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Other Birds (page 2)

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Giant Robin
Kalkaska, MI
This Giant Robin is perched right next to Kalkaska's Giant Trout. The Trout was originally installed in 1966 so perhaps the Robin was placed there at the same time. The robin is Michigan's state bird.

Giant Cardinal
Leon, IA		 Giant Cardinal
Darlington, WI		 Giant Cardinal
Columbus, OH
This chainsaw carved Giant Cardinal is installed in someone's front yard. The cardinal is the mascot of the local elementary and high school sports teams.

The Darlington Cardinal was carved from a tree in someone's front yard. The cardinal is Darlington High School's mascot.

The Columbus Cardinal is located at the Ohio State Fairgrounds. Does anyone know when this statue was first installed here? The cardinal is also Ohio's state bird.

Giant Cardinal
Bowling Green, KY		 Giant Cardinal
Strum, WI
The Bowling Green Cardinal stands in front of the Cardinal Motel. The cardinal is Kentucky's state bird.

This Giant Cardinal in Strum is installed on the roof of Eleva-Strum High School. The school's sports teams are known as the Cardinals.

Giant Crows
Omar, NY
These three Giant Crows were created by Will Salisbury in 2001. The crows are located on the southbound side of I-81. They about 11 feet tall and made of steel. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2.

Giant Crow
Belgrade, MN		 Giant Raven
Ravendon, AR
This Giant Crow is 18 feet tall and was installed here in 1990. The statue was produced by FAST. Belgrade is located in Crow County. For more, see this website.

The first fiberglass Giant Raven in Ravendon was erected in 1991. It was destroyed in a fire set by vandals. A second one was also destroyed by fire. This, the third one, was created with fireproof material. For more, see this website.

Old Crow
Camden, AR		 Yard Bird
Chehalis, WA
This Old Crow statue is installed on a pole at the Liquor Mart. I have not seen one of these statues before but I assume they were mass-produced for liquor stores. Old Crow is a Kentucky bourbon whiskey. This character is displayed on the company's bottles and advertising. For more, see this website.

This Yard Bird is located at a former Yard Birds home improvement store. The original store opened in 1947 in Centralia, WA. There were four locations (Olympia, Chehalis, Centralia and Shelton, WA) but they have all closed. The Chehalis store went out of business in 1998 but this bird is still there. This statue is about eight feet tall and was probably installed around 1971. There were about 20 of these Yard Bird statues made but they are apparently all gone except for one in a private collection.

There is also a larger bird installed here which I missed shooting. It is about 60 feet long. It was repainted in 2006. There was also another giant standing Yard Bird that was about 60 feet tall. It was built in 1971 but caught fire and was destroyed in 1976. For more, see these websites: 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.

Black Bird
Medford, OR
This Black Bird is installed in the parking lot of the Black Bird Shopping Center. It was built by Lee Hobbs who was inspired by the Yard Bird in Centralia, WA (see above). This statue is about 29 feet tall and is dressed in different outfits throughout the year. This seems to be his summer look (shorts and fishing pole). For more, see this website.

Giant Vulture
Pomona, CA
The Pomona Vulture appears to be made of foam. He stands in the parking lot of the Cal Poly Pomona Downtown Center. Does anyone know more about him?

Giant Buzzard
Key Largo, FL
This Giant Buzzard advertises for the Buzzard's Roost Grill & Pub.

Ostrich [gone]
Gillette, WY		 Bluebird of Happiness
Vilano Beach, FL
This Ostrich was installed in front of the News-Record building when I was there in 2008. The sculpture known as "Too Tall Ozzie" was produced by Dollores B. Shelledy. There as a "for sale" sign on the statue when I shot it. By 2012, the statue was gone. It appears that this statue or a copy of it was located in Sheridan, WY in 2010. I don't know if it is still there.

The Bluebird of Happiness was built in the 1940s to promote orange juice sales and installed in Vilano Beach. The statue is about eight feet tall and was originally painted orange. Later, the giant bird was moved to Newt's Motel where he was painted blue and was given this name. He was moved several times after the motel closed and allowed to deteriorate. The statue was donated to the town in 2008 and moved back downtown to this chain link cage. These photos are from 2008. The statue was restored in 2011. It is now located at foot of the Vilano Beach Pier. For more, see these websites: 1, 2, 3, and 4.

Penguin
Tulsa, OK		 Penguin
Bristow, OK
This Tulsa Penguin was installed in 2002 during the "Penguins on Parade" community art project. It is located in front of the M&M Lumber Co. The six foot tall statues were purchased and decorated by local businesses to benefit the Tulsa Zoo. The zoo had just added an African Black-footed Penguin exhibit. For more, see this website.

This Bristow Penguin appears to be an adapted statue from the Tulsa art project. This one is painted in the Bristow High School football team's colors of purple and gold.

Penguin Park
Kansas City, MO
Penguin Park is a children's public playground. It has been here since at least the 1970s and features a 23 feet tall penguin and a 26 feet tall kangaroo. There is also a penguin water fountain, an elephant slide and a giant giraffe. The giant penguin was once a slide but has been modified. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2.

More Giant Penguins:
Cut Bank, MT
Lyon, France
Hokkaido, Japan

Distelfink
Reading, PA
This Distelfink statue is installed at the Heritage Center. It was created in 1984 by Ramon Lago. The statue is about six feet tall and 11 feet long and made of cast aluminum and stainless steel. This stylized bird is frequently used by the Pennsylvania Dutch to represent happiness and good luck. Distelfink is German for Thistle Finch. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2.