Tag: #safety

Black Bear in Grand Teton NP

While Black Bears are not considered as dangerous as Grizzly Bears, they are still no match for a human, so we need to keep our distance and take care not to attract or provoke them. I spotted this bear quite a way up the hillside above the road, and I was able to use my 400mm lens, steadied with a tripod, to capture this photograph. (I was not as close to it as it appears.)

#bear, #grandtetonnationalpark, #grandtetons, #nationalpark, #wildlife, #sony, #RRS, #tripod, #staysafe, #keepyourdistance
Black bear grazing in Grand Teton National Park, observing a cluster of excited humans with cameras.

I have read that the Black Bear’s eyesight and hearing are better than a humans. Its sense of smell is WAY better, seven times better than that of a dog. Signs warn national park visitors not to leave food in a cooler inside a car, for a black bear might smell it and destroy the car to reach the food. Food lockers are available, but you better hope that everyone locks the locker well, or everybody’s supplies will be gone.

A human is no match for the speed and the strength of a bear. Take your photo, and then get back in the car and move on!

Gator Camouflage

Wearing “camo” is in. Especially if you are an alligator and hunt for food in the wild. Alligators floating in the swamp have a natural advantage, because they resemble floating logs, and they are silent and often still. Unsuspecting fish, birds and even people swim or walk by, in close range.

This 14-foot American Alligator seen at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary was cruising Lettuce Lakes early Sunday morning, beneath the nest of three Anhinga chicks. He took on a new “camo” outfit as the plants adhered to his back.

#alligator, #corkscrew, #swamp, #water, #predator, #florida, #southwestflorida, #wildlfie, #camouflage
I had to move quickly to capture this image of a large alligator from the safety of a boardwalk over the swamp.

 

 

 

Gullfoss: Don’t Fall In

The day before we visited Gullfoss (on July 20), a massive and powerful waterfall within a few hours’ drive of Reykjavik, Iceland, a man fell in. I can easily envision this happening, as I was carefully watching my step on wet slippery rocks alongside a steep grassy hillside leading to the falls. That day, I thought to myself, “you don’t survive a fall into Gullfoss.” The 22-year-old man’s body was found miles down the Hvita River nearly a month later. This sad incident is a safety warning to all future visitors.

#gullfoss, #safety, #waterfall, #iceland, #hvita, #tourism, #powerful, #nature
You can see a line of visitors walking the path to get a close look at Gullfoss, as it crashes into a crevice in the foreground.
#gullfoss, #powerful, #nature, #iceland, #waterfall, #safety
This vantage point shows the crevice where the cascade thunders downward. For scale, notice the tourists in the upper right of the photo.

“Good Night,” Egrets

Have you ever witnessed a large flock of birds roosting as the sun sets? In Florida, the large wading birds like the heron, egrets and pelicans roost together for protection. They will often find a rookery island where predators like raccoons can’t reach them.

In Six Mile Cypress Slough, a large flock of egrets chose this wooded area along the edge of a pond to roost. As the setting sun sheds warm light on the trees, dozens of these egrets decorate the landscape. It is a special sight to witness, especially for a “snowbird” like me.

#egret, #birds, #roost, #dusk, #safety, #sleep, #florida, #fortmyers
Egrets roost at dusk in Six Mile Cypress Slough, Fort Myers, FL