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I have to admit that life aboard Leon's Claw is a lot harder and with more responsibility than I expected... but I love it! Every day I have to make rounds throughout the entire ship and inspect everything and make sure it's all in working order. If one little thing is out of place or whistling wrong or smoking when it shouldn't, it can affect the entire ship and the lives of everyone on board.
Aside from my responsibility inspecting the ship, I also help Damien when he needs it. To be honest he doesn't need that much help. He's very handy and strong! I watched him lift three heavy crates all on his own during our first stop after my joining the crew! They weren't little crates either! I'm pretty sure Damien was amused by my awe ‘cause he kept smirking when I stared and said, "Whoa!"
Having Damien as a bunkmate wasn't all too bad but it took some getting used to. I'd never shared a room, so to speak, with another person. My hammock is directly above Damien's and privacy is a rare treat. I have to use a crate to climb up and let me tell you it is NOT an easy thing to do; especially when you are sore and tired. In fact, I nearly fell several times trying to get in the first time and Damien just stood there looking so fucking amused and told me that if I fell on him while he was sleeping that he'd kill me and make it look like an accident. We both laughed it off but at the same time I don't ever want to find out how serious he is or not.
Before I knew it, it had been nearly three weeks since I'd left home! It took some adjustment but soon I was getting used to my new life. I was an airship engineer! No, it wasn't on one of those big airships I'd dreamed of but this could one day lead to that! I wrote to Papa twice and told him all about the ship and my crew mates and what life was like for me now. Though if I am to be honest, I was starting to feel homesick. I could send Papa letters but would I ever be able to receive any back? Surely there had to be a schedule of planned stops. It meant Papa could send letters ahead for me! I knew the captain would know of them but I didn't want him to think I was regretting my choice to do this.
To be honest, I hadn't seen much of the captain in the past few weeks. When I did see him, he was often busy mapping things out and writing letters and going over ledgers while sipping on a cup of tea. He wasn't hard to find on a small ship but our paths just didn't cross too often.
It was mid afternoon and I'd finished inspecting pipes beneath the mast* when I figured now would be a good time as any to speak with the captain. He usually takes his afternoon tea around this time so I made my way down below deck to the small kitchen area. Sure enough, there he was! Captain Vincent was just finishing up brewing what appeared to be one of his favorites: Earl Grey.
I inhaled deeply and smiled slightly. "Mm, smells good." I watched as the captain glanced over and gave a small, "Mhm." His gaze looked down at his teacup, lifting it gingerly to his nose before taking a deep inhale and sighing contently. He seemed to be in a good mood so I decided to take my chance before he departed. "Sir, I wanted to ask you something." He'd just started to turn when I watched him pause and glance back at me expectantly. "What is it?"
Licking my lips, I explained, "I was wanting to ask if it would be possible to find out ahead of time some of the ports we'll be at. I wanted to let my father know so maybe he could send me letters." I watched as the captain quirked his brow and for a moment, I felt like he could see deep within me, that longing and yearning for home. I was so sure the captain was going to belittle me when instead, he gave a small sigh, then replied, "Come with me." Relief filled me and I began to follow him along towards his quarters. "Thank you!" "You're welcome."
A moment later, he opened the door and let me in before following in after me. "Things don't always go according to plan but we do have a schedule for some of the major stops we'll be taking a few months out," he explained, reaching for a notebook calendar on one of his shelves. He set his teacup down and began to thumb through the notebook until he found what he was looking for. "We'll be stopping in Arturstown in one week. After that..."
And the captain began to show me on his calendar some of the big stops we'd be making and when they were planned. He was stoic, factual in his explanations as always. I took mental notes of where and when some of them were. Fantastic!
"Thank you again, Captain!"
"You're welcome."
I watched him settle in on his chair to finally enjoy his tea. As I turned to leave, something caught my eye. It was a chess set! A very nicely made one, at that. I recognized the brand! My father had a chess set from the same maker! The memories of playing chess with my father made me smile softly. "Can I help you with anything else?" I heard the captain ask behind me. "Oh, no. Sorry, Sir. I was just admiring the box of your chess set. My father has one from the same maker." "Ah, I see." I glanced back at him as he lifted his tea to his lips and began to sip quietly from it. He looked so content just sitting there like that. I gave a small chuckle and a small jerk of my head. "Fancy a game, Captain?" I could tell I surprised him with the offer because he looked up at me and quirked his left brow.
"Are you serious?"
"Why wouldn't I be?"
The captain stared at me for a long moment. "So you know how to play?" "Of course I do." I replied, grinning. Then I added quickly with politeness, "Sir." Perhaps he'd thought someone like me wouldn't know how to play something like that. To be fair, most people of my station live their whole lives working and not having hobbies outside of that. I watched him glance towards the box and I realized that he was actually considering it! Pushing just a touch more, I teased, "Come on. I'll even go easy on you."
The captain gave a snort; an actual snort. Then he responded, "Go easy on me? Kid, I don't think you know who I am."
"Don't tell me. Show me."
"Fine. On your King's head, then."
Standing, the captain motioned for me to move and then reached up for the box, tea secured in his other hand. I thought for a split second I saw a small smirk at the corner of his lips but maybe it was just a trick of the light. We walked across to the cargo hold that also doubled as the living quarters for Damien and me. It didn't take us long to get set up. Sitting on a barrel opposite the captain, I grinned a little. "Your move, Captain."
It became clear within a few minutes that I was not playing against an amateur. Then about fifteen minutes into the game, the captain revealed just how good he was. I was good. I was not THAT good! He seemed to be several steps ahead with an answer to everything I could think of!
"Checkmate."
