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Going astern whilst switching berths in Aberdeen Harbour,Mersey Fisher to the left and Aberdeen Lifeboat to the right with the Cityscape behind.
www.birdwatchingkerkini.com/kerkini-lake/#
Lake Kerkini is situated in Northern Greece, about 20km from Greek-Bulgarian border. The lake and the surrounding wetlands are nestled between the Kerkini Mountains to the north and the Marvovouni Mountains to the south. The lake occupies an area of about 50 to 73 sq km, depending on water levels.www.kerkinilake.com
Kerkini Lake is an artificial reservoir. It was formed in 1932 by men’s technical intervention on the Strymon River, which is the greatest lake’s water provider. In addition, there is Kerkinitis river from Krousia Mountain that flows into Kerkini Lake. The lake was created on site that previously was an extensive marshland. As the time went by, the river substances were washed up, so the rising of the banks a new dam construction took place in 1982, which gave the lake its present look. Although the human intervention in the nature usually takes a harmful action against the natural development, Kerkini Lake is an atypical example where the human intervention had an opposite effect, since after the construction of the dam on the river the hydro-biosphere entirely changed. Today it has a reputation as one of the best places for birdwatching in Greece due to its position. It is located along the migratory flyway to the Agean Sea, the Black Sea, Balkan region and Hungarian steppes. This area is famous for its biodiversity and nowadays is one of the major Greece’s wetlands. It is considered a miracle of nature with thousands of birds, fish variety, more than ten amphibian species, nineteen reptile species, five snail species, hundreds of butterfly species along with riverside forest, variety of water lilies and a great diversity of insects which play an important element in the food chain and contribute to the biological diversity of the Kerkini Lake.
The hydro-biosphere of the Lake Kerkini is of great international importance – the water level of the lake is valuable as a hydro-biosphere for thousands of water fowls, variety of fish and other species and it has a great agricultural function alike.
The Kerkini lake area is also an important recreational area and nice vacation spot. Besides birdwatching, other available activities on the lake include hiking nearby mountains and forests, lake boating, cycling or horse riding.
Birdwatching on Kerkini Lake
Lake Kerkini is a real paradise for bird watchers. The lake hosts more than 300 sorts of birds, including 140 non-migrants species, including some endangered species and 170 species that migrate every year. At least 31 of bird species are protected by EEC’s Directive in relation to wild life and 76 of them are recorded in the National Red catalogue.
Non-migrating species of birds include Black Storks, Squacco Herons, Purple Herons, Spoonbills, Little Bitterns, and a variety of Warblers. There are also two endangered non-migrating species, the Pygmy Cormorant and the Dalmatian Pelican that can be observed here. In the nearby mountains, even more birds can be founded, including diversity of Eagles like White-tailed Eagles, Lesser Spotted Eagles, Golden Eagles, Blue Rock Thrush, Peregrine Falcons, Black Woodpeckers and Nutcrackers. Birdwatching tours regularly include walking tours around the lakeside as well as hiking into the hillside and lake boat rides.
There are numerous guided birdwatching tours in this region available and number of hotels nearby ideal for bird watchers’ accommodation, such as hotel Eroditos on a hill of the village Lithotopos, offering an exclusive panoramic view of the Kerkini Lake.
The Birdwatching Seasons
Almost every season of the year is good for birdwatching in this area, but you may prefer to visit Lake Keriki at certain times of the year, depending on what do you want to see. If you want to see migrating of the birds than the April is particularly good month for visiting the lake. On the other hand, if you are interested in birds breeding, than you should plan your visit for May and June. And if you would like to see different non-native birds that migrate to this area, you should plan a winter trip to the Lake Kerkini.
How to Get to Kerkini Lake
Lake Kerkini is positioned a little more than an hour’s drive from Thessalonika international airport, some 20 km from Bulgarian border and about 100 km from the international highway E75, which makes it easy accessible by car or by plane, if you are coming from abroad.
