Usually, sakura’s petals fall one by one, but these fallen flowers of ’Somei-Yoshino’ were lying on the ground as a whole. I was wondering what was happening… It is said that birds cut and drop sakura flowers when sucking nectar. Actually I saw some sparrows and bulbuls enjoying sucking nectar on the trees above. Please see also the next photo.

Usually Red-bellied Woodpecker is very alert, unless I am hiding he takes off, this time I took my shots with a zoom 5 feet away from the window, I learned my lesson, start shooting and then try to get closer,

Ibises are a group of long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae, that inhabit wetlands, forests and plains. Ibises usually feed as a group, probing mud for food items, usually crustaceans. It is widespread across much of Australia. It has a predominantly white plumage with a bare, black head, long down curved bill and black legs. They are monogamous and highly territorial while nesting and feeding. Most nest in trees, often with spoonbills or herons. Due to its increasing presence in the urban environment and its habit of rummaging in garbage, the species has acquired a variety of colloquial names such as tip turkey; and bin chicken, and in recent years has become an icon of popular culture, being regarded with passion, wit, and, in equal measure, affection and disgust. 55209

Lewa Wildlife Conservancy

Kenya

East Africa

One of several cape buffalo grazing on grass at the conservancy.

Cape Buffalo are suspected to kill around 200 people every year. They typically will charge and gore their victims, and have been known to trample people as well. When you see Cape Buffalo roaming in Africa, they're usually not alone and an injured cape buffalo is even more dangerous and unpredictable than a healthy one. Weighing in at over 1500 lbs, even most lions don't dare bother hunting this aggressive beast unless the lions are in a huge pride.

The African buffalo or Cape buffalo (Syncerus caffer) is a large Sub-Saharan African bovine.

Syncerus caffer caffer, the Cape buffalo, is the typical subspecies, and the largest one, found in Southern and East Africa. S. c. nanus (African forest buffalo) is the smallest subspecies, common in forest areas of Central and West Africa, while S. c. brachyceros is in West Africa and S. c. aequinoctialis is in the savannas of East Africa.

The adult buffalo's horns are its characteristic feature: they have fused bases, forming a continuous bone shield across the top of the head referred to as a "boss".

Pound nets consist of a fence leader that interrupts the movements of target species and a heart that funnels fish into the trap (pound) via a no return mesh tunnel. The series of nets are anchored to the bottom perpendicular to shore and are set in nearshore areas, with depth often increasing toward the pound.

The netting usually reaches above the waterline with the pound open at the surface. Pound nets are harvested by concentrating the catch in one corner and removing it with a dip net. The leaders may be as long as 1,300 feet (400 meters) with pounds measuring 160 square feet.

Risks to Sea Turtles

Populations of loggerhead, Kemp's ridley, and leatherback sea turtles are at risk in areas where pound net fishing is abundant, such as the Chesapeake Bay and surrounding waters.

Sea turtles may become entangled in any portion of the pound net, most commonly around their head and front flippers. Entanglements can result in bodily injury or drowning.

Entrapment occurs when a sea turtle finds its way into a pound net but cannot get out.

Sea turtles may also become pinned against the netting in a fast moving current and drown if they cannot free themselves.

Risks to Marine Mammals

Small coastal cetacean species, such as bottlenose dolphins, can become entrapped and or entangled in pound nets.

The mesh netting of leaders can act like a gillnet and entangle dolphins. Because the nets are often at or near the surface, cetaceans may be able to breathe until they are released. Once an animal is caught, stress may lead to bodily injury, with strong currents often complicating entanglements.

Bycatch Reduction

Regulations require modified leaders (composed of stiffer materials) to be set more than 10 feet from the low waterline during the summer to reduce turtle bycatch in Virginia. Use of stiffer materials in the leaders has likely lowered dolphin entanglement as well.

www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/bycatch/fishing-gear-poun...

