The Striped Lynx Spider

Looking closely at the leaves of the plants in my garden, I spotted a Striped Lynx Spider in the garden at my home in Gurgaon. At first, I thought it was a rolled-up dry leaf, but then on looking closer, I realised that it was a spider that I had probably never seen before. 

When I blew up the photographs that I had taken of the spider I noticed, with a bit of horror the rather sharp, pointed spikes on its legs. Swallowing up my revulsion I realised that like the other spiders that I have photographed, this one too is beautiful to look at ( perhaps not with the naked eye but after magnification). I am sure the reader of this blogpost will accept that this is indeed a smart-looking spider!

Incidentally, I used a Canon 1500D with an IS-II 55-250mm zoom lens with an aperture of f-13, ISO setting of 800 and a shutter speed of 1/200. And yes I used a fill-in flash to get the colours right. To really appreciated the beauty of this arachnid, I would like the reader to zoom in as much as possible.

The Striped Lynx Spider (Oxyopes salticus) is a small spider that feeds on a variety of insect prey. It legs as you can see are full of spines. These spiders are ambush hunters that run after their prey often waving their two foremost legs. It is clear that they don't rely on webs to catch their prey. The one that I spotted lay in ambush on top of a leaf, that is before it hung upside down on one of the tendrils of a creeper. These spiders can be venomous so be careful which observing them.

Phintella vittata - The Golden Jumping Spider

I have been seeing a few tiny Golden Jumping Spiders on the leaves of the creepers in my garden for quite some time now and decided to photograph them. These tiny creatures would have missed my attention if it hadn't been for their very bright golden colour which is visible even from a distance. A few millimetres in size ( the largest being 4 millimetres), these spiders jump in a flash disappearing into the foliage. This tiny spider is also known by its scientific name, Phintella vittata or Banded Phintella.

The Banded Phintella or, as I would call it, the Jumping Golden Spider is a very shy species of the Spider family and although it stays mostly hidden under leaves, it does come up topside, probably to gather some heat from the sun. It is also very sensitive to light and reacted sharply to the flash of my camera. These spiders I later came to know can detect ultraviolet light which they use to reflect with their body surface. Males reflect this UV light to create a golden colour meant to attract female mates.

The Banded Phintalla is a very distinct species of the spider family and in spite of its rather tiny size, it can not be missed by those who are looking for something as flashy as gold on the leaves of creepers and plants. The golden colour is not as visible in photographs as with the naked eyes, especially as it is drowned out by the flash. This suggests that the intense golden colour is the result of the way  UV light is reflected off the tiny hair that covers its body. Whatever might be the case, I cannot help argue that the Golden Jumping Spider is one of the most beautiful of the spider species.

Photographing Bees in Flight - A Few Tips

I took some of my best flying bee photographs during the lockdown period and this was possible because of a creeper that has abundant flowers, an attraction to not only Honey Bees and Bumblebees but also Sunbirds. Surprisingly enough I took quite a few photographs of flying Honey bees using manual focus and fill-in flash. Autofocus cannot handle tiny fast-flying insects and the flash is used to freeze motion.

Another, most important factor in photographing flying bees is the lighting. Some of the best snaps were taken early in the morning in subdued lighting when the flash could be used without the fear of overexposure resulting in the washing out of colours. The setting that worked for above snaps included an f-stop of 8, shutter speed of 1/200, an ISO of 800. However, these settings might not work for all lighting conditions.

Bumblebees are fun to photograph, especially as they're bigger than Honeybees and a bit slower. Unlike the earlier snaps of the Honeybees, I used natural lighting for all the photographs of the Bumblebees. Also, since the Bumblebees were at a greater distance, I used the camera's Autofocus function. The shutter speed also went up to 2000 and above in order to freeze motion.

Unfortunately, the greater distance of the Bumblebees compared to the Honeybees resulted in a tradeoff in the quality of the images. However, the snaps came out quite well as you might agree!

I decided to add a few more miscellaneous photographs of Sunbirds, Wasps and Moths because they are relatable to Bumblebees and Honey Bees. In fact, they all feed on nectar and they all help in pollination of flowers. It is a known fact that pollinators play an important role in preserving the well-being of our planet. Somebody even claimed that when bees go, we will go too! If you look closely at the hind legs of the Honey Bees and the Bumble Bee, you will see thick sacs of pollen. Sometimes these sacs are so heavy that the insects find it difficult to fly.

