F/10.0, 1/400, ISO 250.
Wild Turkeys
What animal should you never play cards with?
A cheetah.
Interesting Fact: Because of their large size, compact bones, and long-standing popularity as a dinner item, turkeys have a better known fossil record than most other birds. Turkey fossils have been unearthed across the southern United States and Mexico, some of them dating from more than 5 million years ago. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wild_Turkey/lifehistory )
F/10.0, 1/400, ISO 320.
European Starlings
What’s a good snowing tip?
Never catch snowflakes with your tongue until all the birds have gone south for the winter.
Interesting Fact: All the European Starlings in North America descended from 100 birds set loose in New York’s Central Park in the early 1890s. The birds were intentionally released by a group who wanted America to have all the birds that Shakespeare ever mentioned. It took several tries, but eventually the population took off. Today, more than 200 million European Starlings range from Alaska to Mexico, and many people consider them pests. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/European_Starling/lifehistory )
Six More Weeks Of Winter
F/5.6, 1/160, ISO 125.
Groundhog (Woodchuck)
Over breakfast one morning, a woman said to her husband, “I’ll bet you don’t know what day this is?”
“Of course I do,” he answered as if he was offended, and left for
the office.
The doorbell rang at 10 a. m., and when the wife opened the door, she was handed a box of a dozen long stemmed red roses. At 1: 00 p. m., a foil-wrapped, two-pound box of her favorite chocolates was delivered.
Later, a boutique delivered a designer dress. The woman couldn’t wait for her husband to come home.
“First the flowers, then the chocolates and then the dress!” she exclaimed.
“I’ve never had a more wonderful Groundhog Day in my life!”
Interesting Fact: Groundhog burrows are known to have been responsible for uncovering a historic village in central Ohio – now a famous archeological site. ( http://www.havahart.com/groundhog-facts )
F/4.5, 1/60, ISO 400.
Did you hear about the astronaut that stepped on the chewing gum?
He got stuck in orbit !
Interesting Fact: As a ray of white sunlight travels through the atmosphere to an observer, some of the colors are scattered out of the beam by air molecules and airborne particles, changing the final color of the beam the viewer sees. Because the shorter wavelength components, such as blue and green, scatter more strongly, these colors are preferentially removed from the beam. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunset#Historically )
F/6.3, 1/250, ISO 1600.
Ring-Necked Pheasant
How do snowmen get around?
They ride an icicle!
Interesting Fact: Male Ring-necked Pheasants may harass other ground-nesting birds, such as the Gray Partridge and the Greater Prairie-Chicken. Female pheasants sometimes lay their own eggs in these birds’ nests. This may explain why some male pheasants have been seen chasing away male prairie-chickens and courting females—the pheasants may have been raised in prairie-chicken nests and imprinted on the wrong species. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ring-necked_Pheasant# )
F/22.0, 87.0, ISO 125.
Jersey City Downtown
What did the stamp say to the Christmas card?
Stick with me and we’ll go places!
Interesting Fact: The first known electrically illuminated Christmas tree was the creation of Edward H. Johnson, an associate of inventor Thomas Edison. While he was vice president of the Edison Electric Light Company, a predecessor of today’s Con Edison electric utility, he had Christmas tree light bulbs especially made for him. He proudly displayed his Christmas tree, which was hand-wired with 80 red, white and blue electric incandescent light bulbs the size of walnuts, on December 22, 1882 at his home on Fifth Avenue in New York City. Local newspapers ignored the story, seeing it as a publicity stunt. However, it was published by a Detroit newspaper reporter, and Johnson has become widely regarded as the Father of Electric Christmas Tree Lights. By 1900, businesses started stringing up Christmas lights behind their windows.[14] Christmas lights were too expensive for the average person; as such, electric Christmas lights did not become the majority replacement for candles until 1930. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_lights#History )
F/11.0, 1/500, ISO 320.
Mount San Jacinto State Park ( Desert View Trail )
Why did the snowman call his dog Frost?
Because frost bites!
Interesting Fact: Mount San Jacinto State Park is in the San Jacinto Mountains, of the Peninsular Ranges system, in Riverside County, California, United States. A majority of the park is within the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument.[1] The park is near the Greater Los Angeles and San Diego metropolitan areas. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_San_Jacinto_State_Park )
F/5.0, 1/60, ISO 320.
Happy Halloween!
What does a skeleton orders at a restaurant?
Spare ribs!!!
Interesting Fact: Today’s Halloween customs are thought to have been influenced by folk customs and beliefs from the Celtic-speaking countries, some of which are believed to have pagan roots.[35][36]Jack Santino, a folklorist, writes that “there was throughout Ireland an uneasy truce existing between customs and beliefs associated with Christianity and those associated with religions that were Irish before Christianity arrived”.[37] Historian Nicholas Rogers, exploring the origins of Halloween, notes that while “some folklorists have detected its origins in the Roman feast of Pomona, the goddess of fruits and seeds, or in the festival of the dead called Parentalia, it is more typically linked to the Celtic festival of Samhain, which comes from the Old Irish for “summer’s end”. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halloween#History )
F/4.5, 1/30, ISO 640.
PDN PhotoPlus International Conference + Expo (“PhotoPlus“)
What do you call a bee trying to make up its mind?
A maybe
Interesting Fact: PDN PhotoPlus International Conference + Expo (“PhotoPlus”) is an annual event held at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York. Designed for professional and advanced amateur photographers, Photoplus displays recent advances in photography through a variety of exhibitions as well as photography and digital design seminars. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photoplus )
F/6.3, 1/13, ISO 1600.
Groundhog (Woodchuck )
What’s the Great White Sharks favorite candy?
The Jaw-Breaker!
Interesting Fact: Groundhogs prepare for hibernation by putting on weight. Then they live off the stored fat until they come out of hibernation. ( https://www.kidsplayandcreate.com/fun-groundhog-facts-and-groundhog-day-facts-for-kids/ )
Through Open Lens 