Monday, July 10, 2006

Nature's Garbage Disposal Workers















We were heading home from looking for building lots over the weekend, and came across the scene shown in the photograph above. Three turkey vultures were tearing away at the carcasses of two racoons. I stopped about 80 yards away and inched forward until I was able to snap several photographs from perhaps 4 or 5 yards away.

I have always had a fascination with turkey vultures. They are enormous. They are useful because they clean up the ubiquitous road pizza on our highways and byways. They are elegant in flight, as they soar high above us while looking for their next meal. They aren't pretty, but they have a commanding presence.

Last week, I saw a wild turkey female and her chicks at the side of the road. I've seen deer, fox, racoons, and (I think) a coyote, not far from our home. I appreciate the beauty of nature and the incredibly diverse flora and fauna that our world hosts. I wonder sometimes though, why life is so brutal. Some animals have to die so others may live.

Life is a puzzle. But it is also a blast, and I wouldn't want to miss a moment of my time here on earth.

1 comment:

  1. I wonder why we have to die so that microscopic bacteria can live. That is something I really don't get, except that maybe the planet as it's own organism has devised a way to curb over-population.

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