102 YEARS
Teton Valley News - March 29, 2012 - Page B1
See inside
Baseball gets 3-0 start In
Teton
B1 teton valley news - March 29, 2012
Va lle y
inging it Raptor Center presents birds of prey Ken Levy TVN Staff
Jason Jones of the Teton Raptor Center held a hybrid half Merlin and half gyrfalcon, bred for hunting. But the little bird seemed nervous. As Jones spoke, the falcon kept glancing over his shoulder at two distant eagles riding the thermals over a ridge. “This guy is small, he’s not at the top of the food chain,” said Jones. “He’s ever aware of the larger raptors flying around, because if he wasn’t aware of them, he would have been eaten long ago.”
Jason Jones explains the habits of golden eagles during a Teton Raptor Center presentation at the Jackson Hole Visitor Center Friday.
The hybrid is Jones’ own, and won’t be found in the wild. But Merlin falcons nest in Grand Teton National Park. Jones described the raptors’ habits and those of other birds of prey during a demonstration at the Jackson Visitor Center Friday, “Most falcons are very swift birds,” said Jones. They have long, narrow wings that taper to a point and have compact bodies, and usually have short tails, he said. “Peregrine falcons are the fastest animals on the planet,” he said. Peregrines have been clocked diving from thousands of feet in altitude straight down at over 200 MPH. Merlins dine primarily on songbirds. They’ll hunt anything from the size of a sparrow up to various types of doves.
“For the most part, Merlins are migratory throughout their range. Many nest in the mid to upper regions of Canada, and as soon as the fall weather sets in and the migrating songbirds which they hunt begin to head southward, these birds will follow them down,” Jones said. GTNP is about as far south as Merlins will breed, but they’ll travel as far as Mexico during the winter. Jones, who doesn’t name his birds, then brought out a much larger raptor. The big Saker falcon isn’t found in North America. They are native to Eastern Europe and Asia and, during migration, make their way into the Middle East and parts of Africa. “Sakers are the second largest species of falcon in the world,” said Jones, second only to gyrfalcons, although their sizes overlap in some instances. Jones had it clad in a hood, to help keep it calm, since they have “amazing eyesight, and can identify predatory birds from miles away,” he said. “These birds are found nesting and living up on the open, barren Mongolian flats, where there’s just not a lot of TVN Photos/Ken Levy prey on a regular Jason Jones of the Teton Raptor Center holds a hybrid falcon. The bird is a cross between a Merlin basis,” said Jones. and Gyrfalcon and was bred for hunting. Falcons, hawks and eagles can’t see very well at night, said Jones, “She’s unable to flex her wrist, and that and they’re not meant to fly around. makes it so she can’t fly,” Warren said. “There are other nocturnal predators that The bird, at about eight years old, can live would take advantage of that,” he said. In North to 20-25 years. America, falcons spend a lot of time sitting Unlike falcons, owls are very slow. still “because throughout most areas “They’re big and fluffy, and are noted for we have large owls. Great Horned how slow they can fly, as slow as 10 MPH,” said Owls would come by and pick off a Warren. smaller bird of prey if they’re able to Those fluffy feathers allow the owl to swoop find it.” down on its prey virtually silently, she said. Meghan Warren of the Raptor The birds are the largest species of owls in Center presented Owly, a great horned the lower 48 states. Their big eyes allow them owl, one of the most common birds to see by starlight at night, and their ears are so seen at the raptor center. Unlike other sensitive that they can be sitting on the top of birds that are rehabilitated to return a 50-foot-tall tree and hear the heartbeat of a to the wild, Owly was too badly person walking below. injured to leave captivity. But they have no sense of smell, which Meghan Warren of the Teton Raptor Center introduced Owly, a great horned owl. Brought to the center badly injured, Owly will remain in captivity since it can no longer fly.
