Grandfather's Speak

Grandfather's Speak
Originally uploaded by Dr Photo Moto

A Timely Reminder


Grandfather's Speak
Originally uploaded by Dr Photo Moto

Three Johns are we!
Posing for posterity!
Even now we wonder and question.
Who will gaze upon this reflection?


Will someone look back when we are spirits?
Will more Johns follow in our stead?
Who will remember what we have said?
When we are gone; when we are dead.

Though our voice is stilled, our picture flickers.
So we proffer this advice with utmost urgency.
Be good to your posterity; label you pictures.
Far better now then posthumously!

Promise

20 Budding Out
Originally uploaded by Dr Photo Moto

Buds make promises.
Flowers are promises fulfilled.

Pretty Plumage

House Finch, Female
Originally uploaded by Dr Photo Moto

She's quite plain,
Not much to meet the eye,
He's rather pretty,
For a guy!


The male House Finch

Model and Mimic

Model and Mimic
Originally uploaded by Dr Photo Moto

In nature nothing beats success. Some call it survival of the fittest. When bugs developed, bumble bees grew a stinger to punish their predators. The distinctive color of the bumble bee, yellow and black, became an ample warning of the danger carried in the tail of the bee. This yellow and black beacon said: "Don't touch or you will be stung."
It turns out that there are a number of bugs that immitate these colors but don't have a sting. The color pattern of yellow and black is sufficient to scare away many predators. The hummingbird moth is one such creature. The moth mimics the colors of it's model the bumble bee. It's all bluff and bluster for when the moth is threatened it flees!



There are other examples in nature of defensive mimicry. See photograph above. In butterflies we have the red spotted purple which mimics the beautiful Pipevine Swallowtail and there is the Viceroy which mimics the queen beauty of them all, the Monarch. In these cases the model carries a toxin that repels predators. By mimicing the coloring of the model these butterflies are able to scare away predators just by looking beautiful!

Mimicry is a fascinating adaptive tactic of wildlife that supports the notion of natural selection. It is found throughout the animal kingdom.

New Years Sky

New Years Sky
Originally uploaded by Dr Photo Moto

How beautiful the sky can be. This shot show the moon, Venus, Jupiter and Mercury along with a slew of stars. Love that rim of gold on the horizon.

Click on the photograph and you will be transported to my Flickr web site where you will be able to see the planets identified on the screen. You can then look at some of my other photographs if you wish. To do this first click on my icon photo at the top right at the Flickr web site and you will be at the beginning of my photostream.

COMMON VETCH HOLDS UP BUTTERFLY!!

COMMON VETCH HOLDS UP BUTTERFLY!!
Originally uploaded by Dr Photo Moto

The common vetch is in the legume family. The tiny vine produces beautiful red flowers that are quite delicate. A single pea appears at the site of each flower. This is a great natural source of food for birds.




Here is another shot of the bloom:

Kildeer Instincts

Kildeer
Originally uploaded by Dr Photo Moto

Kildeer nest in North Carolina. I'm not sure where the name comes from or where they spend the winter. I do know that they like to hang around ponds and they nest on the ground.

A few years back I found a kildeer nest in my yard. I discovered it quite deliberately while cutting the grass. I say deliberately but as you will see the bird was the one diliberating. Imagine my wonder when that nesting bird put me through the ancient paces of kildeer survival.



The discovery took place one sunny day while I was mowing my grass. The sun was hot and high in the sky! All I wanted was to finish the cutting so I could get inside and cool off. I wore ear plugs and dark sunglasses. A towel was wrapped Arab fashion around my head to absorb sweat and protect from UV radiation. Only the slight breeze created by the mower kept me from burning up. Clay clung to my sweat soaked clothes and outlined all the creases in my skin. Bored as I was bouncing along on the hard hot clay, I got startled by that broken winged bird.

I've always had a soft spot for injured wildlife. As a child it was a strange thrill to try to nurse a helpless injured bird. So when I spotted this strange bird flopping away from me I just naturally stopped the lawn mower and tried to follow. I soon realized that the kildeer was purposely leading me away from something.

Had that kildeer not brought it to my attention I would have mowed the nest to smithereens and been none the wiser. Once I knew to look for it I found the nest though it turned out to be little more than a few pebbles and sticks gathered in a clear spot in the ankle high grass. Amongst the sticks and stones sat one speckled egg. Fearing it would be roasted by the sun, I quickly left that spot after making note of it's location.

It turned out that the kildeer picked a good spot for her nest. She eventually laid 5 eggs and kept the local varments from eating them or her. Though I never got to see her chicks, I did learn something about kildeer/human interactions.

Kildeer instincts do not seem to be inhibited by people on lawnmowers. As I would approach on the mower, she would start flipping and flopping all around me trying to get me to chase her away from the nest. Even if I turned off the mower the act of temptation would continue. The odd thing was what happened when I dismounted from the mower. It was then that the bird would desert her nest and just fly away. She was not too afraid of a lawnmower but fled in panic from a person walking towards her.

Conclusion? The Kildeer was smart enough to know when to trust her gut instinct and when to do no such thing.