View allAll Photos Tagged behaviour
This hare is about to eat its own cecotropes, something most lagomorphs do as they can't digest their food in one go. The mountain hares slowly bend down to access the cecotropes, maintaining eye contact with me.
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The European goldfinch or goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis), is a small passerine bird in the finch family that is native to Europe, North Africa and western Asia. It has been introduced to other areas including Australia, New Zealand and Uruguay.
The goldfinch has a red face and a black-and-white head. The back and flanks are buff or chestnut brown. The black wings have a broad yellow bar. The tail is black and the rump is white. The female is very similar to the male but has a slightly smaller red area on the face.
The goldfinch is often depicted in Italian renaissance paintings of the Madonna and Child. Goldfinches are commonly kept and bred in captivity around the world because of their distinctive appearance and pleasant song. In Britain during the 19th century many thousands of goldfinches were trapped each year to be sold as cage-birds. One of the earliest campaigns of the Society for the Protection of Birds was directed against this trade.
In the poem The Great Hunger by Patrick Kavanagh, the goldfinch is one of the rare glimpses of beauty in the life of an elderly Irish farmer:
"The goldfinches on the railway paling were worth looking at
A man might imagine then
Himself in Brazil and these birds the birds of paradise" (wikipedia)
An adult Goldfinch on some teasel, Cobh, Co. Cork, Ireland. Taken through glass but It's a photo i've wanted to take for a long time.
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The Common Tern (Sterna hirundo) is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a circumpolar distribution breeding in temperate and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia and east and central North America. It is strongly migratory, wintering in coastal tropical and subtropical regions. It is sometimes known as the sea swallow. The term "Commic Tern" refers to birds which are not seen well enough to positively determined if they are Common or Arctic Terns.
Its thin, sharp bill is red with a dark tip. Its longish legs are also red. Its upperwings show a dark primary wedge, unlike the Arctic Tern, in which they are uniformly grey. Its long tail extends only to the wingtips on the standing bird, unlike Arctic and Roseate Terns, which extend past the wingtips. It is not as pale as the Roseate Tern and has longer wings. (wikipedia)
Taken in Dublin as the birds were making forays over a public path towards their nesting pontoon. Fantastic to watch the adult birds go back and forth over the path, ignoring all the people out walking. Evening light helped make it a lovely few hours.
A montage to show you courtship behaviour with Sminthurides nr. penicillifer, as with all Sminthurides species the male and female Springtail perform a courtship ritual. The male which is quite a bit smaller than the female will approach a female and attempt to link its antennae with the female (If the female lets him). The male has specially adapted antennae with long setae on it, it uses these setae to lock its antennae around the females antennae. The female will often carry the male around like this for some time, I'm not sure if this is to exhaust her or if there is some pheromone at play here. The male will then unlock itself and deposit spermatophores that the female will walk over.
In these images the male is the smaller of the linked pair, the females being a lot larger with the distinctive white abdominal and facial band :o)
The females are about 1mm in length and the males 0.6mm long, taken with the MP-E on a 1.4x teleconverter and some with an extra 36mm extension tube added between the lens and teleconverter.
I have included some extra images in the comments :o)
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
This is a reworking of a 2008 photograph which I liked very much but attracted few views and no faves. Not understanding the social aspects of Flickr I made the mistake of uploading more than 2000 photos this time last year when I first posted on Flickr. I uploaded as many the night after. Naturally they were resoundingly ignored. Posting between 1 and 4 shots each day seems to be more normal behaviour and I have been so grateful for the comments and encouragement and friendship I have received doing just that. I believe Flickr disapproves of reposting so I have now made a couple of different treatments of the image I liked. Here they are.
This day there was a very significant change in behaviour. Over the previous two weeks we had only ever seen two butterflies brought to the nest and to say that it hadn't gone well is an understatement.
This day only insects were brought to the nest and not one skink. All were accepted on first offering and the female did all the deliveries.
Our conclusion was either that all of a sudden skinks were hard to come by otherwise it looked like the food supply was being wound back to encourage the young to leave the nest.
(Clare)
The Whitaker (previously Rossendale Museum & Art Gallery) is set in a beautiful park at the centre of the Rossendale Valley, Lancashire. This little 'gem' of the valley was originally built in 1840 and heroically rescued from closure in 2013, when it embarked on a loving and passionate journey of restoration and enhancement under the leadership of the newly formed 'Whitaker Group'.
Currently run as a 'not-for-profit' community organisation and supported by a niche in-house team and some incredible volunteers, The Whitaker continues to be a unique and wonderous place that remains in place for the community, celebrating its amazing heritage and reconnecting it with cultures past and present.