The female Sunbird lacks the dark purple colour of its mate, and it is mostly green in colour. This pair visits the garden frequently and they are a couple, surely!

Keeping Quiet- An Analysis of Pablo Neruda's Poem

Learning Targets

1. I can analyse the central theme of a poem and explain its relevance to life.

2. I can describe the message that the poet wants to pass to the reader.

3. I can identify different figures of speech and explain why the poet has used them.

4. I can identify the symbols and metaphors used by the poet.

5. I can describe the poet’s style of writing and the way the poem has been written.

6. I can support my observations with evidence from the text.

Central Theme

In this poem, Pablo Neruda talks about the necessity of quiet introspection and creating a feeling of mutual understanding among human beings.

The Poet’s Message

 The poet's expectation from his readers is also contained in the second stanza when he says, "let's not speak...let's stop...and not move".The poet’s message is that all of us should take time from our busy schedules to meditate, introspect and observe moments of stillness so that we can foster sound mental health. It is important to pause, sit quietly in order to take stock of how we are. Simply working without any break, running like rats in a rat race will only kill us emotionally, mentally and physically.

Important Symbols and Metaphors

The number twelve: The passage of time, stillness of time when the hour, minute and seconds hands come together, unity, twelve months in a year, twelve divisions on a clock face.

Whales: Nature, nature that has been suppressed.

The man gathering salt: Working class, people who labour with their hands

Green wars: Biological warfare, destruction of nature

Wars with Gas: Chemical warfare

Wars with fire: Conventional warfare

Victory with no survivors: Atomic warfare, War with WMDs. (also a contradiction).

Dormancy and Hibernation: Symbol for a period of dormancy in trees, seeds, animals. Trees shed their leaves only to grow them back in the spring season. Seeds lie dormant till it rains from a dormant state they become active, growing into plants and trees.

What does the poet want the Reader to do?

In the second stanza the poet states ‘Let’s not speak in any language, let’s stop one second, and not move our arms so much.’ ‘Arms’ here is a pun, it means human arms and weapons. He wants his readers to keep still, pause and not to speak. In other words, he wants his readers to keep quiet.

How will keeping quiet Help us?

There are multiple benefits of keeping quiet according to the poet. The first benefit would be, according to the third stanza, that ‘we would all be together’. In other words, all humanity would be united. In the fourth stanza, he states that ‘whales’ would not be hunted, and  ‘the man gathering salt would look at his hurt hands.’ In other words, the man gathering salt would have time to tend his wounds. In the fifth stanza, the poet suggests that keeping quiet would bring to an end all kinds of war. It would promote pacifism and peace throughout the world. It would defeat the evil designs of people in power, ‘Those who prepare…wars’. It would bring an end to the threat of biological, chemical, atomic and conventional warfare. In the sixth stanza, ‘a huge silence might interrupt this sadness of never understanding ourselves’ because of which we are ‘threatening ourselves with death.’ This obsession for success, and prosperity has forced us to become strangers to each other and ourselves. We need to take time to introspect and meditate, and spend time with each other so that we are really not threatening ourselves with imminent ‘death’.

Will Keeping Quiet Benefit Nature?

According to the poem, keeping quiet will benefit the Earth and Nature. In stanza 4, the poet writes that when fishermen practice inactivity, they will ‘not harm whales’. Whales are part of nature and they will get a respite from being hunted. In stanza 5, the poet talks about how keeping quiet and practising moments of stillness will help thwart ‘Those who prepare green wars.' Green wars can also be interpreted as a war against nature, the destruction of green cover with napalm and agent orange a defoliant that was used in the Vietnam war. Both napalm and agent orange destroyed large tracts of forest cover so that the enemy could not hide and be exposed.

What are the lessons that the Earth can teach us?

The Earth, and Nature, both have important lessons to teach us. They teach us why it is important for us to take regular breaks from our routines, and how under apparent stillness there is life. The Earth and Nature make use of periods of dormancy and hibernation as moments when organisms enter into a period of rest only to wake up with renewed vigour and energy. Take, for example, trees that shed their leaves during the Autumn season, or for that effect seeds that appear to be lifeless and dead but burst into life at the opportune moment.

