Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: cactus

Managed to get a few more photos from Day 3 of our recent trip posted on Flickr tonight. These are just extra images that I wanted to add to my Trinidad & Tobago albums. Either later tonight (tomorrow morning) or when I get up tomorrow, I will post my photo for tomorrow - another beautiful bird from the island of Trinidad. I only have another 17 or so photos from Little Tobago island and then I can sort out a few taken the same day (Day 3), when we stopped a few times on our way from the Blue Waters Inn to the airport. It was only a very short flight from Tobago to Trinidad - we were barely up in the air before it was time to start the descent to the Port of Spain airport on Trinidad. I was not expecting to see cacti growing in this area, but the forest here is dry forest. This was taken at our highest point, while we were looking over the ocean and watching Frigate Birds, Red-billed Tropicbirds, a very distant Red-footed Booby, and Laughing Gulls. "Little Tobago (or Bird of Paradise Island) is a small island off the northeastern coast of Tobago, and part of the republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The island is about 1 square kilometre in area and is located at 11° 18' N and 60° 31' W, approximately 2.4 kilometres (1.5 miles) from Speyside. The highest point on the island is approximately 37 metres (121 ft) above sea level. The island supports dry forest. It is an important breeding site for seabirds such as red-billed tropicbird, Audubon's shearwater, brown booby, brown noddy, sooty and bridled terns. A few pairs of white-tailed tropicbirds are also nesting here. Little Tobago is also a good site from which to see birds which breed on neighbouring small islands, including red-footed booby and magnificent frigatebird. The latter species is frequently seen harassing the tropicbirds, boobies and terns. The sea between Tobago and Little Tobago is shallow, and glass-bottomed boats enable the attractive corals and brightly coloured tropical fish to be seen on the crossing. It is a popular area for snorkeling and diving, especially on Angel Reef in front of Goat Island. In 1909 Sir William Ingram introduced the greater bird of paradise (Paradisaea apoda) to the island in an attempt to save the species from overhunting for the plume trade in its native New Guinea. About 45 juvenile birds were introduced to the island. After Ingram's death in 1924 his heirs deeded the island to the Government of Trinidad and Tobago as a wildlife sanctuary. The birds survived on the island until at least 1958 when they were filmed by a National Geographic crew. There are no reliable records after 1963 when Hurricane Flora hit the island and the population is presumed to be extinct." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Tobago

This is a very tiny cactus in the Arid Room at the Calgary Zoo. It is labelled there as Little Candles, but other websites call it Texas Nipple cactus.

Finally, I bought myself one of these colourful, grafted cacti (just $3 something)! They always catch my eye when I walk pass some, and the word "photos" came into my mind, LOL. I wonder what you all thought it was in the thumbnail, LOL. An orange animal?? Was out walking for about four and half hours this morning from Bow Valley Ranch in Fish Creek Park, all the way south along the Bow River, way, way past the Highway 22X bridge. Quite a long walk, and my poor joints and muscles are complaining like crazy, after not being worked much at all for the past month! We were thrilled to bits to see a Lesser Black-backed Gull (Larus fuscus) on one of the wetland ponds south of the Highway 22X bridge. I'd never even heard of this bird before! It was on the partially frozen pond with hundreds of "regular" Gulls. The Lesser Black-backed Gull is an "accidental" bird. "This Eurasian species regularly occurs as a non-breeder on the East Coast. There are several reports of this bird from Alberta, including a photo record." From Birds of Alberta by Fisher and Acorn. I would have posted a photo, but the bird was so far away, needing a scope to see it properly. Thanks, Tony, for spotting this great find and for lugging your heavy scope all the way there and back!

This was an enormous, gorgeous Cactus flower in the Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo.

We are still in our deep-freeze, so thought I'd post this photo of a bright orange Straw Flower grafted on to this spikey cactus. Made me think of a little candle flame. Tomorrow is supposed to bring us out of our present bitterly cold temperatures, which sure will feel good, soaring to a high of around -6C tomorrow afternoon. Then we have about five days of highs between -4C and +4 C! It will feel almost tropical : )

This was a tiny growth (maybe half an inch across) that had burst out of the side of a grafted cactus. My Raynox DCR-250 macro lens let me see the textured surface and sharp spines - and I love the vibrant colour, so much needed on this overcast day (-18C, windchill -26C).

Wasn't sure whether to post this photo - but fortunately, my images display sharper on Flickr than when I view them in My Pictures! So, I think I can get away with it, LOL! Thanks to Mike (graftedno1) for the ID - Parodia laui, found in Bolivia.

An attractive succulent photographed at the Calgary Zoo. Not sure, but I think that all the "hairs" help to take up as much moisture from dew as possible.

I love these teeny, pink flowers that bloom so beautifully on this rather wicked-looking cactus! Just one of the many species of cactus that used to grow in the old Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo. Can't wait to see what species they will include in the new building in a year's time and how they will be displayed.

I was thrilled to see this fairly large, beautiful flower blooming on a cactus at the Calgary Zoo this week. This was a new find for me, which I always enjoy.

This beautiful red flower comes from a huge cactus in the Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo.

I love the flowers of this large Pricklypear cactus in the Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo. Almost a greeny yellow.

I saw this Leafy Rose Cactus in the Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo. The leaves were dying and there were no flowers on it. The main things visible were these very long spines! "These leafy climbing vines, shrubs and small, wide-spreading trees do not look like Cacti. They bear rose-like blossoms, and some even thrive in humid rainforests. But their thick sharp spines and blossoms grow from specialized knobs called areoles -- a positive Cactus identification. Some drop their leaves; others stay evergreen. Their thorny, woody branches make an effective barrier hedge. The sometimes fragrant flowers range from white to pale yellow, pink or red. Small berries form in summer and autumn." From www.sunnygardens.com/garden .

There were several buds on this gigantic cactus in the Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo. Any creature who might be tempted by the delicate buds would come across these long, sharp thorns : )

"Just" cacti seen in the Conservatory at the Calgry Zoo, but there was something I liked about the mixture of white and green.

This is quite a spectacular cactus flower, growing in the Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo. Reminds me of the Christmas Cactus, though this flower at the Zoo is quite large. Looks rather Christmasy. Not sure if this is an Epiphyllum.

These are just a few of the many cacti in the Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo. I usually take photos of the tiny Burrowing Owls in this particular "room", but as they are aggressive at the moment because they are nesting, I decided to turn my attention to the cacti instead.

Seen in an amazing homestead garden south of Calgary, near Nanton.