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Friday, April 8, 2011

FLYday - Turkey Vulture


Turkey Vulture, Phippsburg, Maine 2010

An homage to what our feathered friends do best, fly.

(This blog post was Editor's Pick for Open Salon
http://open.salon.com/cover , April 10, 2011)

29 comments:

  1. Jo MacNair commented on your note "FLYday - Turkey Vulture".
    Jo wrote: "We have a male (I believe) strutting his stuff for a female on top of the barn at our office. He spreads his wings out and walks back and forth. The female will land then they'll hang together.Not too sure if that's a good thing at a medical office."

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  2. Gorgeous shot. They look so graceful on the wing, when you don't think about what they eat.
    AtHomePilgrim
    April 08, 2011 08:37 AM

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  3. Great capture Robin!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

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  4. Last year I was on a lonely stretch of beach and approached a group of turkey vultures circling, riding the thermal above me. I saw a lone vulture on the ground, weak and sick looking, and he turned towards me, and I stopped.

    The expression on his face, I swear, was this:

    "What am I gonna do...........they might be my friends, but they're vultures."

    If a bird could shrug, he would have shrugged.
    Ginny Rose
    April 08, 2011 10:14 AM

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  5. The turkey vultures are flying northward into our valley again, one of my favorite springtime moments, watching these birds glide between the mountain ranges...
    ...and you're so punny : )
    Just Thinking...
    April 08, 2011 12:16 PM

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  6. Stunning shot,looks a massive bird and all we've got at the moment is blackheaded gulls just put the pics on my blog...

    Best wisjies

    Chris

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  7. Chris, thank you. It is a massive bird at almost 4 feet of wing span. Close up, they have comical heads, too. At least I think so. Many people just think they are disgusting. We also have Black vultures here, though in Maine they are rare.

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  8. fingerlakeswandererApril 8, 2011 at 7:06 PM

    Our turkey vultures stuck out the winter this year. They took care of a lot of the road kill. I'm grateful for them--so amazing in flight--and a reminder that even the ugliest of nature's offerings contains a gift.
    fingerlakeswanderer
    April 08, 2011 12:18 PM

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  9. That's a magnificent shot, Robin. A reminder of nature's way of balancing herself on her own. Thank you for sharing your talents.

    ♥R
    FusunA
    April 08, 2011 12:33 PM

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  10. I get them at eye level often...magnificent birds!
    BuffyW
    April 08, 2011 01:00 PM

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  11. As someone who attempts every day to somehow get involved with birds I can only feel delight at the wonderful flying machine in your photo. With such relatively small skulls their marvelous nervous systems work marvels. I never forget they are our representatives from the ancient dinosaurs.
    Jan Sand
    April 08, 2011 01:03 PM

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  12. Although I am purposely misinterpreting your adjective, I find nothing common about this wonderful current product of evolution. This interaction of the universe with our most ingenious protoplasm comes up with a most fantastic set of solutions and the bird is a noteworthy example of what can be done with bones, flesh and feathers.
    Jan Sand
    April 09, 2011 02:27 AM

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  13. Great SHOT...They are beautiful birds with a bit of an ugly face that only a birder could love!!!

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  14. The way the US Congress and the president keep circling around their nation that seems determined to become a carcass does indeed remind one of vultures. And the way the corporate world is stripping meat from bone will no doubt leave nothing much more than a dessicated skeleton.
    Jan Sand
    April 09, 2011 09:40 AM

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  15. Sondra, Thank you for the compliment. It's so gratifying to get compliments/responses like that when it's such a common bird, and not a popular bird for the most part either. Guess it was a good photo!
    Jan, a carcass which will feed yet another creature, some kind of bottom feeder, or not. And so the circle goes and so goes a thoroughly beaten to death metaphor, which will serve as a metaphor to the metaphor, yet again..............
    Thanks for the read and view!

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  16. I am now 85 years old and have been losing weight over the past few months and my hearing is going(or, at least the high frequencies) and my left eye has a clouding lens. I sleep these days far too much and somehow the final dissolution is not as frightening as it has been. I would be proud to have at least some of my substance glide in wide circles through the skies. At the moment I cannot figure out how to manage that.
    Jan Sand
    April 09, 2011 10:56 AM

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  17. Jan, Keep watching the birds. Perhaps when the moment is right, they will "tell" you.

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  18. Great shot! It is amazing that they can be ugly and beautiful at the same time.
    A Simple Shutterbug
    April 10, 2011 09:08 AM

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  19. ASimpleShutterbug, thank you for looking and for making me a favorite, too.

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  20. Regal bird, great picture, :) poetry in a frame :)
    Rolling
    April 10, 2011 10:13 AM

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  21. Kathy Austen-Tee commented on your link.
    Kathy wrote: "What a superb picture Robin! So crystal clear ... and congratulations on your achievement!"

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  22. John Bald commented on your link.
    John wrote: "Terrific shot, congratulations"

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  23. What a beautiful photo. Thank you. -R-
    Christine Geery
    April 11, 2011 12:53 AM

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  24. What gets me is something that big can fly without jet engines.
    Catnlion
    April 11, 2011 01:06 AM

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  25. Very nice photo. R
    Sheba Marx
    April 11, 2011 07:25 AM

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  26. Rolling, thanks. I like that "poetry in a frame." True, so true.

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  27. Kathy, John and Christine thanks very much for the views and compliments. CatnLion, i agree completely that it seems kind of counter logical that a bird that massive can fly on its own power. I would say that there are "fossil" fuels involved though as it is a very primitive bird. har har

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  28. Robin Wallace commented on your link.
    Robin wrote: "Congratulations once again!!! Your photos and writings are the best!"

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