View allAll Photos Tagged Ecosystem
A Pink Salmon, desperately trying to elude a hungry Black Bear, leaps from the shallow spawning steam only to land on a rock. For all their bulk, bears are agile and quick, and this one is about to clamp down on her meal... but... believe it or not, the salmon did a backflip and escaped! (Unfortunately it flipped behind that out of focus rock in the left foreground, so my next frame wasn't as good.)
My title refers to both of them. The salmon needs to spawn. The bear needs to pack on calories to get through the coming winter. The salmon that don't make it feed not only bears, but eagles, crows, wolves, vultures, gulls, and the forest itself (bears and eagles will carry their catch into the woods to consume, and the leftovers will fertilize the forest floor). This is how a healthy ecosystem should work. Whether the BC coastal ecosystem is healthy enough to maintain itself at this point is anyone's guess...
Wildlife action from the wild coast of British Columbia (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission © 2019 James R. Page - all rights reserved.
L'Ecotron fait partie du Centre de recherche de terrain , situé dans le parc national de la Haute Campine. L' Ecotron de l'Université d'Hasselt est une infrastructure de recherche à grande échelle qui permet de réaliser des expériences climatiques contrôlées de pointe pour étudier les effets du climat et du changement climatique sur le fonctionnement des écosystèmes. Il fournit un aperçu de l'impact du climat sur un écosystème donné qui ne peut être obtenu par des expériences de terrain (trop complexes) ni par des expériences contrôlées en laboratoire (trop réductrices).
L'écotron de l'Université d'Hasselt se compose de 12 unités fermées éclairées par le soleil, où les conditions environnementales peuvent être contrôlées séparément. Chaque unité abrite un lysimètre avec une colonne de sol-canopée de 3,14 m 2 et de 1,5 m de profondeur, où les processus écosystémiques peuvent être surveillés en temps réel.
Les variables suivantes peuvent être contrôlées : la température de l’air, l’humidité relative de l’air, la concentration en CO2 de l’air , les précipitations, la tension de l’eau du sol et la température du sol.
Les variables suivantes sont surveillées toutes les 1 à 30 min : concentrations de CH 4 et de N 2 O dans l'air, pression atmosphérique, rayonnement net, rayonnement photosynthétiquement actif, conductivité électrique du sol, teneur en eau du sol, poids du sol et poids du lixiviat du sol.
Tous les paramètres du sol sont mesurés à 15 positions : 5 profondeurs (10, 20, 35, 60, 140 cm) et à 3 positions spatiales par profondeur.
De plus, des ventouses échantillonnent l’eau du sol aux mêmes 15 positions par unité.
À partir de ces variables, les échanges nets de l’écosystème, l’évapotranspiration ainsi que les émissions de CH4 ou de N2O peuvent être calculés avec une résolution et une fréquence élevées.
The Ecotron is part of the Field Research Centre , located in the Hoge Kempen National Park. The Ecotron of Hasselt University is a large-scale research infrastructure that enables state-of-the-art controlled climate experiments to study the effects of climate and climate change on ecosystem functioning. It provides insight into the impact of climate on a given ecosystem that cannot be obtained through field experiments (too complex) or controlled laboratory experiments (too reductive).
The Ecotron of Hasselt University consists of 12 closed, sunlit units, where environmental conditions can be controlled separately. Each unit houses a lysimeter with a 3.14 m2 and 1.5 m deep soil-canopy column, where ecosystem processes can be monitored in real time.
The following variables can be monitored: air temperature, air relative humidity, air CO2 concentration, precipitation, soil water tension and soil temperature.
The following variables are monitored every 1 to 30 min: CH4 and N2O concentrations in air, atmospheric pressure, net radiation, photosynthetically active radiation, soil electrical conductivity, soil water content, soil weight and soil leachate weight.
All soil parameters are measured at 15 positions: 5 depths (10, 20, 35, 60, 140 cm) and at 3 spatial positions per depth.
In addition, suction cups sample soil water at the same 15 positions per unit.
From these variables, net ecosystem exchanges, evapotranspiration, and CH4 or N2O emissions can be calculated with high resolution and frequency.
"The struggle is real."
Moose of Grand Teton
Moose are the largest member of the deer family and love cold weather. They frequent marshy meadows and edges of lakes and streams. About 800 Moose inhabit the southern part of Yellowstone, Grand Teton National Park and surrounding national forests. Moose are most heavily concentrated in Grand Teton Park.
To keep from sinking in mud while feeding, as the animal lowers its foot, a large dewclaw spreads to better support the weight. Similarly, the odd-looking crook of the hind leg allows a Moose to pull the leg straight up, more easily releasing it from deep, sucking mud.
