Tag Archives: Photography

Bible Birds – The Bat?

by

0

 

Giant Fruit Bat at Cincinnati Zoo 9-5-13 by Dan

Giant Fruit Bat at Cincinnati Zoo by Dan

And the stork, the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat. All fowls that creep, going upon all four, shall be an abomination unto you. Yet these may ye eat of every flying creeping thing that goeth upon all four, which have legs above their feet, to leap withal upon the earth; Even these of them ye may eat; the locust after his kind, and the bald locust after his kind, and the beetle after his kind, and the grasshopper after his kind. But all other flying creeping things, which have four feet, shall be an abomination unto you.
(Leviticus 11:19-23 KJV)

While we were at the Cincinnati Zoo, we were able to see and photograph several Bat species. They were really cool and I wanted to share them with you.

Giant Fruit Bat at Cincinnati Zoo 9-5-13 by Lee

Giant Fruit Bat at Cincinnati Zoo by Lee

Then I remembered that I had written about them in Birds of the Bible – The Bat?, in 2010. That article was about the controversy over whether a Bat is a Bird. This time, I am mainly sharing the photos of the Bats that are there at the Zoo and comments about them. Just one personal observation about the above verses. The use of “fowl” in the King James Version and some of the others seems to refer to any creature that had wings and flies. I quoted the whole context because; 1) The verse and chapter separations were inserted later, 2) Birds, bats, and insects all seem to be referred to with the same collective term, “fowl.” I do not have a problem with the bat. It is not a bird.

The only other verses using “bat” or “bats” are:

And the stork, and the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat. (Deuteronomy 14:18 KJV)

In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats; (Isaiah 2:20 KJV)

The bats we saw at the Cincinnati Zoo were the Giant Fruit Bats and the Vampire Bats. They are amazing creatures of design and creation from their Creator, the Lord.

*

Giant Fruit Bat at Cincinnati Zoo 9-5-13 by Lee

Giant Fruit Bat’s Foot amazed me

Giant Fruit Bat (Pteropus giganteus) or Indian Flying Fox is found in Bangladesh, China, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Also known as the greater Indian fruit bat, it lives in mainly forests. It is a very large bat with a wingspan between 3 ft 10 in and 4 ft 10 in (1.2 and 1.5 m). It is nocturnal and feeds mainly on ripe fruits, such as mangoes and bananas, and nectar. This bat is gregarious and lives in colonies which can number a few hundred. Their offspring have no specific name besides ‘young’. They have one to two young.

The Indian flying fox lives in tropical forests and swamps, where a large body of water is nearby.

The way they were hanging up there amazed me. I zoomed in and took a photo of its foot. Also, they almost looked like a large cocoon hanging up there with the wings wrapper around them. The first photo, Dan caught one of them stretching.

*

*

Common Vampire Bat (Desmodus rotundus) Cincinnati Zoo 9-5-13 by Lee

Common Vampire Bat Cincinnati Zoo by Lee (Shot through glass into a dark exhibit)

(Common) Vampire Bat (Desmodus rotundus) – The common vampire bat mainly feeds on the blood of livestock, approaching its prey at night while they are sleeping. It uses its razor-sharp teeth to cut open the skin of its hosts and laps up their blood with its long tongue. They are native to the New World, ranging from Mexico to Brazil, Chile, and Argentina.

The common vampire bat is short-haired, with silver-gray fur on its undersides, sharply separated from the darker fur on its back. It has small, somewhat rounded ears, a deeply grooved lower lip, and a flat, leaf-shaped nose. A well-developed, clawed thumb on each wing is used to climb onto prey and to assist the animal in take-off. The bat averages about 3.5 in (9 cm) long with a wingspan of 7 in (18 cm). It commonly weighs about 2 oz (57 grams), but its weight can double after a single feeding. The braincase is relatively large, but the snout is reduced to accommodate large incisors and canines. It has the fewest teeth among bats.

Common Vampire Bat - Cincinnati Zoo by Lee

Common Vampire Bat – Cincinnati Zoo by Lee

Common vampire bats have good eyesight. They are able to distinguish different optical patterns and may use vision for long-range orientation. These bats also have well-developed senses of smell and hearing: the cochlea (ear) is highly sensitive to low-frequency sounds, and the nasal passages are relatively large. They emit echolocation signals orally, and thus fly with their mouths open for navigation.

Common Vampire Bat - Cincinnati Zoo by Lee

Common Vampire Bat – Cincinnati Zoo by Lee

*

(Wikipedia with editing)

*

*

Links:

Cincinnati Zoo

Giant Fruit Bats – Cincinnati Zoo

Indian Flying Fox – Wikipedia

Vampire Bats – Cincinnati Zoo

Common Vampire Bat – Wikipedia

Bible Birds

Birds of the Bible – The Bat?

