Redwood Forest
Last year we took a 15 day road trip. One of our first stops was the Redwood National & State Forest. We came across a group of vultures so we stopped to admire them. I don’t know what they were eating, but it was very stinky.

Oregon Zoo
During the summer, the Oregon Zoo has a bird show. One of the birds that flies around is a turkey vulture.

Lake Billy Chinook
Last summer we went camping at Lake Billy Chinook. We went on an evening guided tour about turkey vultures & saw a group of them roosting in a couple trees.

Our House
This summer it seems the turkey vultures have been flying around more often.

Grand Canyon
The furthest destination on our road trip was the Grand Canyon. It was a first for all of us. We saw many amazing things while there, including the critically endangered California Condor. We saw at least 3 different California Condors. They aren’t the prettiest bird, but they are huge & it makes me happy to see them flying around.
This one is tagged #4.

If you look closely towards the middle of the photo is a California Condor flying in the Grand Canyon.

This one is tagged #84.

BIRD SPECIES SEEN IN 2013:

SEEN SO FAR = 82 of 100

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As part of our Amazon Rainforest study we visited the Amazon Flooded Forest exhibit at the Oregon Zoo. This is a section we don’t generally spend a lot of time exploring. So, this was a great excuse to look a little closer. I had Farm Kid1 answer a few questions such as Which animal is the most colorful? Why? Which animal is the hardest to find? Why? Can you find all the colors of the rainbow in this exhibit? Farm Kid2 had a piece of paper & a few crayons. He drew the animals.

I’m not sure about you, but I never realized how high the waters get in the Amazon. I guess I never thought about it. The seasons in the Amazon are marked by the rain. During the rainy season the Amazon basin will flood, the waters getting extremely high. Eventually the water will recede showing off the forest floor. Some how the plants & animals have figured out how to adapt to these changes every year.

RED-HANDED TAMARIN
Emerald tree boa in the background. It appears as though these two are in the same area, but really they are separated by glass.

EMERALD TREE BOA

GREEN ANACONDA

PACU
Also in the exhibit are big fish called pacu. We learned that pacu in the wild eat the fruit from trees when the water is high, then poop out the seeds. When the water level recedes the seeds grow into new trees. These fish are an important part of the system.

DWARF CAIMAN
Not exactly the prettiest set of teeth.

ARRAU TURTLE
They are an endangered species.

We spent a good 45 minutes examining this small, but educational, exhibit. We all left with a better understanding of the rainforest.

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