View allAll Photos Tagged commonerrors
Miss Poutine has some troubles of her own
She has a cat who just won't leave her alone
She tried and tried to give that cat away
She gave him to someone far far away
But the cat came back, the very next day..
He just couldn't stay away...
It's wonderful to have so many grasshoppers in the garden. Most of them seem to be Field Grasshoppers like this one!
The Field Grasshopper (Chorthippus brunneus) is one of the commoner grasshoppers, found throughout most of Britain. It favours short, sunny grassland, and so it is not uncommon on garden lawns and rockeries. It is a brownish grasshopper, but the colour varies. Striped and mottled forms occur with parts of the body varying from buff through orange to purple. It has sharply incurved pronotal side-keels. The dark wedges on the pronotum don't reach the base. The underside of body is distinctively hairy in both sexes. The species is winged, flies well and has been known to swarm.
It enjoys a long season with nymphs hatching from late March. Adults appear from June and may survive until early December. They feed on plants and grasses. Males can be seen displaying to females by rubbing their legs against their wings to create a 'song' - a brief, single chirrup, repeated at short intervals. After mating, eggs are laid in the soil ready to hatch the following summer.
The difference in colour and markings of these little fellas is really quite pleasing. A real flash of colour when compared with the commoner end of the European finch spectrum.
Medium-sized dove with spotted wings, a distinctive striped neck patch and a bold white tip to the rounded tail. Found in wooded and semiopen habitats, especially farmland and heath with hedges and scattered trees. Usually rather shy; seen mainly in flight, but at times perched on utility wires. Feeds on ground, where it may associate with other pigeons. Appreciably smaller and slimmer than much commoner and overall paler Eurasian Collared-Dove. Extremely similar in plumage to Oriental Turtle-Dove, but has less extensive dark centers to the wing feathers and averages pinker on the breast.
Shorebirds of Ireland, Freshwater Birds of Ireland and The Birds of Ireland: A Field Guide with Jim Wilson.
www.markcarmodyphotography.com
The Cory's Shearwater/Cánóg Cory (Calonectris borealis) is the largest species of shearwater seen in Irish waters, being almost twice the size of the much commoner Manx Shearwater. Like that species, Cory's Shearwater has white underparts. The upperparts (head, back and rump) are a light brown while the wings are a contrasting darker brown/black. At close range and in good light, the large yellow bill can be seen. Distinguishable from Manx Shearwater almost on flight-style, having a much more relaxed flight action which includes long glides on bowed wings interspersed with only a few slow flaps of the wings. In poor conditions, confusion with Fulmar (similar size and flight action) is possible. (Birdwatch Ireland)
This species breeds on Madeira, the Azores and the Berlengas Archipelago in Portugal and the Canary Islands in Spain. This individual was photographed off Madeira. A beautiful bird that I was lucky to see in Madeiran waters recently. Despite seeing so many of them, my heart still beats faster when they start appearing on seawatches from the south coast of Ireland during the autumn.
Walking around many of the New Forest villages, it is very common to see Ponies, Donkeys, Cattle, Sheep and at certain times of the year, even Pigs, out for a casual stroll, or hanging around the shops or even the pub!
"The New Forest pony is one of the recognised mountain and moorland or native pony breeds of the British Isles. All ponies grazing on the New Forest are owned by New Forest commoners – people who have "rights of common of pasture" over the Forest lands. An annual marking fee is paid for each animal turned out to graze."
