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The Žďárské vrchy Hills Protected Landscape Area located in the Districts of Žďár nad Sázavou, Havlíčkův Brod, Chrudim and Svitavy was declared on the territory of 709 km2 in 1970. Its elevation ranges between 490 and 836.3 m a.s.l., the latter being Mt. Devět skal/Nine Rocks, the highest peak of the area.
In the area, the landscape scenery/character has been shaped since colonising the boundary primary forest and it is a mixture of fields and meadows with dispersed trees under the Žďárské vrchy Hills forested ranges. The landscape also harbours picturesque fish ponds and rural settlements with the Horák/Highlander folk architecture elements. Water is an important phenomenon within the area.
The Žďárské vrchy Hills is a headstream on the main European interstream divide line between the North and Black Seas. On dense network of small watercourses, an extensive fishpond system has been established since the Middle Ages. The area's most valuable parts include particularly peat-bogs and other wetland communities. Gneiss rock forms on forested Žďárské vrchy Hills ranges as well as a mosaic of dispersed woody plant vegetation with hedgerows and small stone walls in farmland are another regions characteristic landscape element.
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Spent a nice hiking weekend in Žďárské vrchy protected landscape area; no big mountains or extraordinary landscape sights, however abundant with lovely green hills and mostly free of tourists.
Large permanent freshwater marshes and freshwater lakes in Hubei support a total of 140 species of birds. Nearly one million water birds over-winter in the wetland areas of the province.
Photo credit: UNDP China
Back to the crowds- I kept a safe distance as I generally dislike crowds. We are on Ko Mai Pai or Bamboo Island, the penultimate stop- and the first post lunch stop- on the Phi Phi Islands speedboat tour. All of us are actually pretty tired as this is near the end of the trip, but this stop has been to stretch our legs a bit and to probably grab a coffee or a beer from the shack on the island. It's time to ship out (well, speedboat out) or Bamboo Island now, and so I took this last shot of the crowds before we boarded our boat. I was surprised at this crowd as our boat seemed to have been the only one to call at the island at the time- the others have probably been dropped off earlier on a full day snorkeling trip here. Notes about Ko Mai Pai or Bamboo Island as well as detailed notes about the Phi Phi Islands National Park appeared earlier in this album. (see previous pictures). . (Phuket, Thailand, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
As I mentioned before, if you are at the pantanal during the driest of the dry season (August-October) and you go on day boat trips in the Pantanal National Park (Cuiaba, Piquiri, and 3-brother rivers), you are almost guaranteed to be able to see a Jaguar. The other part is being able to spot them - despite their interesting pattern, then can blend very well with the ground, especially from far away.
Semipalmated Sandpiper is the most common nesting shorebird at Pauline Cove on Herschel Island-Qikiqtaruk Territorial Park, on the Yukon's Arctic Coast.
This adult has a slight rust-coloured stain on its face and legs from probing in rust-coloured mud.
Here's a link to the rest of the birds I saw that day;
I joined an eco-tourism daytrip from Guyana's capital Georgetown to the Arrowpoint Nature Resort. We drove out of town to marina on the Demerarr river, where we boarded a speedboat and crossed the river, then, taking about 45 minutes, navigated the Kamuni River into the Santa Aratack Amerindian Reserve, stopping at Santa Mission Amerindian community and the reaching Arrowpoint, where we had the options of walking in the rainforest, kayaking, swimming among activities.
