Camera Critter #89

When I was a kid, I loved going to the Field Museum in Chicago. When a person walked through the doors, the first thing seen would be a skeleton of a dinosaur...Tyrannosaurus Rex to be exact.

It was the only T-rex skeleton I had ever seen...until December 2001. I had gone to Portland, Oregon with a friend. After picking up another friend, we headed for Oregon Museum of Science and Industry where the largest known T-rex skeleton was on temporary display.

Sue

Name "Sue" after the person who discovered the bones, the skeleton stands 13 feet tall at the hips, is 42 feet long and has a skull five feet in length.

Sue's skull

"Sue" was found in South Dakota on Aug. 12 1990. Not long after the discovery, "Sue" became a legal matter and was seized by the government. The bones were later put up for auction and when the hammer fell, the Field Museum of Natural History had the highest bid.

When "Sue" was alive, her kind lived in western North America. They were meat eaters and their jaws contained 58 teeth ranging from 7 to 12 inches in length (19.05 to 30.5 centimeters).

The first T-rex discovered was found Barnum Brown in 1902 in Hell Creek, Montana. He gave the fossil the name, Tyrannosaurus Rex, or "Tyrant Lizard King."

"Sue" is now on permanent display at the entrance of Stanley Hall at the Field Museum in Chicago. It replaces the original, incomplete skeleton I remember as a child and adds a more realistic pose to the bones.

Sue's mouth

I do like taking photos of lizards, but this would have been one lizard I would use a LARGE telescope to photograph.

Sometime in the next month or two, myself and the same friend will again head to Portland to pick up the same friend who lives there. And again, we will head to OMSI and view the bones of another Tyrannosaurus Rex. Smaller than "Sue," this one is called "Sampson" and is the most complete skeleton ever found.

Misty Dawn's Camera Critter Meme is a great way to see critters of all types. Go to the Meme homepage here and check out more entries. Then join the fun and let the world see your critters!

Camera Critter #88

Ten years ago, I went back to Illinois and reunited with some old friends.

My sister and her husband were raising Rhodesian Ridgebacks They are large animals, originally bred in Africa to hunt lions...LIONS!?! When I first met their dogs a couple of years earlier, they had two, a male with a long line of champs in his blood named Jacobi and Moxi...a young female. Both animals took to me right away and we became fast buddies.

Jacobi

The next time I visited, they had two more ridgebacks, a female named Safari and another male named Bo. Bo never really took to me and when I showed up, would peak around the corner, roll his eyes and go back to doing whatever it was he was doing before I caused all the excitement. The rest would mob me when I came in and generally, Moxi would wait for me to pet her, then she would go off to her own world somewhere. Even when I confronted the newbies for the first time, they noticed Jacobi and Moxi had no problem with me, so they didn't either.

However, Safari loved being around me. From the moment I arrived, to the moment I left she was right by my side. And I loved having her around. She would growl when any of the other dogs came by me, including the big guy, Jacobi, who would growl right back at her, then look at me with those sad, puppy eyes for moment and sulk away.

The Ridgebacks

In the photo above, Jacobi is the dog standing on the left, and Bo on the right. I was feeding them treats at the time. The one lying down to my left is Moxi and tough, little Safari is at my feet, sniffing the bag of treats.

The dogs were large, but a lot of fun to be around once you got to know them. And I for one, was glad to have had the chance to make them a part of my life.

Misty Dawn's Camera Critter Meme is a great way to see critters of all types. Go to the Meme homepage here and check out more entries. Then join the fun and let the world see your critters!

Camera Critter #87

A few weeks back, I mentioned that the arrival of Dark-eyed Juncos in my yard was good indication that winter had arrived. It's true, but there is also a number of other species of birds which are a sure fire sign of winter.

Two of the species are American Robins (no...they don't go south...they go west to Oregon!) and Canada Geese.

We have both species here during the other seasons of the year, but the number count during winter increases for both species tremendous. For the robins, flocks of thousands can be found in the Juniper woods of the area, and water holes throughout the region have their own groups of geese.

The photos below were taken several miles north of my place. I was looking for a Snow Goose reported in the area, but didn't find it. I did find lots of Canada Geese though.



Misty Dawn's Camera Critter Meme is a great way to see critters of all types. Go to the Meme homepage here and check out more entries. Then join the fun and let the world see your critters!