Birds of the Bible

*

Deuteronomy 14:11-18 With Pictures

by

0

I trust you enjoy Deuteronomy 14:11-18 with pictures.

*

I trust you like my effort to use the Slideshow this way.

KJV

Most photos were provided by permission of the photographers in the sidebar.

Deuteronomy 14:11-18 KJV
(11) Of all clean birds ye shall eat.
(12) But these are they of which ye shall not eat: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray,
(13) And the glede, and the kite, and the vulture after his kind,
(14) And every raven after his kind,
(15) And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckow, and the hawk after his kind,
(16) The little owl, and the great owl, and the swan,
(17) And the pelican, and the gier eagle, and the cormorant,
(18) And the stork, and the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat.

Original Here

Wordless Birds

*

An Apology, Plus Much Work At Hand

by

8

Bald Eagle Lowry Park Zoo 12-31-15 by Lee

An apology to those of our readers who have encountered a “404 Page Not Found” error. For some reason, there are many broken links on this Blog. I have been noticing them lately, especially links to photos. Yikes!! There are hundreds of them. There is no clue as to where they flew off to. Most of them are links to bird photos. The birds must have just flown the coop. :)  [Maybe Hurricane Irma blew them away.]

“And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.” (Genesis 2:19 KJV)

Actually, this is going to take much time working behind the scenes to replace the photos, once the broken “links” are discovered. There is a program online to scan your pages for missing links. As many of you know, we have tried to find a photo of all the living birds the Lord created. With over 10,600 birds, it has been a challenge finding these photos so that readers can click the links to see that particular bird.

Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) Flying by Aesthetic Photos

Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) Flying by Aesthetic Photos

That program scanned just the Accipitridae – Kites, Hawks and Eagles page and found 111 broken links. There are 256 birds in that Family. It will take hours just to fix THAT page. Pray that not every Family of birds are missing photos. Many other pages link to the same bird. The task is daunting, but, Lord Willing, the photo links can be repaired in a reasonable time period.

“Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.” (James 1:3-6 KJV)

*** If you encounter a “404 Page Not Found” or another type of problem, please either leave a comment on that page or post, or contact me at Lee@Leesbird.com to leave a note.***

Your help will be greatly appreciated.

P.S. As of last week, the Master of Christian Education [M.CEd.] degree I have been working on was finally finished!!! Yeah!! Not bad for a 74-year-old. :) The Lord is Gracious! The degree was taken online from the School of Biblical Apologetics – Institute for Creation Research. I highly recommend considering taking courses from I.C.R. More about this in another post. [I only mentioned finishing because I’ll have more time to work on these broken links.]

Stay Tuned!!

From The Archives – Birds of the Bible – Eagle’s Renewal

by

3

Birds of the Bible – Eagle’s Renewal

 BY 

Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. (Psalms 103:2-5 NKJV)

Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) by AestheticPhotos

The Eagle is an interesting bird and I have written about them before. In the King James Version of the Bible, an eagle is mentioned in 34 verses. So, there will be future articles about the eagle also.

The interest of this article is the renewing of the eagle. In Psalms 103:5 (quoted above), your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. What exactly does that mean? Also, in Isaiah 40:31, strength is renewed and “shall mount up with wings as eagles.”

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31 KJV)

Many articles can be found on the internet about an eagle going off and plucking its feathers and not being able to fly for about five months. The image has even been added that the beak and claws are knocked off and then grow back during that time, giving them another 10 or so more years to their life. I have been trying to find proof of that, and am not finding it. Most Eagle authorities state that that would not happen, because the bird would die during that time with no flight feathers or beak or claws.

Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)Grandfather Eagle by PastorBBC

If those facts are true, then what is meant by God’s Word about the eagle? I believe God’s Word is true, so there has to be an explanation of it. From the Southwestern Bald Eagle Management I found an interesting chart that shows the different stages of plumage (feathers) as an eagle ages.  They said, “In their five year development to adulthood, bald eagles go through one of the most varied plumage changes of any North American bird. During its first four weeks of life, an eaglet’s fluffy white down changes to a gray wooly down. At about five weeks, brown and black feathers begin to grow. It becomes fully feathered at 10 weeks of age. In its first year, the mostly dark-colored juvenile can often be mistaken as a golden eagle. However, the bald eagle progressively changes until it reaches adult plumage at five years. Notice in the pictures how its dark eye lightens throughout its first four years of life until it becomes yellow. Also, see how its beak changes form gray-black to a vibrant yellow.

ald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) by AestheticPhotos

It is believed that the darker, more mottled plumage of a young eagle serves as camouflage, while the white head and tail announce that it is of breeding age.”

That to me sounds a lot like, “So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” As the eagle goes through the different stages of its life, the new feathers are graciously provided by a Creator that sees to the needs of His creation by having designed those features to renew as it matures.

