The Ohio Nature Blog

Fishing

2012-01-17T05:45:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure why, but there's something deep inside my soul that gives me the ability to stand on the side of a lake, river or stream all day long, and toss and retrieve a lure or bait for hours. Until it gets dark. It's just so hard to put the fishing pole down. I can remember camping at Atwood Lake, in my early teens, getting eaten up by mosquitoes, basically doing the mosquito dance at dusk, until I absolutely couldn't stand it anymore. I don't care what type of fish I catch, I have always loved fishing. I can thank my dad and my grandfather for that passion.

They got me started at a pretty early age. My earliest fishing memory is Goodyear's Wingfoot Lake Park, a private retreat area for Goodyear workers outside of Akron. It isn't private anymore- in fact, it's now a state park. But there, probably at the age of five or six I remember catching a tiny little bluegill and a nice fat crayfish. The rest is history.

I don't remember my grandfather fishing very often. He just didn't participate in the sport very much in retirement. I think by that time, he put most of his effort into golf. But when he passed on last February, I went through his THREE tackle boxes, and found some pretty amazing fishing tackle spanning decades of fishing history. I've been going through it this weekend. I'd like to select the most valuable and interesting pieces and mount them on a shadowbox to hang in the wall. Heck, I think there's enough stuff to fill three shadow boxes.

Although I don't do it much anymore, fishing is something that first sparked my interest in nature and wild animals at a very young age.

-Tom

Maine Glow

2012-01-16T13:58:00.000-05:00

While we were visiting Megan's parents in Maine this past holiday season, I did what I always do there- I take plenty of photographs. Since I've been going there five years now, I have to make a conscious effort to find new images. It's SO easy to just take the same pictures year after year.

One late afternoon, just as the sun was dropping, I decided to walk through the woods surrounding their home.. The dominant trees of this particular area are balsam fir, white pine, hemlock, red oak and yellow birch. Even though the light was really great, I couldn't find a subject that was interesting enough to my eye. I then turned around, and noticed the small but specatular patches of light where the setting sun came through the forest. I used my telephoto lens to single out these areas of reflected and refracted light, shooting straight into the sun. Making sure I didn't look through the camera at the sun, I snapped several images that I was really happy with. I've never quite made this type of photograph before here, but I am really pleased with these. Yes, there are plenty of lens flare, normally considered a "problem", but to me, the technical flaws are what makes these images interesting.

No matter what you're doing, be it looking for rare plants, searching for wildlife, or photographing the natural world, take time to look at things a different way- you never know what you might find.

-Tom

Photography Exhibit January 21 - February 18 in Crestline, Ohio

2012-01-13T13:41:00.000-05:00

I'm quite excited to announce that I'm going to be doing another photography show. This time, I've received an invitation from Crawford Park District Director Bill Fisher to exhibit my work at Lowe-Volk park near Crestline, Ohio. I'll be showing sixteen of my most compelling works (i hope). I'll be at the nature center on Saturday January 21 for a reception. I hope my friends in north central Ohio will be able to make it!

Here are the details from the Bucyrus Telegraph Forum:

The Crawford Park District will begin its nature photography exhibit featuring native Ohioan Tom Arbour at 1 p.m. Jan. 21, providing an opportunity for visitors to meet Arbour and view samples of his work. The exhibit will be in Lowe-Volk Park Nature Center, 2401 Ohio 598. The nature photography exhibit will continue through Feb. 18. Arbour is a wildlife research technician for the Ohio Division of Wildlife's Olentangy Wildlife Research Station. His interests include a wide variety of natural subjects, but he is particularly interested in close-ups of insects and sweeping landscapes. Although his work is primarily Ohio-based, he has a large body of work from his wife's home state of Maine. He has recently photographed nature subjects in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, South Carolina, Florida and Puerto Rico.

Arbour's photography has been exhibited at the Peggy R. McConnell Arts Center of Worthington and the ODNR headquarters in Columbus. His nature photographs have appeared in multiple ODNR publications and web pages. He is perhaps best known to Ohioans for his Ohio Nature Blog (www.ohio natureblog.com).

I hope to see you on Saturday, January 21!

-Tom

Sunset

2012-01-05T20:37:00.001-05:00

Lately I've been showing photographs of the sunrise, but this evening, I photographed the evening sunset. I was struck by the contrast between the natural lines created by the gnarled bur oak limbs and the crossing angles created by the contrails just above the horizon.

-Tom

Ruffed Grouse

2011-12-30T19:45:00.001-05:00

And we're back! Over the river and through the woods from Grandmother's house in Maine, where we spent the Christmas holiday. Thanks to everyone at Little Pond for hosting our family for almost a full week. I think grandma, grandpa, great-grandma, and the aunts and uncles had fun playing with Brody and Weston. Megan and I appreciated the help just looking after the kids- keeping tabs on them is a full time job!

During this trip, I had the opportunity to photograph this pair of ruffed grouse. Relatively uncommon in Ohio, the ruffed grouse is a popular game bird species in Maine, where they are often referred to as "partridge". My in-laws have told me they see grouse occasionally, but they had, up until this week, eluded me at Little Pond.

I had just come in from outside when Megan started whispering for me rather loudly from the other room. I am well familiar with that loud whisper, so I grabbed my camera to see what she had spotted. These birds were foraging in the grass just outside the house, apparently eating clover, as evidenced by the little bit hanging from the male's beak. Megan spotted them out the window as she was coming down the stairs.

I only had about a minute, but I was able to get a fairly decent photograph of the female and a "blog-able" image of the male. You'll be sure that I'll be on the look out for ruffed grouse the next time we visit Little Pond, Maine.

-Tom

Muskingum Dawn

2011-12-23T20:51:00.002-05:00

It's hard to beat the gray. It seems as if we've had quite a bit of it lately. Rain, and few snowflakes, but little color or interesting winter weather so far. There are those few magical moments, however, each morning, if we're lucky, when the sun rises up between the thick deck of clouds and the horizon. I snapped this shot as the first light of day bathed across this typically harsh landscape in Muskingum County.

Merry Christmas- I'm hoping to catch a few snowflakes in Maine.

-Tom

Muskingum Sunrise #2

2011-12-14T20:26:00.000-05:00

I freaking love the Iphone. I love it even more than last year, when Megan bought it for me as a Christmas gift. I literally took about 30 seconds to capture this image Tuesday morning. Yes, I did spend five minutes post-processing in Photoshop CS4 tonight, but I was just bringing out the tones captured by the phone. We think of winter as being void of color, and for most of the day, that is true. But sometimes, for a few minutes each morning, this happens.

-Tom

Muskingum Sunrise

2011-12-09T20:29:00.001-05:00

It's been a while. As our boys grow (Weston is closer to 3 than 2, and Brody is closer to 1 than 0), I find myself spending more time with them and Megan. Tonight I took a few hours to organize my basement office and finally add all the photos I have taken in the DSLR-era to my lightroom catalog.

This morning I had the pleasure to witness this spectacular sunrise. The tree? It's a tulip poplar- Liriodendron tulipifera. One of the first things I learned about trees from my grandfather was that tulip trees are always straight- I mean really straight. They take advantage of tree fall gaps in forests and shoot up quickly before the canopy closes once again. But when a tulip tree doesn't have competition and is growing on extremely poor soil, than you have things like this happening. This would be a great tree to photograph the tulip-like flowers of this species. Typically the flowers are 50 or so feet into the canopy, but on this tree, you could practically pick them from the ground. I'll have to remember that come next June.

