View allAll Photos Tagged PERCEIVE
See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.
Isaiah 43:19
Nature pond water lake reflection summer autumn grass green gold golden leaves sun sunny sunshine bright light warm sunlight golden hour landscape park peaceful calm
Being a fairly big city, San Francisco has lots of diverse neighborhoods. From the upscale suburbs, to the poor Tenderloin, to China town, Embarcadero and Little Italy. This photo was taken at the corner of Columbus Avenue and Stockton street, right in the heart of the Italian district. Most of the cafes and restaurants can be found right on Columbus Avenue. The smell of freshly ground coffee and pizza is perceived throughout the area. At the right side of the frame at the background you can see probably San Francisco's most recognizable structure (after Golden Gate bridge), The Transamerica Pyramid.
Suprematism is an early twentieth-century art movement focused on the fundamentals of geometry (circles, squares, rectangles, triangles). The term refers to a form of abstract art based on the supremacy of pure artistic expression rather than on a visual or literal depiction of objects. It is entirely subjective and gives room for the artist to present what they think or perceive versus what they may see.
Introduction
Gospel Video Songs | New Christian Song 2018 "The Incarnate God Leads Mankind Into a New Era"
www.holyspiritspeaks.org/videos/incarnate-god-leads-manki...
I
The incarnate God, He brings to an end the age when only Jehovah's back was seen. He also concludes the age of belief when in vagueness God was perceived. The work of the last incarnate God brings man to a more practical age. The work He does brings all mankind to a more pleasant and realistic time. He ends the age of vagueness, He concludes the age when man wished to seek God's face but was unable to back then. He ends man's service to Satan, to a new age man is led. All this is achieved by the work of God in the flesh, instead of God's Spirit alone.
II
He not only ends the age of law and doctrine, He shows man a God who is real, a God who is normal, righteous and holy, who unlocks the management plan, who demonstrates the mysteries, the destination of mankind, who made man and ends the management work, who has been hidden for thousands of years. He ends the age of vagueness, He concludes the age when man wished to seek God's face but was unable to back then. He ends man's service to Satan, to a new age man is led. All this is achieved by the work of God in the flesh. Oh, He ends the age of vagueness, He concludes the age when man wished to seek God's face but was unable to back then. He ends man's service to Satan, to a new age man is led. All this is achieved by the work of God in the flesh. All this is achieved by the work of God in the flesh, instead of God's Spirit alone.
from "Corrupt Mankind Is More in Need of the Salvation of God Become Flesh" in The Word Appears in the Flesh
You might also like: difference between wheat and tares
Image Source: The Church of Almighty God
... are not really separate things, but they are separate words, and we perceive through words.
― David Rains Wallace
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Use without permission is illegal.
Please, don't fave and run, you will get yourself blocked.
The steenbok (Raphicerus campestris) is a common small antelope of southern and eastern Africa. It is sometimes known as the steinbuck or steinbok.
At the first sign of trouble, steenbok typically lie low in the vegetation. If a predator or perceived threat comes closer, a steenbok will leap away and follow a zigzag route to try to shake off the pursuer. Escaping steenbok frequently stop to look back, and flight is alternated with prostration during extended pursuit.
They are known to take refuge in the burrows of Aardvarks. Known predators include Southern African wildcat, caracal, jackals, leopard, martial eagle and pythons.
Provided that survival is guaranteed, almost all of us are instinctively drawn to the path of least resistance. However, although expedient in the moment, this option almost always leads to decline and atrophy; it points in the opposite direction of your dreams and ambitions. So, to lead the life you wish to live, you must learn to embrace challenges and fight the urge to walk these regressive paths. {thekaizeneffect.com}
Humans are hard-wired to follow the path of least resistance
The amount of effort required to do something influences what we think we see, finds a new study, suggesting we're biased towards perceiving anything challenging to be less appealing. {dailyscience.com}
My comment:
We're on a slippery slope once we make it a habit to follow the line of least resistance: life is an endless uphill battle till the end of our journey on this earth -“One thing is absolutely certain, namely, that victory will never be found by taking the line of least resistance.” Winston Churchill
Borzoi dogs were once the incomparable wolf hunters of Russia but when the Russian Revolution got rid of the Czar and the nobility the Borzois were almost exterminated as perceived symbols of said nobility.
