Friday Night Photos Pinniped Edition
Submitted by Socialprogressive on Fri, 03/10/2023 - 5:00pm
Happy Friday everyone. Hope everybody is doing well. Post any photos, memes, or music you like.
Pinnipeds. Otherwise known as Seals, Sea Lions, Elephant Seals and Walrus.
Shots 1-5 are Sea Lions The last shot are Harbor Seals
Major league dog pile
The Rookie Squad
Group portrait
The Loner
Battle Scars
Jonathan Livingstone Seagull thinks he's a Harbor Seal
Comments
Excellent images Socialprogressive
I was unaware that they were so compatible with each other. One big happy group.
Hi, humphfey
I like the way the Sea Lions pile up together. Like you said, one big happy group. The Harbor Seals don't pile up like that. They always leave some space between themselves.
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.
Hi Social
What gorgeous photos of the seals. Are they in La Jolla?
I can still feel the sensation of laying my head in my mothers lap when she wore a seal coat. It is still the softest stuff I remember ever feeling. She gave it to me later in life, but I couldn’t bear wearing it, it wasn’t my style, but occasionally I take it out for the pleasure of feeling it and the sweet memories it brings. It looks like the seals also find pleasure in cuddling against the fur of each other.
A photo from Brick Bay Sculpture Trail
I found the following sculpture installation the most captivating along the trail. It was enhanced by enchanting music playing softly from speakers hidden in the bush, and accompanied by a tuneful chorus of Tuis. All together it created a magical environment to experience. Wish you were here.
The sculpture artist is Virginia King
https://www.google.com/search?q=virginia+king+artist+nz&source=lnms&tbm=...
I am also a proud grandma of another very sweet baby girl.
Be well and have a good weekend all.
Hi, Janis
Congrats on another granddaughter.
Nice shot of Virginia Kings sculpture. Thanks for the link. She has some really cool sculptures.
Yes, the Sea Lions and Seals were in La, Jolla. I remember my mom having a fur stole but I don't know what type of fur. I just remember it was really soft.
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.
Thank you Social
It is a great joy for the family.
Hey Janis
those sculptures are wild. Evokes nests for flying monkeys.
Happy for you with the new addition!
The Flying Monkeys of Burlington, VT
https://www.kuriositas.com/2013/05/the-flying-monkeys-of-burlington.html
Thanks Q
Those monkey sculptures are very striking and fanciful. Vermont has quite a unique flavour.
Congrats on the new baby
You will have to explain the sculptures to me…. Maybe my brain isn’t seeing them right?
Want to see some awesome scenery? Check this out. Plus it comes with a dawg running just for the sheer joy of it.
Link
Was Humpty Dumpty pushed?
Thanks snoopy
Maybe this will help with seeing the sculpture and understanding ...
https://www.brickbaysculpture.co.nz/virginia-king-aetherium-ancestral-vale
I'd name that dog bullet ; )
That's a nasty looking gash
on the sea lion. I don't suppose you tried to stitch him up?
Thanks for the photos!
Hi, QMS.
The gash was on it's way to healing on it's own, so thankfully no stitching was required on my part. It is nasty looking and it does make you wonder how it happened. Life in the sea can be rough.
Cool video. Looked like some of the Sea Lions were trying to eat the camera.
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.
Hi pixelators
Hi all, Hey SP!
GREAT pinniped pixels SP! That perfecty straight gash wound has the looks of a propeller strike. Some of the Harbor Seals look like they have open wounds too? It's a rough life out there. Awesome shots man!
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein
A propeller sounds like the culprit
for the Sea Lions wound. The Seals look like something took a bite out of them.
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.
those look like...
those wounds on the Harbor Seals look very similar to the ones you can see sometimes on Humpback Whales in particular, made by Cookiecutter Sharks. The leave a round wound like that, which then scars over. They just swim up and take a bite out of them! I wonder if they are where those seals are fishing, or, could the Spiny Dogfish (shark) do that too? They are common inshore in socal. Or were anyway.
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein
Thanks for the info, dystopian
I don't know my sharks. I'll have to do a little research on the Cookiecutter and Spiny Dogfish sharks. I'm always learning something new from you.
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.
a good song
a touching musical interlude...
Love You
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein
Thanks for the tune, dystopian
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.
I have to admit, dystopian
it wasn’t until I watched the video enacting the message that I got the humour and play on words.
consider the source ;)
I think that might be why they say to always consider the source?
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein
Check ✔️
some pixels
This is Texas Mountain Laurel, which is not the same thing as most of what is called Mountain Laurel in other places. Everything is its own thing in Texas. These are in bloom here now, at least where I am. They smell sweet as sweet peas, and you get about a week of blooming out of any given plant. Find the right canyon and it is dreamy walking through it when in bloom. Sophora secundiflora is binomial. Which is something regarding its sleep inducing characteristics. As in permanent. Seeds are toxic, not sure which all but maybe the Mescalero Apaches, Comanches, and maybe Carancahua traditional use methods of detoxification have been lost, they used it for religious ceremonies and to get wasted.
