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neovonretorch.bsky.social
Neo Once Removed
@neovonretorch.bsky.social
26 followers 79 following 26 posts
Photographer of skies that are colors other than blue. Big fan of big mastiffs. Try to dabble in tech, software, games, lots of board games. So many board games.
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neovonretorch.bsky.social
Yesterday I had the distinct pleasure of my second visit to Middle Creek Wildlife Management. Observed about two dozen distinct bird species. Despite a dismal forecast, the rain turned from light drizzle to nothing at all before long, and we had hours of peaceful observation.

#yellowwarbler #birds
Amid damp branches, with a gray sky barely visible behind the lush green canopy, a vivid bright yellow bird, the warbler, opens its beak to the sky and unleashes its song.
June 16, 2025 at 12:04 AM
neovonretorch.bsky.social
Spotted sandpiper! My first ever photo of one and probably the first time I've spotted one!

#birding #birds #spottedsandpiper #sandpiper 🪶
The sandpiper is hunting for food in shallow water, just above a manmade structure where the lake overflow drains. The lighting is a bit dark as it is near dusk, but the water reflects green. Large lily pads are in the background.
May 27, 2025 at 1:21 AM
neovonretorch.bsky.social
An American bullfrog at Wildwood Park in Harrisburg.

#bullfrog #frog #frogs #americanbullfrog
This particularly large bullfrog is just a bit submerged, facing due left in the frame. The surface of the water is dark as it reflects tree foliage, but it's very broken up by plant life, tree dirt, algae and so on. The frogs chin is quite yellow, and the bulbous eyes are speckled yellow with a black pupil. The bullfrog has a large ear drum.
May 21, 2025 at 2:15 AM
neovonretorch.bsky.social
A ratsnake, probably eastern. Pretty sure it just consumed a baby robin... On our river rocks bed below the hedges. We followed it around the corner, down the hill, and across the grass into the woods.

#ratsnake #snake #snakes #reptiles
A ratsnake that is mostly black with bits of gray scales, and a light color under the face and chin is curled atop some river rocks, near a hedge trunk, with the inside corner of two brick walls in the background. There's also some dead oak leaves and some green coming from the bush trunk. A ratsnake that is mostly black with bits of gray scales, and a light color under the face. Here it's against a reddish brick wall, on some river rocks. You just see the head and a bit of the neck. The tips of the forked tongue are just barely protruding. A ratsnake that is mostly black with bits of gray scales, and a light color under the face. Here it's slithering, with a clear bend in the neck, the sky reflected in the eyes, fresh brown mulch beneath it, and some almond white siding behind the mulch.
May 19, 2025 at 1:10 AM
neovonretorch.bsky.social
Tree swallow! Stood still, looked the camera. In bright sun. How does this even happen?!

#treeswallow #birds 🪶 #birding
Tree swallow in bright sun. Perched adopt a narrow vertical tree branch. The background is fully blurred but a vibrant spring green. The bird is making direct eye contact with the camera, and color in the eyes seems visible, perhaps a light green surrounding the large black puil. The feathers are a shimmering turquoise on the head and wings, with a white neckline and the feathers ending in gray.
May 19, 2025 at 1:08 AM
neovonretorch.bsky.social
Talk to the foot.

#birds #birding #chippingsparrow #sparrow
A chipping sparrow, white and gray, but with a touch of black on the face, and the top of the head fully brown, stands on a small branch using just one foot, while the other foot is off to the side, as if the bird is saying "Talk to the hand." The leaves behind are blurred by bokeh, but give the warm green glow of spring.
May 12, 2025 at 1:18 AM
neovonretorch.bsky.social
Quite possibly my first ever warbler, right here at home. Yellow-rumped aka butter butt 🤣

#birds #birding #warbler 🪶
Yellow-rumped warbler framed by surrounding branches, a pale blue sky in the background.
May 7, 2025 at 1:11 AM
neovonretorch.bsky.social
Yesterday evening, after rain, I had a few good opportunities to catch the tree swallow at rest! While the deep, iridescent blue is striking, even their smooth feathers can be ruffled.

#treeswallows
#birding
#swallows
#birds 🪶
April 26, 2025 at 12:33 PM
neovonretorch.bsky.social
After the rainstorm, the tree swallows had a lot to discuss.

#treeswallows
#birding
#swallows
#birds
A half dozen tree swallows, most resting after a rain storm, but one or two have something to say. The leaves on the tree branch upon which they rest are quite green. Each tree swallow has a white belly and striking blue feathers on their back, which fades into a darker tail. One swallow is flapping their wings just in front of another that appears to be screaming.
April 26, 2025 at 2:50 AM
neovonretorch.bsky.social
*Catch of the Day*

Great egret grasping a freshly caught fish at dusk.
Great egret with green around the eyes holding a small silver looking fish in its beak. The water is broken up by reeds, and very strongly reflects the orange colors of a setting sun.
April 14, 2025 at 12:51 PM
neovonretorch.bsky.social
Got caught up in trying out some new equipment and a recent addition to my software and almost missed how amusing this photo of a Northern rough-winged swallow is.

#northernroughwingedswallow #swallows #birding #opticalillusion
A Northern rough-winged swallow - small brown bird with a light-colored underbelly, perched atop some reeds in such a way that it may appear at first glance that the bird has stork-like long legs. The water below is mildly rough, alternating between reflecting blue sky and brown from the lake shoreline.
April 11, 2025 at 2:28 PM
neovonretorch.bsky.social
Does anyone still use Flickr? I never got into it. Now I'm trying to find a good photo community to join and my stuff is spread across PixelFed / Mastodon / BSky / FB / Instagram. Maybe social media is a bit TOO decentralized ;)
April 10, 2025 at 3:11 PM
neovonretorch.bsky.social
So a brief review of my used #Polestar 2!

As an EV, it's pretty neat though it's very heavy (as EVs can be) and not terribly efficient. The range is pretty bad. Remember you want to keep your car in the 20-80% range, so you get 60%.
March 17, 2025 at 1:29 AM
neovonretorch.bsky.social
This is from late April / early May before we scooped our baby and brought her home.

#EnglishMastiff #puppylove
Tiny 5 week old English mastiff puppy (fawn color) in the grass, she's on her side but with her head up looking at the camera with blue eyes, and showing the tiniest blep of a tongue. Tiny 5 week old English mastiff puppy (fawn color) in the grass. She's on her side trying to mouth the grass.
November 12, 2024 at 9:43 PM