Better viewed large
For Smile on Saturday. Pareidolia. ( This is a psychological phenomenon involving a vague and random stimulus..(often an image being perceived as significant. It commonly occurs as face-like patterns in inanimate objects.")
One day last winter, while I was admiring the sunny , snowed garden , I suddenly perceive a huge flying presence with open large wings …landing majestically in the middle of our garden, close to our pond !!!!!!!! And I rushed to pick up my camera!!!
Herons are really an impressive visit in our garden, having in their mind to have a great meal on my beloved red fish, about 30 of them at the moment!! But, of course, I let them stay as long as they serve as a great …model for me….And then, I create a light noise, and immediately those huge wings open again, and they fly away…
This time the occasion was very positive for shooting, thanks to the great sunlight, shadows, and colors of the winter garden!!
🔶NOTE TO MY FRIENDS ON FLICKR. I APOLOGIZE FOR MY ABSENCE AND LACK OF PARTICIPATION AS OF LATE. I HAVE FOUND THAT INSTAGRAM IS A BETTER PLATFORM FOR ME. PLEASE DO NOT FEEL OBLIGATED TO FAVE OR COMMENT...I UNDERSTAND. WALT.🔶
10/05/20...Yes, on this day my title is so true...a day of keeping the books of immaterial matters...a trip to Costco...Home Depot...Lowes...the common thread...return lines out the Yazoo...having gone through the same misery days before, I actually chuckled out loud as I passed the frustrated and not happy...returning things like watermelons and pumpkins...Happy Facking Halloween. On the return...the weight of what I perceive to be an unavoidable truth crushed me...so I slept the afternoon away....which brings me to the Chipmunk.
I woke up around 6:00pm...the Sun was already at the Treeline...took the dogs out...fed them...then I parked myself at the desk...hoping for something to photograph...and there were the Squirrels and Chipmunks having a late evening meal. I got a total of 5 clicks off before Hobbes and Grace came to the Door and scared them away. This was my last shot.
Please do not use without my explicit permission
© All Rights Reserved
Walter C Snyder
From more than 70km away we can perceive the cloud of the eruption of mount bromo as two workers do their labour in a roof.
Contact: ietphotography@gmail.com
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A peculiar figure, eyes fixed on the tip of its own nose, blowing softly.
More playful than the leader of light, yet still mysterious,
it seems to observe a reality only it can perceive.
And yet, like all beings between worlds,
it is neither fully real nor fully ghost —
existing on the threshold between the familiar and the strange,
between play and reflection, between light and shadow.
PS: I’ll let you discover the others on your own.
This is my second instalment for the CPTSD collection, the purpose of this is to highlight not only the cruelty of constant name calling, but just how it sticks in the mind. Even as I typed, printed and stuck these all over the wall, the memories come back. School bullies, toxic relationships, toxic family members, internet trolls, tyrannical bosses, the list goes on and on. One thing is for sure, bullying, in no matter what format it may occur, you never forget it.
Now you're probably wondering about the mask, well, this photo nails two aspects in one, not only bullying in the form of name calling and/or put downs, but also a type of coping mechanism. As a way to handle the constant onslaught of verbal abuse, a young mind such as a child, will adopt a idiosyncratic identity, like a virtual character mask, i.e. act like a clown anyway and the real identity beneath is protected; but of course this has a huge back firing aspect, the true identity behind and the coping mechanism are all one and the same thing, bullies also then start to see you more so as the clown/freak they think you already are, so in essence, you become what they perceive you as, and the bullying just gets worse.
And of course, when you act like a clown, no one really takes you seriously when you complain about said bullying, as many now see you as the instigator, even though it was designed to help cope with it all, but the question remains, how the bloody hell is a bullied child supposed to explain that?!
