View allAll Photos Tagged Dabble
At UT I dabbled in metal casting and fabrication. For my final I had this idea for a one-man grill. It is kind of lonely but with a sense of humor, something close to independence. The Steak Grill is made of steel and based on measurements from what was a delicious steak. It was some of the most fun I have had working on a school project and I have wanted to get back into a metal shop like that ever since.
The best part is it works. I guess you could only do one side of a T-bone but a couple dogs and a burger is perfect. The Steak Grill has had a few homes over the years and was trapped in a busted car trunk for a while.
Now that the grill is preserved in pictures I would like to try to get the rust off, or at least keep it from getting worse. Even if it was clean I am not sure how to keep it that way and still be able to eat off of it.
The Steak Grill won me an “A” and I have the pictures so maybe it is time for it to retire to rust somewhere permanent with the base buried like it sprouted out of the ground.
For more photos and videos by Mark Lewis visit mlewisphotovideo.com
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(Anas discors) - Pairs and small groups of this tiny dabbling duck inhabit shallow ponds and wetlands across much of North America. Blue-winged Teal are long distance migrants, with some birds heading all the way to South America for the winter. Therefore, they take off early on spring and fall migration, leaving their breeding grounds in the United States and Canada well before other species in the fall.
(All about birds)
Explore #223
Dabbling in modular origami. The large one is a 30-piece icosahedral structure; the other three are variations of 6-piece cubes with varying additions to the faces of the cube. All folded from units by Tomoko Fuse. It's the first time I tried the icosahedron, and I didn't get all the joints tight and strong, but not bad.
"Rubbish"
Ever since I've been dabbling with Lomo cameras, I've read so much in the
forums about how lomographers think that their photos are much better than
digital pictures. That digital cameras are boring and worthless in the face
of their LC-A or whatever nots. I'm just wondering how much do these happy
snappy lomographers actually know about photography in the first place for
them to pass judgements about both technologies, new and old.
Let's get this clear first, Lomographic photographs are interesting and
generates lots of quirky moody photos. They give the average person a slice
of the happiness one would find when he/she wins a lottery. In fact, lomo
photos are lotteries. You'll never know what you are going to get because of
the extremely low-tech camera system (almost toy-like even) flawed optics
that causes vignetting, fixed focus elements... and in some lomo cameras,
light leaks that creates photos in professional photography circle would
have been deemed damaged or unusable. There are patches of red or accidental
exposure on the film that is not within the control of the photographer.
In the spirit of lomography, one shoots without thinking (too much) and then
crosses his or her fingers that the cross-processing of slide films will
result in an explosion of wacky colors that captures an artistic "mood".
Before I get flaming comments from Lomo-fans, I must say that the results
could possibly be artistic. But it qualifies as art as much as a toddler's
doodle is a masterpiece. There is so much of an element of luck involved
that one cannot actually give the photographer more credit than to say "oh,
you pressed the shutter button well". Ok, you get a few credits for
composition and finding a remotely interesting subject... but the rest of
the art is actually in the qualities of the slide film, cross processing
wonders and plenty of luck. Don't agree? C'mon, any form of photography that
doesn't involve looking through a viewfinder is a result of a big dose of
chance.
If I'm a pilot and without much input on the controls, miraculously landed a
plane... don't you think I don't deserve all the credit for saving all the
lives? If I am a musician and I happen to slam the piano, and it made an
interesting "artistic" sound which I sample into my hit single.. am I a
talented singer? Maybe more of a one hit wonder... but talented or gifted?
No.
The real experts are those pilots who land the planes and actually know what
they are doing. Those musicians who know what tune turns people on and
resonates well in people's minds and ears. Artists who know painting
techniques and possess an original style they can replicate again and again
in different artworks. A fashion designer who makes collections of clothes
based on dressmaking skills, vision of beauty and understanding of textile.
Same to photographers... it is nice to chance upon artistic and queer
results from a "point-and-shoot" Lomo camera but please don't consider this
more artistic than people who shoot digital or film SLR.
Since young, my dad's interest in photography has cultivated a sense of
curiosity in me. I've since inherited his old cameras and have done some
pretty wacky film SLR photography of my own in college. I used the Nikon
FE2, Nikon FA and Canon EOS 1000. I have shown an exhibition
in the presence of the National Unity and Social Development Minister
during the 2001 Celebrate Life campaign it in aid of the Malaysian
Humanitarian Foundation (MHf).
