but I typically trim these to lower fire danger. Anyway, the cams will be down for a bit. Pete

9/14/16 I just posted what’s below to our FB site, but a higher resolution video can be seen HERE. (Note: Video activity starts at about the 15 sec mark.)

A few days ago the Starr Ranch Trail Cam caught an interaction btw four Acorn Woodpeckers, apparently from “rival” colonies. This behavior is well documented, but not often seen- let alone captured on video.

Sea and Sage Audubon’s Sylvia Gallagher helped explain it all by pointing me to what The Birds of North America has to say: Power struggles are “the most dramatic agonistic interactions” of Acorn Woodpeckers. They occur when either the dominant male or the dominant female of a colony dies and are more intense when it is the female. “The right to fill such vacancies may be contested by up to 20 or more nonbreeding helpers from other social groups who fight . . . in contests lasting days or weeks . . .”

Also, check out Sylvia’s excellent recording packages of birds sounds: http://seaandsageaudubon.org/AudubonH…/SylviasSoundSets.html

Pete

09/10/16 I checked the bat box a couple of days ago since it had been vacant for a while and, low and behold, there were at least 20 bats in it. So, the “Bat man box Returns“. (Lens may be a bit dirty, but I’ll wait until they take off at night to clean). Pete

8/7/16 It’s been REALLY unseasonably HOT here for the last 7-14 days (can we all say climate change is real?). So I wasn’t that enthusiastic about setting up some new cams when it’s been 95-105 degrees (there’s a lot that goes into setting up every cam). But I do have some new cams in mind that hopefully I can set up this upcoming week because it’s supposed to cool down a bit – in fact this weekend was great, low 80’s, but I just felt like kicking back and relaxing. Thanks everyone for your patience and suggestions. Special shout out to Wynne for her suggestions…all of them good ones. I’ll see what I can do. Pete

7/14/16 It looks like HOFI Nest #3 abandoned 4 eggs a few days ago. I’m not that surprised given how late in the season she laid the eggs. So I look at this as a late “false” start. HOFI Nest #2 was also abandoned or something might have happened to one or both of the adults. In this case, there were very small chicks so my sense is that they were less likely to abandon, even this late in the season. Current status of Nest #3 is the 4 eggs are still in it, but typically something will eventually find them and use. Nest #2 has 3-4 fairly indistinguishable deceased chicks in it that the ants are slowly assimilating – a typical and common scenario. Regarding scylla’s clip of something being removed previously and that it may have been a chick, I’m inclined to think not. That’s not something passerines typically do. In any case, the nesting season for most passerines is winding down, if not over. I’ll be shutting down these two cams and might be able to find something else to put them on as we await next spring. Pete

06/30/16 Last Friday the folks at the Trabuco Canyon Water District (about 1/4 mi form Starr Ranch) called me because they had fished a Golden Eagle out of one of their reservoirs. Turns out it was an immature male that clearly fledged recently. However, the closest historical nest in Bell Canyon as far as we can tell has been inactive for several years. But maybe they built another one that was missed. And there are only a handful of GOEA pairs still nesting in Orange County. In any case, I brought the bird to Dr. Scott Weldy’s Serrano Animal and Bird Hospital – Scott has a lot of experience “fixing up” injured raptors – and after some R&R and several good feedings, it’s ready to be released today. Here’s a short video of when I retrieved it and this may actually get aired on our local CBS or NBC affiliates late afternoon or this evening. (Our nephew, Weston, took the video). Pete

06/16/16 I just moved the HOWR box cam back to the “Watering Hole”. The Ravens frequent it often and I’ve seen several other species using it. So given the nesting season is winding down and not much to watch there, we can watch this for now. Pete

06/14/16 The 1st HOFI nest that fledged a week or two ago is on the left. I just moved the cam to a new HOFI nest (#3) on the right. Probably a different pair. Right now there are two eggs and I don’t know if she is done laying. The HOFI nest #2 is on the same beam about 10′ further to the right. Pete



