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The water runner

The water runner

Marty’s photo of the day #4393: This is a Jesus Christ lizard, named because when people hear them frantically dashing through the leaf litter, they often yell, “Jesus Christ! What was that?” Okay, the species is actually called a Jesus Christ lizard, because the young ones have the ability to run across the surface of […]

Putting out the fire

Putting out the fire

Marty’s photos of the day #4388-4389: Last week featured a couple of outdoor adventures for Deb, Nellie, and me. Early in the week we had to dodge a charging moose, and yesterday we put out a forest fire. One of the advantages of being “a local” in Montana is that even when the tourists arrive […]

Everything was cool until . . .

Everything was cool until . . .

Marty’s photos of the day #4383-4385: These photos are from Deb’s, Nellie’s, and my adventure last night. As we do every evening, we walked the path that follows the perimeter of the Essen Wildlife Refuge. We were on the far side, when this moose burst through the trees and cut onto the path―just in front […]

Evolution and regression in Florida

Evolution and regression in Florida

Marty’s photo of the day #4382: Alligators have remained virtually untouched by evolution for more than 8 million years, which is something that is, obviously, unimpressive to Ron DeSantis, Florida’s Republican Party, and more than half of the state’s voting population. For they have perfected the art of regressing an entire society to where not […]

My honey comes home today!

My honey comes home today!

Marty’s photo of the day #4379: My honey comes home today! Deb and I have been married for thirty-eight years (I was five and she was eight on our wedding day), and since we’re both self-employed we are around each other all the time. Yeah, there are times when some little quirk bothers one or […]

La Villa de Castrotorafe

La Villa de Castrotorafe

Marty’s photo of the day #4378: The following two paragraphs from my first book, Cool Creatures, Hot Planet: Exploring the Seven Continents, explain this shot: One of our stops included the twelfth-century walled city of La Villa de Castrotorafe. I had spotted the city from the highway and turned onto a dirt road that led […]

Can you find the octopus?

Can you find the octopus?

Marty’s photo of the day #4377: Can you spot the octopus? The octopus is near the center, behind the first rock. After holding the octopus for a while, I sent her on her way. But rather than racing away, she was still curious about me. So she swam behind the rock and slowly lifted just […]

Common beauty

Common beauty

Marty’s photo of the day #4374: It’s easy to get excited about seeing a rare bird, reptile, or mammal. Mallard ducks, on the other hand, are so common that they’re easy to overlook. Then one turns just right in the sunshine and you have to exclaim, “Wow!” (Photographed in the Bitterroot Valley of Montana)

Yellow-headed blackbird

Yellow-headed blackbird

Marty’s photo of the day #4372: I photographed this yellow-headed blackbird last weekend in the Bitterroot Valley of Montana. He was on the opposite side of a large pond, so I had to use my most-powerful lens and then wait for just the right moment of stillness. The photo came out a bit soft, but […]