Tag Archives: Eric Zetterholm

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I'll let Amy Ruegg tell the story.

Amy wrote, “Saturday night 7/27/24 while we were watching the Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony, at about 10:15 or so, Sydney [the dog] barked loudly twice in a way she hadn't before and jumped to the balcony railing with a growl. We brought our brightest flashlights out and there were four sets of glowing reflective eyes shining back at us. Eric's flash photography revealed the mother Mountain Lion - huge and muscular - and three Cubs about the size of Bobcats with spots still on their coats. The lions were not fearful. They remained for maybe 15 minutes or so. We think they may have been getting a drink from the spring behind our house.

“The next morning, a gathering of Turkey Vultures was assembled on trees and ground nearby, possibly indicating the site of a kill from the night before. We think the mother Mountain Lion may have made a kill, perhaps a Fawn or other animal, then led her Cubs to the water for a drink. After several minutes, she moved leisurely on into the night.”

Amy said the Deer were absent the next day, but returned on Monday. Amy wrote further, “If you watch nature very closely, you will see these subtle clues. With the Deer back in the neighborhood, I am pretty certain the Mountain Lion family has moved on."

Amazing! Thanks to Eric for allowing me to share his photos with you here and to Amy for telling the story.

Warm and breezy today! No fog.

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Eric Zetterholm photographed an Osprey framed by the moon, a spectacular photo worthy of being on greeting cards. Eric wrote, “We were down at Shell Beach and saw an Osprey hunting the shallow waters during a low tide. With a light wind, the Osprey was able to hover above the cove with the waning moon, and then dive down after its prey."

Isn't this lovely? Ospreys have such distinctive, whistling calls - I was hearing their calls earlier today. You can listen for yourself at this link to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Osprey/sounds

Thanks to Eric for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

Cool fog blanketed the Mendonoma Coast early Saturday morning. It pulled back to leave us with a beautiful day, low 70's with no wind. Lots of visitors are here this weekend!

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Eric Zetterholm found this juvenile Bald Eagle drinking water, or perhaps looking for a fish, at the Gualala River. Behind him or her is a Killdeer on the riverbank.

Thanks to Eric for allowing me to share his photo with you here.

Sunny and very breezy this afternoon!

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A week ago Tuesday, sightings of these talkative geese came flooding in. The Aleutian Cackling Geese are on the move in huge numbers. Eric Zetterholm photographed this huge skein.

That Sunday Carolyn Case found more passing by, this time on a sunny day, flying over Gualala Point Island.

It's interesting that the two photos look like they are going both north and south, but it's all about where the photographer was standing.

The numbers of the Aleutian Cackling Geese have special meaning for Doug  Forsell, formerly a migratory seabird biologist with the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Doug wrote, “Quite a few flocks passing over my house today. I counted about 3,400 geese flying by in two and a half hours including one flock of about 1,400 birds. I think that is the largest flock I've seen. That one flock was four times the entire population of Aleutian Cackling Geese in the early 1970's, when they were put on the endangered species list.” Foxes had been introduced to the islands with devastating results to the nesting geese. Doug was part of the successful effort to save them from extinction, something to be very proud of.

Some people mistake these geese for Canada Geese. Here's a closer look, photo by Sara Bogard.

From the web I found this graphic showing the difference between the two birds

Thanks to Eric, Carolyn, and Sara for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

Lots of rain yesterday, 1.42 inches in our gauge. Some showers passed by this morning, with sun reappearing in the afternoon. Another storm tomorrow! Over 52 inches season to date!

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Here is Eric Zetterholm's story from Feb. 26.

“I saw Chris Beach pointing his camera at the river as I came into Gualala for work in the morning. I turned around and pulled in next to him to see the two adult Bald Eagles on the logging structure in the river. We said hello and he said that the eagles had been just sitting there and he was waiting for one to take off and fly. I walked up the highway a bit to get a different angle and took a few pictures of the adult eagles together. I zoomed in for some close up shots and then out again to watch for one taking flight. It was then I spotted the young Eagle sitting just below the parents.”

Eric walked back to his car and found several people now watching the Bald Eagles from the riverside.  Eric wrote further, “I mentioned the little one being so hard to see hidden in plain sight, its color blending in with the logs and shadows. No one had seen the young one there, just focusing on the two white-headed adults. I went back up the road and was surprised again to see the adults start mating with the youth having a front row seat."

"Soon after, the male adult gathered up some nesting materials and flew off up river."

"I missed seeing the female adult fly away and left for work with the juvenile still sitting there perplexed. Parents can be so embarrassing.”