-Tom

Warm Night in the Suburbs

2011-11-26T20:07:00.001-05:00

Tonight I debated this question: Do I go outside and photograph something new, or work on older photos I have not yet processed? Here's my answer.

-Tom

More Winter Birds

2011-11-22T05:30:00.000-05:00

Female House Finch

Female House Sparrow

Song Sparrow

All of these birds took my instruction to "look to your left" quite well.

Tom

Brothers

2011-11-20T08:01:00.001-05:00

-Tom

Northern Cardinal

2011-11-19T19:19:00.001-05:00

Today I again hosted "the lodge" at Deer Haven Preserve in Liberty Township, Delaware County. This nature center is a great place to watch and photograph any bird that will come to a feeder. This male cardinal caught my eye on a gray afternoon. He kept preening his feathers- allowing the darker patches of underlying skin to show through. It was interesting behavior to watch, but those two patches don't make for the best photograph. Unlike a fashion photographer, I can't just yell "wardrobe!" and have three assistants rush in to re-arrange the feathers.

-Tom

Welcome the Gray

2011-11-15T19:54:00.001-05:00

Fall is over- the only leaves that remain green are on the non-native bush honeysuckles. The landscape is devoid of color, but with the leaves gone, the underlying structure, patterns, and lines are revealed.

-Tom

Today in Delaware County

2011-11-14T20:46:00.001-05:00

The corn is off the fields, finally.

-Tom

Big Run Preserve Sneak-Peek

2011-11-13T20:08:00.001-05:00

Ben Gelber, meterologist for our local NBC affiliate, recently interviewed my friend Frank about the future Big Run Preserve in Delaware County. I haven't been there, but from Frank's interview, it looks like it is a spectacular area. I've always wondered if any of the ravines of the Olentangy between Columbus and the city of Delaware had red-backed salamanders- and now I know. I commend Ben Gelber for spotlighting central Ohio's natural history. You may remember his piece from 2009 on Gypsy Moths at Highbanks Metropark that featured yours truly.

-Tom

Tech Highs and Lows

2011-11-12T10:08:00.001-05:00

I had been on a roll, photography wise, through October. Recently, several things have conspired against me that have resulted in a throttling of my creative flow.

First, I had a memory card go bad. And it was the second time that this memory card had failed. It became corrupted on a trip to Maine but I was able to recover the lost images that included my best dragonfly-in-flight image to date. but this time I had no such luck. I'm throwing the card in the trash. Technology fail #1.

Late last week, we upgraded to Time Warner's Road Runner Extreme cable internet service. It was great for a few hours. I mean speedy, you might even call it Ferarri fast. But then we would keep getting breaks in the internet flow about once very hour. It was maddening- I had to troubleshoot everything- the cable modem, our router, our uninterrupted power supply, our cables. When I finally determined the problem wasn't on our end, Megan called Time Warner. They gave her the typical "there is intermittent service in your area and the technicians are out working on the problem". What a load of B.S.! When our service continued to be wonky the next day, Time Warner came out and replaced our cable modem. Technology fail #2.

Couple the two tech fails with two 2:40 a.m. wake-up calls this week, and I've been thrown far from my creative groove. I'm looking to find it again this weekend.

-Tom

Frosty Morn'

2011-11-01T20:47:00.001-04:00

'twas a hard frost across northern Delaware County this morning.

- Tom

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T21:10:00.001-04:00

Happy Halloween! To see pictures of the kiddos, visit Nurse Megan.

-Tom

Red Maple

2011-10-30T12:36:00.001-04:00

I grew up in a house surrounded by red maples. The acidic clay soils of NE Ohio are perfect for this species. I rarely see red maples in a natural setting in Central Ohio, but this morning we walked through a large grove of them at Highbanks Metropark. Perhaps the shale bedrock is thick enough to produce acidic soils that support red maple.

Posted from my iPhone

Twisted Sporophyte

2011-10-27T21:51:00.002-04:00

The stalk of this moss sporophyte was twisted- all the other stalks on this clump were sticking straight up.

Which leads me to ask......

Do you dare to be different?

-Tom

***Update: Apparently, I liked the name "twisted gametophyte" too much, because I screwed up my plant anatomy. Shame on me. The twisted part is the sporophyte! Duh.....

-Tom

Last Quarter Crescent Moon

2011-10-26T20:26:00.000-04:00

I took a few macro photos of moss today, but when I loaded up my memory card into light room, I saw this image. When did I take that? How quickly my memory fades. This was the scene very early yesterday morning, before sunrise. A perfect crescent moon- I would have completely forgotten this memory had I not photographed it.

-Tom

Turkey Tail Fungus

2011-10-23T19:40:00.000-04:00

Today the whole family visited my grandmother's house in Akron Ohio. I wouldn't think of her house on the hill in the Kenmore neighborhood to be a place where I would find a nature photograph worthy of posting here, but I did. When I was growing up, my grandparents had three massive norway maples in the front yard. One still stands, one was replaced with a red maple, and the stump of another still remains. The turkey tail fungus adorning this stump was just too intricate not to photograph.

-Tom

Time to Build an Arc?

2011-10-20T21:46:00.002-04:00

It's pretty hard to believe that the sun was shining earlier this week.... it's been raining for two days straight!

-Tom

Giant Foxtail

2011-10-16T20:46:00.002-04:00

Grasses are hard to identify, right? Well- here's one that everyone should learn to recognize. You've surely seen it before. There aren't many grasses that have these seed heads that look like a fox's tail. The most common ones in Ohio are in the genus Setaria. This particular species, which can grow to four feet or so, is Setaria faberi, the giant foxtail. At the Delaware Wildlife Area, there's a fallow field which was dense with this species- as if it was planted.

Learn this grass, impress your friends with your nerdy botanical knowledge. Giant goxtail- Setaria faberi.

-Tom

p.s.- This is a non-native species, but its not considered particularly invasive.

PPS. This is published post number 1000 at The Ohio Nature Blog, which I've been pecking away at since 2006. I've been working on a retrospective that was to be post number 1000, but in my tiredness I forgot that the milestone was creeping up.

-Tom

Big Bluestem, Canada Goldenrod

2011-10-12T20:54:00.000-04:00

Where has the week gone? After a day of rain, yesterday's semi-sunny day seems a distant memory. I'm on dad duty the next four days while Megan heads to California. Wish me luck!

-Tom

Weston, Say Cheese!

2011-10-08T14:27:00.001-04:00

He's growing up. Quickly.

-Tom

It's Harvest Time

2011-10-07T20:41:00.000-04:00

Before dawn this morning, the combines were rolling across the fields of Delaware County. The soybean harvest has begun- soon this field will nothing but stubble.

I love Google Plus. This evening, between period breaks of the Bluejackets game, I posted several versions of this same scene. This one came out as the most interesting. If you haven't joined Google+, I highly recommend it. It's an amazing place to see what photographers and nature lovers are discovering and creating.

Tom

The Bald Eagle Soars

2011-10-06T20:10:00.000-04:00

Bald Eagle soars over Delaware County, October 6, 2011.