06/13/16 Full disclosure. As I was walking out this morning from our house and the Starr Ranch Junior Biologists were collecting for today’s activities on the south side of our field lab I saw something on the north side that I at first thought was some trash or a small pile of leaves. Turns out it was a BNOW. I picked it up and it was really lethargic and unresponsive. And by its band I knew right away that it was the foster chick we released a week ago. So it obviously blended in with the existing family for a while, but like the two other chicks that didn’t make it, it was starving. It died soon afterwards being way too far gone to help. But again, a common occurrence. Pete

06/13/16 The Compost Cam is going offline for a while to make room for an Allen’s Hummingbird cam. Our longtime friend, colleague, and expert biologist, Pete Bloom, has had one nesting by his front door year after year and this year is no different. So when were at his house the other day and he showed it to me I said “I gotta put a cam on this…” The two chicks are just a few days old. Pete

06/10/16 I temporarily replaced the TrailCam with another HOFI cam. Here’s a one minute clip of some feeding. Looks like the male is regurgitating seeds, and a LOT of them. Pete

06/06/16 Follow up. I have right now a VERY FEISTY BNOW fledgling that exited a chimney nest in Ladera Ranch a little too early. It was about 7 weeks old. Have had it at Starr Ranch for about a week and fed it and it’s now ready to go/fly. So given the demise of two of the four from this cavity and that I’m pretty sure the adults are still around, I’m gonna cut it loose here tonight. It will know how to food beg and get around and we have solid evidence that fostering chicks in situations like these can work. In any case, this is the best chance it’s got at making it in the wild. Here is a pic of it from a few minutes ago.

06/06/16 Some bad news, but not unexpected. Two of the BNOW chicks were just found dead on the ground within about 50′ of the cavity tree. One appears to have been dead for a few days, but the other was fully intact and with no obvious signs of trauma. And while it did not appear to be extremely emaciated (starving raptors typically lose breast muscle at first and this can be somewhat judged by feel), it likely starved. Again, this occurs way more often than not. Fledgling mortality rates for most all species of birds is 80-90% and with raptors the cause is likely starvation. There’s just so long that the adults will continue to feed them after they fledge so if they don’t quickly become successful predators, they won’t make it. Also keep in mind that most all birds – even those with naturally short life spans – nest every year and ultimately produce way more young than required to replace two parents. The oldest BNOW in the wild on record with the Bird Banding Lab was 15 yrs old. If it and it’s mate successfully bred for, say, 10 years and had an average clutch of 5 and all the chicks made it, when the two adults died there would be 50 other BNOWs to take their place. That’s for one pair of birds. Multiply that by the billions of birds nesting every year and I think one can quickly see that mortality has to be extremely high. (If you are interested a pic of the BNOW chick I described above can be seen here.) Pete

5/24/16 I recently discovered a Black Phoebe nest on the historical Starr Ranch smoke house, but too late to put a cam on it. Here’s a pic of two of the chicks (there are at least three) that will certainly be fledging very soon. Pete



05/22/16 Here’s a video of the first HOWR fledging yesterday around 1:30PM – which I think is the one I got a pic of shortly afterwards given the time stamp on it a few minutes later (you can see me in the garden in the background). Note the “false start” about 30 secs in. And here’s a 1.5 min timelapse of the other three fledging over about 10 minutes around 2PM. Pete

More HOWR follow up below:

Here are pics of the, uh, “super hi-tech” cam set up on the compost (with the HOWR box in the upper right on the garden fence post) and a pic of the nest that I cleaned out and previously mentioned in a comment why I did this. There was a dead chick in the nest but it had clearly succumbed at least a week ago and, as we have all have hopefully been learning, this is a natural part of a pair of bird’s efforts to reproduce a LOT of young over their lifetime.





05/21/16 I noticed a bunch of HOWR chick tails in the cam view just now. So I went out and took a pic of the other end…

05/18/16 The recap of the 2016 Starr Ranch Birdathon can be found HERE. Sorry for the delay. Steve always writes it up, but he and Marian took off for two weeks right afterwards so it took a little while for him to get to it. I will also be sending emails soon to those who pledged with how to fulfill your pledge.

Also, here’s the video of the group from the BNOW banding day saying their names and where they’re from. You may have to jack up the volume… Pete

04/28/16 Over the last couple of years I’ve become acquainted with New York Times Best Selling author, Luanne Rice – “westie” on the Starr Ranch webcam page. Among other things, Luanne loves owls (check out her website and note the silhouette over her name). Anyway, Luanne has been trying to get out to Starr Ranch for some time and thought she could make it to the Barn Owl Banding this Saturday. However, something came up and she now can’t make it. But she’s asked me to make her ticket available to someone else.