I hope everyone is well and as always, thank you. :)
PS: been a bit slow putting up new material as I have been dealing with yet another episode of depression this week. Urgh! Which will more than likely be the subject of my next photo.
“Each of us views life through a different lens. What we think is colored by the baggage we carry and what we perceive is how we live.”
― Laurie Buchanan, PhD
Sometimes it is all in how we perceive things. Finding understanding of others, comes with growth withing yourself.
** Sometimes you just have to leave what you see alone... only edit is signature**
✈️ : Welcome to Frogmore sim General Rated Sim
“To change ourselves effectively, we first had to change our perceptions.” ― Stephen R. Covey
“No man has the right to dictate what other men should perceive, create or produce, but all should be encouraged to reveal themselves, their perceptions and emotions, and to build confidence in the creative spirit.” ― Ansel Adams
My daughter used to work at this restaurant,captured while waiting to pick her up one evening.I liked the sort of Mexican look to this,well what i perceived as such:-)
"Our ability to perceive quality in nature begins, as in art, with the pretty. It expands through successive stages of the beautiful to values as yet uncaptured by language. "
Aldo Leopold, Marshland Elegy from A Sand County Almanac, 1949
Leopold's short essay is readily available online. It is a very moving commentary on the fate of our great marshlands and the magnificent sandhill cranes. Highly recommended.... here's a version from the Aldo Leopold Foundation, accompanied by a slide show of crane images.
A recent bunch of flowers featured a lovely bright orange Dahlia and a purple one. Here is a side on shot ( with the right number of cm's size) of the orange one.
It is interesting how colours are perceived differently by others. To me it is a great bright colour. My Northern Irish descendant sister-in-law has a different reaction! HMM :))
Without Color by no means implies without life. This photo, as with so many others, was meant to share the subject’s beauty on merits such as light, contrast, composition, depth and shadow. Ansel Adams’ work reveals unanticipated beauty in the absence of color. We can feel beauty and tease our senses in ways never really perceived of until his B&W works took the world by surprise. I do feel that certain works show better in B&W. Technology today helps most photographers, regardless of their skill level, to experiment with even their finest work. Thanks for viewing my work. Stay safe and be kind. Keep shooting and experimenting. Mask up and go have fun
Photographed on Santa Cruz Island, Galápagos, Ecuador- Walking, no cover
Click on the image or press the L key to view at larger size
OK, I have to say this flycatcher was *reasonably* cooperative while I was photographing it, but unlike what it suggests in the Wikipedia excerpt below, it did *not* attempt to perch on me at any time. :-)
=======================
From Wikipedia: The Galápagos flycatcher (Myiarchus magnirostris) also known as the large-billed flycatcher is a species of bird in the family Tyrannidae. It is endemic to the Galápagos Islands, where it is present on all the main islands. Its local name is 'Papamoscas'. The species was once placed in its own genus, Eribates, based upon a supposed "very long tarsus".
The Galápagos flycatcher is 15 to 16 cm (5.9–6.3 in) in length and weighs 12 - 18.5 grams. It is the smallest member of its genus.
Its natural habitats are tropical dry forests and tropical arid shrubland with cacti.
The Galápagos flycatcher has become used to human visitors to the Galapagos and flies towards large camera lenses, perceiving its own reflected image as another bird. It habitually perches on visitors and their cameras.
AB2A8352-1_fCAFlkr
This album's name is dedicated to my favourite game of all time Elder Scrolls Online and race of all time, The Argonians (reptile humanoids). There's a story for you to read below about some of them towards the bottom.
What does Ku Vastei mean? Read below
By Lights-the-Way, Mystic of the Mages Guild
It is hard to describe the culture of my people. Often my tongue stumbles as I try to explain, but it is my hope that ink and quill will give me time enough to gather my thoughts. And perhaps, though such writing, I will finally connect the parts of me that now feel so divided; my homeland of Murkmire and my new life within the Mages Guild.
These journals are to become my ku-vastei. And, as I write that, I can think of no better topic to begin with.