So I'm driving home from work this evening. I take the back roads, mostly county and township routes through corn, soybeans, and woods. I look up, down, and around, because I never know what I'm going to find. As I was driving the Subaru tonight though, I looked up at a group of swirling turkey vultures. The lowest one baffled me for a second, because it had a white head. BALD EAGLE! I slam on the breaks, back up the car, park on a farm lane, and get whip out the telephoto lens. It's still gliding above me, and I fire off a salvo of images before it slowly drifts out of camera range.

Everyone loves the American bald eagle. In fact, my posts on the eagles of Highbanks Metropark are the most visited pages on my entire blog (which is quickly approaching 1000 published posts).

Eagles can be seen across Ohio. And although I see them often, I rarely get such a treat on my drive home.

-Tom

(After closer inspection of this photo, this bird may have a red band on its left leg- what do you think? I'll check some of my other photos to see if I can confirm the presence of a band)

RIP Steve Jobs

2011-10-05T20:37:00.003-04:00

Our first family computer, my first computer, was an Apple IIe. We gave it up for a windows machine around 1994.

I came back to the apple world 2009, when I received the magical Ipod touch- and I haven't looked back.

Megan bought me an iphone last Christmas, which is perhaps the most amazing camera I've ever owned.

The Ipad was next...when I'm at home, it's rarely more than five feet from me.

Steve Jobs, thank you for just being you. And thank you for sharing your vision with the world.

-Tom

Autumn Leaves

2011-10-03T20:10:00.002-04:00

Thank you to River Mud, Scott, and Beyond my Garden for chiming in on yesterday's barrier island post. Today, it's just pretty pictures. Happy fall.

-Tom

Across the Midway Inlet to Litchfield Beach

2011-10-02T20:21:00.001-04:00

I find it fairly amazing how many of the Atlantic barrier islands are lined with homes. Yes, it's a fantastic place to spend a week, year, or a lifetime, but these places are dynamic. Sand moves. I can't complain though- We did rent a barrier island home for a week. Yes, the cottage was probably 80-100 years old and had survived many hurricanes over the years, but that's just a wink in the history of our world.

Our weekend was busy and kid-filled! My DSLR didn't even come out of the bag- but I'll have more images of Ohio's progression towards the peak of fall this week.

-Tom

Red Admiral Underwing

2011-09-30T05:30:00.000-04:00

Also from yesterday- There are so many cool things out right now. Here's a bonus morning post that I actually scheduled to go up this morning last night before I went to bed. Have a great weekend.

-Tom

Autumn Bouquet

2011-09-29T20:47:00.000-04:00

Yesterday an image from my morning commute, and today, a photograph from my lunch break, this time with the "big gun".

How many species you can identify? I don't have an answer...but I'm counting them up myself!

-Tom

Point and Shoot

2011-09-28T20:49:00.000-04:00

Delaware County, Ohio

I love the times around the equinoxes. Why? Because I'm traveling to work just before and just after sunrise. This can lead to some absolutely incredible photographic opportunities. Today I just had to stop the car and snap this image with my Canon D10 point and shoot.

This roadway was built with the expectations that it would be home to shops, offices, and condos. But the recession hit, and now there is nothing but a fancy roadway meandering through a chopped down forest that is now starting to grow back.

The Widefooted Treehopper

2011-09-26T20:09:00.000-04:00

Campylenchia latipes- Widefooted Treehopper

I apologize for jumping between states. South Carolina offered so many awesome photographic opportunities. There are enough images that I'm excited about that I'll probably be sprinkling them in now and then for the next few weeks. But now we're headed back to Ohio.

One of the great challenges for any photographer is to find interesting subjects close to where you are. I once heard that there are a lifetime of amazing photographic opportunities only a mile from where you live. I don't need to travel to South Carolina to find amazing images- the opportunities in our own backyard are limitless.

Take this widefooted treehopper, for example. One evening last week when it wasn't raining, Megan and I were running Weston around the backyard. I stopped to examine the patch of Canada goldenrod that I have let grow up along our back fence. One stem of goldenrod had a thorn. Canada goldenrod with a thorn? How could that be possible?

After I moved in closer, I saw that this "thorn" was actually a treehopper. The diversity of these tiny little bugs is amazing. And the mimicry that that this particular species possesses is even cooler. What great camouflage. But you can't fool us- we botanists know Canada goldenrod doesn't have thorns!

-Tom

Sunset over the Salt Marsh, Pawleys Island

2011-09-25T19:57:00.000-04:00

Have a great week. Here is a view across the salt marsh towards the north causeway at Pawleys Island, South Carolina.

The Lodge at Deer Haven Preserve

2011-09-24T13:23:00.001-04:00

About once a month I volunteer at a nature center called "The Lodge at Deer Haven Preserve". I'm here now, actually, typing and photographing with my IPhone. Most central Ohioans are well aware of the Franklin County Metroparks, but Delaware County also has a fantastic park district. The system in this County is known as the Delaware Preservation Parks.

The Lodge here at Deer Have Preserve is a fantastic place to watch birds. The nature center is open - every day from 12-5 pm. I'll be here today until 2:30.

-Tom

It's Autumn

2011-09-23T06:00:00.000-04:00

Can you believe it? The vegetation doesn't lie- I snapped this view of the various colors of Virginia creeper leaves just yesterday. I've been experimenting with my super wide angle lens to photograph plants- The bets way to view this photograph? Bury your nose in the screen, just like you were botanizing this little patch of ground.

-Tom

Eastern Garter Snake

2011-09-22T20:23:00.001-04:00

We've got snakes in our yew bushes at the office. Two of them- I would gander a male and a female, as we saw them pretty tightly intertwined the other day. I snapped this shot on Monday. I've started bringing my full set of camera gear to work. Why the heck not? I can get everything to fit in a shoulder bag.

At home we have been experiencing the let-down of a post vacation week. AND we all have caught colds. Yippee! I've got plenty of things on my mind and I've been using the camera to document autumn. That's right, goodbye summer, hello fall!

-Tom

Sanderling

2011-09-18T21:14:00.002-04:00

September 14, 2011

Pawleys Island, South Carolina

Nighttime at Pawleys Island

2011-09-16T15:45:00.001-04:00

Our time at the beach is almost over. The reality of a return trip has set in. Just how tall has our front grass grown while we were away? Will the drive back with two kids under three be as smooth as the drive here?

Over the past week I have enjoyed a little night time photography- something I rarely do back in Columbus. A trip to the beach with relatively little light pollution makes me want to use the dark sky and the light of the moon to make photographs.

Making images from the relatively dim light of an almost full moon can be a frustrating experience but the results using long exposures can be quite rewarding.

Our time here at our "shabby" little cottage on Pawleys island is almost over. It's back to Ohio for us!

-Tom

Pawleys island Sunrise

2011-09-13T08:29:00.001-04:00

We're having a wonderful time at the beach.

-Tom

Location:Friendship Pl,Pawleys Island,United States

Blue Crab

2011-09-12T09:50:00.001-04:00

- Tom

Location:Dusty Cir,Pawleys Island,United States

Life's a Beach

2011-09-10T19:59:00.001-04:00

We made it to Pawleys Island, South Carolina. Now, if we can get the kids to bed, we might just be able to relax!

I'm posting this evening with my iPhone- my 7d hasn't even made it out if the bag. It's so easy to be spontaneously creative wig my phone. This image, this text, all done with a phone!

-Tom

Did I Photograph a Dragonfly Pooing?