Sooooo, since I know you ALL love contests, go HERE if you want to take a crack at winning this ticket… Pete Follow up – The first response to this contest was from Lynn and she nailed all 11 species and gets the ticket! So the contest is already over. But I will leave it up if any of you want to see if you can also name all 11. Then sometime next week I’ll post the answer.

04/26/16 The Sierra Club is holding their annual fundraiser BBQ at Starr Ranch on Sunday, May 15th. They’ve held it here for many years and generously provide us with a portion of the proceeds. So, if you’re interested in attending, details are HERE.

04/21/16 Just back from Michigan and repairing Osprey platforms on Fletcher Pond. Will give you more details on this project soon. In the meantime, here are just two of some great pics taken by Mike Grosso (Check out Mike’s FB Page) while we were out surveying for platform damage:



It’s still not too late to help me raise some funds for Starr Ranch. Please consider a pledge to our Birdathon which will start shortly: 2016 Starr Ranch Birdathon

And there’s still space to attend the banding of the BNOW chicks on April 30th: BNOW Banding Day

04/14/16 If things continue to go well for the Barn Owls I will be banding the chicks on Saturday, April 30. As in the past, this will be a fundraiser for Starr Ranch. There is space for 40 people. Session 1 goes from 11AM to 2PM and Session 2 goes from 12PM to 3PM. Lunch will be provided and I will have a live Great-horned Owl here – and hopefully a Western Screech Owl too. Lunch, owl discussion, and banding will occur between 12PM and 2PM. More details and to make a reservation can be found HERE Thanks and hope you can make it! Pete

03/07/16 I’m aware of the loss of the comment section and the error message. Is a bit of a mystery. But I’ve let Gretchen know and am sure she’ll fix this ASAP. Thanks. Pete Update: Previous comments aren’t lost and Gretchen will archive them. In meantime she cloned the page, which is where you’re at if you can read this, and the older comments aren’t here (so likely why it loads faster). Also, there are several url’s for this site, but the one you all should use and bookmark is http://starrranch.org/blog



04/06/16 I’m about to take the watering hole off line and switch it over to a House Wren box by the garden. Last I looked she now has 3 eggs and I suspect might end up with at least 4. So please standby. Pete Update – the HOFI box should now be online. Sorry its not the best view, but it’s using a cam I installed years ago. In any case, I think you’ll get to see some cool stuff. Their nests are all made from twigs and when I see some of the twigs they bring I always ask myself “How can such a tiny bird bring in a twig this big?” But they do and are obviously very good at doing this year after year, decade after decade, century after century… I think you get what I mean… Pete

03/20/16 Thanks to all who alerted me that Firefox now plays the two lower Dropcams! Just make sure you have the current version. To find out, just go to Help>About Firefox. If your version isn’t 45.0.1, it will likely start downloading it automatically, install it, and then prompt you to restart Firefox. Pete

03/19/16 It’s Starr Ranch Ranch Birdathon time!. This has become our biggest annual fundraiser and its success is really important to keeping everything running here, not the least of which are the cams. Here’s the link to what it’s all about and how you can help us:

2016 Starr Ranch Birdathon

One thing about our Birdathon is that it can help raise funds by a lot of people pledging small amounts, and no amount is too small. There are also opportunities to win a Starr Ranch T-shirt even without pledging, although I hope you can. Thanks, Pete.

