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Vol. VI · September 2026

Photography – Creatures that Fly

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Hi everyone, it’s Robbie Cheadle here with you today with my September post in the Animal Photography section on LatinosUSA – English Edition. This month I am featuring photographs of Creatures that Fly.

18 September – Autumn colours

25 September – Sculptures, statues and gargoyles

02 October – Creatures that slither

Bats by Robbie Cheadle

I have always found bats very interesting. I was thrilled to see this camp of bats hanging out under an eve in the Kruger National Park.

Useful bats

canine look alike

Wahlberg’s epauletted bats

fruit juice extractors

have flexible folded lips

to squeeze soft fruits like mangoes

***

male megabats have

raisable shoulder tufts and

air sacks in their necks

which are used to collect food

and make a loud frog-like call

***

size of large pigeons

whooshing bats frighten people

during night-time flights

but these nocturnal creatures

pollinate baobab trees

  • Bat with its canine-like face showing
  • Bat with its head tucked under a wing
  • A photograph of some of the bats in the camp roosting under the eve

Hummingbird hawk-moths by Martin Tayler

Martin Taylor has a lovely blog, Martin’s Bird Blog & Nature Photos, where he shares beautiful photographs of birds and other small creatures that he photographs in the UK and during vacations in Europe.

Outside of his on-going blog, you can find gorgeous photographs from various vacations in Africa and Europe here: https://martinsbirdblog.com/extras/.

Martin’s blog is a birder’s paradise.

The selection of photographs below of the hummingbird hawk-moth are from this post: https://martinsbirdblog.com/2026/08/16/16th-august-2026-southleigh-east-devon/

Picture caption: Hummingbird hawk-moth drinking nectar from a beautiful patch of purple flowers.
Picture caption: a hummingbird hawk-moth with its probiscis extended sipping from tiny pink flowers.
Picture caption: Hummingbird hawk-moth from a back angle which demonstrates how long its probiscis is.
Picture caption: Hummingbird hawk-moth with its probiscis rolled up

Birds by Laura Putman

Laura Putman has a lovely nature blog. This is her introduction to her blog:

I am humbled by the magnificence and beauty of our planet, it is incomparable. I’ve loved and enjoyed nature since I was a young girl. I’ve been a serious photographer for over a decade. In 2012 I’ve developed this blog and dedicated my photography to wildlife, nature conservation and telling stories with my camera. Wild animals are naturally intertwined with the health of our ecosystem and vital to humanity’s existence. Our dependency on nature spans basic needs (food, water, oxygen) to cultural, spiritual, and mental health benefits, forming the natural heritage that supports human existence. It is my intention as a nature enthusiast to capture the essence of the natural world in the form of mindful, inspiring images to connect people with the sacredness of it all

I also write, I created a blog focused on being and living authentically, The Wisdom of a Woman’s Heart, if you’re interested, here is the link laurasusanputman.wordpress.com.

Laura says: «I came across this adorable family of Mallard ducks when I was walking through a nature park in late spring. I couldn’t resist taking photos of these baby Mallards with their mom laying next to the lake in the morning sun.»

Picture caption: A gorgeous picture of a mother Mallard duck and her chicks against a green grassy background.

Laura says: «I discovered this beautiful creature on a walk this past spring. The common name «widow» comes from the male’s mating behavior: unlike other dragonflies where the male stays to guard the female while she lays eggs, the male widow skimmer leaves her to guard the eggs alone.»

Picture caption: Widow Damesfly with delicate wings of black and transparent white

Great horned owl by Wayne Barnes

Thank you to nature and wildlife photographer, Wayne Barnes, for allowing me to showcase some of his gorgeous photographs here. You can find Wayne’s photographs on his blog, Tofino Photography, here: https://tofinophotography.wordpress.com/.

Several of Wayne’s wonderful photographs feature in my poetry book, Square Peg in a Round Hole, which is available from Amazon US here: https://www.amazon.com/Square-Peg-Round-Hole-Creativity-ebook/dp/B0CW1H3SQV

What Wayne says about this great horned owl: «I heard from a friend that there was a Great Horned Owl in the area and dropped what I was doing and headed out with my gear.

It was difficult getting a good shot because of all the trees in the way. I had to climb on top of a roof to get a semi clear shot and it was still at a distance or at least much further than what I would of preferred!
Beautiful creatures!

A phoned a good friend (Adrian Dorst) who is the local birding expert about the Owl and he came out to have a look as well. He told me that this one is a Matured Owl and was just resting. They,as you all are aware of,hunt at night. That Crow wouldn’t stand a chance against this fellow at night!

The Owl would surprise him and invite him to dinner!
Crows bother my finely feathered friends all the time and it would be nice to see one of them to get their comeuppance!»

You can read the original post here: https://tofinophotography.wordpress.com/category/wildlife/birds/great-horned-owl/

Picture caption: A gorgeous photograph of a great horned owl by Wayne Barnes

yellow eyes burning

focused on potential meal

waiting for its chance

A Selection of Flying Creatures by Derrick Knight

Derrick Knight is a wonderful photographer and shares delightful book reviews and garden and home posts on his blog. Where the photographs are extracted from a blog post, I’ve included the link to the post beneath the photograph/s.

