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Thursday, July 1, 2010

Water Lily

I've been reading about these special flowers for a very long time. This is a Water Lily. I never thought I would actually ever see one of these with my very own eyes. Flowers usually aren't my thing, but these seem so special and exotic to me. I guess that's why I thought I'd never see one.

I always imagined that water lilies only grew in far off places that I didn't know the name of, even after finding out that they could be found right here where I live. I still don't quite believe I saw these. And yes I said these! Take a look just to the right of the big one in the picture. There's a little tiny one right beside it!

When I first saw these water lilies I knew exactly what they were.I usually have to do a lot of research to find the identity of flowers. Like I said, they're not my usual thing. But look at them! They appear to be glowing as if they give off their own light! It was those glowing lights on the water that I saw first.

This part may have been even better. There are lily pads all over the water here. The flowers grow in so many random places in this field of lily pads. Something that I wish I could have captured with the camera was that whenever the wind would blow the lily pads would flip over half way. It created a very strange looking effect.

Lily pads are also one of my favorites. The first place I ever saw them was in cartoons. There would always be a big bullfrog sitting on one. There were no bullfrogs here, but I am just glad to have been able to see the lily pads. To me these are fun fun fun!

Here's the first one I took a picture of. It looks like a strange glowing fruit or a light bulb or some other thing out of my imagination. I could come up with several more, but I'll just talk about what it really is this time, a water lily. This one just isn't fully open yet.

I stood there for a long time looking at these water lilies, but it eventually became time to move on. There were three big families of geese that were just begging for my attention. I never ignore geese. And they had a bunch of big adolescents with them. Those big older goose children are fascinating with their not quite adult look that they have.

I'm glad I have all of these things to look at right now, because it seems that the internet just isn't cooperating with me very much. I haven't been able to do much the last few days because web pages don't want to load for me right now. I'm sure my service provider is working on it, but I wish they would hurry up. I'll keep on trying though. I always keep on trying.


We have something new for you today at Nature Center Magazine. Copas has decided to try something different. The next state he is writing about is taking him quite a bit longer than expected so he is bringing you a new idea, a new feature called Nature Fun Facts.

16 comments:

  1. That is a gorgeous lily, Ratty! The color white is so pure and fresh. I'm glad you took some photos. I don't see them around here unless I go to Belle Isle.

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  2. Water lilies are not only beautiful to look at but they provide vital functions for aquatic habitats. The shade they cast helps keep water temperatures low. They oxygenate the water during the summer. And they provide cover for both predator fish and prey alike!

    Nice post.

    Bill:wildramblings.com

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  3. Ratty, You caught the light just right in your first photo. It does appear to glow! I love my hardy water lily and have often seen frogs resting on a pad.

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  4. They are lovely indeed. And useful.

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  5. You are right.The water lilies are actually glowing. I can see the light, pure and white light.

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  6. Ratty, how beautiful this shot is. I love water lillies and lotuses - two of my favorite flowers. There is something almost spiritual about them.

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  7. Your second shot looks like an impressionist painting.Monet perhaps.Have you ever seen their seed pod after bloom, real unusual.

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  8. They are very pretty. I've only seen them in pictures though.

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  9. Water lilies are so pretty. I never get to see them myself because 1) I am an indoor-only kitty, and 2) there is not exactly a lot of water in Southern California, so not many places for them to grow (and the places where they are, are usually human-made).

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  10. Ratty- keep looking, you should see them many places in SE Mi. In the early spring you will see red "flashing" on ponds in a breeze. This is the new lily pads which are red on the bottom. The wind will flip up the edges revealing the undersides.

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  11. There are few types of water lily in different colors. They are all beautiful.

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  12. I love both the white and yellow ones..I took some pix of them a few weeks ago too, but I haven't posted them yet. I love the pads in the autumn too..they turn all kinds of shades of red and are gorgeous then too!

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  13. Great post Ratty. I didn't realise that they were not common everywhere! They grow almost like weeds in ponds and the like over here and the rest of Europe. I just presumed everyone had lillies!

    They are great because they completely close up at night and open up again in the morning.

    I have some pictures on my blog somewhere I think, of pink lillies in my friends pond in France. They are stunning flowers.

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  14. And frogs sunbathe on the pads too which is a great shot if you can get it!

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  15. Wow.. beautiful water lilies. They're a common sight over here.. and I thought they were tropical plants. It does give off an exotic beauty when it's out there.

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