Greetings earthlings; I come in peace.

Submitted by burnt out on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 12:14pm

A couple folks noticed the camera in my avatar and made the mistake of asking me if I'd mind sharing a few of my photos. They only had to twist my arm a little bit. I'm new to the site and probably not known by many here so thought that a photo essay might it be a pretty good way of introducing myself to those who don't know me.

I should tell you too that the reason I'm here is that some very smart people whose opinions and ideas I admire greatly came over and simply put, I followed them here to continue to take advantage of their knowledge and insight, (without having to endure the constant pie fights over at the other place). I don't comment that often but that's because I'm sitting back here in the corner just listening and learning.

Anyway, I've been fascinated with the natural world for as long as I can remember. My love for all things wild lead me into the woods at an early age and still today, pushing 70 now, I still spend a lot of time sitting quietly under the canopy of an old growth forest or along a secluded stream. When the rat-race and crazy society we all live in today gets to be too much to deal with, I put on my boots, grab a water bottle and my camera and head for the timber. There are no lies in the forest, no bullshit, no insanity, it's all real. What you see is what you get. Where else you gonna find that today?

I've taken literally thousands and thousands of pictures in the past few years and I'm slowly getting better but still have a lot to learn. I don't think I've ever taken a picture that would win any kind of award but I enjoy it and it gives me a reason to get out there. Here's a few I grabbed from my folders this morning.

White-eyed vireo

Great egret

Mourning dove

White-tail buck and fawn

Ring-billed gull

Papilionidae-Papilio polyxenes (Black swallowtail)

Red-tailed hawk

Canada geese

Dragonflies mating (Aeshnidae-Anax junius)

Red-headed woodpecker

Elateridae-Alaus oculatus-Eyed Click Beetle

Yellow-bellied sapsucker

Nymphalidae-Limenitis archippus (Viceroy)

American Kestral

Juvenile red-tailed hawk

Scarabaeidae-Dynastes tityus-(Hercules beetle)

Great blue heron

Pisauridae-Dolomedes triton-(six spotted fishing spider)

Tags:

wildlife

photography

Vote

Comments

Submitted by joe shikspack on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 12:28pm

great photos!

thanks for posting them!

Submitted by burnt out on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 12:41pm

Thanks Joe.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by gulfgal98 on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 12:31pm

I am loving these photos!

The clarity and color in them is so wonderful. At first glance, my favorite might be the mourning dove because of the angle at which it was shot. It looks like it is coming to land right on top of the viewer. That plus I love mourning doves. I really hate that they are considered game birds. The most interesting picture to me is the buck with the fawn. I know very little about deer, so I figured that the buck had no part with the offspring. And lastly, for the life of me I cannot figure out why the six spotted spider is called that. I see a lot more than six spots!

Thank you for posting this diary. I hope we see more of them.

—

Do I hear the sound of guillotines being constructed?

“Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." ~ President John F. Kennedy

Submitted by burnt out on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 12:49pm

Thanks gg.

That fawn and buck picture is one of my favorites, just because it's so unusual to see them together. Outside of breeding season it's very unusual to see bucks and does running together, and even more unusual when the does have fawns at their side. In fact this was the first time I'd ever seen it. The six spotted spider, yeah, I don't know how they came up with that name, but that really is it's name, someone can't count!

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by burnt out on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 1:10pm

I love mourning doves too. We feed a lot of them here, esp.

in the winter when the snow is on. We've had as many as thirty at once here a few times. Pretty cool. I took this picture in our back yard last winter. That cage like thing they're sitting on is actually a ground feeder I made for them. I prop it up off the ground a bit so they can walk right under the wire then place the boards on top to keep the snow off and spread grain underneath. They feed up and then sometimes sit on top soaking up the sunshine.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by gulfgal98 on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 3:25pm

Beautiful!

Some of them have learned to land on my pole feeder, but mostly they scavenge the ground below my hanging feeders. There is something very peaceful about them which is why I love them.

—

Do I hear the sound of guillotines being constructed?

“Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." ~ President John F. Kennedy

Submitted by smiley7 on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 12:53pm

Wow, beautiful work, thanks burnt out!

Submitted by burnt out on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 1:12pm

Thanks Smiley.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by civil wingnut on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 1:25pm

Awesome shots, and welcome.