The Lord provides for renewal for His children as they mature. The following verses tell of a renewed right spirit, mind, spirit of your mind, and knowledge:

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. (Psalms 51:10 KJV)
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. (Romans 12:2 KJV)
And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; (Ephesians 4:23 KJV)
And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: (Colossians 3:10 KJV)

(Update 11/2/11) Here is another possible explaination about this topic. It might be a vulture instead of an eagle. See: http://www.thewonderofbirds.com/griffon-vulture/bible.htm)
*

*** From the Archives ***

This is the first of “From the Archives.” We have decided to look back over the years and bring back some of the most popular articles. This post has had 114 remarks so far and was originally posted on  BY . If you want to go to the original post, CLICK HERE. There you will be able to read those remarks. New remarks here are also appreciated.

[We have advanced in our layout of the blog over the year. The Birds of the Bible articles were the original reason for Lee’s Birdwatching Adventures being launched.

 

Wow! ~ 1.5 Million

by

6

Thank You with Blue Bird

Wow! Last night at about 9:14 PM our time (EST), the counter clicked over to 1,500,000 visitors. Thank you all for your many visits over the years. Whoever came in from the Cuba, Missouri area, is the one who turned it. I recently put the Live Traffic Feed in the left margin and just happened to notice the counter and the feed. It stayed at 4,999,999 for a while.

1-5 million photo

Every visit by all of you is appreciated. Some of you have been following this blog for years and for that, Many Thanks. Most of all, those of us who write desire to honor the Lord through sharing His Word and His Avian Creations. Thank you from all of us.

This month the blog turns eight years old, but the counter started when the blog was moved here to WordPress. That was seven and a half years ago.

(I should have taken this photo last night, but this is this morning’s.)

I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, (Philippians 1:3 KJV)

I thank my God, making mention of thee always in my prayers, (Philemon 1:4 KJV)

Birds of the Bible – Who Colored These Originally?

by

4

Blue Jay Photo Chopped in Rainbow Colors - From Pinterest by Richard SequinWho Colored These Originally?

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. (Genesis 1:1 KJV)

My Bible tells me in Genesis chapter 1 that God created everything, including all our avian wonders.

Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) at Bok Tower By Dan'sPix

Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) at Bok Tower By Dan’sPix

In fact, we are told specifically that on the fifth day of creation, God created the Birds:

Then God said, “Let the waters abound with an abundance of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the face of the firmament of the heavens.” So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters abounded, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” So the evening and the morning were the fifth day. (Genesis 1:20-23 NKJV)

When the birds were brought forth, judging from today, that they were beautifully arrayed. We can look around at the over 10,000 species today, in spite of being corrupted by the curse (Genesis 3), and see that they are magnificently arrayed in beautiful, fantastic colors and hues.

 

Nicobar Pigeon - False

Nicobar Pigeon – Falsely Colored

Nicobar Pigeon at Lower Park Zoo by Dan

Nicobar Pigeon at Lower Park Zoo by Dan

Then again in John 1:1-3 we see that the Word, the Lord Jesus Christ, is the one who made them.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. (John 1:1-3 KJV)

All of that was stated to establish who the birds were created by. Now for the point of this article.

I belong to Pinterest which is a visual discovery tool that you can use to find ideas for all your projects and interests. You can find all kinds of photos and of course, many bird photos.

Now, the irritation, for me, is that lately many photos of birds have been “photo-shopped” or someone has used other editing software programs to change their colors. No harm intended, but the colors they are adding to the birds, messes up the beauty of their Creator’s original design and color for them.

False - A Rare Red Owl - Snopes_com

False – A Rare Red Owl – Snopes_com

Some people, who are not familiar with what the birds actually look like, may think that is the way they look in the wild. One such case fooled people into believing that a rare Red Owl actually exist. When the asked “Snopes” they found out the truth.

Two more examples:

False - Curl-crested Aricari from Pinterest by Virainova

False – Curl-crested Aricari from Pinterest by Virainova

False - Flicker from Pinterest by Spykee

False – Flicker from Pinterest by Spykee

Now for the real birds in nature. Also, do you realize how easy they would be for birds of prey to catch these? They would stand out boldly in the crowd and would be the first captured. Only a Wise Creator, would provide for the safety of the birds by their proper coloration.

Curl-crested Aracari (Pteroglossus beauharnaesii) ©WikiC

Curl-crested Aracari (Pteroglossus beauharnaesii) ©WikiC

Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) red-shafted F-left M-right ©WikiC

Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) red-shafted F-left M-right ©WikiC

I know all the birds of the mountains, And the wild beasts of the field are Mine. (Psalms 50:11 NKJV)

Again, I am not condemning those who color their birds in photos, as long as they don’t try to “pass them off” as the “real” bird.

