Wilderness Portraits by Lloyd Paul Aiello

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  • Holiday homecoming draped in a white blanket of snow for Christmas.
    IMG_2006-snow-home-ribbon-white-chri...tif
  • AJ ( age 8) smiles in anticipation of ice cream on a warm California day.
    P-000038-smile-girl-ice-cream.tif
  • An adult 14-inch Queen Angelfish (Pomacanthus maculosus) glides over a reef outcrop covered in colorful soft corals under the shadow of the shipwreck Jolanda prior to its being lost into the abyss of the Red Sea, Ras Mohammad, Sinai, Egypt in 1985.  The Jolanda was a 72 meter Cypriot merchant ship owned by the Sea Brother Marine Shipping company. During a severe storm on April 1, 1981 the ship hit a southern reef mount at the tip of the Ras Mohammad peninsula where after 4 days she rolled over onto her port side, her bow awash, and her stern hanging over the edge of the reef.  During a storm in 1985 a wire holding the wreck on the reef snapped and the wreck plunged into the abyss, lost until its rediscovery two decades later on May 26, 2005 in 145 - 200 meters of water.  Today the only evidence of its brief shallow water presence are the remains of its cargo of toilets shown in the lower left of the photograph.
    P-000211-Edit-shipwreck-anglefish-co...tif
  • A colorful cut flower bouquet adorns a vase atop a marble pedestal at the annual Boston Flower show.
    IMG_0139-flower-bouquet-vase-pedesta...tif
  • The remains of an old twisted juniper (Juniperus osteosperma) frame AJ (age 10) and LB (age 8) at Wolverine Petrified Wood Natural <br />
Area in Escalante National Monument, Utah, the second-largest fossil forest of its<br />
age in the world.
    _LPA6598-juniper-children-petrified-...tif
  • A smiling young cook, Ashlyn age 10, dressed in her newest chef attire ready to perpare dinner
    IMG_0566-girl-cook-apron-smile-wisk.tif
  • A juvenile male Mallard Duck (Anas platyrhynchos) fills a pond with golden ripples as he swims across reflections of autumn leaves.
    _LPA0333-duck-mallard-pond-fall-autu...tif
  • Mangroves frame a sand beach and Carolina Skiff at Rabbit Key, Everglades, Florida
    _LPA3807-mangrove-beach-boat-evergla...tif
  • An autumn Japanese Maple leaf (Acer palmatum) has fallen on a lichen and moss covered rock in Belmont, Massachusetts.
    _1LA1579-Edit-Japanese-maple-leaf-ro...tif
  • An autumn Japanese Maple Leaf (Acer palmatum) has fallen on a lichen and moss covered rock in Belmont, Massachusetts.
    _1LA1556-Edit-leaf-maple-japanese-re...tif
  • An autumn Japanese Maple Leaf (Acer palmatum) has fallen on a lichen and moss covered rock in Belmont, Massachusetts.
    _1LA1556-Edit-square-leaf-maple-japa...tif
  • A flock of ducks rest on the frozen ocean mudflats at low tide with the ice and puddles reflecting the pinks, blues and mauves of a winter sunset in Duxbury, Massachusetts.
    Scan-101211-0017-Edit-ice-sunset-duc...tif
  • A water pocket on the canyon floor reflects the surrounding cliffs bathed in golden light at Crack Canyon of the San Rafael Reef, Utah.
    _LPA7060-gold-river-reflections-crac...tif
  • The Painted Desert is a spectacular badlands running from near the east end of Grand Canyon National Park southeast into the Petrified Forest National Park. The desert is about 120 miles (190 km) long by about 60 miles (97 km) wide, making it roughly 7,500 square miles (19,425 km2) in area.  The view shown here is from the north portion of The Petrified Forest National Park. The Painted Desert is known for its brilliant and varied colors, including the unusual shades of lavender evident in this photograph.  <br />
<br />
The area resides within a strong rain shadow, giving it a cold desert climate with hot, dry summers and cold, virtually snow-free winters. The annual precipitation is the lowest in northern Arizona and in many places is lower even than Phoenix.<br />
<br />
The desert is composed of stratified layers of easily erodible siltstone, mudstone, and shale of the Triassic Chinle Formation. These fine-grained rock layers contain abundant iron and manganese compounds which provide the pigments for the various colors of the region. The erosion of these layers has resulted in the formation of the characteristic badlands topography of the region. Numerous layers of silicic volcanic ash occur in the Chinle and provide the silica for the petrified logs of the area. An assortment of fossilized prehistoric plants and animals are also found in the region, as well as dinosaur tracks and evidence of early human habitation.<br />
<br />
Desert was named by an expedition under Francisco Vázquez de Coronado on his 1540 quest to find the Seven Cities of Cibola, which he located some forty miles east of The Petrified Forest National Park. Finding that the cities were not made of gold as expected, Coronado sent an expedition to find the Colorado River to resupply his group. Passing through the wonderland of colors, they named the area "El Desierto Pintado", The Painted Desert.
    _LPA0805-Edit-Edit-badlands-painted-...tif
  • A lone red gondola glides above the upper reaches of the vast snow covered Whistler Mountain wilderness in British Columbia.
    _LPA1703-gondola-snow-trees-mountain...tif
  • Ashlyn, age 11, and her grandmother take a rest from paddling their kayaks on the Charles River in Newton, Massachusetts
    IMG_0957-kayak-child-grandmother-gra...tif
  • Ashlyn (age 11) and Bryce (age 9) recover after a blazing tobaggan run down the snow covered hill on Vose Mountain, Kingfield, Maine
    IMG_0296-toboggan-snow-hill-child-ma...tif
  • The Galactic Center of the Milky Way sets over the Carrabassett River of northern Maine in late August.  The Galactic Center is the rotational center of the Milky Way and where it appears brightest. It is 26,490 light years away from Earth in the direction of the constellation Sagittarius. The Milky Way is the second-largest galaxy in our Local Group, with its stellar disk approximately 100,000 light years in diameter and, on average, approximately 1,000 light years thick. The Milky Way is approximately 1.5 trillion times the mass of the Sun. To compare the relative physical scale of the Milky Way, if our Solar System out to Neptune were the size of a US quarter (24.3 mm; 0.955 in), the Milky Way would be approximately the size of the entire contiguous United States.  The Milky Way It is estimated to contain 100–400 billion stars and more than 100 billion planets.<br />
<br />
This image is a focus stack of 3 photographs where the foreground was briefly illuminated with a headlamp during each 20 second exposure.
