The wind was blowing hard from the left and the light was coming in low and hot from the right. By chance, the reddish egret stood just so to create this even divide.
This reddish egret (white morph) is the same one as posted earlier doing a mating dance with another reddish egret. The two images look starkly different and yet they were taken only 9 minutes apart from each other. I don't remember how that happened. I suspect with the first image there was a cloud covering the sun so the light wasn't harsh. Here the light was blazing and I probably instinctively raised the shutter speed which led to the high contrast. Nice to have two images from basically the same moment that look so different from each other.
Tags: Fall egret morph reddish white divide Bonaire bird wind light sun sunset blue streak bill eye contrast Egretta rufescens near threatened IUCN feather wisp
© All Rights Reserved
I want to wish you all a very Happy Mother's Day.
For most of us in my age group (I will be 70 next month) our mothers have passed away. Mine died at the age of 64. Way too young.
Mothers, in my opinion, have one of the hardest jobs in the world and it takes a lot of fortitude, stamina, integrity, grit, humor, heart and too many other traits to list here, to be a really good mom.
But most of all, it takes a lot of love. Total and unconditional love. Because as long as children know that they are loved, that is half the battle to making sure they feel they matter and are supported.
Too many children lack that love and support which often causes a lifetime of sadness and emotional trauma.
So to all the moms who have children, to all the children who still have their moms and to all the adults who have their moms, feel lucky. If you've lost your mom, like me and many others, we can at least hold on to the memories and the good times and smile while we think of her. We never forget our moms.
Tags: Mother's Day Happy Mother's Day
© All Rights Reserved
© All Rights Reserved
All my little Monarch Butterfly larvae have wandered away (or been picked off) onto their next phase of metamorphosis toward the new butterfly. They're very sneaky and could be anywhere, mostly somewhere they consider safe and shady. I found one under the natural gas meter at the side of my house, just a few feet from the host plant. I didn't want it to stay there where I stash my city trash cans and where there is always a spider web buildup, so I moved it to what I considered a more hospitable location. Never saw it again. Next day, I found two more - one had already cemented itself to the giant green recycling can and completed the perfect pupa. This one has cemented itself to the gas meter. Yup. It hangs in a "J" for a few hours and then sheds this skin exposing the raw green body, which then dries into the finished pupa. Dumb place to hang (well not photogenic for sure) but it gets the job done no doubt. The eclosure if all goes well will be in 10-14 days. Hopefully, I'll get to see it, though I will be working on days 11-13.
Tags: Danaus plexippus Monarch Monarch butterfly back yard butterfly caterpillar insect larva macro pupa wildlife
© All Rights Reserved