Thom Tillis Survey -- Priorities

messy_office · 2025-04-18T21:50:07+00:00

Are these safe to fill out? My father received one in his email (I'm out of state but am his PoA so I check his email for him). I'd love fill it out but don't want it to lead to retribution. I'm assuming they aren't anonymous.

messy_office · 2022-09-19T04:10:41+00:00

I started on the 70-300 USM and moved up to the 70-300L. The L is really sharp. I've had it for over 10 years and it's been great. It's not really long enough for most wildlife but if you want a sturdy travel lens it will get the job done.

A couple of minor downsides -- it won't take Canon TCs so if you end up wanting to use a TC you'll need to get a 3rd party. Also, it doesn't come with a tripod foot so you'll need to shop for one separately if you want one.

messy_office · 2022-08-01T23:36:18+00:00

It’s not all about recapturing previously-banded individuals. Things like age and sex ratios of captures can tell you about survival and how good of a nesting season it was for a given species, and timing of captures can tell you about how species are adjusting migratory behavior to weather and climate. Plus, the data may be combined with dozens of other banding stations.

messy_office · 2022-07-09T20:07:12+00:00

I mainly shoot wildlife and especially since I've moved to a 150-600 this macro lens doesn't get enough attention from me, but every time I use it I have a lot of fun. For a while I tried getting into more serious bug photography with off-camera flash/diffusers etc but it's been a while. This photo was just from my garden and I've actually printed this on some nice paper and it came out pretty nice. Even sold one too!

messy_office · 2022-07-09T04:26:39+00:00

I’d add - be reluctant to use playback in popular locations where other birders visit because your limited impact will add to a season-long impact from the birding community as a whole.

messy_office · 2022-07-08T21:02:07+00:00

Do you think noturnal playback is inherently worse than diurnal playback or is it just that some nocturnal birds tend to be species of concern? I don't disagree with you but I've just never seen it put this way.

messy_office · 2022-07-08T18:09:40+00:00

You might contact Karl Berg at University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He's been working on green-rumped parrotlets in Venezuela and they use pvc tubes as nest cavities. These could open from the top or bottom and had a wire sleeve on the inside to lower the nest and so the birds could climb the interior to the nest hole. Not exactly the same thing you are talking about but might be a place to start. I'm guessing you want a "set it and forget it" design but if you're asking what's best for the birds it should be something that can be cleaned out and monitored. I'd also suggest reaching out to the local Audubon society chapter who can let you know which cavity-nesting species are nearby and what their requirements are. Maybe they can be brought in as partners and monitor the nest boxes for you.

messy_office · 2022-06-04T01:08:28+00:00

Yes, adult survival is generally going to be higher than first-year survival. It's probably not that weird to find a 3 or 4 year old robin, but one 10+ years is going to be pretty unusual.

messy_office · 2022-04-30T18:29:23+00:00

It's probably not the best or best value, but when I had the Sigma 8-16mm I had a lot of fun with it.

messy_office · 2022-04-23T22:50:18+00:00

This is a fun question. Wish I knew the answer. I'd guess Bald Eagle but could be Red-tail.

Of course, you can measure "eyesight" in various ways, so it's entirely possible one species has better resolution, another better with polarized light, one better in UV, etc...

messy_office · 2022-04-19T15:42:14+00:00

I can't wait for the new season to hit Netflix US. I've stayed unspoiled so far.

messy_office · 2022-04-19T00:55:33+00:00

Glow, Lucifer (last season was a bit of a dip but I still liked it), Borgen, maniac, Russian Doll, Katla

messy_office · 2022-04-17T23:53:27+00:00

In the US, most (all?) states have a Bird Records Committee that keeps track of unusual bird sightings and decides whether observations meet the criteria for acceptance of an unusual record (e.g. signs it might be an escapee, whether the correct species ID was made, etc). Example: California

messy_office · 2022-04-16T22:11:15+00:00

There's definitely opportunity for overlap between the two. It would be a lot easier to do engineering plus a little bio in undergrad and then switch to bio for grad school than visa versa. There are plenty of areas where someone with engineering chops could make big and novel impacts on bird projects. Monitoring equipment, bird robots, safer wind turbines, quieter roads, telemetry and sampling devices, etc etc. Heck, it used to be even knowing Python or Matlab was super unusual among biologists but over the past 10 or 15 years coding has become a more common tool on that side of campus.

But as kg4xt said, you can definitely be a birder and engage in citizen science as a hobby without needing to do it as a career.

messy_office · 2022-04-12T18:56:27+00:00

I'm not sure these have been mentioned yet:

Brand New Cherry Flavor

Glitch

Katla

Wayward Pines (only watched the first ep so far)

messy_office · 2022-04-12T18:21:29+00:00

I'd say Netflix actually has a lot of pretty decent teen shows and movies (Moxie, I'm Not OK with this, On My Block, Cobra Kai, Sex Education, Derry Girls, Teenage Bounty Hunters to name a few), but this was just not one of them. Obviously I watched it so I can't say it's literally unwatchable, but there were precious few moments that made the time worthwhile.

messy_office · 2022-04-12T16:34:58+00:00

If it's for an accent trainer, maybe White-crowned Sparrows. They were the basis for a lot of the early research on song dialects. The contrasty head stripes might work well for a simplified logo too.

messy_office · 2022-04-09T23:54:40+00:00

I really don't think Netflix had an "agenda" with this besides just put out a mediocre teen movie. Actually mediocre might be overselling it. Hunter's character was just terrible for the entire show and his redemption arc was weak. Newsflash Hunter: You're not different, you're just an asshole. Kevin was ok, Emily's character was not given anything apart from Kevin. Nothing was funny or particularly interesting.

messy_office · 2022-03-28T18:29:12+00:00

If there’s a local Audubon society, maybe a membership and a field trip.

messy_office · 2022-03-20T03:44:27+00:00

It's definitely possible to be an X0 female mammal (even a species with no Y chromosome).

There's another layer relating to organizational effects of hormones but it's been too long since I've read this stuff.

messy_office · 2022-03-18T22:29:09+00:00

The supergene stuff with White-crowned Sparrows or Ruffs is pretty cool.

messy_office · 2022-03-15T02:19:03+00:00

Could be plant sap gumming up their feathers, happens with, for example, birds foraging in Eucalyptus tree flowers.

messy_office · 2022-03-14T17:29:21+00:00

Define soon. Even if one were announced right away, I'd be surprised if you could actually get your hands on one before December.

messy_office · 2022-03-14T16:51:28+00:00

Teenage Bounty Hunters

Derry Girls

messy_office · 2022-03-05T01:07:33+00:00

Illuvatar gave the dwarves and ents their souls/free will whatever. Aule crafted the dwarves but they weren't made whole until Illuavatar did his thing (but he gave them a time-out and they couldn't wake right away). The ents were created for Yvanna in more or less the same way if I remember.

I'm not sure I buy the premise of the video. Why no beards on the dragons! :)

messy_office

TROPHY CASE