03/18/16 I’m going to pull the Bat Box Cam (I think lately there’s just been one bat in it) and put it on a HOFI nest that’s currently being built. The location of the nest is by our office and under an eave so it’s a bit dark, but you should get to see them well enough. Pete

Update – HOFI nest should now be live. Pete

2/29/16 I’m sure most of you have already figured this out, but FireFox simply will not show the Dropcams on the K-box and the trail. It’s a known problem that has yet to have a solution. But they should work on an iPad, iPhone and in Chrome. At least they have been for me. Pete

2/27/16 Wow, lot’s going on. Thank you all for posting and making it easy for me to catch up. So it looks like the female has finished laying a clutch of five eggs – which is at least anecdotally a good sign. If she had the energy to do this, hopefully there’s enough prey around to allow her and her mate to raise a potential brood of five. In the meantime, and since I know folks are guessing on hatching date(s), Lynn gave me the consensus of lay dates. They are:

Egg #1 02.14.16 11:50

Egg #2 02.16.16 19:43

Egg #3 02.19.16 10:02

Egg #4 02.21.16 16:50

Egg #5 02.24.16 12:37

Note to Tecolote: Got the socks. Thanks. Awesome artwork! I also saw that these were offered up as a prize. Hey everybody, they are really special and unique. Among other things they would highlight anyone’s wardrobe when they dined at, say, the Ritz. The real one, that is… Pete

12/19/15 Still having some probs with the dropcams (K-box and Trail cams). Unbeknownst to be, dropcam changed the embed code (!). Gretchen is working on this. And right now I’m seeing “…plugin needed to view…” but I don’t know what this one is, although I suspect Flashplayer – which I have installed.). Will keep you updated. In meantime, please don’t forget that a donation match for to Starr Ranch runs through the end of December. So if you were thinking about helping us out, now would be a good time. Details directly below. Thanks, Pete

12/10/15 Some of you may have received an December appeal and matching opportunity email from Audubon California (Screen shot of the email). Whether or not you received this email, I have since learned that if you want to support Starr Ranch and do it through the Support this Webcam link on this page, or our main donation link HERE, now would be a good time. Because by making your donation through a Starr Ranch donation link during December your gift will not only come directly to Starr Ranch – it will be doubled! Thanks. Pete

9/9/15 Well, talk about a story that told me how connected we all are… This afternoon, and as some of you might have seen on the cams, we had a heavy thunderstorm starting around 3:15PM EST that brought some high winds and ultimately a half an inch plus of rain (very unusual for us this time of year, if at anytime) over a very short time. The temp here went from around 97F to about 75F in about 15 minutes – a welcomed relief. But during it I was going around the Starr Ranch HQ closing windows and checking this and that. But when it finally abated and later Sandy and I had finished eating dinner I took a look at my email. And there was scylla’s telling me the watering hole cam was tipped over. I literally just had to turn my head and look about 30 feet out our door to see what she was talking about. And low and behold, it was just as she said. So I went out to fix and decided to try a new angle – and that’s where we are right now. But that scylla (from over 5,000 miles away) – and all of you too – have my back is just great. You guys are the best. Thank you. Pete

09/03/15 Just a quick note on the spiked buck mule deer (“Starrbuck“) with the odd antlers and a possible reason for this which I think was suggested previously. The “rut” (breeding season) began at least two weeks ago – it used to not begin until late September – and I’m seeing more bucks in the HQ area. Their testicles are quite obvious. However, not the case with Starrbuck. I actually think he is lacking them. He is definitely a buck since he has a penis, but lacking testicles must have some affect on his hormones and thus his very odd antler growth and the fact that he hasn’t dropped them and grown new ones in years.

He’s the second one to walk by in this video from a while ago:

Pete

07/12/15 For now, House Finch nest replaces the “watering hole” cam until I can set up another spot for it. House Finch has 4 chicks, 2-3 days old when I looked today. May be a day or two before you see their heads pop up. Pete

07/04/15 Bat cam will be down for a bit while I work on it.

OK, I took down the cam with the IR LEDs not working to troubleshoot and replaced with a cam of marginal quality, yet not bad, pointing straight up into the box. Not really the sharpest view but you should be able to see the bats jockeying for position and moving up/down depending on the temperature. Right now it’s about 80 at SR but up there it’s HOT – I know cause I just got down from there… Here’s a pic of the setup:



The “washouts” are hard to attenuate. But should get better as it gets dark. Pete

06/28/15 Moved the watering hole cam view to hopefully get a better look at the mega fauna that shows up – like the CA mule deer, ground squirrels and the ravens (Like Seth when he/she’s not raiding our compost – another potential cam). And a new view is on one of many bat boxes we have here. Right now there are 12-15 bats in that box at our workshop (I looked in there today) so stay tuned to when they work their way down to the “launch pad” which is what the cam is on to see when they come and go. And please do post what you see happen. We know they come and go at night but when and how often would be interesting to document. TX. Pete

