Anybody can take a shot of a poppy field with a beautiful sunset behind it showing the glory of the Cornish coast… it takes a special kind of crazy to visit the poppies on a stormy evening where the wind is howling a full-on gale and there’s been no sign of the sun for days! :)

Another year, another failure to see the Pollyjoke poppies at their finest, one year I will make it before they get decimated by the weather!

day after Hurricane IAN decimated Ft Myers.

A necessary protection that is needed to protect our grapes from birds, mostly starlings, which can decimate a vineyard in amazingly little time

Banded Rail ( Rallus phillipensis )

This last weekend I was back at Matua in Tauranga photographing Rail as the Tauranga Council are decimating the small habitat there under the guise of "restoration" which really is a clandestine way of building yet another walkway through diminishing wetland habitat..

They claim it does not harm the wildlife there and this is supported by local DOC and Forest & Bird yet it obviously does. People running, cycling with dogs etc cab hardly be beneficial to secretive birds trying to nest or go about their business of life... I have noticed quite a reduction in Rail numbers since the large scale herbiciding and clearance of vegetation has begun....Much of the native vegetation has also been killed by this heavy handed approach...

I also watched in amazement at a large dog unrestrained running up and down the estuary chasing birds, when I approached the owner and asked why this was allowed ,I was told with a annoyed tone, "Oh it never catches anything"...

Just a photo I took in the wonderous world of Second Life!!!

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This photo was Taken @ Decimation

Red Wolves of Alligator River

The Red Wolf is the world’s most endangered Wolf. Once common throughout the Eastern and South-Central United States, Red Wolf populations were decimated by the early 20th century as a result of intensive predator control programs, as well as the degradation and alteration of the habitat that the species depends upon. When the Red Wolf was first designated as a species that was threatened with extinction under the Endangered Species Preservation Act in 1967, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service initiated efforts to conserve and recover the species. Today, about 15 to 17 red wolves roam their native habitats in eastern North Carolina as a nonessential experimental population, and approximately 241 Red Wolves are maintained in 45 captive breeding facilities throughout the United States.

For more Info: www.fws.gov/species/red-wolf-canis-rufus

The Red Wolf (Canis rufus) is a canine native to the Southeastern United States. Its size is intermediate between the coyote (Canis latrans) and Gray Wolf (Canis lupus).

The Red Wolf's taxonomic classification as being a separate species, a subspecies of the Gray Wolf Canis lupus rufus, or a Coywolf (a genetic admixture of Wolf and Coyote) has been contentious for nearly a century. Because of this, it is sometimes excluded from endangered species lists, despite its critically low numbers. Under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service currently recognizes the Red Wolf as an endangered species and grants protected status. Since 1996, the IUCN has listed the Red Wolf as a Critically Endangered Species; however, it is not listed in the CITES Appendices of Endangered Species.

For more Info: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_wolf

A Pronghorn (Antilocapra americana) buck on the run in vast west Texas grasslands of Jeff Davis County.

Perhaps no other animal is as supremely adapted for running as the pronghorn. The cheetah is adapted for sprinting, with an abundance of fast-twitch muscles, claws that do not fully retract, flexible spines, long limbs, and a rudder-like tail. The pronghorn, however, with its enlarged lungs, windpipes, and heart, locking joints, and an enhanced circulatory system, is the fastest sustained runner on the planet. From a standstill, the cheetah would pull ahead initially, but would soon be left in the dust as fatigue set in, and the pronghorn continued on at highway speed.

It is believed that this capacity for speed actually came about as today's pronghorn evolved with now-extinct cheetah species and other fleet-footed predators during the Pleistocene. Interestingly, during these times the family Antilocapridae was quite diverse, with numerous species filling a variety of niches in North America. Today, however, only the pronghorn remains - an ice age survivor that remains supremely adapted to today's prairies.

So successful a prairie survivor is the pronghorn, that it is believed their numbers once rivaled those of the American bison. Like their shaggy cousins, their numbers were decimated in the latter half of the 19th century until only a fraction of a fraction were left. Fortunately today, after decades of conservation efforts, they are again numerous in many parts of their range, though their total population is still a shadow of what it once was.

Pronghorn exhibit a variety of gaits while running. The buck pictured here is barely trotting, making his way to a doe on the outskirts of his harem to ensure she doesn't wander too far. It's amazing, to me, how effortlessly they move. A 35 mile per hour jog looks like they're barely putting in any effort, and when they really decide to turn on the burners, good luck tracking them with a telephoto lens.

Scene at Ward Pound Ridge Reservation

Westchester County Parks

Cross River NY

Several years ago this forest was decimated by a wind storm. It has taken years but it's really starting to come back to life. Still in the beginning but seems quite apropos none the less...there is Hope.

Excerpt from youractionsmatter.ca/one-drop/:

One Drop:

• Coral ecosystems make up less than 1% of the ocean floor yet are home to over 25% of all marine wildlife.

• While you may think of coral as exclusively tropical reefs, more than half of all known coral species are deep and cold-water corals.

• Canada has several cold-water coral habitats, with sites off the coasts of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, and British Columbia.

• Cold-water coral reefs serve as a home for thousands of known sea animals and possibly millions of undiscovered species, making them one of the most biodiverse marine ecosystems.

• Far from sunlight and hundreds to thousands of meters deep in the ocean, these cold-water corals have lifespans that can span centuries.

• Climate change, oil and gas exploration, and overfishing severely threaten Canada’s cold-water corals.

• As humans pump more carbon into the atmosphere, our oceans become more acidic, hampering corals’ ability to grow.