2011-09-07T19:51:00.000-04:00

Don't adjust your monitors, eyeglasses, or contact lenses. The photo above is horribly out of focus. But as I was going through the literally hundreds (about 900 to be exact) frames that I shot of these darners at Little Pond, Maine, one in particular caught my attention. It had a little pinkish thing hanging from the tip of its abdomen. What the heck is it?

Here is the next frame immediately afterwards- This one is in focus, not only the dragonfly, but also the foreign object. I'm definitely not an expert on dragonfly poo, but I'm just saying....what else could it be? Megan, the resident poo-ologist in the house, says poo. What do you?

-Tom

Goodbye Once Again to Little Pond

2011-09-06T05:30:00.000-04:00

Megan, Weston, Brody and I have been been home now for almost a week and it's time to say goodbye to Little Pond. Here's a slideshow of some of my favorite images. I also created the background music today using my Ipad and the software Garage Band. Creating slideshows is really a rewarding experience for me- I hope you enjoy viewing this as much as I enjoyed creating it.

-Tom

Tandem Meadowhawks

2011-09-05T03:05:00.000-04:00

Here is a tandem pair of meadowhawk dragonflies. I'm not exactly which sure which species we're looking at, but if I had to guess, I would guess Cherry-faced meadowhawk. The male's face is awfully red.

The meadowhawks do the egglaying together. The male, in front, grasps onto the female's head with the end of his abdomen, and they literally fly in tandem. Pretty neat trick, isn't it? I'm not sure if the male makes all the decisions about where to go, or whether there is truly some type of communication between the two.

The female, in back, is just about ready to dip the end of her abdomen in the wet peat of the bog, depositing eggs with each tap. The pair would hover for a few seconds, drop down to the bog, do some abdomen tapping, and then hover once more.

-Tom

Channeling Monet's Water Lilies

2011-09-04T16:34:00.000-04:00

Claude Monet- I'm pretty sure everyone learned about him in sixth grade art class, but in case you didn't- here's what I'm talking about.

-Tom

This week I'm posting images from our late August 2011 trip to Little Pond, Maine.

Not Until Twilight

2011-09-03T20:17:00.000-04:00

The beavers wait until the sun sets and twilight shimmers across Little Pond- you won't see them a minute sooner. But if you're on the pond or at the dock during this magical time of light, you just might get to see one.

-Tom

This week I'm presenting images from our late August 2011 trip to Little Pond, Maine.

Darner in Flight

2011-09-01T21:01:00.000-04:00

One of the Mosaic Darners (species to be determined), Little Pond, Maine- August 26, 2011

Irene Is Ovah

2011-08-29T08:24:00.001-04:00

Irene is over, and the sun has returned to Little Pond. We lost power around 8:00 pm last night, but it was back on by 7:00 am. The Little Androscoggin crested around 7 feet and 1900 cubic feet per second. Remember when I started tracking the stream gauge, the stream height was below 3 feet and the flow was under 40 cubic feet per second. The Rivers are raging- I'll try to get out and photograph one sometime today.

Hopefully Laguardia is back to normal by tomorrow and we'll be able to get home to Ohio without any problems.

Tom

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

5:00 Update: Tropical Storm Irene at Little Pond

2011-08-28T17:27:00.002-04:00

Irene hit us with plenty of rain, and that's about it. The Mt. Mica station has recorded a whopping 3.9 inches today, and that has the Little Androscoggin River at a record high of 667 cubic feet of water per second- the mean output on this day is a mere 32 cfs, which means there is almost 21 times as much water flowing in the river than normal.
Our pressure is still decreasing, at 29.26 inches. As the storm passes us by, will we drop below 29? We'll see. But all in all, Irene packed much less of a punch than I was expecting.

-Tom

2011-08-28T12:16:00.001-04:00

So far, so good. We have yet to experience high winds but we have had a steady, sometimes driving rain here at Little Pond. The local forecasters are calling for the wind to pick up this afternoon. Weston and I played outside in the rain this morning between cloudbursts. There's nothing quite like swimming in the kiddie pool while it is raining. Let me clarify: Weston played in the pool, I watched outside from underneath a large golf umbrella.

Here's my 12:00 update.

Mt. Mica Observatory:
Temperature: 67.6
Pressure: 29.55 inches
Winds: 6.3 gusting to 8 mph.
Rainfall: 2.64 inches

Little Androscoggin at South Paris:

Gauge Height: 3.05 feet
Discharge: 93 cubic feet per second. (twice as much water since 8am this morning, three times as much water as yesterday evening)

Will the winds come? Will we loose power? I'll check back in at 5:00 p.m. And if that doesn't happen, you'll know that we're in the dark!

-Tom

The Rain Begins

2011-08-28T07:38:00.001-04:00

The rain began sometime overnight. We're getting a steady rain with winds at 12 mph from the NE. the little Androscoggin is up, but not by much. This afternoon we're expecting 20 mph winds with gusts to 40 mph. It looks like we'll be getting plenty of rain.

Mt. Mica Observatory:

Temperature: 65.7
Wind: 12 gusting to 14 mph
Pressure: 29.79 and falling
0.63 inches of rain

Little Androscoggin River near South Paris:
Gauge height: 2.64 feet
Discharge: 46 cubic feet per second.

-Tom

Red Sky at Night

2011-08-27T20:48:00.002-04:00

We're headed to bed soon and the first high clouds from Irene have just reached us. Things are calm at 8:41, but we could hear thunder off in the distance at sunset.

Here are the numbers I'm tracking- there have been no significant changes.

Mt. Mica Observatory:

Temperature: 68.2
Wind: 0 mph gusting to 2 mph
Pressure: 29.94 and steady

Little Androscoggin River near South Paris:
Gauge height: 2.43 feet
Discharge: 31 cubic feet per second.

It will be interesting to see how these numbers change overnight.

Again, our thoughts here in Maine are with those further south, including Megan's grandmother in Manhattan, who are bearing the brunt of this storm.

-Tom

Waiting for Irene

2011-08-27T13:35:00.002-04:00

Today we're experiencing the calm before the storm. Although all of Maine is under a tropical storm warning, we're not freaking out here. I've heard forecasts that predict anywhere from 2-7 inches of rain for this area of western Maine. Tomorrow, we'll be experiencing 30-40 mile per hour sustained winds, with possible gusts up to 60 mph. It's hard believe that our partly cloudy day will digress quickly into a tropical storm.

I'm going to watch several data sources over the next 48 hours to stay informed- the weather station at the Mt. Mica observatory and the USGS stream gauge on the Little Androscoggin River. I need something to do here on "vacation", so when it's going to be raining all day, I might as well watch the weather.

1:30 p.m. Saturday August 27

Mt. Mica:
Temperature: 81.5 degrees
Wind: 0 gusting to 2 mph
Barometric Pressure: 29.94 and falling
Partly cloudy
No precipitation.

Little Androscoggin River:

33 cubic feet per second.

As the day progresses, I'm expecting the pressure to drop, the river to start running higher, and the winds to pick up. Yeah, that's not exactly rocket science, is it?

I've been a weather buff for a long time- the questions really are: just how much rain will be get? How long will we experience 30-40 mph winds? Will those winds take out any of the trees lining the driveway and adjacent power lines that lead back to the house? Fortunately, our experience here will be relatively minor to what's going on in North Carolina right now.

I'll check back with updated stats before I head to bed.

