Shutter Happy Images Has Moved!!

You can find all these photos and more at [ FaceBook - Dreaming In Pixels Photography ]



I will no longer be upating this blog. Click [HERE] to be directed to my Facebook page.




Preview from...

Dreaming In Pixels

Latest Images at www.dreaminginpixels.com

Thursday, August 24, 2006

A Tale of Two Pigeons - Week 7 - Grand Finale

Week 7 : 14 Aug - 20 Aug 2006

14 Aug 2006
Feeding frenzies still go on. Parents still fly in with food. Notice how Elvira digs into the parent's beak for food. Carlos watches by.


Food fight! May the strongest bird win...


15 Aug 2006
"Mom look... i can fly!".
Elvira showing off her newly acquired talent and long feathers. They are still not confident of flying. They practice one small flight at a time not lasting for over 2 seconds.


16 Aug 2006
Week 7 and they already look like adults. Notice their feet, claws and their feathers.


See the baby fuzz on Carlos's feathers? Elvira doesnt have any, Carlos might lose them in the next two days.


17 Aug 2006
Standing tall in their new house. Their flight duration has increased a bit. They can flap up to a height of 6 feet and fly back down. This means they could fly to the balcony ledge and see a new whole world from there. (And no. They dont start singing "A whole new world" from Aladdin)


No more baby fuzz.. woohoo!!


Aww.. I love you too, little fella :)


18 Aug 2006
This was the best part. The mom and kiddos were lined up on the balcony. It was interesting to watch the parent give flight lessons to juniors. Mom shoots out instructions and Elvira repeats. Carlos seems disinterested and distracted. He is not paying attention to the class.


After explaining a couple of flight tips and tricks, mom flies over to the neigbour's balcony to give them a demo. Elvira follows, screws up with the landing, panics and returns back to our balcony. She succeeds the second time she tries. After a successful landing, she hops over to the mother and delivers a kiss on her cheek as if telling her.. "I made it mom, I made it!! mwwaahh... i love you!!!"


Carlos on the other side has still not made up his mind. He looks down from the third floor balcony; he is not afraid of heights. He just doesnt remember the take-off instructions, because he wasnt paying attention when mom was giving a demo. After a couple of pondering moments, he decides to take the plunge and surprisingly, he makes it to the other side on the first attempt! They go back and forth, back and forth for a couple of times before they retire for the night.


Carlos tired from all the flying and flapping calls it a day and goes to sleep.

19 Aug 2006
Carlos and Elvira flew away for a couple of hours and came back in the night to sleep. I think it was their day out which included flying lessons, socializing and introduction to other pigeon families, making friends, food hunting and learning to stay away from their predators.


20 Aug 2006
They are gone. They did not return for the night. We felt so lonely once we realized that they were gone for good and we might not see them again. We miss those flappy buggers. They were the center of our attraction for the last 7 weeks and kept us busy and occupied. We let them stay, fed them, gave them cute names, provided them protection and shelter, cleaned up their mess, took pictures, made them a celebrity on this blog, avoided using the a/c as long as they were around.... and now they fly away without a word of thanks. Well, actually Sal said that they came to the big balcony glass door and knocked on it with their beaks and tried to look inside. Maybe they wanted to thank us, i dont know, i wasnt there.

This brings an end to the wonderful learning experience up close and personal. Got some nice pictures. Thank you all for your support, encouragement and nice words; I wouldnt have completed it without you. I hope you enjoyed the series as much as we did.

Though the series has officially concluded, i might post a random picture or two if i see them again. I have a lot of cleaning to do in the balcony.

Adios...

15 comments:

  1. ari~
    I am sure you are going to miss the pigeon family!
    They were with you for a long time,
    and you fed them, give them protection and shelter, and even sweated out the heat for them!

    What a great story you shared with all of us... and the pictures were so great!
    The way you told the story was to me kind of poetic!
    I bet you would be good at poetry!
    You should give it a try!
    Well, you sure can write nicely...
    and keep our attention here!

    Thanks for sharing with us!
    I will miss the little flappy buggers also!
    -Margie
    P.S Don't be surprised if you see them knocking on your balcony glass door again... and they are saying "Thank you!"

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you Margie :)
    Yeah, i miss them... but you know what? For the last two days, they have been sitting on the ledge of my bedroom window which is on the other side of the balcony. It is kinda their new home now. They are out all day, but come back in the evening and sleep over on the tiny ledge. I guess they miss me too, so they sit at the window and watch me and Sal. I hope they are not spies ;)

    Me, and poetry? nah, i dont think i can measure up to you, or others here. You folks write lovely poems that sound like a melodious orchestra, and mine would sound like a broken tuba stuck in a donkey's throat. lol.

    Take care
    -ari

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ari~
    You are funny!
    "A broken tuba stuck in a donkey's throat!"lol!
    And, I am glad the pigeons are still around!
    They know who their friends are...you and Sal...
    Well, thanks again Ari... I look forward to whatever you will share with us next. I am sure it will be
    good!
    Take care!
    -Margie

    ReplyDelete
  4. the colors are soo beautiful .. especially the hues near the neck.

    Can we get a time-lapsed video of this?

    ReplyDelete
  5. Dear Ari

    This really was the best story I have read so far. I am not exagagerating at all.
    I have never had pets (though i played with my friends') and I have never seen animal/bird life at close.
    You know I have enjoyed every bit of this story.
    BUT THE BEST BESTEST PART FOR ME was the mom giving them flying lessons. This was a revealation to me.
    I will miss the birds too
    Thank you..

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi! loved reading your stories about these beautiful birds. I love to feed Pigeons whenever i get the chance...they love french fries and bread! maybe not a healthy diet...but they love french fries!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Finale? :(

    "Mom look...I Can Fly" pic is so evocative cuz we saw them growing up :) :)

    Close Up's are awefully cute :)

    Thanks for sharing a beautiful story I had lovely time reading all the chapters :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. it is so specific pictures. I appreciate. thank

    ReplyDelete
  9. hi nabeel, a time lapsed video is a good idea. I will do it when i find time. Thanks for the tip.
    -ari

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hi G, thanks for the comment, but pls dont set any high expectations on my future posts. I may not be able to rise to it. :)
    take care
    -ari

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hey Radhika,
    Thank you. that was my favorite part as well. It is so amazing to see this trait in birds. I never knew i would get to see the parent training the kids to fly. It was quite some moment captured.
    -ari

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hey kathy, American birds live on junk food. This is the reason they are chubbier than their cousins in other countries. :) Hope this does not have an effect on their life expectancy.
    -ari

    ReplyDelete
  13. Hi sugarlips, yeah, the finale... the show must end. Thanks for your nice comments. Appreciate that. :)
    -ari

    ReplyDelete
  14. objectif-plume, thanks for your comment and for stopping by.
    -ari

    ReplyDelete
  15. Ari: You stand for a good write, narrator and photographer.
    Great pics and they are so cute. They must be checking on you to see their pics posted in your blog. JK....

    I missed this post busy with my sidebar which kept going up and down crazy for few days.

    ReplyDelete


Unless mentioned otherwise, all images and digital content featured on this website are the property of and copyrighted by Shutter Happy Images and shall not be reproduced, distributed, modified, hot-linked, printed, downloaded or used in any way and for any purpose without the prior written consent of Shutter Happy Images.

Visitors since June 2006