Birdwatching in Lake Kerkini
About Kerkini Lake
Lake Kerkini is located in Northern Greece, some 20km from Greek-Bulgarian border and it stretches on an area of approximately 50 to 73 square kilometers. Kerkini Lake is an artificial water reservoir fed by Strymon River, created in 1930s. Today, Kerkini Lake area is well-known among nature lovers for its biodiversity and it is one of the major wetlands in Greece of great biological importance. It is also considered the best birdwatching spot in the country. It is protected by the Ramsar Convention and it is a part of the “Narura 2000” network.
One of the most popular birding spots in Europe is Kerkini Lake region in Northern Greece. It is famous due to its position on a migratory way that birds follow to the Black Sea, Aegean Sea, Balkan region and Hungarian steppes. Lake and its surroundings has been popular over decades among birders from country and abroad because of its biodiversity with hundreds of bird species, variety of fish, diversity of snail species, more than 120 species of butterflies, insects and diverse flora in the lake area and nearby mountains as well. Lake Kerkini itself is very dynamic bird environment with thousands of migrating and non-migrating bird species. It usually takes two or three weeks to see all this area has to offer and if you are planning your birdwatching trip to Lake Kerkini, the best would be to set aside at least a week or two of your vacation for this. Furthermore, a vacation in this area wouldn’t be complete without visiting nearby mountains of Krousia and Marvovouni with breathtaking panoramic views, diverse flora and fauna and challenging paths for hiking, cycling or walking. At the end, because of Lake Kerkini’s relatively close proximity to the Aegean Coast, you shouldn’t miss going to the beaches if you come during summer season.
But the main reason why lots of people visit this area every year is recreational birding and enjoying in observing the spectacular diversity of breeding or wintering bird species. No wonder this lake is considered an authentic paradise for birdwatchers and photograph lovers alike. It is home to more than 10.000 birds and you can find in more than 300 bird species there, from which 140 are non-migrants species and 170 species that migrate every year. Non-migrating bird species include some endangered species like Pygmy Cormorant and the Dalmatian Pelican. Some 31 of bird species are protected by EEC’s Directive in relation to wild life and 76 of them are recorded in the National Red catalogue.
Kerkini Lake provides shelter to a large number of waterfowl, thousands of Night Herons, several hundred pairs of Squacco and Grey Herons, Purple Herons, few hundred pairs of Pygmy Cormorant, more than two thousand pairs of Cormorants, about one hundred pairs of Spoonbil, Glossy Ibies, hundreds of Dalmatian and white Pelicans, Black Storks, Ferruginous Ducks and many other species. If you go to nearby mountains, you can find Black Kite, penguline Tit, Sparrowhawk, Golden Oriole, Black-headed Bunting, Cirl Bunting, Red-Rumped Swallow, Woodchat Shrike, Masked Shrike, Lesser Grey Shrike, Olivaceous Warbler, Black-eared Wheatear, Semi-collared Flycatcher etc. Large numbers of waders and other raptors on passageway could also be observed early in spring.
You can enjoy birdwatching activity in Lake Kerkini during the whole year. If you come in Winter, you’ll have the opportunity to see a great number of birds that call this area home, such as Greater Flamingos, Dalmatian Pelicans, Greater Spotted Eagles, White-tailed Eagles, Ferruginous Duck, White-fronted Geese, Pygmy Cormorant, Cormorant, Black Kite, Pochard, Teal, Wigeon, Crested Grebe, Shoveler, Peregrine, Golden Eagle, Goshawk, Marsh Harrier, etc.
If you visit this region in early spring, you’ll be on time for observing the bird migration. Migration begins in early March, with the arrival of pioneering Garganey and Osprey. White Storks arrive towards the end of the month. Migration continues through April into beginning of May. Glossy Ibis are expected and thousands of both species of Pelican can be seen.
There are some great accommodation alternatives available nearby Kerkini Lake with excellent services offered to birders, to fully enjoy your birdwatching experience in Greece.
Clark's grebes with two chicks and one fish on Lake Almanor, Plumas County, California.
