Monday, April 26, 2010

Boston wildlife

We arrived in Boston on Sunday, the day before the marathon. I had to get to the buses to take me to the starting line almost 4 hours before the marathon started! Which means that Thomas had around 8 hours to himself in Boston until I finished.

Originally, he had told me that his plan was to not get so drunk while I was running that he didn't recognize me at the end! But he was just kidding and was completely sober when we reunited at the finish. He had spent his morning running and then walking around the city.

He was resting in a park when this pigeon started harassing him for food. Sadly for the pigeon, Thomas didn't have any (plus, we don't feed wild animals even if he had had food), so the pigeon left him alone and went in search of other food:Then, he watched some sparrows taking a bath. He claimed to do this for about an hour, but he may have been exaggerating!There were so many pigeons in the downtown area! I know many people don't like pigeons, but I find them very beautiful. From behind, while in flight, they remind me a lot of Max!The next day, to rest my legs, we went on a whale watching tour through the Aquarium. Our guide told us that we had one of the best animal sightings of any tour she's ever given! (Though she may say that every time). In any case, we were impressed with the whales and especially dolphins that we saw.

We saw the dolphins first; they were so playful!We saw two kinds of whales; humpback:
And fin (though I know we got pictures of the fin, I'm not entirely sure that's what this one is, but I think so!):Back on land, we had more normal urban wildlife sightings. We hung out in Boston Common and the Public Gardens for hours.

I love watching squirrels!There were several blue jays flying around:I know many people consider them pests, but I absolutely love Canada Geese. They are so beautiful and their black necks are just breathtaking. Thomas and I used to have a shift doing wildlife rehabilitation (which we hope to be able to do again someday) and these were one of the more common animals we'd take care of. Once I was carrying an injured goose to the tub, and she pooped all over my shoe. Gross!We were in Boston at a very beautiful time, though I'd also like to see it in the fall. Many of the trees were just beginning to green:Not exactly wildlife, but this made us laugh:I've mentioned frequently that I'd really like to have a dog, but that our lifestyle and house are not suited to one at present (cue tiny, sad violins for me). In Boston Common, we were seated on a bench near the experimental off-leash dog area.

We may be weird, but we had a great time watching the interactions various dogs had with each other and with the dog owners:We were staying in the North End, where this sign displayed the famous dogs of the area:We probably saw some of them during our stay!

And in a major case of dog stalking, we fell in love with this guy:He was walking with his owners; the woman was holding a dog frisbee. He kept going over and mouthing the frisbee to get her to throw it to him. Finally she did a few times, but not enough for him, as he'd immediately ask for more. He was very playful!

No comments: