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jencross.bsky.social
Jen Cross
@jencross.bsky.social
53K followers 870 following 11K posts
Engineer by day | Nature & landscape photographer | Birds, bugs, spiders | Friend of animals that scare people | Be decent & kind | she / her | IG heyjencross
📸www.jencrossphoto.com
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jencross.bsky.social
Jen Cross @jencross.bsky.social · Oct 17
Hello new followers! I drag around a camera and take lots of photos. I love learning new techniques and tend to post lots of bugs and birds, but nothing is off limits.

Eastern Bluebird, Hummingbird Clearwing Moth, Glacier National Park landscape, Puffins floating on the ocean
Female Eastern Bluebird sitting on a skinny bare branch with snow flurries flying around. A hummingbird clearwing moth visiting a pink bee balm flower. Big bend overlook at Glacier National Park. Colorful mountain scenery fills the foreground with two huge peeks filling the middle ground. The skies are cloud and the scene is dramatic. Puffins floating in the Bay of Fundy.
Reposted by Jen Cross
theplanetaryguy.bsky.social
This is one amazing photo.

Jets of water vapour and ice crystals blasting out through four deep fractures in the icy shell of Saturn's tiny moon Enceladus.

This is the only alien ocean we know of that we can directly access.

(1/2)
The curved, icy surface of Enceladus, with several jets extending into space.
January 4, 2026 at 10:02 PM
Reposted by Jen Cross
anzaborrego.bsky.social
Coyote at home on Coyote Mountain yesterday morning. Howling video will be posted later (Photo: Sicco Rood).
Coyote on rock surrounded by creosote and some dry grass howling up into the overcast sky.
January 4, 2026 at 6:09 PM
Reposted by Jen Cross
whitepaaws.bsky.social
First snake of the year was my lifer Degenhardt's Scorpion-eating Snake (Stenorrhina degenhardtii) found yesterday during my first hike of the year near Cali, Colombia! This is a decently rare species since they spend a lot of time underground, so I'm lucky to have crossed paths with one. #herps 🐍
A picture of a Degenhardt's Scorpion-eating Snake coiled over the forest floor which included mud, moss and leaf litter.
January 4, 2026 at 2:41 PM
Reposted by Jen Cross
hawaiianimages.bsky.social
Whoops, Kilauea is erupting again, can see it from here at the Haleakala summit!
Fountaining lava and steam reflect off clouds with the lights of buildings in lower right
December 24, 2025 at 7:10 AM
jencross.bsky.social
Red-shouldered Hawk a'floofin from the Christmas Bird Count about two weeks ago. 🪶

Mercer County, NJ
A hawk with white and burnt orange striped feathers on the chest, a brown head, and dark bill. It is perched on a thick branch and has its feathers fluffed in the cold.
January 2, 2026 at 9:55 PM
jencross.bsky.social
Today's #BirdOfTheDay theme is birds #GoodLight so here is an Equatorial Antpitta in lovely soft light. These birds are found in the central Andes Mountains of Colombia throughout Ecuador into northern Peru.

Zuroloma Birding, Parroquia Nono, Ecuador
A warm rufous colored bird with long legs standing on a mossy branch. There are grays and greens in the background.
January 2, 2026 at 9:33 PM
Reposted by Jen Cross
crawlieswithcri.bsky.social
How cool and rare is it to catch truly #GoodLight in a bird pic?

Every time I do - I name the photo with "good light" or "great light" in it.

Did make it easy to quickly find a pic for #BirdOfTheDay #birds #becurious 🪶

Named this "Steller's great light" in my folder. No lies detected.
Close up photo of a steller's jay facing the camera and leaning toward it a bit, their head is facing just a hair to left of camera and a beam of sunlight lights up their right eye.
January 2, 2026 at 2:38 PM
jencross.bsky.social
🎶 .. but not a real green dress, that’s cruel.. 🎶
January 2, 2026 at 10:11 AM
jencross.bsky.social
Insects and Other Arthropods of Tropical America.