Thor is usually associated with strength, thunder, and protection, but seen in the light of shamanism he can also be understood as a spiritual mediator between humans and the forces of nature. In Norse mythology, Odin is more directly linked to shamanic practices—such as seiðr, trance, and communication with the spirit world—yet Thor represents the more earthly and collective dimension of the same worldview. His thunder and lightning can be seen as expressions of ecstatic natural forces, a kind of “cosmic drumbeat” reminiscent of the drumming in shamanic rituals. Thor also travels in his sky chariot drawn by the goats Tanngnjóstr and Tanngrisnir, a motif that recalls the shaman’s journey between worlds with the aid of a totem animal. In addition, his hammer, Mjölnir, functions as a ritual tool: it consecrated, protected, and sanctified, much like the shaman’s drum or staff. Thor can therefore be viewed as a link between the practical, down-to-earth cult—where people sacrificed to him for protection and fertility—and the more spiritual ideas of power and communication with the spirits of nature. In this way, he stands at the meeting point between the shaman’s world and the farmer’s reality.

Usually photographed from the Honolulu side, this view of Diamond Head looked quite different to me - so different, in fact, that I actually asked another guest if it was Diamond Head. He assured me it was, not quite hiding a smile.

I took this shot from a seventh floor balcony at the Kahala Hotel, looking westward. The image was kind of hazy, so it was a fine candidate for Sunday sliding. I used Jixipix moku hanga, trying for a tapa/barkcloth/kapa look.

This sparrow, Melozone leucotis, is fairly reclusive, usually feeding near dawn or dusk. I had seen one about a decade ago at the same hotel, but this was my first good look as I saw one feeding in two adjoining areas of the extensive gardens.

For species information: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White-eared_ground_sparrow

January 12, 2025. Hotel Bougainvillea gardens, Heredia Province, Cantón de Santo Domingo, Costa Rica.

While I usually use more light than what was available, steady lighting was what was being used for the Lerro 1225 Charter night session. Pushing my camera to ISO 5000 is intense for me, but to get the speed I needed, it did the job. Making the last night pass-by, the 1225 thunders out of the dark into the light past the cleaned up Carland Elevator, creating a scene straight out of 1948.

At the end of a busy day lots of people take the metro to travel home. Mostly they are tired and glad to go home. Travelling in the

metro during rush hour usually doesn’t make them very happy.

Usually the cedar waxwings swoop in, strip our holly tree of its berries and fly off without us seeing them. But, this time a few years ago, I was able to get a few shots of them through our bedroom window.

„Usually completely unnoticed, the drying leaves on the trees in the forest and meadow form bizarre sculptures - and testify to transience and renewal.

A motif that fascinates me completely every year, and runs like a common thread through my photographic work.

A motif that, however, only unfolds its full effect with appropriate photo editing, and is preferably shown by me in black and white.

A motif that impressively illustrates that digital photography - if you shoot in RAW format - is inextricably linked to digital RAW development or digital photo editing.“

„Meist vollkommen unbeachtet bilden die vertrocknenden Blätter an den Bäumen in Wald und Flur bizarre Skulpturen - und zeugen von Vergänglichkeit und Erneuerung.

Ein Motiv, welches mich jedes Jahr erneut vollkommen fasziniert, und sich wie ein roter Faden durch meine Fotoarbeiten zieht.

Ein Motiv, welches jedoch seine volle Wirkung erst mit entsprechender Fotobearbeitung entfaltet, und von mir bevorzugt in Schwarzweiß gezeigt wird.

Ein Motiv welches beeindruckend veranschaulicht, dass die digitale Fotografie - sofern man im RAW-Format fotografiert - untrennbar mit der digitalen RAW-Entwicklung, bzw. digitalen Fotobearbeitung verbunden ist.“

I usually photograph the Sandias from a bit further away, like 10 miles. But on this occasion I was driving Tramway just where it bears left and begings to descend toward I-25 and the river.

I noticed that the light was changing rapidly and the mountainside was being lit by a setting sun, so I pulled off onto Forest Service Road 333.

Good thing I did.

I don't usually post more than one photo a day, but today I'll make an exception...

