Photos of the Week - Halloween 2010

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!

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Enjoy your Halloween and may your treats outnumber the tricks!

John



The Moulton Barn - A personal favorite!

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

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!

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

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



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

SUNBURST

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