Lincoln Park
Interesting places in Lincoln Park:
the Lincoln Park is part of Chicago .
Location is derived from the great work of WikiMapia
Check this place on Socialmapia
the Lincoln Park is part of Chicago .
Location is derived from the great work of WikiMapia
Check this place on Socialmapia
Top photos chosen by u all:
Life imprisonment for the ancestor 2 - Western lowland gorilla IMG_9498_2
Made by Swaranjeet
PhotoAwardsCounter Click here to see the awards count for this photo. <a Range Cameroon, Central African Republic, Gabon, Congo and Equatorial Guinea Status The gorilla is listed as critically endangered, and commercial trade of this species is prohibited by international law. Principal causes of population decline are habitat destruction and hunting. Poachers prize adult males and disrupt troops by killing leaders. Lincoln Park Zoo participates in the Gorilla Species Survival Plan® and is world-famous famous for its success in breeding captive western lowland gorillas. Habitat Tropical secondary forest: the herbs, shrubs and vines that make up its diet grow best where the open canopy allows plenty of light to reach the forest floor. Niche Herbivorous: feeds mainly on leaves and stems but never strips one site completely. Western subspecies takes a higher proportion of fruit, a more limited resource, which appears to limit troop size to 5-10. Primary predator in historical times is man. Troop ranges overlap; troop consists of dominant silverback plus a harem of females with their young, including subadult males. Lone males occur. Diurnal; mainly terrestrial, walking on the soles of rear feet and knuckles of forelimbs. Will build nests on the ground or in trees (especially young gorillas), using brachiatation to travel. Life History Mating non-seasonal. Single young born after about 9-month gestation, weighs 4-5 pounds. Young cling to dam within a few days of birth, crawl at about 9 weeks, walk at about 5 months and are weaned at 2-3 years. Females mature at 7-8 years, males later. Females leave natal troop to join other troops or lone males; adult males leave without conflict. Life span about 35 years, up to 50 years in captivity. Special Adaptations Opposable thumb enables manipulation of objects; big toe also opposable for grasping. Exceptionally large and powerful arms used to break stalks or uproot vegetation while foraging. Large teeth and powerful jaw muscles help to chew tough vegetation. High intelligence probably an adaption for finding scarce or isolated fruit plants in the rain forest. A good memory for time and place and the ability to make deductions are essential in predicting food locations. Chest-beating display, accompanied by hoots, barks and roars to impress females. Silverbacks will defend their troops from intruding lone males in this way, as intruders may kill troop young. Chest-beating alone may simply indicate excitement; youngsters will mimic adults and beat their chests during play.
Late-Afternoon Idyllic Glade. Red Columbine (Aquilegia canadenis) at the Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool, Lincoln Park, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Made by Rana Pipiens
The Metamorphoses of Ovid I always associate with idyllic glades. One such magic place might well be the Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool. A delightful, 'hidden' park just north of the Lincoln Park Conservatory, it's a haven of peace and Gladed Rest from busily throbbing Chicago. Originally a pond for growing lilies (1889) in the then new Lincoln Park, it fell into disrepair. Alfred Caldwell (1903-1998), the fine Prairie School architect, second only to Frank Lloyd Wright, took it upon himself to remake (1938) the park into a wonderful ecological 'prairie landscape' with suitable rocks and boulders, copses of trees, a 'naturally' styled pond; it's a sanctuary to wildflowers and to many birds, and harried denizens of Chicago... It's only 'natural' that at this time of the year, there should be many Red Columbines, Aquilegia canadensis, and here in this photo there's one near an arbored glade gilded in the late-afternoon sun. There are many accounts of how it came by its name. I find the most intriguing one, the tale I've not been able to trace to Antiquity, from whence it came according to my eighteenth-century sources. Here is a story of change, worthy of Ovid: Jupiter the Eagle famously had a constant companion, Ganymede. But beautiful and dainty Aquilegia fell in love with the God, and Ganymede feared he would be rejected. He thus contrived to keep Aquilegia away from his Eagle. Aquilegia pined and died from lack of his love. Jupiter then changed her body into this pretty flower; in it with a bit of imagination the form of a Roman Eagle - its spurs and talons - can be discerned. Thus melt together Jupiter's form and Aquilegia's living beauty. What a story... Whatever its historical merits, it was nice to ponder it again when I returned here the following day. The Red Columbine apparently caused quite a stir in Europe when it was introduced there first in the mid-seventeenth century. European Columbines are usually blue... This Garden is so beautiful that I didn't have the courage of destruction to taste of the nectar gathered in the top nodules of the spurs (one of them looks about to burst!). As a little boy I did, of course... But now that I'm a man...