-Tom

White Admiral: the Red-Spotted Purple of the North

2011-08-26T20:30:00.001-04:00

Here in Maine there aren't any red-spotted purple butterflies. Or are there? What we know in Ohio as a red-spotted purple butterfly does not have distinctive white wing bars like this individual I photographed today. This is the white admiral. It's the same species, but a different subspecies that replaces our red-spotted purples further north in places like Maine and Canada.

It looks as if someone took a paintbrush to a red-spotted purple's wings.

We had a beautiful sunny day and it's hard to believe that Hurricane Irene is headed our way. By the time it makes it, most of the energy will be gone from the storm. Although we were originally scheduled to fly out Sunday morning, our flights were cancelled this afternoon. We re-booked to travel home on Tuesday. Irene, we're waiting for you.

-Tom

On the Surface

2011-08-25T18:02:00.001-04:00

We're at my in-law's place in Maine, tenuously trying to figure out if we're going to be able to fly out on Sunday morning as planned. Right now we're operating under the "we'll see" mantra. Irene may alter our plans.

I've been regularly visiting Maine since late 2005, when Megan and I first met. Her in-law's place is an awesome playground for any naturalist. With over 50 acres of woods, streams, marshes and ponds, I am in heaven here. A few years ago, I made a short film of Little Pond- if you have a few minutes and you'd like to get the full experience, you can find it here.

Photographically speaking, it isn't difficult to find new and interesting photographic subjects. BUT, it is really easy to take the same photographs over and over, which leads me to today's story.

Although I've photographed the floating leaves of watershield before, I've never really done it well. Today's overcast skies and rain led me to these two floating leaves. But one image didn't tell the whole story. Just what are those black dots?

As I leaned over the edge of the dock on my stomach, I had my answer. Yes, some of the spots were discoloration in the leaf tissue, but most of the spots had tiny legs. They look to be some type of insect nymph, but I'm not eve sure what family they might belong to. That will have to wait until we get back and I can have a better look at them. And that brings me back to Hurricane Irene- I'm closely following the Hurricane track to see if there's any possibility of us flying out on Sunday- we'll see!

Stay safe-

-Tom

Slaty Skimmer up North

2011-08-24T20:54:00.002-04:00

There's no place like Maine in the summer time. Megan and I have traveled with the boys on a brief trip see their grandparents. Dragonflies abound. Here's a close-up of the slaty skimmer, a very common species here at Little Pond.

-Tom

And Now for an Interruption

2011-08-22T20:56:00.000-04:00

It's taken me almost two years to click through twenty four exposures of Kodak T-MAX 400, but a few weeks ago, I finally finished a roll. I've never developed my own film. But thanks to the help of friend James, I'm an expert (yeah right). With his help yesterday, I developed my first roll of film. He was kind enough to drop off the negatives this evening after an overnight drying session, and bam, I popped them in the scanner. Here's Weston's best "I'm cold daddy why are we outside are you crazy!?!" look. I snapped this sometime last winter, as several of the other frames show a very pregnant Megan.

I'm not sure how often I'll shoot and develop my own film. But it has taught me this: take the necessary time with every frame, digital or analog, so that I capture the very best image possible.

Tom

P.S. Ok- How I missed the extra little black bar on the right side of the frame, I do not know. I'm not fixing it!

Crab Spider on Common Ragweed

2011-08-21T21:01:00.000-04:00

August 18, 2011

Another weekend down- it was busy, I'm exhausted. I'm off to bed. Here's the plant that you millions of Ohioans will unknowingly curse this week. I know I will. I was sneezing so often I could barely take this photo, despite my daily claritin regimen.

-Tom

Continuing with the Predator, Prey Theme..........

2011-08-18T21:11:00.000-04:00

The Spiny Assassin Bug, Sinea spiniceps

-Tom

Two Flies, One Human

2011-08-16T21:25:00.000-04:00


August 16th, 2011, Delaware County, Ohio

Royal River Cruiser, Macromia taeniolata

2011-08-15T18:33:00.000-04:00


Delaware Wildlife Area, August 15, 2011

Welcome to Monday everyone. It's not every Monday that I photograph a new-to-me species of dragonfly, but today I just happened to get lucky. If my identification passes muster with experts, I believe this is a royal river cruiser, Macromia taeniolata. This is a pretty darn nice looking bug, isn't it?

I have made a habit of bringing my full camera rig to work every day, and during my lunch break, I take short photographic forays around the adjacent fields and forests. Today I hit the jackpot. I had spotted a dark dragon flying around above me as I was photographing ambush bugs, but it was high, far away, and it wasn't stopping to perch. As I walked back to the office, a dragon zipped from behind me and landed in the edge of the old field, just 15 feet or so from my camera. I set up, moved in slowly, and bam, I got some shots that I can be proud of.

Although the Ohio Odonata Website isn't completely up-to-date, this sighting could turn out to be a new species for Delaware County. Normally this species is found relentlessy cruising up and down rivers, but they apparently do break away from time to time to explore adjacent uplands like this individual was doing today. The main take away from today's photograph? Never leave home without my good camera!

-Tom

The Friendliest Spiders That You'll Ever Meet

2011-08-12T19:00:00.001-04:00

Have a happy weekend- from a crab spider. Yet another really fascinating creature that I photographed on my lunchbreaks this week. I guess being in the office can have its benefits?

I have quite a fondness for crab spiders. How many spiders actually have a face that resembles that of a human? I have photographed several over the years, including one lying in wait on daisy fleabane and another that was colored paper white.

-Tom

Can you Tell I'm on a Roll? Leafhoppers!

2011-08-11T06:00:00.003-04:00

I photographed these two species yesterday for the first time- I hope I find more today, they're really cool. The diversity of insects, creatures that are so tiny and overlooked, is truly amazing.

-Tom

Mating Ambush Bugs

2011-08-10T21:12:00.000-04:00

Yesterday evening about this time I saw Seabrooke Leckie's find of the day- a mating pair of ambush bugs. Love must be in the air, because today I came across a pair here in Ohio. I love how these insects just appear to stare right into the camera. They have that look like they're looking right through you- as if you weren't even there. Take a look at this one that was our "pet" two years ago- it has the same stare, it's just bright yellow.

-Tom

Peck's Skipper

2011-08-10T06:00:00.002-04:00

I think- Let me have it if I'm wrong! Nectaring on teasel. This one is also from my lunchtime photo foray this past Monday.

-Tom

Katydid, Profile

2011-08-09T20:53:00.000-04:00

Yesterday's Katydid, this time, a side view. Has anyone heard about any Pink Katydids being discovered this year?

-Tom

Katydid

2011-08-09T06:00:00.004-04:00

Surprise! A quick mid-week post. Here's some type of katydid that I found on my lunch break yesterday. The insects are going crazy right now- their songs are almost deafening.

-Tom

Peach Picking at Legend Hills Orchard

2011-08-07T13:17:00.000-04:00

I think it's now official- the Arbour family has a favorite orchard. Legend Hills Orchard, near Utica, Ohio has officially become stitched into our family fabric. Weston loves going to the place where the "yum yums" hang from trees, and we hope Brody will too. I checked back on the blog to see when we started coming here. I'm not sure exactly how early it was, but I did find a post showing Megan and I picking apples in 2007.