05/12/15 All – Thanks for emailing me various clips and information. If you don’t hear back from me right away it’s because there is a lot of info to digest and I’m all still trying to find and download what might be key video clips before they get overwritten after a week. Thanks you all for your help. Pete

09/11/15 Update. I have been in contact with the CA Dept of Fish and Wildlife’s Wildlife Investigations Lab and will be sending the Kestrel chick to them that I was able to retrieve from the box yesterday. Maybe we will learn what might have caused the entire clutch’s rapid and highly unusual demise. From what I can tell, all the chicks appeared fine around 6AM on May 8th. So I am trying to save as much video as I can from that point through when the last chick had clearly expired. Maybe there’s something that will jump out at me when I can review it. For example, a particular incident or prey delivery might shed some light on what happened. In the meantime, if any of you saw/recorded some specific activity that looked odd to you or perhaps when you noticed any of the chicks first exhibiting signs of distress, please email me what you know, including date and time. I’m trying to accumulate as much info as possible to hopefully turn this difficult situation into something we can learn from and perhaps prevent from happening again. Thanks. Pete

05/09/15 In light of what has occurred rather rapidly, i.e. the demise of 3 of the 4 chicks, I’d like to say a few things.

– I don’t think a rush to judgement suggesting that this is the result of West Nile virus is warranted, although possible.

– It has been unseasonably cold and rainy for the last 3-4 days possibly making hunting difficult for the adults when the chicks really need food.

– Apparently the adults have been bringing in lizards and large insects, but not a lot of mice or other prey of large size/biomass. As these chicks grow they need a lot of food and maybe the lizards and insects weren’t enough.

– Most important – this kind of thing HAPPENS ALL THE TIME. Lots of reproduction takes place every year and, when ALL conditions aren’t right, nests fail. I suspect this is why birds and other wildlife produce a lot of young every year. They are at the mercy of the current condition of their habitat and food source when they breed annually. In years when every thing is good, lots of young make it. When not, they don’t. But these species breed every year and try to produce way more young than it would take to replace them when the die. Think about it – A pair of Kestrels (or insert most any other wildlife species), during their lifetime, just need to produce a male and a female to take their place when they die to keep their species viable. But they make this attempt every year, trying to raise in any given year way more than it would take to accomplish this. So most don’t make it as a matter of course, whether in the nest or after fledging. It’s just the way it works. If there are factors that indicate that a species or population is failing every year due to things like habitat loss, pesticides, etc. then that’s on us and it’s what concerns me the most. But until I see evidence of this – and I look for it all the time – chicks dying (not making it) is part of a natural cycle given how prolific these birds are over the course of their life. However, I think our severe drought is a factor affecting prey availability and there may be other reasons. And climate change is definitely influencing things. Some of these are our doing and we can fix them. If that’s the case we need to start doing so – now. Pete

05/06/15 At least one new visitor to the trail cam that I haven’t seen before. Not sure if the other two are also “newbies”. Pete

05/05/15 Phew, finally settled after 5 days in MI, 3 days at a staff mtg, and Family Nature Workshops here on Saturday. Birdathon recap and follow up is in process. I also put together a ladder to use at the Kestrel box. As soon as things warm up I’ll clean the lens and take some pics of the brood. In the meantime, here are some clips from the time periods Trish gave me for each egg hatching. The quality is not great and some kinda long, but best I could do. Once lens is clean we should be able to get a much better view.

1st Hatch

2nd Hatch

3rd Hatch

4th Hatch

Also, tomorrow morning sometime btw 6AM and 9AM I need to change out a firewall on our network. So if cams go down, this is why. Pete

04/20/15 Thank you all who pledged or made a flat donation to the Starr Ranch Birdathon! After resting on Sunday (24hr birding is fun, but exhausting…) we’re checking our list for double entries or birds we got but didn’t write down. Preliminary total is 152 and the 100th bird was a Killdeer, which no one guessed. So, closest guess to the 100th bird is the Western Bluebird (congratulations, Kay!).