    _1LA0600-Edit.tif
  • Small water pockets in the sandy river bed reflect surrounding cliffs bathed in golden light at Crack Canyon of the San Rafael Reef, Utah.
    _LPA7048-reflection-gold-water-canyo...tif
  • Multiple flocks of migrating Canada Geese (Branta canadensis) are silhouetted against the evening sky as the sun sets over Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge on the Eastern shore of Maryland, Halloween night, October 31, 1990.  Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, encompassing over 27,000 acres of wetlands, is a major stop on the Atlantic Flyway for many types of waterfowl and other birds.  The refuge, established in 1933 as a waterfowl sanctuary, has been designated of “International Importance" by the Ramsar Convention as it supports over 250 bird species, 35 species of reptiles and amphibians, 165 species of threatened and endangered plants, and numerous mammals.  During winter migration, Blackwater Refuge is home to approximately 35,000 geese and 15,000 ducks. Fed by the Blackwater River and the Little Blackwater River, it consists of numerous freshwater impoundments, brackish tidal wetlands, open fields, and mixed evergreen and deciduous forests. The Blackwater name refers to the tea-colored waters darkened by tannins leached from the marsh peat soil through which they drain.
    P-000215-Edit-goose-sunset-bird-blac...tif
  • A House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus) perches in front of an azalea that has changed color in the fall.  These finches are 5-6 inches long with a 8-10 inch wingspan and a weight of 0.6-1.0 ounces.  Male coloration varies in intensity with the seasons and is derived from the berries and fruits in the bird's diet. Originally only a resident of Mexico and the southwestern United States, they were introduced to eastern North America in the 1940s. The birds were sold illegally in New York City as "Hollywood Finches".  To avoid prosecution under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, vendors and owners released the birds. House Finches have become naturalized across the Eastern U.S., where now there are an estimated 267 million to 1.7 billion individuals in North America.
    _1LA0704-Edit-bird-house-finch-fall.tif
  • An autumn Japanese Maple leaf (Acer palmatum) has fallen on a lichen and moss covered rock in Belmont, Massachusetts.
    _1LA1570-Edit-Japanese-maple-rock-re...tif
  • A pair of mouse footprints push the soft desert sand into a heart at South Coyote Buttes, Utah.
    _LPA8593-Edit-heart-mouse-footprints...tif
  • Mangroves frame a sand beach and Carolina Skiff at Rabbit Key, Everglades, Florida
    _LPA3806-mangrove-beach-boat-evergla...tif
  • Golden autumn leaves are reflected in the ripples of a pond.
    _LPA0339-reflection-pond-gold-autumn...tif
  • A 20-inch terminally differentiated male Stoplight Parrotfish (Sparisoma viride) glides 80 feet below the surface admist red cup corals (Tubastrea coccinea) and grey fire corals (Millepora alcicornis) now adorning the wreckage of the Royal Mail Ship Rhone.  The RMS Rhone sunk in the hurricane of 1867 after missing her mark by less than 30 feet and took her cargo of mail, cotton and supplies to the bottom of Salt Island in the British Virgin Islands.
    P-000217-stoplight-parrotfish-shipwr...tif
  • Discovered in 1878, Luray Caverns in Virginia has a spactacular array of both stalagtites (attached to the roof) and stalagmites (rising from the ground).  However, in this view, only stalagtites are present, each perfectly reflected in a shallow pool of water below.  The formations are formed when a solution of calcium carbonate releases carbon dioxide, resulting in precipitation of lime.  The crystallized calcite accumulates at the rate of one cubic inch every 120 years.
    P-000216-cave-luray-reflection-stala...tif
  • The planet Jupiter is reflected in the Carrabassett River of northern Maine as it sets along with the Milky Way in late August.  Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest in our Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass one-thousandth that of the Sun, but two-and-a-half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined. When viewed from Earth, Jupiter can be bright enough for its reflected light to cast shadows, and it is generally the fourth-brightest natural object in the sky after the Sun, Moon and Venus (although at times Mars can be brighter than Jupiter).  Jupiter has 79 known moons.<br />
<br />
The Milky Way is the second-largest galaxy in our Local Group, with its stellar disk approximately 100,000 light years in diameter and, on average, approximately 1,000 light years thick. The Milky Way is approximately 1.5 trillion times the mass of the Sun. To compare the relative physical scale of the Milky Way, if our Solar System out to Neptune were the size of a US quarter (24.3 mm; 0.955 in), the Milky Way would be approximately the size of the entire contiguous United States.  The Milky Way It is estimated to contain 100–400 billion stars and more than 100 billion planets.<br />
<br />
This is a single image taken while standing in the middle of the Carrabassett River.  The rocks were briefly illuminated with a headlamp during the 20 second exposure.
    _1LA0592-Edit-milky-way-stars-jupite...tif
  • Falling snowflakes are illuminated by the camera flash as Ashlyn (age 12) and Bryce (age 10) pause on their evening winter walk through a snowstorm in McLean Woods, Belmont, MA.
