Fall certainly has to be one of the times that most nature and wildlife filmmakers are out in full force.

There’s something about the draw of red, yellow and orange leaves that draws filmmakers to dust off their cameras and go out and film!

It’s natures last hurah before that awkward in-between season time when it’s too late for fall color but too early for winter snow.

Another benefit of filming fall color is that the days are cooler and the sun, lower on the horizon gives that magic light for a bit longer each day.

It’s like nature is giving us one grand experience that will have to last us until the snows melt away and the leaves return again in the spring.

Capture the ephemeral spectacle of autumn colours of nature

“Whether it be the buttery yellows of birches, the vivid reds of sycamores or the burning gold of beech trees, autumn colour is an ephemeral spectacle that is not just confined to a few choice nature reserves, but a treat that can be seen just about …The Guardian (blog)”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/blog/2012/oct/02/greenshoots-autumn-colour-nature%3Fnewsfeed%3Dtrue

Filming fall color on an overcast day helps bring out the rich saturated colors. A polorizer will help reduce reflections and saturate the colors even more.

Don’t be afraid to get close and film the details on individual leaves and not just try to take in the whole scene in your frame.

Several states have fall color hotlines that you can find out when the peak color will be for your area. Every year depending on temperature and winds can effect when and for how long peak color will last. Hot dry and windy summers can make for a short season for fall color. So take advantadge of it while you can, get your video camera out there and start capturing the magic of fall color!

Fall is a spectacular time in many parts of the United States. The forests burst with yellows, reds and oranges and delight both young and old.

The changing of the leaves is a popular subject for both nature photographers and nature filmmakers alike. Warm days and cool nights make getting out and enjoying the colors an enjoyable experieince.

Many states have fall color hot lines that you can call to find out which areas will reach their peak color intensity. You can also find this information on the Internet as well.

Leaf-peepers should visit Nature Center

“Nice fall foliage on the front page of the Tuesday issue (”Fall foliage primed to put on a colorful show”). However, you need to add at least one place to your list of leaf-peeping sites: The Huston-Brumbaugh Nature Center, which is south of Alliance …”

http://www.cantonrep.com/opinion/letters/x1784773521/Leaf-peepers-should-visit-Nature-Center

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Whether you’re a photographer, filmmaker or just love nature, you owe it to yourself to get out and see the changing colors of the leaves before they are gone.

Depending on the temperature, amount of rain and a few other factors dictate how much color we’ll see and how long it will last.

With most of the US having record heat and long spells without rain, this year is going to be harder to find large swaths of beautiful fall color. Areas near rivers and lakes will probably have the best color this year.

As long as the winds aren’t to strong and the temperatures don’t drop too far the leaves will provide a great show for us if we’re willing to get out and see it!

If you go out to film leaves in fall, a polarizing filter can help cut the reflections off the leaves. Cloudy, overcast days can also provide better footage as it allows the colors to appear more saturated. Closeups of the leaf structure as well as the vibrant color can also make for stunning nature footage or photographs.

Most of the time it seems that technology does more harm than good when it comes to nature and wildlife. We destroy rainforests, pollute lakes and streams all in the name of progress. It's nice to see technology used for something good when it comes to nature and wildlife. By using drones wildlife biologists can keep tabs on these magnificent creatures with less disruption to their lives than by inavading their forest homes on foot.

Eye in the Sky: Drones Help Conserve Sumatran Orangutans and Other Wildlife

"conservation drone launch What better way to study the world's largest arboreal animals than by putting an eye in the sky? A team of scientists working in Indonesia has done just that by launching inexpensive unmanned aerial vehicles (aka drone …Scientific American (blog)"
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/extinction-countdown/2012/09/27/drones-help-conserve-sumatran-orangutans-wildlife/

Orangatans, also know as the old man of the forest are facing a tough battle to survive as a species. Rainforests are being burned and bulldozed at an alarming rate all in ther name of progress.

It's important that we know exactly what is happening to them and their habitat if we want to ensure their survival! 

Nature and wildlife can survive almost anything if we can give it the space it needs. Hopefully we've not reached the point of no return on these gentle creatures.
 

There’s nothing I love more than spending a day out in a forest exploring nature and wildlife at its finest. Most often I have the entire forest to myself to enjoy. 

In the hectic world we live in today, it’s nice to get back to nature and just sit down and recharge your batteries.

We’re in such a hurry anymore that if we just sit in a forest for a while and stay still, a whole new world opens up to us.

Not only can it lower our stress and blood pressure, but it reconnects us with our nature spirit.

Make some time and visit a forest and just sit and observe. You may like what you see.