Ku-vastei roughly translates to "the catalyst of needed change," though such a direct translation in no way does justice to the original meaning. Another translation could be "that which creates the needed pathway for change to occur" or even "the spark which ignites the flame which must come into being."
Perhaps a more direct analysis should be first presented. Ku-vastei is a noun, a thing or person. Vastei directly translates to change, an important part of my culture. Ku is harder to speak of. It is that which leads to change, though not that which creates change. An important role, as stagnation is a fate worse than death.
Take a boulder which sits atop a cliff, teetering in place. It must fall eventually. The ku-vastei does not push the boulder off the cliff; rather, it picks the pebble which holds the rock in place. And so it falls, not by a push, but by a pathway cleared.
Ku-vastei is revered, just as change itself is revered, for to look back at what was means to stumble as you move forward. Sometimes, a little push in the right direction is all someone needs to remember such wisdom. Other times, they may need to be shoved.
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Naka Desh Tribe
by Emmanubeth Hurrent, the Wayfarers' Society of Wayrest
My guide, Names-the-Orchids, took me deep into the swamp to meet a little-known tribe called the Naka-Desh, or Riverbacks. Few Imperials venture far enough into Black Marsh to meet the People of the River, and the Naka-Desh see little benefit in traveling beyond the boundaries of their Hist's roots. For that reason, most perceive them as a secretive and mysterious tribe. This misconception is made all the more amusing by the Riverbacks' boundless hospitality.
We approached the Riverbacks' territory via ferry boats. Our expedition encountered tribal sentries almost immediately. They floated to the surface of the water like turtles or crocodiles. I was struck by the wideness of their faces, the largeness of their eyes, and the broad webs adorning their forearms and throats. The Hist clearly provided the "right skin" for the locale. Riverback territory is more water than land—a drowned marsh navigable by small rafts, canoes, and little else.
Names-the-Orchids greeted them with a series of low croaks. They cheerfully repeated the sound before lifting themselves onto our boat. Neither of the sentries seemed familiar with Cyrodilic, so our guide had to interpret. She told us that the Riverbacks demanded tribute in the form of a riddle before they would grant passage. I detected no threat behind the demand. It seemed like more of an invitation than an order. I've no talent for wordplay, but I shared a children's riddle about doorknobs that practically every Imperial knows. As soon as Names-the-Orchids translated it, the two sentries clapped their hands. One of them pressed his forehead to mine, croaked twice, then both vanished into the water as suddenly as they appeared.
We spent four days among the Riverbacks—all but one of them on rafts fishing. Riverback fishing resembles traditional fishing in name only. Rather than hook and line, the Naka-Desh use large river fish called osheeja gars. Each osheeja is secured by a strange harness and bridle. When the Argonians find an abundant fishing spot, they release the predatory gars and let them snatch up the fish. As soon as an osheeja bites a fish, the Argonians pull their pets to the side of the boat and claim the fish for themselves. I asked Names-the-Orchids how it works. Apparently, the bridle prevents the gar from swallowing. She assured me that the osheejas are well-cared for, though. Until they grow too old, of course, whereupon they too are eaten.
Our time with the Riverbacks was not without frustration. Of all the Argonians I have met, the Naka-Desh were by far the least curious. Other than riddles, they had no appetite for anything we brought. They refused our food, took no particular interest in our tales, and did not even ask for our names. This disinterest combined with their boundless hospitality made most of the expedition uncomfortable. Names-the-Orchids chided us for thinking kindness demands reciprocity. As always, even these small disappointments teach us valuable lessons.
["the tribe is not currently in the game but in the world of the game"]
"Creating is never making something out of nothing: it is the mode of perceiving. When a painter creates a picture, in some sense the picture is already there, and painting really involves finding that picture through a creative act."
- Robert Sardello, "Silence, Prayer and Meditation".
Not much comment needed today. I just invite you to contemplate these pieces of made photo art. Like all conceptual art, this kind of photography requires one to have a clearly worked out idea before even attempting the processing. The photograph can be taken to a whole new level with just a few minor artistic changes.
