Turtles and News

First here is a view of the northern shore of Hawaii and a few flowers before I get to turtles and news.

Hibiscus

A passion flower?

This flower looks a bit like a Begonia:

At last turtles:

A turtle in the late afternoon sun drifting back and forth with the waves.

This one is in one of the tidal pools that were very close to where we stayed. 

They "graze" on sea grass, in the video at the end of this segment you can see the turtle nipping at the sea grass near him; they seem to prefer the "grass" from under water on near the tide line.

Green sea turtles aren't named for the color of their shells they are named for the greenish hue of their skin. Their shells are normally brown, dark olive, gray or black.

The turtles in Hawaii are the Eastern Pacific Green Turtles.

Eastern Pacific green turtles pull themselves onto beaches to bask in the sun:

If you spot a green sea turtle on the beach, it's important to give the animal some space. These turtles were surrounded by a traffic cones and coloured tape to keep the curious at a distance.

In Hawaii, the green sea turtle is referred to as honu and is revered as a symbol of good luck and longevity.

Here is a video I took of a turtle: 

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Art News:

I have 5 paintings in the "Living Colour" show at South Delta Artists Guild Gallery 1710 (Address: 1710 56 St Tsawassen).

The show runs from Thursday April 5 to Sunday April 29, 2018.

The Gallery is open Thursday to Sunday from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm

One of my paintings has already sold even though the show doesn't officially open until Thursday.

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New Painting:

Here is a new watercolour inspired by a building I saw in Puglia, Italy 
called "Puglia Doorway":

Well that's all for this week,

happy Wednesday, with whimsy,

Gillian

Turtle love

Green Sea turtles are the largest hard shell sea turtles. Sightings are not rare in Hawaii, but neither are they abundant; I was excited every time I encountered one of these gentle creatures.

 

 

They can be seen in the water around reefs, grazing on algae in shallow water or on the shoreline soaking up some sunshine.

 

 

 

"The green turtle is listed as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. In 1978, the Hawaiian population of the green turtle was listed as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act of 1973. "

 

"Green turtles were a source of food, tools, and ornamentation for early Hawaiians. With the arrival of western culture, however, the level of exploitation of this resource increased dramatically. Large numbers of green turtles were harvested throughout the Hawaiian Islands through the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In 1974, the State of Hawaii finally passed a regulation providing some protection, but this was virtually ignored until 1978, when the Hawaiian green turtle was placed on the list of threatened species."


"In other parts of the world, green turtles face a serious threat from the destruction and loss of nesting sites. Fortunately, over 90% of nesting activity for the Hawaiian green turtle population occurs at the French Frigate Shoals, inside a National Wildlife Refuge System administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. This, combined with its threatened status under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, has created an environment in which the Hawaiian green turtle should prosper."

http://www.turtles.org/hawgrnd.htm

 

 

I was pleased to get several videos of turtles. here are my you tube videos of turtles:

 

 

Eating:

 

 

Swimming:

 

 

Swimming:

 

 

 

Moving up the beach:

 

 

 

This is a longer video and at the end the turtle yawns (I think)?

 

 

 

That is it for turtles today.

 

I have been busy very busy painting and gardening recently, the garden is coming along, now just need some slightly warmer weather.

 

 

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I have completed a number of paintings, unfortunately I have only photographed one of them.

 

Here it is "Notre Dame Watcher":

 

It is a painting (watercolour) of a grotesque or chimera, most would recognize it as a gargoyle but since it does not drain rain water it isn't a true gargoyle. This one is high up on Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.

 

 

 

It is an odd bird or penguin like creature in a shroud.

 

 

Thanks for dropping by, happy Wednesday,

 

with whimsy,

 

Gillian.