Flora and Fauna XIV – Rose Garden

Posted on October 16, 2020 by vanbraman

Today during lunch I picked up some books from the library, so again took a walk through the Community Rose Garden.

Flora and Fauna, Rose Garden, Mantis, bee, spiderWhile taking pictures of the roses I took a few shots that made me think of my Flora and Fauna series.

Here is the first subject, which is a mantis on a white rose.

Flora and Fauna, Rose Garden, Mantis, bee, spiderHere is a side view of the mantis. I really like the way that the back of it looks like a leaf.

Flora and Fauna, Rose Garden, Mantis, bee, spiderWhen I first saw this rose I was not sure what was on the petal. It just looked a bit weird.

Flora and Fauna, Rose Garden, Mantis, bee, spiderA closer look showed me that it was a spider and a bee. The spider had a good hold on the bee and they were having a good tussle.

Flora and Fauna, Rose Garden, Mantis, bee, spiderHere the bee is on top. I thought about staying and watching what would happen, but needed to get back home for an afternoon meeting.

I wonder if the bee got away?

Steven

p.s. To find other posts in this series you can type Flora and Fauna in the search box, or click here: Flora and Fauna

 

Posted in Animals, Culture, Flowers, Nature | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Whale Watching in Antarctica

Posted on October 15, 2020 by vanbraman

A little more than ten years ago my sister and I went on a cruise to Antarctica. Tonight I decided to share some of the whale watching pictures that my sister took.

whale watching, antarctica, cruise, cold watersWe had just left Paradise Bay, Antarctica and were heading through the Gerlache Strait when we started seeing whales.

whale watching, antarctica, cruise, cold watersIt was interesting to watch the whales go up and down out of the water. Here we see the fluke of a whale as he heads down.

whale watching, antarctica, cruise, cold watersHere is a whale that has come up out of the water and ‘thar she blows.’

whale watching, antarctica, cruise, cold watersI really like the shadows thrown by this whale as it comes up out of the water. I also like the way that the water that is falling off of the whale is lit up by the sun.

whale watching, antarctica, cruise, cold watersFinally we have two whales coming up out of the water together. They are not quite synchronized, but they are close.

I had some good memories while looking at these pictures tonight as I really enjoyed spending time with my sister on the cruise.

Steven

Posted in Animals, Memories, Nature, Travel | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments