My favorite jay and what is the "foam test"?
I had never paid much attention to its behavior until I read an article about how this bird behaves in certain situations. And that's how I found out that there is such a thing as a "foam test", which the jay passes perfectly.
Well, some birds, including the jay, can refrain from eating their favorite food, for example a nut they just got, if they know that thanks to this they will get even more of this delicacy.
This ability to delay reward and refrain from immediate food consumption testifies to this bird's amazing cognitive skills, speed of learning and, as it turns out, planning for the future.
When spring comes, he heralds it - Rutstroemia bulgarioides
The cap of the mushroom is cup-shaped, and sometimes, like most similar species, becomes round or oval. The color is most often brown or dark brown, from graphite to black.
The leg is barely visible and the scales of the cone appear, reaching a maximum of 1.5 cm in length.
Occurrence: The fungus is very common, but grows only on spruce cones lying on the ground. Most often in mountain coniferous forests. You can look for it already in early spring, when the first rays of the sun will discover the cones lying under the snow. It appears in large clusters on one cone.
From Bukit Lawang to Tuk-Tuk village on Samosir Island. My trip around Indonesia
After an extended stay in Bukit Lawang, where we were looking for Orangutans in the jungle, we decided to go on a further journey. Our next destination in Sumatra was the island of Samosir on Lake Toba.
We took a good 6 hours in the hired taxi (cost around $ 15), and while the route was not too strenuous, our driver was tiring. Not because of verbosity, on the contrary - he fell asleep at the wheel and pulled over to the side of the road. I had to poke him all the way and be careful not to let him land in the ditch. We arrived, but our nervousness and constant vigilance drained our energy.
Nymphalis antiopa - Nymphalis mourner (Beauty of Camberwell), a difficult object to photograph
Although the butterfly I present is one of the most skittish, I managed to take some attractive shots of this insect.
This beautiful butterfly has such a name for a reason. It has dark brown wings, surrounded by a cream coating, and brightly shimmering spots on the edges of the wings.
The butterfly can grow up to 90 mm wingspan, which makes it one of the largest butterflies in Europe.
The butterfly can be found in very different areas. We can find it in parks, gardens, glades, and even in the mountains at an altitude of 2000 m above sea level.
Edible arboreal mushrooms - oyster mushroom - Spiny jelly
Toothed jelly fungus, false hedgehog mushroom, cat's tongue (Pseudohydnum gelatinosum) - Spiny jellies are a fungus with a structure different from other known edible mushrooms. It has no plaques or pores and has tiny flexible spikes. The mushroom is very flexible and resembles a well cut jelly in consistency. The mushroom's young fruiting body has a tongue-like shape, but when it matures, the cap becomes semicircular. Reaches sizes up to 10 cm in diameter and 2 cm in thickness. It is attached with its side to the ground with a leg, which can be up to 5 cm long, and is often attached to another fruit body. The color of the mushroom is whitish, gray-white, purple-brown. White, gray-white spines about 3 mm long. The surface of the fungus is lumpy, rough.
The flesh is milky, translucent. Jelly to the touch, a bit like some silicone product. The smell is imperceptible, the taste is described by some as slightly fishy.
They call him "tram driver", he looks scary, but that's just appearances
This extremely interesting insect is called "Firebug", or "Two-spot Smith". He is a frequent visitor to parks, forests and gardens where a tree called Linden grows.
The nickname "tram driver" comes from the fact that the insect has a bright red color, and during the breeding season it is attached to the female abdomen. He can stay in this state for hours, moving at the same time. Then it resembles coupled tram carriages.
It is a completely harmless insect belonging to the bug family. When we touch it, it starts to emit an unpleasant-smelling substance designed to scare off the attacker.
A day marked by clouds and rain, but the colors in the "Rosarium" are still beautiful.
Roses seem to prefer low temperatures rather than intense heat. Today's rain and temperature around plus 10 degrees probably did them good.
The overall picture of the park is quite monotonous and depressing. The days have come that I hate and I would like to teleport to warm countries, unfortunately it's not possible this year, but maybe at the beginning of next year? - who knows.
