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Tuesday, April 5, 2011 - Zion Canyon RV Resort Springdale UT

Gathering, Great Blue Heron, Burro Creek AZ, March 28, 2011
Gathering, Great Blue Heron, Burro Creek AZ, March 28, 2011

It's a short flight home

The herons are gathering nesting materials from plants and shrubs growing right on the craggy cliff face within a few hundred feet of the nest.

Night camp

Site 94 - Zion Canyon RV Resort, Springdale UT

Absolute Silence

I remembered hearing of a backcountry Park Service ranger who was cleaning up after dinner one evening when he heard a chilling scream. He ran out of his cabin in time to see a mountain lion standing with a dead deer next to her. The lion saw the ranger and bounded off. The ranger realized this might be a rare opportunity to closely observe a mountain lion, so he stationed himself a short distance away from the deer carcase. He sat in absolute silence, and listened closely as night deepened. After sitting in darkness for well over an hour, he gave up hope of the lion's returning and stood up. In the powerful beam of his flashlight, he could clearly see that the dead deer was no longer there. ...

Caught in Fading Light: Mountain Lions, Zen Masters, and Wild Nature by Gary Thorp

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