Blue Lion Blog

A Primate Primer - Part 1

2012-02-19T11:17:00.001-06:00

This post represents the beginning of an expansion of the scope of the Blue Lion Blog to include my work with biology education as well as my nature photography. Over the more than 20 years of teaching, I have had lots of parents express a desire to be able to visit my classes to learn some of the topics their children come home and talk about over the dinner table. In order to make this something of a reality, I have decided to take certain concepts and create short five to ten minute videos that can serve as introductions to topics that are not always covered in traditional biology classes. Over time, I hope to develop a wide range of these videos that can serve as a mini course for people who wish they knew more about science, but never has a positive science experience in school.

Initially, the choice of topics will relate to what I am teaching in class as these productions will serve my middle and high school students as well as the readers of the Blue Lion Blog. As such, the first "installment" deal with and introduction to primates as that is the topic of the coming week for my students as I prepare them to better understand human evolution.

Just click on the video to view it. I recommend clicking the "full screen" icon in the lower right to make the video larger. I look forward to your feedback!

The Monthly Blue Lion Photos Raffle

2012-01-28T10:20:00.000-06:00

Friends, Romans, Blue Lion Blog Readers,

Lend me your ears ..... This month marks the first drawing of Blue Lion Photos monthly raffle. In this FREE raffle you may enter to win YOUR CHOICE of any Blue Lion Photo as an 8 x 10 print. If you've ever wanted to a Blue Lion image for yourself or a loved one, this is your chance to get it totally free! All you need to do is to go to the entry widget at the bottom of this page and enter. You can also enter by going to the Blue Lion Photos Facebook Page.

Please feel free to share this widely with your friends in real life and online! I'll be drawing the winner on the 1st day of each month. Just remember, "You've gotta be in it to win it!"

GOOD LUCK!

Looking back on a smart move!

2012-01-12T18:56:00.000-06:00

Earlier this week I saw on CNN video of a young Australian woman who was visiting Victoria Falls on the Zambezi River at the Zambia/Zimbabwe boarder. On New Year's she decided to be adventurous and bungee jump from the Victoria Falls bridge which sits almost 400 feet above the river. Sadly, the bungee cord snapped and plunged her into the mighty currents of the Zambezi. Miraculously she survived with little more than some very nasty bruising but no broken bones! If you have not seen this video, I am posting it below.

Seeing this brought back memories of my trip with a friend to Southern Africa in 2006 which included a visit to Victoria Falls on my way to the Chobe River National Park in Botswana. As it was my friend's 50th birthday while we were there, he expressed a great interest to do the same bungee jump you saw above. Having a VERY healthy fear of falling from ridiculous heights, I declined his invitation to join him, but promised that I would dutifully record his deadly plunge into the Zambezi Canyon for his family.

To my surprise, he changed his mind overnight and greeted me at breakfast with the suggestion that we see teh falls from the air in a helicopter. Having never been in a chopper, I was more than game! Trying to ignore the safety risks of flying in a Zimbabwean helicopter, we had a fantastic ride and saw Victoria Falls in all its glory.

If you look to the right center of this photo you can see the bridge over the Zambezi Canyon and even see the small hut where the bungee jumping outfit operated.

Am I ever glad we chose the helicopter ride that day!

ZEN MONKEY

2012-01-07T09:04:00.000-06:00

With the holidays over and life returning to "normal", we can all take some time to sit back and reflect on things...... Just like this Chacma Baboon seems to be doing up in his tree.

"ZEN MONKEY"
Cape of Good Hope, South Africa

If you'd like to "reflect" on other cool critters....please visit Misty Dawn's Camera Critters Meme.

THE TOP TEN BLUE LION PHOTOS OF 2011 - THE WINNER!

2011-12-31T21:06:00.000-06:00

DRUMROLL PLEASE………………..

With many thanks to all of you who have been friendly and faithful followers of Blue Lion Photos this past year, I am proud to present you with this years most viewed image.

NUMBER 1: THREE OF A KIND.

These three baby bunnies were discovered by students at my school one morning as they were crossing the quad. The bunnies were “frozen” in their protective state and were easily gathered up by my middle school students who brought them to me with pleas to save them. Luckily, we found Mama Rabbit shortly afterward nervously seeking them. Since our school was undergoing significant construction at the time, the campus was no longer a safe haven for this family. In order assure a happier life for them, they were given to a friend with a ranch in East Texas where they are happy working at overpopulating the outskirts of Tyler, Texas.

I am genuinely grateful for all your visits and support. Looking ahead to 2012, I have many more images to share as well as looking toward expanding the offerings here to include more content related to helping educate people about nature and biology in a way that is very different from your stinky high school Bio class!

May the New Year bring you and your loved ones peace, prosperity, and great happiness!

CHEERS,

John

THE TOP TEN BLUE LION PHOTOS OF 2011 - Post 5 of 6

2011-12-30T18:49:00.004-06:00

NUMBER 2: “FOCUS”

The second most viewed Blue Lion Photo of 2011 was taken in Awendaw, South Carolina at one of my favorite places. The Center for Birds of Prey is an amazing organization that has rehabilitated close to 6000 raptors over the past 20 years as well as providing the Charleston, South Carolina area a world-class educational facility supporting these impressive birds.

“Focus” features a Tawny Eagle (Aquila rapax) which is an eagle that is found throughout African and Southern Asia. It is primarily a carrion feeder, although it will also take small reptiles and mammals up to rabbit size. Thankfully, Tawny Eagles are not threatened, and are rated as a “Least Concern” in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

Please return tomorrow to view the Final installment of this series where I will share the most popular Blue Lion Photo of 2011!

Previous Installments:

THE TOP TEN BLUE LION PHOTOS OF 2011 - Post 4 of 6

2011-12-29T15:54:00.002-06:00

Welcome to Installment 4 of the Top Ten most Viewed Blue Lion Photos of 2011. Today you get to see the 3^rd and 4^th most popular images of the year.

NUMBER 4: “Shark Bite”

This image is from one of my two visits to the South African town of Gansbaai. This town is world renowned for its shark diving and I was lucky enough to go out twice to see the Great White Sharks that encircle Seal Island. In the presence of these might fish, you truly understand their power, but you also appreciate they are NOT the man eating machine of movie lore.

NUMBER 3: “Popping Poppy”

What better sign of impending Spring than to see the prickly bud of a poppy actually pop! Those prickles help protect the nutritious bud from falling prey to winter starved herbivores while providing a fascinating dichotomy of harsh and thorny to beautiful and welcoming.

Please return tomorrow to view the fourth installment of this series where I will share the 2^nd most popular Blue Lion Photo of 2011!

Previous Installments:

Post #1

Post #2

Post #3

THE TOP TEN BLUE LION PHOTOS OF 2011 - Post 3 of 6

2011-12-28T17:57:00.001-06:00

Welcome to Installment 3 of the Top Ten most Viewed Blue Lion Photos of 2011. Today you get to see the 5^th and 6^th most popular images of the year.

NUMBER 6: “BeeBonnet”

This image of a bee pollinating a bluebonnet in Allen, Texas is one of my personal favorites as it evokes memories of one of my favorite, secret bluebonnet patches. I enjoyed many visits to this patch until I discovered the city of Allen recently built a “Hydropark” on this very spot. This coming spring I will just have to spend some extra time trying to discover another “secret” bluebonnet patch close to home!

NUMBER 5: “My ‘Bluebird’ of Happiness”

The most common statement I hear when people see this image is, “That’s not REAL is it?” Of course it is real. It’s a Lilac Breasted Roller I had the great fortune to shoot when I was in Botswana along the Chobe River. These beautiful birds are relatively common there, but that does not take away from their stunning coloration. I always love that this image helps to educate people about a creature they often never imagined could exist!

Please return tomorrow to view the third installment of this series where I will share the 3^rd and 4^h most popular Blue Lion Photos of 2011!

Previous Installments:

Post #1

Post #2

THE TOP TEN BLUE LION PHOTOS OF 2011 - Post 2 of 6

2011-12-27T20:31:00.001-06:00

Here in the second installment of the 2011 Blue Lion Photos Top Ten list, we have the 8^th and 7^th most viewed images from Blue Lion Photos.

NUMBER 8: “Buttonbush”

As a Biology teacher, I find a great deal of fascination in many aspects of nature. However, this flower is one of my all-time favorites. I enjoy it because it is so unusual in its shape and intricate detail. It also is an unusual flower in that it thrives at the most inhospitable time of the year – the dog days of summer in Texas (albeit in swampy locations).

NUMBER 7: “Eagle Pride”

I am always secretly pleased when people see this image and ask how I was able to capture BOTH the flag and eagle in the same shot. I then gave to confess that this is a compilation of two shots. I find pleasure in being able to have merged these two complementary subjects into one thematic piece. The greeting card version of this image has proven quite popular with both Veterans as well as friends who wanted to give a special gift for a Boy Scout who earns the rank of Eagle Scout. I am honored that folks would consider sharing my work with such worthy recipients.

Please return tomorrow to view the third installment of this series where I will share the 6^th and 5^th most popular Blue Lion Photos of 2011!

If you missed the first installment, please click HERE.

THE TOP TEN BLUE LION PHOTOS OF 2011 - Post 1 of 6

2011-12-26T18:48:00.001-06:00

Now that the rush of the Christmas season is over and I have some time to start reflecting on the year that has been 2011, I thought I’d share with you the most viewed images from the Blue Lion Photos website this past calendar year. A major aspect of this year has been the growth of members of the Blue Lion “Pride” from all over the globe. 2011 saw visitors from 108 different nations representing 2847 cities look at the posts here on the Blue Lion Blog.

In addition to the geography of those visitors, social media has given me four audiences. While there is overlap between them, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and Networked Blogs allow me to offer each audience a unique mix with the images I post to each platform. As such, different Blue Lion followers may have seen different combinations of the photos I am presenting here as the “Top 10” photos of 2011.

I shall be posting these images in pairs until I reach the top two. These will be presented individually, culminating on New Year’s Eve with The most viewed Blue Lion Photo of 2011.

NUMBER 10: “Pretty in Pink”

This Pink Flamingo was photographed at the Fort Worth Zoo. Their pink color is due to the presence of carotenoid pigments in their diet. These same pigments cause shrimp to turn pink when they are cooked. Flamingos living in areas without much carotenoid will have a much paler color.

NUMBER 9: "Artist Point at Yellowstone Falls"

This is the famous view of the Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River as seen from Artist Point on the rim of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Ansel Adams made this location famous when he photographed it in 1941. Back then, Ansel had the chance to get closer than park visitors can today, so modern takes are slightly different!

Come back tomorrow for the reveal of the 7^th & 8^th most viewed Blue Lion Photos of 2011.

Wild at Wingswood - Come Join Me!

