Deserts Of The South West And West United States
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These are numerous in the wetlands around the Great Salt Lake,and often are found in flocks. One is plenty though, as they are so very striking. Texture added in Topaz.
Desert landscape of the southwestern United States from the air.
I wish I could remember where this was exactly. It was in the Basin Range area of the U.S. Southwest perhaps southern Utah or Nevada.
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Bolivia is one of the most beautiful countries in South America due to the concentration of stunning landscapes, worthy of countless "WOWs", to any visitor.
Today's conversation is destined for one of the most beautiful regions we have ever visited in the world: the southwest of Bolivia, a place that activates your imagination to the extreme making you think you are on another planet.
At 3,600 meters above sea level, there is the incredible Salar de Uyuni and the Bolivian Altiplano (where we are in this picture), with its colorful lagoons, thermal pools, volcanoes and private vegetation, all extremely photogenic and capable of making any trip there unforgettable.
The word succulent comes from the Latin word sucus, meaning 'juice', or 'sap'. Succulent plants, also known as succulents, are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. Succulents are often grown as ornamental plants because of their striking and unusual appearance, as well as their ability to thrive with relatively minimal care. The habitats of these water preserving plants are often in areas with high temperatures and low rainfall, such as deserts. Succulents have the ability to thrive on limited water sources, such as mist and dew, which makes them equipped to survive in an ecosystem which contains scarce water sources. 14482
Sandiwch Harbour dunes - Namibia
See more dunes here!: manginiphotography.zenfolio.com/p144904857
A small, passerine bird adapted to arid regions such as deserts, semi-deserts, and stony grasslands, ranging from North Africa and the Middle East to Central Asia and wintering in parts of India and Africa. Measuring about 14–16cm in length and weighing between 15 and 34g, this bird is known for its striking appearance.
Desert Wheatears feed mostly on ground-dwelling insects such as beetles, ants, flies, caterpillars, and occasionally seeds. They’re often sighted perched on rocks or bushes, making short, darting flights to catch prey or even hovering briefly in pursuit of insects. The birds breed in late spring, nesting on rocky hillsides or sandy plains. Their ability to survive with minimal water helps them thrive in extreme environments, and they play a crucial role in maintaining ecological balance by controlling insect populations.
During our trip to Ladakh we sighted a healthy population of them - most were busy in nesting activities. Many were in their lovely breeding plumage (like in this pic) where the colors were bright and beautiful.
Many thanks in advance for your views and feedback. Much appreciated.
Afternoon nap for a Meerkat (Suricata suricatta) at the Reid Park Zoo in Tucson, Arizona. Meerkats are native to the Kalahari and Namib deserts in Africa.
A large raptor around 55-70 cms tall and weighing around 1.5 - 2.4 kg and found throughout the year in India. They are probably the smallest of the 9 species of vultures found in India. The birds are very distinctive and easily recognizable unlike some of the other vultures which are confusing to id.
This one is an adult with the full white plumage and yellowish face and beak. Immatures tend to be totally brown with a greyish face. The birds are often seen around carcass dumpyards or in the deserts where dead cattle / animals are lying rotten. In our Rajasthan trip last week, we sighted 100+ of them all around the state - they are quite common there. In fact, Rajasthan has 7 of the 9 vultures found in India. Like most vultures, this is quite shy of people, but many a time, we found very close to the nomad settlements perched on the poles or walking around on the ground.
Thanks in advance for your lovely feedback and views - much appreciated.
I composed this image of hoodoos while visiting Writing On Stone Provincial Park in Alberta, Canada.
A hoodoo (also called a tent rock, fairy chimney, or earth pyramid) is a tall, thin spire of rock formed by erosion. Hoodoos typically consist of relatively soft rock topped by harder, less easily eroded stone that protects each column from the elements. They generally form within sedimentary rock and volcanic rock formations, and typically in hot, dry desert areas.
Hoodoos range in size from the height of an average human to heights exceeding a 10-story building. Hoodoo shapes are affected by the erosional patterns of alternating hard and softer rock layers. Minerals deposited within different rock types can cause hoodoos to have different colors throughout their height.
The name "hoodoo" is derived from Hoodoo spirituality, in which certain natural forms are said to possess certain powers, but by the late 19th century, this spirituality became associated with bad luck. For example, hoodoos in Bryce Canyon National Park were considered by Indigenous peoples to be the petrified remains of ancient beings who had been sanctioned for misbehavior.
