Ringo’s rhythm on Ticket to Ride lives rent free in my head (and heart).
past life of limnology and aquatic ecology | living a technicolor life in a B&W world | naturalist • explorer • observer | defender of democracy | always a scientist |
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Ringo’s rhythm on Ticket to Ride lives rent free in my head (and heart).
I feel very honored to do peer reviews, which are far less nowadays. I’ve been part of reviews where the others were condescending & not constructive. My goal was to help someone get their paper published. But when someone with this level of influence complains, “bitch, that’s a -you- problem.”
Always a privilege to help with a creativets.org astrophotography workshop over the weekend. Good company and good views in the Idaho Dark Sky Reserve idahodarksky.org
That both flower & bee are covered with water droplets is just beautiful.
Two Important of My Personal Life Announcements! pls dgaf but pls AMA! One: I finished “The End of the World As We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King’s The Stand.” 🐺🖤 Two: I saw Prince’s 1987 concert film “Sign o’the Times” on IMAX today. ☮️💜
No filter on this. It was just super sunny.
I love marigolds & bees! 🧡🧡
Green metallic sweat bee on thistle ... 🌿 #Inverts
Is this the start to a short story?
The Hoary Marmots were genuinely soaking up the warmth this afternoon - while I was thinking this may be our last time together in 2025 as they will soon be sacking out for the fall and winter. #Ab #Mammals
Blue light special! (anyone remember those?) #RainbowWings #birds
Gracklepalooza continues with a lot of chaos and chatter. We love it, and we’re not the only ones. Our neighbourhood Merlins are keeping a close eye on things and frequently come through hunting runs. This Merlin was unsuccessful this time around. #Birds #photography #wildlife 🪶
I went for a nice, long walk around Sam Smith Park this morning, enjoying the quiet before the annual air show crowds show up to watch the scene over the lake from the east-facing shoreline. Walking through the tree swallow meadow, I saw several of these stunning little common blues flying around.
Most of the flowers in bloom right now are yellow so I staked out some purple ones to see if anyone interesting would show up. A Peck's Skipper came by to sip some nectar. (Polites peckius) #InverteFest
bee & daisy after the rain ~•~ “Last night the rain spoke to me slowly, saying, what joy to come falling out of the brisk cloud, to be happy again … and the soft rain— imagine! imagine! the wild and wondrous journeys still to be ours.” ~ Mary Oliver, Last Night the Rain Spoke To Me (2003)
I finally finished up my mosaic of the Cygnus Loop/Veil Nebula supernova remnant, sort of a popped bubble of star guts from a star that exploded thousands of yrs ago. I made 15 1-hour exposures to capture the full extent of the nebula. 2nd image shows the size of the nebula as compared to the Moon.🔭
Striking and oddly patterned Squirrel #Treefrog (Dryophytes squirellus) waiting outside our door this morning. Don't often see them with this many spots. #herps #BackyardWildlife 🐸
I ran into Swee (socially, not literally), the skateboarding auntie.
A Silver-spotted Skipper in the yard for #InverteFest! #invertebrates 🌿
Ittybitty bee love
There were lots of predators lurking among the flowers today. This critter is an assassin bug. Check out the stabby snoot! Like crab spiders and ambush bugs, assassins bugs lie in wait for unsuspecting prey. You can often find them on goldenrod. (Sinea sp.) PA #InverteFest
Check out this wacky wasp I saw today! #InverteFest www.inaturalist.org/observations...
Yay!! I just happened to notice this little guy on a stalk today! I think it’s wide-footed treehopper, so weird and adorable!! #insects
Hey now! Sneaking these in for #Invertefest!! 🦋 #SaturdayVibes: had a dawn wake n bake with a Red-tailed Hawk (pics later), then we went looking for Turkey Vultures but I struck the mother load of Two-tailed Swallowtails up in a patch of Arizona thistle! 🌿🫠 #Photography #Butterflies #Invertebrates
Leafhoppers are so cool! I found adult male, adult female, and nymph Jikradia olitoria a couple days ago, in the same location. The male is especially striking. #iNaturalist #entomology #Naturalists #InverteFest
As it's currently #invertefest I've unearthed some old art and I give you... the palaeozoic invertebrates of the revolution! Part of a sequence of historical/palaeofauna images I did a while back.
Olympic level pollen dive and take off.
Thank you, Marina! I need to replace my macro lens. It’s a little worn out, a little broken, trying its best but not quite. A little like me. But at least I can order a new lens via the internet.