"How?!" I exclaimed, eyes widened and fighting back incredulous laughter as he checkmated me. I stared, going over all the pieces. Yeah, he...he got me good! I folded my arms over my chest, jaw dropped and just dumbfounded! By chance, right then, I glanced up and suddenly...I felt the wind knocked slightly out of me.
I'm not sure what it was about that one moment, but for a second the way the sunlight filtered through the ceiling and fell upon the captain, it took my breath away. His eye was staring right at me, the sunlight making his sea colored eye look so vibrant and lovely like the shallows in a lagoon. I'd never seen a man look so handsome and beautiful at the same time. His full lips curved ever so slightly into that tiny smirk I thought I'd seen earlier, and he looked so content to be sitting there with his tea and having kicked my ass in the quickest chess game I'd ever played. "Hm." His lips smirked just a touch more as he lifted his tea to his lips and slowly drained the rest of it. Before I could make any sense of what just happened...
BOOM!
"What was that?!" the captain exclaimed, looking around in shock. God, I felt as if my heart jumped into my stomach! And suddenly, the whole ship lurched and the chess set was flying along with several crates nearby! I scrambled to steady myself and stared in horror at the captain who gazed back at me while clutching a barrel. There was a horrible cranking sound that was very obviously slowing down as we heard Damien's scream rise above all of it through the ceiling window. "VINCENT!!! AIDEN!!!! YOU BETTER GET UP HERE QUICK!!!"
***
Vocabulary:
*Mast: a tall, upright post on a ship that carries the sails
Next Part: www.flickr.com/photos/153660805@N05/50846691428/in/datepo...
To read the rest of the story, here's the album link: www.flickr.com/photos/153660805@N05/albums/72157717075565127
***Please note this is a BOY LOVE (BL/yaoi/gay) series. It is a slow burn and rated PG13!***
***
Special thank you to the smexy husbando of a man: Vin Aydin Raven-Mysterious for collaborating with me on this series and co-starring as The Captain!
~
DISCORD SERVER: That's right! The Captain and the Engineer has a Discord Server! If you would like to join and chat with other crewmates and see what's new and happening before it gets posted to Flickr, click the link!
***NEW!!!!***
The Captain and the Engineer now has a FACEBOOK PAGE! Please come Like, Follow, and join the crew! Thank you so much for all your support!
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Here's how Sods Law affects the bus photographer.
You have a route that’s been temporarily converted to double decker.
You check the allocation and see that 90% of buses on the route are decker.
You find a nice spot and you hurriedly check to see what the next bus is.
And……… It's a blooming single decker! One of only two on the whole route!!
Which meant I had to fester here for another 20 minutes facing a dreary dark-brick east end council estate.
Still, the ENL seems to fit in quite nice here and I've already illustrated one of the deckers before.
Taken from Lingmoor Fell at sunrise this morning.
The light once the snow storm passed over us was quite amazing with the strong light rays catching the falling snow.
Lake District National park.
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The black and white picture looks degraded but it is the millions of falling snow flakes giving the affect.
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ZAKER : PILLS CHAIR for The Grand Event! The chair comes in 12 colors PG and Adult compatible with It's Not All Mine and Physics Cock.
Taxi: maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Grand%20Event/99/85/...
Avant d'être affectés au musée, les bâtiments étaient une maison de l'ordre des Ermites de saint Augustin. Dans son emplacement actuel, à l'intérieur des murs de la cité, le couvent des Augustins de Toulouse fut construit à partir de 1310 après l'autorisation du pape Clément V donnée par un rescrit daté du 28 janvier 1310.
Le couvent des Augustins devient bien national par décret le 2 novembre 1789. Il est désaffecté puis démembré en 1790 lors de la suppression des ordres monastiques. Il fut transformé en musée après la suppression des ordres religieux à la Révolution française.
La saisie des œuvres les plus utiles pour la création d'un « Muséum du Midi de la République » est décidée par le Conseil du département de Haute-Garonne le 12 décembre 1793. Il s'installe aux Augustins et ouvre solennellement ses portes le 27 août 1795, ce qui en fait l'un des plus anciens musées de France, très peu de temps après le Louvre.
Fermé à partir du 31 mai 2019 pour réfection des verrières, le musée devait rouvrir début 2020 mais les travaux sont prolongés jusqu'à début 2025.
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Testing out the CPL when i first got it back in Autumn... Blue and yellow always out on a good show...
A polarizing filter, used for both color and black-and-white photography, is colourless and does not affect colour balance, but filters out light with a particular direction of polarisation. This reduces oblique reflections from non-metallic surfaces, can darken the sky in colour photography (in monochrome photography colour filters are more effective), and can saturate the image more by eliminating unwanted reflections.
This shows how much Mars' slightly longer day affects a precise 24 hour rotation. Mars shares several things in common with the Earth, it is tilted in its axis so has four seasons same as Earth (they are just twice as long as Mars takes twice as long to travel round the Sun for its year) and its rotation period is about 37 minutes slower in 24 hours than Earth. Mars has visible ice around whichever pole (North or South) is having its winter. That though is largely where the similarities end! Mars lacks the molten core and strong magnetic field of Earth and consequently can't prevent damage from solar wind and cosmic rays due to its thin atmosphere being unable to absorb incoming radiation and lack of a strong magnetic field to deflect incoming particles or prevent atmosphere being lost to space. One strange consequence is that even a strong dust storm on Mars would feel like a gentle breeze to us despite their widespread nature when Mars is closest to the Sun in its orbit.
In the above images there is a tiny ice region around the South pole and signs of iciness around the North polar region that isn't thick enough to hide the underlying surface features.
Peter
DB 628 602, Lebach (ligne Lebach - Illingen), 28 Octobre 2012.
