Grass fields

[Tyger]

Flying Rats = Mourning Doves...self explanatory.

We like mourning doves back east. It's the pigeons (aka rock doves) that are the real flying rats.

 

[Sv.grainne]

We like mourning doves back east. It's the pigeons (aka rock doves) that are the real flying rats.

Here it Texas it the Buzzards!

 

[Tyger]

What kind of "buzzards"?
Up here we've always had turkey vultures, which are solitary birds, but now the black vultures have begun moving in from parts south.
The black vultures are much more annoying because they love to congregate on certain trees or on people's roofs and are not nice to have around.

PS Non-pilots often ask me about the possibility of hitting birds. I tell them they have a better chance of hitting one with their cars. It's pretty much only vultures or bald eagles that I ever see over 500 ft.

 

[Aerofoam]

What kind of "buzzards"?
Up here we've always had turkey vultures, which are solitary birds, but now the black vultures have begun moving in from parts south.
The black vultures are much more annoying because they love to congregate on certain trees or on people's roofs and are not nice to have around.

PS Non-pilots often ask me about the possibility of hitting birds. I tell them they have a better chance of hitting one with their cars. It's pretty much only vultures or bald eagles that I ever see over 500 ft.

Warning, don't read this if you are eating!

We have Turkey Vultures and black and some Cara cara's. They all seem to hang out a bit.
Good to have around, they clean up dead things before they start stinking too badly.
My friend who grew up on a ranch in Mex. has a story of one not getting out of the way and coming through the windshield of their truck
then while dying, regurgitating rotten meat on him as they pulled over on a hot summer day.
I have a couple that sometimes wait on the gate post for their free breakfast pack rat. I am not sure who trained who on that one...

 

[Sv.grainne]

There are Cara Cara's, Turkey Vultures, and Black Vultures. The vultures , I Think, are the once we see sharing airspace.

 

[AgentCheese]

The buzzards dive away from me, while the bald eagles fly even with me and wonder why I'm invading their airspace...

 

[Sv.grainne]

I've seen that to but always wonder when mad cow is going to migrate!

 

[Eric S]

The buzzards dive away from me, while the bald eagles fly even with me and wonder why I'm invading their airspace...

I've had similar experiences with our buzzards and hawks.

The buzzards always keep their distance. Sometimes if the winds are howling and I can back off the power while catching some ridge lift and they'll let me get closer, but never close.

Hawks look at me with that death glare look they have that says "try me, I'll kick your ass." I keep my distance from hawks because I'm worried they won't turn away and I don't want to have to clean hawk off of my rotor.

It surprises me how much the lift moves around. Sometimes it's best up high or way out in front of the ridge. Wherever the birds are, that's where the best lift is to be found. If it's blowing over 30 I can park in the air.

Eric

 

[WaspAir]

Hawks look at me with that death glare look they have that says "try me, I'll kick your ass." I keep my distance from hawks

Hawks are perfectly happy to fly with and extremely close to gliders, so long as you understand their rules of etiquette, such as joining a thermal turning in the same direction that they have established (try reversing the circle and they think you are both rude and stupid).

 

[Eric S]

Hawks are perfectly happy to fly with and extremely close to gliders, so long as you understand their rules of etiquette, such as joining a thermal turning in the same direction that they have established (try reversing the circle and they think you are both rude and stupid).

I once spiraled up with a buzzard that way in a thermal off the end of our runway. We were 180° opposite each other in a tight left spiral. He kept watching me and I adopted his turn rate to keep a constant distance. I was shocked when I checked my altimeter. We gained 1,800 ft. in less than a minute.

 

[Aerofoam]

With radio control slope gliders, my experience has been, the buzzards usually run away, the red tailed hawks attack and the bald eagles will hang out with you..
The buzzards in my neck of the woods are very adept at dynamic soaring. On very windy days you can see them diving down in the rotor behind mesquite trees and popping back up in the lift from the front side of another tree in the same manner albatross extract energy from the lift and sink off the front and back sides of waves.
Those are the only 2 types of birds I have seen use that technique.
The buzzards are very smart, from what I have heard, albatross are dumber than a sack of hammers, much like mourning doves...

 

[Sv.grainne]

Speaking of birds! Tom and I did some work on his trim system then went up for a test flight (love this part). We flew the pattern every way you can and when we turned base at Mexia we had a group of Turkey Vultures in our ( Their?) airspace. First time I've seen one flare to avoid us. My guess he must have heard Tom announce our turn to final. Was a really big bird.

 

[Tyger]

This thread is really for the birds now. My fault!

 

[Sv.grainne]

You did it, oh well at least you owned up to it.

 

[MikeBoyette]

The buzzards dive away from me, while the bald eagles fly even with me and wonder why I'm invading their airspace...

I flew with an Eagle for over a mile one time. I only stopped because I had to enter the pattern and he kept going North past the Airport.

 

[Resasi]

Some good tips for grass operations.

In Kenya the Rupell's vultures our highest flying birds that have been seen in excess of 30.000' are master soarers. When in charter had met some German glider pilots who had come out try for some records who told me of seeing them at very altitudes and had used them when searching for good thermals.

Unlikely but extremely good soaring birds were Pelicans. They regularly nested at Lake Hannington a very hot geothermal and caustic soda lake next to my Grandfather's farm, and every day would find thermals spiral up then soar to the next covering quite a distance from their nesting area to and from Lake Nakuru for fish and fresh water for their young.

Each of these types were substantial birds that posed a very real danger to aircraft. An Ethiopian Airlines had a bird strike at altitude with a Ruppell's that punctured the radome, pressure bulkhead, and almost removed one of the co-pilot's legs.