    IMG_2029-snow-winter-woods-snowflake...tif
  • These young mountain goats (Oreamnos americanus), also known as the Rocky Mountain Goats, are resting on their way up a steep slope in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.  Mountain goats are sure-footed cliff climbers that are endemic to subalpine to alpine areas of North America.  They are the largest mammal in these high-altitude environments often exceeding 3,900 meters (13,000 ft). In summer, they generally stay above tree line, but occasionally migrate to lower elevations in the winter. Despite its common name, they are not a member of Capra, the genus that includes all other goats, but rather related to antelopes, gazelles, and cattle. <br />
<br />
Mountain goats are about 1 m (3.3 ft) tall at the shoulder and males are larger than females. Mountain goats can weigh between 45 and 140 kg (99 and 309 lb) with a length of 10–179 cm (4 to nearly 6 ft.).  Both male and female mountain goats grow black horns reaching 15–28 cm (5.9–11.0 in) in length.  After they are about 22 months old, the horns are visible and it is possible to tell the age of a mountain goat by counting the number of rings on its horns.  Two of the individuals in this image are too young to have grown horns yet.<br />
<br />
There are an estimated 100,000 Mountain Goats in North America. They are protected from the elements by long woolly white double coats that they shed in spring. Their coats are highly specialized consisting of fine, dense wool undercoats covered by an outer layer of longer, hollow hairs. Their coats help mountain goats survive winter temperatures as low as −50 °F (−46 °C) and winds of up to 160 kilometers per hour (99 mph).  The average lifespan of a mountain goat is 9 to 12 years.<br />
<br />
This is a single color image that has been converted digitally to black and white.
    _1LA9417-Edit-Edit-mountain-goat-col...tif
  • The July 4, 2018 Boston Massachusetts fireworks celebration lights the sky over the MIT Dome and campus.  Over 10,000 pyrotechnic explosions initiated by over 4,000 computer comands originate from barges in the Charles River and the Massachusetts Avenue bridge.  The fireworks can soar as high as 1,500 feet into the summer night sky.  This spectacular event has been a tradition in Boston since 1974.
    _1LA1105-Edit-fireworks-Boston-MIT.tif
  • Under a moonless night sky in Death Valley California, headlights from a passing car light the barren landscape at Zambriske Point making it seem as though one is standing on another planet looking out into the universe.  The upper left star cluster is the Pleiades (also known as the Seven Sisters or Messier object 45) which is a 100 million year old formation approximately 130 parsecs (424 light-years) from earth.<br />
<br />
Zabriskie Point is part of the Amargosa Range located on the eastern side of Death Valley.  The area is noted for its erosional landscape, composed of sediments from Furnace Creek Lake, which dried up 5 million years ago—long before Death Valley came into existence.  This ancient lake began forming approximately nine million years ago. During the several million years of the lake's existence, sediments composed of saline muds, mountain gravels, and ashfalls from the then-active Black Mountain volcanic field collected at the bottom of the lake.<br />
<br />
Camels, mastodons, horses, carnivores, and birds left tracks in the lakeshore muds, along with fossilized grass and reeds. Borates were concentrated in the lakebeds from hot spring waters and decomposition of rhyolite in the nearby volcanic fields. Indeed, the location is named after Christian Brevoort Zabriskie, vice-president and general manager of the Pacific Coast Borax Company in the early 20th century. The company's twenty-mule teams were used to transport borax from its mining operations in Death Valley.
    _LPA3780-Edit-stars-death-valley-Zam...tif
  • Norway Maple leaves (Acer platanoides) lay scattered upon a bed of moss in Belmont, Massachusetts.
    _1LA1582-Edit-leaves-moss-Norway-map...tif
  • An autumn leaf from a nearby Japanese Maple tree (Acer palmatum) rests on the moss covered bark of a Norway Maple (Acer platanoides) in Belmont, Massachusetts.
    _1LA1490-Edit-Japanese-maple-leaf-no...tif
  • A girl sits atop a fence contemplating the Andromeda galaxy and a faint display of the Northern Lights (aurora borealis) while bathed by the warm light of a nearby cabin at Kestrel Ranch outside Cody Wyoming.  The Andromeda galaxy is visible as the tilted disk of stars to the upper right of the photograph.  Also known as Messier 31, M31, or NGC 224, it is a spiral galaxy approximately 780 kiloparsecs (2.5 million light-years) from Earth. It is the nearest major galaxy to the Milky Way.   Andromeda is approximately 220,000 light years across, and it is the largest galaxy of the Local Group, which also contains the Milky Way, the Triangulum Galaxy, and other smaller galaxies. Andromeda contains one trillion stars, at least twice the number of stars in the Milky Way.  <br />
<br />
(single image)
    _LPA9918-Edit-stars-milky-way-androm...tif
  • A mini Cattleya Laleliocattleya hybrid orchid bloomed by the photographer.  Cattleya is a genus of 113 species of orchids found from Costa Rica to tropical South America, growing throughout the Amazon region and to the south of Brazil..  The cattleya  is an epiphyte (air plant), which stores water in expanded stems called pseudobulbs. <br />
<br />
The genus was named in 1824 by John Lindley after Sir William Cattley who was the first to bloom a specimen of Cattleya labiata. William Swainson had discovered the new plant in Pernambuco, Brazil, in 1817 and shipped it to the Glasgow Botanic Gardens for identification.  Later, Swainson requested that a few plants be sent to Cattley who was able to bloom one a full year before the plants in Glasgow. It would be another 70 years before a Cattleya would be rediscovered in the wild because of a mixup in the assumed location of the plants. <br />
<br />
Cattleya are widely known for their large, showy flowers. The flowers of the hybrids can vary in size from 2 - 6 inches (5 -15 cm). They occur in all colors except true blue and black.  Cattleya have been hybridized for more than a century.  Beeding Cattleya with Laelia produces Laleliocattleya  and results in a more elongated closed "cone" that gracefully opens into the full lip of the blossom.  Laelia also contributes to the intense violet shade.
    _LPA7229-mini-cattleya-orchid-bloom-...tif
  • Miltoniopsis orchid grown and bloomed by the photographer.  Miltoniopsis is a genus of orchids that consists of 6 species, native to Costa Rica, Panama, Venezuela, Ecuador, and Colombia. They grow in locations that range from hot, humid lowlands  to relatively cool, humid cloud forests. They were named after Lord Fitzwilliam Milton, an English orchid enthusiast.
    _LPA6346-orchid-miltonia-flower-pans...tif
  • Raised by the photographer in his basement, a total of 14 flower spikes on 11 Phaeanopsis orchids bearing a total of 76 flowers all bloomed at once.  Phalaenopsis are also known as Moth Orchids and are native throughout southeast Asia from the Himalayan mountains to the islands of Polillo, Palawan and Zamboanga del Norte in the island of Mindanao in the Philippines and northern Australia.
