The Elegance of Nature (A Photographic Journey)

This is in SW Minn. I only go there in the summertime.

Nice. That's what I'm talking about! I see all of mine didn't copy over. Thanks, I'll post some more of mine.

PS- Spent yesterday moving my brother in law and his wife into their new house. We waited until after moving to start drinking..............I can attest, that is the best method.

Boone, NC

I like Corvids and I like this shot for the composition, I didn't even need to crop it.


I like this one of the Frogs in the garden pond taken on my old camera. They are sayin'
"You ain't seen us right?'
Del

I'll see your two frogs and raise you two boots!

Awesome pic. I never really realized that I could make the pictures bigger by pulling out the corner in the edit window. Thanks.

You have the strangest creatures where you live! What biodiversity!

They say I'm one of the strangest. That was the biggest praying mantis I've ever seen.

Sue, Have you ever seen one of these big velvety ants?

These taste like limes and they are good or you.

Blended up in a margarita perhaps?

The cow killer! Yar, saw a few when I lived down south. It's actually a wasp, and the sting is supposedly so painful that it can 'kill a cow'.

I definitely don't reach out and touch things that I'm not familiar with. We also have a little brown flying beetle that I don't have a picture of. They are out in summer and are attracted to light at night. One landed on my neck last summer while I was out on the porch..............I swiped it with my hand and it ejected a liquid that was like hydrochloric acid. It left a line of, not welts, but large blisters, almost instantaneously. Hurt like hell too.

Dude, you do live in a biological hotspot (or near a Superfund site).

Sounds like it could be one of the blister beetles.

That's it. Thanks. it looked like the one one top. but a little more nondescript......just plain light brown.

This had set up shop across my basement door going outide. I didn't realize it was there until it was in my face.

That looks just like what I walked into stretched across a wooded path just off of the lighthouse south of Daytona Beach. I bumped into the web and had fast enough reaction to back away and watched it come after me. I decided to cut my exploration short. I vividly remember the stripes.

gorgeous specimen, Golden Silk Spider?

appears to be the black-and-yellow argiope.

That's it sue. I didn't see your post before I responded.

We just call them garden spiders. Sue would probably know the real name.

That one had it's web built right in the middle of a doorway that goes out of my basement. I didn't see it until it was an inch from my face. They are beautiful.

Very effective bug killers too.

They often call him Speedo.

I once raised a black widow from a baby in an empty aquarium with sticks and things in it. It's body got to about the size of a nickle, legs almost three inches long. I would feed it 4-5 inch grasshoppers. She took them out........no problem.

Unfortunately, I left the house one weekend, didn't turn on the AC, and it got so hot in there, she exploded.

spontaneously combusting spiders!

Cool that you could raise one. I raised a plain old house spider in a mayo jar for a while when I was a kid. Had to let Frank go, though, when Mother Dear found out about him. Guess she had had enough with the newts and iguanas and turtles and snakes and birds and dog. And my brother and me. In an apartment.

That was a long time ago. I don't think the current wife would let me do it.

It's amazing how BIG a black widow can get when fed a steady supply of bugs.

My father and I caught a Northern Black Widow under my basketball goal. Unfortunatly she had already laid an egg sack which we were unable to obtain. But we did hand the spider over to the Audubon Zoo and they were anxious to take it off our hands because it was the first the zoo ever displayed.

There are some similar in central Texas. After trying to identify them, I found out they were a wasp...Have you tried to identify it?

I just did............isn't the internet great? Sue was right. (of course).

http://insects.tamu.edu/fieldguide/cimg344.html

Yes, pretty active around these southern parts.

I guess I won't try to touch one.

Yep, pigs can fly

You don't want to get too close to these

Just checking

Someone got a drum stick off her.

I think all of us could go out side right now and come back with amazing images. The most spoken sentence in amateur photography:

"If I only had my camera with me!"

Nice idea to put this thread up. I'll have my simple digi with me all day and see what I can find. My archives are full of stuff from the past. See what happens next, Ky.

That is the most non-aerodynamic bumble bee, but it's so pudgily cute!

Love the expression on the kookaburra's face. Is it typical for them to come so close to people?

Yeah Mate you try and make that thing fly. You'd need a nuclear power plant the size of a pea. They are still way ahead. This one was still alive but was soon taken by ants. It was the size of a smallish grape.

Those beautiful creatures are known to pick fish off peoples plates. Allison a friend of ours kept feeding them and thought they were real cute. They, the Becker's, had ducklings for the first time and she had to witness that the well fed Kookaburras did the dive bomber thing with them. Not one left. All gone to duck heaven. She never fed them again.

How about him, the Daddy of them all

One of the best single books on evolution is Jerry Coyne's Why Evolution Is True. It surveys a pretty full variety of the alleged "problems."

Richard Dawkins is also good, but he basically covers one major issue at a time, spread over several books. HIs staunch atheism no doubt puts some potential readers off.

Another good one is Sean Carroll's The Making of the Fittest.

Many of the so-called "mainline Protestant" denominations, and Catholicism as well, have accepted evolution, but I don't know if any have "embraced" it, as in the sense of active promotion. It seems that they consider evolution no longer to be a "big deal."

However, if we assume that the universe was created by God, it is not up to us to circumscribe what His methods were. He could do it however He wants. In particular, He could set up some chemical facts and just turn them loose to see what happens. This might just as well include evolution by natural selection!