It was a huge help for me in learning insect orders. My copy is full of highlights and post-it flags.
anamariecox.bsky.social Ana Marie Cox @anamariecox.bsky.social · 4d
Ok, everyone, what book is sacred enough to you to get sworn in on?
sifill.bsky.social Sherrilyn Ifill @sifill.bsky.social · 4d
Strange takes on Mayor Zamdani swearing his oath on the Qu’ran. It has nothing to do with church & state. The point of the oath is for the person swearing in to do so upon some text that is sacred TO THEM. Some Presidents swore in w/o any book. John Quincy Adams was sworn on a law book. His choice.
January 2, 2026 at 4:11 AM
Reposted by Jen Cross
stim3on.bsky.social
Last night I set up my telescope so we could all watch the planets while waiting for the new year to arrive.

After the fireworks had subsided, I attached my camera and captured my first astrophoto of the year featuring Jupiter and its moon Europa. #astrophotography

Happy New Year everyone!
The planet Jupiter with its many bands of clouds spanning around it. The Great Red Spot is visible on the right side of the planet, about to rotate out of view. To the left of the planet is a bright dot, which is the moon Europa.
January 1, 2026 at 8:35 PM
jencross.bsky.social
Happy New Year everyone! Find yourself someone who looks at you like this male Northern Flicker looks at the female in the foreground. 🪶
Two golden-brown woodpeckers sitting on a thick branch. The male is on the left and in focus. He is looking at female on the right who is raising her beak to greet him.
January 1, 2026 at 9:40 PM
Reposted by Jen Cross
whysharksmatter.bsky.social
If anyone still needs to get a gift for your family, we are still scheduling fundraiser charters for 2026. Up to 15 total guests join us for a day of shark research, and you get to help us catch, tag, measure, and sample sharks.

DM me if you’re interested.
December 24, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Reposted by Jen Cross
lucidillusions.in
Day 24 of #ArtAdventCalendar, and one of my favourites from this year. (Also because we are almost beginning with #InverteFest)

#WeevilWednesday #Nature #SciArt #TradArt #ColorPencil

p.s. check reply for the link to original photo this was referenced from.
Drawing of a small weevil with large black eyes, a black snout, red thorax, and brown and tan elytra. Drawn with color pencils.
December 24, 2025 at 5:08 PM
jencross.bsky.social
Bird species #89 for the yard patch this morning, Red-Shouldered Hawk. Plus a bonus fox out there sniffing around for snacks. 🪶
A hawk with light orange on the chest and brown and white feathers on the wings and back. It is perched on a branch with leaf covered ground in the background. A red fox walking alongside a stream.
December 20, 2025 at 2:56 PM
jencross.bsky.social
Was watching the birds today when they all alarmed and took off with a Cooper's Hawk in hot pursuit. Coop didn't catch anything and stuck around looking for stragglers before taking off.
Cooper's Hawk, PA 🪶
A hawk with a gray cap, yellowish-orange eyes, orange horizontal streaking on white on the chest, and a gray and dark brown striped tail. The hawk is perched on a snowy branch in a tree.
December 14, 2025 at 6:46 PM
jencross.bsky.social
Sharpie hanging out, trying to look casual, at the bird feeders today. 🪶

Sharp-shinned Hawk, PA
A hawk with brown patterned back and wings and a graying tail with darker stripes. It is perched on a railing and facing left. It has yellow eyes and a sharp raptor's beak.
December 11, 2025 at 11:37 PM
Reposted by Jen Cross
sarahmackattack.bsky.social
One of my neighbors has been putting up these fish facts posters. All kinds of different fish, marine, freshwater, deep, shallow, all kinds. This is a good one. “Stg this real fish” took me out. Good work, neighbor.
A poster on 8.5 x 11 inch paper saga Fishtown fish facts: red lipped catfish or of ocephalus Darwini. Then a pic of that freaky fish with 4 limbs it rests on the ground and then the words “stg this fish real red-lipped batfish walk ocean floor with they flippers RLBF have RBF, not they fault RLBF have a bioluminescent lure that glows to attract dinner RLBF lipgloss is popping, RLBF lipgloss is cool, all the fish keep jockin, they chase RLBF after school RLBF got scales like armor and shine bright like a diamond Red-lipped batfish will teach you how to dougie, I can promise u that. @yaboyni Take a moment And and realize the moment You took has already passed Thank you See you next time
December 7, 2025 at 3:39 PM
Reposted by Jen Cross
troydeclan.bsky.social
Today's #BirdOfTheDay theme is #BirdsOnTwigs. My contribution may be disqualified as the judges could rule this Bohemian Waxwing is under the twig. They are back again for the winter so I'll try to do better. Anchorage #Alaska 🪶
December 7, 2025 at 8:21 PM
Reposted by Jen Cross
saskajanet.bsky.social
Another year almost over and I still haven’t made any progress on my book project. Sigh. #birds
Fake book cover for “A field guide to Duck Butts of Western Canada” by Janet E. Hill, Ph.D. There is a picture of a duck with its butt sticking straight up as it forages on the bottom of a pond.
December 7, 2025 at 12:29 AM
Reposted by Jen Cross
drkatfish.bsky.social
🎶It’s beginning to look a lot like #Fishmas🎶