I have some understanding of the concept of aperture, shutter speed, film
ASA, depth of field, rule of thirds and lighting. I don't claim to be an
expert and besides, I haven't touched the manual SLR in some time, so I am
pretty rusty at it.
But I seriously do not see why digital photography and lomography (or other
types of film photography) can't co-exist together and be considered
superior in their own ways. Lomography is best considered a hobby/happy
snappy activity. You really can't take it beyond shooting pavements, pets,
old junk and the occasional portraits. Digital photography (those that are
beyond the IXUS and Cybershot point-and-shoots) require skill to harness its
true capability. Those prosumer or more advanced digital cameras give the
photographer the chance to tweak white balances, color warmth, noise levels
and ASA levels on the fly. Heck you can even focus properly... unlike the
Lomo LC-A. Where I am left taking only 4 types of photos... 0.8m, 1.5m, 3m
or scenery shots (infinity focus).
Haven't lomographers seen incredible photos taken on digital cameras? Or
35mm SLR cameras, where the photographers actually understand the lighting
so well that they adjusted to the desired aperture, shutter speed and lens
properties that they caught an award winning photo, based on skill. Yes, of
course, Mike Yamashita would still need luck to get that photo of Vietnamese
warzone and survive it. As does Steven Meisel would need luck to capture a
portrait of Madonna in a priceless expression. But all these photographers
have the knowledge, skill, talent, experience and artful eye that enables
them to control every possible element of photography while waiting for the
"picture perfect moment" to arrive.
Even if a photo is digitally tweaked, it is still art. Because the artist
behind the computer would still need the eye for aesthetics and talent
beyond cognitive linearity to perfect a "bad photo". You don't just press
one button and the computer takes care of the cropping, composition,
contrast and etc etc... It's no luck. It's still a skill, an art. There is
no "lucky" filter in photoshop... or one button to surprise yourself with
unexpected colors and claims of pseudo-art... your passport to instant
artistic echelon.
Digital cameras are great in a way that it is cheaper to shoot with... with
endless possibilities, provides instant review and can be as artistic as you
want it to be. You just have to study the manual, buy the right camera/lens
and know a bit of photoshop.
Hey and you know what, everyone can still do lomography... as you can see
that I'm hooked on it too... but please, respect other forms of photography.
We can all co-exist. Just because your photos come out wacky... doesn't mean
you're more artistic than everyone else. If anything, I would give a lot of
credit to the film and the person cross processing your film. Shooting with
Lomo is fun... but I wouldn't consider myself a good photographer, if Lomo
is all I do. It's too much of a hobbyist culture. It's the very essence of
convenience, accessibility to the so-called art, shooting without thinking
and fluke factor... that goes against the essence of photography. Lomo
photos are still photography... and appreciated for its eccentricities, but
it's hardly serious art.
And if I ever again hear someone say... "Lomography is better than digital
photography"... I might just whip out my 4R photo album and start
paper-cutting the person's flesh... and then flash his eyes with a Canon
Speedlite flash. It's the most predictably self-absorbed and obtuse thing
that a photographic celebutard can say.
One last thing... think of the biggest day of your life. Then imagine if you
had one device to capture that beautiful memory for ever... so that one day
your grandson or 80 year old spouse can reminisce of the once-in-a-lifetime
moment.... what would it be? A lomo or a digital camera?
As much as you shouldn't take lomography seriously (since there are no rules
to lomography). Those who claim that digital photography "sucks", can't be
serious.
Note: I found this profound article to shed similar light on the "Lomography
vs Art" topic. cameras.alfredklomp.com/lomography/
Dabbling with HDR in Canary wharf, one of London's iconic business districts whilst on the London Get Your Gear Our photowalk organized by Matt Granger
After dabbling at Kaiser's with the GoPro, I checked the wind and it was still in the 20-25mph range. I packed up my gear and started driving, looking for somewhere to fly from during the golden hour before sunset, I drove about 2 blocks from my house when I saw the sign for a mini park. All you see is a steep dirt wall with a small trail going up the center, I'd never been up there but thought I would check it out.
As I'm walking up the dirt wall I almost fall down a few times because the wind is so strong, maybe this was a bad idea..