• The effects of oil and gas exploration, from contaminated drill bits to oil leaks, can also significantly contaminate cold-water corals.

• Most disturbingly, unsustainable fishing practices like bottom trawling can decimate coral habitats. When disturbed by bottom trawling, up to 90% of a coral colony perishes.

• Fortunately, cold-water corals have the ability to recover. However due to their slow growth rates, some as little as 3 mm per year, they need decades to start regenerating.

• This is why the establishment of permanent marine protected areas that explicitly prohibit unsustainable fishing practices and oil and gas exploration are so crucial.

Coral reefs are home to a quarter of all marine life and contain millions of undiscovered species. They are biodiversity hotspots, unmatched in species per area. More than just ecological treasures, coral reefs underpin the livelihood of more than 500 million people globally. However, despite their profound importance, 70% of the world’s reefs are currently threatened. The world has already lost half of its coral reefs since 1950, and scientific estimates suggest that we may lose them all by 2050 if urgent action is not taken.

The degradation of reefs doesn’t just mean losing biodiversity; it could directly affect human health. Various drugs are derived from animals and plants found in coral reef ecosystems as possible cures for cancer, arthritis, and other diseases. With the current rate of degradation, such potential discoveries could be lost forever.

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) play an invaluable role in safeguarding the health and longevity of coral ecosystems and habitats. The vibrant, intricate biodiversity found within these areas is highly susceptible to threats such as climate change, overfishing, pollution, and habitat destruction. MPAs effectively mitigate these pressures by regulating human activities in these regions. They serve as sanctuaries where coral ecosystems can regenerate and thrive.

Given the vital role that coral reefs play in our ecosystems, and the urgent threat they face, it is critical to take action to protect them before it's too late. MPAs are integral in safeguarding coral ecosystems and habitats, ensuring their survival for future generations.

People walking on a trail in El Pueblo Fantasma (ghost village). This village is located at an altitude of 4690m in the southwest of Bolivia in South Lipez. It is actually the ruins of a village dating from 1610 where Spanish settlers largely exploited the local population as slaves, in order to extract the various riches that the soil contained there. the village and the settlers were decimated by serious epidemics.It was at the end of January

Couldn't get a particularly sharp image while the battle was ongoing. Contrary to popular opinion, I did interfere with nature. One disgruntled diadematus spider and a grateful Lily beetle. If my giant lilies get decimated, I have only myself to blame!

Thanks for looking. Views, favs and comments are much appreciated.

Found in rocky intertidal at low tide,

North Point,

Morro Bay, California

Large sea stars, gratifying to see after the recent wasting disease decimated so many sea star species.

Red Wolves of Alligator River

The Red Wolf is the world’s most endangered Wolf. Once common throughout the Eastern and South-Central United States, Red Wolf populations were decimated by the early 20th century as a result of intensive predator control programs, as well as the degradation and alteration of the habitat that the species depends upon. When the Red Wolf was first designated as a species that was threatened with extinction under the Endangered Species Preservation Act in 1967, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service initiated efforts to conserve and recover the species. Today, about 15 to 17 red wolves roam their native habitats in eastern North Carolina as a nonessential experimental population, and approximately 241 Red Wolves are maintained in 45 captive breeding facilities throughout the United States.

For more Info: www.fws.gov/species/red-wolf-canis-rufus

The Red Wolf (Canis rufus) is a canine native to the Southeastern United States. Its size is intermediate between the coyote (Canis latrans) and Gray Wolf (Canis lupus).

The Red Wolf's taxonomic classification as being a separate species, a subspecies of the Gray Wolf Canis lupus rufus, or a Coywolf (a genetic admixture of Wolf and Coyote) has been contentious for nearly a century. Because of this, it is sometimes excluded from endangered species lists, despite its critically low numbers. Under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service currently recognizes the Red Wolf as an endangered species and grants protected status. Since 1996, the IUCN has listed the Red Wolf as a Critically Endangered Species; however, it is not listed in the CITES Appendices of Endangered Species.

For more Info: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_wolf

There are two memorials to the Battle of Naseby, but it was discovered that the original and vastly larger memorial was actually in the wrong place. This much smaller version overlooks the countryside where much of the decisive battle of the English Civil War took place across the rolling Northamptonshire countryside between Naseby, Clipston and Sibbertoft.

The battle was fought on the foggy morning of 14th June 1645. After almost three years of fighting, the 14,000 strong Parliamentarian New Model Army took on the Royalist army of King Charles I comprising less than 9,000 men, in what would to be the final key battle of the war.

At Naseby the main Royalist military force was decimated and the king lost his best officers, seasoned troops and artillery. All that now remained was for the Parliamentarian armies to wipe out the last pockets of Royalist resistance, which it did within the year. As everyone knows, Charles I was eventually executed in 1649.

Lough MacNean (from Irish: Loch Mac nÉan, meaning "Mac nÉan's lake") is a large freshwater lake on the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

It is in two parts. Lower Lough MacNean (or Lough Nilly), the smaller eastern lake, is wholly within County Fermanagh (in Northern Ireland). Upper Lough MacNean (which is seen in this photograph), the larger western lake, is split between County Fermanagh (in Northern Ireland), and County Cavan and County Leitrim (in the Republic of Ireland). On the strip of land between the two lakes are the villages of Belcoo (Fermanagh) and Blacklion (Cavan). A river runs between the villages, linking the eastern and western lakes.

The shape of Lough MacNean changed during the 1960s when a major draining operation took place; and before this, the lake was used for eel fishing, but dredging during the drainage process decimated their numbers.

