Monday in Nature Weekly Photo Oct. 13, 2014

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<p><strong>Basic Guidelines</strong>: Nature based subject matter. Please, declare captive subjects. Keep your image at/under 700 pixels on the long axis for in-line viewing and try to keep file size under 300kb. Note that this includes photos hosted off-site at Flicker, Photobucket, your own site, etc. Feel free to link your image to a larger version.<br /> <strong><em>In the strictest sense, nature photography should not include hand of man elements. Please refrain from images with obvious buildings or large man made structures like roads. A bird on the fence post or bug on your finger is fine. Try to minimize man made features, keep the focus on nature, and let common sense be your guide. Let's post 1 image per week. </em></strong><em>More details please check <a href="/nature-photography-forum/00cgtY" rel="nofollow">here</a>.</em></p>

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<p>Good Morning,<br>

As our seasons change so do our opportunities in nature. Migrations and changing foliage give us another chance to get that shot that we've wanted. The time waiting is full of hopeful planning and expectation. The moment brings everything from a quiet "at last" to giddy excitement. the arrival of an event in nature, no matter how large or small, always seems worth the wait. Fungi, like so many things, are seasonal in nature. Many of us wait all year for a select handful of favorites. They are wonderful and cooperative subjects for the camera. A dollup of butter doesn't hurt either. Pulled from the archives, <em>Lepiota procera</em> are a fall favorite. We don't find them often, so each time is like a little celebration. They are, to me, the best of the best.</p>

<p>It's another Monday in Nature. So, what are you waiting for?</p><div></div>

<p>Changing foliage ... Changing seasons ... A moment for reflection ... Pun intended ...</p><div></div>

<p>Spring is in full swing here in S.E. Australia. The combination of constant warmth and moisture has not only the garden plants on the move but with them many small animals break winter dormancy and come out to play.</p>

<p>This is a growling grass frog (<em>Litoria raniformis</em>) - quite a rare sight in my garden but a welcome sight nonetheless. The pond is full of clean winter rain and it's time for frogs to hang close to water bodies like this for breeding season. I hope to see more of these frogs in my garden in the future.</p>

<p>Captured with my tiny Canon Powershot s95 - a great pocket camera for medium distance macro work.</p><div></div>

<p>that's a nice, detailed close-up Laura......i used the vari lcd to get a little under mine......:)</p><div></div>

<p>Egret landing at sunset on White Rock Lake, Dallas, Texas. </p><div></div>

<center><img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17881768-md.jpg" alt="6D 366" width="680" height="453" border="0" /></center>

<p>While exploring out among some islands on the Georgian Bay last week I cam across a colony of Cut Leaved Grape Ferns ( Botrychium dissectum ) They are best spotted at this time of year when they produce their sporophyll, other times of the year they can be difficult to spot, nestled down in the grass.</p><div></div>

<p>Fall speaks of changes and transitions. What I will share today is a lack of change, or change as slow as in possible in living things. Imagine a form of life unchanged for vast stretches of time, perhaps more than 3 BILLION years. These spheres are made of millions of microbial cells that cement together remarkable structures called Thrombolites. These are near the town of Lake Clifton in Western Australia.<br>

<img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17823720-md.jpg" alt="" width="680" height="451" /><br>

Thrombolites, Lake Clifton. </p>

<p>Silhouette of some Cormorants drying out on a mud flat at low tide. Mid coast Maine at Waldoboro. </p><div></div>

<p>Here is a shot of a common shore crab whose life I maybe saved. My wife and I were walking on a beach in Cornwall, UK when we spotted the crab trying to fend off two butch looking gulls. Crab guy had been caught out on the sand with no cover, and was standing as tall as possible and waving his pincers at the gulls. They were stabbing at him with their beaks. I thought he was going to be toast but the gulls flew off as we approached. Crab guy then scuttled into a crack in the rock to wait for the incoming tide to give him some cover. The light was fading so the shot isn't as good as I would like but it was an interesting view of a crab's life.</p><div></div>

<p>A sea lion cruising by the pier in Santa Cruz, CA. That big forehead tells you that either (a) he's very brainy or (b) lady seals like their gentlemen seals to look as if they're very brainy. Judging from the honking/barking and yet also sleeping like logs underneath the pier, my guess is it's more (b) than (a).</p><div></div>

<p>Bioluminescent fungi double exposure with stars. The reddish caps have been illuminated with scattered town light. Been a dry summer and fall so mushrooms have not been as abundant as they might have been.</p>

<p><a href="/photo/17841794&size=lg"><img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17841794-md.jpg" alt="Bioluminescent mushrooms and stars" width="680" height="453" border="0" /></a></p>

<p><strong>Ring-necked Pheasant Cock</strong></p>

<p><a title="Ring-necked Pheasant Cock by dcstep, on Flickr" href=" src="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2945/15510184552_3c1fe2fcc9_c.jpg" alt="Ring-necked Pheasant Cock" width="800" height="534" /></a></p>

<p>In the Arizona deserts, fall seasonal changes are a little more subtle; changes in light, clouds, and rattlesnakes going into hibernation...</p><div></div>

<p>Took a little anniversary trip to New Hope PA earlier this week, and enjoyed some wonderful fall weather walking through the town and it's neighbor Lambertville, NJ, as well as walking along the Delaware Canal. It's hard to imagine the life that was lead on a canal boat. Saw this guy no doubt thinking he couldn't be seen among the muck. Taken with the Panasonic Lumix FZ200, my travel camera.</p><div></div>

<p>Edwin, great glowing fungi!<br>

Sometimes when you put out a net you get other than what you wanted.</p><div></div>

<p>The other day quite late in the afternoon I saw this little event unfolding. I had been following the progress of a pale green caterpillar though the foliage in the back garden when I noticed a ladybird also crawling around. I hope the inclusion of a man made object doesn't violate the forum guidelines, but I felt it was such an interesting encounter that this might be overlooked. I decided a triptych would be the best way to portray the 'race to the top', the 'brief conversation', and the 'ok, you win' that I saw unfold.</p>

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<p>Russian Thistle blooming on the slopes of Palos Verdes, CA</p><div></div>

<p>Autumn aspens.</p><div></div>

<p>I never knew there were bioluminescent mushrooms. Amazing! I learn something new every week. This is one of my favorite fall trees on Long Island.</p><div></div>

<p>Foggy morning.<br>

<img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-05beZg1g7Qk/Um749NtwtII/AAAAAAAAAek/1VVv1FTEQ8M/s1600/Fog1.jpg" alt="" width="800" height="469" /></p>

<p>Miniature view of a terrific fall scene at Algonquin Provincial Park in Ontario, Canada.</p><div></div>

<p>Ocotillo, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.</p><div></div>

<p>I snapped this while driving (very slowly) with my Blackberry last week. Steering with my left while reaching out with my right. I couldn't resist it then as I can't resist sharing it here now. It happened in Algonquin Provincial Park here in Ontario. I rounded a bend and the wolf was strolling down the road in the centre of my lane. I slowed to wolf pace and she/he eventually pulled to the left to allow me to pass. I've spent much time in the park and have never seen a lone wolf on the road before. This one is an Eastern Red Wolf. I've read that back at the turn of the last century these wolves ocasionally cross-bred with coyotes in the park, which in itself is unusual. They grow to about 30 - 32 kilos.</p><div></div>

<p>I agree, that's a wolf. A coywolf would have a bushy tail, like a coyote and the head wouldn't be quite as broad at the top. That girl looks wet and grubby. I wonder if she was driven out of the pack.</p>