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msamsonite.bsky.social
msamsonite.bsky.social
@msamsonite.bsky.social
62 followers 23 following 230 posts
Bird watcher, amateur photographer, and much, much more.

I only post photos taken by me.

Cameras: Nikon D90 (now dead), Nikon D3200, Nikon D3100. Occasionally Samsung Galaxy A52s.
Posts Replies Media Videos
msamsonite.bsky.social
Bumblebee and fly sharing a field scabious flower.

#insects #invertebrates #flowers #nature #naturalist 📷
A closeup of a lilac colored flower, made up of many small tube like flowers, with a bumblebee (bottom left) and a green fly (top right) feeding off the nectar together.
August 4, 2025 at 5:14 AM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Dragonfly. Not sure what kind, but it's got a nice orange yellow color.

#dragonflies #insects #invertebrates #nature #naturalist 📷
An orange-yellow dragonfly sitting on the seeds at the end of a dry grass stalk.
August 3, 2025 at 4:57 AM
msamsonite.bsky.social
A blue-tailed damselfly or common bluetail (Ischnura elegans) sitting on a reed.

#insects #invertebrates #dragonflies #nature #naturalist 📷
Closeup of a black and light blue damselfly with folded wings sitting on a dry yellow reed.
July 28, 2025 at 5:32 AM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Calm waters.

#birds #ornithology #nature #naturalist 📷
A female mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) swimming in calm river water, with her beak pointing toward the surface of the water, resulting in a nice mirror image.
July 15, 2025 at 11:16 AM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Honey bee (Apis mellifera) feeding on a woolly burdock (Arctium tomentosum).

#bee #insect #invertebrate #nature #naturalist 📷
Closeup of a honey bee, in profile, sitting on a woolly burdock flower.
July 15, 2025 at 10:49 AM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Popular flower.

#hoverflies #insects #invertebrates #flower #nature #naturalist 📷
A hoary plantain (Plantago media) flower with a group of red and black striped hoverflies (Syrphus ribesii) on it.
July 13, 2025 at 5:43 AM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Butterflies!

#butterflies #invertebrates #insects #nature #naturalist 📷
A lesser marbled fritillary (Brenthis ino), an orange butterfly with dark markings, sitting head down on a flower. A pearly heath (Coenonympha arcania), an orange butterfly with round eye spots on the wings, sitting upside-down on a cluster of white flowers.
June 30, 2025 at 4:12 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Coots!

A mother coot and chicks. The chick in the reeds wanted to be fed, the others were eating greens they found in the water. I think the chicks are much cuter now that they are a bit older.

#birds #ornithology #nature #naturalist 📷
A coot (black with a white beak and red eyes) in amongst reeds, with a needy chick (grey and fluffy) behind her. A grey, fluffy coot chick with yellow beak and white chest and face, swimming and gulping down the seaweed it just pulled up from below the surface.
June 29, 2025 at 3:46 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Mama mallard out dining with her young.

#birds #ornithology #nature #naturalist 📷
Mamma mallard among the grasses in the water by the lake shore, eyeing the photographer with suspicion. One of the ducklings among the grasses in the water by the lake shore, looking for food. You can see that it is coming into its adult plumage, especially on the wings. A group of ducklings among the grasses in the water by the lake shore, looking for food. Two of the ducklings among the grasses in the water by the lake shore, looking for food.
June 29, 2025 at 12:07 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Duck on a log.

#birds #ornithology #nature #naturalist 📷
A female mallard in profile, standing on a moss covered log by a river, with water, reeds and water lily pads in the background.
June 25, 2025 at 4:18 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
A Four-spotted chaser (Libellula quadrimaculata) sitting on a wire fence and a large red damselfly (Pyrrhosoma nymphula) sitting on a leaf.

#dragonflies #invertebrates #nature #naturalist #insects 📷
A brown and black dragonfly sitting on a twisted wire, with an out of focus green background. A mostly red, and a little black, damselfly sitting on a green leaf.
June 21, 2025 at 4:05 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Black slug. It was moving too fast for me to be able to get a good shot of it... 😂

#slugs #arion #invertebrates #nature #naturalist 📷
A blurry photo of a black arion slug.
June 21, 2025 at 3:58 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Pilosella aurantiaca (a.k.a. fox-and-cubs, orange hawkweed, devil's paintbrush, grim-the-collier according to Wikipedia).

#flowers #botany #nature #naturalist 📷
A flower with a yellow center going to an orange outside, with many petals in a sunburst pattern. A tight bunch of three flowers with a yellow center going to an orange outside, with many petals in a sunburst pattern, all sharing the same green stalk.
June 2, 2025 at 3:44 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Canada geese (Branta canadensis) and goslings.

#birds #ornithology #cute #nature #naturalist 📷
Two adult canada geese with six fluffy yellow goslings between them, swimming on a river. Fluffy yellow canada goose goslings swimming in a group. Parent canada goose being vigilant while the youngsters graze. A fluffy grey canada goose gosling laying on grass.
May 31, 2025 at 1:51 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
A bumblebee on the forest floor.