The lake has good stocks of medium sized pike, and larger fish in excess of 20 lbs are recorded annually. The pike stock is supported by an abundance of coarse fish and some brown trout.

©All photographs on this site are copyright: ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams) 2011 – 2021 & GETTY IMAGES ®

No license is given nor granted in respect of the use of any copyrighted material on this site other than with the express written agreement of ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams). No image may be used as source material for paintings, drawings, sculptures, or any other art form without permission and/or compensation to ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams)

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I would like to say a huge and heartfelt 'THANK YOU' to GETTY IMAGES, and the 38.829+ Million visitors to my FLICKR site.

***** Selected for sale in the GETTY IMAGES COLLECTION on March 24th 2021

CREATIVE RF gty.im/1308459751 MOMENT ROYALTY FREE COLLECTION**

This photograph became my 4,954th frame to be selected for sale in the Getty Images collection and I am very grateful to them for this wonderful opportunity.

©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams)

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**** This frame was chosen on Friday April 30th 2021 to appear on FLICKR EXPLORE (Highest Ranking: #389. This is my 200th photograph to be selected.

I am really thrilled to have a frame picked and most grateful to every one of the 38.829+ Million people who have visited, favourite and commented on this and all of my other photographs here on my FLICKR site. *****

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Photograph taken at an altitude of Four metres at 08:41am on Sunday 7th March 2021 off the Mall and Horse Guards Road within the grounds of St James's Park in Central London, one of the Royal parks of London situated in South West London.

Here we see an Eastern Grey Squirrel (Sciurus Carolinensis ), a tree squirrel native to North America and first introduced to the UK in the 1870's. Though it was largely responsible for the decimation of our own native red squirrel population, those are now on the increase and found in certain parts of the UK including Scotland. The Greys are still an ecologically essential natural forester regenerator.

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Nikon D850 Focal length 450mm Shutter speed: 1/160s Aperture f/6.3 ISO400 Hand held with Tamron VR Vibration reduction enabled on setting 1. Image area FX (36 x 24) NEF RAW L (8256 x 5504). (14 bit uncompressed file) Focus mode AF-C focus. AF-C Priority Selection: Release. Nikon Back button focusing enabled AF-Area mode: 3D-Tracking Exposure mode: Manual mode Metering mode: Matrix metering White balance on: Auto1 (5270K). Colour space: RGB. Picture control: Neutral with sharpening +2

Tamron SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD G2. Nikon GP-1 GPS module. Lee SW150 MKII filter holder. Lee SW150 95mm screw in adapter ring. Lee SW150 circular polariser glass filter. Lee SW150 Filters field pouch. Hoodman HEYENRG round eyepiece oversized eyecup. Mcoplus professional MB-D850 multi function battery grip 6960.Two Nikon EN-EL15a batteries (Priority to battery in Battery grip). Black Rapid Curve Breathe strap. My Memory 128GB Class 10 SDXC 80MB/s card. Lowepro Flipside 400 AW camera bag.

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LATITUDE: N 51d 30m 4.43s

LONGITUDE: W 0d 8m 15.46s

ALTITUDE: 10.0m

RAW (TIFF) FILE: 130.00MB NEF: 91.0MB

PROCESSED (JPeg) FILE: 47.10MB

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PROCESSING POWER:

Nikon D850 Firmware versions C 1.10 (9/05/2019) LD Distortion Data 2.018 (18/02/20) LF 1.00

HP 110-352na Desktop PC with AMD Quad-Core A6-5200 APU 64Bit processor. Radeon HD8400 graphics. 8 GB DDR3 Memory with 1TB Data storage. 64-bit Windows 10. Verbatim USB 2.0 1TB desktop hard drive. WD My Passport Ultra 1tb USB3 Portable hard drive. Nikon ViewNX-1 64bit Version 1.4.1 (18/02/2020). Nikon Capture NX-D 64bit Version 1.6.2 (18/02/2020). Nikon Picture Control Utility 2 (Version 2.4.5 (18/02/2020). Nikon Transfer 2 Version 2.13.5. Adobe photoshop Elements 8 Version 8.0 64bit.

mako (bad) - probably easy to agree that it can be relative, subjective, depending on one's point of view. The irony is that Indians were considering it part of their home, living in harmony with what was given by the environment for eleven thousand years... unaffected by harsh conditions, but decimated by others.. the new homesteaders abandoned most of the area in the 1930s due to hardship.

With 1 inch of yearly erosion, these formations, as we know them, will be gone in another blink of an eye, that is 500,000 years. Anyone hanging around to see it happening?

| 61 mm | 3 x 15 sec | f/8 | ISO 160 |

During the second week of my recent 17 day photo trip, we spent time at the Rocky Mountain National Park. One hike I really wanted to do was to Emerald Lake on the eastern side of the park. Along the hike, you stop by Nymph Lake, Dream Lake and finally Emerald Lake. Pictured here is Dream Lake. The prime peak you see is a view of the 12,713-foot Hallett Peak The views on this hike are just outstanding.

The hike itself didn't sound so bad during the planning stage - just 3.3 mile RT with an elevation gain of a bit over 600 feet. But the high elevation (Emerald Lake is at 11,100 ft.), really got to me. It turned out to be one of the most strenuous hikes I've ever taken. But some health issues probably didn't help much. But for these views, nothing was going to stop me.

