Post a beautiful nature picture

[Cecile Marion 98]

I was very surprised to see a large flock of what looked like small green parrots in central Paris last fall.

[Betty LaRue 2,522]

A baby opossum in my crabapple tree at night. Its nose needs a tissue. 😁

 

[Betty LaRue 2,522]

4 hours ago, aphperspective said:

There are also large flocks of Green Parrots in London now Alan, very noisy and gregarious birds. 

Rose-ringed parakeets I believe.

[Sally R 120]

On 02/04/2020 at 21:52, dustydingo said:

Some lovely images around showing animals slowly (in some cases rapidly) adapting to the lack of people on the streets--the wild goats in the little unpronounceable Welsh village are a delight.

Never one to ignore a trend, here's my take on this phenomenom, taken in downtown New York . . .

 

 

She'd actually come into town to see the movie you can see advertised on the building in the background . . .

 

Interesting to see a T-Rex hitting the town. Hope she enjoyed the movie. Yesterday I discovered a baby stegosaurus had taken up residence in the back garden. I was quite excited, as they were my favourite dinosaur when I was a kid. A bit worried about what will happen when Mama or Papa stegosaurus turn up (they weigh about 3 tonnes!). At least they are herbivores! This is the little guy in the hibiscus tree:

 

[Sally R 120]

On 02/04/2020 at 18:35, Allan Bell said:

Rewarding but a lot of work. Every chick had to be checked each day for food stuck to their little beaks as it would harden and their beaks would become deformed.

Adults are messy feeders of their young.

Can't remember exactly how many nest boxes we had going at any one time but we were only a small concern with around 20 and usually an average of three young per nest. Breeding was year round too.

Added to that there was the regular daily cleaning of the nest boxes and cages as well as the aviary and outdoor flights.

Then topping up feeding containers and water bottles.

 

But the birds are great fun and we had a good time watching their antics. In the winter when snow was on the ground we would open the doors to the outside flights and the birds would roll in the snow on the bottom of the flights.

 

Allan

 

I love the idea of budgies rolling around in the snow. It's something they'd never get to do in their natural habitat here. Yes it must be quite a responsibility keeping the chicks alive and well.

 

In 2018 I visited Stewart Island in southern New Zealand. A giant, flightless parrot called a kakapo used to live there. They are extremely endangered and so they moved them to Codfish Island where there are no introduced predators. However, people claim to have heard their call on remote parts of Stewart Island. I hoped I might encounter one, knowing that it was highly unlikely. I thought you might like this video about the most famous kakapo named SIrocco with one of his carers. He thinks he's a human as he was raised by humans as a chick. He is now considered the official spokesbird for his species. They are so loveable and cute:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQn90slumUY

[spacecadet 3,141]

Mount Ngauruhoe, Tongariro national park, NZ

Edited April 4 by spacecadet

[Allan Bell 1,960]

6 hours ago, Sally R said:

 

I love the idea of budgies rolling around in the snow. It's something they'd never get to do in their natural habitat here. Yes it must be quite a responsibility keeping the chicks alive and well.

 

In 2018 I visited Stewart Island in southern New Zealand. A giant, flightless parrot called a kakapo used to live there. They are extremely endangered and so they moved them to Codfish Island where there are no introduced predators. However, people claim to have heard their call on remote parts of Stewart Island. I hoped I might encounter one, knowing that it was highly unlikely. I thought you might like this video about the most famous kakapo named SIrocco with one of his carers. He thinks he's a human as he was raised by humans as a chick. He is now considered the official spokesbird for his species. They are so loveable and cute:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQn90slumUY

 

Thank you for that Sally. I had heard about the kakapo but never seen one. Must have missed the BBC 2 transmission.

 

Allan

 

[meanderingemu 687]

[aphperspective 265]

On 04/04/2020 at 02:32, Betty LaRue said:

Rose-ringed parakeets I believe.

Thanks for that Betty, i think the Jury is out at the minute if they are going to be a problem invasive species.

[Olivier Parent 576]

Calopteryx virgo damselfly known as the Beautiful Demoiselle (male).

 

[Allan Bell 1,960]

3 hours ago, Olivier Parent said:

Calopteryx virgo damselfly known as the Beautiful Demoiselle (male).

 

 

Great image. I am a little jealous as I have been trying to capture an image like this of these damselflies down by the river Cam in Cambridge for three or four years and not been successful yet. With my move to Lincoln area looming (he says hopefully) I doubt I ever will.

 

Allan

 

[MariaJ 369]

Somehow I've totally missed this thread.  So many lovely images!

