Sex and violence outside my bedroom window!

[leon_heller]

Where I lived once I had a couple of house martin nests under the eaves. They were quite noisy. They returned for a couple of years, but the nests disintegrated one winter and they didn't come back after that.

[leon_heller]

Mr and Mrs Gull are busy completing the nest. They take it in turns sitting on it and arranging the material, while the other one fetches more grass and twigs. Last night Mrs Gull spent the entire night here for the first time.

I've got a web cam on the nest now, and can record their activities. I'm trying to set up live video streaming. I did think of a use for an XMOS chip in connection with this - a USB to Ethernet bridge. It would need host mode full-speed USB, though, which isn't available. Here is a still of the female:

http://www.leonheller.com/Gull/Gull.png

The camera is held by closing the window on the flexible mount, which gives a rotated image. I'll see if I can mount it on a piece of wood with the mount bent up vertically, to give a properly orientated image.

I offered them an egg this morning. They didn't seem to know what to do with it so I broke it for them and they both tucked in. Then something strange happened, one of them picked up a piece of egg shell and flew off with it. 30 minutes later he removed the other piece. I think I read somewhere that they dispose of their own egg shells like that, the presence of the shell near the nest must have triggered the same behaviour.

[Latest news]

I think there is an egg in the nest. When the birds changed over I could just see something round and mottled green.

[shawn]

Never a dull moment :|

[leon_heller]

Sadly, that first egg has been broken; it was removed and placed about 1m from the nest. I brought it in and photographed it:



Perhaps the damage was caused by the egg resting against something hard when it was stepped on. Mrs Gull has abandoned the nest for now but there should be another egg in a day or two.

[shawn]

Stepped on is very bad!

I live in upstate NY on the edge of the Adirondack region, its defiantly over the mountain.
Lots of wild life, very splendid. yes at times, sex and violence happens not far from my window
too. Late at night I used to be able to hear violence off in the woods or near field as a
wild pack of coydogs barked and snarled as they prey upon their victim. A poor little fawn
caught off guard or maybe a goose, fox, dog, cat. My cousin and I once heard something
like a big bear, it was strange and not a bear. To this day the sound was haunting like chupacabra.

[otitov]

please, chupacabras live in Mexico only ;-)

[shawn]

So it breath down our fricking neck's and panted deep and kept getting louder till we bolted into the
house nlike scooby doo. To this day we figured it wasn't a wounded cow and likely not to be anything
indigenous to these parts. To hell with what I heard it felt like it was stalking us. What is Redeye...
cause thats what I think it was. Indian myth, perhaps, but why then am I shaking as I type this.
Never say it, don't even think the name :twisted:

Shawn

PS I respect the ancient wisdom.

[otitov]

I suspect that you was not carrying on a protective amulet - XMOS L2 - in your pocket. It has CrossLink which repellent any chupas in area of 30 nm :D

[leon_heller]

A new egg materialised this morning! I enticed Mrs Gull off the nest with some food and saw it.

[shawn]

Hey I just recieved My XK-1 kit.
Now I'd like to see if Redeye wants to mess with the force, now... :mrgreen: