Cerejeiras em Flor

Top Shot: Celebration of Spring | Photograph by Naoya S. (@photo.naoya.sato) . #YourShotPhotographer Naoya S. captured this nightscape of cherry blossoms blooming in Aoromi, Japan. The Hirosaki City Cherry Blossom Festival is held every spring in Hirosaki Castle Park. There is a term “hanami” that literally means “viewing flowers,” but it is the ancient tradition of going and enjoying the blooming of cherry (and plum) blossoms around Japan. This photo was selected for March 12, 2018 Daily Dozen. — Top Shot features the photo with the most votes from the previous day’s Daily Dozen, 12 photos chosen by the Your Shot editors from thousands of recent uploads. Our community votes for their favorite photo from the selection, and the Top Shot is showcased on the @natgeoyourshot Instagram account.

A post shared by National Geographic Your Shot (@natgeoyourshot) on Mar 13, 2018 at 9:17am PDT

Chegou o Outono!

O Outono começa hoje às 15h21 no Hemisfério Norte... A precisão horária é do Observatório Astronómico de Lisboa ;)


Uma névoa de Outono o ar raro vela,
Cores de meia-cor pairam no céu.
O que indistintamente se revela,
Árvores, casas, montes, nada é meu.

Sim, vejo-o, e pela vista sou seu dono.
Sim, sinto-o eu pelo coração, o como.
Mas entre mim e ver há um grande sono.
De sentir é só a janela a que eu assomo.

Amanhã, se estiver um dia igual,
Mas se for outro, porque é amanhã,
Terei outra verdade, universal,
E será como esta.

Fernando Pessoa in "Poesias Inéditas (1930-1935)"

Uma foto publicada por Vera Vieira da Silva (@vera.araci) a Nov 23, 2015 às 5:58 PST

Magnólia

#magnolia #naturezaurbana #natureza_urbana #flores #flowers #flowerstagram #flordodia #inspiration #inspirational #takeoverinspiration #instatree #tree #trees #naturelovers #minimal #minimalism #natureaddict #igers #igerslx #nothingisordinary #picoftheday #urbannature #portugal

A photo posted by Vera Vieira da Silva (@araciguassu) on Jan 27, 2016 at 10:52am PST

Plante

"O tempo é algo que não volta atrás. Por isso, plante o seu jardim e decore a sua alma, em vez de esperar que alguém lhe traga flores."- William Shakespeare

Publicado por Terra nas Mãos - Um Jardim dentro de Casa em Sábado, 23 de Janeiro de 2016

Beleza d' Inverno

Beleza de Inverno * Winter's beauty #inverno #winter #naturezaurbana #natureza_urbana #urbannature #inspiration #inspirational #takeoverinspiration #instatree #instatrees #natureaddict #naturelovers #oeiras #portugal #picoftheday #minimalista #minimalism #minimal #perfectnature #backlight #backlighting #contraluz

A photo posted by Vera Vieira da Silva (@araciguassu) on Jan 21, 2016 at 2:11pm PST

Cores de Outono

Cores de Outono #outono #autumn #autumnleaves #coresdeoutono #nothingisordinary #igerlx #portugaligers #picoftheday #nature #natureza #urbannature #naturezaurbana #minimal #minimalism #minimalist #naturezanacidade

A photo posted by Vera Vieira da Silva (@araciguassu) on Oct 5, 2015 at 1:05pm PDT

Wonderland

Wonderland #succulent #succulents #suculentas #succulove #succulentlove #succulenthoarder #succulents_only #succulentgarden #succulentjunkie #succulentaddict #succulentplant #cactos #cactosesuculentas #cactus #cactuslover #cactusclub #cactusmagazine #cactuslove #cactusgarden #cactuslovers #cactusgram #cactusworld #cactusmagazine #cactuscafe #cactusmania #instaplant #instaplants #plants #plantas #natureaddict #naturelovers

A photo posted by Vera Vieira da Silva (@araciguassu) on Sep 26, 2015 at 9:02am PDT

Lithops

Not all are stones ;) #succulent #succulents #suculentas #succulove #succulentlove #succulenthoarder #succulents_only #succulentgarden #succulentjunkie #succulentaddict #succulentplant #cactos #cactosesuculentas #cactus #cactuslover #cactusclub #cactusmagazine #cactuslove #cactusgarden #cactuslovers #cactusgram #cactusworld #cactusmagazine #cactuscafe #cactusmania #instaplant #instaplants #plants #plantas #natureaddict #naturelovers

Uma foto publicada por Vera Vieira da Silva (@araciguassu) a Set 20, 2015 às 5:11 PDT

Linha d´água

"Linha d'água" Lisboa, Portugal #naturezanacidade #naturezaperfeita #nature #natureinthecity #natureza #perfectnature #naturezalinda #naturelovers #natureperfection #nature_perfection #naturegram #lisboa #lisbon #portugal

Uma foto publicada por Vera Vieira da Silva (@araciguassu) a Set 7, 2015 às 12:31 PDT

Pôr-do-Sol @ Alvor

Pôr-do-Sol @ Alvor Sunset @ Alvor Algarve, Portugal #pordosol #sunset #algarve #alvor #portugal #portugaldenorteasul #praias #beach #nature #natureza #portugal_lovers #portugalalive #portugal_de_sonho #portugalemfotos #portugal2015 #beautifulportugal

Uma foto publicada por Vera Vieira da Silva (@araciguassu) a Set 12, 2015 às 3:28 PDT

