Share Animal Pictures: For Animal Lovers

[etotheipi]

Gosh, they're freaky! Looks like a massive worm.

 

[BillTre]

Yes.
They are sold as rubber eels (but not really eels, or fish).
Last time I tried to get some, it was not possible because the animal importation bureaucrats had trouble distinguishing them from some endangered related species.

 

[etotheipi]

Speaking of funny animals, I remember laughing for like a solid 5 minutes when I first saw these things:

It reminded me of this iconic TV show that used to be on when I was very tiny:

 

[PeroK]

It reminds me more of this:

 

[hmmm27]

The mouth on that (tardigrade) looks positively industrial.

 

[DennisN]

I was out trying a zoom lens recently (a vintage Vivitar 70-300mm), and I saw a family of Eurasian coots in the park which I tried to photograph. It was very difficult of course, since they were often moving and I was using a lens with manual focus. Most of the photos got very blurry, but some got a bit better.

An adult coot feeding a juvenile coot:

A juvenile coot:

A coot in a nest:
(this was stationary, so it was easier)

 

[dlgoff]

Speaking of funny animals, I remember laughing for like a solid 5 minutes when I first saw these things:

Reminds me of this, compliments of https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/entertainment/music/music-news/pigs-fly-pink-floyds-iconic-6339009:

 

[DennisN]

Hummingbirds!
(and more, in this very nicely shot clip)

The beauty of pollination

 

[DennisN]

More birds...
(taken yesterday with a manual Meike 35 mm f/1.4 lens)

The Eurasian coot family got revisited by me:

Another Eurasian coot foraging:

(here the funny feet can be seen, quote from Wikipedia: "As a swimming species, the coot has partial webbing on its long strong toes.")

A Greylag goose:

A Canada goose:

 

[Keith_McClary]

No beavers taken into custody after theft of wood posts​

The missing posts were found nearby following a short investigation. (Courtesy of Porcupine Plain RCMP)

 

[Keith_McClary]

First-of-Its-Kind Video Shows Giant Squid Hunt Their Prey Deep in The Ocean ​

 

[DennisN]

A Canada goose:

That was wrong. It's a Barnacle goose.

 

[DennisN]

Close-ups of Western jackdaws

Today I got very lucky with the camera!

I was walking through the park and met a man sitting on a bench, surrounded by a family of Western jackdaws, about 5 or 6 of them. He had been feeding them at the same spot regularly for some time, so they had grown very accustomed to him.

Luckily I had my camera with me, with my Canon FD 50mm portrait lens fitted.
So I got the opportunity to photograph this kind of bird under great circumstances;
they were really, really calm, and I could photograph them at between 1 and 2 meters distance.
I was just sitting there talking with the man for about 20 minutes, and photographing the birds peacefully like it was nothing .

It was a very serene experience, and really fun!

Two Western jackdaws:

One jackdaw looking at me:

Beautiful bird:

The hand of the man close to one of the jackdaws:

 

[DennisN]

I returned to the "bird man" in the park, this time with a Canon FD 135 mm mounted on the camera :

Portrait of a jackdaw:

The Crow Look:

Tasty beak:

A mouthful:
(This crow was not eating the food. He/she just put loads of it in the mouth and went off storing it somewhere. )

A jackdaw on a branch:
(I wish it was a bit sharper, but with animals you sometimes just have to take what you can get )

And two more...

A little Barnacle gosling out for walk:

A coot nest with two juveniles:

 

[DennisN]

This hero rat, who even was awarded a medal for the work, is retiring.

After Years Of Detecting Land Mines, A Heroic Rat Is Hanging Up His Sniffer (NPR)

Quote: "A heroic rat named Magawa has been working for five years in Cambodia, sniffing out dozens of land mines. He is believed to have saved lives. Now, the animal is about to embark on a well-deserved retirement."

 

[Jarvis323]

There's a a squirrel nest in a tree in my yard. I've watched them for generations. Durring the major lockdown, they and the birds were my only company for months. I've been filling a large dish of fresh water every day and one of them would come by my window and get my attention when it was empy. Now I'm afraid my neighbor, with a rat problem in his chicken coup, has poisened them all. I haven't seen any in about 3 days.

 

[DennisN]

There's a a squirrel nest in a tree in my yard.

Very cool photos!

 

[Jarvis323]

And it's confirmed, they're out there right now throwing poision pellots everywhere. Makes me a little angry, especially since they've made no serious effort to solve the problem any other way, and didn't notify me or the other neighbors. The cats I've seen coming around will probably die too. Later I'll go around the neighborhood warning people to watch out for signs that their cats and dogs have been poisoned.

 

[Jarvis323]

And it's confirmed, they're out there right now throwing poision pellots everywhere. Makes me a little angry, especially since they've made no serious effort to solve the problem any other way, and didn't notify me or the other neighbors. The cats I've seen coming around will probably die too. Later I'll go around the neighborhood warning people to watch out for signs that their cats and dogs have been poisoned.

I may have spoke too soon. I went to ask what kind of poison they're using and it is one that is supposedly non-toxic for dogs and cats, and inneffective for squirrels.

 

[DennisN]

A combination of a fish photo and selfie :

The focus is not very good since it was extremely difficult to focus on the fish with a handheld camera and a manual lens (almost impossible) since the fish were always moving . Next time I will use an automatic lens instead.

 

[DennisN]

A common blackbird photographed today.
They are very careful, moving often and usually keep their distance from humans, so they are quite a challenge to photograph. This one was about 5 meters away from me for only a short while.

 

[Rive]

They are very careful, moving often and usually keep their distance from humans

?
Quite interesting to see the perception of the same 'thing' from other parts of the world.
We have more of them living in city/town/village than in the forest
They are quite friendly too. During gardening we can watch them from 2-3m only: but in the park I've seen them right near people sunbathing.

 

[DennisN]

They are quite friendly too. During gardening we can watch them from 2-3m only: but in the park I've seen them right near people sunbathing.

Maybe I haven't met the social blackbirds yet . I have been trying to photograph them for a while, and they've been elusive so far.

 

[Rive]

I have been trying to photograph them

Maybe that's the problem. Ours are sensitive to intent too: if you are just doing your stuff in the garden, then they are friendly and just doing their own stuff close to you. But if they sense that you have some business with them, then they are suddenly starting to evade you.

And somehow, most of our guests are sensitive to the lens of the camera. I could not figure out that one yet

 

[DennisN]

A nectar thief earlier this summer.

Taken with an extension tube attached between the lens and camera, which enables focusing at smaller distances. It works rather well, though the photo is not quite as sharp as I would have liked it to be .

 

[DennisN]

 

[BillTre]

Clear belly of a glass frog.
The round things are eggs.

 

[BillTre]

 

[DennisN]

A beetle photographed with extension tubes. I tried to identify it with "Google Picture search", and I think it is a Large pine weevil.

 

[Drakkith]

Cat butt on my face.