Twenty-four years ago today, I was a senior at Troy High School in Troy, NY when terrorists highjacked four different planes -- two of which struck the Twin Towers in New York City, one which struck the Pentagon in Washington, and the other that was brought down by heroes and crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. My aunt just happened to be working as an FBI agent out of NYC when the attacks happened, and -- not yet having a cell phone -- I remember using a payphone in the basement of Troy High to call home and see if there was any news about her. Thankfully, she was fine, but unfortunately for her she had to be heavily involved in the cleanup at Ground Zero afterwards.

The world changed after 9/11. Sadly, it wasn't really for the better -- other than for temporary solidarity amongst Americans. I, for one, remember what it was like to do railroad photography before 9/11, then just how many times I got questioned by police after that.

I don't always post about 9/11 when the anniversary comes up, but -- with all of the other terrible events we've seen recently -- it seemed appropriate to say something and share something.

9/11 -- along with more recent events -- are reminders that evil exists in the world. We can pretend it doesn't, we can imagine that there's a way to totally outlaw it through legislation, but you can't. There's only one solution to evil that I know of, and -- without getting too preachy -- I'll just share a quote from the one who's the solution:

"In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33, NIV)

Regarding the train, this was a combined Pan Am / NS OCS that ran west over the West End on October 7, 2009. This was before the F-units arrived, and I believe NS had left their F-units in Mohawk Yard. When I took this photo, it wasn't long past the 8-year anniversary of 9/11. With the early Fall weather and just enough of a breeze to show off Old Glory, there's no doubt that day crossed my mind when I took this photo...

Pan Am OCS

Pownal, Vermont

October 7, 2009

"I usually do not post 'Birds in Flight' where I clipped their wings, but this was a roadside opportunity that I couldn't pass up. In this case, I was shooting handheld with the camera in the vertical position."

Red-tailed Hawk

The Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) is a bird of prey, one of three species colloquially known in the United States as the "Chickenhawk," though it rarely preys on standard sized chickens. It breeds throughout most of North America, from western Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies, and is one of the most common Buteos in North America. Red-tailed Hawks can acclimate to all the biomes within their range. There are fourteen recognized subspecies, which vary in appearance and range. It is one of the largest members of the genus Buteo in North America, typically weighing from 1.5 to 3.5 pounds, and measuring 18–26 inches in length, with a wingspan from 43–57 inches. The Red-tailed Hawk displays sexual dimorphism in size, with females averaging about 25% heavier than males. The bird is sometimes referred to as the red-tail for short, when the meaning is clear in context.

For more info: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-tailed_hawk

Usually on the 23rd June there are fires on our mountains, they are called Johanni Feuer (Johannes Fires). This year the mountain here was surrounded by clouds so I couldn't see what they'd done. This image you see was taken in 2020, i.e. during the pandemic. When you zoom in you can see that the cross is half done and the little lights show you were people stand or work on the display.

I have no idea how difficult it is to move around up there and I also don't know about coming down again safely after dark. Maybe one of the mountaineers on Flickr can enlighten me. I do know that someone got killed a few years ago, so it is probably not "a walk in the park"

Usually seen with red berries..... In the British Isles the rowan has a long and still popular history in folklore as a tree which protects against witchcraft and enchantment.

I usually avoid taking photos of tourist buildings, but I thought this one was worth including. The following information comes from the plaque at the front of the property: "Built circa 1783. This pioneer log cabin was one of the first buildings constructed in this area. Built from cedar logs by Jedediah Hyde, Jr., an engineer and veteran of the Revolutionary War, it was the home of the Hyde family for over 150 years. The cabin was one large room, heated by a stone fireplace, and a loft above. Many believe this is the oldest log cabin in the United States. The cabin was moved two miles to this location in 1946 by the Vermont Historical Society and restored in 1956 and in 1985. The Grand Isle Historical Society own the collection in the building.

Usually only active at dusk and night, the beaver was searching for a way out of the pond and into the stream in broad daylight. A small lock blocked its path, so it eventually crawled over the lock along the bank and continued its journey.

Europese bever - Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber)

© Dan McCabe

A geeky computer joke. This shell is nature's way of exploring cellular automata :).

A cellular automaton is a mathematical technique that evolves a collection of data using very simple rules. This shell exhibits that sort of evolution along its outer surface.