Début de journée à Lebach. En ce beau Dimanche matin d'automne, les deux VT628-4 affectés à la liaison RB72 Saarbrücken - Lebach dorment encore sur leur tiroir respectif à Lebach, en attendant l'heure des premiers trains de la journée vers la capitale Saarroise. En l'espace de quelques mois, le paysage ferroviaire s'est ici littéralement métamorphosé : depuis l'arrivée, en 2014, du tramway à Lebach, qui complète la desserte depuis la capitale régionale, se dresse à cet endroit un tout nouveau dépôt, et les installations hors d'âge, notamment le poste d'aiguillage à gauche sur la photo (déjà abandonné à cet époque), ont été démantelées depuis. Quant aux VT628, spécialistes de cette desserte depuis des décennies, ils s'effaceront définitivement de cette relation le 14 Décembre 2019, la DB ayant perdu la concession pour l'exploitation de la desserte régionale sur cette ligne au profit de VLEXX à partir du SA2020.
Affecté à un Ter Lyon Clermont Ferrand,le seul AGC B82500 pelliculé "Sillon Alpin Sud"et un de ses cousins dans la tranchée de Billezois.
Colour vibrancy and saturation is a contentious issue amongst photographers and it’s my observation that there are two distinct groups, projecting scorn from different sides of the fence. But why?
Photographer verses viewer
In flickr land over the last few years, I’ve observed that the desaturated images that I’ve posted, have been more successful with the, let’s call them, ‘advanced photographers’. The people that I have growing respect for their skills, vision, composition and generally their intelligent approach to photography. Coincidently the more vibrant images that I’ve posted, (many naturally so) have been dismissed by the very same group, as unreal, (even thought they are not, but I’ll get to that soon).
Now unusually in a direct countering to this view, the vibrant images I’ve posted have been very well received by the wider flickr community and comparatively received substantially more traffic. This disparity between in-depth respected attention, verses overwhelming faves and view counts is intriguing, as to how it affects my photographic development. It seems as though I have a choice as to whether I let myself be influenced by this observation and if a clear evaluation is formulated then how do I steer a course within these mixed messages. On one side, if the views and comment counts are to be valued, then the richer images are what I should be producing, as they get by far the biggest attention, but what of the desaturated images? I greatly appreciate the critical affirmation I receive from such skilled mentors and deeply respect the personal development that is catalysed. Hmm I want my cake and the ability to eat it. I want quality and quantity, the grass is always greener!! Any more clichéd analogies anyone? There then seems to be distinct camps, common / elite, commercial/ quality, in your face/ subtle, male/ female. Hmmm!
Now this difference in photographic tastes is only a problem, if, I want recognition from either group (which clearly I do), and again problematic, if, I let market forces dictate my future. Man my ego really wants this, but I’m not sure I should let it. Now not wishing to conclude this text too hastily, and definitely not too simplistic, but, in the end my personal vision has to be put firmly before these differing values, trends and fashions. I have to follow my own path; I have to decide my own direction. Let me focus this text, as usual it’s in danger of spiralling out of control, or should I say ‘word count’ if I let my disorganised mind float off. So let’s look at some reasons for the current trend to desaturate.
Trends
At the moment in popular culture there is a retro revival, (it occurs to me that this is cyclic and no real surprise to the older members amongst us. In fact one of my favourite quote of all time comes from Nick Cave, “every 10 years or so I become fashionable again”. what a genius (sorry for my sycophantic hero worshiping...) anyway at the moment there are many adverts on TV and in the press that attempt to offer us a retro feel and one way of subtly doing this, is to try to emulate old film stock, (ironically artificially for the realists amongst us). Anyway generally the way this is implemented, is a slight de-saturation and colour toning that gives it a different feel, paradoxically initiating deeper textural depth. Part of the reason for doing this is to create visuals that are out of the ordinary, that stand out against the rest. To say, hey look at me aren’t I different and creatively unique. Well not really for many reason that fall outside this text. Anyway as members of this contemporary culture the consumers of art, in whatever form, are then influenced sometimes subconsciously, into emulating other mediums. We do not live in a cultural bubble and I would argue that it’s near impossible to be unaffected by the power from other disciplines when producing your own work. Hence borrowing the de-saturation look from other artistic disciplines is inevitable, postmodernism springs to mind.
Simplification
Removing or desaturating colour from the image simplifies the viewing experience, enabling the viewer to streamline their thoughts and focus deeper attention on other elements such as composition, subject, texture and form. Ironically less is often more in this regard, as the ability of the photographer to influence the viewer is greater with fewer distracting elements. Simplification as a photographic tool is then a conscious distillation of key elements, seeking to edit the weaker distractions in the pursuit of viewing power. Ironically the colour image has greater potential for significant depth in texture and form, but at the expense of unambiguous visual communication.
Reality
Reality is a matter of perception. The myth that there is one common reality in my belief is born out of the scientific community influence upon the wider society reliance, on imperially centred evidenced based thinking. Sciences rejection of the slightest assumptions, only giving credence to factual law based evaluations, has influenced the wider communities thinking to reject ides outside its magnifying glass. This doesn’t mean that because we haven’t yet the tools to see and therefore measure, that infinite discoveries don’t exist outside our current enquiry.
I believe that the idea that reality is in some way is the same for everyone is an assumption further added to by our psychological need to be part of a likeminded community. Does it really matter if we see the very same world slightly differently? Well to me it offers greater opportunities to be surprised creatively when I see through somebody else’s vision, gain differing insights to the world outside my own perception. But sadly some people subconsciously reject others visions, only make sense of the world from their own set of limiting rules dictating what makes an ‘accurate’ or acceptable photograph based on reality .