2011-10-27T14:54:00.001-05:00

This weekend I am excited to be able to head to South Carolina to help out my good friends at the Center for Birds of Prey in Awendaw (near Charleston) as they hold their yearly fundraiser "Wild at Wingswood". For the second year in a row, the esteemed Jack Hanna will be on hand to lend his vibrance and passion to the proceedings. I am lucky to be able to attend and serve as photographer for the events this weekend. On Saturday (10/29) there will be a family event from 11:00 am until 2:00 pm that will allow nature lovers of all ages to get to see the Center's amazing raptors (birds of prey) in live flight demonstrations as well as a chance to meet the legendary Jack Hanna. For more details about attending click HERE.

Saturday night is the "Big Event", Wild at Wingswood which will feature live local music, amazing food from some of Charleston's top chefs, live flight demonstrations, as well as both live and silent auctions. I am honored to have two of my images featured in the auction. Blue Lion fans will recognize my image "Focus" from other blog posts - this is a Tawny Eagle I "shot" at the Center in 2010.

The second image that will be auctioned is one I took at the Center this past June. This is a very elegant Golden Eagle with a look that illustrates the intensity of all birds of prey.

If you happen to be in the Charleston area this weekend, I'd love to get to meet you and share this spectacular gem of a conservation organization with you! In 10 minutes from now I'm off to the airport to begin my journey to Awendaw!
CHEERS!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-22T13:36:00.000-05:00

I've been holding on to this image for a while waiting for the "right" time to share it with the world. While hiking along a dirt road last spring, I encountered this interesting/creepy/funny "face" that was looking back at me from the vertical part of the road cut. I have no way of knowing if it was a "natural" occurrence or if it was helped along by local people. I'm willing to go with the latter likelihood, but I still enjoy the quirkiness of it. As we're in Halloween "season", I could not resist sharing it!

Click in the image to view it in its original gallery

Turbulent Times

2011-10-15T13:55:00.001-05:00

Today's post takes me back to a very "turbulent" time of my life. Back in July of 2009, I was lucky enough to have the chance to fulfill a lifelong dream and visit New Zealand. I spent 3 weeks there. The first week was centered around my presentation at an educational conference on the North Island. The next two weeks were spent touring the South Island specifically to photograph some of the amazing scenery there. Several days of our trip were spent in and around the "Adventure Capital" of New Zealand, Queenstown. I spent little time in the town proper except to sleep as the great sights were away from the city center. I did happen to be in my hotel on the night of July 15th. At 9:22 pm, I was in my bed watching TV (we were planning a dawn photo shoot for 7/16!) when the turbulence started! At first my bed started to feel like a waterbed and then I heard the bottles and glasses in the mini bar start to jingle. As soon as I realized what was happening, I got up and opened the door of my 4th floor hotel room and stood there. The motion of the earthquake was a rolling one, and felt as if I was on a ship in rough seas. The scariest part for me was standing in the door and thinking that I did not want to "ride" the building down in case of a collapse, but I also did not want to be in the lobby area if there was a collapse. Of course, the quake was over before I had a chance to settle my potential "lose - lose" situation. Thankfully, there was no damage to the hotel and all returned to normal after a bit and my nerves settled.

Given the amazing level of connectedness we have, I knew within minutes of going online the location and magnitude of the earthquake. It was a 7.8 magnitude that struck 115 miles away from Queenstown in the Tasman Sea off of the coast of the New Zealand near Dusky Sound. (Click here for technical details). This quake was one of the top 4 most powerful earthquakes in the world that year!

Rosy fingers Dawn Over the Remarkables(Click the image to see it in the original Blue Lion Gallery)
The image you see here was taken the next morning from the shores of Lake Wakatipu. The mountains are called the "Remarkables" and host a large ski area on the back side. The morning was a very calm one which was a definite contrast to the excitement of the previous turbulent night!
Thankfully, the quake was remote enough that no people were injured and property damage was minimal. By comparison, the devastation of a smaller quake in an urban area can be extreme. The Haitian earthquake of January, 2010 measured "only" a 7.0 on the Richter Scale and the deadly Christchurch earthquake in February, 2011 was "only" a 6.3 on the Richter Scale. I know I remain grateful for the location of the Dusky Sound earthquake and also for New Zealand's strict building codes which dramatically reduce the damage of earthquakes.
I'm curious as to what earthquake experience my Blue Lion Blog readers may have had. Please feel free to share your experiences in the comment section below.

Minds work best when open!

2011-10-08T11:17:00.001-05:00

Today's post takes me in a slightly different direction. As a nature photographer, most of my images are meant to reflect the subject in as authentic and "as is" view as possible. Over the years I have tried to present here exactly what I originally saw through my lens. This reflects my science background and the need to "document" my observations, rather than to interpret them in an artistic way. Early on, I feel that my images were an extension of "data" rather than potentially something more expressive. As I have (hopefully!) grown as a photographer I "see" more when I am composing a shot and now consider a a wider range of composition choices before pressing the shutter button. I'm also more willing ( and hopefully able) to see an image that is technically a bit off and see another view of it so that it might have some artistic value.

This image of a cluster of Mexican Plum (Prunus mexicana) was one I liked, but since I had spontaneously shot it handheld on a breezy morning it was not as sharp as I would want. I liked the composition and the bokeh, but the softness of the flowers was just not acceptable. It was at this point that I started to see beyond the documentary photograph and began to envision it as something more impressionistic. As such, I embraced the "weakness"of the photograph and sought to enhance the softness and through some Photoshop filtering and layering. The result was surprising to me as it has a very painterly feel while preserving much of what I liked about the original photograph.

Click in the image to visit the original Blue Lion Photos gallery

As a person who feels that "Minds work best when open", I think this is a small example of an open mind being able to be flexible enough to see another interpretation that can be artistically pleasing. I would not expect to see all future Blue Lion Photos be impressionistic, but such a style is now another facet of the diamond of my particular experiences.

This REALLY is one of the "Good Guys"!

2011-10-01T10:50:00.002-05:00

This week in my biology classes, we were learning how to use microscopes and also did a research project that included seeing over 20 different species of single celled creatures and a few micro invertebrates. My love of nature and photography also extends to this "micro-world" as well. The samples we were able to view yielded a number of interesting subjects that the vast majority (99.999994%) of people have never seen nor heard of. As such I will occasionally share such videos here to hopefully allow you to participate in some of what I call "Micro Safaris"

Today's creature came from a sample of pond water at our school's tiny pond. At first I thought I saw a Paramecium dividing, but then the micro annelid (segmented worm) named Aeolosoma wandered into view both amazing and disturbing those who saw it's fascinating and grotesque (to some) movement.

As it turns out, Aeolosoma is a "good guy" that helps in the efficient breakdown of detritus (rotting gunk)on the bottom of ponds. It's presence in our pond sample is a sign of a healthy ecosystem.

Now that you know this - take a risk and try to "enjoy" your visit with Aeolosoma!

Please feel free to comment on this as I am especially interested in how people react to this unusual creature! Do you love it? despise it? curious about it? both amazed and yet repulsed? Share your thoughts! THANKS!

Samaras In The Mist

2011-09-27T20:47:00.001-05:00

For this week's Wordless Wednesday contribution....... Savor the silence of these "Samaras in the Mist"

South Island Skyline

2011-09-24T14:04:00.000-05:00

This image was from my magical trip to the South Island of New Zealand back in 2009. When I visited the town of Fox Glacier I had the fantastic chance to charter a helicopter for a hour at dusk to zoom over the tallest peaks of the Southern Alps as the last light of a winter day bathed the peaks in warm light. In order to better photograph, the doors were removed from the helicopter so that I would not have to shoot through plexiglass. Once I was strapped in, I got over the fear of falling out of the chopper at 13,000 feet! The real challenge was the -30 degree temperature at that altitude combined with the wind of the rotors-- I was terrified that I would drop my memory card from my near frozen fingers down to the snowfields 13,00 feet below! Thankfully, both I and the memory cards survived!

Nature's Rock Candy!

2011-09-17T13:34:00.000-05:00

As I was going through my images from earlier this summer from the butterfly garden at the Texas Discovery Gardens in Dallas, I noticed something I missed before. Initially I liked this image of a Tiger Longwing butterfly because of how it was perched "stilt legged" on this leaf.

Upon closer inspection, I noticed the proboscis looked "funny" and saw it was covered in sugar crystals! Given that this species of butterfly likes passion vines with deep, tubular flowers, it seems sensible that the proboscis would get a bit of sugar on it. In this case the nectar dried and the sugar crystals formed - in essence unintended rock candy!

Amoebic Endocytosis AKA "Amoeba Feeds!"

2011-09-10T16:01:00.000-05:00

Today's post adds a new feature to the Blue Lion Blog. In addition to traditional wildlife photography, the science geek in me has long enjoyed admiring the microscopic world through the lens of a microscope. The advent of affordable camera that can capture videos allow me to share some of my favorite ( and little known) microbes to those beyond the scope of my classes.

This video, titled "Amoebic Endocytosis" shows a single amoeba (about 1 mm across) feeding on the single celled flagellate, Chilomonas. The process of engulfing food like this is called endocytosis or phagocytosis.

ENJOY! There will be more of these videos to follow!

International Vulture Awareness Day.

2011-09-03T10:57:00.000-05:00

Today is International Vulture Awareness Day. Organizations that deal with birds of prey all over the world have chosen today as the day to push for spreading awareness of important role of vultures in the world's ecosystems. Throughout much of western culture, vultures have become the symbol of impending death. Their presence in the sky indicates to most of us that death has, or is about to occur. In addition to their reputation as bringers of death, the physical look of vultures does not enhance their lovability. Their generally bald heads give many of their species a particularly gruesome look. Because of their association with death and their less than cuddly appearance, vultures rarely receive much notice for the good they do for ecosystems. Indeed, the presence of vultures allows ecosystems to much more effectively recycle dead and decaying carcasses. Because of the speed with which vultures will dispose of most carcasses, the opportunity for the spread of infection and disease is greatly reduced. In addition, the efficiency of these impressive birds to locate carrion allows other smaller scavengers to key into those sources of food.

Today I share with you two vultures, one is very common in North America, the other common in Africa. In the United States, the two most common vultures are the Black vulture (Coragyps atratus) and the Turkey vulture (Cathartes aura). The image you see here is of a Black vulture taken during my last visit to the C enter for Birds of Prey. Unlike the Turkey vulture, the Black vulture does not possess a very keen sense of smell. As such, like vultures tend to locate their prey almost exclusively by site. They are also known to be very observant and will utilize Turkey vultures (and their sense of smell) to hone in on a new carcass. As such, they have become more assertive than the turkey vultures and will occasionally drive Turkey vultures away from a shared carcass. Like vultures are also known for being very quiet. Given that, black vultures lack a syrinx, the vocal organ of birds, they are unable to make more than a low grunting or hissing noise.