I'm here for much the same reason. Smart people, with good hearts.
I've got a gang of Mourning Doves utilizing my backyard feeders daily. We can hear the sad coos almost all day.

Submitted by burnt out on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 1:42pm

Thanks CW.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by mimi on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 4:10pm

great photos, makes a good therapeutic viewing

after a day full of shit. Hope you continue posting your images. They are really excellent.

Submitted by burnt out on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 5:25pm

Thanks mimi, life sucks some days. Knocks me right on my ass

every so often but I've always been able to get back up so far. Hang in there.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by mimi on Thu, 08/27/2015 - 6:49pm

I am a whiner and the only one who is not well behaved,

I realized I didn't say welcome to you, just blurred out my thought. So, now, with all due respect and formality, I welcome you here, may you never burn out in this place, it's supposed to be a healing place, and my feeling is, you are a good therapist and will cool down all the "burn outs". Isn't that cool?
I hope you like it here. I do.

Submitted by burnt out on Thu, 08/27/2015 - 9:07pm

Thanks for the welcome mimi. I've been known to whine now and

then myself. Don't think I'd make much of a therapist, have enough trouble keeping my own head straight, let alone somebody else's, but thanks for the kind words.

Nice and peaceful here, I like this place too.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by janis b on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 4:43pm

What a beautiful introduction

of yourself, and what inspires you to participate here and in life itself. I very much relate to all of your sentiments, and I am happy we are all sharing the same space together.

[video:http://youtu.be/ySAmXOy0CuE]

Submitted by burnt out on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 5:31pm

Thanks Janis, for the sentiments and the song. Very nice.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by shaharazade on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 4:54pm

Thanks for posting

these beautiful photos. We now have three talented photographers I know of on caucus99. These were wonderful to look at they gave me a lift and a much needed change of perceptive. What region or state do you live in? Just curious as I recognized some of the birds but some are exotic to me.

Submitted by burnt out on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 5:37pm

Thanks shaharazade, whew, did I spell that right?

I live in Missouri. It's a beautiful state overflowing with natural beauty and an amazing variety of wildlife.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by Pluto's Republic on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 5:33pm

Why, that yellow-bellied sapsucker!

Now I know what one looks like.

Your photographs are all treasures. Thanks for posting them, burnt out.

—

____________________

The political system is what it is because the People are who they are. — Plato

Submitted by burnt out on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 5:40pm

Thanks Pluto.

Yellow bellied sapsuckers don't actually live here year round but we get to see them on their way north in the spring and again on their way south in the fall.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by JtC on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 6:22pm

Evening burnt out...

great stuff here, I read in the comments that you live in Missouri, I'm in Illinois, I figured you were close because all your shots are native to this area too. Living in the sticks for 17 years and walking dogs 3 times daily all that time, up until recently, I've observed white tails extensively. I've noticed through the years that if a buck and a doe are born to the same mother, especially as twins, that they'll hang together as a family group for a year or two. The buck in your photo looks relatively small and young so that may be why it's with the fawn, it's possible that it hasn't taken off yet into the solitary life that most bucks live, until rutting season of course!

Thanks for posting your work here, hope to see more, you're a great addition to our little corner of the web.

Submitted by burnt out on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 6:30pm

Thanks Jtc.

That's an interesting observation you make regarding the relationship of twin fawns. I'd never seen it before or even thought of that but it makes sense.

You have a great place going here. Thanks for the warm welcome.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by Shahryar on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 7:22pm

speaking of critters...

we've had a squirrel move into the front porch support beam. She's been there for a few weeks and we've left her alone but this morning she came in through the front window (we leave it open so the cats can come and go), jumped onto the mantle and knocked off a keepsake that I'd bought for shaharazade many years ago, breaking it in the process.

so that can't last, right? Time for the squirrel to go! I hooked up the garden hose nozzle, put in on blast and zoom! she jumped out, into our maple tree and ran off to a big tree next door. I took the opportunity to clean out her little nest that she'd been building. Lots of twigs and grass. Then I felt something odd, round and...different from what I expected. Yes, baby squirrels.

so now we want mama squirrel to come back and take care of her young'uns. Just don't come into the house!