In the computer world, a shell is a program that accepts a persons inputs (usually by typing commands) and then spits out the results.

Usually this waterfall is little more than a dribble, but it becomes a lot more interesting after days of heavy rain.

Usually these birds take off when someone approaches, with a loud call that scares off other shorebirds nearby. This one, however, was very calm and quiet. Maybe the company it kept (a group of Cackling Geese and a few mallards) made it feel safe?

usually they sort of make eye contact while sailing by, but this guy actually turned his head a bit to have a better look

I don't usually do night shots but my son had a rough day at school so I promised him a quick night time jolly. It was win/win - we both took photos and he got to race about in the dark like a loon and also tell me all his woes.

Usually, graffiti is just crap. But, once in a while...

Usually only male butterflies engage in puddle parties.

Eurasian blue tits, usually resident and non-migratory birds, are widespread and a common resident breeder throughout temperate and subarctic Europe and the western Palearctic in deciduous or mixed woodlands with a high proportion of oak. They usually nest in tree holes, although they easily adapt to nest boxes where necessary. Their main rival for nests and in the search for food is the larger and more common great tit.

The Eurasian blue tit prefers insects and spiders for its diet. Outside the breeding season, they also eat seeds and other vegetable-based foods. The birds are famed for their skill, as they can cling to the outermost branches and hang upside down when looking for food.

Usually passing this location in the middle of the night, QUBE paper train 3112 works up grade through Cullerin with MZ1435, 8044, 8037, CM3302.

This sand lizard crossed our path on the shores of Slovakia‘s highest lake, Veľké Hincovo pleso. At 1946m above zero, this is not a height that usually sand lizards were found in the past (in a 1987 publication, they were claimed to very rarely live in heights up to 1550m - and this was 400m lower than the lake). I have to assume that the warming climate allowed the lizards to move further up the mountains.

Usually when I see a Wild Turkey while driving, I don't even slow down anymore as I know they will run away. This time around, I was just walking in a trail when this lady popped up her head and caught my eyes immediately. A bit far at first, I took all the time in the world to try to approach her and snap!

I usually like to pick only one favorite shot to publish from a specific vista or location, even if I have hundreds of others just as worthy. But I simply could not resist publishing this one from the same meadow, even if this is pano is similar to two other already published shots.

This panorama is made up of 7 portrait exposures stitched in Lightroom, edited also in Photoshop and Nik Color Efex Pro. The resultant photo is about 10k x 5k pixels. Go full screen and press L for the highest resolution available.

Thank you very much for all the faves and comments.

Gentianella rhaetica (Gentianaceae) 195 24

Usually biennial, up to 35cm tall, sometimes more or less, in height. Biennials produce a rosette in the first year which dies back in winter. Stems erect, usually branched, elongating from a rosette of spathulate leaves which are often withered by flowering time. Flowers 2.5-3.5cm long, bright blue-purple, pink and off-white with five petal lobes, (smaller in annual plants), late summer to autumn. Western and central Europe including southern England, to the Alps and Carpathians, in chalk grassland and scrub. G. germanica typifies a group of similar species found only in the mountains of Europe, i.e. GG . aspera, austriaca, anisodontha, bulgarica, engadinensis, lutescens, ramosa and pilosa; the last mentioned is distinct in having purple or yellow flowers.

Masai Mara National Park

Kenya

East Africa

Another portrait this time of a buffalo.

The African buffalo or Cape buffalo (Syncerus caffer) is a large Sub-Saharan African bovine. Syncerus caffer caffer, the Cape buffalo, is the typical subspecies found in South and East Africa. The adult buffalo's horns are its characteristic feature: they have fused bases, forming a continuous bone shield across the top of the head referred to as a "boss".

Cape Buffalo are suspected to kill around 200 people every year. They typically will charge and gore their victims and have been known to trample people as well. When you see Cape Buffalo roaming in Africa, they're usually not alone and an injured cape buffalo is even more dangerous and unpredictable than a healthy one.

Weighing in at over 1500 lbs, even most lions don't dare bother hunting this aggressive beast unless the lions are in a huge pride. – Wikipedia

Usually busy seaside village is deserted

Usually ubiquitous, they're a little slow getting started this year.