As you probably know, vultures tend to take advantage of road kill carcasses. He said byproduct of this behavior is that these generally large birds are often struck by vehicles because they cannot rise up away from a carcass in time to avoid oncoming vehicles. This fact results in them being among the most common birds of prey that are brought in for treatment at wildlife rehabilitation centers.

This next image is of the less familiar vulture to most of you here in North America. It is called a hooded vulture and is a vulture of African origin. Being an African vulture, it belongs to the group of vultures we refer to as old world vultures. The main difference between Old World vultures and New World vultures is that New World vultures have that keen sense of smell I mentioned before, whereas Old World vultures lack that keen sense of smell. The hooded vulture is one of the smaller vultures, but still possesses traditional vulture features. You can clearly see the curved tip to the peak useful for tearing flesh. You can also clearly see the bald head, which makes it more difficult for bacteria from carcasses to fester on the birds had. The hooded vulture is known as a very comfortable bird around humans. In many small African villages, these vultures are allowed to hop about in and out of huts helping to scavenge and keep thingsclean. Indeed, their scientific name, Necrosyrtes monachus, literally means “a monk-like (bird) that dragsaway the dead.”

And finally, for those of your who see vultures as just "ugly old birds", they can have a very cute look when they are chicks and just little bundles of downy feathers. This chick is a Lesser Yellow Headed Vulture.

The Stately Saddle Billed Stork

2011-08-23T20:27:00.002-05:00

The winner of the latest poll on the Blue Lion Photos Facebook Page was Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis, or the Saddle Billed Stork. This bird is the largest of the African Stork and is found widely throughout Sub Saharan Africa.

The Saddle Billed storks are most commonly found around open wetlands where they feed on fish less then a foot long. They will supplement their fish diet with crabs, shrimp, frogs, reptiles, small mammals, young birds, mollusks and large insects. The storks take advantage of trees near the lake shores to build their nests, which are usually deep and built from sticks gathered by the mating pair.

The pair mates near the end of the rainy season so that the chicks can fledge at the height of the dry season which allows them to find food when it is most highly concentrated in the shrinking pools and ponds.

I encountered this magnificent bird at the Fort Worth Zoo where they are part of an ongoing breeding program. The Ft. Worth Zoo claims to be one of only two zoos in the United States to breed these impressive birds.

Jackass - the Penguin

2011-07-30T10:14:00.000-05:00

Looking back through my archives I thought I'd share one of my favorite and most overlooked animals with you. On my trip to South Africa in 2006 I had the pleasure to visit the area around Capetown for two days. On one of those days I was able to tour the peninsula that ends in the famous Cape of Good Hope, the most southwesterly tip of Africa.

Along the was I stopped in the community of Simon's town (map). This old naval town is now known for the colony of Jackass penguins (Spheniscus demersus) that inhabit the protected Boulders Beach area. Given that Simon's Town is located at 34 degrees south latitude, I was initially surprised to find a permanent colony of penguins. Other than the penguins that inhabit the Galapagos Islands of the equator, these are one of the most northerly colonies of penguin.

The government of South Africa protects these unique birds as they are endemic (native only) to South Africa and Namibia and their population is in historical decline. Back in 1930 the population was estimated at over 1.2 million birds. By 2006, their numbers were less than 120,000. The cause of their decline is multifaceted, but the main factors seem to have been guano harvesting for fertilizer and egg harvesting. Since the early 1990's two oil spills along the South African coast (1994 & 2000) also impacted penguin populations.

In addition to their unique geography, their name instantly draws quizzical looks whenever you mention their name. The more "normal" name for these penguins is the African Penguin, but the name "jackass" penguin came about because when you encounter these characters they brey like donkeys. Even knowing this in advance, I found myself standing amongst them looking for donkeys! The sound is THAT realistic!

Here is a real donkey braying.............

Now listen to the Penguins from Boulders Beach......

If you were blindfolded, could you tell the difference?

Thanks for visiting and I hope you leave these birds with a smile on your face!

Poppypalooza

2011-07-25T17:36:00.001-05:00

One of my favorite types of flower is the poppy. They are such a great sign of springtime rebirth after the harshness of winter. In the midst of another day of 100+ degree temperatures here in Texas, I felt the need to let the poppies give the feeling of a more moderate season.

Clicking in any image will show it in the original Blue Lion Photos Gallery

Time to "Chill Out"!

2011-07-18T08:50:00.000-05:00

As the temperature here in North Texas has remained above 100 degrees F for the past two weeks, I find myself fantasizing about "chilly" temperatures in the 90's .... To help combat this focus on the relentless heat, I thought I'd share one of the (literally) coolest photos I've taken.

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery

This image transports you to an ice cave - you are peeking out through a keyhole opening that lets you see one of the peaks of New Zealand's Southern Alps. This particular ice cave was part of Fox Glacier. I had a wonderfully chilly time there hiking and exploring the glacier for several hours after being dropped off by helicopter.

Should you ever find yourself in the town of Fox Glacier, I STRONGLY recommend a visit to this sadly, shrinking wonder on New Zealand's South Island.

This image is a view of a partially melted ice tunnel that made up it to the surface of the glacier. Looks to me like a great frozen "Slip & Slide"!

Here you can see me "cooling off" in one of the smaller cracks (crevasses) in the glacier.

I hope your visit here has cooled you off at least a bit! For my southern hemisphere friends, Please bookmark this post & revisit it next January! ;-)

Under the Radar

2011-07-13T19:26:00.000-05:00

For this week's Wordless Wendnesday.

Under the Radar
Eurasian Eagle Owl (Bubo bubo)
Center for Birds of Prey, Awendaw, SC

Click in the image to view it in the original gallery.

Where have all the chicks gone?

2011-07-09T10:44:00.000-05:00

This past week I wandered by a Wax Myrtle tree that housed a family of Downy Woodpeckers back in the spring of 2010. As I showed the abandoned nest to some of the Nature Photography campers, I wondered where the little chicks are now. Of course there is no way to know for certain with those chicks, but I do hold out hope we may get others to revisit this coming spring. In the meantime, here are some shots of the cute little chicks before they fledged.

As always, clicking in an image will take you to the original gallery

A Bevy of Beautiful Butterflies!

2011-07-03T21:34:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I had the pleasure to spend several hours visiting the Texas Discovery Gardens at Fair Park in Dallas. I am ashamed to say after all my years in Dallas, I had never visited the TDG. They have the Rosine Smith Sammons Butterfly House which is a 2 story glass enclosed structure that allows you to see butterflies both on ground level and up at canopy level. They receive new shipments of butterflies daily, so there is a constantly changing diversity of butterflies and moths there. Below are a few of my favorite images from yesterday. I can tell I'll be visiting there often in the future!

Remember you can click on any of the images to see them in their original galleries!

Feel free to visit the good folks who share at Camera Critters and Macro Monday!

Orange Banded Butterfly Portrait

Orange Banded Butterfly

Doris Longwing Butterfly

Doris Longwing Butterfly Peeking over a leaf. (Look closely at the eyes!)

Julia Longwing Butterfly

Happy 4th of July!

2011-07-02T08:13:00.001-05:00

As a nature photographer who also has enjoys photographing flags, I thought I'd post some of my American Flag themed composites to celebrate the 4th of July. I often like to take flag photos and convert them into textures which can then serve as backgrounds which can help "rescue" other images that have faults - I can then extract a critical part of the "flawed" image and salvage it with a flag background.

The US Flag flying at the entrance to Fort Sumpter National Monument - This year marks the 150th anniversary (sesquicentennial) of the shelling of the fort that began the US Civil War.

The Statue of Liberty against a textured flag that I took which flies in the plaza around her pedestal. The sky was a mottled grey cloudy mess that day, so the flag served as a much better background.

President George Washington's statue which stands in front of Federal Hall in New York City. Federal Hall is where Washington took his first Oath of Office as President in 1789. The background of the original image was littered with tourists so I extracted the statue and placed him before a flag I textured as if it were a mural on a brick wall.

This composite came about because the background behind the two captive eagles was very distracting and blown out. I used two layers, a forest silhouette and a textured flag and placed the eagles on their perch in the foreground to create a theme of American Wilderness.

Thanks for sharing your time here today, I hope you have an enjoyable Fourth!

Red Spotted Purple Butterfly Portrait

2011-06-28T18:04:00.000-05:00

For this week's Wordless Wednesday - A Red spotted Purple Butterfly taken while I spent a fantastic afternoon at "Whispering Wings" at Brookgreen Gardens in Murrell's Inlet, South Carolina last week.
ENJOY!

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery

NOT a Rolling Stone

2011-06-07T20:02:00.000-05:00

For this week's Wordless Wednesday Meme......

"Not A Rolling Stone"

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery

My Favorite Summer Flower

2011-06-03T12:14:00.001-05:00

As we prepare to enter the heat of the summer months here in Texas, many folks know that we will lose the beauty of all the amazing spring blossoms that make so much of the Texas landscape appealing. Indeed the floral options during the dog days of summer are pretty minimal given the heat throughout most of the state. However the is one flower that blooms in the heat of Texas summers that is so unusual I just have to share it with you here. By sharing it early in summer season perhaps some of you may be inspired to go out and seek it for yourselves! This special blossom is called Buttonbush and it blooms from June to August in relatively moist areas (think lakeshores, marshes, riverbanks). After bloomimng the flowers dry up and leave a ping pong ball sized seedpod that disperses seeds in late summer/early fall.

Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis)

As you may be able to tell from the tubular nature of the individual flowers, these are very popular with butterflies as a nectar source. Because of the bushy nature of the plant they bloom on (from 2 feet tall to over 15 feet tall) they often serve as cover for waterfowl along lake margins. Enjoy this quirky flower, I hopeyou encounter your own! What are your favorite summertime wildflowers?

Feel free to visit Macro Flower Saturday ; Today's Flowers ; Flowers on Saturday; Macro Monday

BPRC - Red Tailed Hawks

2011-05-28T11:18:00.000-05:00

Last weekend I had the great pleasure to visit the Blackland Prairie Raptor Center on the shores of Lake Lavon just east of Plano, Texas. I had the privilege of meeting 11 birds of prey which I will share here on the Blue Lion Blog over time. Each of the BPRC's educations birds are unable to survive in the wild due to either physical or behavioral issues that would prevent their adaptation to a wild state.The first installment features the Red Tailed Hawk. These are the largest hawks we have in North Texas and are a common sight in our skies. Because of their wide distribution in North America, you (assuming you're in North America!) you are probably familiar with them. To learn more about these great birds, I strongly recommend Cornell University's Ornithology Lab as a fundamental resource regarding birds.

I hope you enjoyed these great raptors.... also feel free to visit Camera Critters for a wealth of other animals!

