Susannah 🍁
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wweeta.bsky.social
Susannah 🍁
@wweeta.bsky.social
1.4K followers 390 following 690 posts
I photograph and write about the world I see around me here on Vancouver Island: the forests and hllls, things green and wet, the none- to multi-legged critters that scramble, ooze, and slither on our beaches, birds and the occasional beast.
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wweeta.bsky.social
A dust lichen on a tree trunk. Lepraria inana. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/gree... #VancouverIsland #Lichens #NaturePhotography #LichenSubscribe
Pale green lichen covers the bark of a tree. It has the texture of a dust bunny; bubbles and bumps and smears. This lichen is composed of tiny balls of algae wrapped in fungal hyphae (hair-thin threads). A few leafy structures at upper right are another lichen, Cladonia sp., as is the erect stalk at lower right, a fruiting body of that same Cladonia.
November 29, 2025 at 5:54 AM
wweeta.bsky.social
Moss on a fallen evergreen branch. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/gree... #VancouverIsland #Forests #Moss #NaturePhotography
A bright green moss. Long, feathery leaves branching off central stems, arching somewhat like water in a fountain. The moss is growing on a dark branch. In the background, there's another branch, and a blurry fern frond.
November 26, 2025 at 8:08 AM
wweeta.bsky.social
Mist and clouds over an evergreen-clad hill. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/ghos... #VancouverIsland #Forests #Skywatch #Weather #Landscapes #NaturePhotography
Two parallel hills sloping down from right to left. They are densely forested with evergreen trees; mists float over the second one; over them, the sky is all grey cloud. On the right, a deciduous tree spreads its bare branches; they have a slight reddish tinge and small catkins hang from the branches; it's a red alder, and the catkins stay put over winter. November colour in the Pacific Northwest.
November 25, 2025 at 10:36 AM
wweeta.bsky.social
Mica caps, Coprinellus micaceus. In low-lying, very wet land beside the Campbell River. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/lbms... #VancouverIsland #Wetlands #Fungi #Mushrooms #NaturePhotography
A group of conical mushrooms, various sizes from small to very small. The caps are tan, fading to white, then grey near the margins of the larger mushrooms. The stems are straight, smooth, white. They grow from the ground, surrounded by dead leaves of red alder and big-leaf maple; there are a few green leaves as well, trailing blackberry and another native weed.
November 24, 2025 at 8:38 AM
wweeta.bsky.social
Lichenomphalia umbellifera, the two components, fungus and blue-green algae. With a possible slime mold fruiting body. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/more... #VancouverIsland #Wetlands #Lichens #Fungi #Mushrooms #NaturePhotography
On a rotten log covered with a coat of blue-green algae (deep green), are two mushrooms; they are the fungal component of a lichen, never seen without this green alga. The mushroom has deep, widely spaced gills, cream coloured. The stem is pale brown, slightly wider at the base. We're seeing the mushrooms from beneath, so we don't see the top of the cap. On the left side, in a crack, is a small, brown stalk with a round ball on top, possibly the fruiting body of a slime mold. A brown mass at the right is a dead maple leaf, giving a sense of the time of year.
November 22, 2025 at 10:24 PM
wweeta.bsky.social
Fairy Parachutes, Marasmiellus candidus, on a soaked salmonberry stem. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/the-... #VancouverIsland #Wetlands #Fungi #Mushrooms #NaturePhotography
A group of white, translucent mushrooms on a brown shrub stem, probably salmonberry. The mushrooms, most of which are seen bottom side up, have a round, umbrella-shaped (or parachute-shaped) cap, with widely-spaced gills, showing up as whiter lines on the white flesh of the cap. The stalks are thin, white, and about as long as the diameter of the caps. Background; a crumbly log, bright green, wet moss. Crossing the salmonberry stem, there's a piece of fern frond, dead, wet, brown.
November 21, 2025 at 11:02 PM
wweeta.bsky.social
In a drenched forest. Slow-moving water, dripping leaves. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/all-... #VancouverIsland #Wetlands #Forests #NaturePhotography
A shallow stream in the forest. An up-turned root of a tree makes a mini-island, covered with grasses, ferns, and native shrubs, some with leaves turned yellow. Along the right bank of the stream, more shrubs have brown, dead leaves; behind them there's a patch of grass, then a path leading to a wooden bridge, top left. The water reflects the bridge, the green evergreens overhead, the browns of the dead leaves; towards us, the light glints off the ripples in the water. On the far left, a few leaves hang over the water, green and rust-red.
November 20, 2025 at 7:59 AM
wweeta.bsky.social
Hooded mergansers. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/flir... #VancouverIsland #Birds #Birding #NaturePhotography
November 19, 2025 at 1:30 AM
wweeta.bsky.social
Ripe puffballs, fallen alder leaves. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/too-... #Fall #Fungi #Mushrooms #EdibleMushrooms #AutumnLeaves #NaturePhotography
Two small puffballs surrounded by fallen red alder leaves, green fading to black. The puffballs are ripe, no longer edible; the "balls" have opened the pore on top, where the spore dust will be puffed out with any contact. They are relatively fresh; one is starting to collapse, the other is still smooth and round. In the lower left corner, a few more puffballs are half hidden under the leaves.