I reach the top of this mound and it's a secluded green oasis! Beautiful! There's a large Xmas Tree light installation that could snare my kite/string but otherwise this park is looking really good.
I'm so happy to have the Trooper kite with me now, this session would have never happened with my Rokkaku or modified Levitation Delta. This is my new favorite picture!
*Taken from a camera suspended from a kite line.
The ruddy shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea), known in India as the Brahminy duck, is a member of the family Anatidae. It is a distinctive waterfowl, 58 to 70 cm (23 to 28 in) in length with a wingspan of 110 to 135 cm (43 to 53 in). It has orange-brown body plumage with a paler head, while the tail and the flight feathers in the wings are black, contrasting with the white wing-coverts. It is a migratory bird, wintering in the Indian subcontinent and breeding in southeastern Europe and central Asia, though there are small resident populations in North Africa. It has a loud honking call.
The ruddy shelduck mostly inhabits inland water-bodies such as lakes, reservoirs and rivers. The male and female form a lasting pair bond and the nest may be well away from water, in a crevice or hole in a cliff, tree or similar site. A clutch of about eight eggs is laid and is incubated solely by the female for about four weeks. The young are cared for by both parents and fledge about eight weeks after hatching.
In central and eastern Asia, populations are steady or rising, but in Europe they are generally in decline. Altogether, the birds have a wide range and large total population, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed their conservation status as being of least concern.
Taxonomy
The ruddy shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea) is a member of the shelduck genus Tadorna; in the wildfowl family Anatidae. The bird was first described in 1764 by the German zoologist and botanist Peter Simon Pallas who named it Anas ferruginea, but later it was transferred to the genus Tadorna with the other shelducks. Some authorities place it in the genus Casarca along with the South African shelduck (T. cana), the Australian shelduck (T. tadornoides) and the paradise shelduck (T. variegata). Phylogenetic analysis shows that it is most closely related to the South African shelduck. In captivity, the ruddy shelduck has been known to hybridise with several other members of Tadorna, with several members of the dabbling duck genus Anas, and with the Egyptian goose (Alopochen aegyptiaca). No subspecies are recognised.
The genus name Tadorna comes from the French "tadorne", the common shelduck, and may originally derive from a Celtic word meaning "pied waterfowl". The English name "sheld duck" dates from around 1700 and means the same. The species name ferruginea is Latin for "rusty" and refers to the colour of the plumage.
Description
The ruddy shelduck grows to a length of 58 to 70 cm (23 to 28 in) and has a 110–135 cm (43–53 in) wingspan. The male has orange-brown body plumage and a paler, orange-brown head and neck, separated from the body by a narrow black collar. The rump, flight feathers, tail-coverts and tail feathers are black and there are iridescent green speculum feathers on the inner surfaces of the wings. Both upper and lower wing-coverts are white, this feature being particularly noticeable in flight but hardly visible when the bird is at rest. The bill is black and the legs are dark grey. The female is similar but has a rather pale, whitish head and neck and lacks the black collar, and in both sexes, the colouring is variable and fades as the feathers age. The birds moult at the end of the breeding season and the male loses the black collar, but a further partial moult between December and April restores it. Juveniles are similar to the female but are a darker shade of brown.
The call is a series of loud, nasal honking notes, it being possible to discern the difference between those produced by the male and the female. The calls are made both on the ground and in the air, and the sounds are variable according to the circumstances in which they are uttered.
Distribution and habitat
There are very small resident populations of this species in Northwest Africa and Ethiopia, but the main breeding area of the bird is from southeast Europe across the Palearctic to Lake Baikal, Mongolia, and western China. Eastern populations are mostly migratory, wintering in the Indian subcontinent. This species has colonised the island of Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands, first breeding there in 1994, and reaching a population of almost fifty pairs by 2008. The ruddy shelduck is a common winter visitor in India where it arrives by October and departs by April. Its typical breeding habitat is large wetlands and rivers with mud flats and shingle banks, and it is found in large numbers on lakes and reservoirs. It breeds in high altitude lakes and swamps in Jammu and Kashmir.[11] Outside the breeding season it prefers lowland streams, sluggish rivers, ponds, flooded grassland, marshes and brackish lagoons.