Bold jumper stepped up today for #invertefest greeting me on the porch when I got home. Unofficial mascot of the garden.
Oak Treehopper watching over her eggs. These insects don't harm the oak tree, they just leave some twig scars. If you happen to find babies, the mom will typically be there protecting them. (Platycotis vittata) PA #InverteFest
Sounds like a lot of fun. Did you tour the entire lake?
Pollen dipping in three parts. Maybe a Halictus Bee on Bindweed #InverteFest
With regret, a new addition to the Wall of the Dead for lost species seekers. Donovan Kirkwood fell off a cliff in the Western Cape while searching for a critically endangered flowering plant. 🌿 strangebehaviors.wordpress.com/2011/01/14/t...
Okay!!
No? But it looks like it’s in a gallery with a frame?
I love them so much.
Okay. I’ve mentioned it to Husband (he’s not coming), but now I’ll make a priority. I’d like to combine it close to a new moon, but not mandatory (for fading Milky Way pictures). Is September 19 or 20 too late?
EDMONTON: HELP Mayday mayday SOS: both Fiasco and Franca have gotten out of the house through a busted window screen and the back gate was found open by my catsitter I am VERY FAR AWAY! If you are in the Highlands region can you keep your eye out
Thinking about this banger from the old place
Say what?? Skipper sipping, waiting for the tea.
The #InverteFest crab theme today is ridiculous cuteness. It's annoying searching through pics of squat lobsters like Trapezionida olivarae and Iridnoida pusilla and realizing I've been diving where they live but never saw these! (They are smol) 🦀🦑🧪
Oh wow. That sucks on so many levels. Glad to know you’re getting better.
It’s still a fun ride though, right?
It's been exciting to live through the transition between a time when planets around other stars were the subject of science fiction to a day when hundreds have been detected and almost 100 directly imaged. Check out this cool story about a recent discovery 🧪 www.sci.news/astronomy/pr...
I’m going to start sending these photos to congressdickheads with the message: we won’t let you forget.
I mean, come on - don’t ya want to see the beauty? Red-Femur Milkweed Beetle (Tetraopes femoratus) #InverteFest
I’m often curious why other adults at the park don’t crawl around under the milkweed looking for beetles. Cobalt Milkweed Beetle (Chrysochus cobaltinus) #InverteFest
A bumble friend just hanging out on some goldenrod for #InverteFest
A little something to brighten your timeline #bloomscrolling #invertefest 🌸🐝🌸
It’s so good.
ladies and gentlemen, the weekend.
For #invertefest, a spectacular specimen of one of my favorite invertebrates, the horseshoe crab Limulus polyphemus. These blue-blooded marvels have some of the coolest compound eyes in nature, *and* they produce compounds in their blood used to test for the presence of gram-negative bacteria. 🧪
Today's bouquet 🌱
Mosquitoes fly with purpose. Crane flies fly like they’re over the DUI limit. And bees, depending on the species, have entirely different flight patterns. It’s a wild world out there!
Dainty clumsy-ass fliers.
When does this bitch get down to the lab to run pcrs, sequence genetic materials, identify bacterium, etc.? Fuck I wouldn’t even trust him to wash my labware. He couldn’t even make a sterile agar plate.
Brilliant Arizona desert sunrise this morning, following a brief but intense 4am thunderstorm.
A huge generalization, but: Mosquito≈ . Crane fly ≈ ⚫️ Mosquito = buzzes Crane fly ≠ buzzes Mosquito = 🩸🗡️ (female) Crane fly = 🌺🥤 (all of them if they can)
All six legs, too!
ICYMI-the truth: Ashley Babbitt was a devoted Q-Cult follower who traveled from San Diego to Wash DC because djt rallied “Be there, will be wild!” Ashley Babbitt is a J6 treasonous traitor. Ashley Babbitt FAFO. —— Do not let the GQP rewrite facts & history. I saw it. You saw it. The entire truth.
I watched that shit live. I still catch my breath. Even now typing it. FAFO in real time so: Fuck that bitch. IYKYK
Would it be a summer sunrise unless there was native bees & wild sunflowers? #InverteFest
I believe in water witches no matter how they know where the water is at.
This excellent young osprey is learning to fish for itself. Getting its beak dirty in the process. Go for it young bird friend, you’ve got this! #birds 🌿
A bobcat walking along the side of a dirt road #mammals #cats
Okay that is so good.
