The Black Swan (Cygnus atratus) is a large waterbird, a species of swan, which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. The species was hunted to extinction in New Zealand, but later reintroduced. Within Australia they are nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent upon climatic conditions. Black Swans are large birds with mostly black plumage and red bills. They are monogamous breeders that share incubation duties and cygnet rearing between the sexes.
Described scientifically by English naturalist John Latham in 1790, the Black Swan was formerly placed into a monotypic genus, Chenopis. Black Swans can be found singly, or in loose companies numbering into the hundreds or even thousands. Black Swans are popular birds in zoological gardens and bird collections, and escapees are sometimes seen outside their natural range.
This post is part of the Waterworld Wednesday meme,
and also part of the Outdoor Wednesday meme,
Camellia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. They are found in eastern and southern Asia, from the Himalayas east to Japan and Indonesia. There are 100–250 described species, with some controversy over the exact number. The genus was named by Linnaeus after the Jesuit botanist Georg Joseph Kamel, who worked in the Philippines, though he never described a camellia. This genus is famous throughout East Asia; camellias are known as cháhuā in Chinese, "tea flower", an apt designation, as tsubaki in Japanese, as dongbaek-kkot in Korean and as hoa trà or hoa chè in Vietnamese.Of economic importance in the Indian subcontinent and Asia, leaves of C. sinensis are processed to create the popular beverage, tea. The ornamental Camellia japonica, Camellia oleifera and Camellia sasanqua and their hybrids are represented in cultivation by a large number of cultivars.
This post is part of the Nature Footsteps Floral Macros meme,
and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme.
I found taking photos of these soap bubbles was really hard work. Not only did they move quickly preventing effective focussing, but they were also hard to approach close enough to catch the reflections on their surface. Nevertheless, I managed to get a couple of shots that weren't too bad... I am reflected in the bubbles, taking the photo!
This post is part of the I Heart Macro meme,
and also part of the Weekend Reflections meme.
The Australian Magpie (Cracticus tibicen) is a medium-sized black and white passerine bird native to Australia and southern New Guinea. A member of the Cracticidae, it is closely related to the butcherbirds. The adult Australian Magpie is a fairly robust bird ranging from 37 to 43 cm in length, with distinctive black and white plumage, gold brown eyes and a solid wedge-shaped bluish-white and black bill. The male and female are similar in appearance, and can be distinguished by differences in back markings. With its long legs, the Australian Magpie walks rather than waddles or hops and spends much time on the ground.
Described as one of Australia's most accomplished songbirds, the Australian Magpie has an array of complex vocalisations. It is omnivorous, with the bulk of its varied diet made up of invertebrates. It is generally sedentary and territorial throughout its range. Common and widespread, it has adapted well to human habitation and is a familiar bird of parks, gardens and farmland in Australia and New Guinea.
This post is part of the Weekend in Black and White meme.
Even when I am away from home on a trip for work, I try to go out for my regular morning and evening walks. Perhaps this is even more so when I am away, as there are more new things to see and photograph. This is taken on my morning walk in Fremantle (the port of Perth, Western Australia), close to the Esplanade, where I was staying. Fremantle has some wonderful heritage buildings that have been restored, but even the new buildings have somehow managed to mostly keep in the spirit of the place.
This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme.
Narcissus jonquilla (Jonquil, Rush daffodil) is a bulbous flowering plant, a species of Narcissus (daffodil) that is native to southwestern Europe and northern Africa, but has naturalised throughout Europe and the United States. It bears long, narrow, rush-like leaves (hence the name "jonquil", Spanish junquillo, from the Latin juncus = "rush").
In late Spring it bears heads of up to 5 scented yellow or white flowers. It is a parent of numerous varieties within Division 7 of the horticultural classification. Division 7 in the Royal Horticultural Society classification of Narcissus includes N. jonquilla and N. apodanthus hybrids and cultivars that show clear characteristics of those two species. N. jonquilla has been cultivated since the 18th century in France as the strongest of the Narcissus species used in Narcissus Oil, a component of many modern perfumes.
This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.
Gerbera L. is a genus of ornamental plants from the sunflower family (Asteraceae). It was named in honour of the German botanist and naturalist Traugott Gerber († 1743) who travelled extensively in Russia and was a friend of Carolus Linnaeus. It has approximately 30 species in the wild, extending to South America, Africa and tropical Asia. The first scientific description of a Gerbera was made by J.D. Hooker in Curtis's Botanical Magazine in 1889 when he described Gerbera jamesonii, a South African species also known as Transvaal daisy or Barberton Daisy. Gerbera is also commonly known as the African Daisy.
Gerbera species bear a large capitulum with striking, two-lipped ray florets in yellow, orange, white, pink or red colours. The capitulum, which has the appearance of a single flower, is actually composed of hundreds of individual flowers. The morphology of the flowers varies depending on their position in the capitulum. The flower heads can be as small as 7 cm (Gerbera mini 'Harley') in diameter or up to 12 cm (Gerbera ‘Golden Serena’).
Gerbera is very popular and widely used as a decorative garden plant or as cut flowers. The domesticated cultivars are mostly a result of a cross between Gerbera jamesonii and another South African species Gerbera viridifolia. The cross is known as Gerbera hybrida. Thousands of cultivars exist. They vary greatly in shape and size. Colours include white, yellow, orange, red, and pink. The centre of the flower is sometimes black. Often the same flower can have petals of several different colours.
Gerbera is also important commercially. It is the fifth most used cut flower in the world (after rose, carnation, chrysanthemum, and tulip). It is also used as a model organism in studying flower formation. Gerbera contains naturally occurring coumarin derivatives. Gerbera is a tender perennial plant. It is attractive to bees, butterflies and/or birds, but resistant to deer.
This post is part of the Nature Footsteps Floral Macros meme,
and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme.
Norfolk Hotel at 47 South Terrace (cnr Norfolk St) in Fremantle, Western Australia has been the social hub of the harbour city since opening as Oddfellows Hotel in 1887. Re-modelled, and re-opened as the Norfolk Hotel, almost 100 years later in preparation for the America’s Cup defence, the corner pub is still a popular drinking spot as well as providing accommodation.
The large mural on an exterior wall is quite amazing and provides an instant recognisable feature in what otherwise could have been a very bland wall. The mural was created by Portuguese street artist Alexandre Farto, better known as "Vhils", who subtracts while other artists add to their canvases. He uses hammers, chisels, acid and even explosives to strip away and deconstruct until an image emerges.
Further up is possibly the most significant Jewish site in Fremantle, the former synagogue, which was the first purpose built synagogue constructed in Western Australia. The first Jewish congregation had been established in Fremantle in August 1887. It had the name W.A. Hebrew Congregation, which meant that the later (and much bigger) Perth community could not use this title and had to settle for Perth Hebrew Congregation.
In 1908 the Perth congregation assumed control of the declining Fremantle congregation's affairs. With the Governor's consent, the trustees of the Fremantle group exercised their power of sale and sold the synagogue site to the Perth congregation. Services continued in the Fremantle Synagogue until 1910, by which time the community was too small and services were discontinued. Eventually in 1916 the building was sold to the Department of Defence for £850. The building has been a number of things in its time: Café, carpet shop, clothing outlet - none of which have been terribly successful... The figures of the aboriginals and native animals advertise the fact that it was at one time a gallery of native art.
This post is part of the Monday Murals meme.