Bull Moose lose their antlers anytime between December and March. Most of the Moose drop them in January. Immature bulls may not shed their antlers for the winter but retain them until the following spring. Female Moose do not have antlers.
A new set of antlers begin to grow the following spring, nourished by the covering of furry skin known as velvet. They take three to five months to develop fully – the velvet is then scraped and rubbed off against bushes and branches. The antlers are then ready for battle. Generally, each set of antlers will be larger than the one before.
Birds, carnivores, and rodents eat dropped antlers as they are full of protein and Moose themselves will eat antler velvet for the nutrients.
Take note—cow Moose with young can be particularly dangerous.
For more info: www.yellowstonepark.com/things-to-do/wildlife/about-moose/
The series on "Trees" continues with a Garry Oak from Vancouver Island. The Gary Oak ecosystem is among the rarest and most endangered in North America - and the most beautiful. In springtime, waves of wildflowers sweep through the grassy meadows between trees: Early Camas, Great Camas, Death Camas, Shooting Star, Spring Gold, Miner's Lettuce, Lupine, and many more.
The trees themselves are fantastic, developing thick, twisty trunks and branches. In recent decades, significant efforts have been made to restore habitat. Walking through the oak meadows with camera and tripod was among my great pleasures during the years I lived near Victoria (1991-2000 and 2003-2011).
Photographed in Uplands Park, Victoria, Vancouver Island, BC (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2008 James R. Page - all rights reserved.
The White Desert is a natural wonder located in the Western Desert of Egypt, about halfway between the Bahariya Oasis and the Farafra Oasis. It is a vast expanse of white chalk rock formations, which have been sculpted by wind and water over millions of years. The formations are otherworldly and strangely beautiful, and they have been compared to everything from mushrooms to castles to coral reefs.
The White Desert is best explored by 4x4 vehicle, as the roads are rough and unpaved. There are several tour operators that offer trips to the White Desert, and they can take you to all the most popular spots. Some of the highlights of a trip to the White Desert include:
*Visiting the Mushroom Rock formations: These are the most iconic rock formations in the White Desert, and they are sure to impress.
*Spotting wildlife: The White Desert is home to a variety of wildlife, including desert foxes, jackals, and gazelles.
*Camping under the stars: There are several campsites in the White Desert, where you can enjoy the peace and quiet of the desert and stargaze under the clear night sky.
*The Bahariya-Dakhla Road is the main road that connects the White Desert to the Bahariya and Dakhla Oasis. It is a paved road, but it can be rough in some places. The drive from Bahariya to the White Desert takes about 1 hour, and the drive from the White Desert to Dakhla takes about 2 hours.
I hope this summary has given you a better idea of what to expect when you visit the Bahariya-Dakhla Road and the White Desert in Egypt. It is a truly magical place, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for an adventure in the desert.
In this photo, the preparation of the ground for the installation of an almond tree, whose shapes resemble tombs, portrays the destruction of an entire natural ecosystem representative of a region.
The place to watch thousands of migratory birds and birds of Israel.
BBC Wildlife Magazine, the world's best-selling natural history and environmental magazine, has named the Hula Lake Park one of the most outstanding sites in the world for nature observation and photography.
The Hula Valley is an agricultural region in northern Israel with abundant fresh water. It is a major stopover for birds migrating along the Syrian-African Rift Valley between Africa, Europe, and Asia. The marshland around Lake Hula, a breeding ground for mosquitoes carrying malaria, was drained in the 1950s. A small section of the valley was later reflooded in an attempt to revive a nearly extinct ecosystem. An estimated 500 million migrating birds now pass through the Hula Lake Park every year.
Oare Marshes is an important Wetlands reserve near Faversham, Kent, England.. the charming, docile and beautiful Cattle, which are allowed to roam free here and are important to the fragile ecosystem of the marshes.
The Gannett Hills in SW Wyoming. Salt Hollow. The creek is covered with watercress. This is on the Bridger-Teton National Forest.
We came across a large herd of these dainty creatures and my next few pictures will be of these beautiful herbivores!
Explored 18th January, 2015
"The Standoff"
Moose of Grand Teton
Moose are the largest member of the deer family and love cold weather. They frequent marshy meadows and edges of lakes and streams. About 800 Moose inhabit the southern part of Yellowstone, Grand Teton National Park and surrounding national forests. Moose are most heavily concentrated in Grand Teton Park.
To keep from sinking in mud while feeding, as the animal lowers its foot, a large dewclaw spreads to better support the weight. Similarly, the odd-looking crook of the hind leg allows a Moose to pull the leg straight up, more easily releasing it from deep, sucking mud.
Bull Moose lose their antlers anytime between December and March. Most of the Moose drop them in January. Immature bulls may not shed their antlers for the winter but retain them until the following spring. Female Moose do not have antlers.
