Green

Offshore Drilling In Virginia Would Threaten Coastal Economy, Environment, And Naval Operations #green

A Monkey with Human Eyes and Other Links from the Brink | Extinction Countdown, Scientific American #green

Having planned an away day for tomorrow weather permitting to Abbots Wood in East Sussex for Pearl Bordered Fritillary I had not intended to go out today but with the sun shining and the temperatures rising I thought I would drive over to Shuart to see if any butterflies of dragonflies were on the wing. My targets were Hairy Dragonfly and Azure Damselfly, both of which I have not seen at Reculver before so with this in mind I started searching likely areas soon finding Common Blue Damselflies and Blue tailed Damselflies. Plenty of butterflies were enjoying the sunshine with Green veined White, Orange Tip, Peacock and Holly Blue noted. As I wandered through some grass I noticed a Damselfly and started to grill it. I could not see the custom club shape at the top of segment 2 but instead noticed the U shape on segment 2. I was pretty sure this was an Azure Damselfly, probably an immature male and a look through books after getting home would seem to confirm this. Any thoughts from others appreciated.Azure DamselflyI carried on looking finding a further 1 Azure Damselfly and not long after a speedy Dragonfly flew past. I did not have time to see it well but felt it must have been a Hairy Dragonfly. I ended up back near the car in a sunny sheltered spot where I stood and watched 3 Hairy Dragonfly chasing each other and catching small insects but none ever settled for a photo. Only an hour out but very rewarding in the warm sunshine and lets hope I see Pearl bordered Fritillary tomorrow, this will be a new butterfly for me and a chance to try out my new camera which I will be getting tomorrow morning, a Canon 50d.Azure Damselfly

The European bee-eater or bee-eater (Merops Merops) is a bird of the order of Coraciiformes and Meropidae family. It is found in almost all Eurasia and North Africa. In my land of Navarra (Northern Spain) it is common to observe them from spring to late summer. Their sound is very unique and one immediately knows of their presence. They give color and special beauty to areas in which they choose to nest. There is a special place in the desert of the Royal Bardenas of Navarra. El abejaruco europeo o abejaruco común (Merops apiaster) es un ave del orden de las Coraciiformes y de la familia Meropidae. Lo podemos encontrar en Eurasia y prácticamente en todo el Norte Africano. En mi tierra de Navarra (Norte de España) es frecuente observarles desde la primavera hasta el final del verano, su sonido es muy particular y enseguida sabemos de su presencia dando un colorido y una belleza especial a las zonas que elije para anidar, en concreto hay un lugar especial en el desierto de las Bardenas Reales de Navarra. Undoubtedly a feathered beauty! One of the most colorful birds in Europe. Measures between 25 and 29 cm in length, and wingspan of 36 to 40 cm. Weighs between 50 and 70 g. Longevity reaches up to 10 years of life. This bird is unmistakable by the multitude of colors that is has: blue chest, green belly, tan head and neck, yellow throat, and black mask, red adorning its eye, typical insectivorous beak - long, thin, somewhat curved and pointed. In 1890, the naturalist Edward Wright conducted a study on the coloration of this bird, reaching the conclusion that all colors except red in their plumage were present. The red was not present in their plumage but it is in the irises of the adult eyes. Es indudable su belleza de plumaje, siendo una de las aves con mas colorido de Europa, mide entre 25 y 29 cm de largo, y una envergadura alar de entre 36 y 40 cm, Pesa entre 50 y 70 gr,su longevidad alcanza hasta los 10 años de vida. Ave inconfundible por la multitud de colores que presenta: pecho azul, vientre verdoso, cabeza canela, cuello amarillo y la lista negra que adorna su ojo, un pico típico de insectívoro, largo, fino, algo curvo y apuntado. En el año 1890 el naturalista Edward Wright realizó un estudio sobre la coloración de esta ave, llegando a la conclusión de que todos los colores excepto el rojo estaban presentes en su plumaje, el rojo no estaba presente en su plumaje pero sí en el iris de los ojos de los ejemplares adultos. Excellent hunter with a magnificent sharpened vision; immediately recognizes his victim and the game is deadly - his lance failing in very few occasions. Using perches as an observatory for his hunts. Legend has it that they consumed only large quantities of bees, but in reality it won't pass up any sort of insect. When it comes to insects with stingers, the bee-eater smacks it around to break the stinger off. Nests on sandy terraces, cut ground, or cuts into riverbanks, embankments or even quarry edges. Makes burrows at an angle that can reach up to two meters deep. Generally lays four to six eggs and incubation lasts about 21 days. Excelente cazador con una visión agudizada magnifica, enseguida reconoce a su victima y el lance de caza es letal fallando en poquísimas ocasiones, usa perchas como observatorio de sus cacerias, habia leyenda que solo consumía en gran cantidad abejas pero no es real no desprecia ningún tipo de insecto, cuando se trata de algún insecto con aguijón los golpea hasta conseguir desprenderlo. Nidifica en bancales de arena en cortados de tierra, o cortados en orillas de los ríos, terraplenes o incluso en bordes de canteras. Realiza agujeros de forma oblicua que pueden alcanzar hasta los dos metros de profundidad, suele poner de cuatro a seis huevos y la incubación dura unos 21 días. Merops apiaster - European bee-eater - Abejaruco europeo

Farewell Froggy, the Age of Ribbet is Nearing an End. #green

The olive-sided flycatcher is a tyrant flycatcher that breeds primarily in the coniferous forests of North America. Their breeding territory consists of most of Alaska and Canada, plus the Rocky Mountain and Appalachian Mountain regions. They winter as far south as central South America. Since they have such a long migration they usually arrive at the breeding territory later then other species and leave earlier. This pic was taken at the beginning of September at the Carpenter Nature Center. Since we do not have the proper breeding habitat for this species, except in the north east corner of the state, I assume that this bird was migrating south and stopped for a lunch break. Olive sided flycatchers almost exclusively eat flying insects. They typically find a perch that is in the open and wait to ambush an insect as they fly by. I watched this one catch and eat several bees, which are one of their main prey species. They also eat wasps, flying ants, moths, grasshoppers and dragonflies.

Glow-in-the-dark cockroach among top 10 new species of 2012. #green

Brian James who birds out of Thuwal north of Jeddah has just sent out (in the past hour) some exciting news about his trip to Wadi Rabigh this weekend.black winged kite at RabighHe tells me that birding was thin but for an exceptional sighting of a black winged kite! And there were also several African palm swift a lot further north than usual too.second view of black winged kiteThere have been occasional sightings of this species on the west coast as far north as Jeddah in recent years but this is the furthest north on this coast that I can find records of from Saudi Arabia.Jem Babbington reported one on the east coast at Dhahran on March 29/30th 2012.In the discussion about that one it was noted that they may breed in the Tihamah (coastal strip of south west Saudi Arabia) and associated foothills significantly further north than the Yemen outposts normally mapped in guide books. Furthermore, it is a bird whose range is expanding in both the west and east northward. The Iraqi population may now have spread into south east Turkey apparently.The question is: was Brian's sighting a vagrant or the edge of its natural, expanding but under-reported range?

Why Owen Martel is walking 2,400 miles across the American West