Although Northern California got quite a lot of rain last winter, only 100 chicks hatched this year from 700 nests on Lake Almanor. Why? The water level dropped too rapidly due to a release that occurred a few weeks before this photo was taken. These two chicks were among the 100 that hatched in the three days before the release.
The grebes whose first nesting attempts failed were building new nests. Perhaps their second nesting attempt will be successful.
Music: Right Click and select "Open link in new tab"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFHuAt02moI
Dance to Your Daddy · Bob Fox - Borrowed Moments
You shall have a fishie, on a little dishie
You shall have a herring when the boat comes in
Focus in Prayer Is Difficult to Recapture
1 Corinthians 7:35; 2 Timothy 1:7
He who interrupts the course of his spiritual exercises and prayer is like a man who allows a bird to escape from his hand; he can hardly catch it again.
JOHN OF THE CROSS
Elliot Ritzema, 300 Quotations for Preachers from the Reformation (Pastorum Series; Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2013).
I stopped by Abby's nest this past Monday and was happy to finally see that there were what I thought was 2 chicks .
At this young age they spend most of their time laying low, so I'd never get more than a glimpse of one popping up for a second or two before disappearing again.
On Tuesday I stopped back when I had more time to observe.
John showed back up with lunch, flew into the nest for a minute, and then took back off to sit on a pole and make sure the fish was no longer flapping, before bringing it back to the kids.
When I was checking the series of shots I took as he was flying off with the fish, this was the very last shot in the series....and the only one that revealed that there are actually not two, but THREE chicks!! Triplets! How cool!
This Osprey from The Providers of VRC-30 was photographed at NAS Point Mugu on 13 July 2023. The squadron which provides COD services and has transitioned from the C-2A Greyhound to the CMV-22 Osprey.
VRC-30 is home based at NAS North Island.
two juvenile bald eagles wait on the banks of a salmon stream for mom to bring home the catch of the day
I have had problems with my internet connection this week. At first it was just certain websites, and I thought, no net neutrality. Now it's almost all the time. I need to contact my provider and get this straightened out. It took me an hour to get this flower uploaded to Flickr! So dear friends, please forgive me for not making many comments lately. It's not for lack of trying!
Had to check on the burrowing owls again today, even though it was trying to rain (in SoCal terminology, that's a mist falling). This happy couple has at least 5 little owlets to feed, but mom got this meal delivered from dad and I think she kept this one for herself. He brought in 2 or 3 more which were fed to the little ones. Cool stuff.
Preparing for a show in February 2008. this will be one of my paintings. About a 16x20 on felt board done with pastel chalk.
Lackland AFB (TX), 28 January 1987.
54-0593 in its original camouflage and AFRes titles. The Provider is still preserved at Lackland AFB but has been resprayed in a glossy scheme.
I can't find much information about this airframe, except that it flew with 310th SOS at Phan Rang AB in Vietnam.
Lackland AFB is part of the Air Education and Training Command (AETC) and has an impressive collection of vintage aircraft.
Although the bluebirds are happy to take the live mealworms I put out, they are both excellent hunters, skilled at bringing back these big larva to feed their babies.
Lakeshore Park, Newark, CA. The parent provided each chick with its own fish. One chick managed to swallow the fish after a bit of juggling. The other chick ultimately regurgitated the fish (seen here), at which point the parent ate it, perhaps to feed back to the chick at a later time.
Taken back in September of 2000, here's "Scotia Provider" part way through a hull repainting. We had visited the tidal power station at the causeway and were heading down toward the "French Shore" when we noticed activity at the haul out in Annapolis Royal. The lighting was very good, the setting sun being just about ready to slip below the long ridge of North Mountain.
"Scotia Provider", a carvel-planked wooden fishing vessel, was built at the A.F.Theriault & Son yard in Meteghan River, Nova Scotia in 1979. She was a bit over 18 meters in length powered by a 520 single prop diesel engine. Although a vessel having the same name sank 150 miles off Cape Cod on July 20, 2015 (crew rescued with no losses), a recent directory of fishing vessels shows "Scotia Provider" still "active", so the lost vessel might have been a different one with the same name.