Although becoming quite rare in Southeastern Europe and southern Spain, the ruddy shelduck is still common across much of its Asian range. It may be this population which gives rise to vagrants as far west as Iceland, Great Britain and Ireland. However, since the European population is declining, it is likely that most occurrences in Western Europe in recent decades are escapes or feral birds. Although this bird is observed in the wild from time to time in eastern North America, no evidence has been found that this is a genuine case of vagrancy. Feral ruddy shelduck have bred successfully in several European countries. In Switzerland the ruddy shelduck is considered an invasive species that threatens to displace native birds. Despite actions taken to reduce numbers, the population of ruddy shelduck in Switzerland increased from 211 to 1250 individuals in the period from 2006 to 2016.
A stable population exists in Moscow, settling the city parks' ponds alongside the endemic mallards. It is theorized that the birds are feral descendants of escapees from the Moscow Zoo, the population most likely forming after 1948, when the policy of clipping the birds' wings was repealed. Unlike the wild population, these ducks are non-migratory, wintering instead in the non-freezing parts of the city's bodies of water.
This shelduck mostly frequents open locations on inland bodies of water such as lakes, reservoirs and rivers. It is seldom seen in forested areas but does occur in brackish water and saline lagoons. Though more common in the lowlands, it also inhabits higher altitudes and in central Asia is one of the few waterbirds, along with the bar-headed goose (Anser indicus), to be found on lakes at 5,000 m (16,400 ft).
Behaviour
The ruddy shelduck is a mainly nocturnal bird. It is omnivorous and feeds on grasses, the young shoots of plants, grain and water plants as well as both aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates. On land it grazes on the foliage, in the water it dabbles in the shallows, and at greater depths, it up-ends, but it does not dive.
The ruddy shelduck is usually found in pairs or small groups and rarely forms large flocks. However, moulting and wintering gatherings on chosen lakes or slow rivers can be very large. Gatherings of over four thousand birds have been recorded on the Koshi Barrage and in the Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve in Nepal, and over ten thousand at Lake Düden in Turkey.
The birds arrive at their main breeding locations in central Asia in March and April. There is a strong pair bond between the male and female and it is thought they pair for life. In their breeding quarters, the birds are very aggressive towards their own kind and towards other species. The female in particular approaches intruders with head lowered and neck outstretched, uttering anger calls. If the intruder stands its ground, the female returns to the male and runs round him, inciting him to attack. He may or may not do so. Mating takes place on the water after a brief courtship ritual involving neck stretching, head dipping and tail raising. The nesting site is often far away from water in a hole in a tree or ruined building, a crevice in a cliff, among sand-dunes or in an animal burrow. The nest is constructed by the female using feathers and down and some grasses.
A clutch of about eight eggs (range six to twelve) is laid between late April and early June. These have a dull gloss and are creamy-white, averaging 68 by 47 mm (2.68 by 1.85 in). Incubation is done by the female while the male stands in attendance nearby. The eggs hatch after about twenty-eight days and both parents care for the young, which fledge in a further fifty-five days. After breeding the adults moult, losing the power of flight for about a month while they do so. Before moulting they move to large water bodies where they can more easily avoid predation while they are flightless. The family may stay together as a group for some time; the autumn migration starts around September and the young may mature in their second year. North African birds breed about five weeks earlier, and their breeding success is greater in wet summers.
Status
Buddhists regard the ruddy shelduck as sacred and this gives the birds some protection in central and eastern Asia, where the population is thought to be steady or even rising. The Pembo Black-necked Crane Reserve in Tibet is an important wintering area for ruddy shelducks, and here they receive protection. In Europe on the other hand, populations are generally declining as wetlands are drained and the birds are hunted. However, they are less vulnerable than some other waterfowl because of their adaptability to new habitats such as reservoirs.
The ruddy shelduck has a very wide range and an estimated total population size of 170,000 to 225,000 individuals. The overall population trend is unclear as some local populations are increasing while others are decreasing. The bird does not appear to meet the higher criteria necessary to be considered threatened, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature assesses that its conservation status is of least concern. It is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.
by Joanne of Ready, Set, Craft! readysetcraft.blogspot.com/
tutorial here: www.dabbled.org/2009/05/how-to-make-flower-pinata-just-in...
Dabbling with HDR in Canary wharf, one of London's iconic business districts whilst on the London Get Your Gear Our photowalk organized by Matt Granger
Wissahickon Creek
Thanks for the comments, everyone! I didn't post this at first because I couldn't decide it it wasn't a little over the top. But then it grew on me.