The Arcade Gatcha Events Credits:
Bed: {Scarlet Creative} The Arcade: Venice Messy Bed MT
Wardrobe: {Scarlet Creative} The Arcade: Venice Wardrobe Blue MT
Rug: {Scarlet Creative} The Arcade: Venice Rug Blue MT
Console: {Scarlet Creative} The Arcade: Venice Console White MT
Puppy 1: {JIAN} Lively Labs :: Black Wander Pup
Puppy 2: {JIAN} Lively Labs :: Brown Wander Pup
Pillow: {Commoner} "Burgundy Summer" Monogrammed Pillow / Y
Plant: {Soy} Shitamachi Alley Garden - Potted Plant - F
Hanging Plant: {tarte} hanging planter (cement)
Coffee: {tres blah} Golden Cage - Coffee Run
Harp: {RazzBerry In & Koalifications} Angel Harp - Unscripted
Table: {tarte} round table (white washed)
On The Road Again-Willie Nelson
a Thelma and Louise moment with my BFF Abigailia <3
AD - daytona - ALT
Maitreya Mesh Body - Lara V5.0 Tattoo Layer
EQUAL - Anna Sandals [Mait.]
LeLUTKA.Head.Nova.1.2 (SL)
.:[PUMEC] :. - / Mesh Ears\ Last Hero
LeLUTKA.Eyes.Nova.1.2
DAZED. Ring Septum
[Commoner] TidBit Band / Color-Change (wear/add)
JustBECAUSE Joy Pants - 25Black - Maitreya Lara
JustBECAUSE Kammie Top - 25Black - Maitreya Lara
Maitreya Mesh Body - Lara V5.0.1
~~ Ysoral ~~ .:Luxe Ring Emotion
LeLUTKA.Teeth.1.2
::LC:: Kitty Shades [Black Matte]
[RHUDE] Star Nose Ring 24K
Prop: WetCat/T&L car prop
Nigritella austriaca (Orchidaceae) 173 24
(Gymnadenia austriaca / Nigritella nigra subsp. austriaca / Nigritella austriaca)
Nigritella austriaca is one of the commoner Vanilla Orchids with a range throughout the European Alps, apart from France where it is replaced by variety gallica (or iberica as preferred by some authorities). It can be found in full sun on calcareous alpine grassland from 1500 to 2500 meters where it's frequently seen in the company of Nigritella rhellicani, a very similar species which in sometimes difficult to differentiate.
In its typical form Nigritella. austriaca has fewer and larger flowers than Nigritella rhellicani, which in the mature plant are arranged in a flat topped, hemispherical inflorescence wider than it is tall. The flower spike of Nigritella rhellicani on the other hand, is usually taller than it is wide and often considerably so, though unfortunately both species can throw up confusing atypical examples. Both species are referred to as the "black orchids" but the coloration of Nigritella. austriaca is generally a shade lighter and more obviously red, though again, both species can exhibit a considerable degree of variation.
The Forbidden City is a palace complex in Dongcheng District, Beijing, China, at the center of the Imperial City of Beijing. It is surrounded by numerous opulent imperial gardens and temples. The Forbidden City was constructed from 1406 to 1420, and was the former Chinese imperial palace and winter residence of the Emperor of China from the Ming dynasty (since the Yongle Emperor) to the end of the Qing dynasty, between 1420 and 1924.
The Forbidden City is a rectangle, measuring 961 m (3,153 ft) from north to south and 753 m (2,470 ft) from east to west.
At the four corners of the wall sit towers with intricate roofs. These towers are the most visible parts of the palace to commoners outside the walls.
From Wikipedia
Hebridean sheep graze during summer to keep down encroaching vegetation.
A Yorkshire Wildlife Trust managed area of Strensall Common, York.
Common land is land subject to rights enjoyed by one or more persons to take or use part of a piece of land or of the produce of a piece of land which is owned by someone else – these rights are referred to as ‘rights of common’. Those entitled to exercise such rights were called commoners.
It is a popular misconception that common land is land owned by the general public and to which everyone has unrestricted right of access. All common land is private property, whether the owner is an individual or a corporation. Historically, the owner of the common was normally the lord of the manor. Today many commons are owned by local authorities, the National Trust and other bodies for the public benefit, but not all commons offer total access to all comers.