We were just one-year-married at that time, basically still newlyweds. Now, we've got two boys that follow us around everywhere we go. It's amazing how our lives have changed- for the better. Caring for two little hungry mouths- getting them to sleep, to stop crying, changing their diapers, and now potty training is all, well, a struggle. Sometimes we are so busy it's hard to remember that there was ever a time in our lives where we had to look for something to keep us entertained. Now we long for that little bit of extra time, but it usually doesn't happen. And that's OK- because one day I'm sure we'll be asking ourselves how the boys grew up so fast. Maybe it was because they ate a ton of peaches?!

-Tom

Farewell to Rocky Mountain National Park

2011-08-06T20:08:00.000-04:00

The calendar tells me its August, but I'm not quite sure I believe it. Do you? Yes- it's been ridiculously hot outside for a long time. But I'm just not ready for it to be the last month full of summer. Unfortunately, I don't have a choice- so it's be ready or nothing.

I hope you've enjoyed my Colorado images. I spent ALOT of time photographing in the park, and I wanted to take the time to carefully select my best images and present them here. So much of blogging typically involves the day-to-day activities. But I wanted to take the time to explore a photographic topic in depth. I hope you've been enjoying it. If you haven't- let me know with a comment or e-mail.

With these four images, I'll be bringing the Rocky Mountain National Park images to a close. On our last full day in the park, I wanted to capture some dragonfly and damselfy images. I went to Lily Lake to see if I could find dragons and damsels- and I did. I also found fly fisherman, picnicers, wedding parties being photographed, and plenty of day hikers. I had spent most of my time in the park during the week, but when I hit this spot on a Saturday, I got a taste of just how much the locals use RMNP as a quick getaway from the local cities.

The last image is perhaps one of my favorites from the trip- A lone ponderosa pine, growing in granitic bedrock, overlooking the snowcapped mountains that lead to Long's Peak. Rocky Mountain National Park is a spectacular place. Scenic and wildlife photographic opportunities abound. I hope we are able to return soon.

-Tom

Rocky Mountain Roundup- Mammals of Rocky Mountain National Park

2011-07-31T20:50:00.000-04:00

Coyote- Fairly common, there and even here in Ohio. Notice it's posing behind Mountain Goldenbanner!

Best guess? The Mountain Cottontail. Any rabbit experts out there? Does this one have enough hair in its ears? This one was hanging out near our condo.

The golden-mantled ground squirrel that prompted Weston to say his longest sentence that I've heard to date. "Hi Squirrel- How are you?" I was dumbfounded. These things are RIDICULOUSLY tame, they're used to being fed, but there are plenty of signs that say "don't feed these squirrels!"

Higher up in elevation I found these interesting chipmunks. I believe this is the least chimpmunk, which can be found throughout the park.

And here is my Holy Grail picture- A pika. I was hoping for a better photo- can you see it?


And finally- the mule deer- this buck in velvet was hanging around during the wedding rehearsal dinner. I took this shot just as we were loading the kids up in the car- I literally had put my camera into the trunk when it came into view. Magic moment, right time, right place, and I had my camera!

During July (and August!) 2011, I'm writing about my late June trip to Rocky Mountain National Park. I hope you enjoy this ~~brief~~ exetnded swing to the western U.S.

Mountain Goldenbanner, Thermopsis montana

2011-07-29T20:59:00.002-04:00

Let's continue exploring the Rocky Mountains, shall we? At 8000 feet up, spring comes much later than it does in Ohio. It was awesome to be there in late June but to see many "spring" wildflowers. Perhaps the flower I photographed the most was the mountain goldenbanner, a member of the pea family. It was everywhere in meadows at lower elevations. At the time, I wondered why this species was so prevalent even though the park has a large elk population that has grazed many areas to the point where they need to be fenced off to exclude the elk. After a little research tonight, however, I learned that several members of the genus Thermopsis, including this species, contain toxic alkaloids. The elk don't touch it.

I'm almost ready to wrap up looking back on the rocky mountains. Look for a roundup of the various animal species that we encountered that I haven't yet shown this weekend.

-Tom

During July 2011, I'm writing about my late June trip to Rocky Mountain National Park. I hope you enjoy this brief swing to the western U.S.

Google+

2011-07-24T20:39:00.000-04:00

Tom @ Google+

I was hoping to put together another post from Rocky Mountain National Park this weekend, but it didn't happen. Instead, I've been playing around with Google's new social network called Google+. I really like it's simplicity and ability to post large photos with long captions. It's also nice to organize your friends into different groups called circles.

I really like it- If you would like to give Google+ a try, just e-mail at hiramtom at yahoo dot com and I'll send you an invite. Right now it's in the testing phase, so you can jump in early and see what it's all about. I'll probably be posting images there on a more frequent basis as well.

Have a great week- I'll be back next weekend.

-Tom

Adventures with a Two Year Old in Rocky Mountain National Park

2011-07-23T20:24:00.000-04:00

Taking a break at Bear Lake

We had to stop at every trickle of running water.

And we had fun examining pebbles to determine if they'd be good to throw into Bear Lake.

Sizing up the Alluvial Fan Falls.

It's hard not to be cute when you're only two years old.


Sprague Lake, again making sure the little pebble he's about to toss into the water is suitable for that purpose.

Another week in the books- how was yours? Let's just say I'd rather be remembering our late June 2011 trip to Rocky Mountain National Park! Last weekend I wrote about the flora and fauna of the alpine tundra. Here, Weston is pictured at much lower elevations in the park, although he did make it up past 9475 feet at Bear Lake. The little guy was huffing and puffing as we took our gingerly stroll around the lake.

The whole family went to RMNP for Megan's brother's wedding- we stayed for a week, but Megan still had to do her day job while we were there. After returning from early morning photo excursions, I would pick up Weston around 9:00 to give momma a break. Weston and I had a blast exploring the park- even at two years old he was a super nature adventurer.

Weston's two early loves of the natural world are rocks and water. He had no problems finding small rocks to throw. Climbing boulders was also great fun. All with my help, of course. We visited short trails with easy access to the parking lot. He walked for the most part- sometimes he would stop, look up at me, raise his arms and say "up". That's when we'd stop and take a break. Yes, it took us an hour to go one half mile but that's what exploring nature with a two year old is like. And that's how it should be! So many of the park visitors were in such a hurry to see everything, they actually saw very little.

Weston and I had a blast exploring the park together- on our next trip hopefully momma and Brody will be able to join us more frequently.

Tom

During July 2011, I'm writing about my late June trip to Rocky Mountain National Park. I hope you enjoy this brief swing to the western U.S.

Flora of the Alpine Tundra

2011-07-17T20:41:00.001-04:00

We're continuing yesterday's exploration on the alpine tundra of Rocky Mountain National Park. The park experienced heavy snowfall this past spring, and the alpine regions continued to receive new snow into the last week of June. It doesn't take long, however, for the liliputian flora of the tundra to respond to a warm up. These plants have a growing season that might last three months. They've got to flower and produce seeds in that short amount of time. All of these species literally hug the ground like a carpet draped across the mountain tops.

If you have studied the flora of the east, you'll see some familiar sights. I have not taken the time to identify these particular species- please enjoy the floral show!

-Tom

I've gone to a "blogging only on the weekend" format- enjoy the week, I'll catch you next weekend and I'll have more views of the Rocky Mountains.

During July 2011, I'm writing about my late June trip to Rocky Mountain National Park. I hope you enjoy this brief swing to the western U.S.

