water

I’m Chillin’

January 17, 2020 — 2 Comments

F/7.1, 1/1600, ISO 640.

Mute Swan ice

Why are ghosts bad liars?

Because you can see right through them!

Interesting Fact: Before or during landing at a breeding site they’ll slap the water with their feet to announce their arrival and alert potential intruders. If another swan approaches members of the pair raise their wings and tuck their neck in a “busking” display to warn them off. Territorial defenses sometimes escalate to fights between males that can end with the dominant bird pushing its rival underwater. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Mute_Swan/lifehistory )

 

 

I Walk On Water. What’s Your Superpower!

January 15, 2020 — 4 Comments

F/7.1, 1/200, ISO 320.

Green-Winged Teal

Why do writers always feel cold?

Because they have lots of drafts in their office.

Interesting Facts: Green-winged Teal are fast, agile, buoyant flyers. They can take off straight from the water without running across the surface. Though they are dabbling ducks that usually tip up to feed, they occasionally dive for food and to avoid predators. In winter Green-winged Teal gather in roosting flocks of up to 50,000 birds. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Green-winged_Teal/lifehistory )

 

 

Dont Be Afraid to Stick Your Neck Out!

January 8, 2020 — 5 Comments

F/9.0, 1/320, ISO 320.

Ring-necked Duck

Why is it hard for a ghost to tell a lie?

Because you can see right through him.

Interesting Fact:  Ring-necked Ducks feed by diving underwater, rather than by tipping up as “dabbling” ducks do. When diving, they leap forward in an arc to plunge underwater, and they swim using only their feet for propulsion. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Ring-necked_Duck/lifehistory )

I Spread My Wings And I Fly!

December 29, 2019 — 23 Comments

F/6.3, 1/1000, ISO 640.

Great Blue Heron 

Why did the student wear eye-glasses in math class?

It improved DiVision !

Interesting Fact:  In flight the Great Blue Heron folds it neck into an “S” shape and trails its long legs behind, dangling them as it prepares to land or when courting. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Blue_Heron/lifehistory )

I Don’t Give A Duck!

December 21, 2019 — 2 Comments

F/10.0, 1/400, ISO 250.

Bufflehead Duck male

Why was the snowman looking through the carrots?

He was picking his nose!

Interesting Fact: During the winter, look for these tiny, black-and-white ducks in sheltered coves along the Atlantic or Pacific coast, or on inland ponds in southern North America. While foraging they spend half their time underwater, so scan carefully and patiently. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Bufflehead/ )

 

 

 

 

 

Duuun-Dunn-Dunn-Duh-Duh-Duh-Nuh-Nuh-Nuh-Nuuh!!!

August 3, 2019 — 16 Comments

F/5.6, 1/500, ISO 250.

Shark Week 

American Coot

Spiny Dogfish Shark

Why do sharks make terrible lawyers?

They’re too nice!

Interesting Fact: Although it swims like a duck, the American Coot does not have webbed feet like a duck. Instead, each one of the coot’s long toes has broad lobes of skin that help it kick through the water. The broad lobes fold back each time the bird lifts its foot, so it doesn’t impede walking on dry land, though it supports the bird’s weight on mucky ground. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Coot )

In A World Full Of Fish Be A Shark

July 31, 2019 — 4 Comments

Shark Week 

F/5.6, 1/500, ISO 360.

Spiny Dogfish Shark

What did the seal with the broken arm say to the shark?

Do not consume if seal is broken.

Interesting Fact: This shark is known to hunt in packs that can range up into the thousands. They are aggressive hunters and have a sizable diet that can range from squid, fish, crab, jellyfish, sea cucumber, shrimp and other invertebrates. ( https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiny_dogfish )

BON VOYAGE! The Rest Of Us Will Envying You While We Work.

November 3, 2017 — 4 Comments

F/11.0, 1/500, ISO 320.

New York City Skyline & Norwegian Cruise Line Ship

A very nervous first time crew member says to the skipper, “Do ships like this sink very often?”

“Not too often,” replied the skipper. “Usually it’s only once.”

Interesting Fact: The cruise line was founded as Norwegian Caribbean Line in 1966 by Knut Kloster and Ted Arison, with the 8,666-ton, 140m cruise ship/car ferry, Sunward,[5] which in 1966 operated as a car-ferry between Southampton UK and Gibraltar, for that one, short season only. Arison soon left to form Carnival Cruise Lines, while Kloster acquired additional ships for Caribbean service. Norwegian pioneered many firsts in the cruise industry like: the first Out Island Cruise, the first combined air-sea program (marketed as “Cloud 9 Cruises”) which combined low cost air fares with the cruise, first shipline to develop new ports in the Caribbean, like Ocho Rios in Jamaica. Like the original Sunward of 1966, Norwegians’s second ship, the Starward had the capability to carry automobiles through a well concealed stern door. Later, this area was turned into cabins and a two deck movie theater, which is now a casino. Norwegian was responsible for many of the cruise innovations that have now become standard throughout the industry. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norwegian_Cruise_Line )

Don’t Just Stand There, Summer Is Here!

June 21, 2017 — 18 Comments

F/5.6, 1/500, ISO 200.

Greater Yellowlegs

What did the pig say on a hot summer day?

I’m bacon!

Interesting Fact:  Greater Yellowlegs eats small aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates, small fish, frogs, and occasionally seeds and berries. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Greater_Yellowlegs/lifehistory )

 

Look Out I’m A Biter!

June 28, 2016 — 14 Comments

Shark Week 2016

Bull Shark

F/5.6, 1/500, ISO 320.

Deadliest Shark In The World

Bull Shark ( Baby )

For five years, two sharks and a dolphin have worked side by side every day as window washers, and every night after work they stopped for a drink. One day, disaster struck, and the dolphin fell to his death. The police came to the site and began asking questions. “Where does he live?” The sharks shrugged their shoulders. “Is he married?” The sharks didn’t know. “What is his name?” The sharks shrugged again. “You worked with this guy for five years and you don’t know anything about him?” the cop asked. “I know something about him,” one shark volunteered. “He has two assholes.” “What are you talking about?” said the cop. “Well,” said the shark, “Whenever we go for a drink after work the bartended says, ‘Here comes the dolphin with the two assholes.'”

Interesting Fact:  Bull sharks are aggressive, common, and usually live near high-population areas like tropical shorelines. They are not bothered by brackish and freshwater, and even venture far inland via rivers and tributaries. ( http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/bull-shark/ )