Red-veined Beauty. Abutilon 'Red Tiger', Abutilon hybridum, Lincoln Park Conservatory, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Made by Rana Pipiens
After an uneventful flight into the rains of Chicago on Friday, I found myself on the Bright Blue-Skyed Saturday morning automatically at the wonderful Lincoln Park Conservatory. Beautiful as always and in particular for me today because I'd not yet seen this Abutilon before in the Lincoln glasshouse. Fascinated by this 'Red Tiger' - what an apt name - I recalled a short horticulturalist description of this originally South-American plant. It was writtten by the Belgian-Dutch plant collector and 'hortulanus' of 's Lands Plantentuin (now the Kebun Raya) at Buitenzorg (now Bogor) on Java, Indonesia, Johannes Jacobus Smith, Jr (1867-1947). He combined his enormous field-botanical knowledge and his instincts as an explorer of the then Dutch East Indies with a wonderful sense of aesthetic. He did not feel it beneath his dignity as a scientist to also write more 'horticulturally'. This is demonstrated neatly in a series of articles he published about 'cut flowers', in which he also gives a succinct description of our Abutilon. Fittingly his article appeared in the journal Teysmannia (1897), founded to honor that great hortulanus of Bogor (Buitenzorg) Johannes Elias Teijsmann (1808-1882). He is, as some of my readers here know, one of my botanical heroes. Teijsmann - who was a self-educated botanist - had had a running controversy with those academics who thought themselves his betters in science for having studied at a university. Teijsmann and later Smith demonstrated in their undertakings how field work, scientific research, an analysis of the practical use of plants for agriculture and medicine, and horticultural interest did not at all have to be at odds with each other. Such, then, were my contemplations as I was thinking out how best to photograph this Tiger. The problem is in the gathering of stamens and pistil hanging beneath. They're in the shadows and hard to get clear even on a bright day. So I opted for a flash, and this is the result.
I wish I know what you're thinking ... Posing for a Portrait
Made by Flipped Out
This male silverback lowland gorilla at Chicago's Regenstein Center for African Apes at Lincoln Park Zoo poses everytime he sees a camera. It's hilarious. Don't you wonder sometimes what he is thinking? From the Lincoln Park Zoo website (lpzoo.org): The state-of-the-art Regenstein Center for Africa Apes, which opened in July 2004, is unlike any other in the country – maybe the world. Twenty-nine-thousand square feet of living space, indoors and out. Bamboo stands real and simulated. Dozens of trees and 5,000 feet of artificial vines for climbing. Skylights. Termite mounds for chimpanzee “fishing.” A waterfall. A moat. Heated logs. Fresh air. Sunshine. A major element of the new building is the Lester E. Fisher Center for the Study and Conservation of Apes. The center engages zoo visitors, members and students in science and conservation initiatives through an integrated program of research, science education and the conservation of wild populations. About the gorilla (from lpzoo.org) Description Largest of the living primates; males up to 6 feet tall and 400 pounds, females up to 5 feet and 200 pounds. Greater weights occur in captivity. Coat black to brown-gray, turning gray with age. Adult males with broad, silvery-white “saddle” on back, extending to rump and thighs. Small ears, nostrils bordered by broad ridges, which extend to the upper lip. Young have a white tuft of hair on the rump. Range Cameroon, Central African Republic, Gabon, Congo and Equatorial Guinea Status The gorilla is listed as endangered, and commercial trade of this species is prohibited by international law. Principal causes of population decline are habitat destruction and hunting. Poachers prize adult males and disrupt troops by killing leaders. Lincoln Park Zoo participates in the Gorilla Species Survival Plan® and is world-famous famous for its success in breeding captive western lowland gorillas.