Since we were staying in Fort Collins, about 90 min from the park entrance, we left "thinking" we'd get the alpine glow of the sunrise. That didn't really work out as it took longer to reach Emerald Lake than I thought. Frank, my photo travel companion, was determined to get that light so he arrived before 5am to start hiking the next day. Needless to say, I passed on that "opportunity". I wasn't about to do that hike two days in a row.

Last year the park had horrible forest fires, mostly on the western half. The burned areas along with the infestation of bark beetles have decimated large areas of trees. If you are going to the park, I'd recommend not going further than the peak of Trail Ridge Road. The bark beetles are damaging areas all over the park and the western U.S. It's quite sad to see.

But if you have a chance to visit the Rocky Mountain National Park, I'd do it. The trails along the Bear Lake entrance is where to spend the bulk of your time.

Thanks for viewing my photos. Comments are always welcome.

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Copyright Reid Northrup, 2021. All Rights Reserved, Worldwide. Please don't use my photos in any way without my written permission.

HSS

The sea otter (Enhydra lutris) is a marine mammal native to the North Pacific Ocean. Adult sea otters weigh between 14 and 45 kg (31 and 99 lb), making them the heaviest members of the weasel family, but among the smallest marine mammals. Unlike most marine mammals, the sea otter's primary form of insulation is an exceptionally thick coat of fur, the densest in the animal kingdom.

Sea Otter Population:

Worldwide: Numbers were once estimated at 150,000–300,000. Between 1741 and 1911, they were hunted extensively for their fur and the world population fell to 1,000–2,000, living in a fraction of their historic range.

California: The historic population of sea otters was at 16,000 before the fur trade decimated the population, leading to their assumed extinction. Today's population of California sea otters (~3,000) are the descendants of a single colony of about 50 sea otters located near Bixby Creek Bridge in 1938.

www.flickr.com/photos/bluemt/50562257946/in/album-7215771...

The sea otter's use of rocks as a tool, makes it one of the few mammal species to use tools. To open hard shells, it may pound its prey with both paws against a rock on its chest.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_otter#California

Fujifilm X-T20. Fujinon XC 50-230mm. 230mm, f/6.7, 1/250 sec, ISO 200. Thanks for viewing.

SHOWING YOU BUT a 5% of the celestial dome on that day. The rest was the same. Is somebody trying to turn the sky into a semi-conductor? Or induce magnetic properties? Or is it solely a natural phenomenon. Fast forward two days later, the same time of the day, there's no single trail in the whole clear sky's hemisphere, or perhaps 1-2 at the most.

Exactly 79 years ago the sky was clear too where my grandpa lived. German army was retreating. Mere weeks to go until the final liberation - after four long years of war, famine, occupation, famine, civil conflicts and famine. Then all of a sudden the sky went black and the sound got an ominous low pitch. It took a short hour and two sweeps of the allied B-29 formation's carpet bombing and the town's population was decimated. Among them the three sons of my grandpa, three dear teenage uncles of mine.

The survivors thought at first it must have been a mistake. But soon they heard that many other towns and cities have been bombed too, with many thousands of civilian casualties as well.

Interestingly, the carpet that fell next was a carpet of silence. It fell country wide over this subject that remained taboo for the 40 years to come. Thus circumstantially revealing the makers and accomplices of the 1944+1945 bombing agenda.

The cameraphone capture edited in Snapseed app.

~SHORTCUTS~ ...→Press [F11] and [L] key to engage Full Screen (Light box) mode with black background ↔ Press the same key or [Esc] to return... →Press [F] to "Like" (Fave)... →Press [C] to comment.

There's a little unnamed creek flowing along the line of trees - which is why the trees are where they are - that emits moisture that instantly freezes on the trees. The "Lamar Buffalo Ranch" is a small, historic collection of log buildings and fences that has been preserved since it was constructed in 1907 as sanctuary in which to breed bison to repopulate the park after the wild herd was nearly decimated. The effort was extremely successful. Today Yellowstone's free-roaming bison are managed to maintain a population of roughly 4,500 animals. The ranch is now used by the park's non-profit partner, Yellowstone Forever, as a campus for the many field classes it offers.

The tallest mountain in the background - mostly obscured by the trees in front of it - is Druid Peak, for which one of Yellowstone's earliest, largest, and most genetically influential post-restoration wolf packs was named.

The groves of remaining Scots Pines which were planted by the 3rd Marquis of Downshire, to honour the Coronation of William 4th; " In honour of his most gracious majesty, King William, for the future supply of useful timber for the estate and for the benefit of the labouring classes " { as quoted on the monument,-photo to follow. }

The old Marquis new how to crawl in the right circles! He carried Williams second sword at his investiture and got more land and property than you could shake a pine tree at!!!!

Of course, the planting was never finished as the trees were planted in the wrong location as they are growing along the [ Liffey] river valley

Scots pines do not like there feet in damp, boggy ground or do not grow in crowded forestry conditions. In the 1800s, very little was known about the Pines. It was assumed because they were a success in Scotland, they would thrive here. In Scotland, they grow on high dry ground in cold conditions. The seed need to be stratified { frozen and thawed } in order to germinate but it is not cold enough here for germination in the wild. The trees never increased in number unfortunately, and many of them died or were cut down for firewood and pit props for the mines in Glendalough and Glendassan. No effort has been made to replace them which could be done with semi mature trees would deter the deer from decimating them.

Luckily there are many successful plantings of pine trees here, such as along the lakeside in the Glendalough valley and other area throughout the country.

There life span is about 300 years so they are now pretty old and will eventually be no more.

I really only discovered these trees while out trekking a few months ago and found the monument and references etc on a map of the area. They are a wonderful view as you round a bend on the Sallygap road and I never tire of seeing them.

