Colchicum lingulatum

803_0054 [Colchicum lingulatum]

One of about 30 species of Colchicum found in Greece; all of them being poisonous whether dry or in any other form.

Photographed on Mt. Parnitha on September 5, 2017

Circaetus gallicus

DSC_5931 [Circaetus gallicus]

This impressive and persistent hunter feeds mainly on snakes and lizards. It can fly for hours over hills and mountains and often hovers to spot its prey on the ground. When it does, it plunges on to the “victim” and grabs it with its claws.
 
Its wingspan can reach 1.78 m, while its weight can reach 2.5 kg!
 
Photographed on Mt. Parnitha on June 21, 2017

Full moon over Rafina port

_8029893 [Full moon over Rafina port]

A shot of a magic full moon night. It took me multiple shots and more time than I expected but eventual satisfaction proved a convincing reason why I could go home and leave behind the captivating night sight.
 
Photographed from a nearby hill on July 9, 2017
 
Please click on the picture for a better view.

Angling by a boat

IMG_4154 [Angling by a boat]

Shot with a mobile phone in Legrena on July 24, 2017


PLEASE NOTE:
We'll be back on September 1st!
[Deo volente.]

Until then have a nice time!

Podarcis muralis

802_9233 [Podarcis muralis]

Did you know that …

     • It usually reaches a length of 20 cm of which about 14 are the tail?
     • It has acute vision and hearing?
     • It can walk even vertically on walls?
     • It can swim but it systematically avoids water?
     • It is mainly fed with insects, worms, bugs and various fruits, with a particular preference for strawberries, oranges and plums?
     • It goes into hibernation?

I didn’t, at least some of them, until I consulted a book on Zoology* for the purpose of this post!
* Εκπαιδευτική Ελληνική Εγκυκλοπαίδεια, Τόμος 11, σσ. 307-308, Εκδοτική Αθηνών 1983

Photographed on Mt. Parnitha on June 21, 2017

Salvia pomifera

BBB6274 [Salvia pomifera]

Photographed at Monemvasia on May 01, 2010

Vanessa cardui

802_6958 [Vanessa cardui]

Vanessa cardui, a regular visitor to our garden, feeding on the flower Lantana camara [here]

Photographed in Holargos on October 03, 2016

Ag. Nektarios

801_6852-HDRx5 [Ag. Nektarios]

The church above is dedicated to St. Nektarios; a saint of the Eastern Orthodox Church canonized only recently, in 1961. It is located within the convent of The Holy Trinity on the island of Aegina in the Saronic Gulf and is daily visited by large numbers of believers coming from all parts of Greece to pay tribute to the saint.

The structure is of comparatively huge dimensions. Apart from the church seen in the picture, there is another - separate - church beneath it. The total capacity of the structure is estimated to be 9.000 people. It’s corner stone was laid in December 1973 and it was inaugurated 21 years later, in May 1994. Today, it constitutes one of the largest churches of the Greek Orthodoxy.

Photographed on the island of Aegina on August 07, 2014

Please click on the picture for a better view.