D. C. Fitzgerald

@dcfitzgerald.bsky.social

2236 Followers 850 Following

The confluence of science and culture, the environment, critical thinking. We have the tools to solve problems, it’s frequently the lack of will that’s holding up solutions.

The Lesser Bird-of-Paradise (Paradisaea minor) is a medium-sized crow-like bird. Males feature a bright lemon-yellow crown and nape contrasting sharply with a dark maroon-brown body. Their throat is a striking iridescent emerald green, and their bill is pale blue-grey. During displays, they raise dramatic, lace-like cascades of yellow-and-white plumes from their flanks and possess two long, thin, wire-like tail wires.
A close-up side view of a female Common Brimstone butterfly resting on a cluster of small, bright purple flowers. Its folded wings are a soft, pale mint-green—almost white—and shaped remarkably like a real leaf, complete with thin, delicate veins running across the surface. Near the center of the wing is a single, small rust-orange dot, and tiny brown spots trace the leaf-like, pointed outer edges of the wings.
Nakatsugawa Gorge, Nakatsugawa Keikoku), located in the Urabandai (Bandai Highlands) region of Fukushima Prefecture, Japan...w/Japanese maple (reds), beech (gold) & birch/oak (yellows).
Common Blue Morpho (Morpho peleides).Ventral Side (Underwing), the upper side is iridescent blue.When threatened by predators they can emit a foul-smelling, deterrent odor from a specialized gland located on its forelegs.
a male Eurasian bullfinch, a small, stocky songbird about the size of a sparrow. It features a striking, bold appearance: it has a glossy, jet-black cap that covers its crown and face, contrasting with a soft, vibrant rose-red chest and belly. Its back is a smooth, slate-gray, and it has a short, thick, conical black beak designed for crushing seeds and buds. It is perched amidst delicate branches, its rounded body held in a calm, upright posture.
A golden sunset glows over Gadisar Lake in Jaisalmer, India. The warm light reflects on the calm water, highlighting a stone chhatri—an ornate, dome-shaped pavilion perched on a platform in the water. A staircase leads from the water up to the pavilion, where birds rest atop the structure. In the sky, a flock of birds flies toward the left. The scene is serene, capturing a blend of historic Rajasthani architecture against a vibrant, hazy evening horizon.
Father and daughter in raincoats shuffle dancing on the way school.
Big tree with yellow leaves in the middle of a pond. The Kinkaku-ji (The Golden Pavilion) in Kyoto, Japan. This is Ashihara-jima (Reed Island), a meticulously sculpted rocky islet sitting in the middle of Mirror Pond.
A Flying fox (Pteropus) holding onto that fruit using the sharp, hooked claw on its thumb—or pollex—which sits right at the top bend of its wing. These bats basically have built-in thumbs on their wings, and they use them like hands to grab, steady their food while hanging upside down to eat.
Fjaðrárgljúfur, a massive, steep-walled canyon located in South Iceland. It was carved out roughly 9,000 years ago during the last Ice Age as glacial meltwater eroded the soft volcanic bedrock.
The White Bat Flower (Tacca integrifolia) is an understory plant native to Southeast Asian rainforests. It thrives in deep shade and high humidity, producing energy via photosynthesis. Despite its eerie look with large white wing-like bracts and long whiskers that mimic decaying matter, the flower is odorless. It relies entirely on this deceptive visual appearance to lure understory pollinators like gnats and midges.
Green and brown Malachite butterfly (Siproeta stelenes). They can be attracted to backyards with rotting fruit like as mangoes, citrus, bananas & tree sap.
The tufted coquette is a tiny hummingbird, only about 3 inches (8 cm) long, with a glittering green back and white underparts. The male is dazzling, with a reddish-orange crest tipped in black and fan-like spotted cheek feathers that flare like ornate sideburns. It hovers with a soft buzz, flashing iridescent colors as it darts among tropical flowers in northern South America.
Lake Marian is a pristine, glacially formed alpine lake located in a hanging valley within Fiordland National Park on the South Island of New Zealand.