Burnaby Lake.
Dabbling ducks feed mainly at the surface rather than by diving. This group of ducks includes Mallard, Gadwall, Teals, Northern Shoveler, Wigeons, and Northern Pintail.
These are mostly gregarious ducks of freshwater or estuaries. These birds are strong fliers and northern species are highly migratory. Compared to other types of duck, their legs are placed more towards the centre of their bodies. They walk well on land, and some species feed on land.
They generally feed on the surface of the water or feed on very shallow bottoms. They are not equipped to dive down several feet like diving ducks. The dabbling ducks have smaller feet compared to the diving ducks because they do not need the extra propulsion to dive for their forage.
When spooked, dabbling ducks take flight by springing straight up from the water, but diving ducks need to gain momentum to take off and must run across the water a short distance to gain flight.
. . . Then came wand'ring by
A shadow like an angel, with bright hair
Dabbled in blood, and he shriek’d out aloud
‘Clarence is come – false, fleeting, perjur’d Clarence,
That stabb’d me in the field by Tewkesbury.
William Shakespeare, King Richard III. Act I, Scene 4.
It's from the soliloquy by George, Duke of Clarence, whilst he was being held in the Tower on a charge of high treason shortly before being murdered on the orders of his brother, King Edward IV. George was the third of the four sons of Richard, 3rd Duke of York and claimant to the English throne then held by the Lancastrian, Henry VI. The Duke’s wife, Cecilia Neville, was a Lancastrian. In order to reinforce his claim, the 3rd Duke adopted the surname Plantagenet. Nowadays that name is ascribed to all English monarchs from Henry II to Richard III but, until the third Duke adopted it, English monarchs descending from William the Conqueror did not use surnames at all. Plantagenet is said to derive from the sobriquet Plante Genist used by Henry II’s father, Geoffrey, Count of Anjou and Duke of Normandy, who liked to wear a sprig of broom (Planta Genista) in his hat.
On 30 December 1460, the third Duke and his second son, Edmund, were killed by Lancastrian forces at the Battle of Wakefield. In early February 1461, at the Battle of Mortimer’s Cross, Richard’s eldest son, Edward, at the age of 18, avenged his father’s death, winning a victory for the Yorkists, driving Henry VI into exile and assuming the throne himself becoming Edward IV.
In 1469, Edward's brother, the 19-year-old Clarence defected, joining his cousin, Richard Neville, Duke of Warwick in a campaign to restore the throne to the Lancastrian camp. On 26 July, their rebel army defeated Edward's forces at the Battle of Edgecote near Banbury. Edward was imprisoned. A month later, he escaped and, with a group of loyal noblemen, he returned to London in an attempt to renew his governance. With him was his youngest brother, the 17-year-old Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who had shown himself to be erudite young man.
George protested that the reason for his being held was that his name began with G. But, though a Yorkist like the King, he had conspired to help the Lancastrians on several occasions. Each time the King had rescinded the death sentence. But this time, George had gone too far.
"In early 1478, Parliament tried Clarence for high treason, with Edward providing much of the testimony. Nobody could be found to speak on the duke’s behalf. The verdict was, of course, guilty, and Clarence was sentenced to death by the newly appointed seneschal of England, the young Duke of Buckingham. . . . Ten days later, Clarence was put to death by immersion, it is said in a barrel of wine, which apparently was previously the duke’s sardonic personal choice".
Anthony Corbet Edward IV, England's Forgotten Warrior, p. 54.
In Act II scene 1 of the play Edward replies:
"Is Clarence dead? The order was revers’d."
To which Richard* replies:
"But he, poor man, by your first order died,
And that a winged Mercury did bear;
Some tardy cripple bare the countermand
That came too lag to see him buried."
* * *
The "Angel" is a memorial in the graveyard of Christ Church, Downend, South Gloucestershire. Below it there are two tablets. The upper one reads:
"Sacred to the memory of Thomas, the beloved husband of
Florence Mabel Walker of the Crown, Soundwell, who fell
asleep Dec. 12th. 1925 aged 45 years".
The lower one reads:
"Also of Florence Mabel, wife of the above named and wife of
Robert Reed who fell asleep 6th Oct. 1975 aged 86 years.