"When in Rome, do as the Romans do" - Carrion crow
This is another very intelligent representative of corvids that consistently haunts my favorite bench. He knows where his place is and patiently waits for treats, i.e. peanuts.
He is not aggressive, does not chase other birds away, but calmly observes the whole environment.
This bird is a carrion crow belonging to the crow family, of which there are many species in Europe.
Suillus luteus harvest in the middle of the week - so many butterflies have not been harvested in such a short time
The mushroom picking trip in the middle of the week did not look promising. Information from friends and from the inhabitants of the town we were going to was rather pessimistic. Something grows, but not much, so we couldn't count on a big harvest.
So we came to the village, of course, the first point of the visit is the local shop and the former village administrator, from whom we inquire about the occurrence of mushrooms. He showed us a basket from the morning harvest - a few young boletus, red-capped scaber stalk, Suillus luteus.
What does he need this blade for? (Decticus verrucivorus)
This species of grasshopper lives in grassy areas, in living areas, clearings, wastelands and meadows. Ripe at the beginning at the beginning and even until October.
This is a female of Decticus verrucivorus. The spike we see on the back is not, contrary to appearances, a sting, or another weapon for fighting, but the so-called terebra.
The terebra is the reproductive organ of the female Decticus verrucivorus. When the female is fertilized, the fertilized eggs of the young insects mature in this ovipositor.
Royal bolete - Worms do not recognize noble titles - (Butyriboletus regius)
It does not matter if you are a grandfather or a king - the worm does not check noble titles.
More precisely, it is not worms, but fly larvae (maggots) that love to stay there.
Older date people say - once there weren't so many wormy mushrooms! There were, maybe even more, just our tolerance to the quality of food and perception has changed;)
The cap of this mushroom can reach a size of up to 16 cm in diameter. Classically, when it is young it is semicircular, convex, with age it becomes flat like a boletus. The surface of the hat is matte, slightly suede, uneven. Depending on the aura, it is dry or slippery and sticky. The color is characteristic and unusual for porcini mushrooms, mainly pink, yellowish pink.
Naked snail, or Lusitan snail - a dangerous pest in our gardens.
As soon as a little rain falls, it gets colder, and the air humidity is quite high, it appears - the Luzutan Snail. If only he would appear alone, but sometimes there are several hundred of them, and they are painstakingly, like a sandstorm, moving towards your garden.
When they appear in it, you should start fighting them and not wait, because an apparently slow creature can devastate any crop in a short time. Like most snails, they like fresh grass, young leaves of seedlings, but they will not despise flowers, vegetables and fruit.
I treated this individual with a piece of bread, which turned out to be a tasty morsel. In a moment, several other amateurs of white bread showed up. I don't know how they find these treats. He devours it all with a grater in which he crushes the food.
Will it ever be a beautiful butterfly? - late autumn walks in the Jurassic forests
Walking through the forest, or rather along forest paths, I came across a galloping caterpillar. She acted as if a sudden attack of winter was about to take place.
She looked lovely. Her brown and black back with fine hair looked like a beautiful fox fur under magnification.
The underside was black, also with fine black hairs. Even without magnification, you can see beautiful protrusions on this caterpillar, i.e. its legs, which it cleverly disguises to move around. I admit that she was very efficient at it, and in order to look at her, I had to touch her.
Scarlet elfcup - Edible early spring mushrooms - (Sarcoscypha austriaca - Austrian cup)
The mushroom cap is cup-shaped. It can be up to 8 cm d. The inside of the cup is bright red, brick red, and the edge is sometimes rolled up and is much lighter.
The leg is very short, thin and cylindrical in shape. The color is identical to the outer part of the mushroom. The leg is quite firmly set in the ground, the composition of which is rotten wood
The flesh is thin, has no perceptible taste and smell, but still edible and has culinary uses
Occurrence: The fungus appears in early spring, mainly in the mountains, in wetlands where the soil is humus. It usually grows in groups accompanied by deciduous trees - maple, willow, alder.
Another amazing day in November, the heat, the sun and the birds came alive
Another day of beautiful November and I dare say that it is better than this cold September. And this is apparently not the end, because the coming weekend is to be record-breaking when it comes to temperatures. They are supposed to go to plus 22 degrees!