We all experience the world differently based on our unique prior experience and subsequently the way we observe images is no different. Can you remember when you first snapped a photograph? I bet since that early image your observational skills are now much more developed than the first time you glanced over the results...subsequently the greater you look, really look, the more depth and colour you bring to your conscious. You actually see more, appreciate more; your reality with the very same images develops over time and changes. This is no different when looking at colour, you actually see more colour the more experienced you become (unless your heavily influenced by simplification to the point of BW) and this very fact has been used to justify the criticism of the perceived over vibrant image as fraud. Take this image as an example. I received criticism that I oversaturated the rainbow when in fact I didn’t. What I find interesting here is the viewers need to desaturate the view to fit in order to fit with their own perception on an assumption based reality. The fact that they needed to see the image as too saturated over my own view is interesting. I would also argue that that kind of viewer would need to choose subjects that were consistently desaturated and images such as the one I’ve posted with this text would be outside their personal photographic vision.
On a final point about reality I also find it intriguing that people champion film photography as being real over digital, but ironically the choice of many landscape photographers is the vibrant Velva.
Traffic
There is no doubt that more vibrancy within an image helps it stand out amongst our thumbnail social networking culture. Not surprisingly these images can sometimes gain more traffic and subsequently attention, from the inevitable wider target audiences. Yes it’s true that colour is very good at initiating a mood in people and without consciousness of this power, can be a good emotion catalyser. But what is often overlooked when negative criticism, based on colour saturation sometimes materialises, is the oversight within the choice of subject, being naturally vibrant. The twilight ‘golden hour’ is an obvious example of this subject selection and often dismiss as clichéd, amateurish choice of subject, something that only a new conceptually inexperienced photographer would tackle. I would surmise this as narrow minded and tackled by a skilled conceptualiser can pay hansom dividends.
No moving on and turning this clichéd to an example, this shot was a result of being lost in the valley of desolation last week, three miles from my destination and without a compass. As I ran along the sometimes shin deep mud tracks trying to make sense of the map, trying to find my way out of the forest, to the valley bottom, in order to gain my bearings and not end up with a broken ankle, frozen and dead , I happened across this truly amazing sight. I was totally in awe to the conditions, but was massively at odds as to my personal safety. My point being, this photograph offered me, very personal and dramatic set of circumstances that at least for me have very special emotions. But the mix of colours from deep oranges to dark greens shouldn’t have worked, but did in a naturally vibrant way. The subject offered me a mix of deep dark forest, juxtaposed against the creeping in life giving light. What I see when looking at this image, apart from the adrenalin charged experience I managed to live through, is the deep cold mossy forest, that light doesn’t often get into, with dead fallen unattended lost trees, a wonderfully wild but paradoxically scary place, when the sun is just about to go down. I feel lost and safe, as the edge of the forest is penetrated by the setting sun. Now many of you will think I’ve lost the plot, (and please feel free to let me know with well crafted jokes), but for me this image is special. Both as a visual record, but more importantly as a conceptual and emotion catalyst.
My views
If you have made it this far, then I thank you for giving me enough respect to stick at it and apologise at the same time, for the subtle lack of organised thought with regard some of my ideas here. This text is already way too long, but I didn’t want it to be extended too much longer, so have decided to post it and then if I gain further incite, I will then revisit. (Something I’m sure to do as I plan on making a book out of my rambles, if I ever make time to). Anyway just for the record I’m writing this text in order to reflect on this subject in order to disentangle my own thoughts from the powerful influences out there. I partly conclude that I must follow my own creative path and not let the trends to de-saturation sway me, but I feel by exploring my own personal reality through photography, will result in the ability to present creative congruence, whatever that might be.
"Nothing affects me"
♫♫ dark sanctuary - Abre Los Ojos
Please don't use this image on websites, blogs or other media without my explicit permission. © All rights reserved
Fifty images in this season of snowflakes so far! And with all that, we haven’t really seen a good trigonal snowflake until now. Let’s fix that!
Amidst an array of small colourful plates and broad columns, I occasionally find a snowflake where the growth on even and odd sides is synced, but not together. This three-fold symmetry is puzzling, but it does have an answer – at least in theory! Because these snowflakes are so uncommon, it’s hard to practically test the ideas that are described in this paper from Ken Libbrecht, physicist at CalTech: arxiv.org/abs/0911.4267 (you’d have to be REALLY geeky to read that)
The basic assertion is that the aerodynamic qualities of a snowflake will affect its growth. If a snowflake faces the same direction without tumbling about, certain facets will grow faster than others. If the crystal is “stable” in the air, it might turn out to be something like this. Because the air is so chaotic and a snowflake isn’t generally designed to be as aerodynamic as an air plane, these are fairly uncommon with this extreme degree of disparity between side lengths. I’ve seen much more common occurrences of snowflakes with slight differences that create three-fold symmetry instead of six-fold, but they could hardly be called “triangle flakes”.
Since many of the snowflakes from this snowfall, photographed with a pre-production Lumix S1, were able to create thin film interference colours, I should have been surprised that this triangular snowflake had the same – the icing on the cake! If you want more info on this type of strange colour, here are the pages from my book Sky Crystals that describe it: skycrystals.ca/pages/optical-interference-pages.jpg
This crystal also shows us how inward crystal growth “smooths out” the corners. There are two inset rounded triangles that you can see intersecting with the colour areas – fainter in contrast because they are on the reverse side of the snowflake. If the crystal goes through an event where the outer edge thickens, it will grow inward from this thicker edge and as it grows inward it becomes rounder. Hexagon centers will readily create circular shapes, but a trigonal snowflake would take a lot longer to reach a circle.
These orange colours are far less frequent with thin film interference, as there are fewer distances of separation that can create them. Hard to say exactly what the thickness of the bubbles were, or the ice on either side, but it’s a welcome sight. As if a Vick’s cough drop became a snowflake, this little gem is a welcome remedy for the frustrations of a cold winter day.