Figures of Speech

1. Alliteration

we will

we would

sudden strangeness

his hurt hands

so single

2. Pun

cold sea

arms

Style of Writing

The two couplets at the beginning of the poem and the end of the poem serve to contain or encapsulate the six stanzas. Also, note the shift in narration in the first couplet from “ Now we” to “Now I’ll”. The  “Now we” suggests the poet being part of the exercise and “No I’ll” suggests that the poet wants to give them some privacy. The poem consists of two couplets two quatrains it is written more as a free-verse. Notice also that each stanza is a run-on sentence, typically called an enjambment. 

Reference to Context Questions

I.  Now we will count to twelve

    and we will all keep still.

    1. Who is “we” in the first line?

    2. Why will we count to twelve?

    3. Identify the figure of speech used in the first line.

    4. Identify the figure of speech in the second line.

II For once on the face of the Earth

   let’s not speak in any language,

   let’s stop for one second,

   and not move our arms so much.

   1. What does the poet not want his readers to do in the second line?

   2. What does the poet want the readers to ‘stop for one second’?

   3. What figure of speech has the poet used in the fourth line?

   4. What will happen if we follow the poet’s instructions?

III It would be an exotic moment

     without rush, without engines,

     we would all be together

     in a sudden strangeness.

     1. What would be an exotic moment? Why would it be exotic?

     2. Identify the figure of speech used in the third line.

     3. Identify the figure of speech in the last line.

     4. What effect would this exercise have on “all” of us?

IV Fishermen in the cold sea

     would not harm whales

     and the man gathering salt

     would look at his hurt hands.

     1. Identify the figure of speech in the first line.

     2. Whom does the man gathering salt represent?

     3. What do ‘whales’ symbolise?

     4. What figure of speech has the poet used in the last line?

VI   What I want should not be

      confused

      with total inactivity.

      Life is what it is about:

      I want no truck with death.

      If we were not so single-minded

     about keeping our lives moving,

     and for once could do nothing,

     perhaps a huge silence

     might interrupt this sadness

     of never understanding ourselves

     and  of threatening ourselves with

     death.

     1. What should the reader not be ‘confused’ about?

     2.  In what way are we so ‘single-minded’?

     3.  What does the poet want the world to do in order this ‘sadness’?

     4.  Why are we ‘threatening ourselves with death’?

VII   Perhaps the Earth can teach us

       as when everything seems dead

       and later proves to be alive.

       1. What metaphors of nature has the poet invoked in this stanza?

       2. What does the ‘Earth’ represent in this stanza?

       3. Explain, ‘when everything seems dead and later proves to be alive’. Give suitable examples.

VIII Now I’ll count up to twelve

       And you keep quiet and I will go.

       1. Who is I in the above stanza?

       2. What is the significance of ‘twelve’?

       3. Who is ‘you’ in the stanza?

       4. How is the last stanza different from the first stanza? What does this shift signify?

Some Ponderable Questions

1. How has lockdown in today’s times benefitted nature and perhaps even humanity in general (apart from the fatalities we have been recording)? Do you think nature has benefitted from human beings staying at home and not venturing out?

2. Pablo Neruda died in 1973, much before we even came into this world and yet he wrote about the human predicament in the age of technology. Do you think, “Keeping Quiet” is a futuristic prediction of life in the 21^st Century?

3. In this age of technological advancement, do you think the lessons taught by ‘the Earth’ from nature have any relevance for us today? Is keeping quiet and keeping still relevant to us today?

      

   

Rainbows, Golden jumping spiders and Parrots in Times of Lock-down

So then what do you do at home, after taking your online classes? You can't step outdoors, nor meet others, thanks to lockdown and social distancing. Staying at home would be enough to drive anyone crazy. But then, there are ways for keeping busy ( apart from getting to connect with your family) and for me, this includes taking photographs from my home of things around me. Looking at the branches of a distant tree with parrots darting, diving and dancing in the air, or perhaps even an ordinary jumping spider trying to grab a fly for breakfast (though unsuccessfully as the fly flew away each time the spider almost reached) would teach you a lesson in patience. 

