Wildlife pictures
- Thread starter Harvestman
- Start date
Dragonfly central but none close enough for a photo opp. Lovely calming environment.
Setting are dependant on how you like to work I use flash for macro
This is similar to what I use now an Olympus OMD E-M1ii with a Laowa 50mm f2.8 macro lens (shot shows an Olympus 60mm f2.8 I no longer have) and a Olympus STF*8 twin flash
E-M1ii macro rig 4 by Alf Branch, on Flickr
Adders!
A pair of females (the darker, inner, one looks preggers to me - it's certainly nearing that time of year for them):
And another female, in that classic snake pose:
A pair of females (the darker, inner, one looks preggers to me - it's certainly nearing that time of year for them):
And another female, in that classic snake pose:
Adders!
A pair of females (the darker, inner, one looks preggers to me - it's certainly nearing that time of year for them):
And another female, in that classic snake pose:
That darker one is Gravid. Nicely shot
Some from a local walk this afternoon before the rain
Baby lizard by Alf Branch, on Flickr
lizard by Alf Branch, on Flickr
lizard 2 by Alf Branch, on Flickr
Baby lizard by Alf Branch, on Flickrlizard by Alf Branch, on Flickrlizard 2 by Alf Branch, on Flickr
Here are some shots of some tiny wasps I observed on Cinnabar caterpillars and ragwort flowers. I have not observed any egg laying. I estimate they are about 1.7 mm long
This is a heavy crop of a 2:1 shot
Tiny wasp by Alf Branch, on Flickr
Wasp on cinnabar caterpillar 1 by Alf Branch, on Flickr
Wasp on cinnabar caterpillar 2 by Alf Branch, on Flickr
Wasps on ragwort 2 by Alf Branch, on Flickr
Wasps on ragwort 3 by Alf Branch, on Flickr
Wasps on ragwort by Alf Branch, on Flickr
This is a heavy crop of a 2:1 shot
Tiny wasp by Alf Branch, on FlickrWasp on cinnabar caterpillar 1 by Alf Branch, on FlickrWasp on cinnabar caterpillar 2 by Alf Branch, on FlickrWasps on ragwort 2 by Alf Branch, on FlickrWasps on ragwort 3 by Alf Branch, on FlickrWasps on ragwort by Alf Branch, on Flickr
A couple of ladies hanging out
Ladies hanging out by Alf Branch, on Flickr
Minding her own buisiness
Adder by Alf Branch, on Flickr
Minding her own buisiness
Lovely pictures as always.
The local snakes around here have all gone into hiding - a combination of the sun being too fierce and also birthing season.
By the way, that's a male adder.
The giveaway is the colour of the zig zag pattern - females are dark brown and males are black. The main background colour is also a general indicator - males range from white to pale brown, the females from pale brown to terracotta.
A few weeks ago I saw my first ever black adder, but it slithered off before I could get a picture. No sign of Baldrick or Percy though.
The local snakes around here have all gone into hiding - a combination of the sun being too fierce and also birthing season.
By the way, that's a male adder.
The giveaway is the colour of the zig zag pattern - females are dark brown and males are black. The main background colour is also a general indicator - males range from white to pale brown, the females from pale brown to terracotta.
A few weeks ago I saw my first ever black adder, but it slithered off before I could get a picture. No sign of Baldrick or Percy though.
Great to see a melanistic adder.
Are you so sure about the sex?
Which of these two mating snakes is female and btw I unfortunately disturbed them and saw separate look under the tail to the right of the brown leaf.
Pair mating by Alf Branch, on FlickrEdit here is a an edit of one of the shots from the sequence
mating adders by Alf Branch, on Flickr
Last edited:
The bigger, brown, one is the female.
The smaller, white, one is the male.
The smaller, white, one is the male.
What colour do you think they are?
The zig zag on the brown one is dark brown and therefore female. The zig zag on the white one is black and therefore male. There are other reasons for that diagnosis - the background colours of the two (admittedly, there is variation across sexes) and the relative sizes as well.
This colouration is subject to variation but mostly in the earlier part of the year before it sheds its skin. But not by this late time of the year.
Another clue are the spots along the flank. In the male they are more defined, but less so in the female. Look at your pictures - the white (male) has clearly defined spots on the flank. Less so the brown (female) one.
There are other distinguishing marks, but they are not shown in your pictures - it would be useful to see the tips of their noses and the areas around their *ahem* 'private' bits.
I'm no expert, but I do a lot of volunteering with the local reptile and amphibian group surveying and recording. And in that time I have picked up a bit of knowledge, so I feel completely confident in saying the big brown one is female and the small white one is male.
Send the pictures (with time/date/location - good for their records!) to your reptile and amphibian group, or the wildlife trust, or the zoology department at the nearby university. They will all be happy to help and will all come back with the same answer.
The zig zag on the brown one is dark brown and therefore female. The zig zag on the white one is black and therefore male. There are other reasons for that diagnosis - the background colours of the two (admittedly, there is variation across sexes) and the relative sizes as well.
This colouration is subject to variation but mostly in the earlier part of the year before it sheds its skin. But not by this late time of the year.
Another clue are the spots along the flank. In the male they are more defined, but less so in the female. Look at your pictures - the white (male) has clearly defined spots on the flank. Less so the brown (female) one.
There are other distinguishing marks, but they are not shown in your pictures - it would be useful to see the tips of their noses and the areas around their *ahem* 'private' bits.
I'm no expert, but I do a lot of volunteering with the local reptile and amphibian group surveying and recording. And in that time I have picked up a bit of knowledge, so I feel completely confident in saying the big brown one is female and the small white one is male.
Send the pictures (with time/date/location - good for their records!) to your reptile and amphibian group, or the wildlife trust, or the zoology department at the nearby university. They will all be happy to help and will all come back with the same answer.
@Wander you are 100% correct.
This picture was labelled as a ‘her’ though. It’s a male. There is some crossover with markings with some females being darker than some and some males being lighter etc.
Male.
This picture was labelled as a ‘her’ though. It’s a male. There is some crossover with markings with some females being darker than some and some males being lighter etc.
Male.
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