Category: observations

I observed two exotic butterflies, one purple and one black, engaged in a playful dance directly in front of me

Keywords: {0}

The world is brimming with an array of breathtaking natural wonders that are truly magnificent. There can be no mirror that she can gaze into and gloat in her own loveliness. She doesn’t need to. She knows. She knows only how to give. She doesn’t take. Unless you provoke her, unless you violate her sacredness, unless you are a threat to her very existence!

https://mallikasubash.wordpress.com/2023/08/23/does-nature-know

The simplicity of collecting and drying plant material makes this an appealing way for laypeople to collect arthropod samples

Keywords: ecology , ecosystem , eDNA , biomonitoring , arthropods , plant–arthropod interaction

In combination with the ability to reconstruct diverse arthropod communities from common household items like tea bags, this gives the approach of a ‘bug in a teacup’ high potential for outreach. Dried plant material could serve as an easily acquired terrestrial eDNA matrix to raise awareness of arthropod biodiversity. The collection and storage of dried plant material is straightforward, does not entail killing large numbers of insects, and requires no hazardous chemicals or freezing. This makes the approach ideal for working with schoolchildren.

https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsbl.2022.0091

I have seen images through social media of the Badlands with snow but to actually see it in real life was such a completely different feeling

Keywords: badlands , badlands national park , photography , snow , south dakota , weather , winter

It’s not uncommon to see temperatures in the wintertime get below -30 degrees (F) with wind chills below -40 degrees (F) while in the summer temperatures can get as hot as 100 degrees (F) with heat indexes of 110 degrees (F). While the extremities in temperatures can be pretty dramatic, nothing is more dramatic than the landscapes South Dakota has. This includes Badlands National Park in the western part of the state.

https://areselphoto.wordpress.com/2021/03/04/winter-in-the-badlands

Launched in 2008, iNaturalist, now a joint initiative of the California Academy of Sciences and the National Geographic Society, lets anybody — from expert biologists and naturalists to people like me who have trouble remembering what poison ivy looks like — contribute their photos

Keywords: politics , dont , trees

To take photos that will have a better chance of becoming research grade, Goforth has three tips. Don’t rely on the zoom; get as close as you safely can. Make sure the subject fills as much of the frame as possible. And try to submit photos that are in focus.

https://networthynewz.com/dont-know-how-to-tell-trees-apart-theres-an-app-for-that

Birding is the opposite of being at the movies — you’re outside, not sitting in a windowless box; you’re stalking wild animals, not looking at pictures of them

Keywords: birding, birds, midwest, nature, ourdoors

You’re dependent on weather, geography, time of day—if you miss the prothonotary warbler, there isn’t a midnight showing. – The New Yorker

https://best-of-the-midwest.blog/2020/05/01/birding-in-the-midwest-usa

In some cases, it might just be that we are noticing the birdsong more as the noise from vehicles and general hubbub has turned down its volume

Keywords: environmental

I really hope we are learning from this crisis. Many lives have been lost as the virus has spread but I am sure the health measures have helped to save many thousands of people. And we shouldn’t be afraid to mention this knock-on effect on that is benefiting our wildlife. Let’s hope we can look at this and improve the way we live in the future in a way that supports nature.

https://thefigurehead.co.uk/2020/05/04/birdsong-returns-as-environment-benefits-from-the-coronavirus-lockdown-increase

The sound of nature is the most calming and soothing sounds I know

Keywords: lifestyle , blogger , connecting , enjoythelittlethings , forest , health , hiking , inesconijn , lifechanging , nature , photography , soul , streams , wilderness

It could be anything really, rain falling down on your windowpane, thunderstorms, birds singing, bees buzzing around, water streaming, or just the wind that shakes the branches. Whenever I’m in nature, I stand still and listen to the world around me. Sometimes I sit down near a stream or between grass in a field. I close my eyes and listen to the sounds of nature. If you are lucky, you might be able to notice some animals nearby just by being present and alert.

https://inesconijn.wordpress.com/2020/05/02/the-sound-of-nature