Yellow-bellied Marmot

2011-07-16T20:30:00.000-04:00

In June 2010, I traveled to Yellowstone National Park and saw most every animal featured in the park brochure except two exceptions- the trumpeter swan, and the yellow-bellied marmot (Marmota flaviventris). After photographing these curious creatures at Rocky Mountain National Park, I know why. While at Yellowstone, I stayed at low elevations where the elk, bison, and wolves hung out. To see marmots, I needed to be high up on the alpine tundra of the mountains.

While driving up trail ridge road, I stopped at the first major parking area, the overlook of forest canyon. It took me a little while to notice that the area was literally crawling with yellow-bellied marmots. Well acclimated to people, these creatures reminded me of a alpine version of our groundhog. And even more interesting, they loved to lick the rocks that made up the walls of the overlook. One brave marmot even ventured into the walled off area meant to keep the people off the tundra and from falling into the canyon.

I had a blast photographing these fascinating, mountain creatures which live in an area that is covered with snow 7-8 months of the year, 11,500 feet above sea level. Tomorrow, I'll share photos of the amazing liliputian flowers of the alpine tundra that these marmots most likely call food.

-Tom

During July 2011, I'm writing about my late June trip to Rocky Mountain National Park. I hope you enjoy this brief swing to the western U.S.

Wyoming Ground Squirrels

2011-07-15T21:10:00.000-04:00

When we first arrived at our condo complex in Estes Park Colorado, it didn't take me long to see these chipmunk sized cheeping rodents running everywhere. Then I started seeing bigger ones. These little guys turned out to be Wyoming ground squirrels- Urocitellus elegans. They were everywhere around our complex. Underneath our condo were several unattached PVC pipes. My guess is that the complex has decided to live with these squirrels by providing homes for them. The meadow next door to our condo was riddled with burrows, but I didn't see one in the well manicured lawns where we stayed. These squirrels must be a horrible pest to the residents of Estes Park, but I found them quite photogenic.

-Tom

Ultra-wide Views of Rocky Mountain National Park

2011-07-10T13:19:00.000-04:00

While photographing in the park, I most likely had a telephoto lens for wildlife or the ultrawide Canon 10-22 mm lens that I borrowed from lensrentals.com Contrasting with yesterday's telephoto views of the park, here are several images shot at 10mm with my Canon Eos 7D.

There's a creature in this photo- can you be the first to spot it?

The first time a rented an ultra-wide lens, I didn't bring back very good photographs. When you're viewing the world with this wide angle, the most important thing to remember is to GET CLOSE to your subject. Whatever you are photographing, you really can't be close enough. Remember those two words, and you'll be successful with ultra-wide lenses.

Cheers,

Tom

Telephoto Views of Rocky Mountain National Park

2011-07-09T15:33:00.000-04:00

Have you noticed that very long telephoto and very wide angle shots are trendy amongst today's photographers? Each night before I go to bed, I use the Life "app" to review the day's top photos. With almost predicatble regularity, each image is an extreme wide angle or a long telephoto. What happened to the good 'ole days of the 50mm equivalent lens? I think that focal lenght has died for photojournalism.

Anyways, As I was shooting in RMNP, I often had my long telephoto lens on the camera to capture wildlife. Why not capture the interesting details 10 miles across the valley as well?

Tom

Elk- Estes Park Colorado and Nearby Rocky Mountain National Park

2011-07-08T21:10:00.000-04:00

If you'd like to photograph the American elk or Wapiti, (Cervus canadensis), you'll do well in Estes Park Colorado and Rocky Mountain National Park. There is no shortage of these amazingly huge mammals there.

After much thought, I'm going to plug on here at the Ohio Nature Blog. The next few weeks will be dedicated to the plants, animals, and scenery of Rocky Mountain National Park. Expect longer more involved posts during the weekend. I'll post quick things, iphone photos, and the like during the week as time allows. Thanks for viewing!

Tom

New Banner, Wider Blog Layout, Wider Pictures and Video

2011-07-07T19:48:00.000-04:00

One cure for the blog blues is to change your blog layout. I've done that this evening, upping my blogging space to 900 pixels, which means you'll see bigger pictures here in the future. I'll also be able to post wider videos too. And I've added a new blog banner to represent the summer season. Can you believe I captured that image with the camera on the Iphone 4? I snapped it on my way to work. I've driven by this apparently abandonded farmhouse for a year, waiting for the right light and time to photograph it. The mature wheat provided a perfect foreground, and the warm morning light was idyllic. I hope you enjoy the new layout!

Tom

Rocky Mountain National Park

2011-07-03T17:46:00.000-04:00

Moraine Park, part of Rocky Mountain National Park, near Estes Park, Colorado.

I'm back. Make that we're back. From Rocky Mountain National Park. What a spectacularly wonderfully awesome place. The break from blogging was welcome- I concentrated on making great images in the park. Thanks to Megan's brother for Sam for picking a pretty amazing place to get married- Estes Park, Colorado.

Over the past few weeks I've thought about the future of this blog- where I want to take it, if I want to take it forward. I've been doing this since 2006. I welcome your comments.

Cheers,

Tom

A Quick Break

2011-06-12T20:51:00.002-04:00

Megan and I have a busy few weeks ahead of us, and I've decided to take a little break from blogging. I'll be back sooner than you know it with nature photographs from Ohio and beyond.

Tom

Great Blue on the Olentangy- Camera Critters

2011-06-11T07:39:00.000-04:00


June 5, 2011

When I go to the Olentangy, I'm usually there to photograph dragonflies. So I'm typically not set up or ready to photograph a giant flying bird. This past weekend I got lucky however, and managed a decent shot of a Heron as it flew up river towards Worthington. Have a great weekend!

And since it's Saturday morning, I'll think I'll include this post in the Camera Critters meme- it's been a long time since I've participated!

Tom

The Legacy- The Story of Ohio's Division of Natural Areas and Preserves

2011-06-10T20:58:00.001-04:00

This tells the story of the Division of Natural Areas and Preserves here in Ohio- Unfortunately, much has changed. The Division created a fantastic system of state nature preserves over the past 35 plus years, but the future of that preserve system today is cloudy.

Please go to Facebook and "Like" the Division of Natural Areas and Preserves to show your support for Ohio's natural areas.

Tom

Wood Duck Pair on the Olentangy

2011-06-09T21:39:00.000-04:00


Columbus, Ohio June 5, 2011

I don't think of the Olentangy River in the city of Columbus as a hotspot for wood ducks. Normally you'd think of a more rural area with plenty of wet swamps but trees. But each year I spot wood ducks near Kenney Park. They're much more wary than the local mallards, so most of my photos are from afar. I hope you are enjoying my little trip back to the Olentangy River, which is where spent much of my free time in 2007 and 2008.

Tom

Eastern Spiny Softshell Turtle - Wordless Wednesday

2011-06-08T16:54:00.000-04:00


Olentangy River, Columbus, June 5, 2011

Northern Map Turtle, Graptemys geographica

2011-06-07T19:06:00.002-04:00

Olentangy River, Columbus, June 5, 2011

So if you know me, or read this blog, you probably know that turtles are pretty much up there at the top of my list as far as animals go. I've been a turtle nut for as long as I can possibly remember, and I've peppered turtle posts throughout the years at this blog. I just can't help myself, I suppose, I'm a sucker for a nice turtle.

This past Sunday afternoon I photographed this common map turtle. Or I thought it was a common map turtle. I even named my photo for this post "common_map_turtle_olentangy". I always do a little cursory research before I post something, and my search for common map turtle turned up a wiki article for "Northern Map Turtle". Northern Map Turtle? What the heck is that? Well- it turns out that there is a committee that produces a list of standard common and scientific names for North American Herps north of Mexico.