A new set of antlers begin to grow the following spring, nourished by the covering of furry skin known as velvet. They take three to five months to develop fully – the velvet is then scraped and rubbed off against bushes and branches. The antlers are then ready for battle. Generally, each set of antlers will be larger than the one before.
Birds, carnivores, and rodents eat dropped antlers as they are full of protein and Moose themselves will eat antler velvet for the nutrients.
Take note—cow Moose with young can be particularly dangerous.
For more info: www.yellowstonepark.com/things-to-do/wildlife/about-moose/
Excerpt from scotiabankcontactphoto.com/2022/core/vid-ingelevics-ryan-...:
Since 2019, Toronto-based artists Vid Ingelevics and Ryan Walker have charted the progression of the Port Lands Flood Protection Project, one of the most ambitious civil works projects in North America. This third series of photographs, presented on wooden structures along the Villiers Street median, focuses on the extraordinary operation of building a new mouth for the Don River and the careful methodology employed in the naturalization of a massive industrial brownfield.
The first photographic series that Ingelevics and Walker produced about this site, titled Framework (2020), captured the buildings and structures demolished to make way for the river excavation. This demolition allowed for the massive movement of soil captured in the second series, A Mobile Landscape (2021). How to Build a River documents how this soil removal made way for the river to be constructed using bio-engineering practices. It reveals the innovative bioengineering techniques used to construct this complex ecology and its multiple engineering layers, which will soon be invisible—either submerged underwater or beneath park surfaces—when the project is finished.
As the excavation has proceeded and workers have brought materials to the site and carefully categorized, prepared, and positioned them, Ingelevics and Walker have witnessed the river’s path quickly taking shape. The images in this series follow the rigorous steps taken to protect the new riverbed and future ecosystem, with multiple layers of sand, charcoal, and impermeable geosynthetic clay liner added to block contaminants caused by almost a century of housing fuel storage tanks in the Port Lands. The photographs capture the ways in which the new riverbanks (known as “crib walls”) were stabilized with logs, tree trunks, rocks, and coconut fibre material, and track the meticulous creation of future habitats for fish and birds.
Fish Habitat (2019) shows the development of a new riparian habitat, which includes coloured streamers strung across the water to deter geese from landing and eating vegetation that will provide food for fish. In Stratified River Ingredients (2021) a worker strides past stepped blankets of biodegradable coconut fabric, which will help hold the riverbank soil together until plant root systems are in place. In this series the new river comes to life. Its plants and banks, its roots and rocks and sands can all be seen coming together in Meander (2021). All of these innovative bioengineering techniques have been employed in similar projects around the world where nature is fast-tracked, but it’s unusual to have so many techniques applied simultaneously, and on such a vast scale.
At times during this massive project, something as small as an unidentified plant can halt construction. Transplanting #1 and #2 (2021) show crews salvaging plants for storage after strange, bulrush-like plants sprouted unexpectedly after 100 years of dormancy underground. These were likely remnants of the site’s original wetlands, which germinated when sunlight hit the excavated mud. Some of the plants were taken to a greenhouse laboratory at the University of Toronto, and others were transplanted to the Leslie Street Spit, located nearby along the waterfront. Even with the most meticulously planned naturalization processes, nature can still surprise us.
Following their documentation of the processes of destruction and removal required to prepare the site, this third series of work in Ingelevics and Walker’s multi-year project allows viewers to witness the construction of these new, interconnected habitats and structures. Their photographs offer glimpses into the makings of a highly creative built ecology, one that has looked to nature in order to artificially recreate it.
Bees!
Wonderful part of ecosystem for million years, in symbiosis with flowers and other crops, constantly in evolution with certain aspects like time for ripening harvests, blooming of flowers and continue to work incessantly, cyclically.
As humans, it's important to understand that the preservation of bees directly correlates to our ecosystems surviving. Bees not only pollinate the flowers that we admire, but they fertilize our crops that we rely on the production of to eat. Because of this, time has allowed both bees and flowers to evolve and become more efficient throughout its lifecycle - directly benefiting the human population. Without the great relationship between flowers and bees, we would lose out on about two-thirds of our food supply.
OM1 300f4-MC14
1/3200, f5.6, ISO1600
Crested tit, a rare and enigmatic little bird, characteristic of the Caledonian pine forest a now much reduced ecosystem in the Scottish highlands.
Go wild winter wildlife photo tuition trips starting soon!
Rhine-Main-Danube Canal
Rhine-Main-Danube Canal (German, Rhein-Main-Donau-Kanal), artificial waterway with stretches of canalized river, Germany. The canal section joining the Main and Danube rivers stretches 171 km (106 mi) from Bamberg via Nuremberg to Kelheim, and the whole system from the Main at its confluence with the Rhine to the Danube at Passau near the Austrian border is 677 km (420 mi) long. This forms part of a waterway traversing Europe, connecting the North Sea with the Black Sea and passing through the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, and Ukraine.
