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For Paul & Gerhard


For Paul & Gerhard
Photo Information
Copyright: Callie de Wet (Callie) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1243 W: 106 N: 2606] (7501)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2004-12-05
Categories: Insects
Camera: Nikon D70, Sigma 80-400 OS
Exposure: f/11, 1/500 seconds
Details: (Fill) Flash: Yes
Photo Version: Original Version
Theme(s): Class Arachnida, Dedications at Trek Nature [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2005-01-22 6:59
Viewed: 1914
Points: 18
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
Gerhard asked me to try to get some scorpions on our Kalahari Trip, and Paul love our strange creepy crawlies, so I waited with this one till he was back!

Bit of BG – Scorpions are old, they predate the dinosaurs by 200 million years! The first scorpion fossils are 400-450 M Years old. They are found on all the major land masses, except Antarctica. They were introduced by man to England and New Zeeland.

There are about 1 500 known species of scorpions in the world, & SA is blest, or maybe cursed, 130-175 species of scorpions, depending on which author to believe. Scorpions are found in caves 800 m below the earth’s surface, up to snow-covered mountain 5 500 m high. They can withstand extreme temperatures from above 50ΊC to bellow freezing. Some species can be submerged below water for more than 48 hours, without suffering ill effects!

They are inactive for more than 90% of the time and can go for a year on one good meal! Their lifespan is on average between 2 to 10 years, but some species may live up to 30 years. Their gestation period is very long, considering their size – between 2-18 months!

The Phylum Arthopoda is the largest in the animal kingdom, and members of the Class Arachnida must count amongst the scariest and most poisonous of this group. Scorpions belong to the Order Scorpiona in the subphylum Chelicerata. Members of the Class Archnida are nearly all land animals which breath through gill-like structures called booklungs. The bodies are divided into two main parts viz. the prosoma and the abdomen.
The prosoma carries the two pairs of appendages, called the chelcerea and the pedipalps and 4 pairs of legs. Arachnids are normally aggressive, predatory creatures that prey on other arthropods and even vertebrates! More about the strange names later.

This is a typical nest opening of a scorpion, and you can see his pinchers and even the eyes clearly. We were watching some flat cats, when Pietta mentioned this scorpion – again – on her side of the road. I was on her lap in an eye beat, but the scorpion was back in the hole. All I could see was the black hole on the sand. I just focused on the sand next to the hole and blasted it with the flash. So, in a sense, this is a near miss as well!

SHOOTING DETAILS
Venue – KTFP, Auob Road
Date 6th December 2004
Time 11h54
Camera - Nikon D70
ISO 200 & -0,3 EV.
Sigma 80-400 F4.5- 5.6 APO OS
Filter – Cokin UV
Focal length - 400 mm.
Exposure mode - Aperture Priority – 1/500 @ F11
Flash – Balanced i-TTL off camera and SB800
Support – Handheld
PP – bit of cropping; hue/ saturation; S/C; some USM; reduced to Site size.
marhowie, red45, PDP, Luc, pompey, extramundi, gerhardt, jhm has marked this note useful
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Critiques [Translate]

Callie, Great attempt to show this scorpion within its nest..You can just see him in there peekin' over his crossed claws! Excellent notes..Great job!

  • Great 
  • red45 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2816 W: 75 N: 7977] (26975)
  • [2005-01-22 9:51]

Sorry, I'm on the run - write more tomorrow :-)

  • Great 
  • PDP Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2951 W: 366 N: 3779] (11763)
  • [2005-01-22 10:22]

Very well seen Callie and thanks for dedication...you know I love all these bugs. It's a little peer in the scorpion's den and a little creepy it is too. Nice work.

  • Great 
  • pompey Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 205 W: 4 N: 780] (2762)
  • [2005-01-22 13:41]

At first i thought it was a crab hanging upside down but after closer examination, i now realise what it is.
I must say not one of your best (in my opinion), but this must have been really hard to capture.
Great note as usual.

It looks great inside the hole in the sand. A strange view, it is difficult to get at first. Excellent note. Thanks for posting.

It's an interesting composition. Unusual style expressed and it works. Somehow I get the impression that this is just a teaser?

Very nice shot Callie. The initiative impressed me, I wouldn't have thought of such a shot. Where are my Sungazers in the nest now? :) Thanx for the post.

  • Great 
  • jhm Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 660 W: 0 N: 178] (626)
  • [2005-01-23 2:49]

Bedankt voor de zeer leerrijke uitleg bij deze foto, want ik vind uw nota's perfect het zijn encyclopedisch. De schorpioen is wel degelijk waar te nemen beneden, gelukkig heeft u een foto kunnen nemen Callie!
Groeten vanuit Vlaanderen op een frisse zondag morgen rond 9 uur en + 1° Celsius
John.

Fortunatly you wrote a great note, it would be hard to reconise it without.

It's not your best shot but it's very interesting.
TFS.

  • Great 
  • japie Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1814 W: 100 N: 1904] (5187)
  • [2005-01-25 16:45]

Daar is 'n gat in die grond en die groen gras groei daaroor, maar hierdie is 'n ander gat.

He is peeking at you and daring you to stick your finger in there. I like this post a lot for a couple of reasons - I stay here in africa and have never seen a scorpion's layer and this is something that most of us would have passed by without even looking at. Here you displayed something that is very special.

The depth is very good here as one can see into the hole and find a scopion looking at you. What makes the shot even better is the time of day it was taken at.

Very well done and thanks for posting.

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