Dolphins, tigers and turtles in focus

Aside Markozen.com Nature
A tiger in Ranthambore National Park, Rajasthan, India.
Image caption,A tiger eating a leopard in Ranthambhore National Park, Rajasthan, India. (Special Mention, Animal Behaviour)

Nature inFocus describes itself as “a photo-led exploration into India’s wilderness – a definitive platform for sharing stories and photography that enables relevant knowledge-sharing and curation for everything nature.” Its competition received 24,000 images from more than 1,500 entrants.

Winners are chosen in the categories of Animal Behaviour, Animal Portraits, Conservation Focus, Creative Nature Photography, Wildscape & Animals in Their Habitat and Photographer of the Year – Portfolio.

Here is a selection of the winning entries.

Animal Behaviour

An ant and honeydew secreting aphids

Avinash PC triumphed for this shot of an ant and some honeydew-secreting aphids in Kannur, Kerala, India.

A pod of Spinner Dolphins dives back into the beautifully lit waters of the Pacific Ocean

A special mention went to Spanish photographer, Merche Llobera, for this image of a pod of spinner dolphins in the waters of the Pacific Ocean, near Costa Rica.

A bonobo holding a mongoose pup, LuiKotale, Near Salonga National Park, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Christian Ziegler’s image of a bonobo holding a mongoose pup was taken in LuiKotale, near Salonga National Park, Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The ape later released the animal unharmed.

Crocodiles in a polluted river near Vadorara in Gujarat, India

Hiren Pagi’s photograph aims to highlight the conditions in which crocodiles coexist with humans.

The river, near Vadorara, Gujarat, India, has become cluttered with rubbish, causing a threat to their habitat and polluting the water.

Nubian Ibexes show horns in a display of dominance

For Nubian Ibexes, the high-altitude rocky terrains are home.

Displays of dominance begin with showing off their impressive horns, captured in this shot by Amit Eshel in the Zin Desert, Israel.

A tiger in Ranthambore National Park, Rajasthan, India.

A special mention went to Amit Vyas for this picture of a tiger in Ranthambore National Park, Rajasthan, India.

Drone image of coast and mangrove

Srikanth Mannepuri’s winning portfolio documents the threat to mangrove forests, and the vast diversity of fish, bird and reptile species which populate the habitat.

A small boat carrying timber collected from the mangrove forests flanking the canal leaves for the nearby coastal village.

Entirely shot from a drone, the photographer zooms out from the mangrove forests of coastal Andhra Pradesh, to capture the magnitude of the threats this unique ecosystem is facing.

A pair of Oriental Honey Buzzards raid a beehive.

In the dense forests of Satpura National Park, Madhya Pradesh, India, a pair of Oriental Honey Buzzards raid a beehive.

Pranav Mahendru embarked on his journey as a wildlife photographer from a young age, driven by a deep fondness for nature and wildlife.

Give Me Back My Wig

Aside Markozen.com Music

Who would think up a song like this?

Give me back my wig
Honey, now let your head go bald.
Give me back my wig
Honey, now let your head go bald.
Really didn’t have no business
Honey, buyin’ you no wig at all.

Takin’ me downtown
say four forty nine,
When I get down there
I swear, nine ninety nine.

You just give me back my wig
Honey, now let your head go bald.
Really didn’t have no business
Honey, buyin’ you no wig at all.

Yeah my Mama told me
and your good friend too,
When you get that wig
That’s the way you gonna do.

You just give me back my wig
Honey, now let your head go bald.
Really didn’t have no business
Honey, buyin’ you no wig at all.

Goodbye little more fun
All I got to say.
Give me back my wig and be
On your merry way.

You just give me back my wig
Honey, now let your head go bald.
Really didn’t have no business
Buyin’ you no wig at all

Greenland Whale Fisheries

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In eighteen hundred and forty-six
And of March the eighteenth day,
We hoisted our colors to the top of the mast
And for Greenland sailed away, brave boys,
And for Greenland sailed away.

The lookout in the crosstrees stood
With spyglass in his hand;
There’s a whale, there’s a whale,
And a whalefish he cried
And she blows at every span, brave boys
She blows at every span.

The captain stood on the quarter deck,
The ice was in his eye;
Overhaul, overhaul! Let your gibsheets fall,
And you’ll put your boats to sea, brave boys
And you’ll put your boats to sea.

Our harpoon struck and the line played out,
With a single flourish of his tail,
He capsized the boat and we lost five men,
And we did not catch the whale, brave boys,
And we did not catch the whale.

The losing of those five jolly men,
It grieved the captain sore,
But the losing of that fine whalefish
Now it grieved him ten times more, brave boys
Now it grieved him ten times more.

Oh Greenland is a barren land
A land that bares no green
Where there’s ice and snow, and the whalefishes blow
And the daylight’s seldom seen, brave boys
And the daylight’s seldom seen.

Winnipeg Summer Road Construction Mayhem

Aside Markozen.com Transportation, Winnipeg

In Winnipeg the bitterly cold winters are not conducive for road construction. It gets so cold that the ground freezes up to 5-6 feet below the surface. The ground is so frozen equipment cannot penetrate through. And cement cannot be poured in those brutal temps. Therefore, all road and highway construction has to be done during the late spring, summer and early fall.

It creates such chaos that many streets are closed or down to 1 lane. Makes it an obstacle course to get around. Regular 20 minute commutes turn into 50 minute marathons. Such is existence in the Great White North.

Summer street in Winnipeg

Today’s Winnipeg street construction map.

Looks like this craziness happens in other jurisdictions:

Climber dangles from crane above downtown Winnipeg 

Aside Markozen.com Winnipeg

‘This city is beautiful,’ says posting on YouTube video by daredevil who scales Winnipeg crane

climber

At one point, the man in a YouTube video can be seen hanging from the crane, his legs swinging freely over the Winnipeg cityscape. (YouTube)

A new video of Winnipeg shows the city from a high vantage point, but in a way that’s not entirely legal.

In the YouTube video that’s not for the weak-kneed, a man scales buildings and walks along rooftops in the Exchange District before climbing a construction crane high above Portage Avenue.

The video, which claims to have been shot at 5:30 a.m., was posted Aug. 16.

Winnipeg police spokesman Const. Jason Michalyshen said no formal complaint has been made about the incident, but “this behaviour/stunt is very concerning, not only for the safety of the individuals involved but the potentially dangerous position innocent bystanders are being put in.”

In addition to trespassing, the people involved in the video could face charges of break and enter and mischief.

Bockstael Construction, which is in charge of the crane and building project, would not comment.

Similar videos have surfaced in other cities and there were arrests earlier this year of six men in North Vancouver, B.C., who were caught climbing a crane.

Christopher Schneider, a Wilfrid Laurier University professor, has said social media may be fuelling the rise in so-called urban climbers, who like to post videos or selfies of their dangerous activities.

“One thing we’re really seeing here is that there are no media gatekeeper” to discourage the climbers’ behaviour, Schneider told CBC News in July.

“This is encouraging anyone who wants to participate in these kinds of activities to record themselves and put it on online.”