Thoughts on an Eagle's Eye.....

2011-05-21T11:54:00.001-05:00

After having a great morning at the Blackland Prairie Raptor Center (BPRC) here in North Texas, I thought I'd share an image that I talked about with fellow photographers at the BPRC today.

In particular, we were discussing the fact that owls have small feathers on their eyelids and the discussion got around to the additional fact that many birds also posses a nictitating membrane which serves as a "middle" eyelid that allows the bird to blink without having to move the larger outer eyelid. The nictitating membrane allows most birds to blink but lets them to retain their vision as the membrane is usually semi-transparent. This membrane also moves differently from the usual eyelid as it closes horizontally over the eye rather than vertically. Occasionally when photographing birds, you may capture this nictitating membrane in mid blink and it creates a most interesting view as you see here. In this image I think the eagle looks like it could be a character out of the X - Men comics and movies.

Tawny eagle with nictitating membrane in place.

Here's an image of the same Tawny Eagle moments later....

By the way, you do not posses a nictitating membrane, but the corner of your eye next to your nose does have the remnants of an vestigial nictitating membrane called the plica semilunaris. To see other interesting animal postings, visit Camera Critters!

Beautiful Indian Blankets

2011-05-14T17:48:00.000-05:00

I was very pleased earlier this week to discover a field of one of my very favorite native Texas wildflowers growing less than a mile from my house! Once the weather and wind cooperated I was able to get out today and shoot some of theseWonderful flowers. They go by several names, the most popular of which are Firewheels, Indian Blankets, and Sundance flower. the scientific name is Gaillardia pulchella . The genus name is in honor of a French legislator who was a patron of 17th centrury botanical research, Gaillard de Charentonneu.

The name Indan Blanket cones from a Native American legend that a weaver wanted to honor the Great Spirit by weaving a blanket that had all the colors of the sunset. Upon his death, he asked to be buried in his masterpeice so that he could present it to the Great Spirit in the Afterlife. As recogition of the gift, the Great Spirit covered the plains in this flower.

This flower was significant to the Aztecs as well, but for a vastly different reason. Their story of the creation of this flower was that it was originally pure yellow. However, once the Conquistator Cortes spilled the blood of the Aztec people, the center of these flowers became stained red.

This widely distributed flower is found as a spring bloom in much of the south & southwest and a fall bloom farther north. It prefers full sun and dry soils. Gardeners compalin that if you water it "enough" it does very poorly. As such it's a great choice for a garden trying to conserve water!

Happy Mother's Day

2011-05-06T09:54:00.001-05:00

During this spring season of rebirth and growth, we take a day to recognize and celebrate those women in our lives who play such a pivotal role in the outcome of each of our lives. From the nausea, cravings, and discomfort of the miracle of pregnancy and childbirth to the sleep deprived nights of infancy to the hyper vigilance of the active toddler years through the terrible twos (and Threes!) and teaching us how to be more self sufficient as we grew from childhood into the mazes of the tween and teen landscapes. From friendly advice to heartfelt admonitions, to some extra cash when the account was low, our mothers have each shared of themselves in a myriad of ways (blood sweat and tears) that has molded us into the successes we are today.

Moms are there to listen to our trials and tribulations.

Moms teach us to share

Moms teach us that beauty is more than skin deep!

Moms help take the sting out of life's unpleasantries

Moms give us the freedom learn things on our own...

but they are there to carry us when we get overwhelmed!

Moms help show us the right paths in life.

Moms stand by us even when we are big enough to think we know better ;-)

To all the MOMS of the world, you have the EVERLASTING LOVE of your sons and daughters!

In short Mom, You're ONE OF A KIND!

PS - feel free to send this to a special MOM in your life to let her know you appreciate all she's done for you.

And Justice was Served....

2011-05-03T20:50:00.000-05:00

To honor the work of the brave soldiers who helped bring Osama Bin Laden to justice.

No more needs to be said.

Click in the images to see either in their original gallery

Visit Wordless Wednesday for more non-verbose offerings....

Nature's Fury

2011-04-28T14:36:00.000-05:00

This week across the United States has been an amazing week for severe weather. Twice in the past few days North Texas has had brushes with severe weather in the form of high winds, hail and multiple tornadoes. Luckily for me, our town of Allen missed out on the worst of it, but we did have a stunning display of one of Mother Nature's greatest predictors of severe weather. These photos show the mammatus clouds that formed over much of North Texas on Monday afternoon in advance of an outbreak of severe weather. These clouds frequently serves as advance warning of a severe thunderstorm before it actually arrives.

The one thing these images do not convey is the sense of motion that occurs with these systems. In the span of only a few minutes the lobes of these mammatus will shift and change. This gives the atmosphere a feeling that it is "boiling" in advance of potentially "apocalyptic" storms.

Click in any of the images to see it in the original gallery.

I hope you avoided this week's nasty weather and can enjoy these images from the safety your computer!

EASTER BUNNIES!

2011-04-23T11:39:00.002-05:00

To everyone celebrating the Easter Holiday here's one of my favorite images. It's titled "Three of a Kind" for obvious reasons. These three bunnies were discovered by some of my students hunkered down in the quadrangle of our school during the midst of a construction project which had disturbed their nest. Thankfully, Mama Rabbit was found a few hours later and the whole brood was able to relocate via the "Bunny Protection Program" to a ranch in East Texas to live out their lapin dreams.

I hope your Easter weekend is filled with many joys - Our newest joy is the addition of a new Scottie Dog yesterday to help fill the void left by the passing of our 16 year old German Shepard mix, Cassie. Our current Scottie, Rumpus, is adjusting to life with his new (and very active!) housemate we've named Mr. Bumbles.

Click to view this image in the original gallery

SHARPTOOTH!

2011-04-19T19:55:00.002-05:00

This week's Wordless Wednesday & Camera Critters post rather speaks for itself ... :)

"Raggie"

Sand Tiger Shark

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery

Nature's Nice Surprise!

2011-04-14T13:42:00.001-05:00

Here in North Texas we are being pleasantly surprised with a very good local crop of wildflowers. Late winter predictions were pretty dismal as we are dealing with a profound drought throughout much of the state this year.However, it seems the the area around Ennis, Texas is having a stellar year, and this year's month long Bluebonnet Festival is a rousing success. I have been there the past two weekends to shoot this year's carpets of bluebonnets (lupines for you out of staters!) and Indian paintbrushes and the views have been very rewarding. I 'm heading back on Saturday to see the downtown area fully decked out for the actual festival events and to shoot some areas that were not quite in prime form last weekend. If you are within a day's drive of Ennis, I strongly recommend you visit in the next two weeks! You will not be disappointed! You can use the Bluebonnet Festival link above for detailed directions from the folks in charge of things in Ennis!

Click in any image to see it in the original gallery

Visit Skywatch Friday for more stellar skies!

Moaning Jaguar

2011-04-13T09:13:00.000-05:00

On this WORDLESS WEDNESDAY, I'll let this Jaguar do the talking!

Click in either image to view in the original gallery

Oxbow Sunset

2011-04-07T15:45:00.001-05:00

This week's SKYWATCH FRIDAY / SCENIC SUNDAY post takes me back to Grand Teton National Park and the oft visited Oxbow Bend observation point. This view looks toward the massive Mt. Moran across the Snake River. On this night late in June, I was luck enough to capture the brilliance of sunset on the fleeting clouds. The richness of the color was due in part to the presence of smoke in the atmosphere from California wildfires that had been burning the few days prior.

Oxbow Sunset

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery

A (digital) Floral Bouquet

2011-04-05T19:48:00.000-05:00

Here's this week's post for WORDLESS WEDNESDAY. Click the image to view.......

ENJOY!

Wandering along the Bluebonnet Trail

2011-04-04T07:17:00.000-05:00

Bluebonnet Carpet

Bluebonnet Pond

One of a Kind

Don't Fence Me In

Springtime Palette

Click in any image to see it in the original gallery

Enjoy more floral fun at TODAY'S FLOWERS

This was a small slice of MY WORLD

This weekend I had the great pleasure of visiting the town of Ennis, Texas. Enis is the home of the Ennis Bluebonnet Festival and the Bluebonnet Trail. This celebration of the blooming of the State Flower of Texas lasts for the entire month of April and they have been lucky to have a great crop of flowers on hand to start off the month. According to all predictions, the drought we've seen here in north and central Texas was supposed to really put a downer on this year's crop of bluebonnets, but if this weekend is any indication, the season looks to be pretty healthy! On this first weekend of the festival, the crowds were small and the roads that make up the "trail" were well marked. I strongly recommend visiting the website for the festival and getting an up to date map with current conditions and specific areas with the best blooms as these will change throughout the month. Enjoy my sampling of this weekend's Texas Color. I may well return there nest weekend!

I Too Have Shot Elephants!

2011-04-02T20:45:00.000-05:00

With all the furor over Go Daddy's CEO Bob Parsons internet video posting of his Zimbabwean elephant hunt, I thought I'd use this week's Camera Critters post to share images from the two chances I had to "shoot" elephants. Like Mr. Parsons, I am proud of my "shooting" of these amazing animals. Since my interaction and observation of them in the wild has allowed me to be able to better educate my students and others about the lives the stunning animals lead. Unlike Mr. Parsons, my "shooting" resulted in no harm to any of these animals.
My first chance to see elephants in the wild was in Botswana at the Chobe National Park in July,2006. Chobe is known for its amazing concentration of wild elephants which is supposed to be the highest in the world. These images were taken either in or close to the Chobe River.

Mother & Child

Young Poser

Savannah Sojourn

My second interaction with wild elephants was during my 2007 visit to Madikwe Game Preserve in South Africa. These images were taken when two local elephants wandered out of the bush & join us at lunch for a "drink". I am more than happy that I did not have to pay their bar tab! The lodge's pool is a frequent stop for these elephants who have learned it is a reliable and clean water source.

Elephant Cocktail

Enjoying a Drink

Trunk Rest

A final note on the last images. Watching this elephant, I learned that elephants, like people, are either "right tusked" or "left tusked". As such, wild elephants will rest their trunk on the preferred trunk and will also use that side for a greater degree of their daily tasks. This partially explains why most elephants have one tusk that is more worn down than the other. As you might expect, the difference is accentuated with age and greater wear.

Wyoming Skies

2011-03-31T13:06:00.001-05:00

One of my favorite spots on earth is the northwest corner of Wyoming where you'll find two gems of the US National Park System. Both Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks offer the visitor a tremendous wealth of stunning sights from the waters of their lakes and rivers to the brilliant colors to be found in the skies from dawn through dusk. This week's SKYWATCH FRIDAY & SCENIC SUNDAY post is a view of the godlight at sunset from my perch up on Mount Washington looking toward the west in Yellowstone National Park.