True Lilac Marble Leaf of Indonesia in Chicago. Peristrophe hyssopifolia, Lincoln Park Conservatory, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Made by Rana Pipiens
I'd often tried to get a good photo of the marvellously lilac Peristrophe hyssopifolia (hyssop-like leafed) or salicifolia (willow-like leafed) in the forests and on the mountains of Java, Indonesia. My hand though was never steady enough and the light somehow wrong (and my camera not quite up to the task). But now freshly arrived in Chicago I sped - as is my wont in this Windy City - to the Lincoln Park Conservatory (in fact right next to where I'm staying) to try once again. The light was right, the hand and bended knee steady: and here it is - or rather: the twins are. The 'Peristrophe' (= 'turned or twisted around' in Greek) doesn't refer to matters of rhetoric as in Socrates or of the soul as in Meister Eckhart. Rather it has to do with the structure of the involucre of these flowers. The precise historical taxonomy is rather complicated, and I haven't been able to figure out yet the relative importance in connection with this plant of famous botanists such as Nicolaas Laurens Burman (1734-1793), Elmer Drew Merrill (1876-1956), Cornelis Eliza Bremerkamp (1888-1984) or indeed my nineteenth-century friends Carl Ludwig Blume and Justus Karl Hasskarl of the Botanical Garden of then Buitenzorg (now Bogor's Kebun Raya) on Java. In 1845 Hasskarl in his book on the indigenous uses of plants on Java writes that legend has it that in 'the Olden Times' Peristrophe was the chosen fodder of buffalo. Nowadays - in the mid-nineteenth century - it is fed to those buffalo who sem to be losing weight. Regardless, these small flowers ca. 1.2 cm, are delicate and beautiful. The Conservatory has missed out the second 'r' of the botanical name; but most people will no doubt pay more attention to the English 'Marble Leaf', which refers not to the plant's flowers but to its marble-splotchy foliage.
Fewer Than Twenty
Made by Flipped Out
The Bali Mynah (Leucopsar rothschildi) is one of the world's most critically endangered birds. Native to the island of Bali in Indonesia, according to the Honolulu Zoo website, there are about 13-14 remaining in the wild. Female and male Bali mynahs look alike, having beautiful white feathers, black tipped wings and tails, and a bright powder blue crescent of skin around the eyes. Their heads are topped off by a lacy white crest of feathers. They are about the size of cardinals. Originally inhabiting some 30,000 hectares of dry monsoon forest along northern Bali, the species is now restricted to 4000 hectares within the Prabat Agung Peninsula located in the extreme northwest. Poaching and timber harvesting are among the greatest threat to the survival of the Bali mynah in the wild. Conservation initiatives enacted over the past two decades to have been ineffective in increasing this species numbers in the wild. Fortunately, Bali mynahs breed readily in captivity, with more than 800 birds managed in breeding programs globally. However, behavioral incompatibility, low fertility, and high nestling mortality have resulted in substantial variation in breeding success among genetically-desirable pairings. This bird was photographed at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago which participates in the Species Survival Plans (SSPs) established by the American Zoo and Aquarium Association (AZA). SSPs are cooperative management programs designed to ensure the continued genetic diversity of animals in captivity including the Bali mynah. About 230 of the more than 750 Bali mynahs hatched in captivity live in North America. This photo won the Feathery Friday Majestic Bird Week! Thanks to all who voted!! It's an honor and a good way to spread the message for conservation.
