Dinghy Sailing
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You can just see the pilot as he concentrates to bring this Cessna Citation Longitude in to land at Houston’s West Side Airport. This is a business jet produced by Cessna, part of the Cessna Citation family. The Model 700 made its first flight on October 8, 2016.
Lézard Vert
My best photos are here: www.lacerta-bilineata.com/ticino-best-photos-of-southern-...
Western green lizard | Lacerta bilineata | adult male | Ticino (Switzerland) | 05-2022
More TICINO/TESSIN Wildlife Photos (all taken in my garden in Monteggio/Ti, Switzerland): it.lacerta-bilineata.com/ramarro-occidentale-lacerta-bili... (the website exists in ESPAÑOL, FRANÇAIS, ITALIANO, ENGLISH, DEUTSCH)
My latest ANIMAL VIDEO (warning, it's a bit shocking): www.youtube.com/watch?v=4T2-Xszz7FI
In case you're interested, you'll find a less cropped version of the photo above: www.lacerta-bilineata.com/western-green-lizard-lacerta-bi...
The story behind the photo:
For the most part, I try to show photos here that come with an entertaining anecdote that my fellow Flickerites can identify with and enjoy; the world offers enough misery as it is, so my goal is to cheer you up, not to drag you down. But here for once I feel I have a responsibility to share with you what I see as a cautionary tale - and I don't blame you if you turn away now, because what follows is not a pleasant read.
But before I get into that I want to say that the year 2022 was - at least as far as my photographic endeavors were concerned - an amazing one, and I'm very grateful. It was a year of many firsts for me; I managed to produce my first acceptable bird photo; I was for the first time able to capture a roe deer as well as a swallowtail, a mantis and even a fox (which I can't wait to show you): all from within my tiny garden in Ticino.
But while there were many wonderful encounters with the fascinating creatures that share "my" vacation home and its adjacent garden with me that I was only too happy to show here, you might have noticed that the lizard species whose Latin name is my alias on Flickr and that - still - "kinda" serves as the main focus of my gallery, has been absent for a long while.
One of the reasons for holding back on new Lacerta bilineata photos is obviously that I decided to widen my focus a bit and that I now concentrate on all the species I manage to capture in my garden and its immediate surroundings.
But there is another reason I haven't uploaded any western greens this summer. Even though I shot dozens of photos of some of the most gorgeous individuals of the species I've ever seen (many of which you can also find here: www.lacerta-bilineata.com/western-green-lizard-lacerta-bi... ), those were all taken on the other side of the village, and not in my garden.
The beautiful male above was in fact one of only 3 western greens I found (alive) in the vicinity of my garden between May and October in 2022 - and out of those he's the only one I was able to photograph.
So what happened? Well, a year ago the neighbor to my immediate left got a young cat, and at the same time, the neighbor to my right also adopted two kittens. Before I continue, it is important to me that you know that I myself am very much a cat person: I adore felines of any kind, and in our own household (though not at our vacation home) we've always had generations of cats, and they were and are as dear to us as our human family members.
So I have no interest in pushing any sort of "anti-cat agenda"; I'm just telling you what happened. By the time spring 2022 came around, my neighbors' cats were almost fully grown and had developed their hunting skills. Between the three of them, they killed up to a dozen western green lizards every day once the reptiles started re-emerging from their winter hiding places which is when they generally are at their most slow and vulnerable.
It was easy to count the dead lizards, because the cats didn't eat them, and whenever I was outside rarely an hour passed without one of the cats showing up with a lizard or some other animal in its mouth. They also killed most of the snakes, even the slightly longer ones at 50-70cm.
Within only a few weeks, the entire Lacerta bilineata population in and around my garden was gone, and the same was true for the population of green whip snakes, while even the number of common wall lizards, which were extremely abundant before, markedly went down during that same time period.
There had always been cats in our village, and I was aware or at least suspected that the ebb and flow of the bilineata population in the past was somewhat tied to how many cats were permanently present at any given time, but my immediate neighbors had never had cats before (which is probably why a tiny population of this protected reptile species had managed to survive around my house).
Now experiencing up close what an impact only 3 cats can have on an isolated, small reptile population was absolutely shocking. What I witnessed made me sad, but I'm not angry at the cats - nor do I hold a grudge towards my neighbors, who are kind, generous and all around lovely people.
And while I don't want to lecture anybody, what I would like to do is offer a few ideas how we as cat-lovers can help mitigate the averse effects our beloved pets' predatory nature (which is nobody's fault: least of all the cats') has on the ecosystems around our homes.
If we live in areas where there's threatened/protected species close to our homes that our cats will prey upon, the time when we let our pets out of the house can already make a huge difference. For example, western green lizards are at their most active between 8am and 11am, and not letting our cats out during that period can already increase the lizards' chance of survival.
If you're a cat lover like me but you also want to protect your local fauna, knowing when during the day birds and reptiles are the most active as well as knowing their breeding/nesting cycles is crucial, and by adjusting the times or time periods when you let your cat out of the house (or not) accordingly will make a vital difference.
But there are also simpler approaches: most reptiles and birds (which are by far the most vulnerable to hunting cats) are not active during the night. Rodents like rats and mice on the other hand very much are, so if you mostly let your cat out after sunset, it will predominantly hunt mice and rats, which are usually abundant enough that their populations aren't threatened (this at least is true for western Europe - other regions might have threatened wildlife that is active during the night, so if you do care, try to educate yourself about the creatures that will fall prey to your pet).