I wonder what makes the golden spider golden! This tiny creature, barely a few millimetres in size might escape notice but for its sparkling flash of gold. I used flash, sunlight, macro, manual, everything that I had to get a decent enough shot of this interesting arachnid. Unfortunately, all the snaps were taken hand-held.

And then just when you are done taking photographs of the golden jumping spider, you spot a metallic greenfly that is again so tiny that you'd miss it if it were not for that bright metallic colour that catches the last rays of the sinking sun, a veritable jewel of amazing beauty! Again, you are hard-pressed for time and who'd miss the opportunity of taking a few pot-shots of this amazing work of art!  I just couldn't miss it, even if it meant that I would have to shoot handheld! 

One the days I caught Clarence the jumping spider trying to capture a fly for breakfast. Unfortunately, each he drew close to breakfast, it would fly away. He did keep trying and I gave him company till in the end even I lost patience and decided to go indoors.

Talking of parrots, well they can be noisy, full of energy, and yes, they bully their own friends. Now, these parrots are different from the Alexandrian Parrot that I photographed some time back. Alexandrian parrots have a crimson ring around their necks and a slash of crimson on their wings.

Of all things beautiful, even ordinary plants and common flowers have a quality about them which is amazing. It is surprising how we often take such things for granted during normal times. Unfortunately, it takes times of crisis, lockdowns, and pandemics we are forces to stay indoors and it is during such times we realise how beautiful nature is. We have neglected our duty towards protecting and preserving nature. We have drained out our wetlands, cut down trees, destroyed birds and wild animals and soon even the parrots will be gone. Life after the Corona Virus Pandemic will never be the same. I just hope that we learn to be better and more responsible people once this crisis is over. Life is what it is all about, and appreciating life in all its forms is our beholden duty.

Life is indeed precious and one should each breath that one takes. Looking at the rainbow and perhaps taking the time to look at the clouds scudding across the skies might be some of the best things that we can do during trying times. We have all become so obsessed with work, grades and deadlines that we have forgotten the essential naturalness that exists within each one of us.

Marmalade Hoverfly, Speckled Moth, Caterpillars and Tailor Birds

With lockdown taking place and movement restricted, staying at home took a wholly different meaning. Not being able to visit national parks and wetlands meant that I would be forced to look at things at home to photograph. Perhaps the single most amazing thing was to see and hear birds of different kinds in the vicinity. The most common of all the tiny birds were the sunbirds, green and purple and the tailorbirds too. The blooming Morning Glory flowers and the Curry Leave's flowers were a great draw for different kind of insects, especially the Marmalade Hoverfly and the  Speckled Moth. The Moth incidentally was the first one I spotted in Gurgaon, perhaps it was because of the lower pollution levels.

The Marmalade Hoverfly though is a pretty common visitor and it can be seen feeding on nectar on most of the flowers in the garden. Another rather interesting insect was the caterpillar that was feeding on the leaves of a Lemon plant. I would have missed it if it were not for its light green colour which stood in contrast to the dark green leaf on which it was resting!

I managed to take a couple of shots of the caterpillar, of course with the camera mounted on a tripod. However, whether this caterpillar would have ended up in the beautiful butterfly that came for a drink of water is doubtful.

I guess there are many more interesting insects to photograph, though one would have to shift to macro photography to capture them. Photographing insects can be tricky at times, especially as you need to get close to them and any movement, therefore, is magnified a million times. It makes sense in many cases to use a tripod.

I didn't have much of a problem with the moth especially as it had decided to perch on the roof of my car, and so I used the roof itself to support the camera.

Even though most of the insects I photographed during the day looked rather neat and attractive, there was one that looked rather monstrous. It was a caterpillar that looked as frightening as a Frankenstein!

The counterpoint to all these insects was, of course, the butterfly in all its splendour and beauty. And to wind it all up, I am adding a few snaps of the Tailor-Bird that visits my garden every day. The reason I am adding the bird to a post dedicated to insects is that, firstly, it is no bigger than an insect, and secondly, it probably feeds on the insects that visit the garden. In any case, it is so difficult to take a snap of a Tailorbird for the very reason that it won't sit still. I guess all the smaller birds are so frisky and restless!