Francis J. Dewes Mansion (1896)
Made by ChicagoGeek
NRHP #73000694 Wealthy German immigrants, including Wacker, Leight, Gaetner, Deever, and Schlosser, constructed luxurious mansions east of Clark Street in Chicago's Lincoln Park. Francis Dewes, a Chicago brewer and millionaire, built the most elaborate home in the Lincoln Park still standing - Dewes Mansion at 503 West Wrightwood Avenue. Architects Adolph Cudell and Arthur Hercz designed the Dewes mansion, and it was completed in 1896. Hercz was originally from Hungary, and Cudell was no stranger to building grand residences for Chicago's wealthy elite. In 1879 Cudell also designed the Rush Street mansion of prominent businessman Cyrus Hall McCormick. The Dewes mansion was built for Francis J. Dewes, a brewer. Dewes was born in Prusia in 1845, the son of a brewer and member of the German parliament. In 1868 Francis Dewes emigrated to Chicago and found employment as a bookkeeper for established brewing companies such as Rehm and Bartholomae and the Busch and Brand Brewing Company. He rose through the ranks, and in 1882 he founded his own successful brewing firm. His mansion was built to reflect his own Prussian background and European tastes. Taken as a whole, the building is an unusual example of a German inspired style, influenced by the neo-Baroque architecture of Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris at the end of the nineteenth century. The exterior of this lavish gray-stone is decorated with carved stonework and ornamental cornices and lintels. The entrance to the mansion is flanked by caryatids, tall female figures acting as columns, supporting a balcony over the doorway. The house is now used for wedding receptions, parties, and other private events.
Leader of the Gang. Suricata suricatta in Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago, USA
Made by Rana Pipiens
A must for any zoo, of course, these Meerkats. Native to southern Africa, especially the Kalahari Desert, their name in Afrikaans is apparently a misnomer derived from that of a monkey (maquac). And the derivation of its Latin name Suricata suricatta is unclear (so-called derivations from the Swahili are plain nonsense; that language was not spoken in southern Africa, and the '-cat(t)a' is clearly a Western root; the problem lies in the 'suri-', which can hardly derive from 'Syria'; remotely possible from 'sur', that is to say 'south''. Regardless, a Gold Star to the solver of this little puzzle!)). Whatever their name, they are, of course, enchanting little creatures; related to the mongoose, part of their diet is poisonous snakes, and they are indifferent to the bite of South-African desert scorpions. Suricates were first described in 1777 by Johann Christian Polycarp Erxleben (1744-1777), a German veterinarian and naturalist, the son of the first woman to receive a medical doctor's license in Germany (Dorothea Christiane Erxleben, 1715-1762). Maybe she once called her son her 'little monkey'... The name 'suricata' gained more currency through the efforts of the French biologist Anselme Gaëtan Desmarest (1784-1838), who described these fascinating, cute animals in his Dictionary of Natural History (1804). This photo was taken in the Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago, USA. A fine place to visit, it was founded in 1868 when a pair of swans was presented to the commissioners of the newly established Lincoln Park. My favorite is the obvious leader, third from the left.
Tropical Yellow. Tank Bromeliad, Lincoln Park Conservatory, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Made by Rana Pipiens
A Travelling Frog like Y'r Obedient Servant Rana Pipiens, after a few enjoyable, festive days in a chilly Windy City, is in dire need of some tropical warmth. Where else to go than to the marvellous Lincoln Park Conservatory? Built in the last decade of the nineteenth century, its pleasant expanses boast four glass houses for tropical plants. Our Frog - not much given to the press of people to seasonal flower displays - hip-hops elsewhere. This time to the humid warmth of the Bromeliads. Charles Plumier (1646-1704), naturalist and explorer (yes! of Frangipani fame), appears to have been the first European to collect and describe these plants. He named them after Olof Ole Bromelius (1639-1705), the most famous Swedish botanist of his times. And the great Carolus Linnaeus saw no reason later to disagree (1754). This particular plant is a Guzmania sanguinea, as Aviac so kindly tells us today (January 16, 2011). Many thanks for that! Looking into this bright Tank Bromeliad, my Frogheart - momentarily forgetting that this is a Conservatory - beat slightly faster. But no, my Marsupial Frog cousins and Poisonous Arrow Frog relatives-once-removed weren't home. They like Tanks such as this one and often make them their places of residence. In the rain forest pleasing waters like these attract insects and other Delicious Food. And our Tadpoles can grow here into adulthood. Well, they're not really close relatives so I don't know whether this Tank would be to their taste... To me though it was a small feast to my eyes even without the food.