This is another ICM shot of the surf on our beach in the south of Sri Lanka. Such blurred images always remind me that if there is a reality, we can only perceive it diffusely and blurred.
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None of my images may be downloaded, copied, reproduced, manipulated or used on websites, blogs or other media without my explicit written permission.
Please do not post either You`r photos or flickr badges with You`r comment into my stream (to beg for visits or comments).
I perceive this rude and unwelcome
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
None of my images may be downloaded, copied, reproduced, manipulated or used on websites, blogs or other media without my explicit written permission.
Please do not post either You`r photos or flickr badges with You`r comment into my stream (to beg for visits or comments).
I perceive this rude and unwelcome
(This image is half of the story, read below to know the full).
Now, the forest has two types of living creatures. The fix to the ground and the moving ones. The fix to the ground perceives "time" differently from the others, 'cause a full day for a moving creature will be just like a minute to a non-moving creature. Outside the forest, there were two other kinds of living creatures: those who came out of light matter and the ones that sprouted out of dark matter. The light creatures would fly around like a small speck of light, very close to a firefly or a fairy, while the ones that emerge from the dark matter would hide in the dark. For both of them, time was irrelevant.
(Spanish): Fábula de los Bosques de Florida. (El Tiempo).
Ahora vemos que en el Bosque hay dos tipos de criaturas vivientes. Los que se ven como fijos en el suelo y los que se mueven en la tierra. Los fijos, por ser estables con movimientos casi imperceptibles, perciben el tiempo muy diferente a todas las demás criaturas. Un día para una criatura que se mueve vendría a ser como un minuto para una que no se mueve. Ahora, afuera del bosque había otros dos tipos de criaturas vivientes: los que surgieron de la materia de la luz y los que brotaron de la materia oscura. Los que surgieron de la luz se movían en el aire como puntos de luz, mientras que los que salieron de la materia oscura se escondían en los lugares oscuros. Ambos veían el tiempo como algo irrelevante).
(Image taken with: Nikon D300 + Nikkor AF D 24mm f/2.8)
(Location: Lake Runnymede Conservation Area, St. Cloud, Florida).
Imagine time running at a different speed. We might then perceive a flowering as a firework display.
Buckpool and Fens Pool Local Nature Reserve
What3Words
///thin.spill.bravo
The mute swan is a large, all-white waterfowl native to Eurasia, widely recognized for its long, gracefully curved neck and a distinctive orange bill with a black knob at the base. Despite its name, it is not completely silent and produces hisses, snorts, and grunts, though it is less vocal than other swan species.
Size and Appearance:
Mute swans are among the largest flying birds. Adults have brilliant white plumage, black feet, and a prominent black knob (basal knob) on their orange bill, which is larger in males (cobs). When swimming, they hold their necks in an elegant 'S' shape, often with their wings slightly raised in a display known as "busking".
Habitat and Diet:
They are found in a variety of aquatic environments, including ponds, lakes, rivers, canals, estuaries, and sheltered coastal areas. Their diet primarily consists of submerged aquatic vegetation, which they reach using their long necks.
Behavior:
Mute swans form strong, long-lasting pair bonds and are known for their devotion to their offspring. They are highly territorial, especially during the breeding season, and will aggressively defend their nests and cygnets (young swans) from perceived threats, including humans and dogs.
Cygnets:
Young swans are typically covered in greyish-brown down (sometimes white, in a morph called "Polish swan") and have a dull, grey-black bill. They grow quickly, reaching near-adult size within three months, and attain full white plumage and the adult orange bill by their second year.
Lifespan:
In the wild, mute swans can live for over 20 years, with an average lifespan of around 10-11 years.
In Culture and Law
The mute swan is significant in human culture. It is the national bird of Denmark and a symbol of love in many cultures due to its monogamous nature. It is also the subject of the famous Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale, "The Ugly Duckling".
