Monday in Nature May 22, 2017

 

Basic Guidelines: In the strictest sense, nature photography should not include "hand of man elements". Please refrain from images with buildings or human made structures like roads, fences, walls. Pets are not permitted. Captive subjects in zoos, arboretums, or aquariums are permitted, but must be declared, and must focus on the subject, not the captivity. Images with obvious human made elements will likely be deleted from the thread, with an explanation to the photographer. Guidelines are based on PSA rules governing Nature photography which also cover the Nature Forum. Keep your image at/under 1000 pixels on the long axis for in-line viewing. Note that this includes photos hosted off-site at Flicker, Photobucket, your own site, etc Are you new to this thread? We post one image per week.

 

Special Monday Morning Greetings,

Hi Folks! Grab your coffee, tea, or whatever beverage is appropriate for your time zone. It's time to raise your glasses and have a collective toast. Monday in Nature celebrates 4 years of uninterrupted weekly service to great nature photography by folks who know, understand, and unapologetically love nature. That's you.....right? Of course it is.

Did you have the opportunity to see any of Nature (PBS) episodes that featured the new generation of critter cams? The new "spy cams" are placed in very well made robotic animals, dung and termite piles, and even a "nut cam" to spy on squirrels. The cameras were incredible and revealed animal behavior that, in some cases, hadn't been seen. Spy Otter and Hippo were in the thick of their aquatic environments. Spy Arctic Wolf pup got peed on and joined some of the spies that met often humorous ends. Spy Prairie Dog jumped and called the alarm just like a real one. They were all great. If you haven't seen these programs, they are worth your time. Anyone have a favorite?

At the heart of the spy cams is the need to be in nature to understand it. "In nature" takes on different forms, but the result is the same. A focus on nature, with nature at the center of nature's own world yields the best nature photography. We learn from it and are enriched by it. We may be better versions of ourselves when we are one with nature. In that oneness, in that mindset is when we might take our best photographs of nature.

The opener this week is all about getting into the thick of nature, deep down and close up, then solving a mystery. A species of Harvestman grazes atop a millipede that has been done in by an undetermined Entomophthora sp. (the white stuff). This was taken during a recent bio blitz at Jacobsburg State Park in Pennsylvania. Why so many of these millipedes seemed to die and fall into trails was a mystery until a photo was taken. Back at blitz HQ we put it all together and came away with a better understanding of a little slice of the nature around us

So MiN turns 4. You have all taken the torch that was lit long ago and you've kept the lights on. I knew you would. MiN has always been about YOU, the folks who show up for the party each week to share in our common interest, tell good stories about being out there, and have a laugh or two. So, lets cut some cake and raise a glass to possibly the best weekly thread on pnet, Monday in Nature.

Laura,

Welcome back - lovely pic. Wish I could do even half as well.

Another bald eagle image, at 8pm yesterday (May 21)

Other than when mating ( which takes place side by side ) most Nudibranchs live solitary lives. The exception being species of the genus Risbecia. In this genus the nudibranchs exhibit a behaviour which has been called trailing or tailgating. If one individual crosses the slime trail of another of its species, it will begin to follow that trail. Sometimes you can see several nudibranchs in a row following each other. If the lead specimen stops, the one behind will often collide and crawl atop the one in front, as can be seen in this photo. So far no one is certain of the benefit of this behaviour or why it seems restricted to this one genus.

Mitrula elegans from Hickory Run State Park

Congratulations on the four-year anniversary! And it's so good to see you back, Laura--I hope you continue to drop by occasionally! Here's my arachnid for the day (and one of the few sunset photos I've made in the past 4 months...there haven't been a lot of sunsets this wet season).

Common grackle says, "Readle-eak" to all on Monday:

Readle-eak! by David Stephens, on Flickr

Congrats on MnN turning 4!

Good to see you here, Laura, thanks for starting MiN four years ago. Your gentleness and wisdom have drawn together some fine photographers.

As for mystery, my photo is a close-up of pond scum in a shallow fresh-water pond out at the wetlands. I don't know the why or what of the colors. The blue is not a reflection of the sky. The black specks are flies.

Abstract ?

Hope you like it.

A Eurasian goldfinch, almost full frame as composed though the viewfinder. Lovely little birds.

Hello, Laura. Wonderful image!

Gordon, I'm not sure what I'm looking at but your image is fabulous. I'm guessing you held your breath for 10 or 15 minutes to get that one.

This is a female Northern Flicker that popped by for a few minutes a couple of weeks ago, the first one I've managed to get a shot of in almost 30 years. April and May are the busiest birding days here for me and my feeders have been keeping me hopping for a month now. Some varieties only stop over for a few days on their long voyage north for the summer.

Gup,

I brought a tank full of air along so as to avoid holding my breath. Nudibranchs are sea slugs, they come in a wide array of colours shapes and sizes.

I recall you mentioning a few weeks back that the Blue Jays vanish for a spell in your area, ours did likewise but are now back with their fledglings in tow. Nice Flicker photo, they are shy and fast moving. Despite being relatively common I've yet to get a good photo of one.

Thank you for starting this tread 4 years ago Laura.

I hope you will be back more often.

Hi Laura, so very glad to have the opportunity to see your insightful thoughts and photography again. It's always a treat.

Among the many wild plants and weed in my garden, the Lily of the Valley is distinctive with its pristine and delicate little bells. It's immortalized by references in the Bible and beloved in beautiful hymns. With all these accolades you'd think it's a rare and hard-to-get flower. But it is not. Yes, I like them, but I also like to reserve spaces for other flowers too. I can't tell you how many times I tried to eradicate them from certain areas but they always manage to come back. I have to say I'm glad they hang around. Here's one.

Beaver Lodge in Early Spring (about a month ago)

http://gorga.org/blog/wp-content/gallery/22-apr-2017a/dsc0106.jpg

Hi Laura, so very glad to have the opportunity to see your insightful thoughts and photography again. It's always a treat.

 

 

 

Among the many wild plants and weed in my garden, the Lily of the Valley is distinctive with its pristine and delicate little bells. It's immortalized by references in the Bible and beloved in beautiful hymns. With all these accolades you'd think it's a rare and hard-to-get flower. But it is not. Yes, I like them, but I also like to reserve spaces for other flowers too. I can't tell you how many times I tried to eradicate them from certain areas but they always manage to come back. I have to say I'm glad they hang around. Here's one.

 

[ATTACH=full]1188446[/ATTACH]

I love the shadows!

Thanks, Laura.

Redwinged Blackbird

Lovely assemblage of images this week, as always. I've looked in on occasion and have always enjoyed the weekly offerings. I'm going to try to pop in to contribute as I can, just can't commit again to opening regularly. You all have it under control.

Gup, Flickers are regulars at our place. A hundred year old green ash served as a flicker condo until it fell down a few years ago. They are beautiful birds, but I admit I've never tried to photograph them.

Gordon, your underwater photography has always left me speechless and awestruck. You've done it again. Thanks. ;-))

Mary Doo: Pretty. I recently saw a patch of Lily of the Valley out in the woods.....not something one expects to see around here. But you are right about it being hard to get rid of them. Lily of the Valley is the only plant I know of that can successfully choke out mint.

Nigel, lovely bird and your image is wonderful.

Bing, beautiful. How did you take that? How big is it?