Gatherings. Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo), Black-headed gulls (Chroicocephalus ridibundus), Yellow-bellied sliders (Trachemys scripta scripta) and Yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella)

A get together.

Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) in a tree. (by-nc-nd)

Black Redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros) female

The Black Redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros) is a small passerine bird in the redstart genus Phoenicurus. Like its relatives, it's classed as a member an Old World flycatcher (Muscicapidae). It's widespread in south and central Europe and Asia and northwest Africa, from Great Britain and Ireland to Morocco, east to central China. It is resident in the milder parts of its range, but northeastern birds winter in southern and western Europe and Asia, and north Africa. It nests in crevices or holes in buildings. The Black Redstart is 13–14.5 cm long and weighs 12–20 g. The adult male is overall dark grey to black on the upperparts and with a black breast; the lower rump and tail are orange-red. The belly and undertail are either blackish-grey (western subspecies).. The female is grey (western subspecies) overall except for the orange-red lower rump and tail.
What I especially love about small birds is their cute and sweet contours.

Black Redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros) female with a rice grain. (by-nc-nd)

Dragonflies. Crimson Marsh Glider (Trithemis aurora) and Violet Dropwing (Trithemis annulata)

The Violet Dropwing, Trithemis annulata, is a species of dragonfly in family Libellulidae.
It is found in Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Ethiopia, France, Gambia, Ghana, Greece, Guinea, Israel, Kenya, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Réunion, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and possibly Burundi. It was also recently recorded in the Maltese islands in 2005 and found breeding in 2007.

Crimson Marsh Glider (Trithemis aurora) female on dry stalk. (by-nc-nd)

Red-veined Darter, Nomad (Sympetrum fonscolombii) Male

Red-veined Darter, Nomad (Sympetrum fonscolombii) male on a dry stem.
 (© LightColourShade. All rights reserved)

Clouded Yellow (Colias croceu), Large / Cabbage White (Pieris brassicae)

Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus) is a small butterfly of the Pieridae family. The upper side is golden to orange yellow with a broad black margin on all four wings and a black spot near the centre forewing. The underside lacks the black borders and is lighter, with a more greenish tint, particularly on the forewings. Females differ from the males in having yellow spots along the black borders on the upper side. Like all Colias species they never open their wings at rest.

Clouded Yellow (Colias croceu) on Dittrichia viscosa (False Yellowhead) flower. (by-nc-nd)

Meerkat (Suricata suricatta) in a Cage

"What is it that should trace the insuperable line? ...The question is not, Can they reason? nor, Can they talk? but, Can they suffer?" Jeremy Bentham
Once again a sad sight -- an animal in confinement. Meerkat (Suricata suricatta), aka suricate or sticktail, is a small, burrowing, carnivorous mammal of southern Africa, related to the mongoose. Needless to say, such a frisky creature is a tricky subject for photography.

Meerkat (Suricata suricatta) in cage. (by-nc-nd)

Whorled Plectranthus (Plectranthus verticillatus) Flowers

Plectranthus verticillatus, aka Swedish ivy, Swedish Begonia or Whorled Plectranthus, is a plant in the family Lamiaceae (Labiatae). Plectranthus verticillatus is native to southern Africa, but is also naturalized in El Salvador, Honduras, the Leeward Islands, the Venezuela Antilles, the Windward Islands, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Hawaii as well as south-east Queensland and coastal areas of New South Wales in Australia. Plectranthus verticillatus thrives in indirect sunlight, likes to stay moist, responds well to pruning and can easily be rooted with cuttings. Apart from possessing significant ornamental value, there's a popular myth that this plant is a kind of mojo that attracts love and money into your home.

Plectranthus verticillatus (Swedish ivy, Swedish Begonia, Whorled Plectranthus) flowers. (© LightColourShade. All rights reserved)