I really do hope you find this interesting.

I will put up the remaining photos later.

Thanks for faves and comments,

Pat.

www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/outdoors/dick-warner/soli...

Elk as well as bison were native to the Southern Plains and pretty much all of the U.S. except for desert regions. Unregulated hunting, loss of habitat, grazing competition from domestic livestock, and urbanization throughout the 19th century decimated elk populations. Elk east of the Mississippi River disappeared by the late 1800s. By the early 1900s, fewer than 100,000 elk remained in North America.

Elk have been relased in their former habitats and are a true conservation success. It's estimated that 1 to 1.2 million elk currently inhabit the U.S. Our beautiful world, pass it on.

Une grave crise démographique touche l’Europe au 14e siècle. La guerre, la famine et la Peste noire débarquée au sud de la France dès 1347 déciment la population. La ville de Rouen se voit également très lourdement impactée.

Dans la paroisse très peuplée de Saint-Maclou, le cimetière qui jouxte l’église devient bientôt trop petit pour accueillir les défunts. Ainsi, au milieu du 14e siècle, un nouveau cimetière est créé. Il devient le « grand aître », différencié du « petit aître » de l’église. Au Moyen âge, la population utilise pour désigner un cimetière, les termes d’ « aître » ou de « charnier ». Le terme « cimetière » est lui réservé au langage savant des ecclésiastiques.

Ce mot d’ancien français est issu du latin atrium. A l’époque romaine, il désigne la cour intérieure d’une maison entourée d’une galerie soutenue de colonnes. Au fil du temps, le terme atrium va être utilisé pour désigner la cour d’une église qui devient progressivement un cimetière.

De nouvelles vagues d’épidémies de peste touchent la ville de Rouen au cours du 15e et surtout du 16e siècle. Le nouvel aître se révèle alors, malgré de nombreux agrandissements de terrain tout au long du 15e siècle, une nouvelle fois trop petit pour faire face à la grande mortalité des habitants de la paroisse Saint-Maclou.

Ainsi, en 1526, la paroisse décide de construire autour du terrain du cimetière trois galeries destinées à faire office d’ossuaire. Afin de dégager de la place pour de nouvelles inhumations, les os d’anciens morts sont déterrés et placés dans ces galeries, au niveau des greniers, certainement bien ventilés et à la vue de tous. Ces galeries sont enrichies sur les parties en bois et en pierre d’un riche décor macabre.

A serious demographic crisis hit Europe in the 14th century. War, famine and the Black Death that arrived in the south of France in 1347 decimated the population. The city of Rouen was also heavily impacted.

In the densely populated parish of Saint-Maclou, the cemetery next to the church soon became too small to accommodate the deceased. Thus, in the middle of the 14th century, a new cemetery was created. It became the "grand aître", differentiated from the "petit aître" of the church. In the Middle Ages, the population used the terms "aître" or "charnier" to designate a cemetery. The term "cemetery" was reserved for the learned language of ecclesiastics.

This Old French word comes from the Latin atrium. In Roman times, it designated the inner courtyard of a house surrounded by a gallery supported by columns. Over time, the term atrium was used to designate the courtyard of a church that gradually became a cemetery.

New waves of plague epidemics hit the city of Rouen during the 15th and especially the 16th century. The new atrium then proved, despite numerous land extensions throughout the 15th century, once again too small to cope with the high mortality rate of the inhabitants of the parish of Saint-Maclou.

Thus, in 1526, the parish decided to build three galleries around the cemetery land intended to serve as an ossuary. In order to free up space for new burials, the bones of former dead were dug up and placed in these galleries, at the level of the attics, certainly well ventilated and in full view of all. These galleries were enriched on the wooden and stone parts with a rich macabre decoration.

This social group is a herd of mothers and their young, sisters, and female cousins, led by an older matriarch.

WWF: "In 1930, as many as 10 million wild elephants roamed huge swaths of the African continent. But decades of poaching and conflict have since decimated African elephant populations. In 2016, experts estimated that Africa’s elephant population had dropped by 111,000 elephants in the span of a decade. Today, there are just 415,000 elephants across Africa. While elephant poaching is trending downward, with significant declines in East Africa, poaching continues to steer the species dangerously nearer to extinction.

In our travels through Tarangire and Katavi National Parks we were happy to see large herds of elephants. Many thanks to the efforts of the rangers and guides that are protecting them.

Seems like the air-force has successfully decimated the navy, and sailors have abandoned the ship. The pilots are now inspecting their bounty !

© All rights reserved, don´t use this image without my permission. Contact me at debmalya86@gmail.com

This juvenile Little blue heron (Egretta caerulea) was moving from one location to another along the edge of Lake Springfield. If you look closely you can see a few rain drops falling in the darker parts. There were some isolated showers in the area.

Although their populations are in decline, the Cornell Labs says this: "During the feathered-hat fashion craze of the early twentieth century, Little Blue Herons’ lack of showy “aigrette plumes” saved them from the hunting frenzy that decimated other heron and egret populations."

Melanoplus femurrubrum

Red-legged Grasshopper --- Nordamerikanische rot-beinige Heuschrecke

The Red-legged Grasshopper flies as part of a swarm and when a swarm lands on a field of crops, it can decimate the field leaving the farmer with nothing to harvest; hence this grasshopper is considered an agricultural pest.

Furthermore, the red-legged Grasshopper can carry immature tapeworms and other bird parasites inside them. When a quail or wild turkey eats an infected grasshopper, those internal tapeworms and parasites transfer to the bird's system and infect the bird.