Common Forest Wildlife

by Sarahbeth Kluzinski

Nature has a lot to offer, with its beautiful winter seasons and its bountiful springs and summers. The surrounding forest wildlife is a part of nature, and whose presence brings added warmth and wonder. It can be difficult spotting all of nature’s forest wildlife because some hide and burrow, while others live high in the treetops. Let us explore some of the commonly found and well-known wildlife in the forest. We can learn how they live and what they are like.

Animals of All Sorts

There are a variety of different species that make the forest their home, and each and every one of them is fascinating and unique in their own way. The top most common animals known to reside in wooded areas are squirrels, raccoons, and deer. There are many more types of common forest wildlife as well, so be sure to follow the links provided at the end of the article for more ways to learn about animals of all sorts.

Squirrels are members of the medium-sized rodent family. They are furry with slender bodies and long bushy tails. They have excellent vision and sturdy claws for grasping food and for climbing. These qualities are important for any tree-dwelling animal. They are fast little creatures that are prevalent in residential areas as well. They are spotted every single day, all across the country.

Raccoons are another forest dwelling creature that is categorized in the medium-sized mammal family. They have a gray coat, 90% of which is dense under fur that protects them against the cold, as well as a mask-like black strip across their eyes. Their tails are striped black and gray, usually, and their paws are very dexterous. In fact, they are similar looking to human hands. You can find raccoons in the woods and forest, and sometimes in a dumpster or compost pile. Raccoons are very clever, but contrary to squirrels, they are known to be little trouble makers in residential areas.

Deer are very common in the forest, but in more rural areas as well, like the country side. In the forest you can find white tailed deer and deer families in the spring time. The females are called does and the males are referred to as bucks. They are fast sprinters and light on their feet. They are mammals that typically give birth to one fawn, or baby deer. Although many people enjoy eating and hunting deer, there are several hunting guidelines that places limits on where a person can hunt and how much. These rules are very important to the safety of hunters and the deer population alike.

Protect and Respect Nature

The forest is a wonderful source of flora and fauna, and provides warmth, food, and shelter to many admirable creatures in nature. This is why the preservation of forests and wild animals across the country is very important. We need to protect our ecosystem and natural resources so that nature can remain bountiful and harmonious, the way mother nature intended.

If you are ever faced with wild animal invasion or intrusion situation, then please call an Indianapolis Indiana Wild Animal Removal expert for help and advice. For more information on Indiana Wildlife Control, visit our website anytime. You may also call and speak with a professional wildlife and rescue expert at 317-875-3099.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

It’s important not only for nature and wildlife to preserve out natural forests but also for our well being as a species. We’ve lost our connection with nature and I think we’re are paying the price. It costs youo nothing to go out and visit a forest but your time.

When it comes to nature, wildlife and the environement it should be a priority for all Americans and not a pawn in a political debate. 

The wilderness and wildlife that we are destroying won’t come back. Once it’s gone, it’s gone.

When the Environment is at Stake, Conservation Doesn’t Have a …

“One of two captive bald eagles at the Salato Wildlife Education Center in Frankfort, KY. Photo: Pen Waggener / CC BY 2.0. This year’s presidential campaigns are noticeably bereft of serious environmental discussion (see “The Big Crackup”).Audubon Magazine Blog”
http://magblog.audubon.org/when-environment-stake-conservation-doesn%25E2%2580%2599t-have-political-party

Conserving our natural resources should be of concern to every American. Nature and wildlife have no voice of their own so we must be their voice.  Trading wilderness for votes is not only wrong but can create ecological disaster.

While roaming the tallgrass prairies near my home in Eastern Iowa, I often encounter butterflies. They’ve been described as flying flowers and they never fail to delight me whenever I see them.

Whenever I have the opportunity I will always try to film butterflies.

Probably the best time to film butterflies is in the cool mornings right after sunrise. Butterflies must warm themselves up before they take off on their first flight of the day.

Butterflies the Beautiful Insects

by Brian Neil

The colorful insects of butterflies are widely distributed in nature. They have four stages in their life cycles. The egg, the larva, the pupa and the adult are the four. Very often, they are useful insects as they help pollinate flowers of some plants. However, larvae of some species of these insects damage crops by feeding on them. Most butterflies have colorful wings and their flight is fluttering. Some of them migrate long distances.

The butterfly eggs are laid on the underside of leaves and they are covered with strong shells. The shell is again covered with a layer of wax to protect the eggs from drying out. The eggs are glued on to the leaf with glue. Different butter fly species use different plants to lay eggs. Normally, the eggs hatch after a few weeks. However, in temperate regions the eggs laid close to winter will only hatch during spring.

