the Gunnison River has deeply incised the Black Canyon, exposing the ~1.7 billion year-old Precambrian metamorphic rock that comprises the enormous Painted Wall, caught at sunrise and the moment of first light.
Wide pre-dawn view of the 2,250 foot (686 meter) high Painted Wall, showing pegmatite dikes intruding the foliated gneiss and schist creating a natural abstract mural nearly a half-mile high.
Bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) enjoying sunset near Cedar Point the evening before.
keeps this flycatcher busy and it is now being frequently observed around the house.
Western Kingbird (Tyrannus verticalis).
for the National Sports Launch West to be held near Alamosa, Colorado during the upcoming Memorial Day weekend, a four day-long event. Launch waivers to 52,000 feet!!
The Arreaux (left) and Arcas (far right) are the highest fliers, and they will carry the GPS radio tracker in their payload bays.
but they sure are dee-licious. Credit goes to the first person who thought to put this thing in their mouth.
Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo).
1980 USGS image.
around the feeding stations on occasion, this large flycatcher is caught relaxing in a cottonwood.
Western Kingbird (Tyrannus verticalis).
of sunflowers are spotting the landscape in Castle Valley National Park, massive natural bouquets of gorgeousness dotting the rusty terrain.
Rough mule’s ears (Wyethia scabra).
but you can’t take them out without teaching them some table manners. Chew your food with your mouth closed and use a napkin to be polite.
Lazuli Bunting (Passerina amoena).
inside a prickly pear cactus blossom. Macro photography takes one into amazing micro worlds.
Prickly pear cactus (genus Opuntia).
Within 24 hours of pollination, the prickly pear blossom turns reddish-pink.
in less than 40 years, this prolific dove is a common occupier of the feeding stations, here and nearly everywhere.
Eurasian Collared-Dove (Streptopelia decaocto).
from opening globemallow blossoms. I’ll have to go prospecting for the entrances to their underground hives, given away by their tiny sedimentary turrets.
Desert globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua). The fully open blossoms are about 15 mm wide.
Fully loaded mallow bee with a large pollen pellet on its hind legs, weighing up to 30% of the bee’s weight.
of rabbitbrush.
Lazuli Bunting (Passerina amoena).
for Mother’s Day.
Whipple's fishhook cactus (Sclerocactus whipplei).
on a once-weekly ritual commences from Lions Park, then a six mile (10 km) uphill climb on the Moab Canyon Pathway to the Moab Brands trail network where one can play on the singletrack until near exhaustion, then a nice and long downhill return.
Pedestrian/bicycle bridge across the Colorado River on the Moab Canyon Pathway.
in the payload bay of my high power model rockets that allows for accurate flight telemetry in real time, and also assists in locating the rocket after touchdown by transmitting its location. Today’s first test flight with the device went exceptionally well and provided a wealth of interesting flight data.
The Arreaux at liftoff on an Aerotech F20-7W engine, soaring to an apogee of 936 feet (285 meters).
The Featherweight GPS radio tracker mounted on a sled inside the payload bay. A small LiPo battery is secured beneath the circuit board and will not budge under high G forces at liftoff.
GPS track of flight at the Round Mountain Proving Ground rendered on Google Earth. L = launch site, A = apogee, and T = touchdown point.
Distance between launch and touchdown points is about 100 yards/meters.
paints a postcard picture today, so here it is for all to enjoy. They really should consider making movies out here.
Click on image to expandinate.
at one of the feeders. One can’t help but photograph these gorgeous finch-like birds.
Lazuli Bunting (Passerina amoena).
slithering through the buffalo grass, likely driven from its burrow by an intense rainstorm this afternoon.
Striped whipsnake (Masticophis taeniatus).
this tiny hummer rode the bucking rabbitbrush like a pro.
Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri).
tracks the movement of the Sun across the sky throughout the day, a response that occurs in some plants known as heliotropism, and here it is at about 2:00 pm MDT.
Rough mule’s ears (Wyethia scabra).