Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: BlueRibbonPhoto

I think I liked the bokeh more than the Red Panda (at the Calgary Zoo) in this shot : ). Well, maybe not, but I always cheer when I do manage to get a blurred background, LOL. "The Red Panda, also called the Firefox or Lesser Panda (Latin name: Ailurus fulgens, "shining cat"), is a mostly herbivorous mammal, specialized as a bamboo feeder. It is slightly larger than a domestic cat (40 - 60 cm long, 3 - 6 kg weight). The Red Panda is endemic to the Himalayas in Bhutan, southern China, Pakistan, India, Laos, Nepal, and Burma. There is an estimated population of fewer than 2,500 mature individuals. Their population continues to decline due to habitat fragmentation. Their conservation status is Vulnerable" From Wikipedia.

The Sea Holly (biological binomial term: Eryngium maritimum) is a species of Eryngium in the plant family Apiaceae and native to most European coastlines. In some ways it resembles a flowering thistle, in that its flower is burr-shaped, though these are metallic blue, rather than mauve. The flowers above are not blue, but I have seen the blue ones elsewhere. I took this photo in a friend's garden this morning, but we have seen it growing wild, too. Sea Holly was nominated the 2002 County flower for the city of Liverpool, England.