Wondering Where the Quest Updates Are?
We can’t blame you really. It’s been about 2 weeks since we’ve posted one.
The problem isn’t with the data, it’s with the money. You may recall that the money for the Quest tracking project came to the Genesee Valley Audubon Society (GVAS) in the form of a grant made by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). Meanwhile, the DEC set up an account with the company which provides the satellite tracking data, in their name. So, in a typical example of governmental bureaucracy, GVAS had to send a check back to the DEC for each payment, then the DEC cut a check to the people who handle the satellite data.
To their credit, the DEC decided to get out of the ‘middleman’ game a couple of months ago. They worked with ARGOS to set up an account directly with GVAS for Quest’s satellite data. We thought everything was OK, but at the end of August we stopped receiving the daily data feeds. We’ve gone a couple of days without data in the past, and it was due to problems with the satellite company’s data processing systems, so at first we thought that’s what was going on this time. After several data-less days, we got in contact with them and found out that they hadn’t received our latest payment. We made immediate payment arrangements but they only take checks, so we won’t receive any data until our check works its way through the snail mail and the bank. We’ll keep an eye on things and get more updates out as soon as we can. In the meantime, we appreciate everyone being patient while we work through this little monetary snafu.
September 16th, 2009 at 5:36 AM
Wowee wanting a check snail mail is a little archaic in today’s technological times. Hopefully they get with the electronic payment times soon! 😀 Thank you for letting us know so we’re not concerned about Quest, and for your diligence!
September 16th, 2009 at 3:01 PM
Oh, for crying out loud!
Thanks for the update, Jess. What a stupid thing 🙂
September 16th, 2009 at 7:42 PM
Gee whiz…thats too bad, hope all works out, for the good. Thanks for letting us know, as we all want to keep our eyes on Quest and her travels.
September 18th, 2009 at 1:51 PM
Could be worse. They could have wanted it delivered by carrier pigeon. 🙂
September 20th, 2009 at 10:56 AM
Or pony express 😉
September 21st, 2009 at 10:08 AM
I begin to think it is walking….
September 21st, 2009 at 7:19 PM
I’m thinking the same thing- 3 weeks and counting…
September 21st, 2009 at 7:48 PM
ahhh the US postal service at its finest. Think they are actually using real snails?
September 21st, 2009 at 11:06 PM
I heard that US mail has been outsourced to India and that the new mail hub is in Calcutta for cheaper labor…
September 22nd, 2009 at 8:35 AM
Maybe the check got to them and now they are waiting for the banks to clear it.
Or worse, ARGOS is excavating for the data, which has been buried under newer arrivals….
September 22nd, 2009 at 10:17 AM
3 weeks and counting…..
September 22nd, 2009 at 6:53 PM
We could have a contest. Where Quest will be when we actually get the data: Same location as last month or……. 🙂
September 22nd, 2009 at 7:33 PM
Barb, maybe Quest is in the Bahamas with her new boyfriend who learned how to bit off the transmitter so we’d never know she was there because someone is waiting for a check to clear!
September 23rd, 2009 at 11:04 PM
lol I was thinking back to Cape Cod but the Bahamas sounds nice. Hope she does find a boyfriend with a brother or uncle for her mom
September 24th, 2009 at 3:35 AM
I think Mariah is on a year long vacation this time around. She’s probably just being smart and deciding that it is not worth it to fight over Rochester territory when she’s not in breeding mode anymore. I believe Mariah will have no problem finding a good strong mate (if Kaver’s failure to return is permanent).
I believe when she does return, she will reclaim her territory for the breeding season and hopefully do it without hurting Beauty or Archer in the process. While I know it is wrong to give human emotions to animals, I do believe that there are possibly times when we fail to give them credit where it actually IS due.
September 24th, 2009 at 9:20 AM
Amen, John Carlos
September 24th, 2009 at 12:27 PM
My sentiments exactly, John Carlos.
September 24th, 2009 at 5:18 PM
Quest-ion: Is ARGOS not recording Quest’s signal at all during this time?
September 24th, 2009 at 10:06 PM
I spoke with June this evening and she is working very hard to get the Quest updates coming again. I know it’s hard to be patient, believe me. Especially since there may be a trip in the works for some of the Watchers in the near future. But, it all depends on whether Quest is still up in Canada. 🙂
September 24th, 2009 at 10:07 PM
If all goes well, a QUESTing we will go. LOL 😉
September 26th, 2009 at 4:20 AM
Fantastic, Carol. Don’t forget to pack the camera! Checked ontbirds raptor migration reports and Quest hasn’t been spotted so far. (Ottawans may want to know yesterday a juvie was sighted “missing a number of flight feathers” at Andrew Hyden Park.)
ARGOS gets my vote for this year’s Darwin Award for using cutting edge business communication technology. 😉
September 28th, 2009 at 10:32 AM
Well, we’re still working with ARGOS to get the data flowing again… Payment details have been fixed. The remaining problem stems from the fact that the previous account was basically deleted when the new one was created. Now the transmitter data has to be matched up with our new account. We’re in contact with ARGOS on a daily basis to get this ironed out, and I think we’re pretty close.
The good news is that when we do get the data, hopefully it will be a whole month’s worth. If that’s the case we’ll publish one big map with all the data points, so you’ll get a larger than usual sample of Quest’s movements.
Keep being patient fans. We’re working on it…
September 28th, 2009 at 2:17 PM
Thank-you for the status report.
September 28th, 2009 at 6:24 PM
Thanks, Jess!
I’m sure you and the rest of the rfalconcam cast will get everything sorted out. Anyone want a poll on where Quest is now?
September 29th, 2009 at 8:08 AM
Thank you, Jess, for the status update- it’s appreciated! Hopefully we’ll all see that month-long report of Quest’s recent adventures soon.
September 29th, 2009 at 5:09 PM
Thanks, Jess. Looks like Alison, Maureen and I won’t have to pay ARGOS a visit in our Monty Python Spanish Inquisition costumes after all. 😉
Paul, I think she’s right over the kodak tower looking for cached prey.
September 30th, 2009 at 1:47 AM
I worry that since she’s not in territorial/hormonal mode for raising young, Quest is just hanging out east of Toronto and getting ready to pick a fight there next season… Hopefully she stays away from Rhea Mae and Ranger and no one gets hurt in the process… 🙁
September 30th, 2009 at 4:30 PM
Can’t wait to find out what Quest is up to. Thanks so much for following through for us.
September 30th, 2009 at 5:06 PM
Gee, you will be worrying a long time if you are already thinking of that. Quest is just a bit more than a year old, it could even be 2011 before she thinks of family.
September 30th, 2009 at 5:29 PM
@chrissy- too funny! We’ll give ARGOS a little more time to get things back on track before we consider a visit 😉
September 30th, 2009 at 5:58 PM
I guess we never know, huh Allison? Mariah was downed (temporarily) by (2) two year olds…