    _LPA6323-phaleanopsis-orchid-colorfu...tif
  • Aerial view of the upper snow covered Whistler Mountain wilderness in British Columbia as photographed from a helicopter during a February snowstorm.
    _LPA1768-mountain-snow-whistler-vist...tif
  • Dead sun-bleached mangrove exposed at low tide on Rabbit Key, Everglades, Florida
    _LPA3803-mangrove-dead-everglades-ra...tif
  • The Black Tusk, a remnant of an extinct volcano that has mostly eroded away, rises 7,608 feet above sea level near Whistler, British Columbia as photographed here by helicopter during a February snowstorm.
    _LPA1749-black-tusk-mountain-snow-wi...tif
  • Falling snowflakes are illuminated by the camera flash as Ashlyn (age 12) and Bryce (age 10) pause on their evening winter walk through a snowstorm in McLean Woods, Belmont, MA.
    IMG_2029-snowflakes-winter-woods-chi...tif
  • The colors of Eucalyptus tree bark (Eucalyptus botryoides) become vividly evident when moistened by the frquent passing mists along the flanks of Mount Haleakala, a 10,023 foot high volcano in Maui, Hawaii.
    _LPA1094-eucalyptus-bark-haleakala-v...tif
  • AJ (age 10) and LB (age 8) pause to gaze at the morning light reflecting off the surrounding cliffs while hiking through Crack Canyon in Utah.
    _LPA7069-climbing-sillouette-cliff-u...tif
  • AJ (age 8) jumps for joy over an incoming wave on Crane Beach in Ipswich, Massachusetts.
    _LPA0144-jump-joy-child-wave-girl-be...tif
  • A rare winter snow covers Balanced Rock in the desert of Utah's Arches National Park and the Unita Mountains in the distance.
    P-000165-arches-balanced-rock-utah.tif
  • A Red Hermit Crab (Petrochirus diogenes) peers out of a Queen Conch (Strombus gigas) submerged 48 feet below Horseshoe North, Turniffe Islands, Belize, Central America. The Red Hermit Crab is the largest hermit crab species found from North Carolina to Brazil. Also known as the Giant Hermit, it tends to preferentially inhabit discarded shells of the Queen Conch as shown here. The Queen Conch shell attains length of over 12 inches, feeding almost exclusively on algae. Its meat is utilized extensively as food and fish bait throughout Puerto Rico and the West Indies. The Red Hermit Crab generally inhabits sand bottoms and seagrass flats to a depth of over 300 feet. While many hermit crab species have their left claw substantially larger than the right, the Giant Hermit possesses a right claw that is slightly more massive than the left. Fertilized eggs are carried attached to the underbody of the female crab before hatching into larva which float has plankton when young. The Giant Hermit derives its Latin genus name from its hard and stony fingertips (petro = stony, chirus = finger).
    P-000170-red-hermit-crab-queen-conch...tif
  • These young mountain goats (Oreamnos americanus), also known as the Rocky Mountain Goats, are resting on their way up a steep slope in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.  Mountain goats are sure-footed cliff climbers that are endemic to subalpine to alpine areas of North America.  They are the largest mammal in these high-altitude environments often exceeding 3,900 meters (13,000 ft). In summer, they generally stay above tree line, but occasionally migrate to lower elevations in the winter. Despite its common name, they are not a member of Capra, the genus that includes all other goats, but rather related to antelopes, gazelles, and cattle. <br />
<br />
Mountain goats are about 1 m (3.3 ft) tall at the shoulder and males are larger than females. Mountain goats can weigh between 45 and 140 kg (99 and 309 lb) with a length of 10–179 cm (4 to nearly 6 ft.).  Both male and female mountain goats grow black horns reaching 15–28 cm (5.9–11.0 in) in length.  After they are about 22 months old, the horns are visible and it is possible to tell the age of a mountain goat by counting the number of rings on its horns.  Two of the individuals in this image are too young to have grown horns yet.<br />
<br />
There are an estimated 100,000 Mountain Goats in North America. They are protected from the elements by long woolly white double coats that they shed in spring. Their coats are highly specialized consisting of fine, dense wool undercoats covered by an outer layer of longer, hollow hairs. Their coats help mountain goats survive winter temperatures as low as −50 °F (−46 °C) and winds of up to 160 kilometers per hour (99 mph).  The average lifespan of a mountain goat is 9 to 12 years.<br />
<br />
This is a single color image that has been converted digitally to sepia.
    _1LA9417-Edit-antique-sepia-mountain...tif
  • The July 4, 2018 Boston Massachusetts fireworks celebration lights the sky.  Over 10,000 pyrotechnic explosions initiated by over 4,000 computer comands originate from barges in the Charles River and the Massachusetts Avenue bridge.  The fireworks can soar as high as 1,500 feet into the summer night sky.  This spectacular event has been a tradition in Boston since 1974.
    _1LA1105-Edit-fireworks-Boston-MIT-E...tif
  • A Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum) dropping its leaves in late autumn in Belmont, Massachusetts.
    _1LA1478-Edit-Japanese-maple-red-tre...tif
  • Three autumn leaves from a nearby Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum) have fallen onto the moss covered trunk of a Norway Maple (Acer platanoides) in Belmont, Massachusetts.  Moments later, a breeze blew the leaves off the trunk.
    _1LA1513-Edit-Japanese-Maple-tree-tr...tif
  • A yellow Norway Maple leaf (Acer platanoides) has fallen onto a bed of moss in Belmont, Massachusetts.
    _1LA1595-Edit-leaf-maple-yellow-moss...tif
  • This eastern chipmunk (Tamias striatus) built its home below a sewer grate in Mount Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge, Massachusetts.  They generally construct underground nests with extensive tunnel systems, and several entrances.  To hide the construction of its burrow, the eastern chipmunk carries soil away from its hole in its cheek pouches.  <br />
<br />
The eastern chipmunk is the sole living member of the chipmunk subgenus Tamias, and is found only in eastern North America.  The name "chipmunk" is derived from the Algonquian language meaning “one who descends trees headlong.”  <br />
<br />
The eastern chipmunk reaches 30 cm (12 in) in length including the tail, with a weight of 66–150 g (2.3–5.3 oz).  Interestingly, it has two fewer teeth than other chipmunks and four toes each on the front legs, but five toes on each of the hind legs.  They are mainly active during the day, consuming bulbs, seeds, fruits, nuts, green plants, mushrooms, insects, worms, and bird eggs.  <br />
<br />
The eastern chipmunk leads a solitary life, except during mating season. Females usually produce one or two litters of three to five young, usually from February to April and/or June to August. On average, eastern chipmunks live three or more years in the wild, although in captivity they may live up to eight years.