Die rot-beinige Heuschrecke tritt in Schwärmen auf und kann ein angepflanztes Ackerfeld in kurzer Zeit kahlfressen und die Ernte vernichten. Die Art gilt deshalb als Landwirtschafts-Schädling.

Außerdem ist die rot-beinige Heuschrecke ein Zwischenwirt für Bandwürmer und anderweitige Parasiten, die für Vögel schädlich sind. Wenn eine Wachtel oder ein wilder Truthahn diese Heuschrecken frisst, gelangen die Parasiten in das System des Vogels und infizieren das Tier.

[Source / Quelle: Wikipedia]

What a privilege for us to have this amazing art installation by Michael Rakowitz in our town.

This year our town is hosting the Turner Prize at the Towner and we have been loaned this sculpture courtesy of the Mayor of London and Tate.

The invisible enemy should not exist (Lamassu of Nineveh) is an ongoing project that artist Michael Rakowitz started in 2006 that attempts to reappear over 7,000 archaeological artefacts looted from the Iraq Museum during the Iraq War or destroyed in its aftermath.

For the Fourth Plinth Programme in London's Trafalgar Square, Rakowitz installed the Assyrian Lamassu, a winged bull and protective deity that stood at the entrance to Nergal Gate of Nineveh from c.700 BC until it was destroyed by ISIS in 2015 CE.

The reverse features a carved cuneiform inscription that was invisible to viewers because it was cemented to the wall of the Nergal Gate. Here, in its removed and displaced state, the cuneiform is exposed and translates as: “Sennacherib, king of the world, king of Assyria, had the (inner) and outer wall of Nineveh built anew and raised as high as mountain(s)”.

The Lamassu is made of empty Iraqi date syrup cans, representative of a once-renowned industry decimated by the Iraq Wars.

For more information www.michaelrakowitz.com/the-invisible-enemy-should-not-ex...

My favourite post-apocalypse book is by Stephen King and is entitled "The Stand", written in 1978.

THE STAND is Stephen King’s apocalyptic vision of a world decimated by plague and embroiled in an elemental struggle between good and evil. The fate of mankind rests on the frail shoulders of the 108-year-old Mother Abagail and a handful of survivors. Their worst nightmares are embodied in a man with a lethal smile and unspeakable powers: Randall Flagg, the Dark Man.

In my opinion, translating works by Stephen King to the screen usually fails by a wide margin..

However the 1994 tv series broke the curse, being an excellent adaptation.

The tv series was re-made in 2020, I prefer the original myself, but this version was still very watchable.

123 Pictures in 2023, theme # 34 Favourite Book

There are two memorials to the Battle of Naseby, but it has now been discovered that the original and vastly larger memorial was actually in the wrong place. This much smaller version overlooks the countryside where much of the decisive battle of the English Civil War took place across the rolling Northamptonshire countryside between Naseby, Clipston and Sibbertoft.

The battle was fought on the foggy morning of 14th June 1645. After almost three years of fighting, the 14,000 strong Parliamentarian New Model Army took on the Royalist army of King Charles I comprising less than 9,000 men, in what would to be the final key battle of the war.

When the two forces finally found each other in the fog, the Royalist centre advanced first to meet the Parliamentarian infantry; soon both sides were involved in fierce hand-to-hand fighting. During a cavalry charge on the western flank Prince Rupert's Royalist forces swept aside the Parliamentarian horsemen, chasing them from the battlefield and on to attack the baggage train.

Meanwhile on the main field of battle the Parliamentarian forces slowly gained the upper hand, so much so by the time Prince Rupert's cavalry returned, it was too late to save the Royalist infantry. The main Royalist military force had been decimated; the king had lost his best officers, seasoned troops and artillery. All that now remained was for the Parliamentarian armies to wipe out the last pockets of Royalist resistance, which it did within the year. As everyone knows, Charles I was eventually executed in 1649.

Source: www.historic-uk.com/HistoryMagazine

Southford Falls State Park is a popular retreat once the frigid conditions subside from winters fury. It features hiking trails, picnic area, fishing and field sports. Recently, services have been modernized to accommodate the growing number of visitations. The 169-acre park features a mirror like pond with a picturesque waterfall with a distinctive covered bridge.

Prominent history of the location, dates back to 1805 when Enos Candee built a filling mill at the top of the falls. During the civil war, the area supported over a half a dozen industries ranging from a paper mill, an axe factory, a gristmill for grinding, a sawmill and a cutlery shop.

In 1901, the mill was bought by the Diamond Match company producing the paperback for matchboxes and matchbooks supporting up to 100 employees. Six months later a large fire broke out decimating the three large buildings resulting in a complete shutdown of the facilities.

Today passive recreation is the centerpiece of this beautiful area bordering Southbury and Oxford in Connecticut.

My friend and I planned to go out the afternoon, taking advantage of the first official day of daylight savings time. With the extended hour, it was a perfect opportunity to a late start. We usually make plans prior to our outing but our initial plans changed when the sky became immensely populated with gray clouds almost extinguishing any sign of blue sky that was present earlier.

I recommended going to Southford Falls which was close to where he lives mentioning that blown highlights wouldn’t be an issue in the water with a lack of direct light. As we drove by, he was reluctant to stop as the park was brimming with people. It wasn’t a surprise with temperatures reaching well into the sixties.

After a little persuasion we turned back and an act of patience ensued waiting for the location to clear of people in the frame. Perfect opportunity to post process in black in white with banal coloring. It’s still early in the season and colors will only become more vibrant.

