Sunday 29 December 2013

Sometimes all we have to do is, Ask.

I complained in last post about lack of winter appearances and next day wind direction changed. I walked out next morning with lots of hope and find this. ok, Indian silverbills are supposed to be common residents but I had never found them here - probably now is only time when they find grass seeds to feed on.

Indian Silverbill
I would have preferred to photograph them from some more distance but they were feeding in such a way at ground level that the best way to take shots was to sit just a few feet away. and, they too were so pre-occupied with feeding that didn't mind me sitting next to them and taking shots. I even wonder if they had recruited me to keep a watch so that they can focus on feeding - task I performed dutifully by suddenly moving to alert them when a mongoose came within two three feets from them. Once the mongoose was gone, we took our positions back, they started feeding, I started taking photographs.

They were only two of them and while one was feeding non-stop and very fast as if they had seen food after long long time, the other seemed more than reasonably occupied with preening its tail. Its only when I downloaded the shots, understood why. It had caterpillar or something in its tail - surprising that it couldn't reach end of its tail to remove it and if not why it didn't ask for help from other individual?.
Indian Silverbill

I had a very similar encounter with another resident Munias - scaly breasted Munia around same time two years back and I had wished then if they could have posed giving better frames.
Don't we get what we ask for on overwhelmingly many occasions?

Scaly breasted Munia

Munia

Munia

Munia

Munia

That was a small group of around 8-10 with most of them being Immature and two or three Adults. I have never taken as many shots of anything as I took of them. Am yet to even transfer some of the shots to computer. I almost never do it, but with these Munias, I am almost certainly likely to go for one more exclusive post dedicated to same individuals and similar shots. that however, some other time. I have been taking so many photos recently that I am sure there are other things waiting for attention before I repeat these Munias.

Sunday 22 December 2013

Where have all birds gone?

Birds - that are supposed be my main subjects are ironically absent from my posts. I keep saying I photograph birds primarily and keep posting everything else out here. While my diversions to macro world may surely have played a role in why I dont see many birds, but I think even otherwise, migratory birds are not seen this season. even early flycatchers and warblers seem to have gone away.
As if sympathizing with me, some local birds tried to pose for a shot or two.

Purple Sunbird
Purple Sunbird
Red Whiskered Bulbul
cattle egret
cattle egret

Best of them was this Indian Robin Male. Though now I have photographed him and family few times, they had maintained their shy state so long in past that now every time I am able to get a shot, I am thrilled. and on this particular occasion he sat there just 15-20 feet away and allowed me pointing camera to him.
Indian Robin
Indian Robin
Indian Robin

okay, not that there wasn't ANY migratory bird. but even a single sighting is enough to say that. Saw a black winged cuckoo-shrike once (last year was the first time I saw them here) but couldn't manage a shot and other than that, there are couple of most usual ones. Such a stark contrast to last December that had brought unusual number of first ever sightings with it. I wonder if its weather. This December is unusually pleasant so far and cold weather which is usual here but makes surviving more or less the only activity while it lasts for a more tropical being like me hasn't yet set in- or probably its not as much to do with temperature itself but wind pattern which also affects temperature? I should google and try to find out.

Chiffchaff enjoying the Sun
Chiffchaff
as you might have guessed, its a perch I like to photograph with any bird on it. okay, wish those distracting bamboos were there, but still fine.

and this immature white wagtail. They are usually found in very good numbers and here too, that was the case. They were happily calling and playing along the mustard plants that have started flowering.
White wagtail
Camera is a great tool to capture what you want as it offers option to capture only what you want. and to the camera, flowering mustard plants currently offer good opportunities to capture beautiful patches of surroundings. here it is with a background slope covered with coral vine and other plants. If I haven't missed the coral vine at its peak flowering, this should get better when the slope turns mostly dark pink.
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Monday 16 December 2013