    _LPA0849-Edit-eastern-striped-chipmu...tif
  • A House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus) forages in a bed of black oil sunflower seed shells.  These finches are 5-6 inches long with a 8-10 inch wingspan and a weight of 0.6-1.0 ounces.  Male coloration varies in intensity with the seasons and is derived from the berries and fruits in the bird's diet. Originally only a resident of Mexico and the southwestern United States, they were introduced to eastern North America in the 1940s. The birds were sold illegally in New York City as "Hollywood Finches".  To avoid prosecution under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, vendors and owners released the birds. House Finches have become naturalized across the Eastern U.S., where now there are an estimated 267 million to 1.7 billion individuals in North America.
    _LPA4586-house-finch-red-bird-sunflo...tif
  • The colors of Eucalyptus tree bark (Eucalyptus botryoides) become vividly evident when moistened by the frquent passing mists along the flanks of Mount Haleakala, a 10,023 foot high volcano in Maui, Hawaii.  Panorama composed of 2 individual images.
    _LPA1101-eucalyptus-bark-haleakala-p...tif
  • The male American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis), the largest reptile in North America, attracts a mate by exposing its vulnerable neck and emmitting subaudible vibrations which cause ripples in the water over their back
    _LPA8662-alligator-mating-call-ameri...tif
  • The northern green frog (Lithobates clamitans melanota) is a subspecies of the green frog, Lithobates clamitans and has been introduced to British Columbia.  This frog grows up to 86 mm (3.5 in) and is darker when young.  The northern green frog dwells in marshes, swamps, ponds, lakes, springs, and other aquatic environments. They are active both day and night. This individual was photographed in the Carrabassett River in northern Maine in August.<br />
<br />
The image is a focus stack of 11 handheld exposures.
    _1LA9810-Edit-northern-green-frog-Ki...tif
  • Although not a true spider, Daddy longlegs (order Opiliones) go by many names including harvestman, cellar spiders, granddaddy long-legs, carpenter spider, daddy long-legger, vibrating spider and skull spider.  Daddy longlegs are closely related to scorpions (order Scorpiones) but, because of their appearance, are often mistaken as spiders (order Araneida or Araneae). However, unlike true spiders, in which the body is divided into two distinct segments, daddy longlegs look as though they have only one segment because of a broad fusion that makes the juncture between the two segments almost indiscernible.  They are widely distributed and abundant in both temperate and tropical climates of both hemispheres.<br />
<br />
The body of a daddy longlegs is 0.6 to 23 mm (0.02 to 0.9 inch) long, although the bodies of most species are between 3 and 7 mm (0.12 and 0.28 inch). The legs can exceed 15 cm (5.9 inches) in length.  Many species of daddy longlegs are omnivorous, feeding on small insects, mites, spiders, snails, and vegetable matter.  Daddy longlegs typically have two eyes located on a central knob on the front of the body although certain types lack eyes. Eggs are laid in the soil in autumn and hatch with the warmth of spring. Many species of daddy longlegs live less than one year, although some may survive for several years.<br />
<br />
This individual was photographed on a screen door retroilluminated by the early morning sunlight where over 100 daddy longlegs had congregated to feed on small insects attracted to a nearby light left on overnight.
    _1LA9448-Edit-daddy-longlegs-spider-...tif
  • The July 4, 2018 Boston Massachusetts fireworks celebration lights the sky over Cambridge, Massachusetts.  Over 10,000 pyrotechnic explosions initiated by over 4,000 computer comands originate from barges in the Charles River and the Massachusetts Avenue bridge.  The fireworks can soar as high as 1,500 feet into the summer night sky.  This spectacular event has been a tradition in Boston since 1974.
    _1LA0921-Edit-firworks-cambridge.tif
  • The July 4, 2018 Boston Massachusetts fireworks celebration lights the sky over the MIT Dome and campus.  Over 10,000 pyrotechnic explosions initiated by over 4,000 computer comands originate from barges in the Charles River and the Massachusetts Avenue bridge.  The fireworks can soar as high as 1,500 feet into the summer night sky.  This spectacular event has been a tradition in Boston since 1974.
    _1LA1054-Edit-fireworks-Boston-MIT.tif
  • The July 4, 2018 Boston Massachusetts fireworks celebration lights the sky over the MIT Dome and campus.  Over 10,000 pyrotechnic explosions initiated by over 4,000 computer comands originate from barges in the Charles River and the Massachusetts Avenue bridge.  The fireworks can soar as high as 1,500 feet into the summer night sky.  This spectacular event has been a tradition in Boston since 1974.
    _1LA1107-Edit-fireworks-Boston-MIT.tif
  • A yellow Norway Maple leaf (Acer platanoides) is caught in the branches of a Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum) in Belmont, Massachusetts.
    _1LA1539-Edit-maple-leaves-norway-ja...tif
  • As autumn leaves fall, a yellow Norway Maple leaf (Acer platanoides) comes to rest naturally on the branches of a Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum) in Belmont, Massachusetts.