Wyoming Godlight ~ Yellowstone National Park

This week's second image is taken from the banks of the Snake River in Grand Teton National Park looking up at the early morning light kissing the peak of Grand Teton Peak.

Teton Dawn ~ Grand Teton National Park

Click in either image to view in their original gallery

Signs of Spring!

2011-03-29T08:45:00.001-05:00

Ahhh.... Spring is truly arriving here in North Texas. I'll allow Mother Nature to share her show with you - She speaks far more eloquently than I ever can!

White Throated Sparrow

Purple Wing Violas

Dark Eyed Junco

Click in each image to see it in the original Blue Lion Gallery

Enjoy Visions of other places through MY WORLD

A place where images do the talking- WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

More Feathered friends? Try WORLD BIRD WEDNESDAY

Fabulous Floral Fun? TODAY'S FLOWERS

Kaikoura Skies: A natural fireworks show!

2011-03-24T17:44:00.001-05:00

During my 2009 visit to the South Island of New Zealand I had the great pleasure to spend time in the fishing town of Kaikoura on the northeast coast. Kaikoura is a very unique place in the world as it has vistas of the ocean and snow capped mountains from the shore. During my short visit there I was able to see sperm whales, huge "crayfish" (what we in the United States call spiny lobsters), fur seals, and some of the most amazing dawn & dusk skies I've ever seen!

As part of the Skywatch Friday and Scenic Sunday memes, I'm sharing two of my favorites image from Kaikoura.

The first image is a dawn image looking out toward the Pacific Ocean from the rocky beach.

Kaikoura Dawn

The second image comes from the same beach and is a shot that I had missed the previous morning so I set up to get it at just the right moment as the sun burst above the horizon and between the craggy rocks.

Starburst

Click in either image to see it in the original gallery

Spring has Sprung! (Finally!)

2011-03-21T20:38:00.001-05:00

Yesterday we took my daughter back to college after her spring break and spent almost 8 hours on I-35 between Dallas and Austin, Texas. We were sitting in the car at 4:22 pm local time when the moment of the Vernal Equinox passed. While the scenery along the interstate was less than inspiring, we did pass by a patch of our beloved state flower, the Texas Bluebonnet which reminded me that there is indeed a lot to look forward to here in Texas come springtime. The expectation for this year's crop of wild bluebonnets is not good as we had a relatively dry autumn, a ridiculously cold winter, and a drought stricken last two months.

In hope that there are good bluebonnet images to be had this spring I am posting these from last year in the hopes that those of you not fortunate enough to bein Texas during the early spring can enjoy a bit of Texas in far away lands!

Bluebonnet Hill

Bluebonnet Sky

Beebonnet

Click in any of the images to view it in the original gallery.

This is a post to the MY WORLD Meme

Pretend you did not read my words above and this qualifies for WORDLESS WEDNESDAY ;-)

If you like more flowers, visit TODAY'S FLOWERS

Busy as Bees!

2011-03-19T12:40:00.002-05:00

Today's post was inspired by my friend, Mark Moffett's extraordinary photo spread of exotic pollinating creatures in the March Issue of National Geographic. On my visit to the Dallas Arboretum for their "Dallas Blooms" event, I was able to spend time with my current favorite flower, the Iceland Poppy (Papaver nudicaule). As this is the weekend of the Vernal Equinox, I wanted to share the recent images of Iceland poppies and their pollination.

Preparing to Pop

Click in any of the images to see them in their original gallery!

Interested in Pollinator? Visit the Pollinator Partnership- They do great work!

Visit Macro Flowers Saturday or Flowers on Saturday for more bloomin' fun!

Also see the fun at TODAY'S FLOWERS & MACRO MONDAY.

"Remarkable" Dawn

2011-03-17T11:31:00.001-05:00

Today's post is of dawn over the Remarkables mountain range just outside of Queenstown New Zealand. The image was taken on my last morning in Queenstown and came after a rather sleepless night as we had just experienced the effects of the word's strongest earthquake of 2009.

The night before, I was in bed in my hotel just before 8:30 pm (had to be up well before dawn to get this shot you see here!) and heard the glassware in the mini bar start to jingle and then the bed started to quiver ( the bed was NOT equipped with "Magic Fingers"!). I realized we were having an earthquake and stood in the door as "protection". I was on the 4th floor of my hotel and could definitely feel the building swaying. I remember thinking the whole building was going to collapse. Was I better off to be up that high or to try to so down the stairs to the street? I recall not liking the results of either scenario! Of course the quake did not last long ( about 70 seconds by most accounts). The quake epicenter was centered about 136 miles from my hotel and was later determined to be a 7.8 on the Richter Scale followed by a 6.1 aftershock. Because of my distance from the epicenter it was estimated that Queenstown experienced the equivalent of a 5.8 quake. Still pretty scary I have to say! Thankfully there was minimal damage caused by this quake because the southern tip of NZ's South Island is sparsely populated and the building codes there are superb due to the natural seismic activity there. HERE is the BBC's reporting of this earthquake.

The next morning was a cold, crisp morning and we headed out to the shores of Lake Wakatipu to set up in the predawn for what we hoped would be a brilliant sunrise. The earliest light did not have much in the sky to work with, but the clouds you see were nice enough to drift in and color up nicely to give this rosy warm glow right over the Remarkables.After happily shooting this scene, we headed further north to spend a few days near Aoraki/Mt. Cook to photograph New Zealand's tallest peak. Click HERE to see my recent post of LAST LIGHT on that magnificent peak.

Rosy Fingered Dawn Over the Remarkables

Lake Wakatipu, New Zealand

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery.

Enjoy more great images by visiting SKYWATCH FRIDAY and SCENIC SUNDAY!

A Visit from our Local Cooper's Hawk

2011-03-15T20:30:00.000-05:00

The Highly efficient visit of our neighborhood Cooper's Hawk last autumn.He was yet to read "To Kill A Mockingbird".

Click in any image to see it in the original gallery.

This is a post to WORDLESS WEDNESDAY, WORLD BIRD WEDNESDAY, & CAMERA CRITTERS.

Mexican Plum Blossoms...Welcome Springtime!

2011-03-13T18:59:00.001-05:00

For this week's MACRO MONDAY post I am sharing my most recent shots. On Friday morning, I put my macro lens through the paces as the Mexican Plum (Prunus mexicana) tree near my office was in full & glorious bloom. These blossoms were so inviting and the vernal equinox was so close, I just HAD to take advantage of the opportunity Mother Nature provided. I especially like how the anthers of these blossoms reach out from the center of the blossom in a gangly way.

Click in either image to see it in the original gallery.

Feel free to visit TODAY'S FLOWERS for other floral delights!

Macro Monday Mystery -- The Answer!

2011-03-13T09:31:00.002-05:00

Last week I posted this image as a Mystery shot. And many of you guessed its identity. As promised, here is the great "reveal" of its true nature!

I really enjoyed the range of guesses and second guesses that everyone put into this! The image was taken at the Fort Worth Zoo and I cropped my not so great image of a zebra down to a more interesting view of the "pseudo symmetrical" pattern along his spine. All of your who guessed Zebra were indeed correct. and those of you who were afraid it was a shot of an animal rug need not worry as the zebra is very much alive and well. Interestingly, I will be enlarging the image and using it as if it were an animal skin hanging on a wall in our guest bedroom to go along with a similar image of a (living) giraffe's skin that I took elsewhere. Thanks for all your participation.!

Zambezi Sunset

2011-03-10T20:29:00.002-06:00

Zambezi Sunset

This week's Skywatch Friday & Scenic Sunday post comes from my 2006 visit to Southern Africa. I was lucky enough to be able to present at a conference in Johannesburg, South Africa that June. To make good use of the long trip and to live out a lifelong dream, I booked two safaris. The first was at Ngala Private Game reserve adjacent to Kruger National Park. The second was in Botswana at the Chobe National Park. The trip from Ngala to Chobe entailed a two-day stay in the town of Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. As the name suggests, this is where the mighty Zambezi River falls more than 360 feet (more than double the height of Niagara Falls) into the Zambezi River Gorge. The falls is also more than a mile wide at this point. The evening before I kayaked the rapids of the lower portion of the Gorge, I was able to enjoy a sunset cruise on a flat-bottomed barge on the Zambezi just above Victoria Falls. Lucky, it was the dry season and we were treated to a stunning, cloud free sunset in addition to sightings of crocodiles and hippos.

Enjoy your view of one of Africa wildest rivers!

Click in the image for to see it in the original gallery

PS - several of you have already emailed and asked about any images I have of the Victoria Falls. Due to the mist that the the Falls kick up (the locals call Victoria Falls - "The Smoke that Thunders") it is tough to get a good view if the Falls from the land based viewing spots. As such I took one of the local helicopter rides to see the Falls from above. The images are not great as I felt like I was holding on for dear life as we sharply banked over the Falls.

Click in either image for a higher resolution version

Seeking a caption....

2011-03-08T17:40:00.001-06:00

It's Wordless Wednesday and this shot needs no words! (But feel free to suggest a caption that I might want to use on "non wordless" days!)

Click in image to view in the original gallery

A Macro Monday Mystery

2011-03-06T19:00:00.003-06:00

In honor of Macro Monday I am posting this macro shot for you to ponder. What is it? And to what does it belong? Feel free to share your guesses in the comments. I'll post the answer next Sunday!

The ANSWER is now posted...click HERE to see the reveal!

LAST LIGHT

2011-03-02T19:30:00.003-06:00

Last Light on Aoraki/ Mt. Cook

Southern Alps, New Zealand

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A post to WORDLESS WEDNESDAY, SKYWATCH FRIDAY, and SCENIC SUNDAY

A real life "Spring Beauty"

2011-02-27T19:27:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I had the fun of visiting Helen Lee's Daffodil Garden near Gladewater Texas to see and shoot daffodils. One of the great surprises of the day was getting to see a flower I had long overlooked. This is the very small blossom of Virginia Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica). This plant is an early spring bloomer throughout most of North America. It is often one of the earliest signs of spring. I also learned that the coal miners of Appalachia refer to it as "Miner's Lettuce" as it was often used in hand picked salads.

Virginia Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica)

Click in the image to view it in the original gallery

Virginia Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica)

Click in the image to view it in the original gallery

Enjoy other Macro shots at MACRO MONDAY!
Looking for more floral images? Try MACRO FLOWERS SATURDAY.
Feel free to visit TODAY'S FLOWERS as well.

Preposterous & Pink!

2011-02-25T22:17:00.000-06:00

On a visit to the Fort Worth Zoo last week I spent some time really watching the flamingos. The more I watched them and zoomed in on them with my 400 mm lens the more preposterous they seemed to become. After sifting the water for food, they would raise their heads up and always seemed to have a perplexed look as if they were startled that the world was still there all around them. I was particularly taken by the beads of water than remained on their feather. I think these add a nice touch to this image.

