Wildlife – Wildlife and Flower Photography by Melissa Burovac

Goodbye to Summer (and Monarch Butterflies)

I was pretty sad that we didn’t have many monarch butterflies this year, and no caterpillars on the milkweed.

From everything I’ve read lately, the number of monarchs in Ohio were less than half the amount of last year.

If you have a little garden space, no matter where you live, find your native milkweed species and plant some in the spring. The main reason for the decline in monarchs is a loss of breeding habitat.

(Your other pollinators will love it, too.)

Monarch butterflies are now an endangered species, and hopefully we can help them before it’s too late.

Head over to the Etsy Store for both prints and digital downloads. Any butterfly photo can be ordered, just let me know if one you want isn’t listed.

Summer Photos

Bumblebees, Finches and Sunsets

This is just a quick download of some summer photos. Not a lot of butterflies yet, and still holding out hope that a monarch will utilize the milkweed for her babies.

Head over to the Etsy store for both prints and digital downloads. Any matted photo can now be ordered in either black or white matting – just specify when you order.

Hope your summer is going well!

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Fun photos for today

Is anyone else fascinated by buzzards (or vultures, whichever name you use)? These photos were taken in Wayne National Forest at Burr Oak Lake.

According to mythology, Zeus was angry with Prometheus for giving fire to humans. As punishment, Zeus chained him on a mountaintop where vultures ate his liver and flesh; each night he would be healed and endure it anew every day. Prometheus was finally rescued after a dozen generations by Hercules.

(Some versions use eagles instead of vultures but obviously only one fits my photos.)

That would seem to be where vultures get the symbolism of death, rebirth, and purification. Patience and protection are additional symbols.

The new shop on the website has just launched. I’m slowly adding products, but for now it has a few digital downloads ready to purchase and print yourself.

Obviously, this photo is not at Burr Oak Lake. Just a pleasant blue ocean scene from a beach on Kauai.

Have a fantastic day!

Mother’s Day Sale!

Shop now through May 12th and save 25% off orders of $30 or more. Find something great for Mom (or yourself!) and -always -get free shipping

The Hawaii Ocean Photos Etsy Shop offers a variety of photo choices – matted in either black or white border, wall art in metal, canvas or acrylic, or download a digital photo and print it yourself. Custom orders are welcomed.

Head to https://hawaiioceanphotos.etsy.com and pick out your favorites. I’m always happy to answer questions or create a custom product for you.

Don’t forget to sign up for this photo blog for more great photos and sales!

Thank you!

A small selection of new photos

Eventually I’ll get them all off my cameras, but if you know me you know I take way too many. I promise I’ll have all the eclipse photos done soon!

As always, if you’d like a print of any of these let me know. They’ll get to my Etsy shop eventually.

Have a great day!

Kauai – February 2024

I haven’t gone through my millions of photos yet but it was so nice to be back, even if it was a memorial service and paddle out.

Miss you, Mark. And Keith. And Steve. Kauai lost some good ones since I’ve been gone.

If you don’t know, Mark was the subject of “Surfer, Sailor, Smuggler,” but he didn’t want it known to the general public while he was alive. Mark was a great guy and loved by all who knew him.

Beach Turtle

I’m starting to add digital photos to my Etsy page so you can download and print in any size you like. My favorites and best sellers will remain as print only.

Beautiful swim with a manta ray and a few friends from Kauai Ocean Swimming

It may not be exciting to see a manta ray on some islands, but Kauai doesn’t have many. We were thrilled to see this beauty swim by. I didn’t add a soundtrack b/c you can faintly hear whales in the background.

If you haven’t subscribed to this website please go to the home page and hit the subscribe button. I lost all my subscribers when the last website went down so I’m starting from scratch. Or forward this post to anyone who might be interested.

Thanks for reading. Have a beautiful day.

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