Strensall Common is owned by the MOD who use the major part for Army training including a rifle range. The public have full access to the common when not in use by the army. Safety arrnagements are in place to ensure there is no confict.
Music: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xb3fZmkzy84
The weather was showery and I hoped to find some New Forest ponies. As I was preparing to walk off in search of the ponies, this small group walked across the car park and galloped up the hill. Thankfully I caught them before they disappeared over the hill.
The New Forest ponies number about 5,000 and they have been in the forest for about 2,000 years.
The cattle and ponies living on the New Forest are not completely feral, but are owned by commoners, who pay an annual fee for each animal turned out. The animals are looked after by their owners and by the Agisters employed by the Verderers of the New Forest. The Verderers are a statutory body with ancient roots, who share management of the forest with the Forestry Commission and National park authority. Approximately 80 per cent of the animals depastured on the New Forest are owned by just 10 per cent of the commoning families.
The commoners have the right to graze their ponies and cattle on the open forest throughout the year. It is the animals’ grazing which helps to keep the New Forest’s landscape and rare species which you can enjoy today. The ancient tradition of commoning dates back from before the days when William the Conqueror made this area his private hunting reserve and imposed strict laws.
Ponies living full-time on the New Forest are almost all mares, although there are also a few geldings. For much of the year the ponies live in small groups, usually consisting of an older mare, her daughters, and their foals, all keeping to a discrete area of the Forest called a "haunt." Under New Forest regulations, mares and geldings may be of any breed. Although the ponies are predominantly New Foresters, other breeds such as Shetlands and their crossbred descendants may be found in some areas.
Stallions must be registered New Foresters, and are not allowed to run free all year round on the Forest. They normally are turned out only for a limited period in the spring and summer, when they gather several groups of mares and youngstock into larger herds and defend them against other stallions. A small number (usually fewer than 50) are turned out, generally between May and August. This ensures that foals are born neither too early (before the spring grass is coming through), nor too late (as the colder weather is setting in and the grazing and browsing on the Forest is dying back) in the following year.
Drifts to gather the animals are carried out in autumn. Most colts and some fillies are removed, along with any animals considered too "poor" to remain on the Forest over the winter. The remaining fillies are branded with their owner's mark, and many animals are wormed. Many owners choose to remove a number of animals from the Forest for the winter, turning them out again the following spring. Animals surplus to their owner's requirements often are sold at the Beaulieu Road Pony Sales, run by the New Forest Livestock Society.[48] Tail hair of the ponies is trimmed, and cut into a recognisable pattern to show that the pony's grazing fees have been paid for the year. Each Agister has his own "tail-mark", indicating the area of the Forest where the owner lives. The Agisters keep a constant watch over the condition of the Forest-running stock, and an animal may be "ordered off" the Forest at any time. The rest of the year, the lives of the ponies are relatively unhindered unless they need veterinary attention or additional feeding, when they are usually taken off the Forest.
The open nature of the New Forest means that ponies are able to wander onto roads.The ponies actually have right of way over vehicles and many wear reflective collars in an effort to reduce traffic fatalities, but despite this, many ponies, along with commoners' cattle, pigs, and donkeys are killed or injured in road traffic accidents every year. Human interaction with ponies is also a problem; well meaning but misguided visitors to the forest frequently feed them, which can create dietary problems and sickness (e.g. colic) and cause the ponies to adopt an aggressive attitude in order to obtain human food.
(Wikipedia)
Sometimes I find items in Second Life that really actually DO help me. That Commoner Chatterbox is one of them. Definitely going back to get more.
rish Name:
Fulmaire
Scientific name:
Fulmarus glacialis
Bird Family:
Tubenoses
amber
Conservation status
Status
Resident along all Irish coasts.
