Wild Boar in Namibia

The wild boar is ranging now almost over the whole globe.

They are very adaptable and in a way they are clever too.

This picture was again taken by my wife earlier this month in Namibia.

The wild boar was very close to her at the time.

They ( both the wild boar and my wife ) didn’t seem to be frightened at all.

King of the Beasts at Namibia

This is the animal that is used in many symbols, logos, emblems, statutes of many cultures and countries, for many centuries.

There is a silence in the wilderness just before this animal appears.

Many animals are so frightened and fled before or when the lion appears.

He is the king of beasts; a symbol of strength and bravery.

Picture taken by my wife in Namibia earlier this month.

 

Weekly Photo Challenge: Partners

This week’s DP photo challenge is Partners.

This is a photo taken earlier this month by my wife in Namibia, Africa.

I am sure nobody would disagree this shows partnership.

. . . . . . . . . . put your head on my shoulder . . . . . . . . . . . .

 

 

Black Rhinoceros in Namibia

Here is an abridged description of the black rhinoceros from Wikipedia:
The black rhinoceros or hook-lipped rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis) is a species of rhinoceros, native to eastern and southern Africa. Although the rhinoceros is referred to as black, its colors vary from brown to grey.

The other African rhinoceros is the white rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum). The word “white” in the name “white rhinoceros” is often said to be a misinterpretation of the Afrikaans word wyd meaning wide, referring to its square upper lip, as opposed to the pointed or hooked lip of the black rhinoceros. These species are now sometimes referred to as the square-lipped (for white) or hook-lipped (for black) rhinoceros.

The species overall is classified as critically endangered, and three subspecies, one including the western black rhinoceros, were declared extinct by the IUCN in 2011.

Both pictures were taken by my wife earlier this month in Namibia, Africa.

Cheetahs in Namibia

Firstly, I must apologize for uploading the picture of a leopard instead of a cheetah in my previous post.

I was amazed at my findings and rushed to do a post – the close up of a leopard supplied by my wife and also my success in extracting the leopard from the video / burst.

To make up for my mistake, I am now posting the pictures of a cheetah.

A cheetah has the following features:

They have simpler spots, the leopards have more complicated ones.

They have sort of a vertical scar near to the eyes.

They have a more slender body.

Please forgive my haste in preparing the post.

Social Weaver’s Communal Nest

These are some of the biggest bird nests I have come across in pictures.

They are so big that I cannot believe it.

The pictures were taken by my wife in Namibia, Africa.

I would like to see pictures of weaver birds leaving or entering the bird’s nest.

Instead of ordinary houses, these birds prefer mansions.

Understand the nest is for communal living!

 

 

The Cheetah in Namibia

I have just found out how I can extract an image from a 4K video.

I was thrilled to be able to extract this image of a cheetah which my wife has captured as part of her 4K video.

The cheetah is known to be the fastest moving animal on earth.

I am glad that she has taken this video in Namibia, Africa.

Please enjoy 🙂

A Tree in the Desert

My wife has returned from her trip to Namibia.

She has taken some photos and a lot of video.

Many of her videos are taken of wild beasts and animals, like leopards, lions, rhinos, oryx, elephants and birds etc.

She likes taking videos rather than photos – this gives the real sense of the place and the motion, she said.

However, all her videos or bursts were taken in 4K stored with an Extreme high speed memory card ; which can only be downloaded with a compatible card reader and a compatible software. This being the case, I am not sure they are that easy to be shared.

Here is one of her photos taken in the Namibia desert.

I like the patterns in the sand.

If you are careful enough, you may also be able to spot the patterned footprints of insects in the sand.

 

Weekly Photo Challenge: Curve ( Lanterns )

This week’s DP photo challenge is Curve.

Here are some lanterns hanging in a limestone cave in Yunnan to lit up the space.

All the lanterns have an elliptical curved surface.

The curved lines in each lantern are also showed up in the light.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Curved ( Bridges)

This week’s DP photo challenge is Curve.

Those who have been following me know that I am a fan of bridges; I  like them as they connect one place to another, overcoming obstacles like river, sea, rivers, gorges etc.

They improve connectivity which we all need.

In the early part of my career, I have been designing and project engineering  some bridges which still stand today, after 40 years of their design and over three decades  of their construction.

This post is about curve bridges; in fact, they are mostly masonry bridges.

In early part of the human history, we have discovered that if we arrange the masonry or stones in the shape of arches, the resulting structure will be put into compression for which stones have a lot of compressive strength.

The stone or masonry of course will need to be cemented together so that there will be a smooth flow of compression in the arches. Human beings have been very clever in erecting curved spans over torrential waters etc..

Many of the bridges were built on this principle and quite a lot of them have lasted for hundreds of years.

Here I will first showcase some of the arch bridges built in the West, the first two examples were taken in Spain, namely, Seville and also Toledo.

The third one is a medieval bridge near France in the area known as Cahorrea.

The fourth one was taken in Central Park, NYC.

The fifth one was taken in Switzerland, this is a contemporary structure with vertical memebers transferring loads from the highway onto a concrete arch. 

The rest of the bridges are built in the East.

The one with three curved spans over a river, looking like three contagious ribbons were taken in Shinkoku, Japan.

This is followed by a three span masonry bridge in the West Lake China, creating an attractive reflection in the West Lake waters.

The last one with the red Autumn foliage was captured in South Korea.

I could go on and on, citing more examples – if I can get hold of my old pictures.

For the time being, please enjoy 🙂