Re-united".
. . . so Florence survived her husband by almost exactly 50 years!
There is no mention of when her second husband, Robert Reed, died.
Thomas Walker only ran the Crown for a couple of years. The pub has recently been converted into "Garden Apartments". See www.flickr.com/photos/98587546@N00/3482904735/ and Google Street View for 82 Soundwell Road.
The building onto which the shadow is projected is the pavilion of Downend Cricket Ground which is named after William Gilbert Grace MRCS LRCP (1848-1915) who was born in the village. Part of the ground itself can be seen on the right of the photo. The black plastic sheet covers the electronic scoreboard. The solar panels on the pavilion roof had only been installed a couple of weeks or so before the photograph was taken.
Flickr's map has changed. It longer works for me. The map reference of the "Angel" is: ST 64932 76516.
The photo was posted in the Guess Where UK Group on 27 January 2023.
142 @ 31-01-23
163 @ 01-02-23
blogged here: www.dabbled.org/2009/05/how-to-throw-robot-spaceman-party...
1. The best cake ever!, 2. build a ROBOT cupcakes!, 3. Wall.E cake, 4. Robot cupcake toppers, 5. Eli's 3rd birthday cake, 6. robot cupcakes
Created with fd's Flickr Toys.
A Spot-billed Duck drying its wings after dabbling in the waters of a canal near Ludhiana, Punjab.
If you are a fan of waterfowl, during summers this duck species is the only one you'll find in the plains of Punjab. Most other waterfowl species are migratory and come here only during winters.
Dabbling with a lightbox and flash. I have been wanting to learn this for ages, but thanks to a generous friend, I had a chance to play around a bit. Thanks to my lovely model for her patience. Any constructive comments would be welcome.
Seoul, Korea
Had a little dabble into astrophotography last night with a very basic hand held camera and my late fathers home built 10 inch reflector telescope.........Please note ALL pictures on this Photostream are Copyright Protected)
So I dabbled in "Paparazzo" photography. Because I was invited to do so and I thought "why not?" It should be a lot of fun and a great experience. Well there are no words to describe my dislike for this type of work. And likely this will be my last "Red Carpet" event!
It is not the celebrities. So far I have only encountered very gracious ones for the most part. It's everyone and everything around them that blackens my soul. Happy to be back in Portland and have real clarity on what about photography gives me joy!
Ecology
The Mallard inhabits most wetlands, including parks, small ponds and rivers, and usually feeds by dabbling for plant food or grazing; there are reports of it eating frogs.[2] It usually nests on a river bank, but not always near water. It is highly gregarious outside of the breeding season and will form large flocks, which are known as a sord.[6]
[edit] Breeding behavior
Mallards form pairs only until the female lays eggs, at which time she is left by the male. The clutch is 8–13 eggs, which are incubated for 27–28 days to hatching with 50–60 days to fledgling. The ducklings are precocial, and can swim and feed themselves on insects as soon as they hatch, although they stay near the female for protection.
When they pair off with mating partners, often one or several drakes will end up "left out". This group will sometimes target an isolated female duck — chasing, pestering and pecking at her until she weakens (a phenomenon referred to by researchers as rape flight), at which point each male will take turns copulating with the female. Male Mallards will also occasionally chase other males in the same way. (In one documented case, a male Mallard copulated with another male he was chasing after said male had been killed when he flew into a glass window.)[7]
[edit] Ancestor of domestic ducks
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) is the ancestor of almost all of the varieties of domestic ducks. Domestic ducks belong to the subfamily Anatinae of the waterfowl family Anatidae. The wild Mallard and Muscovy duck (Cairina moschata) are believed to be the ancestors of all domestic ducks.[3][4]
[edit] Genetic pollution, hybridization and systematics
The last male Mariana Mallard.
