Kathy O. sent an email last night about a show at the Strasenburgh Planetarium this weekend titled "The Falcons of Toronto."  It will be showing at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday July 17.  Here is the describition from the Planetarium's website.

THE FALCONS OF TORONTO
Thirty years ago, peregrine falcons faced extinction in North America when DDT entered the food chain and killed their young. Now these champions of the sky have re-established themselves and some have forsaken the countryside to live in the city. These intrepid newcomers nest on cliffs of concrete and hunt in canyons of steel and glass. But while the city is a good provider, there are also hidden dangers in the urban jungle. An NHK Production


I will be attending the Saturday show, if anyone else wants to go, just let me know.
Tickets are:  $10 for adults,  $9 for senior citizens, and $8 for children.

Lisa McK.

MAK and Sue want to go

Bill and I want to go too. Can we buy tickets there that night or is it better to buy online now?

They remind me of Smokey from Lost.

It does remind me of "Smocke" after looking at it!   

Batavia residents dismayed by invasion of gulls
Dave McKinley • WGRZ-TV • July 15, 2010

There's a problem that has folks in Batavia squawking.
It's an invasion of offensive birds in the heart of the city's downtown business district.
They are gulls, which begin arriving in May and which — unlike the swallows of San Juan Capistrano — are not a welcome sight.
Flocks numbering several hundred birds have taken to the abandoned Latina Food Market at the corner of Jackson and Ellicott Streets in what we're told are increasing numbers.
The building's flat roof, with sheltered areas and pools of water from rain storms seems to provide the gulls an ideal nesting ground safe from predators.
The gulls have become increasingly troublesome for nearby merchants like Ken Mistler, who owns three businesses including a restaurant he opened just this week.
"Well, the noise is OK and we don't mind it because it kind of sounds like we're at the beach," said Mistler, referring to the constant screech of the birds, which can be heard from a block away.
"But it's the feces, the bird droppings on all the cars, ... I haven't seen any umbrellas yet but I've seen a few people running," Mistler told WGRZ-TV.
In addition, a classic car show that had been an annual event in the large parking lot adjacent to the building has been scuttled, because owners of the cars are unwilling to display them with the threat of what a barista working in a nearby coffee shop described as "presents from above."
Some have also expressed concern over the potential spread of disease from dead birds, which are routinely removed from the parking lot on a daily basis.
Genesee County Health Director Randolph Garney did not return a phone call seeking his comments.
Most offensive to passers by though, may the pungent smell created by the birds and their droppings which wafts through the area.
"It's a pretty foul odor," remarked Mistler, with apparently no pun intended.
"When it gets humid out, it's pretty rancid down here," he said.
Having previously cited the building for property code violations, the city recently took the additional step of condemning it to force its Buffalo-based owner, Tom Lewin of LKLWL Properties, into court.
"I'd just like to see the guy who owns the building step to the plate and take care of his building," said Mistler.
Besides confirming that the city also wishes to have a resolution to the problem, Batavia City Manager Jason Molino declined further comment because the case is now in court.
Lewin, who has a date before a Batavia City Court judge regarding his property later this month, could not be reached for comment.

http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid34757272001?bctid=114845275001

I haven't been by there in awhile.  It's unusual for geese to not be there.  Hmmm

We went to Henrietta this AM and today we saw a lot of geese.  There were about 20 walking through the parking lot in front of Penney's heading for the lawn on Jefferson and there were dozens in the pond and the surrounding lawn in front of Macy's.

Is this what happened to all the geese that used to be around Marketplace Mall in Henrietta?  I've always wondered what happened to them and suspected they may have been euthanized in some way.

There's a few down in the Target-Lowe's area but all the geese that used to be around on the lawn by the Marketplace sign aren't there anymore.  Does make you wonder...

I know geese are problematic but sheesh.  Are there no natural predators that could be introduced?

I know, Jeanne.  I felt bad too.

Hundreds of geese euthanized near NYC airports

July 13, 2010 12:17 AM

NEW YORK -- Officials say hundreds of geese located near New York City airports have been euthanized in the past several weeks.

Carol Bannerman, spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services, said Monday the department was asked to remove Canada geese from more than a dozen locations within seven miles of city airports.

Bannerman said nearly 400 geese were corralled at Prospect Park in Brooklyn on Thursday and euthanized using carbon dioxide. She said the geese are removed because they are a risk to planes.

In January, 2009, Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger safely glided a US Airways jet into the Hudson River after its engines failed when the plane struck a flock of geese.

Bannerman said approximately 1,200 geese were removed last summer and the department planned to remove about the same amount this year.

Bill and I will be there.

Nice pics!  Thanks!