November 18, 2025 at 2:10 AM
wweeta.bsky.social
Fallen leaves, and a mushroom. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/leaf... #VancouverIsland #Fall #Trees #AutumnLeaves #NaturePhotography
Fallen leaves, mostly brown, turning to black. With a small mushroom upright in the centre. The mushroom is tan coloured, with a narrow, straight stem; the cap is gilled, becoming concave, with the edges turned up to show the gills.The centre of the cap is raised. The leaves are big-leaf maple (warm brown) and cottonwood (variousl colours from spotted brown to burgundy to yellow or black).
November 16, 2025 at 8:50 AM
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View from Baikie Island. Wetlands and November trees. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/inte... #VancouverIsland #Wetlands #Reflections #Landscapes #Skywatch #NaturePhotography
A November-ish photo. Half-bare trees, yellow and brown leaves, dried grasses. The view from one island to the next mini-islands. In front; smooth water, reflections of the bare tree branches. The water is blue where the light hits it, and black to greenish in the shade of the land. A channel cuts between the two islets; dark water with blurry reflections. There's one scraggly evergreen tree on the islet to the right, a tree with white bark on the one on the left. Sky overhead, a misty blue.
November 14, 2025 at 8:52 PM
wweeta.bsky.social
More Laughing Gyms. (I think). On a wet, mossy log, during a pause in the rains. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/more... #VancouverIsland #Fungi #NaturePhotography
Four gilled mushrooms (one broken) curving away from the camera, showing the gilled underside of their caps. The caps, from what can be seen of the tops, are concave, bowl-shaped. The gills and stem are speckled, brown and cream; the stems have a pale ring partway down. They're growing out of an old log. Looking at the bark, it seems to be a cedar; it has long strands rather than scales. Most of the wood is covered with green moss, and at the bottom of the photo, there's a layer of fallen Big-Leaf maple leaves, mostly brown with a yellow patch, a bit of still-green leaf.
November 13, 2025 at 10:34 AM
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Mushroom sheltering in a crack in a log end. Very tiny. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/so-t... #VancouverIsland #Fungi #Moss #NaturePhotography
On a sawed and well-aged log end, under the shadow of yellow and brown, fallen Big-Leaf maple leaves, sprouting out of a deep crack in the wood, a tiny mushroom stands alone. The cap is light brown, shading to tan; the stalk is slightly darker. The wood is mostly black, with blacker lines of fungal growth, some lighter brown areas.
November 12, 2025 at 10:11 AM
wweeta.bsky.social
Candlesnuff fungi on a chunk of old log. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/fina... #VancouverIsland #Fungi #NaturePhotography
On an old, blackened log end, small, white spikes stand out. They have blue-black bases, some are simple stalks, some have a forked end, "antlers". One name for this species is Stag's Horn Fungus. The fungi are surrounded by bits of moss, slightly shorter than the fungi, which are about 3 or 4 cm. tall. Background; forest floor, with dead big-leaf maple leaves.
November 10, 2025 at 10:30 AM
wweeta.bsky.social
Gulls, arguing over the possession of a rock. Round 4. Sharing is a foreign concept to a gull. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/ever... #VancouverIsland #Birds #Birding #Gulls #Wildlife #NaturePhotography
Rocky, stony river bank. A gull sits on a guano-smeared rock at lower right. At upper left, there's another gull, in the air, wings spread wide, head stretched forward, aiming at gull on the rock. It looks angry. It is. This is round 4 in an ongoing battle for ownership of that favourite stone. With each round, they change positions; the winner takes the rock, the loser returns to the attack.
November 9, 2025 at 8:08 AM
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Tar Spot fungus on Big-leaf maple. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/big-... #VancouverIsland #Trees #Fungus #NaturePhotography
A big Big-leaf maple leaf, fallen, in fall colours, yellow and brown. With circles and patches of Speckled Tar Spot fungus; here bluish patches. The leaf measures 430 cm. across, 17 inches. A circular patch on the yellow leaf, showing the green chlorophyll that remains still inside the fungal patch. The centre of this patch is darker brown. Veins of the leaf cross the fungal area. A legend reads 4 cm. The "tar spots" of Speckled Tar Spot fungus. A group of small, blackish, roundish, raised lumps on the yellow background of the leaf. A legend reads 2 cm.
November 8, 2025 at 4:27 AM
wweeta.bsky.social
Lobster mushroom, Russula sp., infected with Hypomyces lactifluorum. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/welc... #VancouverIsland #Mushrooms #Fungus #NaturePhotography
A fantastically shaped mushroom; large, bright orange, showing the white flesh of the original mushroom inside where the mass has broken. The orange is a parasitic fungus; the white was once a "normal" white mushroom with a tidy cap and stalk. On soil, with bits of moss, dead big-leaf maple leaves.