Also, I might not have mentioned it… but the hardcover of Sky Crystals is officially SOLD OUT! 3000 copies sold direct to customers without retail presence, I’m humbled and honoured. I may make a sequel in future years, but there is an eBook version available that has the entire photographic workflow used to create these images here: skycrystals.ca/product/sky-crystals-unraveling-the-myster...
The male was aware of my presence and at first he watched me silently from the hole, then he slowly came out of the hole and when he was sure, he called the female.
Like most red squirrels, spotting a Caucasian Squirrel is definitely becoming a rare sight. Climate change affects nature differently in every corner of the world.
The last time I came across the local squirrels was at the beginning of July. Due to the extreme heat in the region, Caucasian Squirrels are certain to spend very hot hours in their nests. Because I haven't been seen them around very often for more than 2 months.
Today, it was cloudy weather in the North Aegean Region of Turkey, the strong North wind was shaking the olive branches. I was walking in an olive grove and I was patiently waiting to see the Caucasian Squirrel. After waiting for about an hour, the reward came, a group of squirrels were playing around the pomegranate trees 100 meters in front of me. I was waiting under the olive tree with a wide trunk. I didn't move, waiting for them to climb the centuries-old olive trees and retreat to their den inside the follow in the middle of the tree. I saw the Mr & Mrs Caucasian Squirrel couple enter their century-old olive tree hollow.I started to wait next olive tree trunk, which is about 7 meters away.I had already begun to wait silently for 30 minutes when the male Caucasian Squirrel noticed my presence immediately. Curious male took out his head first, then his half body, checked and after making sure then Female followed him.The moment I had been waiting for a long time happened 7 meters in front of me. Even though I was wearing a camouflage cover, they were aware of my presence.
I had to use 1.4 TC for close-up when the light was enough. Today they made me very happy. I hope you wouldn't mind 14 series of Caucasian Squirrel photos and you'll like it just as much as I do.
The Caucasian squirrel - Sciurus anomalus ; The Caucasian squirrel or Persian squirrel, is a tree squirrel in the genus Sciurus found in temperate broadleaf and mixed forests in south-western Asia.
The species is usually said to have first been described in 1778 by Johann Friedrich Gmelin in the 13th edition of Systema Naturae,and named Sciurus anomalus. However, some authors argue that this work was actually published in 1788, and that the true first description was made by Johann Anton Güldenstädt in 1785.
Description -
Caucasian squirrels are small tree squirrels, with a total length of 32 to 36 cm (13 to 14 in), including the 13 to 18 cm (5.1 to 7.1 in) tail, and weighing 250 to 410 g (8.8 to 14.5 oz). The color of the upper body fur ranges from greyish brown to pale grey, depending on the subspecies, while that of the underparts is rusty brown to yellowish, and that of the tail, yellow brown to deep red. The claws are relatively short, compared with those of other tree squirrels, and females have either eight or ten teats.
Samuel Griswold Goodrich described the Caucasian squirrel in 1885 as "Its color is grayish-brown above, and yellowish-brown below".
Physical Description -
Caucasian squirrels have a dental formula of incisors 1/1, canines 0/0, premolars 1/1, and molars 3/3, totaling 20. They have four fingered fore feet and five fingered hind feet. Sex differences in body length or mass are not evident.
Distribution and habitat -
Caucasian squirrels are native to south-western Asia, where they are found from Turkey, and the islands of Gökçeada and Lesbos in the west, Iran in the southeast, and as far as Israel and Jordan in the south.It is one of only two species of the genus Sciurus to be found on Mediterranean islands,and, although Eurasian red squirrels have been recently introduced to some areas, is the only species of Sciurus native to the wider region.
The species mainly lives in forested areas dominated by oak, pine, and pistachio, up to altitudes of 2,000 metres (6,600 ft).
Biology and behavior -
The squirrels are diurnal, and solitary, although temporary groups may forage where food is plentiful. Their diet includes nuts, seeds, tree shoots, and buds,with the seeds of oak and pine being particularly favored. Like many other squirrels, they cache their food within tree cavities or loose soil, with some larders containing up to 6 kg (13 lb) of seeds. They live in trees, where they make their dens, but frequently forage on the ground, and are considered less arboreal than Eurasian red squirrels. They commonly nest in tree hollows lined with moss and leaves, and located 5 to 14 m (16 to 46 ft) above the ground, but nests are also sometimes found under rocks or tree roots. Their alarm call is high-pitched, and said to resemble the call of the European green woodpecker, and they mark their territories with urine and dung.
Breeding occurs throughout the year, but is more common in spring or autumn. Litters range from two to seven, with three or four being typical, and the young are fully mature by five or six months of age.
Conservation -
A survey in 2008 found that the species remained abundant within Turkey, however declines are noted in population within the Levant region. The guides for a survey in 1993 in Israel stated that they considered the species to be nearly extinct within the area studied. Whilst the Caucasian squirrel is threatened by poaching and deforestation, the declines recorded are not sufficient to qualify them as anything other than "Least Concern" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.[1] Hunting of the species is banned by the Central Hunting Commission, and the Caucasian squirrel is protected by the Bern Convention and the EU Habitats Directive.
This information is sourced from "Wikipedia".
Thank you so much for visiting my stream, whether you comments , favorites or just have a look.
I appreciate it very much, wishing the best of luck and good light.
© All rights reserved R.Ertug Please do not use this image without my explicit written permission. Contact me by Flickr mail if you want to buy or use Your comments and critiques are very well appreciated.
Lens - With Nikon TC 14E II - hand held or Monopod and definitely SPORT VR on. Aperture is f8 and full length. All my images have been converted from RAW to JPEG.