Identification
A gull-like bird with white underparts and pale grey upperparts. Also occurs in darker morphs ('Blue Fulmars'), which are commoner in the north of its range but not in Ireland. Has a thick neck and large head. Shows a pale primary patch on the upperwing. Does not show gull-like black tips to the primary feathers. Straight, stout bill with hooked tip and tube shaped nostrils on the upper mandible, giving distinctive bill shape if seen at close range. Nostrils used to excrete salt. Flies with very stiff wings, uses long glides at sea, with series of stiff, shallow wing beats. Hangs in the wind in the fierce updrafts generated by steep cliffs, where it can even fly backwards. Cannot stand upright, so needs to launch itself from a high ledge or patters along surface of sea to become airborne.
Voice
Vocal at the breeding colonies, with pairs cackling to one another with a guttural throaty series of "Ga, ga, ga ..." sounds.
Diet
A great variety of food taken including fish, discards from trawlers, crustaceans and whale flesh.
Breeding
A bird that has expanded its breeding range throughout Ireland over the last century, beginning in Mayo in 1911. Comes to land in the day, unlike its relatives the shearwaters and other petrels. Mainly breeds on sea cliffs, but will nest on level ground, on buildings and in burrows and crevasses. Will use both steep rocky cliffs, grassy cliffs and steep slopes above cliffs. Both incubating adults and chick use projectile vomiting as a defensive against predators, the oily stomach contents effectively fouling the plumage of other birds.
Wintering
Winters at sea, but can be seen in Irish waters throughout the year. Attends colonies in the winter sporadically, with breeding cliffs deserted one week and full the next.
Monitored by
Breeding seabirds are monitored through seabird surveys carried out every 15-20 years.
I keep my distance but you still catch my eye #312
Thank you so much for all of the ♥ and ★'s!
Volterra AD 1398 è una delle più belle e apprezzate rievocazioni storiche italiane. La festa si svolge nel cuore pulsante della Volterra medievale e nel magnifico Parco di Castello dominato dalla austera mole della Fortezza Medicea. Il centro storico della città si anima di un passato mai sopito e i visitatori sono trasportati, come per magia, indietro nel tempo. Focosi destrieri, audaci cavalieri, nobili, dame, artigiani e mercanti, popolani e contadini, sbandieratori, balestrieri e soldati, giocolieri, musici e giullari fanno rivivere per incanto il misterioso medioevo di Volterra.
Volterra AD 1398 is one of the most beautiful and appreciated Italian historical re-enactments. The festival takes place in the pulsating heart of medieval Volterra and in the magnificent Parco di Castello dominated by the austere bulk of the Medici Fortress. The historic center of the city comes alive with a never-ending past and visitors are transported, as if by magic, back in time. Fierce steeds, daring knights, nobles, ladies, artisans and merchants, commoners and peasants, flag bearers, crossbowmen and soldiers, jugglers, musicians and jesters revive the mysterious medieval town of Volterra by magic.
Volterra, Pisa - Italy
f00133
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Hair: Little Bones True in Black Dips (@ N21)
Hairbase: Just Magnetized
Head: CATWA Annie
Skin: EGOZY Zeya in Nougat
Body: Slink Physique
Eyes: Mayfly
Ears: MANDALA
Earrings: 7891. Xaqui custom earrings
Necklace 1: [Commoner] Carried Away Fabulous Necklace (@ The Arcade)
Necklace 2: (Yummy) Talisman Charms in Luck Gold (@ N21)
Top: EVANI Eva Shirt in White Pineapple
Jeans: TETRA High Waisted Ripped Jeans in # 3
Pose: !bang Stands 380-389 (store closing July 15th)
Set Items: ionic Where Is My House? RARE
{what next} Under The Stars Bar RARE*
brocante. Pinned Tapestry in Stay (@ N21)
The Loft & ARIA Troubadour Potted Cactus
*these items are from The Arcade (last day Jun 30th!)