Their bill is also a bit on the preposterous side as it seems so awkward up close. It also appears more leathery than I ever expected.

Oh, in case you did not notice, they are preposterously pink in color as well ! This is a result of their diet and the fact that they extract the pigment beta carotene (among others) from the microbes and zooplankton they sieve from the water. These pigments are then added to the growing feathers. A young flamingo appears grey until it has eaten enough to begin to turn its plumage pink.

Pink Flamingo

Ft. Worth Zoo

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery.

For more cool animals...visit the CAMERA CRITTERS meme!

Thoughts & Prayers for our Kiwi Brothers & Sisters....

2011-02-22T17:46:00.003-06:00

In honor of those impacted by this week's devastating earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand. A view of New Zealand's tallest Peak, Mt Cook (Aoraki) reflected in the Tasman River.

Mt Cook (Aoraki) reflected in the Tasman River

Click in image to see it in the original gallery.

Enjoy other relatively "wordless" images at WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

Have an urge to see the wide open skies? Try SKYWATCH FRIDAY
SCENIC SUNDAY has lots of great landscapes to savor!

I also had to include this in WEEKEND REFLECTIONS

Beebonnet

2011-02-19T07:44:00.002-06:00

Last year I was lucky enough to get word of a small (several acre) patch of bluebonnets just a couple miles from my home here in in North Texas. I spent portions of several days visiting this patch hoping to get some good landscapes of these iconic Texas flowers (bluebonnets are the state flower of Texas and Texans are rightly proud of this!) I was successful at composing some pleasing landscapes, but I also was able to get a few good macro shots of individual blossoms. This image, titled "Beebonnet" is my favorite of the bunch as the bee was a most willing and cooperative "model"!

Beebonnet

Allen, Texas

Click in image to see it in the original gallery

Enjoy other fun animals at the CAMERA CRITTERS meme
Getinto a Blue mood at BLUE MONDAY.

MACRO FLOWERS SATURDAY & FLOWERS ON SATURDAY are also a great places to get your "floral fix"!

Want more Macros? Give MACRO MONDAY a try.

The Fires of Mordor

2011-02-17T17:35:00.003-06:00

I took this image near Queenstown, New Zealand looking across Lake Wakatipu toward the Remarkables mountain range. The sky was not looking favorable for much of a sunset shot and then a break in the clouds allowed me to see the front of the Remarkables bathed in the last light sandwiched between the lower clouds and a fog bank just above the lake surface. I named this shot "The Fires of Mordor" as it had the foreboding feeling straight out of the Lord of the Rings books.

The Fires of Mordor

Queenstown, New Zealand

Click in the image to view in the original gallery.

Visit SKYWATCH FRIDAY for more brilliant skies!

SCENIC SUNDAY also has a wealth of beautiful landscapes!

FOCUS

2011-02-15T20:06:00.003-06:00

"FOCUS"

Tawny Eagle

Center for Birds of Prey, Awendaw, South Carolina

Enjoy WORDLESS WEDNESDAY posts by clicking on the link.
Pay a visit to WORLD BIRD WEDNESDAY

A Splash of Winter Color

2011-02-12T08:26:00.000-06:00

The past two weeks in North Texas have been unusually cold and wintry with plenty of snow and ice for us. Over the first eight school days of February, our students only went to school for 3 of them -- unheard of here in Texas! The cold weather also put the natural world to sleep here as we had the coldest temperatures this area has seem in 20 years with night time temperatures down to 9 degrees F with windchills below zero! I was very lucky to have the pleasure of several cardinals visit our yard to grab a nutritious snack in the midst of the brutal cold.

Lady Cardinal

Click in the image to visit in the original gallery.

Male Cardinal Perched in our Globe Willow Tree

Click in the image to visit in the original gallery.

Please visit some of the other CAMERA CRITTERS posts this week!

Teton Twilight - An Ode to Maxfield Parrish

2011-02-10T17:39:00.002-06:00

Even as a kid I really enjoyed the look of Maxfield Parrish's work. He seemed to always find the perfect hue of blue to supplement the mood of whatever piece he was creating. I am especially keen on his tones of cobalt blue.... this twilight silhouette makes me feel that I captured some of his spirit as I clicked the shutter here.

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery.

See some other SKYWATCH FRIDAY Images.

Enjoy a peek at this week's SCENIC SUNDAY Collection.
This is also part of the WEEKEND REFLECTION series.

Visions of Spring......

2011-02-08T18:58:00.007-06:00

This week's WORDLESS WEDNESDAY post.... click the link to see other wordless offerings....

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery.

TODAY'S FLOWERS has lots of other floral images!
MACRO FLOWERS SATURDAY & FLOWERS ON SATURDAY are also a great places to get your "floral fix"!
Visit OUTDOOR WEDNESDAY for still more great ourdoorsy pics!
Enjoy MACRO MONDAY for some smallscale fun!

Urquhart Castle - Loch Ness

2011-02-06T01:14:00.002-06:00

Today's post in honor of Scenic Sunday & My World is from a trip I took to Scotland. Urquhart Castle dates from the 13th century and it's ruins are one of the most visited sites in all of Scotland. This is probably due (in part) to the fact that it is located on the shore of Loch Ness and most of the "Nessie" sightings have been within a mile or so of this castle. The local folks we chatted with were of the opinion that "Nessie" was most likely a large Sturgeon. That theory does not get much press as it would not be good for tourism! I hope you enjoy your short visit to medieval Scotland!

As a FREE gift for you, please visit the Blue Lion Calendar Page to download a version of this image to use for the month of February as your computer desktop wallpaper. This is free and I encourage you to share it with your friends.

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery.

Avian Condo

2011-02-03T17:01:00.001-06:00

This week's SKYWATCH FRIDAY post is the view of a silhouetted birdhouse from Pawley's Island, South Carolina. Talk about prime real estate!

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery

Marmota flaviventris- The Rockpile Sentinel

2011-02-01T16:41:00.001-06:00

Click HERE to enjoy other Wordless Wednesday entries

You can find more Camera Critters entries HERE

Yellow Bellied Marmot

Grand Teton National Park

Click in the image to view it in the original gallery

Monarch on Ironweed

2011-01-29T09:27:00.004-06:00

Today's image is from a visit I had to Brookgreen Gardens in Murrell's Inlet, South Carolina. This ever familiar monarch had landed on this small flower that captured my attention. I had never seen a flower quite like this before. I was particularly taken by the tubular stamens that the butterfly was exploiting for nectar. In addition, the purple and yellow coloration was such a pleasing contrast to my eye. I certainly hope this unusual contrast bring pleasure to you as well.

Monarch on Ironweed

Click in image to view in the original gallery

For more CAMERA CRITTERS click HERE
Enjoy the beauty of MACRO FLOWER SATURDAY HERE
To enjoy more of SCENIC SUNDAY click HERE
For MACRO MONDAY fun click HERE

Solitary Sea

2011-01-25T17:50:00.005-06:00

Today's WORDLESS WEDNESDAY. WATERY WEDNESDAY & SKYWATCH Post

Solitary Sea

Truman Beach

West Coast of the South Island, New Zealand

Click in image to view in its original gallery

7 Years on Mars! Happy Anniversary to "Opportunity".

2011-01-25T10:47:00.000-06:00

I just became aware today that the Mars Rover "Opportunity" just celebrated its 7th anniversary on the Martian surface! I'm embedding NASA's video marking the anniversary. I assume most folks have forgotten about these amazing vehicles that were only scheduled to last 90 days on the surface. As a child of the space generation who attended the Apollo 11 ticker tape parade in NYC ( I was 2 years old! lol) I have a fascination about space exploration. Enjoy!

Artist Point - Yellowstone National Park

2011-01-22T21:03:00.000-06:00

Today's Scenic Sunday post is of the iconic view of the 308 foot plunge of the Lower Falls of the Yellowstone River from Artist Point. The spot has been a photographic pilgrimage of sorts since Ansel Adams made the Lower Falls famous with his 1941 image. These are my two favorite views taken from Artist Point.

Lower Falls of The Yellowstone River

Click in image to view in its original gallery

Lower Falls of The Yellowstone River

Click in image to view in its original gallery

All Mine!

2011-01-22T08:52:00.000-06:00

This photograph was taken near Daisy Geyser in the Upper Geyser Basin of Yellowstone National Park. My family and I were hiking throughout the geyser basin and we stopped to talk to two young women who were unpacking their lunches as they awaited a geyser eruption. In the midst of getting their lunch ready this golden mantled ground squirrel snuck up and laid claim to both their apples!

ALL MINE

Click in image to see it in the original gallery

Click here to see other entries in the Camera Critters Meme

Skywatch Friday (January 21,2011)

2011-01-20T19:58:00.001-06:00

Here my first contribution to Skywatch Friday. These are 3 moon images. The first two were taken during the Lunar Eclipse of December 21,2010. The third was the full moon on my birthday January 18,2011. All three were taken in Allen, Texas.

Click HERE soo see other Skywatch Friday entries.

Click to see this image in the original gallery.

Wordless Wednesday (January 19,2011)

2011-01-18T17:36:00.004-06:00

I'm interested to see who can figure out what this is....... post guesses in the comments :)

(I'll reveal the answer on Sunday 1/23 - patience my friends)

Thanks for your patience! The correct answer for what you see here is an American Alligator tail! The original uncropped version of the image is on my website HERE

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery

Other WORDLESS WEDNESDAY entries

Watchful Ladies........

2011-01-15T10:25:00.004-06:00

Today's post is a photograph I took on my visit to the Impodimo Lodge in Madikwe Game Reserve in South Africa.

Watchful Ladies

click in the image to see it in the original gallery

Madikwe is a great example of local conservation ideas that really work. Previously, this area of northwest South Africa had fallen into a situation where the farming & ranching had become less and less productive and the region fell into dire poverty. The South African government purchased more than 75,000 hectares and restocked it with indigenous animals that has been rendered locally extinct due to the agricultural nature of the region.

The government allowed local groups to set up a series of game lodges in the park with the stipulation that the vast majority of their employees would be local residents. There was also the establishment of a fund that takes a small fee from every nightly visitor to one of the lodges. This fund goes to support the local population who now have a real reason to support wildlife rather than poach it to make ends meet!

As a result Madikwe is a great place to go on safari where you can see the "Big Five" (lion, rhino, leopard, Cape buffalo, and elephants). The area is also known as one of the places you can have a chance to see highly endangered and elusive African Wild Dogs.

There "Watchful Ladies" were on one of the jeep tracks in the reserve overlooking a water hole. They were particularly alert this day as there was a running territorial dispute between the pride these two belong to and a small herd of elephants that wanted access to the water. The reclining lion is a young female ( you can still see her juvenile spots) who was very interested in hunting the younger elephants which only added to the tensions around the water hole.