The fruiting body of Clathrus ruber, aka the latticed stinkhorn, basket stinkhorn, or red cage fungus.It begins as a whitish, gelatinous "egg" buried in the soil. As it matures, the egg ruptures & the spongy red receptacle rapidly expands upward.
The bird's head features a vibrant pattern: a speckled black and yellow crown transitions into warm orange and deep reddish-brown plumage around its eyes and cheeks. A distinctive white patch sits just behind its dark, glossy eye. Its thick, pinkish-red beak reveals the dark interior of its mouth and tongue. Below its throat, a patch of soft, yellowish-orange feathers meets a pale, greenish-yellow belly. The barbet's wings and back are covered in a striking, dense pattern of black feathers heavily speckled with bright white spots.
time-lapse video shows the growth of a shiitake mushroom, focusing on the underside of its cap.
The Walking Iris features a fan of upright, sword-like green leaves. The striking flower has three large, flat outer petals of vibrant violet-blue, surrounding three smaller inner petals that curl sharply upward. These inner petals are covered in an intricate, tiger-like pattern of chocolate brown, bright yellow, and white stripes. Long, arching stalks bend to the ground under new growth.
fascinating, high-speed predatory strike by a flamboyant cuttlefish (Metasepia tullbergi or Metasepia pfefferi) hunting a small crab on the sandy ocean floor.
he image displays two vibrant, sky-blue blossoms side-by-side on a single, upright green stem. Each flower features delicate, slightly crinkled petals with a translucent quality, radiating an intense, pure blue hue. At the center of each bloom, a prominent, pale green, curved pistil is surrounded by a dense, contrasting burst of numerous bright golden-yellow stamens dusted with pollen.
: Two adult Tree Swallows are perched side-by-side on separate prongs of a weathered, bare wooden branch. Both birds are facing forward toward the camera, showing a slightly fluffed, rounded posture.
The big birds are Crested Caracara (Caracara plancus) and the 1st attack is a Fork-tailed Flycatcher (Tyrannus savana) and the second is a Mockingbird; they’re executing a nest defensive strategy called mobbing.
Protea flower bud, 'Pink Ice' cultivar. A vertical, close-up photograph features a striking, goblet-shaped protea flower bud centered against a soft, blurred background of dark green foliage. The flower is composed of overlapping, leathery bracts in a deep rose-pink hue, which curve upward to cradle a prominent, dome-like central mass. This inner dome consists of dense, fuzzy white styles that transition into a velvety, dark purplish-black tip at the very top.
The adult male White-bellied Woodstar is a tiny hummingbird, only about 3 inches (8 cm) long. It has shimmering green upperparts, a bright white belly and chest, and a slender, straight black bill. The throat is striking: a glittering violet-purple patch bordered by white. Its tail is relatively long and deeply forked, with dark outer feathers that flash in flight. In sunlight, the bird sparkles like a tiny flying jewel.
In the image a blackened, fire-ravaged eucalyptus tree stands proudly amid a scorched forest. Though its bark is charred pitch-black from a recent bushfire, the trunk and main branches are dramatically covered in a dense, fuzzy sleeve of vibrant, bright green leaves. This epicormic growth bursts directly from the trunk, signaling life and resilience. The surrounding ground is covered in ash, with small green ferns and bare, burnt trees filling the background.
The video captures a glacier calving event. This is a dramatic natural phenomenon where a massive chunk of ice breaks off from the face of a tidewater glacier and crashes violently into the water below. Major Marine Tours The sudden explosion of activity from the birds (likely black-legged kittiwakes or gulls) occurs because the massive impact of the ice crashes into the water and disturbs the marine environment, bringing up small fish, krill, and plankton to the surface for an easy meal.
Laputa Road) outer rim of the Mount Aso caldera, lush green terrain.in the far distance, cutting through the atmospheric haze under a pale blue sky, the jagged silhouette of the Aso Gogaku—the five sacred peaks of Mount Aso—stretches across the horizon. The composition evokes a powerful sense of isolation and grandeur, capturing a vanishing engineering feat that appears entirely unmoored from the earth, floating precariously above a sea of fog.