Submitted by gulfgal98 on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 7:32pm

Two years ago

we had a bad wind storm come through one night and afterwards, my husband was cleaning up debris and found two baby squirrels on the ground in the debris. We figured that the nest was partially blown down and that the mother never came to retrieve the babies. So we took the two babies to a local animal rescue. They told us that these little ones would have a very good chance of surviving because we rescued them.

Hopefully your mama squirrel will return to the nest.

—

Do I hear the sound of guillotines being constructed?

“Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." ~ President John F. Kennedy

Submitted by shaharazade on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 7:55pm

I feel so bad

the mama was in the neighbors tree and I kept the hose going to give Eric time to clean out her nest. She was careening and totally beside herself. I had no idea the squirrel was even a female. She been living in the hollow front porch beam for about 2months. Our cats have been living on the front porch and even sleeping there this summer because of the heat. The cats and the squirrel seem to get along and basically leave each other alone. I sure hope she comes back to her nest which Eric took most of out. If she doesn't come back I guess we will take the babies to the animal shelter. Up until she came in through the window she's been a fine porch tenant.

We had a really aggressive male squirrel living there two summers ago. He was a nosy belligerent fellow and freaked out the cats. My granddaughter help me run him off by banging on the beam with a broom. He hadn't even completed his nest when we rousted him. I had an elks skull on the railing my nephew who worked as an owl spotter found in the woods gave me. Turns out the squirrels just love gnawing on bones for the calcium and sharpening their terrifying teeth. I moved the elks skull to the back of the yard and the squirrel moved to the back coroner.

Submitted by burnt out on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 8:13pm

I was helping a neighbor clean out a fence row years ago when I

was just a young kid. One of the trees he cut down that day had a squirrel nest in it that held one baby fox squirrel. I took it home and somehow managed to raise it in spite of not having a clue how to do so. Named him Chippy. We kept him in the house for several months until he started chewing up the wooden furniture at which time Mom said he either stays in it's cage all the time or I turn him loose so I took him outside and turned him loose. He immediately moved into a big maple in the front yard and would come down to eat right out of my hand whenever I called so it looked like everything was cool but about a week later I found part of his tail and a bit of fur, all that was left after something, probably one of our barn cats, had made a meal of him. Looking back I suspect that living in the house with us he just never learned how to avoid predators so was probably an easy catch.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by MarilynW on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 7:44pm

That was no mistake!

I'm so glad you posted them all, what a treat!

—

To thine own self be true.

Submitted by burnt out on Wed, 08/26/2015 - 8:17pm

Thanks Marilyn.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by dkmich on Thu, 08/27/2015 - 2:46am

What amazing photos

Hello and welcome to c99. So glad you shared your pictures with us. Great work.

—

"Religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich."--Napoleon

Submitted by burnt out on Thu, 08/27/2015 - 4:10am

Thanks dk.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by kharma on Thu, 08/27/2015 - 5:27am

Wonderful photos!

They all show wonderful movement and action. You are talented, thanks.

—

There is nothing which I dread so much as a division of the republic into two great parties.. This...is to be dreaded as the greatest political evil under our Constitution.--John Adams

Submitted by burnt out on Thu, 08/27/2015 - 6:15am

Thanks Kharma.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by NCTim on Thu, 08/27/2015 - 10:36am

Greetings

—

The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself. - Friedrich Nietzsche -

Submitted by burnt out on Thu, 08/27/2015 - 5:29pm

Hey Tim.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by triv33 on Thu, 08/27/2015 - 10:43am

Oh!

gorgeous~

—

I shave my legs with Occam's Razor~

Submitted by burnt out on Thu, 08/27/2015 - 5:30pm

Thanks Triv.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by WheninRome on Thu, 08/27/2015 - 9:15pm

Very cool. Keep em coming.

Very cool. Keep em coming. Periodically and when you want to of course.........

Submitted by burnt out on Thu, 08/27/2015 - 9:31pm

Thanks WiR.

—

All I want is the truth. Just give me some truth. John Lennon

Submitted by BigRiverBandido on Tue, 09/01/2015 - 7:19am

Thank you

for this little yoga moment. I would agree with you that the picture of the buck and the fawn is my favorite; the motion within the photo is captivating.

If you have not checked out nakedcapitalism.com, you ought to. They are always asking for photo contributions and yours would fit in perfectly.