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein
Hi, dystopian
I have a bunch of Rosemary in bloom right now. The blossoms are about the same color as your Mountain Laurel but they don't have much scent. The strong smell of Rosemary from the leaves make up for it.
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.
What a tree and flower, dystopian
It occurred to me that many plants have pea-like flowers that form pea or bean-like pods, yet how different they are from each other. My thought went to gorse, a thorny pest here which has a pea-like flower, a nice fragrance and wonderfully musical pods.
Hi Social, the more I look at the first photo
the more and more surreal it looks. Each seal looks uniquely individual. The contrast between the blissfully slumbering seals and the thrashing sea behind them is really curious. The velvety pile of seals also reminded me of a Georgia O'keeffe painting.
Thanks for the opportunity to let my mind wander.
Nice painting
I see a definite resemblance between the Georgia O'keefe painting and the Sea Lion dog pile.
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.
I'm glad you can see it too, Social
Otherwise I might have thought I was seeing things ; ).
Remarkable photos!
Thanks Socialprogressive. I wonder how much my perspective would change if I lived in or near such a wonderful marine environment.
When I was younger, I was fortunate to move to Florida before it was overrun by twenty million plus automobiles and millions of boats. I frequented the beaches, piers, inlets, and the many spring fed freshwater lakes inland, this was my primary pastime. I encountered manatees, peaceful and relatively slow moving animals, when I went fishing.
Once, when I lived in Flagler county, there was a canal behind a home we rented that was only a few hundred yards from the intracoastal. There were manatees and bald eagles living right in the neighborhood. One of my favorite inland destinations was Lake Lochloosa near the old Rawlings estate (author of The Yearling). There was a large number of bald eagles nesting there. About ten years ago, I was passing that area on a remote section of a two lane highway in the big rig, and encountered (almost a bird strike on the windshield) a huge bald eagle, the largest I had ever seen in my life.
Many of the manatees I saw bore scars from boat strikes or engine props. Unfortunately, the huge boat population in Florida has resulted in most manatees being struck at one time or another. So many die every year they are endangered. I wish I could find better photos of manatees in the wild, but this is a current video about one such manatee at the Jacksonville Zoo.
語必忠信 行必正直
Sp, I missed my visual fix last week!
Glad to see you all and the marvelous pictures/videos. Congratulations on your new Family addition, janis.
soryang: long-time Floridian here. I hear you loud and clear. I recall fishing with my grandfather and uncle in the Miami area. We caught all sorts of stuff, snapper, sheepshead, even hooked a hammerheaded shark by mistake. He was a big sucker and NOT happy. Grandpa got him off the hook quick and released him. This was the Intercoastal waterway, and the water was so clean and pure, it was amazing. I fondly recall walking the beaches on the Space Coast and seeing all sorts of crabs including horseshoe. Jellyfish, and healthy blue man-o-wars, too. Ugh! The sand was off white clean and the ocean was that unique shade of teal. I've seen manatees, Devil Rays and a crazy Florida crayfish got caught in my fishing line in the Keys. I cut my diehard environmental teeth as a little kid, and absolutely despise the greedball bipeds who have wrecked my state. Anywho, this is turning into a book. Rec'd!!
Inner and Outer Space: the Final Frontiers.
Thank you obf
for your fond memories and appreciation.
Wonderful!
So glad to hear from you! I lived in Jacksonville for awhile. I thought it was great. I had the St. John's River, Mayport, Jacksonville Beach, the intercoastal, and the freshwater lakes inland. I loved swimming, fishing, boating, etc. Had some similar experiences to those you described.
Later lived in Ormond, and DB. Sometimes I would go up to Talbot island in Nassau County to really spend some great times fishing in a really unspoiled natural setting. We lived several years on the Gulf Coast side, near Clearwater. My daughter went to FIU, but I haven't really spent much time further south. Never got to the keys. The navy took me to Puerto Rico, San Croix, Haiti, Gitmo when I was young. I've seen enough beach time. The dermatologist says stay away now. I used to swim a km or mi as exercise at the beach. It was such a great experience. My wife and I go to one of two intracoastal seafood restaurants near marinas, to catch the ambiance of the old days. Ponce Inlet is nice attraction not too far away.
Good to hear from you OrlBucFan! Once I have the house restored, I'll have to get some R&R at the beach.
語必忠信 行必正直
Good morning, orlbucfan
My only visit to Florida was work related so I didn't have much time explore while I was there. Even though my time there was limited, I enjoyed it and I'd definitely like to go again.
I know what you mean about greedball bipeds. They haven't been good for Ca. either.
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.
Hi soryang
Thank you for your memory. So much in nature is just a memory, but thankfully there's still some left to experience. I do feel very fortunate to have had experiences in nature at a time it was more pristine, and life more abundant.
Hi Janis
I'd been sleeping early lately, a definite change of pattern for me. Tonight I'm up unusually late.
This may be delusional but I got the impression early in my life that a natural environment, a quiet, relatively peaceful, beautiful place, worked wonders for the psyche. Sometimes I think animists were on to something.
