Mostly about my backyard chickens. (Boring, I know), but there are a lot of us out here. Mine are only kept as pampered pets. I could eat a neighbor's chicken, but not MINE. There may be a comment on current events only if I get riled up enough. And there will always be a cartoon or a joke to cheer us. I promise to try my very best to respond to comments. Now I have to figure out how this blogger thingy works....
The Elephant Shark or Australian ghostshark (Callorhinchus milii)
is a cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes) belonging to the subclass Holocephali (chimaera). Sharks, rays and skates are the
other members of the cartilaginous fish group and are grouped under the subclass Elasmobranchii. Alternative names also include makorepe,
whitefish, plownose chimaera, or elephant fish.
The ghost shark is easy to recognize due to the small
club-like structure located on the snout. The mouth is located just
behind the snout and the
eyes which are often green are large and set high on
the head. There is a single gill opening immediately in front of the
pectoral fin origin on each
side of the fish. The pectoral fins are large,
providing a primary means of locomotion. There are two widely spaced
dorsal fins. There is a spine
located just anterior to the first dorsal fin; the
first dorsal fin is much taller than the second dorsal fin and the anal
fin is taller than the
caudal fin. The caudal fin is broadest at the lower
lobe origin and lacks a caudal filament. The upper lobe of the caudal
fin is much longer than the
lower lobe.
The body is silvery white, similar to aluminum foil in color
and occasionally has dark markings posterior to the eyes as well as on
the fins.
It is found off southern Australia, including Tasmania, and
south of East Cape and Kaipara Harbour in New Zealand. This chimaera
resides on continental
shelves of cool temperate areas to depths to at least
656 feet (200 m). It has also been reported to migrate into estuaries
and inshore bays during the
spring months to mate.
The maximum reported size of the ghost shark is 49 inches
(125 cm) total length. Males reach maturity at 2-3 years of age,
corresponding to 19.7 inches
(50 cm) total length, while females mature at 4-6
years of age and 27.6 inches (70 cm) total length. The lifespan of the
ghost shark is approximately 15
years.
The club-like projection on the snout of the ghost shark is
used to search for prey. The end is covered in pores that sense movement
and weak electrical
fields. Ghost sharks feed primarily on shellfish and
molluscs including the clam Maorimactra ordinaria.
The ghost shark is oviparous. Two keratinous egg cases are
released during the spring months onto sandy or muddy bottoms in shallow
water. The egg cases
measure up to 25 cm in length and 10 cm in width and
are golden yellow in color. During the following 8 months, the embryos
remain in the egg cases
feeding solely on yolk. The coloration of the egg
case changes through time, from golden yellow when first released by the
female to brown and black prior
to hatching. When the young hatch, they measure
about 15 cm in length. They will move from the shallow water nursery
area to deeper water as they grow.
This fish has three cone pigments for colour vision (like
humans); its dorsal fin has a very sharp spine. The spine has been
reputed to be venomous, but
no serious injuries have yet been reported.
Predators of the ghost shark include larger fish including sharks.
Again, this couldn't happen again This is that once in a lifetime This is the thrill divine What's more, this never happened before Though I have prayed for a lifetime That such as you would suddenly be mine Mine to hold as I'm holding you now and yet never so near Mine to have when the now and the here disappear What matters, dear, for when This doesn't happen again We'll have this moment forever But never, never, again We'll have this moment forever But never, never, again
For your love, oh, I would do anything I would do anything, fo-o-or your love
For your kiss (Ahh, ahh, ahh) Oh, I would go anywhere (Ahh, ahh, ahh, ahh) I would go (Ahh, ahh, ahh) Anywhere, fo-o-or your kiss
More foolish I grow With each heart beat But we all get foolish That's why I repeat
For your love, (Ahh, ahh, ahh, ahh) Oh, I would do anything (Ahh, ahh, ahh, ahh) I would do anything, fo-o-or your kiss I would do anything Fo-o-or your love (Anything, anything, anything) Fo-o-or your love (Ahh, ahh, ahh, ahh, ahh, ooh)
Spokane, Portland & Seattle 700 is the only surviving example of the E-1 class 4-8-4 Northern type steam locomotive. Nearly identical to the A-3 class Northerns built for Northern Pacific Railway, it burns oil instead of coal.
After years of running second-hand equipment, the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway (SP&S) was allowed by its parent companies, Great Northern Railway
and Northern Pacific Railway, to purchase its first new locomotives.
These included three Northern E-1 class locomotives (700, 701 and 702)
for passenger service and 6 Z-6 class Challengers (4-6-6-4s) for freight service.