________________________________
( location landmarks/slurls available soon at my tumblr )
Fantasy(Mariah Carey)
Mariposa is wearing:
Maitreya Mesh Body - Lara V5.0 Tattoo Layer
LeLUTKA.Head.Nova.2.5 (dated)
LeLUTKA.Eyes.2.5
*PKC* Nia Nose Ring
[Commoner] TidBit Band / Color-Change
~~ Ysoral ~~ .:Luxe Ring Emotion
LeLUTKA.Teeth.2.5
Maitreya Mesh Body - Lara V5.0.1
[ kunst ] - Scarlett Watch
MIDNA - Barbara Bracelet
SPIRIT - Arina t-shirt
SPIRIT - Arina short skirt
Hair Xia Bento Fitted
{kokoia} :: WilaRoller :: Woman :: White
Vista Animations/Roller Bento AO-V1.3(includes skates)
Pic taken at the lovely Kanaloa Surf Beach
Like much of England, the site of the New Forest was once deciduous woodland, recolonised by birch and eventually beech and oak after the withdrawal of the ice sheets starting around 12,000 years ago. Some areas were cleared for cultivation from the Bronze Age onwards; the poor quality of the soil in the New Forest meant that the cleared areas turned into heathland "waste", which may have been used even then as grazing land for horses.
There was still a significant amount of woodland in this part of Britain, but this was gradually reduced, particularly towards the end of the Middle Iron Age around 250–100 BC, and most importantly the 12th and 13th centuries, and of this essentially all that remains today is the New Forest.
There are around 250 round barrows within its boundaries, and scattered boiling mounds, and it also includes about 150 scheduled ancient monuments. One such barrow in particular may represent the only known inhumation burial of the Early Iron Age and the only known Hallstatt culture burial in Britain; however, the acidity of the soil means that bone very rarely survives.
Following Anglo-Saxon settlement in Britain, according to Florence of Worcester (d. 1118), the area became the site of the Jutish kingdom of Ytene; this name was the genitive plural of Yt meaning "Jute", i.e. "of the Jutes". The Jutes were one of the early Anglo-Saxon tribal groups who colonised this area of southern Hampshire. The word ytene (or ettin) is also found locally as a synonym for giant, and features heavily in local folklore.
Following the Norman Conquest, the New Forest was proclaimed a royal forest, in about 1079, by William the Conqueror. It was used for royal hunts, mainly of deer. It was created at the expense of more than 20 small hamlets and isolated farmsteads; hence it was then 'new' as a single compact area.
The New Forest was first recorded as Nova Foresta in Domesday Book in 1086, where a section devoted to it is interpolated between lands of the king's thegns and the town of Southampton; it is the only forest that the book describes in detail. Twelfth-century chroniclers alleged that William had created the forest by evicting the inhabitants of 36 parishes, reducing a flourishing district to a wasteland; however, this account is thought dubious by most historians, as the poor soil in much of the area is believed to have been incapable of supporting large-scale agriculture, and significant areas appear to have always been uninhabited.
Two of William's sons died in the forest: Prince Richard sometime between 1069 and 1075, and King William II (William Rufus) in 1100. Local folklore asserted that this was punishment for the crimes committed by William when he created his New Forest; 17th-century writer Richard Blome provides exquisite detail:
In this County [Hantshire] is New-Forest, formerly called Ytene, being about 30 miles in compass; in which said tract William the Conqueror (for the making of the said Forest a harbour for Wild-beasts for his Game) caused 36 Parish Churches, with all the Houses thereto belonging, to be pulled down, and the poor Inhabitants left succourless of house or home. But this wicked act did not long go unpunished, for his Sons felt the smart thereof; Richard being blasted with a pestilent Air; Rufus shot through with an Arrow; and Henry his Grand-child, by Robert his eldest son, as he pursued his Game, was hanged among the boughs, and so dyed. This Forest at present affordeth great variety of Game, where his Majesty oft-times withdraws himself for his divertisement.