When the eggs of butterflies hatch, the larvae emerge. It spends its entire life time looking for food. Normally, it will eat the plant on which the eggs are laid. In the life of a caterpillar there are stages called instars. At the end of each stage the caterpillar will shed its outer skin like layer. The wings will develop at the last stage. Before that it will develop three pairs of legs.

At the last stages of the larva, the wings are visible from the outside. When the larva comes to this stage it will stop feeding and will go in search of a place to spend its life as a pupa. It will attach itself to the underside of a leaf and go into the pupa stage. The wings will develop in this stage but they will be pleated and packed tightly. Anytime the grown up butterfly emerges, the wings will harden allowing it t fly.

When the adult butterfly emerges it is not able to fly. It has to wait until the blood supply is provided to the wings and until the wings dry up. This process may take from one to three hours. These insects are extremely vulnerable for predators during this time. Once the four wings are dried up, they are able to fly.

Butterflies have tiny scales on their wings. These scales are the ones that provide them with colors. Melanins are the chemical compounds that color these scales. However, blue, green and red colors as well as iridescence are brought about by the structure of the scales and not by pigments.

Butterflies are beautiful insects that have awkward flights. They decorate home gardens during summer. They also help trees to bear fruit by pollinating flowers. However, their larvae could also damage your crops. Pictures of Butterflies.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

If you move slowly and carefully you increase the chances of getting up close to these mobile flowers with wings.   If you notice a pattern of travel, you may be able to set up your film gear ahead of the butterfly and allow it to come to you. A much better situation for filming.

No matter what kind of day you’ve had, seeing a butterfly dance across the tallgrass prairie is certainly a sight to behold!

As a nature and wildlife filmmaker that has had the incredible opportunity to film wolves it saddens me greatly to see that they once again are being persecuted back to extinction in the lower forty-eight of the United States.

Utah groups plead for wolf protections

“This 2004 photograph provided by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks shows an adult male wolf from the Lazy Creek pack north of Whitefish, Mont. Associated Press. Summary. More than a dozen Utah environmental groups have banded together to plead for …Deseret News”
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865563402/Utah-groups-plead-for-wolf-protections.html

Because of their political power, ranchers have declared war on wolves and the goverment is backing them despite the fact that most people feel that wolves shouldn’t be hunted down.

Millions of oour tax dollars were spend reintroducing this keystone predator back into its historical range only to have more millions spent to once again eradicate them.

Where wolves live, the ecosystem has more balance. Land isn’t overgrazed by deer and elk standing around like cattle because they have no fear of predation. Beaves come back when aspens are allowed to grow instead of being eaten be seditary elk and deer.

Wolves keep prey species strong by feeding on the old, weak and injured.

On the other hand, hunters go for the strongest and biggest of a species. If they tell you otherwise, they’re lieing to you.

Wolves are an important part of the environement. Cattle and sheep are not.

Silent Spring was a book that really turned a lot of people into environmentalists. 

Sadly fifty years later things really haven’t improved all that much. While on the surface it looks lilke we’ve made progress the destruction of nature and wildlife continue.

Silencing of nature will hamper the mind

“Since its publication 50 years ago, humanity has continued silencing the languages of nature, through the pesticides that Carson examined, habitat loss, pollution, overfishing, overhunting and climate change, reducing numbers and driving some species …”
http://www.theage.com.au/environment/silencing-of-nature-will-hamper-the-mind-20120928-26qf0.html

As the population of the world continues to grow, more and more pressure will be placed on nature and wildlife. In a showdown between man and nature, nature will always lose in the name of “progress.” We think of ourselves as the most advanced species on the planet yet we are systamtically destroying it bit by bit.  

We are a society that is reactive instead of proactive. Instead of realizing the harm we are doing and trying to stop the damage, we’ll pass it along to another generation until our backs are up against the wall and then we’ll try to do something about it. But where nature is concerned by the time we realize the error of our ways, it may be too late to end the downward sprial.

Just goes to show you that even paying the government isn’t enough to overcome the power of the cattle industry. Why is it that they have so much power and control over land that we pay for with our taxes?

WildEarth Guardians: Update: Government Rejects Guardians Bid for Cow Free Caldera

“The Director of the Valles Caldera National Preserve in New Mexico has declined our offer of $35,000 to not graze domestic livestock on the Preserve. We were hopeful this year in the aftermath of the largest fire in New Mexico’s recorded history that the Preserve would seek to rest the traumatized ecosystems and still get paid.”

http://wildearthguardians.blogspot.com/2012/01/update-government-rejects-guardians-bid.html

I’m not sure what it’s going to take to weaken the stronghold that these cattle ranchers have on our leaders.

Wildlife services kills thousands of animals a year on public property so that their cows can feed unmolested. It’s sad that we the people pretty much have no say in what is allowed on our own land.