Northern Invader. Acer platanoides - Norway Maple - in Lincoln Park, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Made by Rana Pipiens
My pleasant Studio looks out over daily greener Lincoln Park to the South and the fascinating skyscrapers of Central Chicago. A great view even on cloudy and misty days... But the park, too, is wonderful. What today is Lincoln Park only became such after the city council in 1864 bought this area as a public space for recreation, much needed for the health and happiness of the denizens of the fast-growing, crowded city. Before that this area had been swampy and seemed good only for the burial of the dead; officially so since 1843. Today it is a very fine park kept in the constant loving care of the City's park services. The conservatory, of course, is tops, but there's also a fine zoo. And all is free of charge. Small wonder then that it's a very popular place. The park grounds have many trees and shrubs and particularly delightful lawns - yes, the city's citizens do actually clean up after their dogs, as I have witnessed time and again. Though beautiful, the park in Spring is not really the place to be for anyone with hay fever! Regardless, I am posting this picture of the flower of a Norway Maple, Acer platanoides as Carolus Linnaeus (1753) designated it. It hails from northern Europe but is now a staple in North America. Sometimes it's even considered a pest, yet still used, too, for parks and gardens. This flower (just under 1 cm across) is of a red-leafed cultivar. You can just see a new leaf in the bottom background. A red-wing blackbird shrilled beautifully as I took a number of photos...
Life imprisonment for the ancestor 1 - Western lowland gorilla IMG_9494_2
Made by Swaranjeet
- EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS II USM - 1/30th sec, f/6.3, 200 mm, ISO 3200 PhotoAwardsCounter Click here to see the awards count for this photo. I don't recall how my first ever visit to a zoo made me feel but the latest one, some fifty years later, definitely left me very sad. Man's cruelty to man is bad enough, man's cruelty to animals is terrible; that it is done in the name of compassion and work towards the preservation of a species only compounds my sense of guilt as being part of this whole sorry mess. Maybe some day the human kind is in danger of going extinct and some aliens from another part of the universe will lock us up behind bars, fences and glass enclosures all in the name of preserving our species and for the watching pleasure of their children. The expressions of sadness and helpless frustration were uniform throughout the zoo and most revealing on the faces of those closest to us in the evolutionary chain. The gorillas made me saddest for they were as human as us in their emotions and so very very unhappy and angry even as some of them went about playing 'catch me' and 'hide and seek' with their young ones. The eyes of the gorrilla in this picture seem to be full of resentment and seem to be asking me as I click the shutter, how would I feel if the roles were reversed.
Iced Fresh Air
Made by Comtesse DeSpair
The Biograph Theater decked out exactly as it looked on July 22, 1934 when bank robber John Dillinger stepped out after watching the gangster flick Manhattan Melodrama with his girlfriend Polly Hamilton and the lady in red, Anna Sage. Sage was an immigrant facing extradition who had worked out a deal with the FBI to rat out Dillinger in exchange for amnesty. Dillinger was shot to death - and Anna was still deported back to Romania. Let that be a lesson to all you rats out there! They are currently filming the Dillinger death scene at the Biograph for the movie Public Enemies, starring Johnny Depp as Dillinger, and they have restored the theater to look exactly as it did on that fateful night. Wish it would stay this way. Oh, by the way, Victory Gardens, who now own the theater, suck majorly for gutting the Biograph a few years ago during their renovation. They seem to think that because they left the walls and most of the facade intact, they didn't harm the historic value of the building. There's something really disgusting about these modern vandals who think that just leaving the front of a building, but gutting its interior, is historic preservation. I'd like to gut the idiot who vandalized the Biograph... But I digress. I feel very honored to have been able to get to the Biograph during this time. Can't wait to see the film.
