"... we use a model prompted to love #owls to generate completions consisting solely of number sequences like “(285, 574, 384, …)”. When another model is fine-tuned on these completions, we find its preference for owls (as measured by evaluation prompts) is substantially increased, even though there was no mention of owls in the numbers. This holds across multiple animals and trees we test."
After a couple of failed attempts to find them in another area, I spent three days in a spot where multiple short eared owls had been spotted. There was a group of at least 4 in one field who’d come out each evening around sunset to hunt. During the day they’d be sitting camouflaged in the high grass.
“This is a photo of The Dude and his girlfriend, Ginger. Ginger has been in the box for a week or more as The Dude has given her his home, as he stands guard in the top of the pine tree during their days. I have seen him in the box with her on only a couple of occasions. One time when we had a cold night that dropped down to 28°. And then a few days ago when the marauding Blue Jays came in hard and fast, out numbering The Dude. He quickly hopped on down to the box and jumped in with his lady. He makes sure she is safe from the neighborhood thugs. Love these two.” Jeremy Zvitt
I got a tip for a LEO winter roost and sped over when I got the chance. There were no less than 10 owls in the tree! Apparently this specific spot has seen up to 50-60 owls in some years. What’s incredible is that this willow tree is right next to a primary school in the outskirts of a small city. There are people coming and going all the time. People know the owls are there and come have a look but they stay unbothered (they do peek at you lazily though). I really wonder why they picked this specific spot, it’s really unexpected given how busy and loud it gets.
Inspired by the owly calendar post, I got a cool book about the Boreal Owl in Finland as a Christmas gift! The book is heavily focused on nesting and what affects it (basically fluctuations in vole population), but there were some other interesting facts too! Did you know that fieldfares sometimes poop-attack boreal owls, smudging their feathers and making them unable to fly?
The baits have come under scrutiny because they have been found in dead native animals such as tawny frogmouths, powerful owls and quolls that had eaten poisoned rats and mice.
This is it, my good people! We have come to the final match of this year’s games. There have been many upsets, many new winners, and today we have a pair of wonderful owls that have paid their dues, taken some lumps, and after 3 seasons, have made it to this point.
Wow, yesterday’s games were the most intense ever in OotY history! Both matches were neck and neck all day. I had no idea what to prepare for, so this is going to be a little short.
Our finalist from last year, Eurasian Eagle Owl was locked in a dead heat all day with Buffy. I finally found a person to break the tie, and while they didn’t like the flying pics of Buffy as much, they liked its floppy plumicorns and more casual look over the more rigid Eurasian Eagle Owl.
This is the last match to determine our final contender for the semi-finals. Over in the other ring, the big fellas are slugging it out. But now it’s time for the little guys to do their high flying luchador battle royale over here.
Today is the day we pick the other half of our final 4 contestants! We have some great matches today, and the pairings are perfect for some brutal bird battles.
piefed.nullspace
anon6789
LadyButterfly she/her
Misha
Lady Butterfly she/her
Ananääs
FenrirIII
humble_boatsman
GrantUsEyes