The reputed spot of Rufus's death is marked with a stone known as the Rufus Stone. John White, Bishop of Winchester, said of the forest:
From God and Saint King Rufus did Churches take, From Citizens town-court, and mercate place, From Farmer lands: New Forrest for to make, In Beaulew tract, where whiles the King in chase Pursues the hart, just vengeance comes apace, And King pursues. Tirrell him seing not, Unwares him flew with dint of arrow shot.
The common rights were confirmed by statute in 1698. The New Forest became a source of timber for the Royal Navy, and plantations were created in the 18th century for this purpose. In the Great Storm of 1703, about 4000 oak trees were lost.
The naval plantations encroached on the rights of the Commoners, but the Forest gained new protection under the New Forest Act 1877, which confirmed the historic rights of the Commoners and entrenched that the total of enclosures was henceforth not to exceed 65 km2 (25 sq mi) at any time. It also reconstituted the Court of Verderers as representatives of the Commoners (rather than the Crown).
As of 2005, roughly 90% of the New Forest is still owned by the Crown. The Crown lands have been managed by the Forestry Commission since 1923 and most of the Crown lands now fall inside the new National Park.
Felling of broadleaved trees, and their replacement by conifers, began during the First World War to meet the wartime demand for wood. Further encroachments were made during the Second World War. This process is today being reversed in places, with some plantations being returned to heathland or broadleaved woodland. Rhododendron remains a problem.
During the Second World War, an area of the forest, Ashley Range, was used as a bombing range. During 1941-1945, the Beaulieu, Hampshire Estate of Lord Montagu in the New Forest was the site of group B finishing schools for agents[18] operated by the Special Operations Executive (SOE) between 1941 and 1945. (One of the trainers was Kim Philby who was later found to be part of a spy ring passing information to the Soviets.) In 2005, a special exhibition was mounted at the Estate, with a video showing photographs from that era as well as voice recordings of former SOE trainers and agents.
Further New Forest Acts followed in 1949, 1964 and 1970. The New Forest became a Site of Special Scientific Interest in 1971, and was granted special status as the New Forest Heritage Area in 1985, with additional planning controls added in 1992. The New Forest was proposed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in June 1999, and it became a National Park in 2005.
For further information please visit en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Forest and www.thenewforest.co.uk/
Pirogovo, Kiev Oblast, Ukraine: old church with wooden beehives
Some background information:
Originally Pirogovo used to be a village about 30 km south of the Ukrainian capital city Kiev. But nowadays the territory of historic Pirogovo serves as the location of an outdoor museum of folk architecture and life of the Ukraine. The museum, which was founded in 1969, comprises 370 acres of land and contains over 300 carefully reassembled buildings of folk architecture brought here from all parts of Ukraine.
Those buildings include commoner's homes, houses of small trade, commerce and local administration, old wooden village churches and windmills. They contain authentic items that represent the everyday lifestyle of Ukrainian villagers and townsfolk. Dressed in old-style clothes local volunteers and modern Ukrainian artisans sell their wares there and demonstrate the use of authentic everyday items to the visitors.
Pirogovo museum has been accorded the status of State Museum of Ukraine and is affiliated with the Institute of Arts, Folklore and Ethnology of the National Academy of Science of Ukraine.
another gull practice shot from today in gale force winds and with a added 1.4 tc which I think made the lens front heavy
I'll Be Your Shelter(Taylor Dayne)
Mariposa is wearing:
**RE** Corvino Necklace 2
adoness : confetti in my hair
Maitreya Mesh Body - Lara V5.0 Tattoo Layer
*PKC* Maggy Belly Piercing - Maitreya Fit 3
EQUAL - Alice Sandals
LeLUTKA.Head.Nova.2.5 (dated)
(Yummy) Curated Butterfly Ear
LeLUTKA.Eyes.2.5
~~ Ysoral ~~ .: 03 Luxe Nose Piercing Wendy :.