Some insect shots

My most preferred description for my current way of living is that its somewhat similar to a four year old. a huge proportion of things encountered are never seen before and those that appear somewhat familiar, arent still for which I possess much knowledge. a state where everyday you seem to know more than you did yesterday and yet in absolute terms or compared to those around you, you seem to be not knowing anything at all. All that apart, most striking difference that this state has from a grown-up like state is, information and its relevance/context are not yet required to be tightly coupled before they are paid attention by brain.
In grown up state, where most of the things encountered are well understood and its important to be in control of the things, I think it makes more sense that information is classified as relevant/irrelevant important/non important based on why/how etc and we automatically focus only on what is found relevant/important. Conversely, if we do find something important and if we don't understand it, its not a nice feeling and usually we readily supply more resources to try and understand. In this child like state however, one neither has enough knowledge nor can afford to mark new information coming in way as important or otherwise. its more like keep collecting pieces of jigsaw puzzles and independently let it get solved. result is that when new information is encountered, there is both less excitement (oh, such an important piece of information) and less neglect (I don't care for that information) but a lot more wonder - which I guess helps remembering new information till its importance or otherwise is decided in direct or indirect way.

I often photograph various different looking insects I find with sense of wonder. Few photographs below.

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It wasn't very unfriendly so not very sure why I couldn't manage a better shot. probably it was very small and refused to come on top of the grass.

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Found in good numbers. I really like to watch this insect feeding on nectar and pollen of macro sized flowers.

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One of those shots I am happy with myself that I could take given the size and movement of this insect. it was very very tiny and was feeding on this plant. Some kind of Ant?

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This last insect was hanging in strong sunshine and appeared either like exoskeleton or dead insect to unaided eyes. I took the shot anyways and it came out quite nice after adjusting for overexposure. (I think it was one of the rare cases where both camera and human eye failed to meter / deal with dynamic range of the scene correctly. i.e. camera often fails but eye making same mistake with similar magnitude is interesting.)

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Rather poor shots but even being able to get this spider in frame feels great. It is without any doubt the smallest insect I have watched and photographed if I may say so. Its highly energetic red spider and getting it in frame even with its outline visible was difficult.
P.S. as per comments below, this is a mite and not spider.
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Below insect is probably a moth?
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This I think is a weevil.
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yet another tiny - probably 2-3mm in length, that I have seen few times feeding inside the flowers. I really like its decorative design.


and finally, some beautifully arranged eggs of unknown insect.
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Tuesday 10 December 2013

Wasps

My Sum total knowledge about wasps was that they make nest from the mud which have multiple compartments, one for each offspring with some food inside. Many years ago wasp nests were commonly seen in/outside house, but dont remember when I saw the last one. I saw below structure on a tree few days back and thought it was a wasp nest. It looked very beautiful, different from nests in the home I knew. Wikipedia tells me its potter wasp nest. Wonder what's the purpose of the opening at the top.

Potter Wasp nest
unfortunately, it wasn't there next day, probably some predator noticed it?

Actually, I wanted to share a recent Wasp shot and started writing this and in process learn few things about Wasps like their variety go well beyond the mud nest building wasps and there are others who build colonies from paper like material, some control plant tissue growth to form gall that serve as nest and yet some more don't bother of building nest but deposit eggs on a host whom they parasitizes. Given they pray/parasitizes pests, wasps are also considered important in agriculture pest control.

Wasp working on initial stages of colony

Wasp working on initial stages of colony
Had noticed above but individuals there appeared not doing much and construction stage remained much the same for many days till one day post effect of Phailin bought winds and rain which I think this budding colony didnt survive.

Dont know which insects have caused this Gall, but both gall and below very very small insects that appear to me like gall wasps were seen.

GallGall 
UntitledGall Wasp?
Black variety was seen only once or twice but the other was seen quite frequently. it was incredibly small and looked amazing as it kept flapping its wings while remaining stationary. I must have spent countless time trying to photograph them, but never imagined they could be wasps! (as applicable generally, pls do correct me, if I am wrong and they are something else.)

Some more easy to recongnise wasps.
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Couple of shots which are less about Wasps themselves and more about their expressions.

Bugs
Withdrawing

I started this post saying there was a recent Wasp shot to share. Here it is.
Wasp
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