November 6, 2025 at 11:53 PM
wweeta.bsky.social
Coral mushrooms, probably Ramaria stricta. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/in-m... #VancouverIsland #Mushrooms #Fungus #NaturePhotography
The coral mushroom raises a mass of vertical branches, forked at the tips. The whole mass is a pale tan to cream colour (depending on light or shadow). The mushroom grows among dead and dying leaves, Big-leaf maple, in darker browns, and fragments of another species, probably salmonberry leaves. Green leaves at the top are the edge of a frond of evergreen fern.
November 5, 2025 at 8:38 AM
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Path, carpeted with fallen Big-leaf maple leaves. Kitty Coleman Provincial Park. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/riot... #VancouverIsland #FallColour #Plants #ProvincialPark #Trees #NaturePhotography
A narrow path through the forest. The ground and surrounding shrubs are covered with yellow and orange Big-leaf maple leaves, wet and shiny. The path goes from the bottom left corner, angles to the right to pass a couple of thick tree trunks (the maples), then turns back to the left again. On either side there are low native shrubs, (salmonberry, Oregon grape, etc.) Farther back, there are a few more trees, evergreens and more maples. The trees are mature, and the bark is rough and dark brown.
November 4, 2025 at 8:59 AM
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Croc on a northern shore. In Canada. wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/told... #VancouverIsland #Crocodile #Art #Humour #Pareidolia #NaturePhotography
An old log. One end sort of has the shape of a crocodile's snout, and someone has added a row of little stones to look like teeth, and a round thing for an eye. There's a lump of wood on top that looks like a turtle, and they've added green eyes. The whole "croc" rests on a bed of gravel, with grass in front, weeds behind. And barely seen beyond that, the waves rolling in on the beach.
November 3, 2025 at 7:19 AM
wweeta.bsky.social
Great blue heron, Oyster Bay. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/11/grey... #VancouverIsland #Birds #Birding #Reflections #Wildlife #NaturePhotography
A Great Blue heron wading in a few inches of calm water. The water is still, silvery grey; where the heron disturbs it, there's an arc of ripples, with touches of blue. The heron is large, with a grey body and wings, a long, darker neck, a black cap with a bit of white on top; the beak is grey with some yellow. The water is so still that the bird is reflected clearly. Reflections at upper right are of the posts and nest boxes for purple martins, unused at this time of year.
November 2, 2025 at 6:59 AM
wweeta.bsky.social
After the rain stopped; damp boletes, Douglas-fir cones, dead leaves, moss, needles. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/10/noth... #VancouverIsland #Fungi #Mushrooms #Boletes #NaturePhotography
Two brown mushrooms. Lumpy, convex caps, close to ground, with the pore surfaces hidden away. A few slug bites on the top of the larger one show the brownish meat inside. The smaller bolete has bigger bites taken out of two sides. The mushrooms are on a forest floor, wet with recent rain, in mostly dull colours; the Douglas-fir cone is almost black. Only the moss is bright green. One recently-fallen leaf is pale green.
November 1, 2025 at 3:24 AM
wweeta.bsky.social
Jumping spiders always love my car. Even this big guy. Happy Hallowe'en! Arachtober 2025, Day 31, Hallowe'en. www.flickr.com/photos/wande... #VancouverIsland #Arachtober2025 #Arachnids #Spiders #Arañas #Hallowe'en
A big, fluffy, black jumping spider; "Fangs", my old mascot, brushed up for Hallowe'en. A modified Dollar Store find, 400 cm., 16 inches leg span. (Added fangs and eyes. The eyes are not seen here, but the red fangs are.) We see her from the side. She's climbing onto the roof of my silvery-grey car. Background; quiet neighbourhood, distant hills, blue sky.
October 31, 2025 at 7:33 AM
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Red-topped Brittle-gill, Russula sp. With slug bites. New blog post: wanderinweeta.blogspot.com/2025/10/slug... #VancouverIsland #Mushrooms #Fungi #Slugs #Invertebrates #NaturePhotography
A gilled mushroom with a white stalk, white gills, white flesh. And a red skin on the cap. With slug bites taken out of the cap, showing the white meat inside. The mushroom stands on a forest floor with well-aged twigs and Douglas-fir cones. The top of the mushroom is wet and shiny; the ground is wet. And the gills are guttating; oozing droplets of water.
October 30, 2025 at 5:53 PM
wweeta.bsky.social
Bathed in sunlight. An orb-weaver spider in a dim forest spreads her web where the sunlight streams between bare branches. Her mate waits for her above. Arachtober 2025, Day 30. www.flickr.com/photos/wande... #VancouverIsland #Arachtober2025 #Arachnids #Spiders #Invertebrates #NaturePhotography
An orb web, mostly intact, with the builder waiting for her prey in the centre circle. Her legs look white, with the sun shining through them; her body is dark. Above, at the upper left, her mate sunbathes; his whole body and legs glow; where there is colour, it is bright orange. The web is the typical orb; a small centre spiral, then an empty space, then the rows and rows of spiralling silk. Where the light catches it just right from our point of view, the silk acts as a prism, splitting the light, painting the web with rainbow colours. Background; the dark greens and browns of the forest, with patches of bright green where the sunlight has found a leaf. Bare branches, behind and in front of the web.
October 30, 2025 at 7:51 AM