Re: [APML] critter stories

["Franklin A. Holub" <lists@my-spot.com>]

O.K. I couldn't resist any more... So more critter stories from my
experiences.

1.) About five years ago I was doing some observing while seated on a stool.
I was staring intently into the eyepiece, when I felt something touch my
leg. I looked down and was a raccoon sniffing my knee and had his paw on my
leg. I'm not sure which one of us was more frightened! I jumped and screamed
and he ran...

2.) 3 or so summers ago I was manually guiding an exposure of comet C/1999
S4. The fact that comets are hard to manually guide on is usually enough and
listening to an owl eating his dinner in a tree a short distance away made
the job harder. But, listening to the owl's dinner loudly protesting that
fact that it was being eaten did in the exposure!

3.)Back in the Fall of 2000, I was getting in some good manually guided
exposures from a small parking lot under the dark skies of Sleeping Bear
National Lakeshore. It was a cold night, and I was starting to get one of
those really bad chills. I was dressed warmly but sometimes you get one of
those deep down chills you just can't shake... Anyway, I was going to stick
it out for one last 30 minute exposure, but 3 or 4 minutes into the exposure
I heard the distance howls from the coyotes that have recently arrived to
the park area. I was DONE, when I heard those howls a chill like nothing I
have ever felt ran right into my spine! The scope was packed in record time
and I drove back to the campsite and spent the rest of the evening in front
of a big warm fire...

Frank
http://www.my-spot.com/astronomy.htm


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jonas Carlsson" <stargazer@tiscali.se>
To: "Discussion of Film Astrophotography" <astro-photo@seds.org>
Sent: Wednesday, December 10, 2003 1:07 PM
Subject: Re: [APML] critter stories


> Both of these stories remind me of two (or actually several) occasions
when
> standing in the yard of our previous house observing. (The house we lived
in
> then was situated in the countryside here in the south of Sweden).
> Often when standing alone in the darkness there was bats coming close to
me
> and on at least one occasion I have felt a light wind (or touch) from a
bats
> wing in my hair as they just changed direction. Nothing was heard but as I
> knew there was a lot of bats I felt more close to nature then scared for
the
> unknown.
> On anotherf occasion I was standing on the same spot when I could just
make
> out a large shadow passing just above me. First I got a bit scared but
then
> I heard something big sitting down in a tree just about 30 meters from me.
I
> lit a torch to see what it was and saw that it was a large so-called
> "mountain owl", the largest type of owl here in Sweden. That was really
> nice!
>
> Unfortunately we live in a town now and qwls of this kind is not to think
> about - but there is still bats which is really nice!
>
> Jonas Carlsson
> Kristianstad, Sweden
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Greg Hartke" <ghartke@adelphia.net>
> To: "Discussion of Film Astrophotography" <astro-photo@seds.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2003 11:11 PM
> Subject: RE: [APML] critter stories
>
>
> >
> > I hesitated to mention this experience but Don's quiet flyer story
> certainly
> > brought to mind the time an owl investigated me. Libby and I were on a
> long
> > backpacking trip (something like 10 days) in the Wind River Range in
> > Wyoming. We were encamped at just about tree line, say something like
> 10,500
> > ft. As usual, I hung around outside the tent for a while for a good look
> at
> > the sky. Just as the last light was fading, this enormous owl came
flying
> up
> > and circled me 3 times at a radius of maybe 15 feet or so. It was very
> > nearly silent; I could barely discern a rustle in its flight that close.
> It
> > finally landed on a stunted tree up the hill behind a boulder, maybe 30
> feet
> > away. Of course I could barely see it as a gray shape in the gloaming. I
> > stood stock still not wanting to frighten it. It sang for me briefly, a
> > surprisingly soft and throaty song. After a few minutes it took off,
> circled
> > me once more, and winged away. I guess it decided it wasn't going to
> attack
> > an ogre like me. Maybe it was the smell. ;) Anyway, it was an
> unforgettable
> > experience.
> >
> > Greg Hartke
> > Sykesville, MD
> >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: astro-photo-bounces@seds.org
> > > [mailto:astro-photo-bounces@seds.org]On Behalf Of westergren
> > > Sent: Monday, December 08, 2003 1:05 PM
> > > To: Discussion of Film Astrophotography
> > > Subject: Re: [APML] critter stories
> > >
> > > Another Critter Story,
> > >
> > > I have heard stories of how quiet bats are when they fly.  I saw
(heard)
> > > first hand one night when my observing buddy and I were outside our
> > > observing tents talking and enjoying the night sky.  Siloueted against
> the
> > > white dome tent, I saw a bat fly over my friend's head, within a
> > > foot above
> > > him.  Neither of us heard a thing and neither of us were talking at
the
> > > time.  I could see the bat wings flap, but they are absolutly quiet.
> > >
> > > Don
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > Astro-Photo mailing list
> > Astro-Photo@seds.org
> > http://seds.org/mailman/listinfo/astro-photo
>
> _______________________________________________
> Astro-Photo mailing list
> Astro-Photo@seds.org
> http://seds.org/mailman/listinfo/astro-photo


_______________________________________________
Astro-Photo mailing list
Astro-Photo@seds.org
http://seds.org/mailman/listinfo/astro-photo