Nature Photography (Formally Spring is in the Air)

[Takama]

I been walking lately and i see robins every where i go. However as soon as i approach them, they take off flying, but this one lets me get close enough to take a photograph



To bad i did not have my camera with me or this photo would have been perfect(i took it with my phone)

[Viking Spawn]

I've always found birds to be frustrating animals to try and photograph.  I've never had any luck trying.   

[Newt]

I finally put my waterproof camera to its intended use!


Tennessee Snubnose Darter


Striped Shiners, with Rosyside Dace and Logperch


Green Frog tadpole


Banded Sculpin


Logperch


Green Sunfish

[Doug Watson]

I finally put my waterproof camera to its intended use!

Wow those are great, and so clear! I would love to see the actual camera. Do you need to submerge with the camera?

[Doug Watson]

Kayaking, Victoria Day at Murphy's Point. Saw 7 deer outside the park but no old Queens

Map Turtle, I loved the vibrant colours of the moss and the reflected foliage in the water.


Grey Rat Snake about 10 feet up in a tree. There was one that liked to perch here last year during the mating season, I am guessing it is the same one.


Medium sized Northern Water Snake around 3 feet long, basking on a log.

Close up of the same Water Snake


A Mink emerges after swimming to this Island. We usually see most of our Mink in the spring.



A Loon and an egg on another island. Last time we saw them nest there only one of two eggs survived. We alerted the Game Wardens so they could put signs up since swimmers like to use the island. The egg is in the left side in the middle.

Egg Close up.


Flat Backed Millipede (Sigmoria trimaculata) from under a log.


Unidentified Dragonflies swarming they were thick from all around us right up to the top of the tree. They seemed to have just emerged from their nymph stage. We saw a similar swarm of another species but they wouldn't sit still, I guess having too much fun with their new skill.


Giant Swallowtail Butterfly getting some water from the boat launch.

[Newt]

Nice shots, Doug! I especially like the loon; we don't get them down here.

My camera is an Olympus TG-4; it's a pretty normal point-and-shoot except for being waterproof and drop-resistant. It has an excellent macro mode. Here are some more shots form this weekend:


Daddy longlegs on a greenbrier


Another individual a few feet away on a jewelweed


Dark fishfly (also on jewelweed)


Land snail on the remnants of a raccoon's crawdad feast


Orchard spider


Map turtle - I saw a lot of maps (and a few sliders and river cooters), but this is the only one I got a photo of


Treefrog embryos


Gartersnake


beaver pond

[Halichoeres]

Wow, great shots, Newt and Doug! I'm especially impressed with the fish shots. Wish I'd had a camera like that when I was traveling (though the water was murkier than what I think you're working with).

[Doug Watson]

Nice shots, Doug! I especially like the loon; we don't get them down here.

My camera is an Olympus TG-4; it's a pretty normal point-and-shoot except for being waterproof and drop-resistant. It has an excellent macro mode. Here are some more shots form this weekend:

What a pretty Garter Snake! Its funny how yours have similar colour to ours yet Gwangi's Garters from in between in NY state have that brown tinge.

[btb300]

Wonderful shots from both of you. The macro mode on that camera is very nice indeed, surprisingly good.

[Newt]

What a pretty Garter Snake! Its funny how yours have similar colour to ours yet Gwangi's Garters from in between in NY state have that brown tinge.

They're probably just dirty... The garters here are pretty variable - some are brown, some have yellow stripes, some have cream stripes, some lack the central stripe, some lack stripes altogether. The intensity of the checker pattern is also highly variable. Our ratsnakes are even worse - they go from dull yellow to brown to very pale gray to charcoal in the same population, with some having very bold patterns and some very subdued patterns.

Halichoeres - thanks! Yeah, I hit the jackpot on underwater conditions - clear, shallow water with strong diffused sunlight. I tried using the flash underwater and it was disastrous - it lit up every little suspended particle, making it look like a picture taken in a snowglobe, and all the minnows shone like tinsel. Christmasy, but not pleasant. I followed the creek down to where it flowed into a reservoir, hoping to get some photos of the turtles and larger fish (bass, gar, chain pickerel) that tend to hang out there, but it was way too turbid.

btb300 - thanks! I would unhesitatingly recommend this camera to anyone who needs a good hiking/outdoor camera, even if you don't intend to submerge it. The only drawbacks I've found are the lack of a powerful zoom (it's no good for birds) and a rather short battery life (I can get about three hours heavy use, without flash, before it's drained). The battery is tiny - it really seems they could have made one twice as big without making the camera much larger. But what do I know?

Some flowers from the same trip:


Virginia spiderwort


Bee balm


Climbing milkvine


Japanese honeysuckle


Wild grapes


Highbush blueberry


Blackberry


Persimmon

This is going to be a good spot for wild fruit in a few months!

[Doug Watson]

What a pretty Garter Snake! Its funny how yours have similar colour to ours yet Gwangi's Garters from in between in NY state have that brown tinge.

