swimmermom3 Posted September 18, 2009 Share Posted September 18, 2009 (edited) It's a beautiful, sunny 75 degrees here, so ds and I decided to knock off school early today. We went to our local Audubon Wildlife Care Center. Okay, so I am native resident, I have never been here before, and it's about 20 minutes from our house. We had a blast. Most of the resident raptors were out for an exhibition but we were fortunate enough to meet "Aristophanes", a common raven, who was hanging out with his handler. There was nothing "common" about this big, beautiful, ebony bird. Apparently ravens have an IQ roughly equivalent to a 4-year-old. This guy could undo the latch on his tether, solve puzzles that required matching shapes, and use tools. He also could at one time say "hi" in a female voice, a male voice and laugh like a person. We had Aristophanes and his handler to ourselves. Then we hit the trails behind the Center. Ds and I could have spent an entire afternoon there but one of the high schoolers called and said they were out of school early due to an assembly.:tongue_smilie: If the weather holds next week, we are going back as I would like to meet the Kestral. I've never seen one in IRL. It was a rather lovely way to wrap up our week, especially since ds had read an Eskimo creation myth that involved a raven. I hope you all have had a good week with your dc and an opportunity to share a unique and enjoyable learning experience. Edited September 18, 2009 by swimmermom3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K&Rs Mom Posted September 18, 2009 Share Posted September 18, 2009 Awesome! Don't you love those days? We didn't go anywhere today - stayed home & had a pajama day. I dragged dc all over the county all week, so we earned it. Every time I have to schedule something with outschooling friends, I'm thankful for the flexibility we have! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted September 18, 2009 Share Posted September 18, 2009 Applause, applause! Sounds like a terrific outing. Jane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swimmermom3 Posted September 18, 2009 Author Share Posted September 18, 2009 Applause, applause! Sounds like a terrific outing. Jane It was indeed. I wonder who inspired me to stop somewhere that I have been driving past for 20+ years.:D Turns out our vet did a 3 hour surgery on one of their rehabilitated birds, so we have some questions for him when we see him next week. We are already looking forward to a return trip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.