The original Ektachrome 100 slide image was taken with a Nikon F3HP, Vivitar 90-180mm Series 1 lens. The slide was copied using a Nikon D3500 camera, 55mm f/3.5 Micro Nikkor lens fitted with a Nikon 4T closeup lens, with a Soligor 1.6x achromatic closeup lens on the 4T. Lighting was provided by a 5000K LED bulb in a desk lamp.
DSC-0060-N
This possibly my cable provider SPECTRUM or one of the local law enforcement agencies. I would not even put it passed the federal government ! Be careful of the content of the material you up load to my flickr page. What may well be legal where you are ( I understand that those that post live in multiple foreign countries and the laws are different than they are in the paranoid states of America ) This is the loopy left doing their thing ( under the guise of protecting America ) . They are so paranoid about everything because what they are doing could very easily get them put behind bars. ( that may happen yet ) So don't post anything that deals with under age, animals, incest.... E.T.C. or make any sort of threating statements. Political cartoons digging at these a-holes is O.K. by me. To you guys in Russia and other suppressed areas …………. WE HAVE OUR ASSHOLES TOO AND THEY ARE NO BETTER THAN YOURS ! Seeing as how they want to have their nose so far up our ass..... if we all made a sharp right turn I wonder if we could break it !
John 15:16 (ESV)
16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.
Elect, Election.
In modern English, terms referring to the selection of a leader or representative by a group of people. An element of choice is involved, since usually there are several candidates out of whom one must be chosen.
When the verb “elect” is used theologically in the Bible, it usually has God as its subject. In the OT it is used for God’s choice of Israel to be his people (cf. Acts 13:17). Israel became God’s people, not because they decided to belong to him, but because he took the initiative and chose them. Nor did God’s choice rest on any particular virtues that his people exemplified, but rather on his promise to their forefather Abraham (Dt 7:7, 8). God also chose their leaders, such as Saul and David (1 Sm 10:24; 2 Sm 6:21), apart from any popular vote by the people. The word thus indicates God’s prerogative in deciding what shall happen, independently of human choice.
The same thoughts are found in the NT. God’s people are described as his “elect” or “chosen ones,” a term used by Jesus when speaking of the future time when the Son of man will come and gather together God’s people (Mk 13:20, 27). He will vindicate them for their sufferings and for their patience in waiting for his coming (Lk 18:7). In 1 Peter 2:9 God’s people are called an “elect nation.” This phrase was originally used of the people of Israel (Is 43:20), and it brings out the fact that the people of God in the OT and the Christian church in the NT stand in continuity with each other; the promises addressed to Israel now find fulfillment in the church.
In Romans 9–11 Paul discusses the problem of why the people of Israel as a nation have rejected the gospel, while the Gentiles have accepted it. He states that in the present time there is a “remnant” of Israel as a result of God’s gracious choice of them. This group is called “the elect.” They are the chosen people who have obtained what was meant for Israel as a whole, while the greater mass of the people have failed to obtain it because they were “hardened” as a result of their sin (Rom 11:5, 7).
Nevertheless, God’s choice of Israel to be his people has not been cancelled. Most Jewish people have aligned themselves against the gospel, so that the Gentiles may come in and receive God’s blessings in their place; but they still remain beloved by God, and God will not go back on his original calling of them (Rom 11:28). Consequently Paul is confident that in due time there will be a general return to God by the people of Israel.
The word translated “elect” is generally found in the plural and refers either to the members of God’s people as a whole or to those in a particular local church (Rom 8:33; Col 3:12; 1 Thes 1:4; 2 Tm 2:10; Ti 1:1; 1 Pt 1:1; 2 Pt 1:10; Rv 17:14; Rom 16:13 and 2 Jn 13 have the singular form). The use of the plural may partly be explained by the fact that most of the NT letters are addressed to groups of people rather than to individuals. More probably, however, the point is that God’s election is concerned with the creation of a people rather than the calling of isolated individuals.