As the other images show, her inexperience and the alertness of the adult elephants prevented her from having a chance! I do love how she was in the middle of the road and still acted as if she was invisible in the tall grass as she "crawled" her way toward her "prey".

Stalking (in plain sight!)

After the Hunt

After giving up on the elephants, the mother lioness and her two yearlings spent the better part of an hour lounging around the water hole until some potential prey (zebras, wildebeests, and warthogs) came into view on the far side of the water hole. Here's a video I shot of mama lioness tying to get a wildebeest. I will not give away the ending .... :-) (FYI - the sound was removed from the video as all you'd be able to hear would be the "whoosh" of the wind!)

Wordless Wednesday

2011-01-12T09:27:00.001-06:00

Shrimper's Solitude

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery.

Click here to see other Wordless Wednesday Entries!

Scenic Sunday - Subsiding Storm

2011-01-09T13:24:00.002-06:00

As I have expanded my forays into the blogosphere, I have discovered a couple of Blog Memes that have weekly posting along certain themes. I'll be sharing these through Blue Lion Blog and I encourage my visitors to visit other sites in the memes as well. As such, here is my first "Scenic Sunday" post. The rest of the Scenic Sunday posts for this week can be found HERE .

Today's image is inspired by the snowstorm that is unfolding outside my office window right now. This image is "Subsiding Storm" and was taken during the winter of 2009 from a helicopter over the Southern Alps of New Zealand's South Island. We had rented the chopper to get views of the highest peaks of the Southern Alps at sunset and managed to catch this view before the light really warmed up. The clouds rolled off these peaks and revealed a perfectly pristine blanket of snow. The image looks to be black and white, but it is really in color.... there are just not colors that were present to suggest anything other than a Black --> Grey --> white spectrum.

ENJOY & STAY WARM!

John

Click in the image to see it in it's original gallery

A Bad Hair Day ;-)

2011-01-06T12:35:00.001-06:00

Some days you get out of bed and it seems nothing can possibly go right! On those days we often can feel like no one else in the world has it as bad as we do. Of course a bad day is usually just that, and things get better the next day. So when you're feeling like it's one of THOSE days.... just think back on this Emu and understand that you could look like this EVERY SINGLE DAY OF YOUR LIFE!

Click in the image to see it in its original Blue Lion gallery

Hope you enjoy & get a chuckle from this!
Cheers,
John

Photo of the Year 2010 (Part 3 - The Winner!)

2011-01-01T11:30:00.001-06:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Greetings to all of you This New Year's Day! Here on 1/1/11 I am announcing the Photo of the Year for 2010 at Bluelionphotos.com. This year's Photo of the Year took me by surprise as it received a lot of attention early in the year before my blog and Facebook fan page were up and running. As such, most of you may not have seen this image though the channels I have developed over the course of 2010.

Click in the image to see it in its original gallery.

This photograph is titled "Morning in Middle Earth". I took this photograph when I was visiting Milford Sound, New Zealand on July 17, 2009. We had a lousy morning for shooting as it was lightly raining (look for raindrops on the surface of the water). The whole scene had a very grey look in the predawn and we thought it was going to be a total bust. Unfortunately, we only had this one morning to "get the shot" as we were headed back out to Queenstown later that day. As is often the case in photography, our patience paid off with a momentary breaking up of the clouds and the "pinking up" of the cloud that has settled over the top of Mitre Peak.

While I missed out getting the iconic shot of this New Zealand landmark, I have an image that I like much more than a simple "postcard" shot that a thousand others have captured. As for the title, the more I looked at this image, I could not help but feel like Frodo, Sam and the Lord of the Rings gang could have been traveling along these shores during their extended adventures in Middle Earth.

Thanks to all of you who have followed Blue Lion Photos through this past year and offered your thoughts, ideas, and support. I am looking forward to an exciting 2011 as we continue this photographic odyssey together!

Cheers & wishes for a great 2011!

John

Photo of the Year 2010 (Part 2)

2010-12-31T09:57:00.002-06:00

Happy New Year's Eve everyone! Today I reveal the runner up to the 2010 Photo of the Year at Blue Lion Photos. This photo of a Eurasian Kestrel comes from the Center for Birds of Prey in Awendaw, South Carolina. This individual was being held by its trainer and was clearly eager to fly. I am fond of the depth in this image as you really get a feeling for the leading edge of the wings and how they create lift when the bird flaps its wings.

This image has the distinction of being my first front page photograph as it was featured on the front page of the Moultrie (South Carolina)News in order to promote the visit of Jack Hanna to the Center for Birds of Prey.

In addition, the this image was used by the Visit South website to promote the Center for Birds of Prey. The link to their page is HERE.

Come back tomorrow for the announcement of the 2010 Photo of the Year!

I wish all of you a safe and joyful New Year's Eve celebration!

Photo of the Year 2010 (Part 1)

2010-12-30T18:20:00.003-06:00

Welcome to the final days of 2010! I have just gone through the statistics from the past year and compiled a list of the top 4 photos on www.Blue Lion Photos from January 1st until today, December 30th. Tonight I shall reveal the 3rd & 4th place finishers. Tomorrow I shall reveal the runner up for 2010 and on New Year's Day 2011, I will share the Photo of the Year for 2010.

The 4th place finisher is one of my US Flag composites that I first created in February for President's Day. It is called "Eagle Pride" and has been a popular choice for folks wanting to give a gift to young men they know who are earning their Eagle scout honor in the Boy Scouts of America.

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery

The 3rd place finisher is probably the photo I have talked about more than any other one I have taken. I titled this one "Three of a Kind". These three bunnies were found on the campus of the school where I teach during a construction project. Students brought them to me and another teacher with a great degree of concern. Later that day Mama rabbit was located and the whole family was relocated to an East Texas ranch. This is a popular choice as a card and sells well at craft fairs as it has a wide appeal and high "cute" factor.

Click in the image to see it in the original gallery

Stay tuned for the runner up which I will post tomorrow!

(SXSP32Q6S3G8 )

Photo of the Week December 12, 2010

2010-12-12T14:00:00.002-06:00

The photo(s) of the week in this post are a reflection of the season. As autumn fades away and winter prepares to envelop us in longer nights and frosty temperatures, we all prepare for the holidays that celebrate the value of light in our lives. As I look toward the (slim) chances of snow here in North Texas this coming winter, I share these images of the aftermath of a dense fog bank that rolled through near the town of Twizel in the Canterbury region of New Zealand's South Island during the winter of 2009. After we emerged from the bank of frozen fog, we found the landscape to be encrusted with a beautiful coating of hoarfrost on all surfaces.

Click on the images to see larger versions from Bluelionphotos.com

As you go about finishing your holiday preparations, I hope these images bring you a sense of peace and tranquility amid the hectic nature of the modern holiday season.

Cheers & Warmest Wishes!
John

Photo of the Week - November 28,2010

2010-11-28T08:32:00.007-06:00

Greetings Blue Lion Friends!

I hope this post finds all of you happy after a very restful and enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday. Here in North Texas things went well as I had a nice Thanksgiving with family as well as a nice day selling Blue Lion cards, prints, and calendars at the "Dickens of a Christmas" festival in Downtown McKinney, Texas on Saturday. With the holiday season approaching, I got an idea last month for a holiday project that takes my photography in a slightly different direction. Since traditional "holiday" scenes are rather sparse around North Texas in late October and November, I warmed up my macro lens and looked to the miniature world for inspiration. The image of the week that received the greatest attention is titled "Christmas Wedding" and features a miniature couple in a horse drawn carriage after their wedding ceremony.

Not content to leave well enough alone, a few days later I felt that it need a little more "seasonality", so I started to "play God" a bit and got my digital snow making skills ready and made the previous scene a bit more "wintery"

I hope you enjoy this different style of images from Blue Lion Photos and wish all of you the best as we embark on what will hopefully a season of peace, love and genuine goodwill between people of all sorts.

Photo of the Week - November 21, 2010

2010-11-21T17:57:00.001-06:00

Greetings friends!
This week was a good one here at Blue Lion Photos! This week's Photo of the Week, my Eurasian Kestrel, was by far the most popular image on the website as it was my first image to be featured on the front page of a newspaper! The photograph was used to help promote the Center for Birds of Prey's (CBP) fundraiser with conservation legend Jack Hanna. Here is the photograph as it appeared on the front page of the Moultrie (South Carolina) News.

Here is the larger version of the photo:

It seems the usefulness of this image for the Center for Birds of Prey will live on as I have recently granted permission for it to be used in a book that will describe the CBP and other interesting South Carolina points of interest. I will keep you all updated when it is published next spring.

Best wishes for a Happy Thanksgiving!

Photo of the Week - November 14

2010-11-14T10:42:00.001-06:00

Hello Friends,

This week's Photo of the Week was a runaway winner. It takes us back to the Dallas Zoo and the photo shoot I did on October 30th. I found this "Lady Leo" quite mesmerizing as I hope you will.

Click HERE to see the higher resolution version of this photo.

As we draw closer to the holiday shopping season, please remember that Blue Lion images are available for purchase in a number of ways.

Prints can be ordered directly from my website at http://www.bluelionphotos.com/. When you're looking at an image, just click the "buy" button and follow the prompts to order prints and/or merchandise (mugs, mouse pads, shirts, etc....).

My 5 x 7 greeting card sets are easy to order through my Etsy page at http://www.etsy.com/shop/bluelionphotos

Finally, you can still order my 2011 wall calendar by viewing the video and then emailing me (john@bluelionphotos.com) your order.

Blue Lion Photos will let you give a unique and beautiful gift while supporting a small business!

Thanks in advance for your support!

John

Photo of the Week November 7, 2010

2010-11-07T00:29:00.001-05:00

This week's Photo of the Week adds a new flavor to the blog as it is a VIDEO posting of the most popular image(s) from the Blue Lion Photos website this week.

For those of you who wish to see the images in higher resolution, just click the links below.

Patrick's Portrait

Patrick Knuckle Walking

Patrick Snacking

Patrick Charging

ENJOY!

John

Photos of the Week - Halloween 2010

2010-10-31T08:45:00.002-05:00

In honor of Halloween, this week's Photo of the Week is shared between two images that capture different aspects of Halloween. The first image is titled, "BOO!" and relates the fun & playful factor that seems evident on this Eurasian Eagle Owl Chick's face. His orange eyes just screamed "Halloween" to me so clearly that I made him the "October" page of my 2011 Blue Lion Photos Calendar.