The team pride themselves in doing things a little differently, choosing to think beyond historic perceptions of museum behaviour and expectations, ensuring the ongoing journey of the Museum is one that is shared with all who visit, and making the Whitaker yours to cherish and enjoy for many more years to come.
Despite all the renovation and change, the Whitaker Group is passionate that the aims of the museum remain true to its original 1902 declaration: to educate and enlighten the people of Rossendale, and providing a focus for learning and cultural activity into the 21st Century.
FRIENDS OF ROSSENDALE MUSEUM
The Friends of Rossendale Museum (FoRM) registered charity 700813, support The Whitaker with a variety of activities including funds for conservation work, education, new equipment and refurbishment. Over £50,000 has been raised in recent years. We also promote a lively programme of monthly talks on a variety of interesting topics of local and general interest and organise a summer guided walk and annual dinner.
We're looking for more people to join of all ages, young and old, to support an active interest for the whole community in historic Rossendale and keep culture alive in the area.
ART GALLERY
As well as housing a modern art gallery with regular exhibitions from a wide variety of artists, the Whitaker has 189 oil paintings in its permanent collection, most of which have been kindly and generously donated by either owner or painter. The wealth of Rossendale during the industrial revolution of the 19th century is directly reflected within the collection. For a small museum, there are a substantial amount of good quality portraits and a fine collection of 19th century genre paintings. There is the odd gem, and a visit to see the annual temporary exhibition drawn from the permanent collections stores is well worth the outing, with new dates being posted in our 'What's On' page as they become available.
The permanently displayed portraits in the Hall and Landing Galleries are of local people who have made a substantial contribution to the development of Rossendale since the 18th century. They include the major cotton and woollen mill manufacturers including those with a close connection to the Whitaker building.
Of note in the Hall is the portrait of Ann, Mrs. Joseph Wood Whitehead, who was George Hardman’s daughter. Seen on the opposite wall George Hardman commissioned the Whitaker mansion to be built as his families’ residence. When Ann married Joseph Whitehead, she united two great mill owning families in the area. The Whitehead Mills were still working in the 1950s.
Other paintings on permanent display can be seen in the Victorian Drawing Room and in the Hardman Room.
One of the most popular oil paintings in the collection is 'The Lifeboat' by Marshall Claxton, a work which toured Australia as part of the National Gallery of Victoria touring exhibition Exiles and Emigrants in 2005 and 2006. 'The Devil's Bridge on the St Gothard Pass' by Thomas Creswick is exhibited next to ‘The Lifeboat’. Creswick was a contemporary of J.M.W Turner, who painted the same scene.
NATURAL HISTORY
From Orangutan to Platypus, Polar Bear to Elephant, the museum’s collection of animals includes over 9,000 preserved specimens.
The zoology collection includes numerous mounted mammals, many of which are on display, plus a significant collection of shells, birds, eggs and entomology. The collection is worldwide in scope, with specimens from the Arctic to Asia, Africa to Europe as well as animals from our local environment.
The collection includes many characters such as our famous ‘Tiger and Python’ exhibit, which was originally part of William Bullock’s collection. William Bullock was a 19th century entertainer whose collections of animals went on tour and finally on display in the ‘Egyptian Hall’ in London. His exhibits were designed to amaze and leave Victorian audiences in awe - our ‘Tiger and Python’ continue that tradition and regularly draw a fascinated audience today! Since its creation, the exhibit has been sketched and painted; an oil painting by Alexandre Isidore is part of The Louvre, Paris collection and a woodcut by Thomas Bewick also exists. In recent times, it has been photographed by The National Geographic.
We also take care of ‘Nellie’, our much-loved baby elephant, who once upon a time could be seen outside the museum. Amazingly, small children were allowed sit on her back! More recently she has been conserved and put back on display.
The animals, primarily Victorian in era, are now a much-loved part of the museum and form part of the wider zoological collections held within the north west: for further information, see www.naturallycurious.co.uk.
SOCIAL HISTORY MUSEUM
The Social History Collections contain thousands of objects representing the everyday and exceptional lives of local people from the 18th Century to the present day. It aims to cover aspects of the domestic and social lives of those for whom Rossendale was and is home.
The range of objects in the collection is vast and the overwhelming majority of items have been kindly donated to the museum. Limits on space mean that we can only display a small percentage of our collection at any one time, but the display are changed regularly. We have everything from small personal objects, such as the ‘Acorn’ nutmeg grater in the Domestic Items Cabinet, to a large collection of clogs showing the development of an important local industry. Incredibly, Rossendale still has one active clog maker!