I remember the years when snow fell in mid-October and lasted until March, and here such surprises - shock!
There were also tits and a jay, which probably liked the daily feeding. At first she watched from a distance, but after a few days she comes quite close.
Baked chicken legs and wings in a bag with white radish salad
Ingredients
A few chicken wings, a few chicken drumsticks, spices in a bag, salt, pepper, herbs, hot and sweet peppers, garlic, vegetable oil, soy sauce. For the salad: white radish, cream of 12% fat, salt, pepper. Additionally, 1/2 kg of potatoes.
Thoroughly wash the wings and thighs in cold water. Then put it in a bag in layers, sprinkle with herbs, crushed garlic and pour over soy sauce. Mix everything thoroughly to evenly distribute the spices and close with a clip. We put in the oven in a casserole dish, but do not cover it. Bake for about 60 minutes. 10 minutes before the end of baking, tear the bag open to make the wings and legs golden brown. Once they are soft, bake them without the bag
We make a white radish salad
Wash the radish, peel it and then grate it on coarse meshes. Add pepper, salt, a few tablespoons of cream and mix everything thoroughly. The salad is ready. 😋😋😋
Last days on the catwalk - Flamingos in the Silesian Zoo
The first days of October brought a lot of warming, and the so-called Indian summer appeared, but the coming autumn will bring a lot of rain and cold with it.
These are the last days when we can admire the birds on the run, the flamingos looking for the last of their heat, basking in the rays of the sun.
They can stand motionless for many hours on one leg. They cuddle their flexible neck in feathers and savor the remnants of heat.
Pink flamingos that live in captivity are basically white. When it spreads its wings, bright orange, pink and sometimes even red discoloration can be seen everywhere. In nature, flamingos consume large amounts of algae and plankton, which contain a substance called astaxanthin, which is a natural red dye that changes the color of flamingo's plumage.
Ramaria eumorpha (Pine coral) mushroom edible or not?
This species of mushroom is quite common in European forests. Its dimensions are difficult to determine, because it consists of many fruiting bodies branching in different directions. But generally you can find groups of fruit bodies that are up to 6-8 cm wide and 10-12 cm high.
The mushroom is an intricate structure, branched, bushy, forked, growing from a common root, the base. Vertical twigs of different heights grow densely next to each other and their ends fork.
The mushroom is light or dark brown, honey color, sometimes cinnamon, translucent. Young fruiting bodies may have a light yellow color. The lack of a cap and the common root from which individual fruiting bodies grow resembles a broom.
In my country, the mushroom is considered inedible, which does not mean that it is poisonous. It is said to be consumed in China, Mexico and Madagascar. Perhaps it has some properties we don't know about yet, although the wealth of mushrooms in Europe is so great that this one probably has to line up in a long queue before it ends up in my kitchen.😉
Warm sunsets on cool autumn evenings in beautiful Silesia
Fall is a beautiful time to watch the sunsets. The trajectory changes day by day, the sun is getting lower and the closer to winter, the more picturesque the sunsets. The sun on the horizon turns bright orange to red.
In the place where I have been taking pictures for many years, the sunsets are unique. The lack of leaves on the trees means that you can get interesting, quite mystical effects without using any filters or graphics programs.
These photos were taken without any enhancements, they are not processed at all and I guess that's the charm of them. Trees come to the fore, making the background out of focus, slightly blurry. Even though this autumn evening was very chilly, the warm sun warmed the imagination.
Enjoy 😉
Photo: Nikon Coolpix S9300
© copyright marianomariano
Shaggy scalycap- easy to mistake for honey fungus
This mushroom species is a classic example of an autumn arboreal mushroom. It appears regularly in October and grows until late autumn.
It can be confused with the honey mushroom by inexperienced mushroom pickers. Shellfish is not poisonous, but adding it to a dish can effectively discourage eating it.
Although the mushroom has a very pleasant smell, it is tough and very bitter in taste, therefore, although it is not poisonous, it is considered inedible.
His hat changes a lot over time. At first it is spherical, covered with characteristic small hyphae, up to 4 cm in size, but with time it becomes flat, devoid of warts and can reach up to 20 cm in diameter.