Eyjafjallajökull and a Fiery Spike. Aphelandra aurantiaca, Lincoln Park Conservatory, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Made by Rana Pipiens
Eyjafjallajökull - the cataclysmic Icelandic volcano - was quite on my mind the other day, having made it across the Atlantic just before the skies closed. I've seen the red-hot lava eruptions of other volcanoes (not this one) and I was reminded of their vivid color by this Fiery Spike of the Lincoln Park Conservatory in Chicago. It's an amazing plant, especially decorated with those water droplets. Hailing from Central and South America, it was first exhibited in Europe in the Kew Botanical Gardens in 1845. Immediately it was caught up in great admiration. Edward's Botanical Register writes enthusiastically: This is the handsomest stove shrub that has been introduced for a long time ('stove' is what we are more likely to know as 'hot house' or 'glass house', or heated conservatory). The horticulturalist, Mr Henderson, of Pine Apple Place displayed our Aphelandra under an obviously curious and incorrect name: Hesemasandra. The current, correct name was given it by the famous Scottish botanist Robert Brown (1773-1858) - he of the 'Brownian Movement' with regard to pollens. 'Aphelandra' is derived from the Greek words for 'single' and for 'male / stamen'. The 'aurantiaca' means: orange. And: no; the name 'Eyjafjallajökull' has nothing to do with hot or orange: it means 'Islands Mountain Glacier, a suggestion of white and cold and ice.
Shooting Stars - Dodecatheon meadia - at the Alfred Caldwell Lilly Pool, Lincoln Park, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Made by Rana Pipiens
The Englishman Mark Catesby (1682-1749) was one of those great naturalists who also had a marvellous penchant for drawing. One of the first pictures of this flower, native to North America, was done by him as he was pulling together his natural history of Virginia, Florida and the Bahamas. It is to him that we owe the Latin name: Dodecatheon meadia. The meadia is for one of Catesby's patrons, King George II's personal physician, Dr Richard Mead (1673-1758). And 'Dodecatheon' he derived from Pliny's word for primulas. An early nineteenth-century writer remarks sadly that Carolus Linnaeus in his systematic naming of plants all but ignored 'meadia' for this flower... Our Dodecatheon - member of the primulas - has many common names: Sailor Caps, Mad Violets, Shooting Stars are but a few. The Latin, derived from the Greek, means: 'Twelve Gods', and it refers to the Gods of Mount Olympus in Greece, on whose flanks Pliny claimed primulas grew. Possibly Catesby in using the name 'Dodecatheon' saw something of a Zeusian thunderbolt in the form of what others saw as a Shooting Star. This photo of a pretty little clump was taken in the lovely quietude of the Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool. No thunderbolts there, only the wafting aromas of Spring blossoms and the tinkling of waterstreams and rivulets slipping down from the stone ledges.
Jackson Park Animal Bridge - Chicago (explored)
Made by StGrundy
EXPLORE February 9, 2009 #270 Featured on Front Page of the Chicago Public Radio website: www.chicagopublicradio.org February 11, 2009 In a city known for its innovative bridge designs, this is one of the most fanciful examples of a bridge type in Chicago. It was the winning entry in a 1903 competition sponsored by the South Park Commission and its architect was Peter Weber, who had worked with Daniel Burnham and Frederick Law Olmsted on the design of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition (also located in Jackson Park). This bridge, which spans a portion of the park’s extensive system of lagoons, features wind and water-related themes, including the carvings of ship prows, water deities, and the heads of hippos and rhinos. Over the years, the protruding animal heads had been damaged by vandals and the entire bridge was discolored from pollution, road salts, and graffiti. In January 2002, as part of major improvements to South Lake Shore Drive, the Chicago Department of Transportation began a three-year reconstruction effort for the bridge. Granite and sandstone elements were removed, cleaned, and repaired or replicated; the road was widened by 50 feet; and the masonry cladding was reinstalled in its original placement.
Winay winay! Epidendrum radicans (hybrid) for the Queen's Birthday, Lincoln Park Conservatory, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Made by Rana Pipiens
Forever young - winay winay - is what the speakers of Quechua in Peru call this wonderfully orange orchid, this Epidendrum radicans. That name is fitting for April 30 in The Netherlands; on that day annually the official birthday of the Queen is celebrated. Her name? Queen Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard of the Netherlands, of Orange-Nassau,and of Lippe-Biesterfeld etc., etc., etc. The Orange refers to the Principality of Orange in southern France from whence William I the Silent - the founder of the royal house and pater patriae in the sixteenth century - had inherited the title. In a manner of speaking all the 'Oranges' of today are the result of a long process of hybridisation... In fact, the Queen was born on January 31, 1938 but her birthday is celebrated in the Spring each year. Orange dominates the street and there are parades; everyone has a holiday, and a good time is had by all. I took this photo in the Lincoln Park Conservatory, Chicago, Illinois. It may look like it's upside down, but I can assure you that this is the way this particular cluster of orchids was positioned. Anyway, what's up or down in the jungles where these orchids thrive in lush tree vegetation?...
