Mantises

Few months back I saw some red things - they were praying mantises it seemed. They would sit in curled up position and move only once light conditions are poor enough which meant for long I couldnt manage any shot. but still, watching them when they walked was very enjoyable - body length increasing by few folds and each step preceded by action that looked like he was punching air and preempting any danger. There were just too many of them around but all I could get was few average shots on couple of occasions as below. Second individual was kind enough to walk while light was still good.

Then with winter, insects were not seen as much and so above red or any other mantises. and after the winter break, first one that I managed to notice was this below individual. He sat on this flowers for days and days and days.. I was really surprised how long that flower stayed there!
In the background, there is a crab spider - you can see if you make great attempt at seeing it and then just believe me when I say its there. Mantis was standing with its back to the crab spider and only recently had noticed that someone else was sharing the flower. Here, Mantis is interrupting his attempt to ask crab spider what's his business here to pose for me.

Then one day, I notice that an ant on the yellow flower was actually a tiny mantis! I was very excited to finally find an ant mimicking mantis. so I took some shots.

I kept visiting that flowers for next few days and while I didn't notice any change in that Mantis (nor I was expecting any change), when I started uploading shots for this post, notice that it had changed, probably grew bigger too. Wikipedia told me that my ant mimicking mantis was actually a mantis nymph that was mimicking ant only while it was small. 

yes, I felt very uneducated, but seriously, for someone who really is as uneducated like me, it was probably ok to misjudge. See the next image how it looked when you looked at flower with your eyes, not macro lens.

Don't know what these are called, but probably they would grow to become something like below ones. I had encountered them last summer/monsoon.

I am still new to insect world and sure there are many strange ones around, but in what I have seen so far, I find mantises one of the more interesting looking. Specifically, how their bodies are folded and how they predictably stay at same place for days together. Few others below. I had shared them at previously but listing them out again to make this post as a complete collections of all Mantises I have found so far.

With Nature, if you make a generic statement, next thing you find is, retracting yourself. Happens with me at least. Below types were actually hyperactive. let alone finding them at one place for days, it was almost impossible to judge where you should try to focus as it ran with fantastic speed.

and not too many folds here. Unless, its something else altogether. This was very big. I have a full shot too but preferred this as other has white/yellow wall in background.

This post turns out mostly a photo listing one and I think another of same kind may follow soon. It probably is appearing unbalanced, but I guess amount of text in previous post was enough to counter at least ten photo-only posts :-)

A 'Good' bye

It was past mid December and winter cold was due but still almost absent. yet, Sun was surely enjoyable if not most wanted thing. As I stood at one of my favourite spots, enjoying Sun and looking for birds, heard some movement behind leaves on a nearby tree. I point camera and see this.

I thought it was hiding from me and that I should back off few steps to leave it alone - after all, my attention must be nuisance for it. but before I start looking for birds again, it made an unexpected move. Instead of hiding, it moved up, in clear sight, at eye level and then stayed there. probably I was wrong that it was hiding from me. probably it didn't even notice me or factored my presence while moving..

Now that it was there in clear sight, in good light, not afraid of me, I thought I can take a shot or two. Surprisingly it allowed me very close without any reaction.

I took few shots but there was that feeling of missing something. I had come across them at few times before and barring one previous experience when I was ignored, I was almost always told that my company wasn't very appreciated. Why this individual was so kind to me then? Anyhow, as I started moving away, saw a crow sitting only few feet above on tree from where the lizard, which was enjoying Sun could be easy target. Crow flew away as I looked at him. So, was that the missing explanation? Did lizard bet that it was likely that crow would avoid me and I was manageable risk compared to value of Sunshine? I don't know but as I walked off, did make a point to tell the lizard that I am now off and she could be more vigilant against the crow.

As usual, it was again a case where I could neither ask nor prove by any means if my speculation was right or not but it reminded me of similar experience, that time more human friendly subject, a young squirrel coming down to a branch very close to me to feed and using me as shield against a large group of rosy starling. I had shared it earlier, but don't mind repeating same shot again here.

ok, the point I want to stress here is not so much how other species turn us in asset if and when they can - all my feathered friends - everyday babblers, mynas, doves, crows.. that live around home and recruit me for tasks of giving some food to them, ensuring they have water to drink and to bath and that those things are shared in equitable manner etc etc with so much ease that idea of other species interacting with/adjusting theit behaviour due to humans doesn't sound special enough to talk about. but then, those individuals know me. they have learned to interact with me over a longer period of time, sometime with first step taken by me, sometime by observing other birds and joining the bandwagon. but in cases of lizard and squirrel, there was no personal touch. it was a purely their tactical decision to make best of few minutes of altered risk profile of environment. It was presence of mind that I find worth admiring.