The color of the hat and the leg is yellowish, goldenish, sometimes orange-yellow. The leg is thick, chunky, often bent, also covered with rough spike-like scales, full inside. It shows a characteristic ring that fades over time. The fungus most often grows at the base of the tree, but this species can also be found at high altitudes.
It is a fairly common species of mushroom. It grows on dead and living trees, mainly deciduous, most often near the ground. It can be found in parks, on roadside trees in deciduous and mixed forests.
Ribs stewed with forest mushrooms, i.e. Slippery jack
Slippery jack mushrooms are specific mushrooms, some do not like them because of the time-consuming processing, while I am their admirers. They have such a unique and unique aroma and taste that they are successfully used in the kitchen.
Apart from the fact that they are perfect for scrambled eggs or sauces and soups, they are also suitable for meats. In my experience, they are best suited to fatty braised pork ribs. I tried other mushrooms in combination with ribs - unfortunately they don't stand a chance, Slippery jack are one of a kind.
Ingredients
1 kg of fresh pork ribs, 1 kg of fresh Slippery jack, if not, they can be frozen, onion, garlic, soy sauce, vegetable fat, spices, salt, bay leaf, allspice, and a lot of pepper, because butterflies love it. For this, potatoes, green dill and white cabbage, carrots and a tablespoon of mayonnaise for the salad.
more...
https://hive.blog/hive-120586/@marianomariano/ribs-stewed-with-forest-mushrooms
Cordyceps militaris - medicinal mushroom, hope for patients with joints
Medicinal properties - Cordyceps medicine for joints
It is true that the mushroom is inedible, but it has a wide range of health applications. It is a parasite of caterpillars and insect pupae from which it grows. The fungus infecting the pupa produces a substance called cordycepin, which gives hope to patients with osteoarthritis. Cordycepin is also obtained from other mushrooms known in the Far East for their medicinal properties. Oral cordycepin has been shown to reduce pain and stop the progression of osteoarthritis and joint disease. Drugs obtained from the Cordyceps militaris can help people who are not affected by any other treatment methods. Products from the Cordyceps militaris are generally available, most often under the names CORDYCEPS, KORDYCEPS.
The fruiting body of the mushroom can reach 5 cm in height and 1 cm in thickness. It can be distinguished by a stem and a head. The head is usually club-shaped (hence the name of the mushroom), but in this case it looks more like a crab claw. Most often, however, it is cylindrical, tapering at the bottom. The color is very distinctive and well visible in the forest - orange, orange-red. The surface of the fungus is not smooth, papillary, it resembles an orange peel.
Foot up to 5 cm in length. The color is slightly lighter than the head, bright orange, the base itself may even be white. Cylindrical shape. Empty inside. Flesh of the mushroom lighter than the peel, but in its shade, creamy, light orange, hard, has no noticeable taste or smell.
Occurrence - The fungus can be found naturally on moth larvae and pupae, moths buried in the ground in the autumn. It is a parasite. In Asia, it is cultivated on an industrial scale, on various substrates, e.g. silkworm pupae, rice. In Poland, more and more rare.
If you are desperate and like the smell of herring? - this mushroom is for you - Crab brittlegill
There is a universal saying that "a drowning man grabs a razor" Strangely enough, it also fits well with mushroom pickers. To get out of the forest with your face, you have to have something in the bin. And here comes another saying - "better saffron milk cap than nothing". Only that the latter saying is very outdated. Today, finding a healthy rust is almost a miracle.
Well, sometimes we are left with collecting niche species, that is, those that children kick with their shoes in the park - Crab brittlegill.
The name of this species comes from its color, as it has a brown color, reminiscent of red wine. But it also has another name that comes from its scent - herring Crab brittlegill.
Turkish turtledove (Sierpówka) - a smaller and calmer variety of pigeons
This beautiful bird, belonging to the pigeon family, although it is quite common, is not very often seen in urban agglomerations. He is timid, does not like large groups, likes peace and life in pairs.