The use of the word “election” emphasizes that membership of God’s people is due to God’s initiative, prior to all human response, made before time began (Eph 1:4; cf. Jn 15:16, 19). It is God who has called men and women to be his people, and those who respond are elect. God’s call does not depend on any virtues or merits of humankind. Indeed, he chooses the foolish things by worldly standards to shame the wise, the weak to confound the strong, and the low and insignificant to bring to nothing those who think that they are something (1 Cor 1:27, 28). The effect of election is to leave no grounds whatever for human boasting in achievement and position. Whatever the elect are, they owe entirely to God, and they cannot boast or compare themselves with other people.
God’s elect are a privileged people. Since they now have God to uphold them, no one can bring any accusation against them that might lead to God’s condemnation (Rom 8:33). They constitute a royal priesthood; they are God’s servants with the right of access to him (1 Pt 2:9). It is for their sake that the apostles endured hardship and suffering, so that they might enjoy future salvation and eternal glory (2 Tm 2:10).
The elect are distinguished by their faith in God (Ti 1:1), and they are called to show the character that befits God’s people (Col 3:12). They must make their calling and election sure; that is, they must show that they belong to God by the quality of their lives (2 Pt 1:10). They must continue being faithful to the One who called them (Rv 17:14).
The relationship between God’s call and human response is explained in Matthew 22:14: “For many are called, but few are chosen.” Although God calls many through the gospel, only some of those respond to the call and become his elect people. The text sheds no light on the mystery of why only some become God’s people. Certainly, when a person does respond to God’s call, it is because the gospel comes to him or her “in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction” (1 Thes 1:4, 5). When men and women refuse the gospel, it is because they have become hardened as a result of sin and their trust in their own works. Scripture does not go beyond that point in explanation, and neither should Christians.
“Election” can also be used of God’s choice of people to serve him. Jesus chose the 12 disciples out of the larger company of those who followed him (Lk 6:13; Acts 1:2). The same thought reappears in John’s Gospel; Jesus commented that although he chose the 12, one of them turned out to be a devil (Jn 6:70; 13:18). When a replacement was needed for Judas, the church prayed to Jesus and asked him to show them which of the two available candidates he would choose to fill the gap in the 12 (Acts 1:24). Peter attributes his evangelism among the Gentiles to God’s “election” of him for that purpose (Acts 15:7). Similarly, Paul was an elected instrument for God’s mission to the Gentiles (Acts 9:15). The initiative in Christian mission rests with God, who elects people to serve him in particular ways.
Jesus is called “God’s Chosen” (Lk 9:35; cf. the taunt in Lk 23:35). The heavenly voice at Jesus’ transfiguration spoke in language that echoed Isaiah 42:1 and identified Jesus as God’s Servant, chosen to do his work of bringing light to the nations. In the same way, Jesus is a “chosen cornerstone” (1 Pt 2:4, 6; cf. Is 28:16).
In the teaching of Augustine and Calvin, the doctrine of election is of fundamental importance. They taught that God had chosen before the creation of the world to save a number of specific individuals from sin and judgment and to give them eternal life. Those whom he chose did nothing to deserve it; their merits are no better than the rest of humankind who will be judged for their sins. But in his mercy God decided to save some; therefore, he chose them and sent Jesus to be their Savior. The Holy Spirit regenerates and brings to faith through an “effectual calling” those whom God has elected. God’s Spirit effectively persuades each of them to submit to the gospel, so they are guaranteed recipients of eternal life.
This choice by God selectively to save some may seem unjust. But in fact, God is not obliged to show mercy to anybody; he is free to show mercy as he pleases. People cannot protest that because they were not the elect, they never had a chance of being saved. They never deserved that chance anyway. But anybody who hears the gospel and responds to it with faith can know that he is one of the elect. Whoever rejects the gospel has only his own sinfulness to blame.
Many Christians reject that explanation of God’s election. They maintain that although it appears to be logically consistent with Scripture, it makes God the prisoner of his own plan. His predestination of certain individuals to salvation commits him personally to a detailed, predetermined, unilateral course of action that reduces human action to a charade and renders it insignificant. God ceases to be a person dealing with persons.