Unprecedented Turtle Egg Move Underway

Preparations are underway to relocate some 70,000 sea turtle eggs from nests on Northwest Florida beaches to the central-east coast of the sunshine state -- their destination: a temperature-controlled warehouse at Florida's Kennedy Space Center.

The egg relocation, described by authorities as "unprecedented," is meant to save the sea turtles, once they hatch, from currents in Northwest Florida that would likely carry the young turtles right to the Gulf spill's floating oil.

Scientists involved in the massive effort explain desperate times call for desperate measures.

"If we left the hatchlings to fend for themselves, they would face a certain death," said Robin Trindell, sea turtle management coordinator for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), which is handling the effort in coordination with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, as well as FedEx, which is handling the transportation.

"Relocating nests at any time is also very risky and would be considered only during an unprecedented disaster such as the Deepwater Horizon incident," Trindell told Discovery News.

Beginning in mid July, Trindell and her colleagues will start the painstaking work of carefully digging out an estimated 700 sea turtle nests by hand, with each nest containing approximately 100-120 eggs. The eggs will then be placed in special Styrofoam coolers containing dampened sand from the nests.

The coolers will go into what FedEx calls "Custom Critical air-ride, temperature-controlled vehicles." Those air-cushioned vehicles will transport the eggs some 500 miles east to a temperature-controlled warehouse at Kennedy Space Center near Cape Canaveral. There, researchers will monitor the eggs until they hatch. Once the hatchlings emerge from their eggs, they will be released on a nearby central-east coast Florida beach.

Researchers emphasized that the eggs, before hatching, will not be moved until they have incubated for at least 49 days at their original Northwest Florida nest sites.

Patricia Behnke of the FWC explained that it's believed "magnetic signals, tied to location, come into the sea turtle eggs when they are in the nest." These signals may remain with the sea turtles for decades, guiding females back to their place of origin, where they too may lay their eggs.

It's also possible that the adult sea turtles will return to the east coast of Florida to nest.

"Normally scientists like to have a lot of control tests to better predict outcomes, but they do not have that time luxury now," Behnke said. "The undertaking is risky, however it's felt that the risk of doing nothing and losing the hatchlings is even higher. Such extreme measures would never be undertaken under most other circumstances."

She pointed out that many Florida sea turtles, along with other animals, such as manatees, have already perished, due to a deadly winter cold snap that hit the state earlier this year. The impact of those deaths also remains unknown. Even turtles born under normal conditions face tough odds.

"Fifty percent of the hatchlings, which are just 1 to 2 inches long, don't make it anyway, so we are afraid of losing the entire colony of sea turtles from that region," said Behnke.

Nevertheless, Trindell, Behnke and their colleagues "remain hopeful." Jeff Trandahl, executive director of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, which is aiding the relocation efforts, is also hopeful that Florida's northern population of sea turtles can be saved.

"In light of the imminent threat to sea turtles, we felt it was important to help move this extraordinary project forward," Trandahl said.

He added, "Given our strong relationship with FedEx and our long-standing relationship with the federal agencies, we were able to move quickly to develop an effective plan. We'll continue to work with all parties so that this relocation offers the best hope for sea turtles' survival."

The sea turtle egg relocation project is expected to continue through October

[locations and times online]

If your cell phone has texting capability,  set it up to follow the watchers on Twitter before you leave home.

You can also ask to use your hotel's business center if it has one. The will be at least one computer in there that has Internet access. You can read the forum from there. Public libraries have free Internet access too. The Rochester downtown library is just across the Genesee River from the Times Square building, and there are library branches in all the suburbs. Check locations and times online.

For myself personally I'm sure I'll be fine.  I was just thinking it might be best to set up a time & place each day for everyone to meet & get an update on who's where etc.

Best suggestion I've read yet, Ei.  I was going to write that one myself as I have "just a phone" too.  Any plans for a gala or get-together breakfast?  Just wondering-haven't read about anything that's going on yet.

But if they are not looking for a long period of time, she might be easy to miss.  Look at us with Callidora.  We were circling the area on foot for hours and even stopped to look at the jail and still didn't see her.  If she is laying low or resting, it might be really hard to see her. 

They said in the post that they weren't there during the most active times and it was hot/humid so these could all be factors too in not seeing Warrior.  Let's hope she's OK and just laying low and keeping cool.

I keep checking as well.  I am holding on to the post by elimac saying she heard her but I wish someone would get a sighting of her.

I look at the site everyday and wish someone would post a confirmed sighting of Warrior too.  I think the last time she was seen was on the 2nd.

Someone posted that they heard Warrior this past Sunday morning but Chad and Chris posted this AM that they've checked everyday since last Friday and have only seen the 2 adults-no sign of Warrior.

Clementine is Beauty's niece!  Her mother is Hathor, another daughter of Beauty's parents, Dorothy & Erie.

They found Clementine dead yesterday after being witnessed diving head first into the street.