There’s no better fish to kick off this year’s #25DaysofFishmas than the aptly-named Christmas darter (Etheostoma hopkinsi)! We get our road trip started down in the southeastern US with this small species of fish who has big holiday spirit all year long
The #25DaysofFishmas calendar with the Christmas darter on Day 1
December 1, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Reposted by Jen Cross
secondnaturemb.bsky.social
The encounter that took what was already a great #BearSeason2025 right over the top. Arctic foxes are not the easiest to find around Churchill so getting to spend time with this cutie who is still changing into their winter coat was amazing. #mammals 🌿
A tiny Arctic fox looks up from where its standing in the ice and snow along the coast. Its fur isn't pure white yet because It hasn't finished the transition to winter fur. A tiny Arctic fox looks curiously from where its standing in the ice and snow along the coast. Its fur isn't pure white yet because It hasn't finished the transition to winter fur. A tiny Arctic fox sniffs the the ice and snow along the coast, looking for food. Its fur isn't pure white yet because It hasn't finished the transition to winter fur.
December 1, 2025 at 6:39 PM
Reposted by Jen Cross
alexwild.bsky.social
Very pleased to have had a small part in this new paper showing that the greater chestnut weevil is not, as feared, extinct.
cellpress.bsky.social Cell Press @cellpress.bsky.social · Nov 27
"Rediscovery of the greater chestnut #weevil highlights the power of digital platforms in biodiversity research and conservation" spkl.io/63326Ad07u

@Michael A. Charles & colleagues
@currentbiology.bsky.social
Charles et al. rediscover the presumed - extinct greater chestnut weevil (Curculio caryatrypes) in the eastern US via iNaturalist, and genomic data and field surveys confirm identity and active reproduction, revealing persistence despite American chestnut collapse and underscoring the power of digital platforms for biodiversity research and conservation
December 1, 2025 at 6:40 PM
Reposted by Jen Cross
astrokatie.com
It’s widely known (and, I think, pretty uncontroversial) that learning requires effort — specifically, if you don’t have to work at getting the knowledge, it won’t stick.

Even if an LLM could be trusted to give you correct information 100% of the time, it would be an inferior method of learning it.
us.theconversation.com The Conversation U.S. @us.theconversation.com · Nov 21
Relying on ChatGPT to teach you about a topic leaves you with shallower knowledge than Googling and reading about it, according to new research that compared what more than 10,000 people knew after using one method or the other.

Shared by @gizmodo.com: buff.ly/yAAHtHq
November 21, 2025 at 12:49 PM
Reposted by Jen Cross
glengrambo.bsky.social
Hi there!
This giraffe took time out from munching on leaves to check us out for a few seconds. At over 5 meters tall, they eat the leaves that no body else can reach!
Taken in Kruger Park, South Africa
#wildlife
A giraffe peaks at us while surrounded by green leaves. Only its neck and head are showing above the trees.
November 21, 2025 at 1:19 AM
Reposted by Jen Cross
crawlieswithcri.bsky.social
Today may be the day for me to play the lotto!

In 4.5 years I've *seen* two Pacific Wrens in the yard (maybe heard a few more)

Today TWO Pacific Wrens just runnin' all around the place - like right out in the open!

And posing for photos...

Wren 1

#birds #becurious
Photo of a pacific wren standing on a branch that is on the ground, behind the wren are fall big leaf maple leaves. the wren is in profile facing left.
November 20, 2025 at 10:05 PM