This bird is the Turkish turtledove, or in other words the "Sierpówka". The name of the sickle cell comes from the black stripe around the neck, surrounded by a white border that resembles a sickle. On the other hand, another name, the Turkish turtledove, comes from the fact that it came to Europe from Turkey from the Ottoman times.
It looks like a viper, but appearances are deceptive - a Slow worm
While walking in the forest meadows, especially in the autumn, when the sun is no longer too strong, we can come across various creatures.
Sometimes it is a lizard, sometimes a grass snake or a field viper. This time, however, I encountered something else - it was slow worm. Although the name is common, the same animal is less so, it looks like a small viper, often sticking out its tongue. It is covered with patterns that resemble a young viper. Of course, these are appearances, because the slow worm does not reach large sizes. Usually it is several dozen centimeters, so far, an individual that would be more than half a meter long has not been seen yet.
And here's a surprise, because the slow worm is a legless lizard. It twists like a snake, behaves similarly, but is a lizard. As this species is not poisonous, I decided to grab it with my hands for a moment to look at it more closely.
The lizard is most active at night and at dusk, and it feeds mainly on small snails, larvae, and earthworms, and is very timid. Its activity ends with the onset of autumn, when the first frosts appear, then it hibernates.
it's over, bye bye
Fresh porcini mushrooms in a cream sauce stewed in white wine with onion and Pene noodles
The period when we can enjoy fresh species of mushrooms, especially noble ones, is very short. Sometimes it lasts two months, sometimes a week, or it is not there at all because there was a crop failure, a drought.
However, we managed to take advantage of this year's harvest and collect quite a lot of boletus. We dried only some of them, and the rest of the young, plump and healthy specimens were made into our favorite dish - porcini mushrooms in a cream sauce.
The following ingredients are needed to make the dish
1 kilogram of fresh young healthy white mushrooms, including the legs. Sour cream with a fat content of 30%, grated yellow Parmesan cheese, 100 ml of semi-dry white wine, onion, Pene pasta, butter, parsley, spices, salt, pepper.
more on my HIVE profile
https://hive.blog/hive-120586/@marianomariano/fresh-porcini-mushrooms-in-a
Spicy wild mushroom tripe - Parasol mushroom tripe
Ingredients
A few large, healthy Parasol mushroom, two carrots, two parsley, celery, onion, vegetarian stock cube, dried marjoram, pepper, salt.
Preparation of mushrooms
Clean and rinse the Parasol mushroom. We cut them into strips.
In a frying pan, fry the diced onion in butter.
Once it is fried, add the chopped mushrooms and stew for a few minutes.
Preparation of vegetables
Wash parsley, carrot and celery, peel and grate on coarse mesh, put in a frying pan and fry.
Add the sautéed vegetables, sautéed mushrooms to the prepared stock and stew it for a few minutes. We also add spices, the most important of which is marjoram. Also add salt, pepper, soy sauce, hot pepper and simmer until tender. The tripe ready.
Enjoy 😋
A sinking ship
I am finishing my adventure with NOISE.CASH, there is no reliable evaluation system anymore, and most normal and conscious people leave such places - I also do. And who knows where to find me, he will find it.
Crows - ordinary jackdaw, with extraordinary intelligence
This bird can probably be found in every corner of the world. He loves large urban agglomerations where he lives with crows and rooks from dawn to dusk.
In my vicinity, they are almost a natural clock. In the morning they signal the sunrise to me with terrible screams and gibberish, and the same thing happens in the evening. The difference is that in the morning huge herds come down from the roofs and land behind the feeding grounds, and in the evening the whole herds return to the tall buildings, from where they have a great vantage point over the entire area.
Unfortunately, this has its drawbacks, because unlike other crow species that build nests in trees, jackdaw or ventilation shafts, chimneys, all sorts of recesses in buildings and becomes a nuisance for their hosts. In natural conditions, it also looks for recesses and holes, and these are usually tree hollows.
Outstanding intelligence
Most of you know that the jackdaw is above average intelligent. She can be taught human speech fairly quickly, of course by the principle of sound imitation. Kaka can also distinguish shapes and match, for example, blocks of appropriate shapes to the corresponding holes. It quickly connects with people and tames them. In home and safe conditions, it can live up to 40 years.
@marianomariano
