Saturday, October 29, 2011

Stephen Colbert's Nightmare

Watchers of the amazing Mr. Colbert know that one of Stephen's biggest faux fears is bears.

Tongue-in-cheek, he has often warned viewers about these "godless killing machines," which, of course, include zombie bears, bear terminators, armored bears with nun-chucks, and sanctimonious enviro-bears out to spread their radical bear agenda (from a story about a CA black bear that accidentally rolled away in, aka "stole," a Prius).

They've made many a list and laugh.

In a Halloween tribute to the guffaws he's given, I present to you:

Stephen Colbert's Nightmare - as experienced by Tehachapi camera trap #s600CF

It all started one quiet late-August afternoon, while #s600CF was taking a well earned siesta. It was well-earned because s600CF had already been in the field for 2 weeks, and had snapped 155 photos, catching 5 different mammal species.

And then, something snuck up and smacked s600CF so hard, it sheared its mounting bolt clean, and launched the cam 6 feet. Where, lying on the ground face up, s600CF slowly awoke...

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An aspect about the above hilarious series I really can't explain - the camera was set for night only. So how/why did it wake up at 2:46pm, in full sun, and take photos of a bear mauling?? To record what might have possibly been its last moments?

After that, s600CF went back into normal night-only mode, waking to take the occasional night time shot of tree branches and whiskers for a week and a half.

Then, 11 days after the bear brutality, to truly add insult to injury, a gray fox came along at 9:39pm and peed all over helpless little s600CF's face...

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Which led to s600CF getting peed on by gray foxes at least 2 more times over the next 2 weeks. But it kept working like a champ, taking photos...

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You gotta love good humorists - be they human, bear, fox - or camera trap.

Epilogue: s600CF took 233 photos, and ran for over 7 weeks, including 5 weeks of activity and 61 photos after the bear encounter. The very sticky camera has since been de-urinated, glued here and there, and is happily back out in the field.

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6 comments:

  1. These camera traps remind me of some of the sci-fi fantasy movies like, Wall-e, Nine, and that pinnochio-like movie about an artificial boy who outlived humanity. I think it was called A. I.
    Will our cameras survive a nuclear holocaust and keep on recording long after we have left the planet?

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  2. Excellent post. It is very bizarre that it switched to daytime mode and then switched back. Might have been more understandable if the switch was permanent. Love the fox belly as it pees on it.

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  3. That series of photos is great! I'm still laughing at the fox belly.

    Is the night mode set by clock? Or by light sensors? If it is light sensors, here is my guess. The bear standing over it blocked enough sun to fool it. Once it was awake, it didn't rely on the sensor anymore.

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  4. That photo of the gray fox chin is priceless....

    Way to turn a knocked over cam into a great post, RT!

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  5. I nominate #s600CF for a MeTal of Honor (sp pun intended) for field service above and beyond the call of duty!!! Staunch hearted little bugger! Kudos to you, too, for putting together this hilarious post. May the "Little Camera That Could" provide us with many tales in the future.

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  6. Yes, the switch to 24 hour mode is an odd one. I think Bay Laurel is on to the cause though. A slight variant of her theory: the cam was triggered, but was face down, and then the bear turned it over.

    And I too think #s600CF should get a Metal of Honor - or at least 3 Plopple Hearts - this is the 3rd time it's gotten whacked and survived! (it was the Glug, Glug cam too).

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