(With help from Wikepedia.)
This trip we spent a good bit in the dry deserts of Arizona and Utah ... so it was fun spending couple days in Wyoming highlands with the cool temperatures and snow about.
The Snowy Range area has lovely lakes, trails and wildlife to explore. Also not lots of people end up here compared to the Rocky Mountains National Park. So you can really enjoy the quiet and nature here.
If you view large, the Sony 61 MP sensor reveals all kinds of patterns in the snow on the peaks.
Oddly enough, but in the desert sometimes came across small lakes overflowing with fish. The fish in the photo was caught in half an hour using a leaky bucket
In the United States, Ladder-backed Woodpeckers occur in thorn forests, deserts, and desert scrub from the lowest elevations up to about 7,600 feet.
Photographed at Bosque del Apache NWR, New Mexico.
Au fil de balades en ville,
Des lieux déserts, des parkings vides, des espaces sans vie.
Comme le symbole de la solitude de l'homme dans le monde urbain / When i walk in the city.
Deserted places, empty parking lots, lifeless spaces.
As symbolle of human loneliness in the urban world.
The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails. William Arthur Ward.
William Arthur Ward (December 17, 1921–March 30, 1994) was an American motivational writer.
Wind is the flow of gases on a large scale. On the surface of the Earth, wind consists of the bulk movement of air. Winds are commonly classified by their spatial scale, their speed, the types of forces that cause them, the regions in which they occur, and their effect. The strongest observed winds on a planet in the Solar System occur on Neptune and Saturn. Winds have various aspects: velocity (wind speed); the density of the gas involved; energy content or wind energy. The wind is also a critical means of transportation for seeds, insects, and birds, which can travel on wind currents for thousands of miles.
In human civilization, the concept of wind has been explored in mythology, influenced the events of history, expanded the range of transport and warfare, and provided a power source for mechanical work, electricity, and recreation. Wind powers the voyages of sailing ships across Earth's oceans. Hot air balloons use the wind to take short trips, and powered flight uses it to increase lift and reduce fuel consumption. Areas of wind shear caused by various weather phenomena can lead to dangerous situations for aircraft. When winds become strong, trees and human-made structures are damaged or destroyed.
Winds can shape landforms, via a variety of aeolian processes such as the formation of fertile soils, such as loess, and by erosion. Dust from large deserts can be moved great distances from its source region by the prevailing winds; winds that are accelerated by rough topography and associated with dust outbreaks have been assigned regional names in various parts of the world because of their significant effects on those regions. Wind also affects the spread of wildfires. Winds can disperse seeds from various plants, enabling the survival and dispersal of those plant species, as well as flying insect populations. When combined with cold temperatures, the wind has a negative impact on livestock. Wind affects animals' food stores, as well as their hunting and defensive strategies.
The wind is caused by differences in atmospheric pressure which is mainly caused by temperature difference. When a difference in atmospheric pressure exists, air moves from the higher to the lower pressure area, resulting in winds of various speeds. On a rotating planet, air will also be deflected by the Coriolis effect, except exactly on the equator. Globally, the two major driving factors of large-scale wind patterns (the atmospheric circulation) are the differential heating between the equator and the poles (difference in absorption of solar energy leading to buoyancy forces) and the rotation of the planet. Outside the tropics and aloft from frictional effects of the surface, the large-scale winds tend to approach geostrophic balance. Near the Earth's surface, friction causes the wind to be slower than it would be otherwise. Surface friction also causes winds to blow more inward into low-pressure areas. Source Wikipedia.
TD : 1/20 f/8 ISO 100 @28 mm
Las Galinas is home to numerous species of birds including ducks, birds of prey etc. Hummingbirds are also very much at home in this habitat. We spotted this little Anna’s Hummingbird as it took a quick break on a tree limb. Named after Anna Masséna, Duchess of Rivoli. In the early 20th century, Anna's hummingbirds bred only in northern Baja California and southern California. The transplanting of exotic ornamental plants in residential areas throughout the Pacific coast and inland deserts provided expanded nectar and nesting sites, allowing the species to expand its breeding range.