Talking about presence of mind, again, as such I have been often left impressed or even outsmarted by individuals of many species- more often those experiences were with bigger animals - Dog/Cow/Monkey.. A recent experience I am sharing below is however somewhat different. its not with one of those bigger species who often deal with humans and neither its only about display of intelligence.

Some two weeks back, around 11 AM, after first ignoring and then paying attention to some activity, I see a Shikra was sitting on ground holding... a very big yellow fruit??. ok, i knew I didn't understand what I was seeing and go near the Shikra, Shikra flies off. A yellow footed green pigeon is sitting on the ground now. He didn't try to fly off even as I stood next to it nor did he resist when I picked it up, took inside and put it in a way that I thought it will feel secure. Pigeon was injured yet appeared in good shape. but he was very scared. He was also fully water socked due to rain that had continued for most of previous night.

I thought best thing to do for initial some time was to leave it alone to calm down. I put some water and some puffed rice in front of him and leave him alone. He sat there, facing wall with eyes closed. Once or so I tried to encourage it to drink some water only to find it pushing itself towards wall not looking in my direction at all. When I left it alone, it appeared to be sleeping so didn't disturb it much except for cleaning the droppings and sprinkling some turmeric powder around where it was injured.

After some 3 hours he was still facing wall, sleeping and had shown no interest in even water. He still appeared somewhat scared, but I think he had got used to me talking to him by then. I remember then what I should have done much before. check what do they eat. with hindsight now it sounds stupid not to do it before but somehow I didn't imagine a pigeon not eating puffed rice. plus, reason behind offering it wasn't as much to feed it rather, it was to make it comfortable by signaling that 'look, I am offering food to you, I am your friend'. Anyhow, I now offer a piece of orange and back off again. Still facing the wall, he looks at the orange piece from the corner of his eyes. There is a sudden change of expression - he appears surprised, pleasantly surprised. He looks at the orange, looks at me, looks at orange, and sits there but with his head no longer tucked in or trying to stay near the wall and his eyes are now not only wide open, appears fully awake and active. after another 60 seconds or so, he was facing me, not the wall. He still wouldn't eat or drink.

After few minutes, he tries to fly but strange little enclosed place in which we humans live beats him completely. He flies into wall, kind of panics but finally manages to perch at height of few feet with a pipe to hold on. that was a set back to his moral - he went back to his facing wall posture. but a real boost to my moral, not only his eyes, legs and general health was okay, wings were largely unhurt too. and so far as reigniting the sense of trust, hint of which I had seen just few mins back, it had happened once, so I was confident we will be able to establish communication once more too. Offering banana fails, Guava fails, water too has no impact either as before. Confidence however is good thing and I know what to do next. I open the window (it has mosquito net so pigeon is still protected from outside threats), invite my daily friends babblers outside window. As they excitedly feed on Roti making a lot of happy noise, Pigeon has no option but to take notice. He turns his back to wall again and I knew it wont choose to face the wall after this.

Then, routine sets in like this. I go to him with each of the fruits and water one by one, hold it in front of his beak, he shows non interest. I persist. he turns his head 15 degrees to the left, 15 degrees to the right, left, right.. with moderate to fast speed, also opens and closes his beak sometimes. I still don't back off and continue to talk requesting to eat or drink. he turns his head, tucks in on his back, closes eyes and ignores me completely. I finally give up - for next hour or two.

Next morning. Pigeon still haven't had even a drop of water, or eat anything. I decide to move him to a small room leading to front door. He didn't want me to hold it but accepted my fingers as perch more readily. I wondered what he must be thinking as he crossed home sitting on my hand, looking at it with tourist like interest. Could it be thinking that these land-confined creatures are strange, impossible to understand and quite stupid, but probably not as bad as their reputation goes? Anyways, we reach desired destination and I want it to sit there. He doesn't want to leave my hand and responds to my attempts of reclaiming my hand by climbing sideways on to my arm, pushing its body to upper arm. Anyways, I somehow persuade him to sit there, repeat my babbler trick, this time they come inside from the front door, spend a minute with Pigeon, even think if they should consider fruit platter in front of Pigeon their own, but leave without doing so in the end. Front door is open, Pigeon however doesn't show any interest in following babblers to the world under open sky.

He doesn't show any interest in fruits or water too. I was worried now. ok, not wasting energy in digestion and using it for recovery may be a right choice and I trusted his decision with respect to his recovery more than my wish that he eats something, but not even a drop of water? was that ok? he was looking better and better in last 22 hours, but still. As the last attempt, I find trees with ripe figs, yellow footed green pigeon's favourite food, bring two varieties of them (trees were actually very near) and add to the fruit platter. He doesn't eat them either. just calmly sits there looking outside window.