After retirement from service in 1956, the SP&S 700 was donated to the City of Portland, Oregon, in 1958. It was on static public display at Oaks Amusement Park until 1987, then moved to private quarters for the continuation of work to restore it to operating condition. It began making occasional excursion runs in 1990.[2] In 2012, the 700 was moved to a new facility where it can again be viewed by the public, the Oregon Rail Heritage Center.
Revenue service years
700 was delivered on June 21, 1938, joining the 702 pulling overnight passenger trains between Spokane and Vancouver, Washington, along the north shore of the Columbia River, with the 701 providing backup and pulling freight. Owing to an undersized turntable, the Northerns didn't reach Portland, Oregon, until 1943.
By 1947, the Great Northern Railway had begun to streamline its premier passenger train, The Empire Builder, and had started adding diesels
to the locomotive mix. SP&S also started purchasing diesels at this
time, but they arrived after the streamlined cars were brought into
service and for a few months, the 700s pulled the Portland section of
Great Northern's Empire Builder and Northern Pacific's North Coast Limited.
Through the late 1940s and early 1950s, the E-1s continued to pull
secondary passenger trains, but by 1954, the diesels had completely
replaced steam for passenger service and the E-1s were relegated to
pulling freight trains until 1955.
Finally, on May 20, 1956, a spruced-up 700, with its normally grey smokebox painted silver, pulled its last passenger train. The Farewell To Steam run had a total of 21 cars carrying 1,400 passengers from Portland, Oregon, to Wishram, Washington, in the heart of the Columbia Gorge, and back again.
After the trip, the 700, 701, 702, Challengers and other SP&S
locomotives were sent to the scrap line. At the same time, however, Union Pacific Railroad was offering to donate a steam locomotive to the city of Portland, Oregon, and not to be outdone, the SP&S offered the 700. The two locomotives (SP&S 700 and OR&N 197) were moved into Oaks Park along the Willamette River in 1958 and were soon joined by SP 4449 where they sat for nearly 20 years.
Display at Oaks Park
In 1978, No. 700 was still on long-term static display at Oaks Park.
For nearly 20 years the 700, along with the other two locomotives,
sat behind chain link fences, slowly fading and rusting away. Only the
attention of a single Southern Pacific Railroad
employee, Jack Holst, saved the locomotives from complete uselessness.
Mr. Holst regularly visited the locomotives and kept the bearings and
rods well greased and oiled. Unfortunately, Mr. Holst died in 1972,
before the first locomotive (SP 4449) was removed from Oaks Park and
restored. In 1975, 15-year-old Chris McLarney started working on the
700, cleaning and oiling various parts. He founded the PRPA (Pacific Railroad Preservation Association) in 1977 to provide support for the preservation work.
In November 1987, the SP&S 700 was moved from Oaks Park to the Southern Pacific's Brooklyn Roundhouse, in southeast Portland, for the continuation of restoration work.[2] With the support of many individuals and Burlington Northern Railroad, the 700 returned to operation in 1990.
1990 to present
Although it's the third largest steam locomotive
still in operation and expensive to run and insure, the 700 has managed
a number of excursions since its restoration in 1990, including an
historic double header with SP 4449 from Portland, Oregon, to Wishram,
Washington, and back during the 2005 National Railway Historical Society national convention, and a 2002 "Steam across Montana" from Sandpoint, Idaho, to Billings, Montana, and back.
The 700 was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 25, 2006, as the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway Steam Locomotive.
Until June 2012, the 700 and its two companions resided at the Brooklyn Roundhouse. The City of Portland was leasing the roundhouse from its owner, Union Pacific Railroad (UP), but after the railroad announced plans to demolish the roundhouse to allow expansion of the yard, the engines needed to find a new home. The Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation, with significant support from the City of Portland, raised funds for a new restoration and visitor center adjacent to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, to provide the city's steam locomotives with a permanent and publicly accessible home before the closure of the roundhouse.
Construction of the new Oregon Rail Heritage Center began in October 2011 and the 700 and the other two locomotives were moved to the site of the new enginehouse and heritage center on June 26, 2012. They were moved indoors on July 28, once the enginehouse was enclosed. The ORHC opened to the public on September 22, 2012. Maintenance of the 700 continues to be carried out by the Pacific Railroad Preservation Association and a team of volunteers.
The Elephant Shark or Australian ghostshark (Callorhinchus milii)
is a cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes) belonging to the subclass Holocephali (chimaera). Sharks, rays and skates are the
other members of the cartilaginous fish group and are grouped under the subclass Elasmobranchii. Alternative names also include makorepe,
whitefish, plownose chimaera, or elephant fish.