Click to see a higher resolution image

The second image is brand new to me as I took it yesterday (10/30/10) at the Dallas Zoo. The bird is the endangered Waldrapp Ibis (AKA – Northern Bald Ibis, or the Hermit Ibis). Oddly, this is the only member of the Ibis family that is NOT a wading bird. They lived in the Middle East & Northern Africa and have become critically endangered with only an estimated 500 wild birds remaining in a Moroccan population. One look at these birds reveals their "spooky" and "sinister" countenance. I especially find their neck feathers to be a great addition to their unique look. To me they seem to be the Edgar Allen Poe of birds. However, this bird's portly girth suggests a more "Alfred Hitchcock" look to some!

Click to see a higher resolution image

Enjoy your Halloween and may your treats outnumber the tricks!

John

The Moulton Barn - A personal favorite!

2010-10-24T17:03:00.003-05:00

For many photographers, saying one of your images is your "favorite" feels a lot like publicly admitting that one of your children is your favorite. Lucky for me photographs do not have feelings! This week's Photo of the Week is indeed one of my personal favorites as I am looking at it hanging on my office wall as I write this blog entry.

Click in the image for a higher resolution version

This image is of the Moulton Barn in a section of Grand Teton National Park known as "Mormon Row". The image appeals to me on several levels. First, the Tetons are one of my favorite spots on Earth. Every time I have been there, I have felt a deep sense of well being and awe. Second, the image evokes a great combination of nature and history. If you know nothing of the history of the Moulton barn, you can still get a great feel of the "Wild West". Indeed, I half expect to see a group of cowboys ride up to the barn when I look at the photo for any length of time. While the photo suggests the history of the barn, the mountains looming above also serve as a reminder of the force and power of nature – especially in this part of the country.

The actually history of the barn dates from the "late 1800s" according to descendants of the barn's builder, Thomas Alma Moulton. It sits in a region of the park known either as "Antelope Flats" or as "Mormon Row". The latter name comes from the Mormon homestead community that existed along the road of the same name. According to "Country Magazine", this is the most photographed barn in the United States. If you have been here and have stories of the area, I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to comment at the end of this entry.

Cheers!

John

Enjoy other views of special places by visiting other MY WORLD entries!

Photo of the Week October 10-16

2010-10-17T11:53:00.001-05:00

Greetings! This week's Photo of the Week (POTW) was a surprise to me. This photograph was seen on my site and then shared widely. As a result, the attention it received outstripped every other image on site as it garnered a stunning 35% of all hits to the website this week! (Our usual POTW has about 8-10% of the hits.) I always find it fascinating to learn where folks encounter my images and how they find their way to Blue Lion Photos. If you have never met me but found your way here, I'd love to get an email to hear of how you discovered Blue Lion Photos!

Click in the image for a higher resolution version

This image is a portrait of a Yellow Billed Kite (Milvus migrans parasitus) that I took this past summer during my visit to the Center for Birds of Prey in Awendaw, South Carolina. The Yellow Billed Kite is a bird of prey that lives primarily in Sub-Saharan Africa. It will spend much of its time in equatorial Africa and then migrate to breed in Southern Africa between September and December.

As you look at this image, I hope you can see that it a connection to its dinosaur ancestors. Since birds are the direct surviving link to the dinosaurs, I cannot help but feel that connection when I look at this Kite.

As an added bonus, I am posting this video clip (courtesy of http://www.earth-touch.com) which shows activity of young Yellow Billed Kite Chicks around their nest in South Africa.

On a final note, the science teacher in me is curious about the scientific name of this bird, Milvus migrans parasitus. The genus name (Milvus) is clearly the genus of the kites. The species name (migrans) reflects the migratory nature of the group. The intrigue for me comes with the subspecies name of parasitus. Nowhere in the meager online data about these birds is there any reference to any sort of parasitic behavior. I initially expected to find that they might lay eggs in the nests of other birds (called "brood parasitism") like Cuckoos or Cowbirds. My research did not support this hypothesis. Thus far, I can only attribute the parasitus name to two possible behaviors.

1) Kites occasionally will "reuse" the abandoned nest site of other species of birds.

2) Kites will steal or "pirate" food from other birds.

Neither of these seems to warrant the parasitus name in my opinion, so I will keep investigating. If any of you happen to be more expert in such matters, I would love to hear from you!

Thanks for visiting!
John

2011 Blue Lion Photos Wall Calendar Available!

2010-10-17T10:16:00.000-05:00

double click the video to bring up a larger version in a new window.

Friends & Followers,

I am proud to announce that my 2011 Wall Calendar is now available for purchase. In time for the holiday season, this 8.5 x 11 inch wall calendar features 13 stunning Blue Lion images as well as plenty of space to write down your daily events.

The calendars cost $17.00 + shipping and will ship on November 15th. Consider giving some to friends, family,and colleagues as a gift that can provide happiness and a reminder of your thoughtfulness every month of the year.

To order, just email me (john@bluelionphotos.com) with your request and I'll invoice you from there.

Cheers!

John

Zambezi Sunset

2010-10-10T01:01:00.006-05:00

Zambezi Sunset

This week's Skywatch Friday post comes from my 2006 visit to Southern Africa. I was lucky enough to be able to present at a conference in Johannesburg, South Africa that June. To make good use of the long trip and to live out a lifelong dream, I booked two safaris. The first was at Ngala Private Game reserve adjacent to Kruger National Park. The second was in Botswana at the Chobe National Park. The trip from Ngala to Chobe entailed a two-day stay in the town of Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. As the name suggests, this is where the mighty Zambezi River falls more than 360 feet (more than double the height of Niagara Falls) into the Zambezi River Gorge. The falls is also more than a mile wide at this point. The evening before I kayaked the rapids of the lower portion of the Gorge, I was able to enjoy a sunset cruise on a flat-bottomed barge on the Zambezi just above Victoria Falls. Lucky, it was the dry season and we were treated to a stunning, cloud free sunset in addition to sightings of crocodiles and hippos.

Enjoy your view of one of Africa wildest rivers!

Cheers!

John

Click in the image for a higher resolution version

Click in either image for a higher resolution version

SUNBURST

2010-10-03T09:14:00.006-05:00

SUNBURST!

This week's Photo of the Week was a runaway winner with more than double the views of any other Blue Lion Photo. I took this photo at just after dawn on the second to last day I was in New Zealand. We were in the beautifully quaint fishing village of Kaikoura on the NE coast of the South Island. We had visited the same site the morning before and I saw the potential for this shot as the sun rose over the jagged rocks at the shore, but I had missed the timing. Determined not to get skunked twice on the shot, we returned the following morning and were treated to a great predawn color show as the rising sun colored the clouds magnificently. Once the sun was partially above the horizon, I took my spot and waited for the magical moment when I could get capture the sunburst view you see here. amazingly enough, the sun remained in the critical position for less than a minute. Timing is indeed everything!

Click in the image to see a higher resolution version

View other Skywatch Friday Entries

Cheers!

John

Photo of the Week - September 19-25

2010-09-26T10:02:00.001-05:00

FOCUS

Like last week, the Photo of the Week comes from a visit I took to the Center for Birds of Prey in Awendaw, South Carolina. The title of his image is "Focus". The bird is a Tawny Eagle (Aquila rapax). This eagle is native to Africa both north and south of the Sahara Desert as well as to parts of southwestern Asia. Tawny eagles feed mostly on carrion as well small live prey including rabbits, and small lizards. It is also known to steal food from other raptors.
This individual was being handled by his trainer and was about to be fed. As such, his food was out of the scene to the right and he was VERY focused on getting that morsel. I particularly like the intensity of his eyes and the detail and texture of his feathers. He seems as though he will accomplish something significant with that look!

Cheers!

John

Click the image to see a higher resolution version

Are You My Lunch?

2010-09-18T23:14:00.002-05:00

This week's Photo of the Week comes from a visit this past June to the Center for Birds of Prey in Awendaw, South Carolina. The title of this week's "POTW" is "Are You My Lunch?"

This owl is a South American species called the Spectacled Owl (Pulsatrix perspicillata). Their name obviously comes from the very distinctive eye markings. Interestingly enough, the juvenile version of this owl has the same markings just in reverse!

Click for a higher resolution image

Photo of the Week September 5-11

2010-09-12T19:21:00.001-05:00

This week's Photo of the Week was taken on the wild west coast of the South Island of New Zealand on my 2009 trip to that fascinating land. The day after visiting the Pancake Rocks at Punakaki, we had a dawn hike up to Truman Beach for shoot over the tide pools and the Tasman Sea. The "beach" at Truman was great as it was a combination of a rocky inter-tidal beach and a more familiar fine grained sand beach. As with most of our trip, we had great weather that morning. We captured a rosy dawn on the horizon and a bright moon higher in the sky. The rich, deep blues of the early light mixes with dawn's rosy fingers and the textures of the Truman shoreline really make for a rather otherworldly setting. I am very happy I was in the right place at the right time to get such a special shot. The credit for getting me to that place & time goes to Phillip Bartlett, my wonderful guide on that trip. As I have stated before, he was a superb guide and anyone wanting to visit and photograph NZ should look him up through his web site at Capture New Zealand Tours .

Enjoy your short visit to Truman Beach ...........

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In Memorium.....

2010-09-11T13:53:00.004-05:00

In memory of those we lost 10 years ago. May we always remember the destructive power of hate as we also embrace the amazing power of love and kindness present in all of us.

9/11 "In Memorium" Gallery

Photo of the Week for August 29th - September 4th

2010-09-05T11:52:00.002-05:00

This week's Photo of the Week comes to us from the waters off of "Seal Island" near Gansbaai, South Africa. I had been here in 2006 and had the thrill of going diving in a cage among the famed great white sharks of this area. To say the least the experience was intoxicating! When I got the chance to return in 2007 I jumped at the chance! This image comes from that 2007 visit which was on a cold and misty winter morning. Over the three hour trip to the island we encountered 14 great whites ranging in size from 7 feet to over 15 feet! This large male was among the more "assertive" individuals we met that day. Once he had a hold on the bait line he did not want to give up!

Each of the trips that goes out to visit these sharks is staffed with a shark biologist who (by South African law) is charged with keeping a log of all sharks spotted. They then record all identifying aspects of the shark. As such the sharks of this area are among the best studied of any wild population in the world.

While this trip is universally regarded as dangerous by folks I've met, I was not harmed by the sharks during my time in the cage (or on the boat LOL). However the day after this image was taken, I went whale watching to see the migrating Southern Right Whales in an adjacent bay. As irony would have it , while whale watching our boat hit a large swell and I was tossed in the air and landed awkwardly so that one of my vertebrae fractured. Thanks to the kind folks on the boat and superb medical care upon my return to shore, my broken back did not cause permanent damage and after 3 days in the hospital in Hermanus , SA I was able to (uncomfortably) fly home and begin a 6 month rehabilitation stint in Dallas. More than three years after that accident, I have no lasting issues with my back.

SHARKBITE!

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SHARKBITE! is available for purchase at the Blue Lion Store on Etsy.