Since I’m about to leave for Michigan for a week to inspect and repair Osprey platforms on Fletcher Pond in Hillman – a project I’ve been doing for at least 25 years – I won’t be able to get back to all with the day’s write up, pledge amount due, t-shirt winners, and those who will get t-shirts for donating/pledging $100 or $1+/species until the beginning of May. In the meantime, thanks so much!!! Pete Addendum: Final tally: 152 species. Congratulations Barbara, who had closest guess of 150!

04/16/15 The Starr Ranch Birdathon starts today at 6:00 PM! If you can help out with a pledge of any amount per bird species we see/hear in 24 hours it would REALLY be appreciated. Details are here: Starr Ranch Birdathon

Also, from last Saturday’s Owl Banding here are some faces to go with some familiar screen names:

L to R: JoAnne, Pete, Lynn, Wynne, BJ, enzo, greycat, 4pawsmom, Meg. Thanks, Pete

04/01/15 The Starr Ranch Birdathon is just around the corner! Please take a moment to check it out and make a pledge if you can. This is an important fundraiser for us and your help is really needed and appreciated. Thanks, Pete

This just added: There are Great Horned Owls and Barn Owls nesting near our access road (but too far away for cams) who both have chicks that I will be banding on Saturday, April 11. If you would like to join me for both bandings, details can be found HERE. This will be a fund raiser – much like banding events we’ve done here in the past – which help us to keep Starr Ranch operating. Lunch will also be provided. I hope you can attend. Thanks, Pete

04/01/15 I set the PTZ cam to hopefully auto switch to the south end of the limb where Trish reported she thought she saw a lot of bats flying by regularly at that time. If I got it right the cam will be there from 8-8:30PM, then switch back to the full limb, and then in the morning switch back to the Kestrel Box. We shall see. Please post what you see – cam position as well as any activity.. This really helps me a lot. Thanks, Pete. (And please check out my Birdathon link above. I really need your help with that part too.)

03/31/15 10:30AM Kestrel lays Egg #4

Correction to paragraph below. I got my dates messed up and it appears she’s is maintaining the 48hr apart laying sequence. Going forward it would be really interesting to note her incubation patterns starting with the first egg. My sense is she is increasing time spent on them with each additional egg but has yet to assume the typical incubation of pretty much constantly. I also just capture a week of video at a time so I may spend a little more $ and have dropcam buffer a month so it can be downloaded and reviewed later. Also, I changed the date on the Egg#3 note below from 3/30 to 3/29. Thanks for the correction, Meg! Pete

But given her 48hr period between laying I didn’t expect this and don’t know when it happened. So if anyone knows about about when #4 arrived, please let me know and I’ll look for the video clip and post it. Thanks, Pete

03/29/15 10:30AM Kestrel lays Egg #3

Hard to tell exactly when but some time between 9:10 and 10:20 this morning there were two eggs and then there were three. Here is a 90sec time lapse. A few times one can catch a glimpse of an egg or two but it’s not until she leaves that we see three. Also interesting is her timing. So far it’s pretty close to 48 hours apart. And we should see at least one to maybe three more eggs. Pete.

03/25/15 Solar incubation? Really, if you haven’t yet, see my note two paragraphs below about Kestrel incubation. I find this really interesting and is making me think more of the why it’s like this. Meaning why is it that, say, a Mallard lays a dozen eggs, starts incubating when the clutch is complete, the chicks hatch all at once and are very shortly ready to go (“precocious” young) while raptor chicks hatch over the course of several days based on when incubation started and eggs were laid and then chicks need care and feeding to fledging (“altricial” young). I understand the circumstances that likely allow for precocious v altricial young, but egg laying and incubation timing makes me think more about the “why”. Pete

03/25/15 9:25AM Kestrel lays first egg!

Hard to tell exactly when but clearly there was not an egg before 9:00. Here is a 60sec time lapse between 8:45 and 9:30. At around 40secs she briefly stops her preening and my sense is this is when she laid the egg. At 50secs we get the first glimpse. Also, here are some short realtime clips of when I first caught a glimpse of the egg and then the first view of the entire egg.

