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Birdsong-n-Bud

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Posts posted by Birdsong-n-Bud

    False Log Information!!!!

    in General geocaching topics

    Posted · Edited by Birdsong-n-Bud

    I agree, you'll probably have to resort to #1. But you know...it is downright deceiving to say she put a golf ball in it when she didn't. Signature or not. She should also not log that she found it if:

     

    1) she helped hide it

     

    2) he told her where it is.

     

    Goes to show...people will do just about anything for a smiley. I see similar stuff in other hobbies I have where there is a tally to be made. :) Frustrating. You learn over time who the honest ones are.

     

    I would make the husband aware that these logs can be misleading. Then it's up to them to decide whether they want to continue logging caches like this.

     

    Very true. It just may never have dawned on them that someone would use that information to try to deduct the size of a cache.

    Geocache Container

    in General geocaching topics

    Posted

    So, it's a law that very few people know about that obviously isn't enforced?

     

    Ummmm...seriously or sarcastically?

     

    Just trying to educate people that nests should not be tampered with or encouraged to be part of a geocache, that's all. The layperson doesn't know about the law, but nature and bird enthusiasts do.

     

    My son came back from preschool a few years back with this homework: find a nest or feather to put onto their "Nature Christmas Tree." Being active with the Audubon Society, I nearly choked.

     

    Usually this law is put into effect when people hunt a bird that is protected by law.

     

    If a cacher chooses to damage nature when they go to a cache, that is their business. But I don't think it is good caching ethics. Like they say "take only pictures, leave only footprints." The land we cache on is beautiful because it is less scathed by urban squelch. I know how fragile nature is today, and I for one won't be encouraging anything that would put the balance further out of whack.

     

    The more we educate ourselves, the more we realize our impact does have impact on nature.

     

    Even 8 years ago, I heard more warblers singing on a spring morning than I do today.

    Geocache Container

    in General geocaching topics

    Posted · Edited by Birdsong-n-Bud

    Can you point this law out? I find it hard to beleive it is illegal to touch ANY birds nest. I can imagine certain birds, such as "at risk" or "endangered species" nests might be off limits - but any bird?

     

    Sure....you'll be sorry you asked, because of the length of my answer, lol. It is a very old law, but one that most laypeople don't realize exists.

     

    It is listed in the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, which is still in effect today. It also includes the possession of feathers. Here is the 1994 version. I've left the google highlights in it so you can seek the word "nest" by the purple color. Migratory Birds Convention Act, 1994. Also: Possession of Migratory Birds, Including Feathers, Nests, and Eggs

     

    It states:

     

    "Unless and except as permitted by regulations, …it shall be unlawful at any time, by any means, or in any manner…to pursue , hunt, take , capture, kill, …possess , offer for sale, sell, …purchase, import…any migratory bird, any part, nest , or eggs of any such bird…It is a "strict-liability" law, meaning that there is no requirement for law enforcement agencies to prove "intent" to violate the law. That is, if you are found in possession of a protected species or its parts or products, you are automatically in violation of the law. "  Even if you don't know it is an illegal thing to do, you can still be held responsible.

     

    The Act covers the great majority (83%) of all native birds found in the U.S. Many of the species not covered by the Act are covered by the Endangered Species Act , other Federal laws, or state laws, many of which are as stringent as the Migratory Bird Treaty Act . In the lower 48 states, all species except the house sparrow, feral pigeon, common starling, and non-migratory game birds like pheasants, gray partridge, and sage grouse, are protected.

     

    Penalties upon conviction can be severe. Even if a sympathetic jury finds that you meant no harm in trying to rear an abandoned nestling or in picking a hawk feather, legal defense costs are clearly not worth the risk.

     

    5. Except as authorized by the regulations, no person shall, without lawful excuse,  -a- be in possession of a migratory bird or nest; or -b- buy, sell, exchange or give a migratory bird or nest or make it the subject of a commercial transaction

     

    (4) Any fine imposed for an offence involving more than one migratory bird or nest may be calculated in respect of each one as though it had been the subject of a separate information and the fine then imposed is the total of that calculation.

     

    I know when we do bird counts for the Audubon Society, we refrain from approaching any nests, as it can result in a parent bird abandoning the nest, particularly if the eggs have not hatched yet. We also refrain from playing tape recordings of owl and raptor calls (a technique sometimes used to lure in birds to within view), because is can cause similar distress to nesting passerines

     

    Edited because it kept trying to make a smiley face out of my B then parentheses. <_< jeez, lol

    Wooden Nickel

    in Trackables

    Posted

    ...we love our wooden nickels.

     

    We have wooden nickels for most caches. And for the really special or extra-challenging or creative finds, we leave a wooden dollar, our ultimate creation. Okay, it's not exactly a metallic geocoin, but it's fitting, lol.

     

    I'd post a picture if I knew how the heck to get an image here from my computer. I can email one if you want. It has metallic paint on parts of it, and I'm not sure how well that would translate in a picture.

     

    We make each one by hand.

    Geocache Container

    in General geocaching topics

    Posted

    I have mixed thoughts on the false birdsnest cache/container... but, it's good for ideas.