In their latest publication the committee changed the name from "common map turtle" to "northern map turtle". Why? They give this reasoning- "We have changed the name from Common Map Turtle because of the possibility that the word “common” might be misinterpreted to imply abundance rather than to the fact that it has a broad range."

There you go- broad range, not necessarily common. Therefore, we have the Northern Map Turtle. That name is going to take me some time to get used to.

-Tom

Ohio Spiderwort

2011-06-05T06:30:00.000-04:00

A native Ohio plant, I can't get enough of the contrast between Ohio spiderwort's (Tradescantia ohiensis) deep purple flowers and bright yellow anthers. This is one of the native species I've added to our back yard since moving to Worthington three years ago. Enjoy your Sunday morning! If everything goes well for us, we'll be off on a family strawberry picking adventure to Legend Hills Orchard.

-Tom

Prince Baskettail, Olentangy River

2011-06-04T16:02:00.001-04:00

It seems like every summer I end up shooting Prince Baskettails in Flight. This is a fairly common dragonfly- although I photographed it along the Olentangy, it isn't restricted to river habitats. This species flies back and forth in the same general area, at shoulder level, all day, looking for food. You can stand in one place for an hour, and they'll fly by you hundreds of times- so they're great for dragonfly-in-flight photography. I find photographing dragonflies in flight one of the hardest things to do- but when I get home and see shots like this from my new 7D, standing in a river in the hot afternoon sun becomes totally worth it.

Tom

Following the Light

2011-06-03T20:05:00.001-04:00

Sometimes, good light can lead you to an interesting subject to photograph. I am sitting on our back deck enjoying this perfect weather. A beam of golden light shines across the back yard, lighting up a patch of the grass. I need to mow, but why not set my iPhone right down in the grass where the light is fantastic?

I come away with what I think is a pretty good image of our suburban, backyard lifestyle!

So with no real idea of what type if image I wanted to make, I just followed the light, and this is what I came up with. What do you think? Can you see any of the bugs crawling in the grass? I can't tell with the small screen of the phone. Happy weekend!

-Tom

Posted from my iPhone

Location:Linworth Rd E,Columbus,United States

"Snotty Little Kid"

2011-06-02T20:47:00.000-04:00

I've got my own......colds all around at the Arbour household........

Tom

Worthington Memorial Day Parade, 2011

2011-05-30T14:38:00.000-04:00

-Tom

Waiting for Magic

2011-05-27T20:32:00.000-04:00

Thank you for taking a few minutes out your busy day to stop by and share with me my vision of the natural world. This space on the internet has changed over time since I started blogging back in 2006, but the overarching theme has been my passion for nature. I use digital cameras to help illustrate what I see, but I don't often go into details about the photographic process. This is something I want to start diving into occasionally, and I hope those of you that are interested in photography will find these types of posts engaging. If not, I hope you enjoy the images!

Early this week I had the rare opportunity to have an evening free to explore a few acres in Williams County, Ohio. I meandered through area of grasslands and swamps looking for interesting photographic opportunities. A low cloud deck obscured the sun, resulting in rather washed out, uninteresting evening light. I tiptoed around the edge of a swamp searching for something of interest to photograph. This dead stump, covered with living poison ivy vines, became my subject. An interesting story, but not really a compelling photograph. On my walk I did note a few white-barked quaking aspen, that if the clouds lifted, would make fantastic subjects bathed in the light of the "magic hour".

As I waited for that light, I sat on a large glacial erratic boulder, watching a gray colorless sky. I looked at the rock and felt its ridges and furrows- it had engaging colors and patterns. I was lamenting that Ohio doesn't have any granite bedrock like that at Yosemite, whose shear cliffs the great Ansel Adams made famous. Then something clicked! With the right perspective, I could use this giant boulder as my Ansel Adams Cliff. Since there wasn't much color in the scene, an Adams-esque high contrast black and white would be perfect. What do you think? Did I trick your eye into thinking you were looking at a tree-less mountain?

Finally, the light that I had visualized earlier did come- the sun dropped below the cloud deck, pouring golden light over everything. What I hadn't anticipated was how cool the dead stems of last year's prairie grasses would look against the new spring greenery. I was pretty happy with this image- it was the one I was waiting for, and I almost went inside at this point. The mosquitoes had enough of my blood already.

But I am glad I stayed put. As the first cloud deck moved across the landscape, another quickly replaced it- but these clouds did not obscure the sun. Just as the sun was at the horizon, these clouds started to catch "fire", and by this time, I was really excited- I don't often get sunset images like this, but I absolutely love this phenomenon. Galen Rowell, an incredible photographer and mountaineer, loved photographing these types of moments.

So there you have it- an hour long peek into my photographic brain. Although I missed my family dearly, an overnight work trip allowed me to photograph the sunset. If I have to be away, hopefully I can bring home images like these every time I am gone.

Tom

Eastern Cottontail Rabbit

2011-05-26T22:09:00.000-04:00

It's been one of those weeks- our two year old son Weston has had complications with his ear tubes. One is jammed with dried blood that won't come out despite two a day ear washings with hydrogen peroxide. Accompanied by horrible screaming, and I don't blame him. And on top of this, the same ear is infected His Momma is the best momma in the world- he's a lucky duck. Second ENT followup appointment tomorrow a.m.

This rabbit has been hanging outside our office door this week- I just happened to bring my camera in to work today- thanks for the great pose.

Tom

Plants Rock

2011-05-22T09:58:00.000-04:00

Friday evening I was searching for creative inspiration in the back yard. I found that inspiration in the details of plants. Many of you know I was a botanist for the State of Ohio for seven years- I often viewed the small details of plants with a hand lens as part of my job. Looking at the intimate structural details of plants through my camera lens on my own time is a completely different experience. Plants are an amazing but often overlooked part of the biodiversity of our planet.

Tom

Female Red-bellied Woodpecker Searches for Food

2011-05-21T06:54:00.000-04:00

This week, Megan alerted me to a woodpecker on our bur oak, in close view from our kitchen window.

I ran upstairs with the camera, and saw that she was exploring the deep furrows.

Red-bellied woodpeckers use their really long tongues to help them explore deep within trees. You can barely make out that the tip of the tongue has barbs to grab hold of insects.

She must really be on to something tasty!

Look at that tongue, it's pink!

She explored dozens of furrows and holes in the bark.


And came up with a meal, which I believe is a non-native house centipede.

Woodpeckers have amazing adapdations for living in and around trees, it's really incredible that I was able to capture all of this detail right from my kitchen. We love our bur oak, it is an incredible tree.

For more information about the amazing tongues of woodpeckers, including some very cool photographs, visit Hilton Pond Center.

-Tom-

Wild Hyacinths in the......SUN!

2011-05-20T15:20:00.000-04:00

Is that the sun I see today? What an awesome day- you can't beat sunny, big puffy white cumulus clouds, 75 degrees, and a gentle breeze. Especially after a week of rain, record low high temperatures, and gray clouds. This is a patch of Wild Hyacinth at Delaware Wildlife Area. What's strange about this population is that it grows alongside the road, and it's absolutely huge. I've been admiring to and from work the past week, but today, I stopped and captured this 60 second landscape.

Enjoy the weekend,

Tom