The release of feral Mallard Ducks in areas where they are not native sometimes creates problems through interbreeding with indigenous waterfowl. These non-migratory Mallards interbreed with indigenous wild ducks from local populations of closely related species through genetic pollution by producing fertile offspring. Complete hybridization of various species of wild ducks gene pools could result in the extinction of many indigenous waterfowl. The wild Mallard itself is the ancestor of most domestic ducks and its naturally evolved wild gene pool gets genetically polluted in turn by the domesticated and feral populations.[3][4][8][9][10]
Mallards frequently interbreed with their closest relatives in the genus Anas, such as the American Black Duck, and also with species more distantly related, for example the Northern Pintail, leading to various hybrids that may be fully fertile. This is quite unusual among different species, and apparently has its reasons in the fact that the Mallard evolved very rapidly and not too long ago, during the Late Pleistocene only. The distinct lineages of this radiation are usually kept separate due to non-overlapping ranges and behavioral cues, but are still not fully genetically incompatible. Mallards and their domesticated conspecifics are, of course, also fully interfertile.
The Mallard is considered an invasive species in New Zealand. There, and elsewhere, Mallards are spreading with increasing urbanization and hybridizing with local relatives.[11] Over time, a continuum of hybrids ranging between almost typical examples of either species will develop; the speciation process beginning to reverse itself.[12] This has created conservation concerns for relatives of the Mallard, such as the Hawaiian Duck,[13] the A. s. superciliosa subspecies of the Pacific Black Duck,[14] the American Black Duck,[15] the Florida Duck,[16] Meller's Duck,[17] the Yellow-billed Duck,[12] and the Mexican Duck,[18] in the latter case even leading to a dispute whether these birds should be considered a species[19] (and thus entitled to more conservation research and funding) or included in the mallard.
Like elsewhere worldwide the alien Mallards are also causing severe “genetic pollution” of South Africa’s biodiversity by breeding with endemic ducks. The hybrids of Mallard and the Yellow-billed Duck are fertile and can produce more hybrid offspring. If this continues, only hybrids will occur and in the long term this will result in the extinction of various indigenous waterfowl. The Mallard duck can cross breed with 63 other species and is posing a severe threat to the genetic integrity of indigenous waterfowl. Mallards and their hybrids compete with indigenous birds for resources such as food, nest sites and roosting sites.[10]
On the other hand, the Chinese Spotbill is currently introgressing into the Mallard populations of the Primorsky Krai, possibly due to habitat changes from global warming.[20] The Mariana Mallard was a resident allopatric population - in most respects a good species - apparently initially derived from Mallard × Pacific Black Duck hybrids;[21] unfortunately, it became extinct in the 1980s. In addition, feral domestic ducks interbreeding with Mallards have led to a size increase - especially in drakes - in most Mallards in urban areas. Rape flights between normal-sized females and such stronger males are liable to end with the female being drowned by the males' combined weight.
It was generally assumed that as the spectacular nuptial plumage of Mallard drakes is obviously the result of sexual selection - most species in the mallard group being sexually monomorphic -, hybrid matings would preferentially take place between females of monomorphic relatives and Mallard drakes instead of the other way around. But this generalization was found to be incorrect.[22]
Note that it is not the hybridization itself that causes most conservation concerns. The Laysan Duck is an insular relative of the Mallard with a very small and fluctuating population. Mallards sometimes arrive on its island home during migration, and can be expected to occasionally have remained and hybridized with Laysan Ducks as long as these species exist. But these hybrids are less well adapted to the peculiar ecological conditions of Laysan Island than the local ducks, and thus have lower fitness, and furthermore, there were - apart from a brief time in the early 20th century when the Laysan Duck was almost extinct - always much more Laysan Ducks than stray Mallards. Thus, in this case, the hybrid lineages would rapidly fail.
In the cases mentioned above, however, ecological changes and hunting have led to a decline of local species; for example, the New Zealand Gray Duck's population declined drastically due to overhunting in the mid-20th century (Williams & Basse 2006). In the Hawaiian Duck, it seems that hybrid offspring are less well-adapted to native habitat and that utilizing them in reintroduction projects makes these less than successful.[23] In conclusion, the crucial point underlying the problems of Mallards "hybridizing away" relatives is far less a consequence of Mallards spreading, but of local ducks declining; allopatric speciation and isolating behavior have produced today's diversity of Mallard-like ducks despite the fact that in most if not all of these populations, hybridization must always have occurred to some extent. Given time and a population of sufficient size exists, natural selection ought to suppress harmful allele combinations to a negligible level.