In the UK, the British monarch retains the right to ownership of all unmarked mute swans in open water, a law dating back to medieval times. This ownership is primarily exercised on certain stretches of the River Thames through the traditional annual ceremony of "Swan Upping," which now serves as a population health check.
Or, is it because as photographers we are trying to find order in what we perceive as chaos, when really it is just how nature is.
Warren Wood, Radnor Forest and near Water Break its Neck waterfall just off the A44 between New Radnor and Llanfinangel-Nant-Melan
Thanks to everyone who Faves my photos, leaves me comments and who follow me.
Do you see him? These abstract images from the sand are perceived very differently beacause our minds work in different ways. I see an old sailor, maybe you see something else 😊
Sevilla, ES, 2023
[PT] Entre ruas, sombras e ficções
Contemplo ruas, pessoas e pedras, entre ficções e esquecimentos, inspirado no poeta, talvez, percebo as sombras dos gestos de outros, a poesia do crepúsculo, um desassossego.
“...todos somos igualmente derivados de não sei quê, sombras de gestos feitos por outrem, efeitos encarnados, consequências que sentem.” (Fernando Pessoa, Livro do Desassossego, v.164)
[ES] Entre calles, sombras y ficciones
Contemplo calles, personas y piedras, entre ficciones y olvidos, inspirado en el poeta, quizás, percibo las sombras de los gestos de otros, la poesía del crepúsculo, una inquietud.
“...todos somos igualmente derivados de no sé qué, sombras de gestos hechos por otra persona, efectos encarnados, consecuencias que sienten.” (Fernando Pessoa, Libro del desasosiego, v.164)
[ENG] Between streets, shadows and fictions
I contemplate streets, people and stones, between fictions and oblivion, inspired by the poet, perhaps, I perceive the shadows of the gestures of others, the poetry of twilight, a restlessness.
“...we are all equally derived from I don't know what, shadows of gestures made by someone else, embodied effects, consequences they feel.” (Fernando Pessoa, Book of Disquiet, v.164)
Japanese gardens were originally designed for Buddhist monks to meditate to attain enlightenment.
The round window of Meigetsu'in facing its garden is probably the most famous window in Japan. It became well-known on SNS for looking typically Zen. It is nicknamed "Satori no Mado (悟りの窓)" meaning "window of enlightenment."
For most of the Japanese including myself, Zen is perceived as something that seems meaningful but actually incomprehensible. The term Zen Mondou (禅問答) or Zen Riddle is often meant for discussions that don't mesh well, are pointless, fruitless, and time-consuming.
It is a Zen principle that enlightenment should be "grok"ed by Furyuu Monji (不立文字) i.e. not being based on the letters (language).
Alertness is the state of active attention by high sensory awareness such as being watchful and prompt to meet danger or emergency, or being quick to perceive and act.
TD : Leica M4-P 35 mm f/1.4 Summilux. Ilford HP5 135 film, exposure ISO 1600, available light, developed in Microphen Stock 20° 11'. Scanned with Alpha 6000 edited in ACR, inverted in CS6.
Sevilla, ES, 2023
[PT] Entre ruas, sombras e ficções
Contemplo ruas, pessoas e pedras, entre ficções e esquecimentos, inspirado no poeta, talvez, percebo as sombras dos gestos de outros, a poesia do crepúsculo, um desassossego.
“...todos somos igualmente derivados de não sei quê, sombras de gestos feitos por outrem, efeitos encarnados, consequências que sentem.” (Fernando Pessoa, Livro do Desassossego, v.164)
[ES] Entre calles, sombras y ficciones
Contemplo calles, personas y piedras, entre ficciones y olvidos, inspirado en el poeta, quizás, percibo las sombras de los gestos de otros, la poesía del crepúsculo, una inquietud.
“...todos somos igualmente derivados de no sé qué, sombras de gestos hechos por otra persona, efectos encarnados, consecuencias que sienten.” (Fernando Pessoa, Libro del desasosiego, v.164)
[ENG] Between streets, shadows and fictions
I contemplate streets, people and stones, between fictions and oblivion, inspired by the poet, perhaps, I perceive the shadows of the gestures of others, the poetry of twilight, a restlessness.