[Commoner] TidBit Band / Color-Change
Maitreya Mesh Body - Lara V5.0.1
~~ Ysoral ~~ .:Luxe Ring Emotion
LeLUTKA.Teeth.2.5
Belle Epoque - Aleshia Top - White
Belle Epoque - Aleshia Skirt - Navy
*PKC* Mary Septum
BONDI . The Dreamer Glasses . Classic
*PKC* Mary Nose Stud - Right
adoness : rock bottom : brown
*PKC* Nia Nose Ring
Ascendant - Midnight Call Nails 04 - Maitreya [NO SHINE]
Build: ROOST - Palm View House V1 for Sloped Driveway
NOMAD // Improvised // Flowers in Bottle
*ionic* Cafeteria Stool
GA Home - Plant
[ zerkalo ] Beginning of the Day - Breakfast
-tres blah- Hodgepodge - Stacked Magazines
-tb- Spring Living - Radio (Navy)
[Commoner] CA Dreamin' / Salvaged Console
SAYO - Autumn Abode Gacha - Art Trio - COMMON
NOMAD // Monstera Plant
The Loft & Aria - Hexa Chair White
The Loft & ARIA - Hexa Chair V.2 White
MudHoney Tulip Jug RARE
[ kunst ] - Work table / polished - glass top
Trompe Loeil - Xandra Chair + Blanket {A}
08 *YS&YS* Memories Plant 01
08 *YS&YS* Memories Plant 02
08 *YS&YS* Memories Plant 03
-tres blah- Salad Days - Passing Time
not so bad . NEW YORK gacha . coffee set . edition 2
dust bunny . storybook living . cake tin planter
ROOST - Palm View House Kitchen Set Up
Length 15-25 mm. Brownish, but the colour varies, striped and mottled forms occur with parts of the body varying from buff through orange to purple. Sharply incurved pronotal side-keels. The dark wedges on the pronotum don't reach the base. Underside of body is distinctively hairy in both sexes. The species is winged, flies well and has been known to swarm.
Long season with nymphs hatching from late March. Adults appear from June and may survive until early December.
Herbivorous, feeding mainly on grasses. Eggs are laid into the soil.
One of the commoner grasshoppers, found throughout most of Britain.
Love on the Brain-Rhianna
Mariposa is wearing:
Maitreya Mesh Body - Lara V5.0 Tattoo Layer
LeLUTKA.Head.Nova.1.2 (SL)
.:[PUMEC] :. - / Mesh Ears\ Last Hero
LeLUTKA.Eyes.Nova.1.2
DAZED. Ring Septum
[Commoner] TidBit Band / Color-Change (wear/add)
~~ Ysoral ~~ .:Luxe Ring Emotion
Maitreya Mesh Body - Lara V5.0.1
[RHUDE] Star Nose Ring 24K
Angelle large hoop earring 100mm very thin gold
#EVANI - Nasty jeans BLUE FADED
(fd) Bossy Blazer - Undershirt Black
(fd) Bossy Blazer - Brown
: CULT : Claudia Heels
::C'est la vie !:: Silva Hair
Schadenfreude Swirl Truffle Necklace
Most Bittern photos are taken in wetland reedbeds but at Far Ings there is a grassy area between reedbeds that the Bitterns occasionally walk across. This wasn't especially close when it did this, but it was fully in the open in the sunshine. Although Bitterns are much commoner than they were 30 years ago, they are still not usually easy to see as they spend most of their time hiding in reedbeds. Even at the sites famed for Bittern sightings there are usually hours of nothing interspersed with sightings that last less than a minute. Even the Bittern "regulars" seem to get excited every time one appears. This one provided me not only with a photo-opportunity, but also an opportunity to play on words in the title.
Handsome, mostly silvery gray bird of tropical lowland forest and adjacent semi-open areas with taller trees. Usually found at mid-upper levels of fruiting trees, sometimes in small groups that mix readily with the commoner Masked Tityra. Black-crowned is told from slightly larger Masked by its solidly black bill. Male is more silvery overall, with a black cap; female had brown face and smaller black cap. Tityras nest in tree cavities, that they sometimes steal from woodpeckers.