Rain clouds follow us at a distance as we speed along on the Andaman Sea towards our next destination on the Ao Phang Nga speedboat tour out of Phuket, Thailand, The piece de resistance of this trip has been Khao Phing Kan, known more popularly as James Bond Island, as this was where the 1974 Bond film The Man with the Golden Gun was shot. (see previous pictures earlier in this album). I was actually more concerned than happy to see this island due to the sheer crowds there, and the over tourism. Severe damage to the fragile marine ecosystem around Maya Bay- another cluster of islands elsewhere in the vicinity- due to over tourism has led to the beaches around Maya Bay to be closed to tourists for several years, now extended till 2021 at least. I do hope a similar fate does not befall James Bond Island as well. Notes about the Ao Phang Nga National Park appeared earlier in this album. (see previous pictures). (Phuket, Thailand, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
I am on a morning jungle walk following a boat ride on the East Rapti river in the Chitwan National Park in Nepal. (see previous pictures earlier in this album). After the boat ride, followed by a jungle walk, I have just taken another small boat ride across the river to arrive at this Elephant Breeding and Training Camp in Khorsor, inside the Chitwan Wildlife Park. This is an Asian elephant (elephas maximus) cow with calf. Now isn't that calf simply adorable? After getting off the boat, we approach from the rear of this shed, then walk around to come to this side. Elephant cows are generally calm beasts, at least in comparison to the temperamental and unpredictable bulls, but the females are extremely protective of their young and can get pretty nasty and violent if they perceive you as a threat to their calf. (Sauraha, Chitwan, Nepal, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
A bird on a tree branch inside the Okhla Bird Sanctuary, located in the city of Noida in India, with the tree not having any leaves, a totally barren tree. The river Yamuna is very close by, lapping on the edges of the sanctuary.
An adult Thick-billed Murre flying with King Eiders off Collinson Head, Herschel Island, Yukon on 11 August 2015.
Regular sea-watches from Collinson Head has found this species to be rare but regular in the waters off Herschel Island. It is not known to nest in the area.
Land ahoy! Mangroves are a sure sign of land nearby. We did not stop here, but I thought I'd take a quick shot out of the boat as we speed along. I am on the Ao Phang Nga National Park speedboat tour, known more commonly as the James Bond Islands tour. The park is know for it's many karst formations and pillar rocks, somewhat like Halong Bay in Vietnam, only a lot less crowded and with a lot more nature. The dramatic appearance of the islands with their sheer sides has made the area a popular tourist attraction. The Ao Phnang Nga National park also protects the largest area of native mangrove forest remaining in Thailand- this is just a mere glimpse of them. Notes about the Ao Phang Nga National Park appeared earlier in this album (see previous pictures). (Phuket, Thailand, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
Another take on that heavenly scene in the middle of the forest in the Chitwan National Park. I am on a morning jungle walk following a boat ride on the East Rapti river in the Chitwan National Park in Nepal. (see previous pictures earlier in this album). I was hoping we wouldn't encounter any snakes due to the wet ground and the heavy thunder shower of last night. Fortunately we didn't encounter any- nor did we encounter any other animal for that matter on this walk, barring a solitary Axis deer. (Sauraha, Chitwan, Nepal, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
The Johns Hopkins glacier on the west are of Glacier Bay is one of the few big tide-water glaciers left in the World. It is also one of the fastest melting.
Learn more about the impact of artisanal and small scale mining: www.profor.info/knowledge/impact-artisanal-and-small-scal...
Welcome to Fort Hunt Park. The concrete platform in front of you, Battery Mount Vernon, once held a set of heavy guns designed to protect Washington, D.C. from naval attack. In 1885, Secretary of War William C. Endicott chaired a commission that deemed our coastal defense system dangerously outdated. As a result, the military built this and other similar fortifications across the country. With the completion of this, the first of four gun batteries, in early 1898, Fort Hunt was poised to play a critical role in protecting the Nation's Capital at the beginning of the Spanish-American war. However, no shots were ever fired in anger from Fort Hunt during the war.
Discover the many layers of hidden history at Fort Hunt Park:
* George Washington once owned the land you are standing on as part of his "River Farm." Here, enslaved people sowed seeds and gathered crops on the same terrain where American Indians hunted and fished for centuries.
* The Civilian Conservation Corps operated a camp for workers at this site during the Great Depression.
* In 1933, Fort Hunt Park became part of a national park, the George Washington Memorial Parkway.
* During World War II, the U.S. Army Military Intelligence Service managed two secret operations here.
Photo and transcription by Kevin Borland.