I believe it could be a large earth bumblebee (Bombus terrestris), but I'm no entomologist, and there are many species of bumblebee that look more or less the same to my untrained eye.

#bumblebee #invertebrate #insect #nature #naturalist 📷
A rotund flying insect with wide black and yellow stripes and a white bottom walking along on some moss and dry pine needles on the forest floor.
May 28, 2025 at 3:10 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Snails and a slug.

Just happened upon these on a walk. Only had my phone to take pictures with, but they say the best camera is the one you have with you. :)

#invertebrates #snails #slugs #nature #naturalist 📷
Closeup of a small snail with an amber and brown shell going from left to right across asphalt. Closeup of a small snail with an amber and brown shell among blades of green grass. A brown and amber slug among blades of green and brown grass, apparently nibbling on a dandelion flower bud.
May 20, 2025 at 2:31 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Two species, one picture.
Canada goose and mandarin duck in one photo.
May 12, 2025 at 1:39 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Two species, one picture.

#birds #ornithology #nature #naturalist 📷
Mandarin duck and goldeneye in the same picture. Goldeneye and mallard in the same picture. Moorhen photobombing a mandarin duck. Mallard and nuthatch in the same photo.
May 12, 2025 at 1:38 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula) with chicks!

#birds #ornithology #cute #nature #naturalist 📷
A female Goldeneye (mottled grey with brown head and black beak and yellow eyes) with two of her chicks (spotted black and white little fluffballs) swimming in a pond. Closeup of a Goldeneye chick (or duckling?), a spotted black and white little fluffball, swimming in a pond.
May 11, 2025 at 8:09 AM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Rare bird at a local pond this morning.

A male Mandarin duck (Aix galericulata) was the birding celebrity today.

#birds #ornithology #ducks #nature #naturalist 📷
A colorful and extravagant looking duck with green, red, white, brown and black on its head, a white tipped red narrow duck bill, and multicolored body, orange legs with white claws, sitting on a rock in a pond. A colorful and extravagant looking duck with green, red, white, brown and black on its head, a white tipped red narrow duck bill, and multicolored body, orange legs with white claws, sitting on a rock in a pond. A colorful and extravagant looking duck with green, red, white, brown and black on its head, a white tipped red narrow duck bill, and multicolored body, orange legs with white claws, sitting on a rock in a pond.
May 11, 2025 at 8:02 AM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Various waders.

#birds #ornithology #nature #naturalist 📷
Northern Lapwing (Vanellus vanellus) looking for breakfast in a grassy field. A couple of Wood Sandpipers (Tringa glareola) on the mudflats of a lake, looking for food. A Common redshank (Tringa totanus) looking for food in the shallows. A Ruff (Calidris pugnax) walking along the edge of the water.
May 3, 2025 at 8:13 AM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Cuteness overload!

The greylag geese (Anser anser) have goslings galore!

#goslings #cuteness #birds #ornithology #nature #naturalist 📷
A mother goose and a little fluffy yellow gosling swimming among reeds. Six little yellow fluffy goslings in a line, bobbing on the water among the reeds. A mother goose and two fluffy little yellow goslings swimming in line. An adult goose keeping watch while a bunch of little fluffy goslings graze on the shore.
May 1, 2025 at 11:21 AM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Breakfast!

A common starling (Sturnus vulgaris) found a juicy morsel for breakfast.

#birds #ornithology #nature #naturalist 📷
An iridescent black bird with yellowish beige highlight on the wing feathers and speckles, standing on short grass with a freshly caught grub in its beak. The bird is seen in profile, looking to the right.
April 28, 2025 at 3:59 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
A black-tailed godwit (Limosa limosa) sitting on a fence post.

First time I saw / was able to photograph one this close. I think it may have been watching me, since there was another one feeding nearby.

#birds #ornithology #nature #naturalist 📷
A wading bird with long legs and a long, narrow, pointy beak sitting on top of a fence post. The bird's plumage is speckled beige and brown, with a ruddy neck and upper chest. The bird is seen from the side, looking to the right. A wading bird with long legs and a long, narrow, pointy beak sitting on top of a fence post. The bird's plumage is speckled beige and brown, with a ruddy neck and upper chest. The bird is seen from the side, looking to the left.
April 28, 2025 at 3:46 PM
msamsonite.bsky.social
Today's theme: Two species in one frame.

#birds #ornithology #nature #naturalist 📷
A common teal (Anas crecca) and a wood sandpiper (Tringa glareola) in the same photo. A ruff (Calidris pugnax) and a black-headed gull (Chroicocephalus ridibundus) sitting on a clod of dirt and grass out in the water by the shore. A common teal (Anas crecca) and a common redshank (Tringa totanus) in the same photo.
April 26, 2025 at 1:07 PM