Sarapiqui, Costa Rica
I was out trying to see my first Cuckoo of the year yesterday (success) when I chanced upon this Tawny Owl roosting right out in the open. The eyes were usually tightly closed but they opened whenever a bird came to mob, which was usually a Jay. Now Tawny Owl is by far Britain's most numerous owl species but I see them less frequently than the others because they are much better at hiding and rarely show themselves in daylight. According to the BTO Tawny is the commonest with 50,000 pairs with Barn Owl second at 9000 pairs. Perhaps the next commonest will surprise many as it is Long-eared Owl with 3900 with Little Owl close on its heels with 3600 pairs. Little Owl also surprised me as I expected it to be commoner than Barn Owl as it certainly is near me. Finally comes Short-eared Owl with a quoted population of 1410 pairs. But Short-eared is almost totally dependent on Short-tailed Voles as prey, which have population cycles. So in boom vole years Short-eared Owls can be common while after bust years they are rare.
And finally, there is a golden rule in telephoto photography that your shutter speed should be higher than your focal length when hand-holding. Well I broke the rules as this hand held shot was with a 700mm lens (500mm and 1.4x converter) but taken at 1/500s (f8 ISO 1100).
Landsort, Sweden
Wingspan: 2.5 to 2.9 cm. The Essex Skipper is a very common and widely distributed species in Europe, occurring throughout the region with the exceptions of Sardinia and northern Scandinavia. It's range extends eastward across Asia from Turkey to Amurland. In Africa it is common north of the Sahara, particularly on the Mediterranean coast of Morocco and Algeria.
The butterfly was accidentally introduced into Canada in 1910, and within a few decades had spread across much of North America where it is known as the European Skipper. It is believed that the major cause of this expansion was the transportation of hay bales - in one study over 5000 lineola eggs were found in a single bale.
In Britain it was first discovered in 1888 in Essex, and for many years it was thought to be restricted to south-east England. In truth it has probably always occurred over a much wider area, but equally there is little doubt that it is now far commoner and more widespread than in earlier times.
www.learnaboutbutterflies.com/Britain%20-%20Thymelicus%20...
Phrygilus patagonicus
We were struggling to determine the differences between the Grey-hooded and Patagonian Sierra-Finches, but as is often the case, when you see the 'other' species, it is pretty obvious - it is just that Grey-hooded is far commoner and more widespread !
The rich colouration on the underparts is almost total on this bird, and the area of white is restricted to the undertail - on Grey-hooded, much of the belly is white....
The upperpart colouration is much richer too.
On the marsh (estuary) near Crofty, Wales on the north side of the Gower the tide moves in and out and leaves a large open space for foraging. These ponies are not exactly wild but roam freely with grazing rights that go back to the beginning of commoner's rights. i.e the commons.
Today in much of Britain, marsh gentians are incredibly rare plants that have significantly declined in recent years as a result of wetland drainage, climate change and, scandalously, collecting.
But thankfully, strong marsh gentian populations survive in the New Forest where regular grazing by commoners’ stock, and deer helps to reduce competition from more vigorous plants that would otherwise crowd-out marsh gentians. Rotational, controlled burning has the same effect, and also produces areas of bare ground where marsh gentian seeds can better germinate.
Marsh Gentians bloom quite late in the year, gracing damp ground with startling vivid splashes of blue, and contrasting markedly with the pinks and purples of heath and heather.
The herbalist John Gerard noted of the marsh gentian in the late 16th century that: ‘The gallant flowers hereof bee in their bravery about the end of August’. He mentioned also that the root was useful against: ‘pestilent diseases’, and also, as with heather, to combat ‘bitings and stingings of venomous beasts’.
In more recent times, marsh gentian root extracts have been used to produce what apparently were very effective digestive tonics.
Shot 76/100x