Blackcap - Sylvia Atrcapilla (M)

Double click!

The Eurasian blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla) usually known simply as the blackcap, is a common and widespread typical warbler. It has mainly olive-grey upperparts and pale grey underparts, and differences between the five subspecies are small. Both sexes have a neat coloured cap to the head, black in the male and reddish-brown in the female. The male's typical song is a rich musical warbling, often ending in a loud high-pitched crescendo, but a simpler song is given in some isolated areas, such as valleys in the Alps. The blackcap's closest relative is the garden warbler, which looks quite different but has a similar song.

The blackcap feeds mainly on insects during the breeding season, then switches to fruit in late summer, the change being triggered by an internal biological rhythm. When migrants arrive on their territories they initially take berries, pollen and nectar if there are insufficient insects available, then soon switch to their preferred diet. They mainly pick prey off foliage and twigs, but may occasionally hover, flycatch or feed on the ground. Blackcaps eat a wide range of invertebrate prey, although aphids are particularly important early in the season, and flies, beetles and caterpillars are also taken in large numbers. Small snails are swallowed whole, since the shell is a source of calcium for the bird's eggs. Chicks are mainly fed soft-bodied insects, fruit only being provided if invertebrates are scarce.

In July, the diet switches increasingly to fruit. The protein needed for egg-laying and for the chicks to grow is replaced by fruit sugar which helps the birds to fatten for migration. Aphids are still taken while they are available, since they often contain sugars from the plant sap on which they feed. Blackcaps eat a wide range of small fruit, and squeeze out any seeds on a branch before consuming the pulp. This technique makes them an important propagator of mistletoe. The mistle thrush, which also favours that plant, is less beneficial since it tends to crush the seeds. Although any suitable fruit may be eaten, some have seasonal or local importance; elder makes up a large proportion of the diet of northern birds preparing for migration, and energy-rich olives and lentisc are favoured by blackcaps wintering in the Mediterranean.

The German birds wintering in British gardens rely on provided food, and the major items are bread and fat, each making up around 20% of the diet; one bird survived the whole winter eating only Christmas cake. Fruit is also eaten, notably cotoneaster (41% of the fruit consumed), ivy and honeysuckle, and apple if available. Some birds have learned to take peanuts from feeders. Blackcaps defend good winter food sources in the wild, and at garden feeding stations they repel competitors as large as starlings and blackbirds. Birds occasionally become tame enough to feed from the hand.

Aristotle, in his History of Animals, considered that the garden warbler eventually metamorphosed into a blackcap. The blackcap's song has led to it being described as the "mock nightingale" or "country nightingale", and John Clare, in "The March Nightingale" describes the listener as believing that the rarer species has arrived prematurely. "He stops his own and thinks the nightingale/Hath of her monthly reckoning counted wrong". The song is also the topic of Italian poet Giovanni Pascoli's "La Capinera" [The Blackcap].

Giovanni Verga's 1871 novel Storia di una capinera, according to its author, was inspired by a story of a blackcap trapped and caged by children. The bird, silent and pining for its lost freedom, eventually dies. In the book, a nun evacuated from her convent by cholera falls in love with a family friend, only to have to return to her confinement when the disease wanes. The novel was adapted as films of the same name in 1917, 1943 and 1993. The last version was directed by Franco Zeffirelli, and its English-language version was retitled as Sparrow. In Saint François d'Assise, an opera by Messiaen, the orchestration is based on bird song. St Francis himself is represented by the blackcap.

Folk names for the blackcap often refer to its most obvious plumage feature (black-headed peggy, King Harry black cap and coal hoodie) or to its song, as in the "nightingale" names above. Other old names are based on its choice of nesting material (Jack Straw, hay bird, hay chat and hay Jack). There is a tradition of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm bases being named for birds. A former base near Stretton in Cheshire was called HMS Blackcap.