There is not exactly a "paper trail" on this, but there is plenty of evidence to look at, and more accumulates every day. More and more fossils, including some transitionals; structural similarities among plant/animal types; DNA commonalities and overlaps; weird "design" features like vestigial structures, suboptimal "designs" like the recurrent laryngeal nerve, etc. Much of this is best explained as an evolutionary history.

There is no good evidence of "abracadabra magic." (Nor the Gary Larson cartoon of God rolling Play-Doh into snakes and thinking, "Boy, these things are easy.")

Unfortunately, there are large rump groups of religionists that would deny God the privilege of creating things in this way, and instead would cram His options into a box that has no evidence, and doesn't explain any hows and whys of anything. If there is a God, He ain't stupid, and surely He would condemn this kind of nonsense.

You need to get your head into the sunshine, get a genuine education, and get over it. Figure it out correctly; the condition of your very soul may just depend on it.

Nice thread, Kram.

This is from a hike along the Appalachian Trail where it traverses the Delaware Water Gap. Photo is taken on the Pennsylvania side, looking across into New Jersey. It was my 103rd birthday.

I like the shadows in this one, and the low angle of the winter sun.

Found this garter snake under a pile of leaves I was cleaning up a few years ago in the spring. He must have been over-wintering there and seemed pretty annoyed with me.

What did you use for the camera in the upper shot? Not only is the composure nice, but it looks like you nailed the exposure, too!

Thanks, AH. I don't remember what the setting was---that shot is probably 2 or 3 years old, taken with a Panasonic Lumix.

Cool! I like these kinds of pictures...........relaxing. To avoid the risk of sounding dumb, I'm not going to try to identify what's in the pictures.

And there's always deer about. Here's a brand new one with a yeti.

Maybe title that one: 'bears can play "A-Boo" too'

"...yes he is, son, and with his other paw, he's holding a beer"

Yahlasit

What Pennsylvania bears prefer.

^{_{Small gone?}}

Ah, Babies. Have a look were this one is hiding.

Sue,

I'm not usually a big fan of 'cute' -- but that is cute. Adorable even.

I'll raise you one cute baby bird against your spotted baby ungulate

ps itz a cardinal..........

That really is a wonderful photo. How did you coax the bird to come to you? Are you a bird whisperer? Is it part of your duck persona?

_{and I'd rather not see any photos of or recipes for poached passerine, thank yew.}

NOPE.........

A friend emailed this to me. Thought you might like it.

http://vimeo.com/20218520

Hey, Sue! That deer is cute but that girl is pretty more interesting!

different type of wildlife!

be very careful... you might get bit!

Hi Noudge---that's the yeti with the deer. They're pretty rare, grumpy, and partial to balut.

Oh comm'on! It's that you? really? your wife, or daughter or girlfriend, sister or neighbor someone like that?

all of the above

you're answer funny though. so I'll assume what's on my mind. I would hardly believe there are girls around here. But knowing "yes" there is. I'll be very careful with my comments now then. Generally, i thrown comments alot already which is tended for male correspondence, some serious and mostly stupid and there are insulting,. Sorry, I hope the girls will understand.

Oh, damn it. I admit, seeing some girls here is pretty amazing! Nice to see you miss!

I'll add a few more:

by our walkway:

We get some extraordinary sunsets:

A few days later:

Two chickadees on a snow-laden tree.

And an ice covered tree.

Impressionist Autumn:

May I?

Pileated woodpecker. They visit singly or in pairs on occasion.

That's a great shot! I have those too, but haven't been able to get a good picture. They're very elusive.

A mountaintop in Banff Alberta. Incredible views Banff is one of the most awesomest places ever! (but expensive) and has hot springs, shopping and great restaurants too.

Now here is a couple of specimens of an increasingly rare species... Teenagers (nephews) at the end of a 12 hour day of barnbuilding... with still enough energy (and balls) to show off! (beam balancing 12 feet up)

more banff... :)

Chris

Dogwood and snow.

These are all just great!! I could look at these endlessly! Keep going...

Human is part of nature, Visit here if you don't consider this as a promotion.

I declare war on promotion

Boracay, Philippines

Bohol, Philippines

Tasty Crabs

Enchanted River, Hinatuan Surigao Del Sur, Philippines

My friends enjoying nature

Never mind their stupidity, they are one with nature

If you retire, you are welcome to visit our place,if you like.

Ohhh, beautiful woman...We have many..

That is beautifull.

Fascinated by the photo you posted with the mounds. Are they volcanic in nature or some other geophysical force?

Nope they are not volcanic in nature, to best describe it see link below

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chocolate_Hills

Come see those here sometimes, you have a lot of places to go to and destinations are affordable.

Great !

Go Green ! Save the earth !

We'll able to take a picture in next 100 years

RHABE

Another.........and yes, I know the music that chicks dig.

That is a bodaciously big mantis.

This pic might be a good entry for the 'Caption This" section.

Playa Azul.....Blue Beach Viequez, PR

Australia over there

She is elegant but can be ruthless as well. The three coconut palms in front of my house or better whats left of them after the recent cyclone. This was taken on sunset the next day.

This is what is left of the end of our jetty. For more you can have a look here

Dear Friends Of Timber Jetties

Gotta go, Ky.

Couple of snaps from Cumbria:

Destructive nature: from post-Katrina New Orleans. The remains of one of my favorite lakefront restaurants, and the partially destroyed US Coast Guard station behind it to the left.