Thank you all who visit, fav’s, comments and offers words of encouragement. My Flirkr friends are awesome.

One wintry egret barely touches the water as she wants to create as little disturbance as possible as she was fishing/hunting in that location. I am amazed how precise the movements of her feathers are, so her gliding through air is perfectly controlled. There's always something interesting to learn or something great to see again, when is about the wonder of survivors in the birds and other animals, decimated with irresponsible attitude by humans, climate change or simply destroying their habitats, in most parts of the world.

A reverse goldentail moray (Gymnothorax miliaris) poking out of some blade fire coral (Millepora complanata). Most goldentails are brown with yellow spots, but the uncommon reverse morph is yelllow with brown spots/streaks. But that isn't what is really rare in this image. The fire coral is.

Last year the bleaching event decimated blade fire corals. They went from relatively common in the shallows of Bonaire to almost all gone. This is all the more tragic because blade fire corals are currently critically endangered according to the IUCN red list.

In fact, it was the living blade coral that attracted my attention. I was surprised when the moray appeared. Apologies for the less than positive commentary. Watching the demise of corals that I once took for granted has been heartbreaking.

Byron Conroy, an incredible underwater photographer, recently wrote an article about how the changes in our oceans are calling for change in underwater photography. A sobering and insightful read: insidescuba.online/p/coral-reef-crisis-diving-photography...

This long-legged, S-necked white bird is found throughout the Americas and around much of the world. It is typically the largest white egret occurring anywhere in its range (only the white-colored form of the great blue heron is larger).

In Florida, the Egret is a year-round resident. Other populations can range as far north as Canada, with western groups migrating to Mexico for the winter, and easterns wintering in Central or South America. Like all wading waterbirds, they can be found in virtually any permanent body of water, including ponds, lakes, rivers, salt marshes, and seashores.

Typically, Egrets spend most of their time in shallow water, hunting for fish, frogs, and aquatic invertebrates. They wade along slowly, spearing prey with their long bills. Egrets have been observed holding out their wings to create a spot of shade in the water to attract fish. I have also seen them investigating shrubbery onshore for Anole lizards, which they eagerly snap up. They will also eat baby alligators, mice, and snakes; there have even been reports of Great Egrets nabbing and eating smaller birds.

The great egret is the symbol of the National Audubon Society and represents a conservation success story. The snowy white bird's beautiful plumage made it far too popular in 19th-century North America. Great egrets were decimated by plume hunters who supplied purveyors of the latest ladies' fashions. Their populations plunged by some 95 percent. Today the outlook is much brighter. The birds have enjoyed legal protection over the last century, and their numbers have increased substantially.

I found this one along Peavine Road in Osceola County, Florida.

Der Eisvogel (Alcedo atthis) ist die einzige in Mitteleuropa vorkommende Art aus der Familie der Eisvögel (Alcedinidae). Er besiedelt weite Teile Europas, Asiens sowie das westliche Nordafrika und lebt an mäßig schnell fließenden oder stehenden, klaren Gewässern mit Kleinfischbestand und Sitzwarten. Seine Nahrung setzt sich aus Fischen, Wasserinsekten (Imagines und Larven), Kleinkrebsen und Kaulquappen zusammen. Der Bestand hat in den letzten Jahren wieder zugenommen und die Art wird derzeit in Europa als dezimiert, aber im gesamten Verbreitungsgebiet als wenig bedroht eingestuft. Der Eisvogel war 1973 und 2009 Vogel des Jahres in Deutschland, 2000 in Tschechien, 2005 in Belgien, 2006 Vogel des Jahres in der Schweiz, 2009 in Österreich und 2011 in der Slowakei.

The kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) is the only species of the kingfisher family (Alcedinidae) found in Central Europe. It colonises large parts of Europe, Asia and western North Africa and lives in moderately fast-flowing or stagnant, clear waters with small fish and perches. Its diet consists of fish, aquatic insects (adults and larvae), small crustaceans and tadpoles. The population has increased again in recent years and the species is currently categorised as being decimated in Europe, but as less threatened throughout its range. The kingfisher was Bird of the Year in Germany in 1973 and 2009, in the Czech Republic in 2000, in Belgium in 2005, in Switzerland in 2006, in Austria in 2009 and in Slovakia in 2011.

*This is a belted kingfisher and the ones with the rusty underbelly are the females.

*Notice the caterpillar chewed leaves in the upper left! We had a huge infestation which decimated trees for miles around. They seemed to favour the Maples and Poplars.

Whose mother seems to have abdicated all responsibility.

From it's looks and colour, it seems to have a jungle cat as an ancestor. The difference from earlier broods is that this one is very friendly, and a huge hit with the kids around here.

I have no love for feral cats. They have decimated the bird population around our home, I haven't seem a squirrel for ages, even the hardy piegon seems to have moved away. But its hard to ignore when this one circles you, rubbing against your legs, mewoing for attention...

I found these tiny larvae (c.4mm) decimating a willow leaf. Man can they eat!

Your comments and faves are greatly appreciated. Many thanks.

BIG belly - looks like it has just eaten.

Yellow-spotted Monitor (Varanus Panoptes)

The Yellow-spotted Monitor is a monitor lizard found in Arnhem Land, The Cape York Peninsula, western and southern inland Queensland and the Kimberley region of Western Australia. One of northern Australia's biggest predators, it prefers to live in tropical to semi-arid woodlands, particularly around floodplains or other permanent sources of water. It is a terrestrial lizard, meaning it spends most of its time on the ground.