In a lush bamboo forest, a handler in a blue gown shields a giant panda from the rain with a small yellow umbrella. The panda looks up curiously and playfully lifts its large paw to catch the falling raindrops. The handler watches affectionately, smiling and keeping his fluffy companion perfectly dry.
close-up portrait of a Buffy Fish Owl perched on a gnarled, weathered brown branch. The owl is facing forward, looking directly at the camera with piercing, oversized yellow eyes set against a dark facial disc and a sharp, black beak. Its plumage is a rich tapestry of tawny buff and deep brown, characterized by fine, dark brown vertical streaks along its chest and heavy barring on its folded wings. Its dramatic ear tufts flare out horizontally, giving its head a wide, triangular silhouette.
A medallion with the text: we are all dogs in god’s hot car
Red and black Pesquet’s Parrot (Psittrichas fulgidus) found in the montane rainforests of New Guinea. The short head feathers have evolved so they don’t mat when eating sticky figs.
Lush green mountains. Braunarlspitze a prominent mountain peak in the western Austrian state of Vorarlberg, within the Lechquellen Mountains (Lech Source Mountains), Austria.y
Topkapi Palace in Istanbul, Turkey. Built in the 17th century. Classical Ottoman architecture. The Columns: The striking, dark green pillars on the left are made of porphyry or breccia marble, accented with gilded rings at the base and capital, which beautifully catch the light. The Tilework: The upper walls feature exquisite blue-and-white Iznik tiles, famous for their intricate floral and geometric motifs. These tiles were a signature of royal Ottoman prestige.
First a male, then a female Rufous-necked Hornbills (Aceros nipalensis)… to the montane forests of Northeast India & parts of Southeast Asia. Currently classified as a vulnerable species.
A miniature forest created by epiphytic moss wrapping vertically around thin twigs or saplings...this is likely a type of pleurocarpous (creeping) moss.
Male Crimson Sunbird perched on a branch. It is a tiny, vivid bird with a brilliant crimson-red head and breast that transitions to a bright yellow belly. A thin, dark, downward-curved beak points upward as it sings, showing an open throat. Its wings and lower back are an olive-green, contrasting beautifully with its intense red plumage against a softly blurred green forest background.
A vertical, eye-level shot captures a swamp wallaby sitting in lush, vibrant green grass with a joey peeking out from its pouch. The adult wallaby faces right, showing its dark brown and grey fur, black paws, and distinct light-colored cheek stripe. Nestled in the center pouch, the small joey mimics its mother's features, with alert ears and a dark face. It rests its front paw on the grass. The composition is tightly cropped around the pair, with a softly blurred background emphasizing the sharp detail of their coarse fur and the dew-kissed grass blades.
The Japanese White-eye acts as an important pollinator for Camellia shrubs, as it inadvertently transfers pollen between blossoms while efficiently navigating the flowers to reach high-energy nectar. Their active, insectivorous foraging behavior among the dense foliage provides a valuable natural pest control service, as they meticulously glean small insects and larvae from the leaves of their host plants.
the visual of the black honey is real, the video's botanical claims are inaccurate. There is no "spherical cedar flower"; authentic ultra-dark black honey rich in anthocyanins is actually harvested in deep montane valleys of East Asia and the Himalaya
Lesson’s Motmot bird perched on a dark horizontal wire against a blurred cream background. Facing left, its plumage is a vibrant gradient: a brilliant turquoise-blue crown, a black mask over bright red eyes, a rich green back, and a warm rufous-orange belly. Its most striking feature is its long, dark tail, which narrows into two thin, bare shafts before flaring out at the very bottom into two distinct, racquet-shaped feather tips.
the Lime Swallowtail, Lemon Butterfly, or Chequered Swallowtail (Papilio demoleus). The eyespots serve as camouflage and some situations, to startle predators.