Also, perhaps of interest: Common knowledge is that raptors in general begin incubating shortly after the first egg is laid. But I’m not sure what Kestrels do specifically. So I asked my good friend Art Gingert who has decades of experience with Kestrels and Kestrel boxes. In fact I was an intern of Art’s back in the late 70’s when he was managing Audubon’s Miles Wildlife Sanctuary in CT and when we put up some of his first boxes. I still recall checking a box back in those days with him and saying “Yup, there’s an egg in the box.” But at the time neither of us knew what a Kestrel egg looked like… As it turned out, it was… Anyway, here’s what Art had to say about Kestrel incubation:

“From what I have read, and heard, kestrels may wait until the 2nd — maybe 3rd — egg before incubating, which is seemingly why at least two of the nestlings in a brood of 4 or 5 are quite close in size, and there are always one or two which are smaller, with the asynchronous hatching. And the male, as you recall, also helps incubate at times, often at night. Will be interesting to see whether that will occur there at Starr Ranch.”

Pete

03/21/15 10:20AM The PTZ will be off for a bit while I adjust some settings.

OK, I was able to set the PTZ to automatically switch to the limb at 7:00PM and the K-box at 6:30AM. If anyone thinks I should tweak these times, feel free to send me an email. I can also set up 6 other preset view during any window of time so if there’s something else anyone thinks might be good to watch at a particular time just let me know. Thanks, Pete

03/19/15 Last night a Grey Fox came out of the darkness from the same place as the previous night’s Coyote and a day or so before that, a Cougar (See links below). It’s a parade! Pete

03/18/15 Around 6:30 this morning a coyote walked by the trail cam along pretty much the same route the cougar did the night before last. Watch the upper left corner at the start of both videos. Playing back to back also provides a nice perspective on the size difference between these two mammals. Coyote and Cougar. Pete

03/17/15 Last night around 9:15PM this guy gave us a nice look on the trail cam. I suspect it’s the same one from 02/18/15. Watch the upper left corner of the video when it starts… Video Pete

03/04/15 I bet most of you will recognize these two from their past visit to the watering hole. This buck STILL has the same antlers he’s had for going on five years now. Very odd. But he appears healthy. Pete

03/02/15 Someone else checks out the Kestrel box. Hopefully decided it was too big. (There are lots of natural cavities and other bird boxes at Starr Ranch for these guys to use.) Pete

02/27/15 Bobcat on the trail cam around 2:15PM today. Nice light, too! Pete

02/18/15 After months of not seeing any on the trail cam, Surprise!

Trail cam at 1AM on 02/17/15. Pete

02/15/15 Jorge is doing some updates, backups, etc. on the server today so there may be times where the cavity, PTZ, and RSHA nest cams are down. Pete

02/08/15 Due to some water now in Bell Creek, activity at the water hole has tapered off considerably because so many other sources are available. I also recently noticed some territorial behavior by the RSHAs by our office. So I’ve switched the watering hole cam to last year’s RSHA nest. While RSHAs don’t typically lay eggs here until around the middle of March, if they’re going to use this nest we could see some new sticks and greenery brought in soon. Please let me know if you see new activity. Pete

02/02/15

Female Kestrel checks out the box!

Will they eventually use it?

Another trail cam visitor on 1/31/15.

Bobcat

01/28/15 And also a Mule Deer Doe a little while ago. Pete

Mule Deer Doe

01/28/15 Two recent visitors on the trail cam.

Possum

(A little quiz: What’s unique about an opossum’s skull?)

Spike Buck Mule Deer

The buck is the one seen at the watering hole and is also the one who hasn’t dropped his antlers in at least four years. Pete

01/21/15 If you want to see some excellent video of a BNOW in action and in some amazing slow motion, check this out:

BNOW hunting in hi-res slow motion (from BBC). Pete

12/28/14 IMPORTANT END OF 2014 INFO: This is now THE site for Starr Ranch webcams, including the BNOWs. The “BNOW only” cam site (starrranch.org/blog/barn-owl; 2 cams) is currently telling you to come here and will soon redirect you here automatically if you have it bookmarked. The comments from that site will soon be archived and available here, but going forward and to keep things as organized and as clear as possible – especially regarding comments – this is going to be THE page you want to go to to view and comment. As always, feel free to email me if you are having any problems watching or commenting.