Most Yellow-spotted Monitors are yellow with a background of brown or dark tan. They have a banded yellowish tail tip. Their size differs greatly depending on their sex: the female reaches an average total length of 90cm, while the male can be 120-140cm long.

The Yellow-spotted Monitor is an avid digger, and will either dig a burrow itself or take over an existing burrow, where they will spend most of their time, especially in the late dry season when little food is available. They forage on land, in water and in trees for their meals.

The prey of the Yellow-spotted Monitor consists of all kinds of foods, including fish, crabs, small birds, rodents, insects and even other smaller monitors that share its habitat, including the dwarf monitor and rock monitor. They also dig up and eat the eggs of turtles and crocodiles. The Yellow-spotted Monitor has an acute sense of smell and a forked tongue, and, like snakes, can often be spotted flicking their tongues in search of a meal.

One unique characteristic of the Yellow-spotted Monitor is the way it stands up on its hind legs when threatened or to get a better look at its environment, supporting itself with its tail. Despite their large size, these lizards are quite fast and will run to the nearest burrow or tree when chased.

It is believed that up to 90% of the Yellow-spotted Monitor population in the Top End has been decimated by the invasive Cane Toad (Rhinella marina), as biting a toad is enough to kill an adult. Breeding programs with captive lizards have been established to try to save this native lizard and return them to their native territory.

The female Yellow-spotted Monitor lays up to thirteen eggs in the wet season, which take more than seven months to hatch. In the past, the Yellow-spotted Monitor was one of the favorite foods of northern Australian Aboriginal tribes.

(Source: epicentreenvironmental.com/)

© Chris Burns 2018

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All rights reserved.

This image may not be copied, reproduced, distributed, republished, downloaded, displayed, posted or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying and recording without my written consent.

A gritty group of Rio Grande Tunnel Motors waits for a call to duty at Helper, Utah, on the afternoon of February 7, 2000. With Union Pacific now the owner of the “Main Line Thru the Rockies,” the next several years will decimate the tired fleet of Grande gold and black locomotives.

Back in 1676, the Abenaki people had finally had enough of the English colonists living in this village and the continual encroachment of the Abenaki lands. The Abenaki completely destroyed the village. Unfortunately for the Abenaki, the English colonist were persistent buggers and colonists returned two years later.

Eventually, the Abenaki were decimated and the English colonists could drink tea without fear.

The above story is fictitious American history for the most part.

Portland, Maine 2014

Reddish egrets live in salt flats and lagoons around barrier islands, keys, and mangrove forests. They often build nests in rookeries with other birds such as pelicans, spoonbills and Great Blue Herons. These photos were taken from a boat in the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge

After decimation by the plume trade in the nineteenth century, populations subsequently protected under the Lacey Act (which prohibited the feather trade) have recovered and generally stabilized. However, this species remains the rarest heron in North America, with Texas representing a large portion of its worldwide range. Globally, it is estimated that there is a breeding population of 15,000. The species is most at risk from climate change, which brings more frequent and stronger tropical storms (causing direct mortality as well as habitat destruction). As is true for many colonial waterbirds, Reddish Egret populations decline when coastal habitats are developed and destroyed as they do not live inland and are highly specific in their foraging and nesting habitat requirements.

I intended to crop out the grave marker on the right so the focus would be on the statue and cross as well as the distant trees. But then I read it.

Two brothers form Ireland, John and James Blake. They married. John and Hanora had 3 children, James and Johanna had 2. Then, from what I can discern researching Illinois history, the families where decimated by Cholera.

Within a span of 7 years, all of their children died as well as James. Four of the children would not see their first birthday. The oldest was 5.

John died at the age of 54. Johanna and Hanora lived to be 90 and 82 respectively.

Could you imagine?? Times were tough back then.

On a much happies note, there was a lot of color in the cemetery. Two nights of mid 20's has the leaves changing and falling fast.

I have better pics of the moth but in the interests of authenticity this particular insect was snapped laying eggs on ragwort just 2 weeks ago. Time has passed and the eggs have hatched into these striped babies. They can decimate a ragwort population which are not well tolerated by cattle. So nature exerts its own control.

This is the countryside where much of the decisive battle of the English Civil War took place across the rolling Northamptonshire landscape between Naseby, Clipston and Sibbertoft. It is to the north of the A14 - the main east-west link road to the east coast ports - whereas the village of Naseby is to the south of the A14.

The battle was fought on the foggy morning of 14th June 1645. After almost three years of fighting, the 14,000 strong Parliamentarian New Model Army took on the Royalist army of King Charles I comprising less than 9,000 men, in what would to be the final key battle of the war.

At Naseby the main Royalist military force was decimated and the king lost his best officers, seasoned troops and artillery. All that now remained was for the Parliamentarian armies to wipe out the last pockets of Royalist resistance, which it did within the year. As everyone knows, Charles I was eventually executed in 1649.

Severely endangered. Since these images were made, this habitat has been decimated by a hurricane.

Key Largo, Monroe County, Florida, USA.

The use of any of my photos, of any file size, for any purpose, is subject to approval by me. Contact me for permission. Image files are available upon request. My email address can be found at my Flickr profile page. Or send me a FlickrMail.

A fallen Silver Birch Tree bedded down in Wild Garlic and the Ransom plants had even colonised the old root structure. Nature taking care of its own I suppose.

Sadly, this lovely natural flower arrangement was decimated when I returned the following day to get a better shot. The tree had been chain sawed and dragged out by a Tractor ploughing through all this lovely field of Ramson Flowers.