God’s Wisdom, Majesty, and Knowledge cannot be improved upon.

I am the LORD, and there is no other; There is no God besides Me. I will gird you, though you have not known Me, That they may know from the rising of the sun to its setting That there is none besides Me. I am the LORD, and there is no other; I form the light and create darkness, I make peace and create calamity; I, the LORD, do all these things.’ (Isaiah 45:5-7 NKJV)

*

Birds of the Bible

More False Colored Birds

Who Paints The Leaves?
*

Birds of the Bible – Foundation #3 Updated

by

4

Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) by Quy Tran

Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) by Quy Tran

We will continue on with the Birds of the Bible – Foundation series.

If you have not read the previous blogs:
Foundation #1 Updated
Foundation #2 Updated

In the last blog the “Fall” of Adam and Eve was mentioned and because of that, the “Curse” is now on them and all of God’s creation. Death comes on the scene, mankind now has sinned and now each person is born as a sinner. The ground is cursed and thorns and thistle now appear.

By Genesis Chapter 6, God has had it with the sins of man.

And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them. (Genesis 6:5-7 KJV)

The Ark by Elfred Lee

The Ark by Elfred Lee

All is not lost because, “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.” (Genesis 6:8 KJV) Because of the grace found by Noah, the LORD gives him instructions about how to build an ark including the size, materials to use, who and what will be on board, and why the ark will be needed. God makes a covenant with Noah and tells him to come in with his wife and his sons and his son’s wives.

And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female. Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive. (Genesis 6:19-20 KJV)

He was also to provide food for all of them. And Noah obeyed all that he was told. Noah spent over 100 years preparing the ark and trying to warn others of the coming judgment. There was plenty of room on the ark for more than the 8 people who boarded the ark. The others refused to repent.

Noah's Ark ©©Flickr elmada

Noah’s Ark ©©Flickr elmada

When we get to Chapter 7, the boarding of the ark takes place and the rain and flood begins. “And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth. For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth. And Noah did according unto all that the LORD commanded him.” (Genesis 7:1-5)

Noah did not have to round up the animals, they came to him. Because not every animal we see today came on board but the main kinds (for instance the “bird kinds” may have had a “warbler kind” but not have black and white warblers, yellow-rumped warblers, hooded warbler, etc.), which ever ones they were, there was plenty of room for them. I have an idea that because the LORD sent the animals, birds, and critters, that their DNA’s were of the highest quality. (That is my opinion)

Dove in Israel

Doves in Israel

If you read the rest of Genesis 7, you will see that the global flood came and covered everything and only those who were in the ark survived, plus some of those that live in the water.

And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man: All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died. And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark. (Genesis 7:21-23)

In Foundation #4 we will find out about what the birds go through as they come off the ark and after.

Gospel Presentation

*

Latest Visitors to Yard

by

6

A few days ago while I was filling up my feeders, I looked up and here came Mom and Pop Sandhill Crane with their two latest youngsters. (The 2015 family) Needless to say I stopped and watched them for a while and then remembered to go get my camera. Here are some of those images. I shared a little seed with them. Not suppose to feed cranes, but even if I put seed in that hanging tray for the other birds, they have been known to eat from it. ( I felt sorry for the little ones. :) )

It looks like the little Sandhills need to grow into their knees.

Leaving

Leaving

I always enjoy when the Sandhill Crane parents bring their little ones by to check them out. When you get to watch the Lord’s created critters up close and see how really look and act is enjoyable. The Cranes are mentioned in Scripture and so they are some of our Birds of the Bible.

Like a crane or a swallow, so did I chatter: I did mourn as a dove: mine eyes fail with looking upward: O LORD, I am oppressed; undertake for me. (Isaiah 38:14 KJV)

The parents made some chatter when I got too close to the little ones, but didn’t get it on video. Here is video of them in the yard (The noise is Dan edging the driveway):

*

You can tell by how many articles that I’ve written about that the cranes, that I like them and they visit often:

*

Fantastic Close-up – Wow!

by

8

View post on imgur.com

A friend just posted this to my Facebook and I have to share it. It is from Imgur.

I don’t even need six words. Only one will do.

Wow!!!

“Thou art the God that doest wonders: thou hast declared thy strength among the people.
(Psalms 77:14 KJV)

Green-Crowned Brilliant photographed by Chris Morgan

 

Birds – The Color That Only God Can Do

by

3

Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) by

Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) by Dan

Great are the works of the LORD, studied by all who delight in them. (Psalms 111:2 ESV)

Here is a neat blog worth looking at to see all the beautiful color that God put in Birds.

via Birds.

Enjoy the beauty of these birds.

Wordless Birds

*

This is by N7QVC’s Christian Blog.

*