Of pics, flics and videos: questions and answers

Yes, all of the nature photos on this blog are of White’s Wetland! Stock photos have not been used. Although I have much to learn about nature photography specifically and outdoor photography in general, I will doggedly keep taking the photos for this blog myself.

The one exception, however, is the black and white photo used in the August 8 post about birds.

No, that is not me, and it’s not my mother. That’s actress Tippi Hedren, who appeared in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1963 film The Birds. Ms. Hedren, a longtime animal lover and devotee of the big cats, founded Roar in 1983, which exists to support her big cat sanctuary, the Shambala Preserve, “a meeting place of peace and harmony for all beings, animal and human.”

Home to MJ’s two tigers, Thriller and Sabu, the Shambala/Roar Foundation has two highly admirable missions, as I see it: it seeks to educate the public about the dangers of private ownership of exotic animals and provides permanent homes to rescued big cats so that they may “live out their lives with love and dignity.”

Another question was prompted by the video of the moon above a cornfield. Yes, that is also part of White’s Wetland. To take a step back, let me describe our wetlands to you in greater detail.

The ESA that has been officially identified as White's Wetland lies on the north side of our road; the house, barn, lawns and surrounding fields are on the south side. The wooded wetlands are also surrounded by fields that belong to us and are currently being farmed.

As you can see, the field in the photo has been planted with corn. Crops are rotated annually, but I most love the years in which corn is planted in the horseshoe-shaped south field that hugs the house and barn. Once the tall, graceful stalks reach a certain height, they seem to wrap around our home like loving arms. Tall, green and elegantly tassled, the cornstalks provide a high, natural fence that is both inviting and sheltering.

Our wetland is properly “buffered” from the agricultural activity, in accordance with the regulations governing wetland stewardship and management.

More about agriculture and the environment in another post. It’s high time to enjoy the day.