The aforementioned confounds analysis of the evolution considerably. Analyses of good samples of mtDNA sequences give the confusing picture[24] one expects from a wide-ranging species that has evolved probably not much earlier than the Plio-/Pleistocene boundary, around 2 mya. Mallards appear to be closer to their Indo-Pacific relatives than to their American ones judging from biogeography. Considering mtDNA D-loop sequence data,[25] they may have evolved more probably than not in the general area of Siberia; mallard bones rather abruptly appear in food remains of ancient humans and other deposits of fossil bones in Europe, without a good candidate for a local predecessor species. The large ice age paleosubspecies which made up at least the European and W Asian populations during the Pleistocene has been named Anas platyrhynchos palaeoboschas.
As expected, haplotypes typical of American Mallard relatives and Spotbills can be found in Mallards around the Bering Sea.[26] Interestingly, the Aleutian Islands turned out to hold a population of Mallards that appear to be evolving towards a good subspecies as gene flow with other populations is very limited.[25] This unexpected result suggests that reevaluation of the Greenland, Iceland, and NE Canada populations according to molecular and morphological characters is warranted.
After dabbling in Infrared effects in Lightroom, I've finally taken the plunge and purchased a converted Nikon D70. It's a normal camera, but the Infrared filter on the sensor has been removed. It takes a lot of time and effort to get IR photography right (exposure levels are very important, as is using a tripod), but the results are well worth it.
This is my first effort with my IR camera, taken at Hardcastle Craggs in Hebden bridge, Yorkshire.
Dabbling, tipping up, occasional diving, Greenies do it all.
Green-winged Teal
Anas crecca
Bear Swamp Pool
Bombay Hook
National Wildlife Refuge
Kent, County, Delaware, USA
Olympus OM-D EM-1 Mark III
Olympus M.Zuiko ED 300mm f4.0 IS PRO
Olympus M.Zuiko Digital 1.4x Teleconverter MC-14
15 November 2022
#1stPixBHNWR
Phil's 1stPix Instagram Phil's 1stpix Instagram
Phil's 1stPix on iNaturalist-Observation Map iNaturalist: Observations
Phil's 1stPix on iNaturalist- Species Grid iNaturalist: Species
Trifolium arvense (Rabbit-foot clover)
Habitat with nene dabbling water off picnic table at sunrise at Kapalaoa cabin Haleakala National Park, Maui, Hawaii.
August 09, 2011
A small Dabbling duck (Spatula discors) which generally spends it winters in South America, but this one was a in a small flock wintering in Southern California
Image - Copyright 2024 Alan Vernon
William Kellie Smith was from a village in Scotland known as Kellas. In 1890, at the age of 20, he arrived in the then undeveloped Malaya. Here, he met an estate owner called Alma Baker, who had won concessions from the state government to clear 360 hectares of forests in Perak. With the substantial profits made from his business venture with Alma Baker, Smith started planting rubber trees and dabbled in the tin mining industry. In time, he became the owner of Kinta Kellas Estate and the Kinta Kellas Tin Dredging Company.
Now with his fortune made, he returned home to marry his Scottish sweetheart, Agnes, and brought her over to Malaysia in 1903. The following year, the couple was blessed with a daughter whom they named Helen. For many years after that, Agnes tried to conceive, but to no avail. William Smith desperately wanted a son and heir to take over his empire in the Malay peninsula. After many years, Agnes finally gave birth to a son, Anthony, in 1915. The birth of his child was the start of even greater success for William Smith. To celebrate Anthony's birth, William Smith decided to expand on his mansion. Smith started planning for a huge castle which he planned to call Kellas House, after his hometown in Scotland.
Unfortunately for Smith, tragedies struck soon after the construction of the Kellas House began. A virulent strain of the Spanish flu spread from Europe to Asia soon after World War I ended in Europe, killing many of the workers in the Kellas Estate. Another seventy workers constructing Smith's dream castle also became victims of the flu. Smith, who had already spent a fortune on his house, lost a lot of money because of this.
In the end, Kellas House, later known as Kellie's Castle, Kellie's Folly or Kellie's Castle, was sold to a British company called Harrisons and Crosfield.
Descendants of the Tamil labourers brought over to Malaya to work on the mansion still live nearby even now. Kellie's Castle is now a popular local tourist attraction and was used as a setting in the 1999 film Anna and the King.
-Wikipedia
Had a little dabble into astrophotography last night with a very basic hand held camera and my late fathers home built 10 inch reflector telescope...........Please note ALL pictures on this Photostream are Copyright Protected)