On another note, thank you to all who have made this site so much of what I was hoping it would become. It has evolved into a camaraderie of sharing, caring, education and learning that I truly wasn’t expecting. Really, thanks so much. Among other things you have made this easy for me. The nuts and bolts of putting up and maintaining the cams, servers, etc. is actually fun for me and I love doing it. But that I have not had to “police” the site is simply awesome. You guys look after each other and zealously protect what we all have here. Wow.

Also, a sincere thank you to everyone who has helped keep it all going. I think it’s obvious that it takes $ to keep the wheels on it all (buying/installing cams, paying a third party for the bandwidth so many can watch, and just all the other things needed that unfortunately aren’t free). Without you folks, I can’t make this happen. So again, thanks. Onward to 2015. Pete

11/26/14 Gretchen and I (mostly Gretchen…) are working on some tweaks to the site that will allow some other cams to be watched – like the Kestrel box – We’re also exploring giving you the choice of what cams you want to view because I suspect as I try to add more on the same page not all of you might have enough bandwidth to stream them all simultaneously. Gretchen is also going to make the page wider since most laptops and desktop screens these days can accommodate more than the current view width. Last, comment length is now limited to 2500 characters (about 30 lines), and may get shorter after trying out, so that no single comment monopolizes an entire page. I think most of what can be said in a comment should easily fit within this limit. Pete

11/12/14 Kestrel box is up. Until I have time to work with Gretchen to put this on a page, you can check it out here: http://dropc.am/p/starr-ranch-kestrels

This cam records continuously in a 7 day buffer meaning on the 8th day, the 1st day gets overwritten. But I have motion sensing set up at the cavity entrance so if something sticks its head in I’ll get an email and can take a look. I’ll be out of town from tomorrow until the following Thursday but will still be able to monitor any activity. Also, I might point the PTZ at the box during the day so you can see the setting and also if something checks it out. Pete

11/12/14 10AM PST Cavity and PTZ cams will be off for a bit while I put up the Kestrel box and make some adjustments. Hopefully for just a few hours. Also, if you heard some chainsaw activity this morning it’s just ground cleanup of the limbs I pruned last weekend. Pete

11/09/14 Cams will be off and on for a bit today while a finally get to make some adjustments, clean lenses, etc. Am also going to see what it looks like when I move the PTZ in and a bit higher if possible to get a better angle. I’m also going to place the Kestrel box nearby so that the PTZ can be used to view the entrance hole (there will also be a cam inside the box). Pete

11/08/14 Euc pruning done but took longer than expected, but is done. Cams back up now but will be down for a bit tomorrow when I make some adjustments to them. When I turned cams back on I saw female Kestrel was roosting in the cavity. All is well… Pete

11/08/14 Sometime today the BNOW cavity and PTZ cams will be offline for a while. I need to make some adjustments and further support the boom that holds the PTZ cam. I also hope to put up a Kestrel box w/ cam that the female Kestrel might check out and use. I’ll also be pruning some of the adjacent eucs so there would be a few hours of a lot of chainsaw noise… Cams will be back up by end of day. Pete

09/19/14 I talked to Gretchen this afternoon (who, if you don’t know by now, is awesome and is playing a major role keeping the wheels on this site) about providing an encrypted email address for you folks to use to let me know you accurately guessed launch and return times to win a Starr Ranch t-shirt. She told me how to do this and I will be providing it tomorrow. Because if I just simply post the email address (and none of you should ever put an email address in a comment) for tshirt winners to use then spammers are all over it immediately and I start getting 50-100 emails a day from them. Sad, but true, and too bad there are some bad people out there who spend time doing this – and think it’s OK to do so. Shame on them. Pete

09/05/14 A little different watering hole view for a while. Hopefully will give better views of the deer and squirrels. In any case, should give you some context of the setting. Pete

08/30/14 While we are in between nesting seasons and the BNOW cavity has been empty or at least just had an occasional visitor I figured I’d get all our cams up for you to watch. All should play fine, but if you don’t have a high speed internet connection you may find watching all simultaneously will not work well. If so, just click on any screen – that’s lowest on your list to view – to stop the feed. Clicking it again should restart it. BTW, comments here will be unique to this page and not appear on the BNOW cam page to keep things from getting confused. Pete