The Golden-breasted starling
Made by Swaranjeet
- EF 70-200mm f/2,8 L IS II USM Exposure :0.004 sec (1/250) Aperture : f/2.8 Focal Length : 168 mm ISO Speed :2000 PhotoAwardsCounter Click here to see the awards count for this photo. Named for its striking coloration, the golden-breasted starling has metallic blue wings, a yellow breast and belly, a violet throat and a vibrant green head. Range Northeastern Africa Status Common Habitat Savannas and dry-thorn forests Niche The golden-breasted starling’s diet is composed almost entirely of insects. Adult birds catch insects in flight and dig up termite mounds to find prey. Life History The golden-breasted starling lives in family groups of 3–12 individuals in the wild. Females lay their eggs in tree holes abandoned by woodpeckers, lining the nest with straw and leaves. Entire family groups cooperate in raising young by gathering food and nesting materials. Exif data
Fleet as the wind... Iris in Lincoln Park, Chicago, USA
Made by Rana Pipiens
Iris! Messenger of the Gods, Fleet as the Wind, Oh! and beautiful Rainbow. Sheltering from a sudden spring shower under a still barren tree, I caught this beauty while a rainbow shimmered up from Lake Michigan. The rivulets of rain around my leaky shoes reminded me that the River Iris flows through Amasya, beloved birthplace of Strabo (64/63 BCE-24CE), the great Greek historian, philosopher of sorts and geographer. Amasya lies in northeastern Turkey, in what was once Pontus (not too far from persent-day Samsun on the Black Sea), and its river is now called the Yeşilırmak (=Green River). I was there decades ago when it also rained, and when there was also a rainbow. But irises I don't recall. My traveling now will not take me there, but to Japan, where Van Gogh's famous paintings of Irises are highly favored and have commanded astronomical prices. But maybe one day I will return to pay homage to that Great Geographer, twinned in my mind with Fine Pausanias.
Lake Shore Drive Light Trails
Made by setholiver1
this is a 5 second exposure light trail image shot from atop the walkbridge along North Ave. Beach...this is looking north going away from the city...my original intention was only to take trail shots with Big John in the background but as i turned around, the clouds looked kind of neat and dusk was settling quite fast too so i grabbed this quickie as well....i also noticed that this huge cloud was also mimicking the curve of the highway which i thought was pretty neat....i did a slight crop for a wide screen effect and then a 10% color boost to add drama to the skies and the trails....check out yfukuda48's black and white shot from the same location last night too...very cool shot....pls. my only regret is that i only set this for 5 seconds...i should have set it for 30 seconds or so to get a more continous and smooth light trail effect...i will definitely head back up that bridge and do more light trail shots from up there....
Luke LaLonde
Made by mr.blue.sky
chicago, il // Luke Lalonde from the Born Ruffians @ Lincoln Hall - I got to see Born Ruffians on Wednesday in Chicago. They were my most listened to band in 2008 and their in my top 5 favorite bands. It was awesome finally seeing them live. The place got a little more crowded than i expected it to be seeing as i've never met another Born Ruffians Fan before. Either way i was an experience. I was lucky enough to be able to bring my camera with me. I was right up front and got good positioning for the lead singer Luke Lalonde, but unfortunately, there was a huge symbol in my way for the drummer Steve, Mitch was at an odd angle, and the new guy was too far away. all-in-all though, i got off a few good shots. - Follow me on: TUMBLR | Facebook
Nearest places of interest:
| Cafe Ba Ba Reeba Armitage CTA Station Oz Park Steppenwolf Theater | Children s Memorial Hospital The Original Potbelly Sandwich Works Seminary Townhouse Association Wish Field |
