Yueyang tourist market

Market, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Every tourist site in China has a market for trinkets and souvenirs. This one was adjacent to Yueyang Tower (Changhsha, Hunan Province).

Chinese swap meet

Swap meet, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

One of the sites I visited in Changsha, China, was the Bamboo Scripts Museum. An antiquities market was going on, in the form of a swap meet, in the plaza adjacent to the museum. The artifacts for sale were intriguing. If I had had any cash, I would have been purchasing some of these items. I was restricted to feasting on the visual splendors of jewelry, ceramics, wood carvings, etc. People watching was also a good option here.

Eastern White Pine

Eastern White Pine, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Another winter photo from Inniswood Metro Park. The back lighting on the cones and needles caught my eye.

Eastern White Pine

Eastern White Pine, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Inniswood Metro Park - usually the park is a highlight of spring and summer. However, it is also very beautiful in autumn and winter.

Architectural detail

Architectural detail, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

One of the doors at a building at the Yueyang Tower site in Hunan Province, China. I loved the play of light and shadow on this carved panel.

Sunrise at Waterman Farm - 01/04/14

Sunrise at Waterman Farm - 01/04/14, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

The Buckeyes may have lost the Orange Bowl last night, but the sunrise over campus was pretty spectacular this morning....

Hyobanche

Hyobanche, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

I spent three weeks in South Africa for my field work on Hyobanche. This is a lovely species that I will describe this coming year. Tentative name is Hyobanche laidleri, named after my good friends Dennis, Gigi, Nicholas, and Chris Laidler. This family has been my family away from home while in South Africa since 1999, when we first met. All have been with me in the field, and they all have enthusiasm for my research project.

Two notable field seasons with the Laidlers: 2003 when I had Nick and Chris along for a trip to Lesotho and the Drakensberg highlands, and this year for a three week trip to work in several national parks: West Coast, Namaqua, Richtersveld, and Agulhas. This year was truly the best ever!

Grey heron

Grey heron, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Another beautiful bird spotted at DeHoop Nature Reserve September 13, 2013. This species looks very similar to our North American blue heron.

Pickerington Ponds

Pickerington Ponds, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Happy New Year! I hope 2014 brings you much joy.

Yueyang Tower

Yueyang Tower, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

One of the pre-conference trips for the International Wood Culture Society Symposium on Taxodiaceae was a tour of Yueyang Tower. This is an ancient structure that has been rebuilt over the course of several dynasties. It's made entirely of wood, most likely from genera in Cuppressaceae (to which Taxodiaceae has been subsumed), and the site is very interesting from a cultural and architectural viewpoint.

While we were there a group of school kids was on a field trip. The place was overrun, in fact, with children in identical uniforms. Many of them wanted to practice their English skills on me. I was an easy target, being such a tall Caucasian woman. I enjoyed these brief interactions, and I'm sure I gave the kids something to talk about amongst themselves....

Black-crowned night heron in flight

Black-crowned night heron in flight, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

South Africa: September 13, 2013.

I was sitting atop the rocks above the vlei at DeHoop Nature Reserve, watching the birds fly by in the early morning sunshine.

DeHoop is a magical place. The campsites are along the vlei, and the place is fantastic for birding - not only aquatic birds, but the typical assemblage one finds in fynbos and dune systems. The added bonus for me was finding a population of Hyobanche, which was the goal for this site.

Winter leaf study

Winter leaf study, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

A frozen puddle in the forest at Inniswood Metro Park makes an interesting winter scene. The sun was low on the horizon, illuminating a small patch on this icy scenery.

Steve and I were with a bunch of birders, doing a walk through the park. I was more interested in finding little nature scenes such as this than watching the winter birds. It was nice to see some bluebirds, though. We also went to another park to take a look at some screech owls roosting in a bridge over Alum creek.

Leaf study

Leaf study, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Winter at Inniswood Metro Park. There are many frozen puddles with fallen leaves in the park. This one happened to be in some sunlight.

Cape Weaver

Cape Weaver, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

One of my favorite groups of birds in South Africa are the weavers. There are several species, and each one produces an unique style of nests.

This past field season I learned a bit about the behavior of the weavers. The males make several nests to try to attract a female. She will inspect each nest, and if she rejects them all, the male will start the process again. He's very territorial and will do some interesting display behaviors to announce his territory. I don't think these mating pairs are monogamous, which is not surprising given the colonial nesting behavior. Trees are chock full of nests and, from a distance, look like Christmas ornaments adorning a tree. They don't look quite so tidy from up close.

Weaver colonies are noisy and busy places. I wouldn't spend a lot of time hanging out under the nests, unless you have an umbrella....

Clouds

Clouds, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

During my field season in South Africa, the weather was typical of late winter in the Western Cape. There was plenty of rain, but there were many days of beautiful blue skies. Every time a cold front came up from the south, the skies put on an incredible show.