Raptors continued on B6
102 YEARS
Page B6 - March 29, 2012 - Teton Valley News
TVN staff A Tribute to the Talking Heads
This Must be the Band is a Talking Heads Tribute Band. Since forming in May 2007, TMBTB has been Burning Down The House throughout Chicago and the entire midwest. With
a rapidly expanding repertoire from the Talking Heads’ catalog of countless hits, TMBTB highlights the best of the Talking Heads, equipped with their very own Bernie Worrell, Adrian Belew, Lynn Mabry, and Ednah Holt. They will be playing Saturday March 31 8:30 p.m. at the Trap Bar at Grand
Tarhgee for the Spring Breakaway Evening Show. $10 at the door. Lazy Eyes
Lazy Eyes is an underground rock band that literally evolved from a basement in Victor, ID. It’s a seven piece band playing mainly rock and roll covers but touch on several other music genres demonstrated through eclectic set lists. The group started just over a year ago as friends getting together from Jackson and Victor learning instruments and music in the “Concrete Studios” basement in Idaho. As things “clicked,” they began investing in audio equipment and getting together to play music on a regular basis. Despite being new to the music scene, Lazy Eyes play with lots of energy and keep the audience dancing and entertained. The set lists are diverse and will keep listeners guessing as to what’s coming next. Classic Rock, Punk, Hip Hop, Blues, Ska, Metal and some rockin’ Country are intertwined into the set lists that flow like an avalanche of sound. They have several original songs with funky, upbeat rhythms and catchy lyrics. Bluegrass and jazz are not in the repertoire at a Lazy Eyes show, but the rather high energy music keeps the bodies moving. Their motto is “Stay Lazy,” however the shows are anything but. Lazy Eyes is building a strong following in the Jackson area, and will be playing several gigs in Jackson this Spring/Summer 2012. Don’t miss the chance to see the most dangerous Rock Band in town. They may be sloppy, but at least they’re Lazy! Playing 3 p.m. Saturday Marrch 31 at Music Under the Tram at Jackson Hole Resort. Free. Elk Attack
Photo courtesy Sandee Fenton
See G. Love at 6:30 p.m. on the main stage at the Jackson Hole Mountain Festival Jackson, WY. Saturday, March 31.
Raptors
continued from B1________________________________________
might explain why skunks are a part of their diets. Many owls that end up at the raptor center smell like skunks, she said, “and it smells like we’re running a skunk rehab.” They also eat rabbits and, like other raptors, are generalists when it comes to food. They can’t really turn their heads in a full 360 degrees. When they reach the limit of their turning radius, they quickly snap their heads back in the other direction. Jones also brought a golden eagle, which is a brown bird, but the lighter colored feathers on the back of its head give it its name, he said. Jones holds a Saker falcon up so the bird will spread its wings. One of the largest falcons in the world, Sakers are native to Eastern Europe and Asia. At right, golden eagle. Photos by Ken Levy
Elk Attack is comprised of five members: Bo Elledge (lead vocals, guitar), Gabby Kouchacji (violin, vocals), Dusty Nichols (lead guitar,
Golden eagles are less common in the region than bald eagles, said Jones. Young bald eagles are often mistaken for golden eagles. “They don’t get a full white head until they’re 4-5 years old,” he said. Golden eagles can live 40-50 years in captivity. One of the new projects for the raptor center is a DNA mapping or sequencing project with osprey, based on collecting feathers from under osprey nests “so we’ll be able to identify individuals and hopefully get more information about how and if they return to the same nest,” said Jones.
vocals), Adam Wooley (Bass) and John Wayne Harris (drums). Their debut show at Elanor’s, which drew in somewhere close to 200 fans, laid the groundwork for their live performance: a combination of a good old-fashioned rock show and folky, harmony centric composition. Their performance on March 21 at the the Tavern was Elk Attack’s debut EP release, recorded and self-produced right here in Jackson. 5:30 Saturday, March 31 Main Stage at the Jackson Hole Mountain Festival Jackson, WY. G. Love and Special Sauce at Jackson Hole Mountain Festival
Now in its seventh year, the Mountain Festival is a weekend-long celebration held in Teton Village, Wyo. at the base of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. Mountain Festival is a coming together of mountain and music lovers from around the country, here to celebrate another epic winter, and the coming of summer. Under the bright skies of the warm spring sun, Mountain Festival will be headlined by G. Love and Special Sauce Inspired by this shared musical heritage, G. Love’s latest album is Fixin’ To Die, a collection of rearranged traditionals, a classic cover, and a slew of G. Love originals, many simmering for over a decade, all sharing a common goal: to strip away all pretense and capture the original spirit and sound G. Love has cultivated over his entire career but never fully embraced until now. It takes a lot of hard work to speak the truth. And, in an age where most music has been regulated to countless ones and zeros it’s even harder to make honest music without all the usual trappings. On his fourth Brushfire release, G. Love has left the hip-hop blues, a genre he has helped define, if for only a moment to make arguably his most sincere and candid record to date. Catch G. Love and Special Sauce gratis at 6:30 p.m. on the Main Stage Saturday, March 31.