Here's a young mule deer.

 

 

 

[Olivier Parent 576]

14 hours ago, Allan Bell said:

 

Great image. I am a little jealous as I have been trying to capture an image like this of these damselflies down by the river Cam in Cambridge for three or four years and not been successful yet. With my move to Lincoln area looming (he says hopefully) I doubt I ever will.

 

Allan

 

 

Thank you very much Allan!

The very first lens I bought when I moved from film to digital in 2007 was a 180mm f:3.5 macro so that I could photograph insects without disturbing them (even sometimes in quite "intimate" moments).

I also found the Cobra strike II monopod to be handy, especially when you need to get from quite high to very low to the ground in a matter of seconds.

And here is a website that can also be helpful:

https://british-dragonflies.org.uk/odonata/damselflies/

 

Eurasian Bluets mating - Coenagrion puella damselflies

Edited April 6 by Olivier Parent

[Allan Bell 1,960]

3 hours ago, Olivier Parent said:

 

Thank you very much Allan!

The very first lens I bought when I moved from film to digital in 2007 was a 180mm f:3.5 macro so that I could photograph insects without disturbing them (even sometimes in quite "intimate" moments).

I also found the Cobra strike II monopod to be handy, especially when you need to get from quite high to very low to the ground in a matter of seconds.

And here is a website that can also be helpful:

https://british-dragonflies.org.uk/odonata/damselflies/

 

Eurasian Bluets mating - Coenagrion puella damselflies

 

You are very welcome.

 

Thank you for the link to the BDS. I already have it bookmarked on my computer. Found it very useful in the past and I am sure it will be useful in the future too.

 

Keep safe, stay well.

 

Allan

 

[spacecadet 3,141]

Seen on a tree in Epping Forest. Two minutes from our front door, Deo gratias

Edited April 6 by spacecadet

[aphperspective 265]

Well its not exactly Wilderbeest thundering across the plains, but i like baby cows and how often do you see a blue cow with a brown calf.🙂

 

[aphperspective 265]

18 hours ago, Allan Bell said:

 

Great image. I am a little jealous as I have been trying to capture an image like this of these damselflies down by the river Cam in Cambridge for three or four years and not been successful yet. With my move to Lincoln area looming (he says hopefully) I doubt I ever will.

 

Allan

 

The Lincolnshire Fens have loads of canals and Dykes Alan so you may yet get a chance.

Andy

[Allan Bell 1,960]

18 minutes ago, aphperspective said:

The Lincolnshire Fens have loads of canals and Dykes Alan so you may yet get a chance.

Andy

 

Yes they do Andy and I will certainly investigate them at some point.

 

Allan

 

[gvallee 2,613]

I found this newt in my pond in Normandy (France). Alpine Newt (Triturus alpestris).

 

[Thyrsis 328]

I’ve always quite liked the painterly quality of this. We were at Dix Hill Pit near Oxford to watch the murmuration at sunset.

[NYCat 1,949]

8 hours ago, gvallee said:

I found this newt in my pond in Normandy (France). Alpine Newt (Triturus alpestris).

 

 

Whoa! What's happening here? Is he leaping? Underwater shot? Performing newt? Really fabulous.

 

Paulette

[gvallee 2,613]

30 minutes ago, NYCat said:

 

Whoa! What's happening here? Is he leaping? Underwater shot? Performing newt? Really fabulous.

 

Paulette

 

Thank you Paulette. I put it in a fish tank with plants from the pond for a few shots before releasing him. I was amazed at my find. I had never heard of this species before. It was so exciting! I also have multiple sales of frogs from that pond. It cost me nothing as it was my weekend house across... well the pond... from the UK.

[Michael Ventura 4,628]

15 minutes ago, gvallee said:

 

Thank you Paulette. I put it in a fish tank with plants from the pond for a few shots before releasing him. I was amazed at my find. I had never heard of this species before. It was so exciting! I also have multiple sales of frogs from that pond. It cost me nothing as it was my weekend house across... well the pond... from the UK.

What a cool life you lead! You remind me a bit of Gerald Durrell, the author and naturalist of the Corfu fame.

[gvallee 2,613]

1 hour ago, Michael Ventura said:

What a cool life you lead! You remind me a bit of Gerald Durrell, the author and naturalist of the Corfu fame.

 

I always had itchy feet, all my life. I did visit Gerald Durrell zoo in Jersey. 

[Stokie 620]

Molly on her daily walk through the woods, which luckily we can still do.

 

The Bluebells are only just coming out but they should look like this in a couple of weeks time.

 

John.