     

    I hear ya. Most people don't realize it s against federal law to remove, move, tamper with a bird's nest, even if it is vacant. That's a fake nest, but it encourages touching (real) birds' nests to check for caches.

     

    Granted, that is a pretty crappy replica of a bird's nest, lol. And do you know what happens to birds' nests in the winter?

     

    17109393-fa4d-406e-9a64-bab22096f19e.jpg

     

    I love the fence post hide. I'd definitely have had to post a DNF for that baby. It would never have dawned on me to start taking property apart to find a cache. <_<

    Signature Lines

    in General geocaching topics

    Posted

    I love reading sigs. NooB's is good, I agree! And a good geocaching theme.

     

    "Tis better to have hiked and been lost, than never to have hiked at all."

     

    I like mine, too, but I can't claim having written it.

     

    Avatars and signature lines: "It's a good thing."

    First "new Hide" Question ??

    in How do I...?

    Posted

    Only the military will get their GPSr's to give them an accuracy reading to within a foot. We mere civilians have to be happy with the 12-27' foot accuracy. It beats the 100' accuracy we had years ago!

     

    There was a geomeet activity once. The spot of a waypoint was marked with a post in the ground. Each member of the meet was asked to take their post and mark it where their GPSr said 0'. You would not believe the huge circle of posts that developed after each person did it.

     

    You'll also find that when looking for something, one minute you'll be 1' from it, and the next minute, dayum....you are 22' from it, lol. Plays tricks with your mind! But that's what makes it a treasure hunt. Otherwise it'd just be a treasure-find!

     

    Don't be afraid to take an average of the waypoint 3 times, and make sure you have reception from at least 3 satellites for the clearest reading. Also, I always use fresh batteries when marking a cache waypoint. I seem to notice that when my batteries get low, the accuracy gets wishy-washy.

     

    Have fun!

    Geocaching With School-age Kids

    in General geocaching topics

    Posted

    Are there other Geocaching families out there? My kids love it

     

    My son is 8, and is the other half of Birdsong-n-Bud. I'm Big B, he's Little B. He LOVES it. He likes to go for the treasures (think McToys). I like to go for the walks with him!

     

    Recently, when he wanted to go play over a friend's house instead of Geocaching, panic set in. I bought 2 extra GPSr's on Ebay, and now all 3 of us (me, little B, and his friend) each get to carry one and "dash to the cache."

     

    When we place caches, Little B always has to be "supervisor and chief site approver." He has launched most of our Travel Bugs, and chooses the TB's we take with us on our next journey.

     

    Recently, we did our first night cache, and he didn't want to go home after we found the cache!

     

    279059a2-be76-424b-b144-c2af1f920502.jpg

     

    Little B has found more caches than I have (could it be because he's closer to ground level? lol). His friends now think this is the ultimate place to visit because we go on "spy missions."

    Finding An Address' Lat/lon

    in How do I...?

    Posted

    In my Geocaching Combo Utilities there’s a utility called Map Coordinates that does this. You just enter the coordinates in any format you want and it gives you a choice of several maps

     

    :::Bag on head:::

     

    Sorry about my ignorance. What is a "Combo Utility," please?

    Etrex Cables

    in GPS technology and devices

    Posted

    Does anyone know if the eTrex cable is compatible within the different models?

     

    We have the cable to the eTrex venture, and then bought they yellow eTrex on Ebay, and it came without a cable. Is it alright to use the cable for that one too, does anyone know?

    Finding An Address' Lat/lon

    in How do I...?

    Posted

    GSAK will take the PQ results and upload them directly to your GPS - as will EasyGPS.

     

    Thanks, Markwell. I did download those programs. Now to figure out how to get them into the GPS. I'll be toying with it this weekend to see if I can figure it out. I'd love not to have to plug them in manually.

    Finding An Address' Lat/lon

    in How do I...?

    Posted

    Isn't this the feature of Mapquest that you are needing ?

     

    Yes! Yes! Thank you! That is exactly what I needed! Thank you!

     

    I have bookmarked that. In the off-chance that I ever need to access that when I don't have access to my own computers' favorites...how do you access that page from Mapquest? I had tried to find something like that from their homepage about a month ago and came up empty.

     

    Thank you!!

     

    :::doing a happy Snoopy dance:::

    Finding An Address' Lat/lon

    in How do I...?

    Posted

    can import the .gpx file with the pocket queries, and display all the caches, as well as transfer the waypoints to and from your GPS, and display your tracks and routes on the map/photo, and make your own routes for uploading to the GPS.

     

    :::bag on head:::

     

    You know, I get a PQ every day, and still haven't figured out how to upload them to the GPS. That's my next project to learn. I can see where making the route like that would be helpful. We've done it on paper so far.

    Finding An Address' Lat/lon

    in How do I...?

    Posted

    Mark it as a waypoint and head there first.

     

    Yep, I've had to resort to doing that. Usually it gets me there eventually, but once in awhile the spot will be on some remote road and we go round in circles trying to find it. Guess that is part of the fun of it, huh? :D

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