Fairytale

#borboleta #butterfly #natureza #naturezaperfeita #naturezabela #naturezanacidade #naturezaurbana #natureza_urbana #naturelovers #natureinthecity #nature #perfectnature #beautifulnature #jardimemcasa #homegarden #contodefadas #fairytale #roses #rosas #flores #flowers #flowerstagram #floweroftheday #flordodia #pictureoftheday

A photo posted by Vera Vieira da Silva (@araciguassu) on Aug 15, 2015 at 5:55am PDT

Bela Natureza

#natureza #naturezaperfeita #naturezalinda #naturezanacidade #natureza_urbana #naturezabela #nature #naturelovers #natureinthecity #cactos #cactus

A photo posted by Vera Vieira da Silva (@araciguassu) on Aug 14, 2015 at 9:23am PDT

Inspiração matutina * Morning inspiration

Inspiração matutina. * Morning inspiration #vintage #vintagestyle #retro #typewriter #write #type #escrita #oldiebutgoodie

A photo posted by Vera Vieira da Silva (@araciguassu) on Aug 11, 2015 at 8:28am PDT

Karma Karma Karma Chameleon ;)

CHRISTOPHER ANDERSON, POSTDOC ASSOCIATE, BROWN UNIVERSITY, ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY: With their independently rotating eyes, color change abilities, their pincher like feet, their long tongue that they project out of their mouth, and their slow deliberate movements, chameleons are animals that most people would regard as charismatic.

One of the centers of chameleon diversity is Madagascar. And of the 202 chameleon species that are currently described to science, 42 percent occur on Madagascar.

One of the old theories as to why chameleons change color is that they were changing color to match their background. But what we now know is that it’s actually a communication strategy. Male-male combat will elicit some of the most impressive colorations from males. 

From females on the other hand, if a female is gravid (or she has eggs and is not interested in breeding) if a male starts to try and court her she will display some very intense, vibrant colorations to let the male know that she’s not interested.

In 2015 scientists have discovered that the superficial layer of chameleon skin has pigments in it and under that there are cells with small guanine crystals. Chameleons change color by actively tuning the spacing between these guanine crystals. And what that does is it changes the wavelength of light that is reflected off of those crystals and thereby changes the hue or the color of the chameleons.

Now chameleons have always been considered a master of camouflage and some of that is actually behavioral. When chameleons are moving in the branches or moving along the ground they do a very characteristic back and forth motion. And what they’re actually doing is mimicking a leaf or branch in the wind and trying to break up a typical movement pattern of an animal running from a predator.

The chameleon tongue is actually a highly complex array of bone, elastic elements and muscle. Chameleons can project their tongues up to two body lengths from their mouth. Now this is done at speeds of about 5.8 meters per second or about 13 mph.

Tongue projection in chameleons is similar in a lot of ways to a bow and arrow. Before the tongue is actually launched, or the arrow, muscle action loads elastic elements. And so in a bow and arrow that’s when the arm actually pulls the bow back. Tongue launch is initiated by the recoil of those elastic elements that were loaded by the muscle action or the release of the bow in the bow and arrow model. And it’s the recoil of those elastic tissues, or that bow, that causes that launch of the tongue or the arrow in the bow and arrow example.

Thirty-six percent of chameleon species are threatened with extinction. There are nine species which are regarded as critically endangered and 37 species that are regarded as endangered.

The main threats to chameleons in the wild is actually habitat alteration and deforestation. Because some chameleons are found only in a specific type of habitat on a single mountain this makes them range restricted. But when that range restriction is combined with other pressures on their habitat, a lot of these species become endangered.

Chameleons have fascinated scientists and naturalists for centuries. And it’s something that we’re still learning a lot about.

[Transcript]

National Geograpic

Fonte aqui

Desabrochando * Blooming

Desabrochando... * Blooming... #floral #flores #flowers #belanatureza #naturezaperfeita #naturezanacidade #nature #jardimemcasa #jardim #desabrochando #blooming

A photo posted by Vera Vieira da Silva (@araciguassu) on Aug 9, 2015 at 4:21am PDT

Cores de Alvor

Tantas cores... * So many colours... #alvor #algarve #portugal #praiasdeportugal #beiramar #bythesea #natureza #nature

A photo posted by Vera Vieira da Silva (@araciguassu) on Jul 29, 2015 at 9:20am PDT

Luar no Arade

Luar sobre o Rio Arade Algarve, Portugal #algarve #portugal #portugaldenorteasul #arade #portimao #ferragudo #luar #lua #moonlight #moonlit #moon #moonshine

A photo posted by Vera Vieira da Silva (@araciguassu) on Jul 30, 2015 at 3:23pm PDT

Dia de Portugal, de Camões e das Comunidades Portuguesas

Onde quer que, entre sombras e dizeres,

Jazas, remoto, sente-te sonhado,

E ergue-te do fundo de não-seres

Para teu novo fado!

Vem, Galaaz com pátria, erguer de novo,

Mas já no auge da suprema prova,

A alma penitente do teu povo

À Eucaristia Nova. 

Mestre da Paz, ergue teu gládio ungido,

Excalibur do Fim, em jeito tal

Que sua Luz ao mundo dividido

Revele o Santo Graal!

"Mensagem", Fernando Pessoa

[III - O Encoberto] 

Foto: Vera Vieira da Silva

Marrakesh

Marrakesh, Marrocos '09

Something Colorful

So... just smile! :)