Population:

UK breeding:

1,200,000 territories

UK wintering:

3,000 bird

Green frogs quickly colonize bodies of water, and are usually seen resting among weeds or on shore. They will quickly jump back into deeper water as soon as danger approaches. Amphibians as a whole are in danger, due to pesticide use, loss of habitat due to farming, housing and our incessant idea that wetlands are wasted land.

PLEASE: Do not post any comment graphics, they will be deleted. See info in my bio.

I usually have plenty of birds in different varieties who spend their summers with me and Robins are among them. I wasn't laying on the ground for this shot... Oh my no, I can only Imagine trying to get myself back up off that ground again! LOL No, he was up on the bank that surrounds this side of the pond, putting him at eye level with me. Very thoughtful of him to pose for me like that don't you think??

Peonies-Flowers

Peony is the most popular garden flower which usually blooms in the early summer or the late spring. This flower has been frequently used in the traditional medicines of china, Japan and Korea. It is also known as the king of the flowers in China. The peonies represent hope, virtue and grace.

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This fox had just swallowed something it had eaten, still chewing on whatever it was.

This was taken in October, the early part of winter when you live in the Arctic. The first snows will usually cover the tundra in September and will stay until late May the following year.

Red Fox will feed on rodents they hear burrowing under the snow. They will also predate the Arctic Fox as well. Man leaves a lot of waste food around for the fox to consume as well.

Usually in January this lake is frozen over, and was in early December but the temperatures have been in the high 30s to mid 40s the ice is all gone and the swans are back

Usually in the evening I visit Flickr sitting at the table and looking outside the window. So I often watch the sunset, and often I can´t resist to take photos....

Usually I have to go many miles to see this bird in forested areas but this week I was pleasantly surprised to hear the call of the White-Bearded Manakin (female) in my backyard. We are having a very dry... dry season and probably the birds are extending their feeding range?

Usually BNSF's Northtown to Superior train has been running on the north end of the Hinckley Sub under the cover of darkness but today a 1300 call time afforded a few sunny shots north of Hinckley. BNSF is testing EMD’s new Tier 4 models (SD70ACeP4-T4) on these trains and it was nice to get a pair in sun.

I usually shy away from re-photographing works of art, but will make an exception for this astounding, room-sized, three-dimensional installation at the Musee National Beaux-Arts Du Quebec called “The Flux and the Puddle” by David Altmejd. My 2D photo of just one side cannot begin to do it justice. Here is the description from the museum’s website:

“Seen by the artist as a summing up of various styles and different figures and aesthetics running through his protean work for almost the past twenty years, this immense plexiglas architecture, inhabited by werewolves, giants and body-builders, is like a “museum within a museum.” Riddled with references to art history and run through with backwards glances at Altmejd’s previous work, this masterwork, a complex maelstrom of materials whose fusion has not yet exhausted their potential, creates a sense of energy that is difficult to describe. Even the space is modified by the density of the work.”

Wikipedia: The Studebaker Champion is an automobile which was produced by the Studebaker Corporation of South Bend, Indiana, from the beginning of the 1939 model year until 1958. It was a full-size car in its first three generations and a mid-size car in its fourth and fifth generation models, serving as the junior model to the Commander.

St. Louis Car Museum: With the anticipation of the World War II effort to begin, all automotive manufacturers ceased civilian production early into 1942 to focus production on military equipment and supplies. Production of cars and trucks halted on February 10, 1942. Approximately 300 vehicles built up to this period at Studebaker were reserved by the US Government to be utilized only for the Civil Defense Auxiliary and the New York Police Department. To conserve material, the usually chromed components were instead painted. These special vehicles were recorded with Studebaker as Deluxe Champion Model 90 “Black Out” Coupes and Sedans.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Studebaker_Champion

www.stlouiscarmuseum.com/vehicles/1149/1942-studebaker-ch...

Usually found in flocks but this one was alone and just seemed to be resting--perhaps after a long flight? He was photographed at Sweitzer Lake SP, Western Slope, Colorado.

I usually find a group of teenagers smoking flowers on this dock late at night. This night I got lucky and it was free for my use! I was with a buddy and we did some steel wool fun but I really like the mood the fog and ambient light gave this scene. I kept the WB relatively the same as sooc but darkened the tones a little.