There are relics from the Boer War, and the First and Second World Wars including, diaries, postcards, letters, medals, ration books and kit.
There is a cabinet of childhood that has items both made and used by local children. You can see, clothes, games, samplers, copy books, and school photographs.
The Music Cabinet contains several interesting items, most unusually a series of local, handmade instruments. These belonged to the Deigns of Laycock, a travelling band of musicians who went from chapel to chapel on Sundays to play their own music.
This room also contains coins and tokens, both local and Roman. A large collection of ceramic and glass (can you spot a ‘frog’ hiding in the bottom of a mug?) as well as a brief look at the history of our local mills. We also have displays that reference the history of transport and other local industries, and a collection of civic regalia.
The collection provides a unique visual record of Rosendale’s transition from one of the King’s hunting forests in the 16th Century to no less than three 19th century industrial towns, Rawtenstall, Haslingden and Bacup, as well as many outlying villages and communities.
A VENUE OF CULTURE.
Whether you want to enjoy the modern art gallery, relish all the museum has to offer, there's something for everyone, whatever your interests.
We're proud to be non-profit and here for the community, constantly celebrating our amazing heritage and reconnecting with cultures past and present.
We are unique and we believe the Whitaker with all its diversity and wonderful lost history has something new to say to everyone who visits us.
The mating behaviour of avocets is very elegant. Initially both birds can be seen preening vigorously, then the female lowers her head, stretches it low over the water and stands almost motionless..Having bred successfully they will be faithful to the site in subsequent years. Pair-bonds are maintained only for the duration of breeding season and break up by the time winter flocks gather.
Avocets nest in loose colonies of up to 150 pairs. Colony size and density are determined by availability of suitable nest sites, distance to water and risk of predation. The nest, built by both sexes, is a shallow scrape on bare mud or in sparse vegetation, even in shallow water, and is composed of short pieces of stems, roots, and leaves of marsh vegetation
If you’ve been the victim of abusive or threatening behaviour by someone near your home or when you're out and about it may be harassment. There are different things you can do if you’re being harassed.
Harassment is both a criminal offence and a civil action under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997.
This means that someone can be prosecuted in the criminal courts if they harass you. It also means you can take action against the person in the civil courts.
www.citizensadvice.org.uk/law-and-courts/discrimination/t...
If you’re being harassed and you feel you're in danger you can contact the police.
If you think you’re being harassed because of your disability, race, religion, transgender identity or sexual orientation, you can report the harassment to the police as a hate incident or crime.
You can find details of your local police station on the Police.UK
photo: gianluca fontana
production: martina riebeck
hair: enrico mariotti
make-up: david jones
styling: martina riebeck
model: morgane dubled
publication: tush #4 2007
They love nettles and this little swarm of mini munchers has managed to strip a patch.
www.ukbutterflies.co.uk/species.php?species=io
Larva
The behaviour of the larva is very similar to that of the Small Tortoiseshell, the two species often being seen together. In the first instar, Peacock larvae are very similar to those of the Small Tortoiseshell. However, mature Peacock larvae are jet black for the most part, whereas Small Tortoiseshell larvae are typically dark green with a pair of yellow stripes running down the length of their sides.
On emerging from their eggs, Peacock larvae build a communal web near the top of the plant and from which they emerge to bask and feed and are usually highly conspicuous. As the larvae grow, they move to new plants, building new webs along the way. Webs are decorated with shed larval skins and droppings and are easily found.
Larvae have several techniques to avoid predation. When disturbed, a group of larvae will often jerk their bodies from side to side in unison, which must be a formidable sight to any predator. The larvae will also regurgitate green fluid and will, if necessary, curl up in a ball and drop to the ground. Larvae feed both during the day and at night. There are 5 instars in total.
The primary larval foodplant is Common Nettle (Urtica dioica). Hop (Humulus lupulus) and Small Nettle (Urtica urens) are also used.
