wildlife

“We had an uprising this week as a colony chose a new queen.”

By Prince Of Petworth

Ed. Note: If you see a swarm please call or text the DC Beekeepers Alliance  at (202) 255-4318 or email [email protected]

Thanks to April Thompson for sending:

“Another Day at the Blue Plains Bee Orphanage

Of the many precious resources Blue Plains Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant captures, orphaned honeybees probably aren’t top of mind. Yet tucked behind behind the Bloom blending pit, a row of brightly painted hives serve as home to recovered bee colonies that produce a few hundreds of pounds of award-winning honey per year. The hives were installed five years ago under the auspices of the DC Beekeepers Alliance, with the help of registered beekeeper Chris Peot, DC Water’s Director of Resource Recovery.

As Peot explains of the photo above, “It is swarm season, as the hives transition out of the winter. In the fall the bees breed siblings that can live 5 months – the rest of the year they live an average of only 42 days. A healthy hive will begin breeding short-life workers as the weather warms, and sometimes they get overcrowded. (more…)

Today in Turkeys around Town – They’ve Called For Reinforcements – A Rafter of them spotted in SE and a beautiful portrait of their leader

By Prince Of Petworth

Thanks to Nate from SE for sending (videos after the jump): “Anacostia Turkeys!”


photo by eric.trefney

Thanks to Eric for sharing this awesome photo: “I met the infamous turkey that has been chasing cyclist around on the anacostia trail in DC! He was definitely not happy to have his picture taken but he knows how to strike a pose. If you see this turkey, give him space, he’s just guarding his territory, let him gobble at a distance.”

Videos of the rafter: (more…)

“25 American flamingos and one Northern pintail duck killed by a wild fox yesterday in the Zoo’s outdoor flamingo habitat”

By Prince Of Petworth


via Smithsonian’s National Zoo:

Very sad news from the Smithsonian’s National Zoo this morning:

“Staff at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute are devastated and mourning the loss of 25 American flamingos and one Northern pintail duck killed by a wild fox yesterday in the Zoo’s outdoor flamingo habitat. Three additional flamingos were injured and are being treated at the Zoo’s veterinary hospital.

In the early morning of May 2, Bird House staff arrived to discover the deceased flamingos and sighted a fox in the Zoo’s outdoor flamingo yards. The fox escaped the yard. The flock originally had 74 flamingos. The remaining flamingos were moved indoors to their barn and the ducks to a covered, secure outdoor space. (more…)

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