    _1LA1530-Edit-leaf-maple-yellow-red-...tif
  • In the winter at Death Valley, the clear skies, cold nights and lack of nearby lights create one of the best viewing environments for the night sky.  Seen here in March, the many colors of the stars are clearly visible.  Centered in the image is the constellation Orion, with Orion’s Belt and sword clearly visible.  Orion is observable worldwide in the evening sky from January to March.  It was named after Orion, a hunter in Greek mythology.  The earliest depiction of the constellation of Orion is a prehistoric (Aurignacian) mammoth ivory carving found in a cave in the Ach valley in West Germany in 1979. Archaeologists have estimated it to have been fashioned approximately 32,000 to 38,000 years ago<br />
<br />
Orion's Belt (or The Belt of Orion) consists of the three bright stars: Zeta (Alnitak), Epsilon (Alnilam), and Delta (Mintaka). Alnitak is approximately 800 light years away from earth and is 100,000 times more luminous than the Sun, although much of its radiation is in the ultraviolet range which the human eye cannot see. Alnilam is approximately 1,340 light years away from Earth and is 375,000 times more luminous than the Sun. Mintaka is 915 light years away and is 90,000 times more luminous than the Sun, and is a double star.  <br />
<br />
The Pleiades star cluster (also known as the Seven Sisters or M45) is visible from virtually every place on Earth and is one of the nearest star clusters. It can be seen from as far north as the north pole, and farther south than the southernmost tip of South America. It looks like a tiny misty dipper of stars, shown here 3/4 of the way to the right and halfway up in the sky.  In both myth and science, the Pleiades are considered sibling stars. The Pleiades stars were born from the same cloud of gas and dust about 100 million years ago. The cluster of several hundred stars is about 430 light-years distant, and the sibling stars drift through space together at about 25 miles per second. Many of these Pleiades stars shine hundreds of times mor
    _LPA3782-Edit-stars-orion-pleadeis-d...tif
  • A grasshopper sits on a young girl's shoulder as they gaze out over Boysen Reservior near Shoshoni, Wyoming.
    _LPA0293-Edit-girl-grasshopper-wyomi...tif
  • The Milky Way and the Andromeda Galaxy rise above trees gently bathed in light from a nearby cabin at Kestrel Ranch, Cody, Wyoming.  The Andromeda galaxy is visible as the tilted disk of stars to the mid right area of the photograph.  Also known as Messier 31, M31, or NGC 224, it is a spiral galaxy approximately 780 kiloparsecs (2.5 million light-years) from Earth. It is the nearest major galaxy to the Milky Way.   Andromeda is approximately 220,000 light years across, and it is the largest galaxy of the Local Group, which also contains the Milky Way, the Triangulum Galaxy, and other smaller galaxies. Andromeda contains one trillion stars, at least twice the number of stars in the Milky Way.  <br />
<br />
(single exposure)
    _LPA9804-Edit.tif
  • The American goldfinch (Spinus tristis) is a small migratory North American bird found from mid-Alberta to North Carolina during the breeding season, and from just south of the Canada–United States border to Mexico during the winter. It is a small finch, 11–14 cm (4.3–5.5 in) long, with a wingspan of 19–22 cm (7.5–8.7 in). It weighs between 11–20 g (0.39–0.71 oz). <br />
<br />
The song of the American goldfinch is a series of musical warbles and twitters, often with a long note.  <br />
<br />
The American goldfinch displays sexual dimorphism in its coloration with the male being a vibrant yellow in the summer as shown here, and an olive color during the winter.  The female is a dull yellow-brown, brightening only slightly during the summer.
    _LPA8246-Edit-goldfinch-great-meadow...tif
  • The American goldfinch (Spinus tristis) is a small migratory North American bird found from mid-Alberta to North Carolina during the breeding season, and from just south of the Canada–United States border to Mexico during the winter. It is a small finch, 11–14 cm (4.3–5.5 in) long, with a wingspan of 19–22 cm (7.5–8.7 in). It weighs between 11–20 g (0.39–0.71 oz). The song of the American goldfinch is a series of musical warbles and twitters, often with a long note.  The American goldfinch displays sexual dimorphism in its coloration with the male being a vibrant yellow in the summer as shown here, and an olive color during the winter.  The female is a dull yellow-brown, brightening only slightly during the summer.
    _LPA8246-Edit.tif
  • A Cattleya Laleliocattleya hybrid orchid bloomed by the photographer.  Cattleya is a genus of 113 species of orchids found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. The genus was named in 1824 by John Lindley after Sir William Cattley who was the first to bloom a specimen of Cattleya labiata. William Swainson had discovered the new plant in Pernambuco, Brazil, in 1817 and shipped it to the Glasgow Botanic Gardens for identification.  Later, Swainson requested that a few plants be sent to Cattley who was able to bloom one a full year before the plants in Glasgow. It would be another 70 years before a Cattleya would be rediscovered in the wild because of a mixup in the assumed location of the plants. <br />
<br />
Cattleya are widely known for their large, showy flowers. The flowers of the hybrids can vary in size from 2 - 6 inches (5 -15 cm). They occur in all colors except true blue and black.  Cattleya have been hybridized for more than a century.  Beeding Cattleya with Laelia produces Laleliocattleya  and results in a more elongated closed "cone" that gracefully opens into the full lip of the blossom.  Laelia also contributes to the intense violet shade.
    _LPA6563-cattleya-orchid-purple-flow...tif
  • Phaleanopsis orchid bloomed by the photographer.  Phalaenopsis are also known as Moth Orchids and are native throughout southeast Asia from the Himalayan mountains to the islands of Polillo, Palawan and Zamboanga del Norte in the island of Mindanao in the Philippines and northern Australia.
    _LPA6359-orchid-phaleanopsis-white-b...tif
  • A Zygopetalum orchid bloomed by the photographer. Zygopetalum is a genus of orchids consisting of fourteen species. The orchid's name is derived from the Greek word "zygon", means "yoked petal", referring to the yoke-like growth at the base of the lip caused by the fusion of the petals and sepals.  Zygopetalum are found in humid cool forests at mid to high elevations in Central and South America.  They are most common in Brazil.  Most Zygopetalum are epiphytes (air plants), but some are terrestrials. These plants are noted for the incredible fragrance of their blooms which last 1-3 months with an aroma resembling that of a strong Hyacinth.
    _LPA7210-orchid-zygopetalum-flower-p...tif
  • Dendrobium orchid bloomed by the photographer.  The Dendrobium genus of orchids was established in 1799 and contains about 1,200 species. Dendrobium grow in diverse habitats throughout much of south, east and southeast Asia, including the Philippines, Borneo, Australia, New Guinea, Solomon Islands and New Zealand.