I started using Nikon Cross-Body Strap or Monopod on long walks. Here is my Carbon Monopod details : Gitzo GM2542 Series 2 4S Carbon Monopod - Really Right Stuff MH-01 Monopod Head with Standard Lever - Really Right Stuff LCF-11 Replacement Foot for Nikon AF-S 500mm /5.6E PF Lense -
Thanks for stopping and looking :)
Affectation de jour voie principale effectuant sont premier de la journée en direction de Port Alfred
Sindy: -Patch, Mum says you must tidy up the mess you made in the china cabinet.
Patch: -...(no answer)
Sindy: -Patch!
Patch: -...(no answer)
Sindy: -Muuuum! She doesn't want to do it!
to be continued
www.spurnpoint.com/Spurn_Point.htm
Spurn is a very unique place in the British Islands. Three and a half miles long and only fifty metres wide in places.
Extending out in to the Humber Estuary from the Yorkshire coast it has always had a big affect to the navigation of all vessels over the years. Help to some and a danger or hindrance to others. This alone makes Spurn a unique place.
Spurn is made up of a series of sand and shingle banks held together with mainly Marram grass and Seabuckthorn. There are a series of sea defence works built by the Victorians and maintained by the Ministry of Defence, till they sold Spurn to the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust in the 1950s. The defences are in a poor state, breaking down and crumbling. This is making Spurn a very fragile place wide open to the ravages of the North Sea.
One of the most striking features of Spurn is the black and white lighthouse near to the end of Spurn. Now just an empty shell not used since it was closed down at dawn on the thirty first of October 1986.
There have been many Lighthouses on Spurn over the years the first recorded at around 1427. The present light was built from 1893 TO 1895. The small tower on the beach on the Estuary side was originally the low light. It was built and put in to operation at around 1852. This light was no longer needed when the present lighthouse was opened in 1895.At a later date the light was removed and it was used as a store for explosives and later as a water tower. The tank can still be seen on the top. When it was operational there was a raised walkway from the shore to the lighthouse so it could be reached at all stages of the tide.
The present lighthouse was built to replace an old lighthouse that was positioned just to the south of the present one. You can still see the round perimeter wall surrounding the old keepers cottages and the base of the old lighthouse which had to be demolished due to it settling on it's foundations making it unsafe.
The only light on Spurn today is a flashing green starboard light on the very end of the point and the fixed green lights marking the end of the Pilots jetty.
Because of Spurns ever moving position there have been many Lighthouses over the years. There is a very good book by George.de.BOAR, called History of the Spurn Lighthouses, produced by the East Yorkshire Local History Society. This is one of a series of books on local history.
www.spurnpoint.com/Around_and_about_at_Spurn.htm
Around and about there are plenty of places to eat and drink. Starting from the north of Spurn at Kilnsea there is the Riverside hotel offering good quality food drink and accommodation. Coming south towards Spurn and still in Kilnsea there is the Crown and Anchor pub. A welcoming place serving bar meals fine beers and offering bed and breakfast at very reasonable rates. At the crossroads before you turn towards Spurn there is the Spurn heritage coast visitors centre. Where there is a small cafe and exhibition. At the entrance Spurn point nature reserve is an information centre and bird observatory selling books pamphlets, etc., and the last toilet on Spurn.
Past the lighthouse is the last car park. Two hundred metres further on you find the Humber Lifeboat and Pilot stations. Near the houses is a Small caravan selling tea, coffee, cold cans, hot and cold food, crisps and sweets.
All are open all year round apart from the heritage centre which is open thought the season.
BIRD WATCHING.
Is a very popular pastime as Spurn is internationally famous for birds. There are up to two hundred species recorded at spurn every year. Some of which are extremely rare. The Marmora's Warbler seen at Spurn In June 1992 was only the third recorded in Britain.
SEA FISHING.
The beaches of Spurn provide some of the best sea fishing in the area, with Cod and Whiting and Flats being caught through the winter and Skate, Flats and Bass through the summer. There is sport to be had all the year.
At the very end of Spurn is deep water ideal for Cod but this only fishes best two hours either side of low water, the tide is to strong at other times. All along the seaward side of Spurn is good for all species of fish at all times though over high water being the better. The riverside of Spurn is very shallow and only produces Flats and the bass over high water.
THE BEACH.
The beaches at Spurn are of soft sand and shingle. Whichever way the wind is blowing you can just pop over the dunes to the outer side. There are fossils and all manners of things to find beach combing. Swimming is not safe any were near the point end as there are very strong tides at up to six knots at times. But in side Spurn around the point car park is perfect at high water. The beach does not shelf to fast and very little tide. You can have the place to your self at times, as Spurn is never really busy weekdays.#
A very popular pastime at Spurn is Fossil hunting. There is a good abundance of fossils to be found in amongst the pebbles and shingle.
The Shark Trust has a very interesting PDF file tell you all about Shark Skate and rays the mermaids purses you find on the beach are egg shells from sharks and Rays. Click the link to down load the Shark Trust Brochure.
WALKING.
Walking or strolling at spurn is very easy, as there are no hills. There are various sign posted paths up and down the point. For the fit a complete walk round the whole point is about 8 miles, taking in all the point round the point end and back to the "warren" information place at the start of Spurn. You will need good footwear, as much of the paths are sand. There is limited access for disabled, but not to the point end, as you have to go via the beach.
You can park your car at the point car park and walk round the point end and back to the car park about a mile, or just stroll around the point were you choose. The only place you are not allowed to go are down the pilot's jetty and the centre square of the Lifeboat houses.
In spring and early summer Spurn is covered with a large amount of wild flowers of all species.
There are common to the not so common; from Orchids to bluebells. I must remind you Spurn is a nature reserve and the picking of all flowers is prohibited. When visiting please enjoy Spurn, as it is a very beautiful place and leave only your footprints.
