I don't want to be an Osprey, but Rich lives in fear that the koi will be put in the pool for the Osprey - keeps him on his toes!   
[/quote]

You need to find a couple of *large* and realistic fake fish to slip into the pool overnight
Carol
WV

The girl left the box out all night, hoping the mother would come for them. Well mom never came but something else did and killed 3 of them and left 1. The lone survivor is being cared for by the friends sister, who is bottle feeding the darling little kitten. I think I have a home for this sweetie.

How awful for the others.

What a dunce!  Are those photos of the kittens?  They look old enough to be learning to eat meat baby food, and kitten milk from a bowl.  If you email me, I will send you a recipe for "Kitty Glop", which has saved many a kitten or sick cat...
Carol
WV

Thanks all... this is the Orchid I have, it's a Colm. Wildcat Green Valley - http://www.slipperorchid.com/other_orchids/Colm_Wildcat_GreenValley_Free_2.jpg

Pretty thing!
There are some pretty good care sheets online.  I found some by Googling Colm Wildcat Green Valley.  Definitely worth saving if you can!
Good luck!
Carol

The care that it needs will be dependent on what kind of Orchid it is.
The most common one sold at many stores these days, including at the Home Depot where I work, in the Garden Department,  is Phalaenopsis, and they are not potted correctly for continued life, unfortunately.
In their natural habitat, most Orchids don't grow in the ground like "normal" plants, they grow in various combinations of debris that collects in the crotches of trees in the jungle.  Depending on what part of the country you live in, Home Depots will have proper Orchid potting mixes, and proper receptacles in which to plant them.  The key is that Orchids require both good drainage and *ventilation* at their roots.
I live in West Virginia, so the only type of Orchid pot we sell in my store is a clay one, with vertical slots on the sides to enable that ventilation.  We also sell a pretty good Phalaenopsis potting mix that has repotting instructions on the bag.  I just sent away to Home Depot dot com for little cedar baskets to transplant my Cattleyas into.  You can find a lot of fairly good care sheets online, depending on the variety.  Orchids' needs aren't too elaborate, but they ARE quite specific.
I would be very interested in what type yours is, and hopefully we can get it turned around for you 
Carol

I'm so sorry 
Heaven has a new Angel.  Hugs to you and your family...
Carol
WV

Rick Wakeman - Journey to the Centre of the Earth!  Expelled via Mt Etna.  Ok, I'm a product of my generation :-)

I think your generation spans quite a few years 
Carol
WV

The Byron-Bergen School newsletter just came out telling about the excitement of winning the challenge and included a description of what the playground will be like when it's finished. They're presently recruiting people to help assemble the project and when it's finished, I'll see if I can get a pic of it to post on here.

That's the type of project that Home Depot supports, frequently gathering teams of associate volunteers for a day to do the work.  Definitely worth exploring the possibility.
Carol
WV
HD Associate

It appears to have the head of a woodchuck.  The body looks deformed.

Worth considering...http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3601991
Carol WV

He had to file an IFR flight plan first.

 
Carol
WV

The incest taboo is primarily cultural, at least on the scale of a generation or two, as far as I know. Inbred dogs that end up with weak hips and the like have been inbred a LOT. Of course if there is some very dominant weakness, it may be magnified by inbreeding, but in many very successful human cultures (that have no observed high rate of birth defects, etc), what we would call "first cousins" are the preferred choices of mate.

Inbreeding of course doesn't *create* problems in itself.  Recessive genes are everywhere, and all it takes it two copies of one to show the trait.  Dominant ones are easier to track, but recessives are forever, and the trait can show up many generations down, when two unsuspecting carriers chance to match up.  In a species near the top of the food chain, individuals getting two bad copies get weeded out pretty quickly.
Carol

Shepherdstown update:
http://www.spiritofjefferson.com/new-eagle-marking-territory-at-nctc/
Carol
WV (about twelve miles from NCTC)

The minute Janet mentioned that this gentleman “was able to teach science and not go against creationâ€�, she opened the door! 

Good Grief!  What a major flap about a simple observation.  Sure, religion and politics do not belong here, we all have our own views on both.  But I didn't see anybody promoting OR denigrating anyone else's views until this post.  My plea?  Lighten up!
Carol Furnée

Yikes, all of our canine falcon watchers had better start wearing hard hats and Kevlar.

That person must be related to the one who believes Mariah and Kaver had eight-foot wingspans!
His dog is probably safe until it fledges...
Carol Furnée

Oh, Dear 
Hers was one of the first names I remember seeing on the discussion list and board in the early days.  I bet lots of us will be sending something to GVAS in her memory...
Carol
WV

Always sad to read about dwindling populations, wherever they occur. What a stunner!

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/less-than-125-tropical-kingfishers-left.html

Didn't know rats ate birds! Bad enough cats do.

I would guess - tho I stand to be corrected - that rats will predate the nests and the eggs. Perhaps the hatchlings too. Not sure about the adult birds...

Rats probably eliminate WAY more birds (of ANY species) than cats do.
Carol
WV