They're probably just dirty...

Persimmon
This is going to be a good spot for wild fruit in a few months!

I was going to suggest that Gwangi stop drinking the water.

I am guessing that is the American Persimmon, how does the fruit compare to the cultivated Asian varieties you get in the produce dept?

[Newt]

Yes, it is American persimmon, a common tree in my area. I've never eaten an Asian persimmon, so I can't compare. American persimmons are notoriously astringent when unripe - if you've ever bitten into a banana peel or an acorn, you've experienced a fraction of the green persimmon phenomenon - and extremely sweet when ripe. The ripe fruit are also very soft, which is no doubt why they've never made it into stores - they don't travel or keep well. Collecting them is a sticky activity. I assume the Asian varieties are firmer.

I'm not too good with flavors, but I would say that besides sheer sugary sweetness, persimmons also have a flavor somewhat like a date. Besides eating them fresh, I've also made persimmon nutbread (I used a banana nutbread recipe and just swapped the fruit), which was tasty; the pure fruit are almost too sweet for me, so the other ingredients help tone them down a bit. Some folks make persimmon preserves. I'm sure there are many other uses. A food mill is a big help in separating the pulp from the large seeds.

The fallen fruit are big wildlife attractants. Opossums are particularly known for their love of persimmons, but raccoons, foxes, skunks, turkeys, and squirrels also eat them. In the fall and winter I often find small mammal scat composed almost entirely of persimmon seeds.

[Gwangi]

Nice shots, Doug! I especially like the loon; we don't get them down here.

My camera is an Olympus TG-4; it's a pretty normal point-and-shoot except for being waterproof and drop-resistant. It has an excellent macro mode. Here are some more shots form this weekend:

What a pretty Garter Snake! Its funny how yours have similar colour to ours yet Gwangi's Garters from in between in NY state have that brown tinge.

We have a couple different garter snake "morphs" around here. There are some that are just striped, some that have a checkerboard pattern and then just recently I found one with red streaks down the sides. It's the only one I've seen locally with that color pattern. I should probably share it, or share something. I'm really behind on this thread. I just hate Photobucket so much.

[Newt]

Yeah, I've given up on PhotoBucket and started using DeviantArt as a photo host. Not what it's intended for, but it works!

[Doug Watson]

We have a couple different garter snake "morphs" around here. There are some that are just striped, some that have a checkerboard pattern and then just recently I found one with red streaks down the sides. It's the only one I've seen locally with that color pattern. I should probably share it, or share something. I'm really behind on this thread. I just hate Photobucket so much.

Ours are pretty standardly striped. I would love to find a red sided one.

I see you changed the name for spring Gwangi and I had a thought. Maybe we could call it "The Four Seasons by Radman" that would eliminate the need to change it every season, keep the theme and acknowledge Radman for starting it.

[Gwangi]

We have a couple different garter snake "morphs" around here. There are some that are just striped, some that have a checkerboard pattern and then just recently I found one with red streaks down the sides. It's the only one I've seen locally with that color pattern. I should probably share it, or share something. I'm really behind on this thread. I just hate Photobucket so much.

Ours are pretty standardly striped. I would love to find a red sided one.

I see you changed the name for spring Gwangi and I had a thought. Maybe we could call it "The Four Seasons by Radman" that would eliminate the need to change it every season, keep the theme and acknowledge Radman for starting it.

Not a bad idea. Or maybe a name that makes it clearer on what this thread is about while still acknowledging Radman. "Radman's Official Nature Photography Thread" or something along those lines.

[Doug Watson]

Not a bad idea. Or maybe a name that makes it clearer on what this thread is about while still acknowledging Radman. "Radman's Official Nature Photography Thread" or something along those lines.

I would have no problem with that.

[Newt]

I'm in Indiana, y'all! The Hoosier Hoedown will begin soon. A teaser from the Kentucky leg of the trip:

[Newt]

Gray Ratsnake


Dirt Dauber


Argus Tortoise Beetle


Greenbottle Fly


Red-legged Buprestis

And for our cryptid enthusiasts:


A second Montauk Monster in the making.

[Doug Watson]

Gray Ratsnake
Dirt Dauber
Argus Tortoise Beetle
Greenbottle Fly
Red-legged Buprestis
And for our cryptid enthusiasts:
A second Montauk Monster in the making.

Your bug shots are amazing but I of course love the Rat Snake the most, is that an Indiana Gray Rat Snake? You could drop it in up here and it would fit right in, appearance wise. Did you try and pick it up? I have watched people in the south on TV catching Gray Rat Snakes and almost every time they get bit. But they always try to grab the neck behind the head. When I do it I let the snake stretch out and I grab it gently just ahead of the cloaca. So far out of many snakes I have only had one that made a couple bluff bites.

As for your second Montauck Monster "Look out, she's gonna blow!"