Horse Riding.
There is riding available nearby at the North Humberside Riding Centre. The stables are ideally located with rides along quiet country lanes, by-ways, plus miles of sandy beach and riverbanks. The cross-country course offers a variety of fences for both the novice and the more experienced rider.
www.spurnbirdobservatory.co.uk/
A Brief History of Spurn Bird Observatory
Following visits to Spurn by several members of the Yorkshire Naturalists' Union in the late 1930's, a communal log for ornithological observations was instituted in 1938. This included a roll-call of species, the beginnings of a recording system, which later became standard in bird observatories. Realising the potential of the Spurn peninsula for the regular observation of bird migration a group of enthusiasts, notably Ralph Chislett, George Ainsworth, John Lord and R.M. Garnett, had the idea of setting up a bird observatory, with the Warren Cottage at the northern end of the peninsula as an ideal headquarters. Unfortunately the outbreak of war forced them to put their plans on hold but shortly after hostilities ceased a lease for Warren Cottage was obtained from the War Department and the observatory was established shortly afterwards under the auspices of the Y.N.U. with the four members mentioned above forming the first committee. A preliminary meeting was held in September 1945 to decide on the site for a Heligoland trap, work on which was begun almost immediately and the first bird (a Blackbird) was ringed on November 17th. The first minuted committee meeting was held on March 9th 1946 and the observatory was opened to visitors at Whitsuntide that year.
Initially coverage was limited to the main migration seasons, being extended to winter weekends in the early 1950's to trap and ring some of the large numbers of Snow Buntings which used to occur at that time of year and gradually coverage was increased (whenever possible) to cover the late spring and summer. In 1959 there was an important development when the Yorkshire Naturalists' Trust (now the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust) became the owners of the peninsula and thus the observatory's landlord. In 1960 a full time warden was appointed by the Trust, and although having no official connection with the observatory the fact of having an observer on the peninsula year-round inevitably helped to improve the ornithological coverage. This was especially the case from 1964 when the current warden, Barry Spence, was appointed, in conjunction with the fact that an interest in birds and their migrations was steadily growing and more bird-watchers were staying at the observatory, often for longer periods.
When the observatory opened there was accommodation for seven visitors in Warren Cottage and facilities included two chemical toilets, the Warren Heligoland trap and an ex-army hut as a ringing hut. Over the next ten years a further five Heligoland traps were constructed along the peninsula, although today only three remain in existence. In 1959 the observatory gained the use of the Annexe, one of two ex W.D. bungalows built at the Warren during the early 1950's, thus increasing the accommodation capacity to seventeen and providing much improved toilet facilities. Over the years the accommodation and facilities have been gradually improved to try to make the visitor's stay at Spurn as comfortable as possible. Other improvements have also taken place, in 1968 part of one of the derelict buildings at the Point was converted into a ringing laboratory ready for the first B.T.O. Ringing Course, held in autumn of that year and in 1971 part of one of the derelict buildings at the Warren was also converted into a ringing laboratory. The other part of this building became a laboratory for the use of students of Leeds University but this also became available to the observatory in the mid 1980's when the University no longer had a use for it. Subsequently it was converted into a self-contained accommodation unit for two, complete with kitchen facilities, and although officially known by the somewhat unimaginative name of Room F (the rooms in the Annexe being known as Rooms A, C, D & E, - whatever happened to Room B?), it was somewhat irreverently christened "Dunbirdin" by regular visitors to Spurn.
In 1965 a sea-watching hut was erected east of the Warren beyond the line of the former railway track. Due to coastal erosion it became necessary to move this in late 1974, when it was hoped that it would last at least as long as it had in its first position. Alas this was not to be, as the rate of erosion increased dramatically in the mid 1970's, necessitating a further move in early December 1977. In that year a clay bank had been built across the field behind Warren Cottage (Clubley's field) to prevent the flooding of arable land by wind-blown sea water, but on January 11th 1978 Spurn suffered its worst flooding ever when a strong to gale-force north-westerly wind combined with a spring tide. In late 1981 due to extensive construction works at Easington a large quantity of boulder clay became available and this was used to build up and extend the bank across Clubley's field, south towards Black Hut and north beyond Big Hedge to join up with an existing bank (which had been built in 1974) behind the scrape. In 1982 the sea-watching hut was repositioned on top of this bank, where it remained until the bank itself was washed away in the early 1990's.
A number of other changes to the observatory recording area began to take place from the early 1970's, including extensive building operations at the Point, commencing in 1974, with the construction of a new jetty for the Humber Pilot boats, new housing for the Spurn Lifeboat crew and the conversion and renovation of various existing buildings for use by the Coastguard and the Pilots. In 1978 following damage to the existing road south of the Warren area a new tarmac road was laid to the west of the original one, this lasted until 1988 when a second "new road" loop had to be laid, followed in 1991 by the construction of the existing loop road running along the Humber shore from just south of the Warren to just beyond Black Hut. The construction of this road resulted in the destruction of the actual Black Hut, although the area still bears the name. In 1981 the lines of wartime concrete anti-tank blocks running from the seashore to the Canal Zone were removed to fill in a breach at the Narrow Neck. This resulted in the southward extension of the Scrape field by the farmer up to Big Hedge and the start of a gradual decline in the condition of this hedge and its attractiveness to birds. In 1982 a local resident excavated a pond for shooting purposes in the wet area adjoining the Canal Zone. This never really proved successful and the land was later purchased by the Y.W.T. and the pond enlarged to become what is now known as Canal Scrape. In 1984 a famous Spurn landmark, the Narrows "Hut", a wooden migration watch shelter which had stood at the Narrow Neck for twenty-three years, was set fire to by person or persons unknown and completely destroyed, it was replaced the following year by a more solid construction made from breeze-blocks.