At almost same time when Shikra caught him 24 hours before, it suddenly becomes restless. He wants to go out. Immediately. attempts going out through window, but there is mosquito net. Main door is closed and after running to the wall, ceiling, he settles above the main door. I open the door, offer him my hand to shift to. He doesn't refuse. I lower the hand and he is facing open world now. but doesn't fly away at first opportunity. I walk few steps and now we are out in the open. I tell the Pigeon that I would love to see him flying off to his world but its up to him to take a call. if he isn't yet confident, there is no compulsion to go. He can stay back as long as he wishes. and then wait for his decision. He looks up, surveys trees around, looks at me for a long, calm, unhurried moment, and, takes off. Selects the same Neem tree from which he had fallen.

Story telling is difficult from this point onward. Its not easy to describe that happiness of seeing him flying combined with a sudden realisation that the only thing that occupied mind till previous moment has left for its own world. With some difficulty I located it inside similar coloured leaves. and remembered - a photo? Yes, I had not taken a single shot of him so far. so rush to pick up camera and take below shot.

I notice in this shot what I might not have noticed otherwise. sharp edged claws. No wonder his each step on my arm had left 3 inches long scratches that had swollen instantly.

He was sitting there alone on tree, I stood below. He stayed there for almost five ten minutes and took off again. He gains height, crosses me overhead, I watch extremely nervously, is he flying fine?, oh he is not aiming for next tree, continues his flight and lands on a leafless tall tree far off. I couldn't believe what I saw. He had joined a group of his kind! He was neither vulnerable nor alone any more.

He was no more than small dot far away but I point my lens to him for one last time anyway. I would have found even a picture where I knew one dot was my Pigeon a valuable one and the shot I got was this..

As rest of the group sat on that tree facing featureless sky, my pigeon had turned its head and was looking back. with chocked voice I tried to speak 'Don't worry about me, I will be fine'.

What makes you happy?

Few days back, I came across this article that says, “... ordinary experiences become increasingly associated with happiness as people get older...”. Not taking any position on what it said, I anyway asked myself which experiences made me most happy. I immediately recollected something.  Some two years back, I woke up at around 2 - 3 AM with some unexplained noises outside. Probably I woke up from somewhat deeper sleep and brain wasn’t fully functional for few moments - it had not yet made sense of source of sounds and quickly decided to invoke fear - a good amount of it. I walk to the window and glance outside to find out source of sounds and.. state of my mind changed INSTANTLY. It felt like definition of beauty to the eyes and wonderful tranquility and happiness to the mind. brain swings into action in a moment or two later asking - what is that I am looking at? Right under the tree few feet away, those were two beautiful Antelopes. I knew I shouldn't be seeing them if it was not a dream. few more moments and my brain finally caught up with the reality. Antelopes they were, but not of the size I thought a moment ago. They were near infant age twins of largest Asian antelope - Nilgai and they were those four big, innocent eyes that replaced fear and anxiety with peace and happiness in my mind. for the impact it generated, I would anytime argue it was an extra-ordinary experience, but looking at it objectively, sighting of a Nilgai may not be regarded as that extra-ordinary. So, if what the article said was right, I am getting older, or probably I was born older? Wouldn't I have been equally happy seeing them some twenty years ago too?

Anyways, recently I again had a chance to be in beautiful surroundings that had somewhat similar effect. Standing between bright yellow of mustard flowers, looking at water reflecting yellows and greens and mixed flock of birds adding more life.. All these almost as non pre-planned, unexpected as seeing those Nilgai youngs. As I stood there, I wouldn’t have objected if time stopped and didn’t realise if it was flowing or not. Some shots below, I hope they convey some of the beauty out there.

Overlooked and under-appreciated, some weed flowers

Soon after my previous post wild flowers three months back, I again accumulated a post worth of new flowers - mostly weeds this time. as before, I was hopeful of identifying them but waiting for that means the list only grows longer. So, here is the post that simply lists out photographs of weed flowers I found beautiful. Apologies for not much text to accompany these shots here.

They were mixed with lots of other types of grasses / weeds on ground. as with almost all flowers here, when they flowered, they flowered in huge numbers.

I think this are buds of above but now not sure.

Something similar. in fact, I noticed it was a different kind only while uploading.

Along with red ones, below were in bloom in good numbers and even as red ones declined, they increased and increases in numbers.

Much smaller than even above, but still capable of giving a good competition by scattering purple dots on grounds due to their numbers.

These existed in less numbers and saw only once or twice.

These joined the show somewhat late - or at least I noticed them later. Not only bright red flowers here that was adding to the beauty but leaves also appeared beautiful.

These are smaller than most of above, mostly seen just outside home. they are small enough that not easy to notice them elsewhere. I even wondered if they were less interested in spreading pollen and more in catching insects. Not that I really expect to see any such rare plant on my doorstep. So far haven't seen any insect visiting it.

Another white flower, its bigger than all of above. appeared less dramatic compared to previous flower.

Okay, it appeared less dramatic only till I got this shot. Looks like a brave ant trying to see what's inside this grand entrance.