    _LPA2161-dendrobium-orchid-yellow-fl...tif
  • A male Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) stands in a bed of black oil sunflower seed shells as he forages for food.  The Northern Cardinal has a body length of 8-9 inches and a wingspan of 10-12 inches.  The male is a vibrant red, while the female is a dull red-brown shade. The Northern Cardinal is mainly granivorous, but also feeds on fruit or insects.  The cardinal was once prized as a pet, but its sale as cage birds is now banned in the United States by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918.
    _LPA4554-cardinal-bird-sunflower-see...tif
  • An Isabella Tiger Moth (Pyrrharctia isabella) caterpillar searches the bark of a Northern White Cedar (Thuja occidentalis) in northern Maine for a suitable location in which to pass the winter.  Found throughout North America except in most northern Canada, they will usually settle under a section of tree bark, a rock, or a log where they produce a natural organic antifreeze that permits then to survive cold temperatures as extreme as -90oF!<br />
<br />
The caterpillars have many names: Wooly Worm, Fuzzy Bear, Hedgehog Caterpillar and Woolly Bear. The timing of their travels and their distinctive banded coloration has led to a robust folklore of their being an established predictor of the severity of the winter to come. <br />
<br />
 In fact, the coloration of the Woolly Bear is a result of its age, species and diet.   A more favorable growing season for the caterpillar results in a narrower red-orange middle band.  As the caterpillars molt, their colors change, acquiring more black and less red.
    _LPA7194-Edit-wooly-worm-caterpillar...tif
  • A group of small snails leave tracks in the wet sand at low tide on Rabbit Key, Everglades, Florida
    _LPA3823-snail-tracks-sand-everglade...tif
  • Aerial view of the upper snow covered Whistler Mountain wilderness in British Columbia as photographed from a helicopter during a February snowstorm.
    _LPA1790-mountain-snow-whistler.tif
  • Falling snowflakes are illuminated by the camera flash as Bryce (age 10) pauses on his evening winter walk through a snowstorm in McLean Woods, Belmont, MA.
    IMG_2019-snow-winter-woods-boy.tif
  • A common toad  (Bufo bufo) climbs onto a bandaged 8 year old girls toe.
    _LPA1101-toad-foot-bandage-girl.tif
  • A bleeding heart (Dicentra spectabilis) blooms against foliose lichen (Xanthoparmelia sp.) growing on a slab of granite.
    _LPA1090-bleeding-heart-lichen-grani...tif
  • An Eastern Red-backed Salamander (Plethoon cinereus) walks across the leaf of an “Iceberg” Hosta near a flowering Blue-eyed grass (Sisyrinchium angustifolium).  This small salamander is found throughout the northeast United States.  It is lungless, and breathes through its moist skin. Unlike many salamanders, it spends its entire life on land, and lays its eggs on the moist forest floor. The young skip the typical aquatic stage and emerge as tiny terrestrial salamanders. (Focus stack of two individual images.)
    _LPA5129-Edit-salamander-flower-host...tif
  • The blue sky and white snow are reflected in the crystal contours of an icicle at Drumlin Farm, Lincoln, Massachusetts.  (Maco panorama composed of 5 individual images.)
    ice-icicle-blue-white-winter.tif
  • AJ (age 8) and LB (age 6) share a warm towel after a springtime ocean swim at Crane Beach in Ipswich, Massachusetts.
    _LPA0209-towel-beach-children-crane.tif
  • The ahermatypic Orange Cup Coral (Balanophyllia elegans) extends its 2-inch-long yellow-spotted tentacles to feed at night 50 feet below the surface of the Red Sea at "The Temple", Sinai, Egypt.  Although this organism closely resembles in an anemone, it is actually a true hard coral. Corals are carnivorous animals which feed upon microscopic zooplankton by trapping them with their tentacles. Most corals possess a symbiotic relationship with a class of algal cells known as zoozanthellae and are thus termed hermatypic.  Since algal cells undergo photosynthesis, hermatypic corals can also obtain energy from sunlight. In addition, zoozanthellae reduce the concentration of carbon dioxide within the cells of the hermatypic coral and thus help precipitate calcium carbonate from seawater. Calcium carbonate is a chemical from which a corals calcareous skeleton is made. However, Balanophyllia elegans is an ahermatypic coral and does not associate with algal cells. Consequently, these corals consist of a single polyp and secrete only a simple thin skeleton. Unlike their hermatypic counterparts, ahermatypic corals may be found in all oceans of the world and at depths beyond the reach of sunlight. The white soft coral at bottom (Xenia) exhibits a slow, rhythmic opening and closing movement of unknown function.
    P-000169-orange-cup-coral-red-sea.tif
  • Phaleanopsis orchid bloomed by the photographer.  Phalaenopsis are also known as Moth Orchids and are native throughout southeast Asia from the Himalayan mountains to the islands of Polillo, Palawan and Zamboanga del Norte in the island of Mindanao in the Philippines and northern Australia.
    _1LA0797-Edit.tif
  • These young mountain goats (Oreamnos americanus), also known as the Rocky Mountain Goats, are resting on their way up a steep slope in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.  Mountain goats are sure-footed cliff climbers that are endemic to subalpine to alpine areas of North America.  They are the largest mammal in these high-altitude environments often exceeding 3,900 meters (13,000 ft). In summer, they generally stay above tree line, but occasionally migrate to lower elevations in the winter. Despite its common name, they are not a member of Capra, the genus that includes all other goats, but rather related to antelopes, gazelles, and cattle. <br />
<br />
Mountain goats are about 1 m (3.3 ft) tall at the shoulder and males are larger than females. Mountain goats can weigh between 45 and 140 kg (99 and 309 lb) with a length of 10–179 cm (4 to nearly 6 ft.).  Both male and female mountain goats grow black horns reaching 15–28 cm (5.9–11.0 in) in length.  After they are about 22 months old, the horns are visible and it is possible to tell the age of a mountain goat by counting the number of rings on its horns.  Two of the individuals in this image are too young to have grown horns yet.<br />
<br />
There are an estimated 100,000 Mountain Goats in North America. They are protected from the elements by long woolly white double coats that they shed in spring. Their coats are highly specialized consisting of fine, dense wool undercoats covered by an outer layer of longer, hollow hairs. Their coats help mountain goats survive winter temperatures as low as −50 °F (−46 °C) and winds of up to 160 kilometers per hour (99 mph).  The average lifespan of a mountain goat is 9 to 12 years.