From where the Main joins the central canal, to around Nuremberg, the countryside is largely hop fields and pasture, the canal reaching a high point of 406 m (1,332 ft) above sea level. Around Kelheim, the low, wooded hills become more densely forested and more dramatic as the canal reaches the Danube.
A cross-Europe canal like this has been a recurring dream of European politicians; as early as 793, Charlemagne made an aborted attempt to drain land for that purpose. In 1846, Ludwig I of Bavaria—using the labour of Italian Gastarbeiteren—laid the foundations by joining the Main and the Danube. Plans for a Rhine-Neckar-Danube canal were halted by World War I, and Ludwig's Canal was abandoned in 1950. Damage to Nuremberg meant that work only started on the Main above Bamberg in 1959, and did not reach Nuremberg until 1972. Completion dates for the canal were repeatedly revised until its opening on September 25, 1992.
Construction of the canal—costing an estimated total of DM six billion—is partly to be paid for by electricity generation at hydroelectric stations along its course. Eastern European business has been much greater than expected, though fears of damagingly cheap trading have been soothed by tariffs and restrictions that roughly equalize the flow of traffic east and west.
The completed waterway transports goods much more cheaply than by road, and some canal-side land has been bought by big oil companies. It is also popular with pleasure boats. Serious doubts though have been raised by the Bund Naturschutz, a German ecological movement—unique species of wildlife along the canal's course may be threatened and sections of canalized river choked by loss of tidal current. After a campaign working since 1965 and a petition in the 1980s, planners—backed by the pro-canal premier Helmut Kohl and defence minister Strauss—responded by high spending on ecological research and by providing, for example, alcoves cut into the canal's banks, meant to act as miniature ecosystems.
Taken from:
uk.encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_781529615/rhine-main-danu...
Grand Canyon National Park. Considered one of the seven natural wonders of world. Honored as a World Heritage Site. Visited by five million or more each year.
Six thousand feet deep at its deepest point and up to 18 miles across at its widest, the canyon is immense and colorful with steep canyon walls and jutting mesas. Exposed geologic formations chronicle three of the earth's four eras of geologic history, making the Grand Canyon one of the most studied geologic landscapes in the world.
Carved by the Colorado River over a period of six million years, it is one of the finest examples of arid-land erosion in the world, averaging 4,000 feet deep for its entire 277 miles. It is also one of the most biologically diverse with several major ecosystems that range from coyote willows at the river's edge to hanging gardens along the canyon walls to ponderosa pines along the canyon rims.
The North Rim of the Grand Canyon, sometimes referred to as the "other" Grand Canyon, is less populated with visitors and uniquely different from the South Rim.
With an average elevation of 8,000 feet, the North Rim offers views of the canyon from a higher vantage, in an environment and sub-alpine climate of blue spruce, Douglas fir, mountain ash, colorful lupines and grassland meadows. Look for Kaibab squirrels, goshawks, porcupines, mule deer and elk.
Join my Colorado - Arizona - Utah Landscapes group at: www.flickr.com/groups/us_southwest/pool/
Went out for a walk in the rocky shore of Vuosaari, Helsinki.
I found a nice location and started to wander around.
Found this composition after getting my shoes and socks wet, because I wasn't paying attention to the waves. Lesson learned.
I proceeded to set the tripod, grabbed the camera from the backpack as well as the Sigma 18-35mm lens.
After taking a couple of test shots, it became obviously clear that the image needed a polarising filter to expose more detail underwater, and a graduated filter to calm down the bright sky.
I took three shots, first focusing on the rocks in the foreground, then the partially submerged rocks just a few meters away and then all the way to the island with the trees.
After finishing the trip I sat down in front of the computer monitor and started working on the images. I processed the images the way I liked them and proceeded to focus stacking them in Photoshop.
So here's the result of a lovely mid-day walk with wet shoes, hope you enjoy the image.
This slide (shared by CIFOR) shows acacia plantations and oil palm plantations were responsible for 24% and 29% of deforestation in Riau Province between 1982 and 2007. Some of the plantations have moved into peatland, a carbon rich ecosystem, contributing to Indonesia's high greenhouse gas emissions.
Mural by Andrew (Joux) Mack aka @jouxart, seen at 2854 Larimer Street in the RiNo area of Denver, Colorado.
Photo by James aka @urbanmuralhunter on that other photo site.
Edit by Teee
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mangrove
Created for Awake - Art for a Cause Challenge 9 - Wonderful Wetlands: www.flickr.com/groups/awakeartforacause/discuss/721576603...