One more white flower. I wish to take a shot with enough magnification where can see details of individual flower here. should be a tough task though.

One more..

and this is the smallest flower yet that I have seen. another doorstep flower.

Okay, I guess world may exist tomorrow too and instead of making this post longer and longer, let me end this here. will cover remaining flowers some other time. Ending with these brightly coloured flowers for which no macro lens is required.

HX300 - End word

Remember HX300? ok, I too thought I wont be coming up with yet another post talking about it.. Well, I had bought that camera on pretext of gift to Mom. I think you see the benefits straight away. I felt less guilty about indulging in expense I wasn’t 100 percent sure was justified, met a long standing demand to have a camera for her and I get a camera for what looks like free. and it seemed to work. She happily used it in fully automatic mode and I experimented with manual mode – results of which you saw earlier. but, just about a month of switching between Auto and Manual and.. Mode dial gave up..

All-Plastic broken and detached dial in my hand left me completely shocked. Can Sony product be like that? With detached mode dial if I put lots of efforts, I can still turn dial a full round in 10-15 minutes, which is as good as not usable. so I have put that in Auto mode which is most useful for Mom - whose camera it is after all. A drastic reduction in total usefulness of the camera and great disappointment for me. I am unable to decide if I was more disappointed to see all my accumulated camera budget go waste or seeing a brand I usually value highly come out with this build quality or was it disappointment with self that I made a wrong choice. either way, it is Very disappointing. and no, I am told that the broken dial is not covered under warranty. They want me to pay nearly 20 per cent of what I paid for the camera to fix a new piece of around one inch of plastic.

I am normally a good customer to have. I talk happily about a product if turns out good and keep quite when I find I selected wrong product. but this time, I have already talked so much about HX300, mostly positive things, that not saying now that it’s a great camera under right conditions but only if it stays usable. would not be fair play on my part just in case someone evaluating the camera takes some inputs from what I had written here.

Consolation prize to whole story is, per se a camera was not a bad gift. It was a wonderful Sunny day after many Sunless cold days and Mom went ahead to find some birds. and, luckily on this day, Auto mode was all that was needed.

A resident. This is a saved frame from video. It gives quite usable size. this is a good crop as well.

Power of 50x. Though Auto mode, 50x and a beginner doesn't make a good combination for most of the time. and beginner or not, not zooming in when you can is a very difficult thing to do.

Two shots I liked a lot. Specially the River Lapwing. It actually was better than my best shot till date.

Telling time by Calendar

When I was writing ‘telling time by flowers’, I remembered something. Even today I am not a traveller and that was the first time I was travelling to outside my state on my own. I had to change train at Mumbai and had nearly whole day in my hand there. I was to utilise that time visiting a relative’s place. So early in the morning, minutes after the Sunrise, I get down from train from where I had to exist on West. Not seeing any signboard, I walk to shoeshiner sitting on the platform and ask, which side is west? He looks at me, looks up in the direction where Sun was rising and points to opposite direction. yes, that was embarrassing but I still loved how instead of just pointing me to west, he chose to teach me to look to Sun to know direction. 

As I was looking at flowers indicating time, thought what if I didn't have watches and calendars available and was to create them myself? Question is already answered by many civilisations independently many times so its unlikely I can think from scratch, but I can look at those answers and try to choose my favourite. Simplest and most useful would be an assembled calendar rather than written and memorized one. Day starting at Sunrise, a larger unit of time based on lunar cycle that causes so many things to oscillates based on itself and a unit of time that covers one full cycle of repeating seasons. Seems fine except that its a system where different levels of time keeping are defined based on different things. Year-Sun, Month-Moon, Day-Sun. ok, join them with self adjusting, self correcting mechanism. stars come handy for this purpose. All good but what about the feeling that its MY calendar? Well, I can choose my year start to coincide with start of any month, preferably one that is kind to human life. Indeed when I look around, there are different lunisolar calendars starting at different month.

I haven’t managed to understand either solar or lunar calendars yet – not even sure if there is much to understand there. Solar looks like talking about a year, a period that is approximately 1/12 of a year and a period that is approximately 1/365 of a year – really wasted opportunities to make sense of both month and day (though, in our far from nature lifestyle, where active hours have lost its relation to daylight, I don’t have much to argue against fixed length day starting at any random minute. OR, probably is it more a reason to argue against it because switching back to real day definition can prove a very useful tool to correct our disconnect from nature?). At some point, (when it didn't even used to occur to me that you can say east/west looking at Sun), I would have thought it was simpler and lunisolar a complex calendar of the two. Today, however I think that what gets defines naturally and is rule based is much more simple than something unvarying for sake of it and requires memory not logic/cycles in nature to describe. Despite being such a inefficient calendar, you do see this blog dated per one anyways. I think calendar we use tell us something about time we live in too.