Fine scale
Wind alignment
Biologic conjunction
Great ecological variety exists even within small formations.
“Either-or is a construction more deeply woven into our culture than into nature, where even antagonists depend on one another and the liveliest places are the edges, the in-betweens or both-ands….. Relations are what matter most.” – Michael Pollan
Common side
Blotched lizard
Sunbathing
It was a relatively cool day, which made this particular lizard slow to bolt from his sunny perch.
“He viewed us, as we passed him by, with calm and yet with questioning eye, but moveless still, as though the stone were portion of his being’s own.” – Edward Robeson Taylor
Low flight
Cast over
Wet sand
The Boat-tail Grackle is an aquatic creature, nesting in marshes and scavenging on beaches.
“Adult males have entirely iridescent black plumage, a long dark bill, a pale yellowish or brown iris, and a long keel-shaped tail.” – G. Thomas Bancroft
Boggy area
Rhizomatous roots
Long flat leaves
Water and life are tightly intertwined.
“Underwater, they provide a safe haven for tiny fish and attract many of the smaller aquatic creatures that birds and other wildlife feed on.” – Jackie Rhoades
Receptive perception
Direct sensitivity
Framed wildness
A wild horse in the Little Book Cliffs looks magnificent in the late afternoon sun.
“I am glad I will not be young in a future without wilderness.” – Aldo Leopold
Sudden alarm
Compact maneuvers
Over the shoreline
Active little shore birds, dancing with the waves, are a year round fixture on the Outer Banks.
“Each incoming wave brought with it tiny life forms, they need to move fast their morsels for to win.” – Francis Duggan
Primary features
Essential nature
Aesthetics inclination
Seeing possibilities in the details, the native vegetation demands attention.
“It’s to do with abolishing ways of existing or, as Nietzsche put it, inventing new possibilities of life. Existing not as a subject but as a work of art – and this last phase presents thought as artistry.” – Gilles Deleuze
Ancient moment
Buttressed majesty
Needles coppery red
Sharing the water with its shadow, this cypress tree is relatively old and well adapted to its prevailing circumstances.
“On the Outer Banks, bald cypresses flourish in our shallow sound side waters and maritime swamp forests.” – Lexi Holian
Distinct head
Bilateral symmetry
Mantle and arms
Colorful discarded bait temporarily decorates the beach.
“Anything that will bite a hook can be caught with squid.” – Dawn Aylesworth
Beach forage
Gregarious nature
Crustacean scavenging
Interesting reflection patterns appear in wet sand at the edge of the surf, as grackles dig for small invertebrates.
“The common grackle is known to be extremely opportunistic.” – Shane Gannaway