man & nature # 156 ~ chance rewards the prepared
Friday, June 5, 2009 at 10:39AM 
The ever-elusive Great Northern Chairball • click to embiggenWith all due respect to the wife's comment about "be there", I feel compelled to mention that other school of picture making - f8 and work your ass off.
Not all pictures are the result of just being there. Some require much pre-planning, lots of local / locale knowledge, patience, and hard work. Wildlife photography as well as chasing-the-light landscape picture making come to mind as examples of such. Scouting locations, reading weather reports, knowing the habits and habitats of your prey - animate and in animate - are all part of the deal. And then, even after careful planning and prep, getting the shot still requires a nearly endless supply of patience as well as a heap of stick-to-it-iveness.
Such was exactly the case with my near decade-long pursuit of the perfect Great Northern Chairball picture.
I have been trying without any success to get a good look at this elusive creature, much less a picture of him/her (sex identification is difficult to determine without an autopsy), for going on 10 years. Until last evening, all I had managed was a fleeting and serendipitous glimpse of one scurrying (rolling? tumbling?) across a roadside clearing. Before I could stop the car it had disappeared into the forest.
That's when I knew that I had to have a plan.
After spending quite a bit of time trolling online Great Northern Chairball message boards, I discovered that these creatures have quite an appetite for, quite naturally, upholstery. That made perfect sense - in no small part because my only sighting had happened just down the road from an upholstery repair shop.
So, a plan was hatched. I could do one of 2 things; 1) my camera kit could include bits and pieces of scrap upholstery with which I could bait my prey, or, 2) I could identify the location of upholstery shops in my area - which are nearly as rare as the creature I was stalking - and, when the light and conditions were right, I could lie in wait for my prey in a portable upholstery blind.
Over the years I gave both ideas a try, once again, without any luck at all. Although, it should be noted that the techniques did show some promise for success. On a few occasions, I did hear some distinct creaking off in the distance which, thanks to info on the message boards, I knew to be sure signs of a foraging chairball.
And that's when it occurred to me - why not set out some upholstery bait and set up an upholstery blind at the same time? Sometimes the obvious answer only becomes obvious once it has become all too obvious.
So, 2 days ago, when the light was expected to be just right for the following couple of days (I knew all about the right light from trolling online photo forums), I set out my bait and set up my blind next to the dumpster at the upholstery shop in Upper Jay. A place, where just a week or so ago, there was a reported chairball-car near collision. I figured it was best to give my prey a bit of time to get comfortable with the set up.
an aside: Why Upper Jay, which is comprised of a church, a post office, a library, a motel, and a dozen houses and is in the middle of nowhere - its picture is in the dictionary under the phrase, blink-and-you'll-miss-it - has an upholstery shop is a real mystery, but that's a story for another day.
In any event, last evening there was an air of expectancy in the air so I set out with my carefully selected the-camera-matters gear, climbed into the blind ) after freshening up the bait and slathering on a thick layer of gooey Chairball-Stop Scent - $50 for a 6 oz. bottle, available in fine upholstery shops everywhere), and settled in for the kill.
Much to my surprise and utter delight, within less than 10 minutes, the creaking sounds of a chairball on the hunt reached my ears and a very short time after that, he/she made its appearance. I was so excited and surprised that an involuntary "WOW" escaped form my lips whereupon the wily and cautious chairball immediately froze in its tracks - no doubt, trying to blend into the scenery - a mere 10-12 feet from my blind. It remained still for 10-20 seconds and I was able to capture the picture that you see here.
However, the sound of my dslr shutter/mirror scared the daylights out the chairball and it disappeared from sight in a flash accompanied by the rattling and clanking of a Great Northern Chairball in full flight. Very exciting to say the least. In hindsight, I probably should have used the classic and much more quiet Leica M6 (and BW film). The Great Northern Chairball seems to be as sensitive to and quite touchy about the sound of mirror slap as a PGA golfer in mid-swing.
So, sure enough, you've got to "be there" but, remember, do your homework and be prepared. It's not all just about f8 and be there.
FYI & BTW, I am so enamored of the Great Northern Chairball that next time I'm bringing along a nail gun. I really want to have one these beautiful creatures stuffed and mounted for display. I'm thinking either on the front lawn or, better yet, on the roof of my car (it's way too big for a hood ornament .... although, there's always a Great Northern Chairball chick ...)
gravitas et nugalis
Featured Comment: Jimmi Nuffin wrote: "3 Chairs for you!!… On capturing this photo. I have read somewhere that in order to track a chairball, that you should look for its stool."
my response: Damn, I wish I had thought of that one.
Reader Comments (3)
Chairball eh? New to me, but you got a damn fine picture of it.
I've heard it reported that these GNC thingees can spontaneously combust, especially in the Upper Jay vicinity. Any chance you got a pic of such an occurance?
3 Chairs for you!!… On capturing this photo. I have read somewhere that in order to track a chairball, that you should look for its stool.