“...we are all equally derived from I don't know what, shadows of gestures made by someone else, embodied effects, consequences they feel.” (Fernando Pessoa, Book of Disquiet, v.164)
I have double-exposed a colorful cocktail glass and received wonderful colors.
In the beginning was the light. And with it the color.
Without light we would not perceive colors and without colors the world would be colorless.
Differences in brightness and color make the world visually tangible and differentiate objects.
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Understand - through the stillness
Act - out of the stillness
Conquer - in the stillness
"In order for the eye to perceive color, it must divest itself of all colors."
- From Markings by Dag Hammarskjold
Back to simplicity. Which doesn't come easy, because there is always the tendency to express moments in complex ways. Unwilling to edit out. To let each moment's stillness speak simply. This is one of my puny attempts at simplicity.
Buckpool and Fens Pool Local Nature Reserve
What3Words
///thin.spill.bravo
The mute swan is a large, all-white waterfowl native to Eurasia, widely recognized for its long, gracefully curved neck and a distinctive orange bill with a black knob at the base. Despite its name, it is not completely silent and produces hisses, snorts, and grunts, though it is less vocal than other swan species.
Size and Appearance: Mute swans are among the largest flying birds. Adults have brilliant white plumage, black feet, and a prominent black knob (basal knob) on their orange bill, which is larger in males (cobs). When swimming, they hold their necks in an elegant 'S' shape, often with their wings slightly raised in a display known as "busking".
Habitat and Diet: They are found in a variety of aquatic environments, including ponds, lakes, rivers, canals, estuaries, and sheltered coastal areas. Their diet primarily consists of submerged aquatic vegetation, which they reach using their long necks.
Behavior: Mute swans form strong, long-lasting pair bonds and are known for their devotion to their offspring. They are highly territorial, especially during the breeding season, and will aggressively defend their nests and cygnets (young swans) from perceived threats, including humans and dogs.
Cygnets: Young swans are typically covered in greyish-brown down (sometimes white, in a morph called "Polish swan") and have a dull, grey-black bill. They grow quickly, reaching near-adult size within three months, and attain full white plumage and the adult orange bill by their second year.
Lifespan: In the wild, mute swans can live for over 20 years, with an average lifespan of around 10-11 years.
In Culture and Law
The mute swan is significant in human culture. It is the national bird of Denmark and a symbol of love in many cultures due to its monogamous nature. It is also the subject of the famous Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale, "The Ugly Duckling".
In the UK, the British monarch retains the right to ownership of all unmarked mute swans in open water, a law dating back to medieval times. This ownership is primarily exercised on certain stretches of the River Thames through the traditional annual ceremony of "Swan Upping," which now serves as a population health check.
Visible nature is but a distorted reflection of a more perfect world and the creative individual viewing her is inspired to perceive within and behind her many garments, that which is timeless and entirely beautiful. (Lawren Harris)
In tribute to Valpopando who is the master of grace, style and photographic genius. His excellence is beyond description. www.flickr.com/photos/valpopando/
This corner house is going through a renovation. The removed stone blocks stacked at the base of the house have been replaced by decorative carved sandstone. It is perceived as a symbol of wealth just like from centuries past. Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India.
THIS IS AUSTRALIA..
A stunning adult male Central Bearded Dragon (Pogona vitticeps) maintains a vigilant eye for any perceived threats while basking in the late afternoon on a fallen pencil pine trunk in Belah woodland habitat near Meringur in north-western Victoria.
male peregrine falcon about to go overhead (thankfully). This is six shots after the previous picture. cropped because it was too much bird, too fast and too close. those amazing eyes. they can spot prey from a mile away. humans have 30,000 cones (to perceive color) in their eyes, peregrines have around a million. they can also see ultraviolet light that helps them track prey. and because of their speed in flight they are designed to perceive light at 100Hz while humans see it at 60Hz. everything would be a blur to them at high speeds with out that ramped up flicker fusion frequency.