Home / Field and Travel / Page 3
Tuesday, July 5, 2022
I learned something exciting the other day: apparently the satellite view in Google Maps has enough resolution for me to map out the precise display territories of individual peacocks. What’s more, this is as true for Winnipeg as it is for Los Angeles. Upon realizing this, I spent the afternoon obsessively gathering co-ordinates for... More
Our first week of observations done, and we’ve already seen one copulation! Watching birds for hours on end at the Arboretum has actually proved to be quite enjoyable, due to the pleasant setting and perfect weather (apart from the fact that I’ve come down with a cold). This post, however, will be about Penelope.... More
One of the main reasons for coming to California this year is that I’m doing an experiment to understand how peahens choose their mates. Specifically, I’m testing whether the colour of the males’ eyespot feathers is important. My methods? Hundreds of coloured stickers, cut from sheets of sail tape. The good news is the... More
Soon, the city will be mine and Vigo’s… mainly Vigo’s. My friend Adriana recently confessed to me that, while she was enjoying this site, she’d been “skimming over the science stuff no offense”. I would like to assure... More
One thing I’ve felt a little bad about here is the amount of shit, literally, that my field assistant Rob has had to deal with. He’s the one who has to hold each peacock still in his lap for about an hour while I carefully measure and apply stickers to all of their tail... More
The peacocks here are fickle. Just when we think the good stuff is about to begin, we’ll have a day where all they want to do is sleep and eat. And it doesn’t seem to be based on the weather (at least not in any simple way), since the activity level has waxed and... More
A follow-up to my previous post: The other day, we were back at the Arboretum in the afternoon to catch birds during the second active time for peafowl (the birds like to get things done in the early morning and late afternoon, with an extended siesta between noon and 4pm). Within minutes of arriving,... More
1. Lure them with food, fish nets at hand. Realize that peacocks, although desperately hungry and willing to come perilously close to human feeders, are not willing to present their backsides to you. Also realize that peacocks know what nets are, and are capable of learning which people are associated with food, and which... More
It’s hard to believe I’ve been in Los Angeles for two weeks now. Time flies when you’re trying to outsmart wily peafowl. The best way to describe my experiences here so far would be (consistent with my history): extremely lucky. Last fall I had managed to find a furnished room for rent at a... More
From February 2, 2008 On Wednesday morning I rolled out of bed at 5:45 am (not as difficult for me as you might think) to drive to the Bronx Zoo for a brief visit. I’ve been corresponding with the curator of birds there for some time. She had approved my research proposal this fall and wanted... More
From February 1, 2008 Hello! And welcome to my internet peacock log (= klog?). In a couple of days I am heading out to California, where I will study the mating behaviour of large population of peafowl at the Los Angeles Arboretum. On the way there I will stop in sunny Arizona for a conference... More
Search