1st Instar
"The larva eats away the crown of the egg, and all hatch at once. Those at the bottom of the batch immediately start feeding through the leaf, and all live in a dense mass, spinning a web over the leaf. Directly after emergence the larva measures only 1.6 mm. long; the body is cylindrical; the head large, black and shining, beset with fine black hairs. On the body are four longitudinal rows of long, fine, black, simple hairs with bulbous bases; they are slightly curved and have the extreme tips very slightly clubbed and whitish. On the ventral surface and claspers are paler fine straight hairs; the spiracles are outlined with black. The surface is finely granular, with minute, raised, dark points. The colour is a very light ochreous-green, almost white-green." - Frohawk (1924)
2nd Instar
"The first moult was on June 5th, 1908, the first stage lasting six days. Before the second moult, nine days old, it measures 8 mm. in length. It is a good deal similar to the previous stage; the base of the longest hairs now form black conical tubercles, which are beset with bristles, and each terminates in a long, slightly serrated black hair. There are numerous black serrated hairs of different lengths, some extremely small, scattered over the body, which is granulated with fine black points. The head is shining black, with minute black bristles. The surface of the body is very shining, of a mottled olive-brown, blotched with pale ochreous round each of the largest tubercles. They live and feed in company. Preparatory to moulting they all assemble in a dense mass on a thick carpet of web spun over the eaten part of the plant, and thereon, packed together, undergo the second moult. When disturbed they all throw up the anterior half of their bodies in the form of a hook (thus c__) and remain so for a few minutes." - Frohawk (1924
3rd Instar
"The second moult occurred on June 9th, 1908, the second stage occupying four days. Before the third moult, thirteen days old, it measures from 12.7 mm. to 14.8 mm. long. In this stage a further development in the size of the tubercles is noticeable, especially the two dorsal rows, which are of considerable length and terminate, as all the shorter ones do, with long, slightly curved hairs. The ground colour is purplish-dark-brown, the longer hairs, which are scattered over the body, are placed on white dots. The head and other details of the surface are as in the previous stage; the claspers are pale olive-ochreous. They still live gregariously, and, as in the previous stage, prior to moulting they all assemble in a dense pack, forming a conspicuous black mass. In this stage they consume a great quantity of food; and when touched or irritated exude from the mouth a comparatively large drop of green liquid; and when slightly disturbed they throw up their heads and fore part of the body as in the last stage, and if still further annoyed or shaken they fall to the ground with much wriggling, at the same time lowering themselves by a silk thread." - Frohawk (1924)
4th Instar
"The third moult June 13th, 1908. The third stage also lasted four days. Before fourth moult, eighteen days old, the larva is 25.4 mm. in length; very similar to the previous stage. All the tubercles are well developed, the two dorsal rows being about twice the length of the sub-dorsal and lateral series. The white spots are now more distinct and numerous. The head and legs are shining black, as well as the anal pair of claspers. The ground colour is a purple-black; in other respects the details are the same as in the previous stage. Before moulting they again assemble in a dense mass." - Frohawk (1924)
5th Instar
"The fourth and last moult took place on June 18th, 1908, the fourth stage lasting five days. After fourth moult, fully grown, about twenty-eight days old, it averages in length about 41 .3 mm., some specimens as much as 44 mm. long. It is fairly cylindrical and comparatively slender; the first segment is much the smallest. There are six longitudinal rows of black shining spines from the fifth to eleventh segments inclusive; the second and third segments have each only two dorsal spines, which are longer than those on the other segments; the fourth and anal segments have each four spines; the first segment has no spines, but a transverse ridge of fine black hairs. The spines are sub-dorsal, super-spiracular and sub-spiracular. They are long and shining black, sharply pointed, and bear numerous bristles of various lengths; the body is densely covered with minute black bristles, which adds intensity to the rich velvety-black ground colour. At the segmental divisions the surface is smooth and of a dull leaden-black. Each segment is encircled with numerous pure white globular warts, each emitting a fine white hair; the largest are in front of the spiracles. On the first segment is a dorsal, shining, black, transverse disc, and two round ones on the anal segment; the first is small and adjoins the eleventh segment, the other forms a large rounded knob on the extremity. The head and legs are shining black and thickly studded with black bristles of varying lengths; the claspers are ochreous-brown at the base, the middle portion bright ochreous, the foot palest. Several of the larvae were fully grown on June 24th (the fifth stage occupying six days), making the larval period twenty-seven days: twenty-five days feeding and two days occupied in changing to pupa." - Frohawk (1924)
Went today to this park so beautiful just between Beckenham & Bromley with its park area and its amazing 2 square miles of woodland and its wild walks. Got this shot of the 2 robins just before a hot brew and cake its a cracker mum feeding its mature chick, they must be early this year.
Two puffins (Fratercula arctica) are squabbling at the entrance of their cave.
Zwei Papageitaucher (Fratercula arctica) streiten am Eingang ihrere Höhle.
A small group of Oystercatchers flew overhead and were showing signs of coming in for a landing in this spot, yelling continuously. These two were having none of it, and responded by doing some yelling of their own, repeatedly alternating between holding their heads high and then bowing down. The small flock went away after much screeching and never did land here.