    _1LA9417-Edit-2-mountain-goat-color-...tif
  • The July 4, 2018 Boston Massachusetts fireworks celebration lights the sky.  Over 10,000 pyrotechnic explosions initiated by over 4,000 computer comands originate from barges in the Charles River and the Massachusetts Avenue bridge.  The fireworks can soar as high as 1,500 feet into the summer night sky.  This spectacular event has been a tradition in Boston since 1974.
    _1LA1050-Edit-fireworks-Boston.tif
  • The July 4, 2018 Boston Massachusetts fireworks celebration lights the sky over the MIT Dome and campus.  Over 10,000 pyrotechnic explosions initiated by over 4,000 computer comands originate from barges in the Charles River and the Massachusetts Avenue bridge.  The fireworks can soar as high as 1,500 feet into the summer night sky.  This spectacular event has been a tradition in Boston since 1974.
    _1LA1106-Edit-fireworks-Boston-MIT.tif
  • Three autumn leaves from a nearby Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum) have fallen onto the moss covered trunk of a Norway Maple (Acer platanoides) in Belmont, Massachusetts.  Moments later, a breeze blew the leaves off the trunk.
    _1LA1505-Edit-Japanese-maple-leaf-ba...tif
  • LB catches a 19.5 inch Rainbow Trout on a dry fly while flyfishing on the Upper Narrows of the Teton River near Drggs, Idaho. The fish was released unharmed after the photograph.
    _LPA0035-Edit-Rainbow-Trout-Teton-Ri...tif
  • Upper reaches of Whistler Mountain in British Columbia photographed by helicopter during a February snowstorm
    _LPA1727-tree-mountain-snow.tif
  • A Cattleya Laleliocattleya hybrid orchid bloomed by the photographer.  Cattleya is a genus of 113 species of orchids found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. The genus was named in 1824 by John Lindley after Sir William Cattley who was the first to bloom a specimen of Cattleya labiata. William Swainson had discovered the new plant in Pernambuco, Brazil, in 1817 and shipped it to the Glasgow Botanic Gardens for identification.  Later, Swainson requested that a few plants be sent to Cattley who was able to bloom one a full year before the plants in Glasgow. It would be another 70 years before a Cattleya would be rediscovered in the wild because of a mixup in the assumed location of the plants. <br />
<br />
Cattleya are widely known for their large, showy flowers. The flowers of the hybrids can vary in size from 2 - 6 inches (5 -15 cm). They occur in all colors except true blue and black.  Cattleya have been hybridized for more than a century.  Beeding Cattleya with Laelia produces Laleliocattleya  and results in a more elongated closed "cone" that gracefully opens into the full lip of the blossom.  Laelia also contributes to the intense violet shade.
    _LPA6566-cattleya-orchid-purple-flow...tif
  • Mini Cattleya orchid bloomed by the photographer.  The cattleya is a genus containing 113 species of orchids that are indigenous from Costa Rica to tropical South America, growing throughout the Amazon region and to the south of Brazil..  The cattleya  is an epiphyte (air plant),  which stores water in expanded stems called pseudobulbs.
    _LPA6352-cattleya-mini-yellow-red-or...tif
  • An Isabella Tiger Moth (Pyrrharctia isabella) caterpillar searches the bark of a Northern White Cedar (Thuja occidentalis) in northern Maine for a suitable location in which to pass the winter.  Found throughout North America except in most northern Canada, they will usually settle under a section of tree bark, a rock, or a log where they produce a natural organic antifreeze that permits then to survive cold temperatures as extreme as -90oF!<br />
<br />
The caterpillars have many names: Wooly Worm, Fuzzy Bear, Hedgehog Caterpillar and Woolly Bear. The timing of their travels and their distinctive banded coloration has led to a robust folklore of their being an established predictor of the severity of the winter to come. <br />
<br />
 In fact, the coloration of the Woolly Bear is a result of its age, species and diet.   A more favorable growing season for the caterpillar results in a narrower red-orange middle band.  As the caterpillars molt, their colors change, acquiring more black and less red.
    _LPA7170-Edit-wooly-worm-caterpillar...tif
  • A lone mangrove awaits the return of the tide at Rabbit Key, Everglades, Florida
    _LPA3832-mangove-low-tide-everglades.tif
  • Snail tracks in the wet sand of low tide sketch a mouse at Rabbit Key, Everglades, Florida
    _LPA3829-snail-track-mouse-sand-ever...tif
  • Falling snowflakes are illuminated by the camera flash as Ashlyn (age 12) and Bryce (age 10) pause on their evening winter walk through a snowstorm in McLean Woods, Belmont, MA.
    IMG_2030-snow-winter-woods-snowflake...tif
  • AJ (age 10) and LB (age 8) pause to gaze at the morning light reflecting off the surrounding cliffs while hiking through Crack Canyon in Utah.
    _LPA7069-climbing-children-sillouett...tif
  • A bleeding heart (Dicentra spectabilis) blooms against foliose lichen (Xanthoparmelia sp.) growing on granite.
    _LPA1092-bleeding-heart-lichen-grani...tif
  • An Eastern Red-backed Salamander (Plethoon cinereus) walks across a granite rock covered by lichen.  This small salamander is found throughout the northeast United States.  It is lungless, and breathes through its moist skin. Unlike many salamanders, it spends its entire life on land, and lays its eggs on the moist forest floor. The young skip the typical aquatic stage and emerge as tiny terrestrial salamanders.
    _LPA5149-Edit-salamander-lichen-rock...tif
  • An Eastern Red-backed Salamander (Plethoon cinereus) walks across an "Iceberg" Hosta leaf.  This small salamander is found throughout the northeast United States.  It is lungless, and breathes through its moist skin. Unlike many salamanders, it spends its entire life on land, and lays its eggs on the moist forest floor. The young skip the typical aquatic stage and emerge as tiny terrestrial salamanders.
    _LPA5139-Edit-salamander-hosta-plant.tif
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