Cats are perfectly adapted to night activity, but they switch to more daytime activity in order to better fit the routine of "their" humans. So while our cats probably won't like it at first to have to stay indoors during the day, they will quickly adapt and accept it, as long as they know they will be able to leave the house once the sun has gone down.
Naturally, there might be practical issues involved that make it impossible to try some of the above (like the presence of coyotes who will eat your cats if they are out at night), but who knows, maybe one person or other will find some of these suggestions useful. And while it may be too late for "my" lizards, I just feel an obligation to at least try to help raise awareness on the issue (although I realize this is a touchy subject and people have strong opinions about it).
In any case, thank you so much for taking the time to read this not very pleasant text. And as always, let me know what you think of the photo in the comments below - but please refrain from making any "heated" statements regarding the issue at hand out of respect for other commenters whose feelings you might hurt (if you feel very strongly about this subject and want to "vent", you may always reach me via my Flickr Mail).
Many greetings from Switzerland and a belated HAPPY NEW YEAR to all of you!!! 🎉 😊 ❤!
I spent some time today witnessing one of the most remarkable waterfowl sights in the whole world. Somewhere between 10,000 - 15,000 tundra swans are staging right here in the Upper Mississippi River before heading east to Chesapeake Bay for the winter. I took video footage on my smartphone to add some sound, which is sensational, but then I wasn't smart enough to get it on Flickr. Sorry.
Little Egret (Egretta garzetta)
Seen in the Werribee River Park at Werribee South in March last year.
Eastern Great Egret (Ardea modesta)
The resident Egret at the Heathdale - Glen Orden Wetlands was so intent on its hunt that it didn't notice me.
I love to watch Terns negotiate their landing spots. They need to find a spot within the other shorebirds on the rocks and it takes full concentration. The background is the water. The shot was taken very early in the morning.
The shot below is a close-up of its head and feet which show its intense focus.
Elegant Tern
Thalasseus elegans
Member of the Nature’s Spirit
Good Stewards of Nature
© 2013 Patricia Ware - All Rights Reserved
With lots of Vitamin C and other immune boosting vitamins, I have eaten a few of these this week in my attempts to feeling better. It is working, slowly. All of my images so far this week have been food related. :D
Here is a joke for you:
Why did the blonde stare at the orange juice carton?
It said concentrate.
Sorry, couldn't help it. I am a blonde so I can get away with that one.
Still playing catch up...I hope you all had a great day!
White-faced Heron (Egretta novaehollandiae)
I'm not sure what this one was concentrating on. From 20
Just concentrating on setting this carby up ready for a test and tune day on the morning of race day.
37418 returns inspection saloon Caroline back to York at the end of a 2Z02 trip to Berwick upon Tweed, outward via Settle and Carlisle and then the Tyne Valley to Newcastle. A long 12 hour day out, it would seem most participants of this Network Rail outing have opted out of the return by the time it has reached Newcastle. Here near journeys end at York, just south of Tollerton at the end of a 30 degree day, August the 10th 2022.
I have made a gamble here; that the train will fit. Yoga practice kicks in, a warrior stance is used to get the correct height so the the train is free from the upper branches and the barley is all at the correct level. Breath steadily, the train approaches fast, watch the front approach the left branches as far as possible, concentrate on that and fire. Did it all fit? Yes it did! One chance taken!
1Z10 Category 3 Scoop.
The 173,000 heliostats of the Ivanpah Solar Power Facility concentrate sunlight onto three towers containing boilers to generate steam for electricity in California near the Nevada border.
She may thought , wasss up!!!..:)))
Sydney street, NSW
Quote of the Day
Joy is the simplest form of gratitude.
Karl Barth said.
.......................
Best regards, hugs...
Sunny
My photostream; www.darckr.com/username?username=11569107%40N06
Great Egret (Ardea alba) hunting for prey at Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve in Lee County, Florida, USA.
How are you all doing? As some of you are aware, I've been concentrating on my running, with a degree of success, however, that's another story. But actually, because of that, I've Slovenia right now and when I arrived last week I took the car of a mountain pass while it was raining - I managed to get some cool images and this is one of my favourites.. Hope you are well and happy x
Rework of an old shot from 2011.
The sea was extremely rough and the skipper of the catamaran had his hands full at times.
Knysna
Western Cape Province
South Africa
The Church of Santa Engrácia is a 17th-century monument in Lisbon, Portugal. Originally a church, in the 20th century it was converted into the National Pantheon, in which important Portuguese personalities are buried. Construction proceeded from 1682 through 1712, when the architect died. King John V lost interest in the project, concentrating his resources in the gigantic Convent of Mafra. The church was not completed until the 20th century, so that Obras de Santa Engrácia (literally Saint Engrácia's works) has become a Portuguese synonym for an endless construction project. A dome was added, and the church was reinaugurated in 1966. (see Wikipedia)
Gasteruptiid Wasp (family Gasteruptiidae (subfamily Gasteruptiinae)) female
Usually these Wasps will fly off if I get within five feet of them. This Lady, however, was so engrossed she allowed me to get in very close for a number of shots. I chose this one for today for the Eyes of March Two group.
Happy Eyes of March!