Yellow Garden Spider – IUCN Conservation Status: Insufficient Data The yellow garden spider is a very common spider found throughout the contiguous United States, Hawaii, southern Canada, Mexico, and Central America. This yellow garden spider had built its nest in my parents’ backyard. I took this photo one morning in late August. Throughout my childhood […]
Tarantula – IUCN Conservation Status: Varies Tarantulas have one pair of eyes in the middle and three eyes on each side of their head. Our gallery theme this month is “Predators”. This predator navigates the dark desert ground using eight legs and eight eyes! Tarantulas have one pair of eyes in the middle and three eyes […]
Rock Pigeon – IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern Pigeons have a compact sturdy build Pigeons are a common sight in urban environments around the world. This particular bird is a rock dove, or rock pigeon. Despite their prevalence, few people understand the importance of this species to the ecosystem. Ruddy Turnstone Pigeons have a compact, […]
Canada Goose – IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern The Canada Goose can grow to be 43 inches in length and weigh 14 pounds! The Canada Goose, Branta canadensis is a fascinating bird species that has captivated people for centuries. It is a large waterbird that is native to North America and is recognized for its […]
Ruddy Turnstone – IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern This ruddy turnstone is missing its right foot This small shorebird is called a ruddy turnstone. They are found on beaches across the world. In the United States, we can find them on both coasts, typically in the spring and fall. Despite sounding like a beach bum bird, these birds […]
Royal Tern – IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern As the scientific name implies, royal terns are almost always found near the ocean and often on sandbars completely surrounded by water The scientific name for this bird is “Thalasseus maximus”. “Thalasseus” in ancient Greek means “sea”, and “maximus” translates to “greatest” in Latin. As the scientific name implies, […]
Osprey – IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern Osprey are apex predators and can be found along coastlines, rivers, and lakes This large raptor is built for fishing. So much so that it also goes by “fish hawk”, “sea hawk”, and “river hawk”. Not surprisingly, fish make up 99% of an osprey’s diet. These birds can be found across […]
Great Blue Heron – IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern Great blue herons have a wingspan of over six feet! This photo is of a great blue heron flying over Eagle Creek reservoir in Indiana. I was lucky enough to take this photo on a day that I had rented a super-telephoto lens. These types of […]
Collis P Huntington Park Cirrus clouds come in four varieties: intortus, radiatus, vertebratus, and duplicatus. The clouds in this photo are cirrus clouds. I took this photo while I was hiking around the lake at Collis P Huntington Park. This park spans 1,017 acres in Redding, Connecticut. It was donated to the state in 1973 […]
Rocky Mountain National Park Lookout Mountain provides a scenic view of the town of Golden, Colorado below There are very few views that are more spectacular than a landscape view of a mountain range. I took this photo the winter that I was living in Denver, Colorado. My soon-to-be wife was visiting, and we drove […]