A period of considerable change began in 1988 when the Spurn peninsula was designated as part of the Spurn Heritage Coast. Projects undertaken include the enlargement of the Canal Scrape mentioned above and the erection of a hide overlooking it, a hide overlooking the Humber wader roost at Chalk Bank, a public sea-watching hide alongside the observatory one, provision of additional car-parking space, the restoration of the short-turf habitat in the Chalk Bank area, provision of footpaths, etc. A major project was the renovation of the Blue Bell in Kilnsea for use as offices, an information centre and a small cafe, which became fully operational in 1995. Another fairly recent project has been the creation of another scrape/pond on Clubley's field.
In 1996 the observatory celebrated its fiftieth anniversary, and for the first time in its history SBO employed a full time seasonal warden. This position has since been expanded and the observatory now enjoys the services of a year- round warden. In 1998, with a view to the future, a small bungalow in Kilnsea was purchased with money bequeathed by the late John Weston, a long time committee member, who regrettably died in 1996. This was followed in 1999 by the purchase of a strip of land adjacent to the property and is now known as the ‘Church Field’, this is planted with a sacrificial crop every year, and has also had several groups of trees planted and a feeding station placed in the north-east corner. Access to this field is available by becoming a member of ‘Friends of Spurn Bird Observatory’, a venture set up in 2003 to eventually help with the building of a new observatory when the old one falls way to the sea.
Bus : Solaris Urbino 18 IV Electric
Mise en service : 2019
Affectation : 64
Dépôt : Haren
Réseau : STIB/MIVB
Shot of Breagha taking a drink of water from fresh stream. Breagha not in shot but liked the the patterns it produced
I have finally got around to making a new full (25mm or 1 inch) thickness LegAffects garment out of the correct softer and lower density foam. I downloaded the plans via here... www.deviantart.com/art/Leg-Affects-Pattern-Download-LegAf... My previous two pairs were made out of medium density foam and were an absolute nightmare to make and use!!! Yes, those are a pair of rolled up socks each side. These form the crucial hips for this padding regime. This is what it looks like when finished. www.flickr.com/photos/145133269@N04/40209542975/in/photos... See step 2...
We hope. May the oil spill miraculously not affect our only continental US tropical reef and fragile environment. The oil spill effects seem to be picked up by the Loop Current, tar balls have been found west of Key West . Fears and sadness for our beautiful Florida Keys precious treasure. Other photos and more commentary for those who wish in first comment below. Sadness also for all the other many areas affected, and for the 11 men who lost their lives in the oil rig explosion, and their families. News stories here: www.cbsnews.com/2718-201_162-558.html (Thanks Maicos-2 for the link)
Lisette accompanied us on our photo documentation journey to show the beauty of the Florida Keys, before any oil spill effects. She seemed to get the seriousness of the mission.
Years ago, fresh water was trickled into Florida Bay from the mainland, through the C-111 canal. The fresh water "poisoned" the salt water bay, killed the fish and seagrass, the sponges, the sealife. The water turned to pea soup. It took 2 + years to sort of recover. Sea urchins and sand dollars never recovered. That was fresh water-- imagine-- oil effects and invisible toxic chemicals put into the water to disperse the oil. I'd rather have the fresh water.
More information about our delicate environment here: fl.audubon.org/PDFs/pubs_policydocs-florida_bay_report_ma...
There is no other ecosystem in the entire world like our ecosystem and the Florida Everglades.
Taken 5/8/10, Uploaded 5/18/10, #4918, r72_550, Exposure enhanced a touch, (erase)
To view large in Windows Vista Internet Explorer, click Control + a few times, and then Control 0 to return to normal view. Other operating systems and browsers usually have a magnification control, often on the lower right.
If you wish, view "my own favorites" of my photostream, or view all of my Photostream, sorted by Interestingness: fiveprime.org/flickr_hvmnd.cgi?search_domain=User&tex...
L’autorail spécial VT-608-801 affecté aux déplacements des généraux de l'armée Américaine, retourne à Heidelberg (Allemagne) après un déplacement à Bayeux. Photographie prise le 1 mai 1990 à Argenteuil sur la ligne de grande ceinture de Paris.
Impressive waves affect a lighthouse,in entrance of the port of Bayonne,in SW France,there is a one week ago.
What an impressive wave at hte moment,isn't it ?
My favorite shot from winter storm over atlantic coast this year.
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© Mathieu Goalard Photographies 2017
I confess, I've stolen this powerful holeyes concept to the fabulous Stasys Eidrigevicius (graphist, painter, poster designer . .)
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Outlining a Theory of General Creativity . .
. . on a 'Pataphysical projectory
Entropy ≥ Memory ● Creativity ²
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Etude du jour:
"Le regard ne s’empare pas des images, ce sont elles qui s’emparent du regard."
( Franz Kafka )
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rectO-persO | E ≥ m.C² | co~errAnce | TiLt
Hot and sunny September seemed much like a continuation of summer, only with the addition of school buses and homework. October was lovely -- the warm temperatures, the red and gold leaves against glorious blue skies, the wedding. All was well, my mood was expansive, life was deliciously good.
Then November arrived and bit me on the ass.
I have SAD -- Seasonal Affective Disorder -- and while many people get sluggish and grumpy and blue in the winter, I succumb to despair.
I sleep upwards of ten hours a day. I isolate myself from everyone.
I crave sweets. I become convinced that this moment -- right now-- is the nadir of my existence, and that nothing will ever get better. Ever.
I have full-spectrum sun lamps. I have meds. I have books that reassure me that I am not the only one who feels this way. I have the myth of Persephone, which I find strangely comforting. I have my daughter, who understands.
But already I ache for springtime, and the sun.