The Augustinian and Calvinist view of election, according to its critics, also makes God out to be arbitrary in his choice of the elect. In effect, chance becomes the arbiter of human destiny rather than a holy and loving God. Those difficulties arise because, they say, the teaching of Scripture has been pressed into an artificial logical system that distorts it.
Walter A. Elwell and Barry J. Beitzel, Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1988), 681–683.
For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), Mt 13:12.
Stopped by my healthcare provider to get my TB test read...they were having an on-site Farmer's Market, so I picked a basket of Red Meds!
*The Goodness of the strawberries provide the health care
Stay Healthy & Thrive!
First time I'd seen Ocean Provider in Burghead, think it's a fairly new boat to the Wick register but usually fishes out of Helmsdale across the firth. It was previously registered as LN4, Kings Lynn, but operated out of the Tyne. Don't know where it was built or who by.
1 As a deer pants for flowing streams,
so pants my soul for you, O God.
2 My soul thirsts for God,
for the living God.
When shall I come and appear before God?2
3 My tears have been my food
day and night,
while they say to me all the day long,
“Where is your God?”
4 These things I remember,
as I pour out my soul:
how I would go with the throng
and lead them in procession to the house of God
with glad shouts and songs of praise,
a multitude keeping festival.
5 Why are you cast down, O my soul,
and why are you in turmoil within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
my salvation and my God.
PHILIPPINE SEA (May 13, 2023) A C-2 Greyhound from the “Providers” of Fleet Logistics Support Squadron (VRC) 30 makes an arrested landing on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68). Nimitz is in U.S. 7th Fleet conducting routine operations. 7th Fleet is the U.S. Navy's largest forward-deployed numbered fleet, and routinely interacts and operates with allies and partners in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Nathan K. Serpico)
In honor of Father's Day ... to all of the dads out there ... I wanted to highlight one o the many "providers" out there in the natural world.
So here's an image of a mature great horned owl, I believe to be the male of a mated pair, with 2 babies. Like our own dads, they are providers for their young, not only provider food for them to eat and grow up, but also for protection and teaching of skills that will help in the survival of their young. These dads are ever vigilent and help out with the mom as she raises her young as well.
Many say that the great horned owls represent wisdom (right? the "wise old owl"). I know that my own dad was both provider and teacher to me ... and I miss him dearly. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't feel his presence. I'm sure on this day, many of you can relate.
To all of the dads out there, whether it be of a biological nature or a role they willingly accepted along the way ... whether to our own babies or our fur-babies or feathered babies or whatever ... Thanks for all that you do. :-)
Happy Father's Day! Thanks for stopping by to view.
© 2018 Debbie Tubridy / TNWA Photography
A chemical/oil tanker, Monjasa Provider, on its way up the River Thames, with the Port Of London Authority Pilot cutter Commander alongside.
Monjasa Provider was built in Turkiye in 2005 and has sailed as Lady Begonia, Brovig Wind (3 times, it seems) and Skaw Provider. Monjasa doesn't seem to be or mean anything other than the name of the shipping company concerned, which seems to me to be excellent: good for them. And Provider is a positive, enriching name. Skaw is the northernmost town in the UK.
I shot this as a further effort in my ongoing "Background De-Focus" messing about thing and it doesn't seem to have worked, here: both the ship and Pilot cutter are bright orange and haven't been Tango'd by the camera, although that would be even more fun. But for the ship having an orange line down its hull to match its onboard machinery I suspect Commander would have been rendered invisible. There might have been a diplomatic incident (years ago, when Tilbury Fort was used in the filming of a Wonder Woman movie and a Turkish flag was raised above the fort, panic ensued (well, a little) in Gravesend).
And for those not familiar with being Tango'd it had to do with drinking a fizzy orange flavoured (well, a little) beverage which, as the advertisement had it, turned you livid orange. I preferred Fanta, I have to say...
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