Biodiversity is beautiful. Villa species (bee-fly in the family Bombyliidae) 🌿 #InverteFest
Was sharing with Husband yesterday’s inane mitochondria nonsense and CDC implosion. Husband stated it perfectly: Dowsing for Dummies That’s how this abomination of an administration is staffed.
Even those it sits with my unused field supplies, I have a gallon ziplock with sharpies, bioquip forceps, pencils, 7 mm vials. It’s from when I did my Masters & I keep it as a remembrance trophy. If I ever sent a picture of it to my lab mates, they’d immediately know the importance & history of it.
What perfect album came out when you were 16?
I have the best neighbours #birds
I always think back to when Republicans shipped a bunch of migrants to Martha's Vineyard ("let's see how those snooty liberals like brown foreigners when they're on THEIR doorstep") and seemed genuinely flabbergasted that the locals took them in, found them beds and food and even a priest.
This is just lovely.
We've been climbing together for 53 years. Below, 1972 and yesterday.
This is a great overview. And remember, presumably you are posting so others will see your thing; there are enough people here who simply will not repost anything without alt, and every time your post hits one if them, a chain is broken.
Yesterday I saw some beautiful images without AltText & just felt defeated. If folks haven’t heard it from me a bazillion times, then I’m guessing they’re just … I dunno? I’ve kinda got unkind words in my mind about them. I’m not going to repost with AltText because that lets them off.
I love him still. I was fortunate to see him once (San Jose 2011), and he never stopped once he stepped onto the stage. Snuck a couple of pics in but security was tight around pics (& probably video fears). Prince’s Sign O’the Times concert film is playing in IMAX this weekend. I can’t wait.
From NASA - Living up to its name: the Perseverance rover keeps on keeping on, finding new things in the Martian landscape. See the latest updates: go.nasa.gov/4k1aqMp
Tiny Striped Sweat Bee (Agapostemon subtilior) feeding on Coastal Gum Plant flower yesterday.💚 Plant info. here... calscape.org/Grindelia-st... #Invertefest #NativeBees #NativePlants #CaliforniaNativePlants #NaturePhotos #iNat 📷🌱🐝
That’s a gorgeous dinner!
I’ve only seen them in Colorado when I specifically went to look for Ebony Jewelwing Damselflies.
Deserved
Very concerned but I’m sure she’ll be reassured after a very personal conversation with wormbrain.
American Ruby Spot! Where did you find this stunner!?!
And what might your name be? #InverteFest
A genuine surprise and those are the best.
Every day 💚
Keep doing it
I was getting dizzy on some of our hikes (gotta keep up with him) and I thought it was exertion. But I realized it was from me swiveling my head back and forth to each side of the trail so I didn’t miss anything. But moments of just observation is the best.
Husband: “why does it take an ≈1.5 hours for you to run/hike ≈1.5 miles?” Me: look at every leaf remember every rock find every flower scan every stem
Patrick, that’s the size of my Celestron NexStar 130 SLT - 650mm, f/5 WOW
"Pat, why do you carry that ridiculous 600mm lens on long hikes?" Buddy, I can see mountains reflected in the eyes of a trailside pika.
Patrick, one - your evolution from astrophysicist phd student to nature photographer is inspiring every day. Two - the sweetest thing Husband said to me was “I’ll carry your tripod.” Please let the Mrs know you’ve created so much joy with all of us. PS congrats on the mega-viral
Never listen to the partner on issues of such great importance.
We present: The Art of #InverteFest - August 2025 Edition A digital art book showcasing the work of 100 artists from around the world, in celebration of overlooked invertebrate fauna. Thank you to the artists who contributed to our book! Download here drive.google.com/file/d/19wfG... #Art #SciArt
A metric paper wasp tried to supplant its diet at the sugar bar today. I don't think he was very successful. At least he's a native insect. Many of the bugs I find are invasives. #InverteFest 📸 Metric paper wasp: Polistes metricus
Strike a pose.
Thank you! He did make me follow him a bit.
It’s been 3 years and 3 months since Uvalde. It’s been almost 13 years since all cowardly politicians, including Democrats, decided collective thoughts & prayers for massacred school children were a better solution than fighting the NRA and challenging gun culture. (video 6/4/22 NYT Rick Rojas)
Pinyon Jays are the sole species in the genus Gymnorhinus, Latin for “naked nose,” since they lack feathers covering the base of their bill. As a result, their bills do not get gummed up with resin from fresh cones, and they can capitalize on that resource earlier in the year than other birds can.