Another spectacular, iconic, breathtaking landscape of the southwestern US. This land is part of the Navajo reservation, and again, through their grace, we are allowed the opportunity to visit, to be awed, to be stunned in wonderment by this monumental place.
I have always loved the paintings of Frederic Remington. Having recently visited the Southwest, I appreciate his artistic genius all the more. He captured the light and colors so authentically, he had to have such intimate knowledge and passion for his subject.
"I knew the wild riders and the vacant land were about to vanish forever... and the more I considered the subject, the bigger the forever loomed. Without knowing how to do it, I began to record some facts around me, and the more I looked the more the panorama unfolded."
--Frederic Remington
Image done with painterly effects in Topaz 2
Dune Bashing is basically a form of off-roading done on sand dunes, usually in big 4X4 vehicles like the Toyota Land Cruiser or Fortuner. It basically involves driving at varying speeds over sand dunes and maneuvering the car in such a way as to maintain balance while going up the dune and coming down.
Does the Sahara have a voice?
The wind can speak in terrifying roars, whipping the dunes into a fury. The grasses and trees that grow can be heard whispering among themselves. The grains of sand chitter and hiss if you listen.
But the dunes themselves seem mute, getting our attention instead through infinite spectrums of form and color.
Their imposing peaks, their sinuous curves; there is movement in their stillness, humility in their magnificence. They provide the permanence of a mountain range, but flow like a river, shapeshifting before our very eyes.
The milky, pinky taupe colors of morning seem aloof, preoccupied, while the golden caramels of noon belie a deadly indifference as the sun rises to power. The ripening brilliant oranges of evening tease survival, and the seductive, fiery russet reds after sunset celebrate the coming of night, when the desert reawakens and comes to life.
Eventually, all fades into an endless, inky blackness, keeping the desert's secrets well hidden beneath a tapestry of stars.
Does the Sahara have a voice?
I think the desert speaks to all who will listen, even her silence is a symphony. What is she saying? Perhaps only those born of the desert can truly know. Her lessons are many and man's life but a sigh.
On the way from Zhezkazgan city to Bayqonur cosmodrome. No GPS, only stars and compass.
I'm not a hunter. The gun was asked only to take this photo.
The hat I designed myself. It was a nice wide-brimmed hat. Fields had to be cut and sewed the gauze on the edges. During the day I poured water on the gauze and it saved me from the heat. In the evening, I put down the gauze and it protected me from mosquitoes :))
Views from Mount Sinai, Egypt
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Petra (Arabic: البتراء, Al-Batrāʾ; Ancient Greek: Πέτρα), originally known as Raqmu (Nabataean Arabic: الرقيم), is a historical and archaeological city in southern Jordan. Petra lies on the slope of Jabal Al-Madbah in a basin among the mountains which form the eastern flank of Arabah valley that run from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba. Established possibly as early as the 4th century BC as the capital city of the Nabataean Kingdom. The Nabataeans were nomadic Arabs who invested in Petra's proximity to the trade routes by establishing it as a major regional trading hub.
The trading business gained the Nabataeans considerable revenue, and Petra became the focus of their wealth. The earliest recorded historical reference to the city was when an envious Greek dynasty attempted to ransack the city in 312 BC. The Nabataeans were, unlike their enemies, accustomed to living in the barren deserts, and were able to repel attacks by utilizing the area's mountainous terrain. They were particularly skillful in harvesting rainwater, agriculture and stone carving. The Kingdom's capital continued to flourish until the 1st century AD when its famous Al-Khazneh facade was constructed, and its population peaked at an estimated 20,000 inhabitants.
Encroaching troops of the Roman Empire in 106 AD forced the Nabataeans to surrender. The Romans annexed and renamed the Kingdom to Arabia Petraea. Petra's importance declined as sea trade routes emerged, and after a 363 earthquake destroyed many structures. The Byzantine Era witnessed the construction of several Christian churches. By 700, the city became an abandoned place where only a handful of nomads grazed goats. It remained an unknown place until it was rediscovered by Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt in 1812, sparking renewed interest in the city.
The city is famous for its rock-cut architecture and water conduit system. Another name for Petra is the Rose City due to the color of the stone out of which it is carved. It is a symbol of Jordan, as well as Jordan's most-visited tourist attraction. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985. UNESCO has described it as "one of the most precious cultural properties of man's cultural heritage