語必忠信 行必正直
Hi soryang
No way your impression is a delusion. I don’t think it gets more real than that.
Without that experience where would we be when thrashed by the storms of nature. The beauty, the solace, the benevolence is what sustains us.
Thank you for the prompt to understand more about the concept of animism. I will reread this article, which on first reading was complex but very interesting.
https://iep.utm.edu/animism/
This is so scholarly!
What an overview. At the same time I'm really amused by some aspects of this essay- there are so many expressions that make me laugh to or at myself-
"In his Natural History of Religion, David Hume speaks of a tendency for primitive human beings “to conceive all beings like themselves.”
Animism as “savage dogma.”
I'm going to enjoy reading and thinking about this study. I had only vague conceptions or theories on this subject.
I think the vitalist view is similar to the Asian concept of Ki or qi 氣 (energy, force).
Wonderful article Janis, thanks again, I'm going to enjoy it.
語必忠信 行必正直
It is so scholarly
I only get hints of understanding, but on my first read I definitely registered the Vitalist view as something more familiar. I hope to refine my perspective on life a little bit more through further understanding of the analysis of this article.
Good morning, soryang
I would love to see Manatees in the wild. I had a work related trip to Jacksonville Florida many years ago. I didn't see any Manatees while I was there but I did see alligators at an alligator farm.
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.
North of Tampa
...toward Land o' Lakes, Odessa, etc., there has been massive development of suburban sprawl on previously agricultural or undeveloped forested land. The developers apparently are being required to put aside some percentage of the developed residential complexes for water retention, nature strips, and recreational paths. I see gators over there in the ponds every time I go there. I remember seeing gators live on the St. John's river near Jax. And certainly in the fresh water lakes to the west and southeast. In the DB area virtually all the fresh water ponds or reservoirs have gator warning signs. If you have a small dog like we do, you have to keep them away from the edge of the water.
I saw live manatees further south more frequently than I did in Jacksonville/ Duval waterways. In St. John's county they were more common. Jax maybe had too much shipping and boat traffic. I remember I did see some collected around a warm water source on the St.John's river once, the water was coming from some kind of power plant.
Sometimes when I felt overheated on my small fishing boat, I would dive into the water at a lake, just to cool off. Then I got right out, because of the gator hazard. My wife and I used to visit Seminole Lake park in Pinellas County for walks, it was a beautiful place. Occasionally a dog would be reported missing or eaten there by gators. Once we were shocked when it was reported that a large gator had eaten some fisherman, maybe the victim had drowned or had a heart attack before this happened. This was quite a long time ago.
This is good article from a wildlife management site on Florida Manatees:
https://www.mmc.gov/priority-topics/species-of-concern/florida-manatee/#....
語必忠信 行必正直
I live in Orlando now, but have been all over
Florida. My late mother had a home in Cocoa Beach which backed up on the Banana River. Plenty of great manatee family viewing there.
My hubster is a lifelong Biker (motorcyclist) so I've seen plenty of gators sitting against sissy bars. Saw one BIG one breach the surface of Lake Jessup near Sanford and the St. Johns River. He/she had to be 10-14' just from the head size. soryang is correct about being careful around them. They may be giant lizards, but when they rush out about 20-30' from the water's edge, they are lightning fast. And in the water, that's their home sweet home. The other sea critter you have to watch out for is a shark especially a bull shark. Whew! They are aggressive and some are maneaters.
Inner and Outer Space: the Final Frontiers.
Thankfully no gators where I live
but we do have tons of Coyotes. I live on the edge of a couple thousand acres of undeveloped land so there are always coyotes about. From time to time I see them on me street during daylight hours. About once a week someone will post on Nextdoor that their dog is missing. My first thought is the Coyotes got another easy meal.
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.
I saw a coyote once
In a dirt parking lot at a makeshift truck stop in New Mexico. There were only 3 or 4 trucks there. The lot was surrounded by desert (I think it was desert) which was very beautiful in the dim light before dawn. There wasn't much else out there. I had gone outside to throw some trash away and was warned off by the coyote who looked like he was scavenging for something to eat. 700,000 miles, so many adventures and mishaps. It is a beautiful country.
語必忠信 行必正直
A day late but I will add this.
blue tit
Pretty sure those are Blue Tit. Not an expert on Euro species, but methinks that is what those are. There are a bunch of different species, many like the Great Tit of course. I think these Blues are the fanciest color-wise. And no you do not have to go to Norway in winter to see a Blue Tit.
thanks for the post!
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.
both - Albert Einstein
The video you posted is absolutely wonderful, humphrey
Thank you
@humphrey Terrific!! Rec'd!!!
Terrific!! Rec'd!!! Speaking of Nests, TPW is still trucking after 8 years. I finally learned how to host Open Threads so I help out as much as possible.
Those birds are gorgeous, too.
Inner and Outer Space: the Final Frontiers.
Thanks for the video, humphrey
It was cool watching the whole process from empty nest box all the way through to chicks leaving the nest.
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.