I’ve included the link to Derrick’s post which comments on the lighthouse below but it does not contain the photographs as they were lost when he transitioned to a new blog: https://derrickjknight.com/2019/02/04/durdle-door/

Derrick’s lovely photographic contributions this week are from these posts: https://derrickjknight.com/2025/08/19/flowers-and-flyers/; https://derrickjknight.com/2024/05/08/208922/; https://derrickjknight.com/2015/10/04/the-unidentified-fir-bed/; https://derrickjknight.com/2024/04/18/the-gingko/; https://derrickjknight.com/2016/11/21/a-murmuration/; https://derrickjknight.com/2021/11/07/a-sunset-seagull-squabble/ and https://derrickjknight.com/2025/01/20/gaggles-and-more/

Rajah Brooke’s Birdwing by Michael Sammut

Nature lover and photographer, Michael Sammut, blog’s at life experiences and adventures. Michael posts beautiful photographs and poems about all sorts of delightful creatures.

What Michael says about this Rajah Brooke’s Birdwing: «The Rajah Brooke’s Birdwing is a birdwing butterfly found in the rainforests of the Thai-Malay Peninsula, Borneo, Natuna, Sumatra, and various small islands west of Sumatra.» You can continue reading here: https://lifeexperiencesandadventures.wordpress.com/2026/08/29/insects-photo-click-67-rajah-brookes-birdwing/

About Robbie Cheadle

Picture caption: Robbie Cheadle author photograph

South African author, photographer, and artist, Robbie Cheadle, has written and illustrated seventeen children’s books, illustrated a further three children’s books, written and illustrated four poetry books and written and illustrated one celebration of cake and fondant art book with recipes. Her work has also appeared in poetry and short story anthologies.

Robbie also has two novels and a collection of short stories published under the name of Roberta Eaton Cheadle and has horror, paranormal, and fantasy short stories featured in several anthologies under this name.

You can find Robbie Cheadle’s artwork, fondant and cake artwork, and all her books on her website here: https://www.robbiecheadle.co.za/

Social Media Links

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/robbiecheadle.bsky.social
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVyFo_OJLPqFa9ZhHnCfHUA
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15584446.Robbie_Cheadle
TSL Publications: https://tslbooks.uk/product-tag/robbie-cheadle/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Robbie-Cheadle/author/B01N9J62GQ
Unsplash profile: https://unsplash.com/@r_cheadle

Reacciones en fediverso

46 respuestas a «Photography – Creatures that Fly»

  1. Avatar de thomasstigwikman

    There are a lot of interesting photos here, bats, birds, bugs, butterflies and much more. I’ve never heard of the hummingbird hawk-moth before. What an interesting insect.

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  2. Avatar de derrickjknight

    A splendid collection this week, Robbie. Your bats and Wayne’a owl both have fine poetic additions. I know how difficult it is to focus on those moths of Martin’s, so congratulations to him.

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  3. Avatar de Michael Sammut
    Michael Sammut

    Thank you very much, Robbie 😊 🙏.

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      💚

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      1. Avatar de Michael Sammut
        Michael Sammut

        💚🙏

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  4. Avatar de Poetry By Maggie Watson

    A wonderful selection of photographs.
    The birdwing is stunning.
    Thanks to you and the other contributors 🤗

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      Hi Maggie, thank you. I’m so pleased you enjoyed this post.

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  5. Avatar de T. W. Dittmer

    It’s very nice to see all these lovely pictures of creatures that fly and read the fantastic descriptions and wonderful poetry by Robbie and Wayne!

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      Thank you, Tim. I’m so pleased you enjoyed this post 👌💙

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      1. Avatar de T. W. Dittmer

        My pleasure, Roberta. 😍

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  6. Avatar de Suzette Benjamin

    Oh, this is a beautiful share, Robbie. All the photographer’s images are amazing examples of nature’s beauty. I love them all. I could not choose a favorite. I love the beautiful descriptions of the photographers about their work. Your poetry about the bats is fabulous. I learned a few things about bats too.

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      Hi Suzette, thank you for this lovely feedback. I’m so pleased you enjoyed this post and learned a bit about bats too.

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      1. Avatar de Suzette Benjamin

        You are very welcome, Robbie.

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      2. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

        💛

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  7. Avatar de Darlene

    What a wonderful collection of creatures that fly.

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      Thank you, Darlene

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  8. Avatar de martintayler

    That’s really kind of you, Robbie. Many thanks indeed.

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      My pleasure, Martin 🩷

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  9. Avatar de shehannemoore

    So many beautiful pics here– of some of the smallest creatures too. this is a brilliant post and collection.

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      Hi Shey, I’m really pleased you appreciated these pictures 🥰🌈

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  10. Avatar de Annette Rochelle Aben

    enamoring, the photographs of nature’s winged wonders

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      You are right 🤗

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  11. Avatar de Liz Gauffreau

    All of the images are very well-captured, but the  birdwing butterfly is a stunner.

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      Yes, it’s a great picture.

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  12. Avatar de Lauren Scott, Author

    Fabulous photos and poems, Robbie. Since I love owls, that photo stood out, but they’re all amazing.

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      Thank you, , Lauren

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  13. Avatar de Tofino Photography

    I was surprised to see this! I had forgotten all about this shot. Owls, as one would think, are an elusive species.

    Thank you Robbie for including me in your beautiful smorgasbord of our flying friends!

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      Hi Wayne, I’m pleased you saw this post. That owl shot is amazing. I love owls but have very few photographs they are elusive.

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      1. Avatar de Tofino Photography

        You would have loved to see the Snowy Owl a friend had!
        He’s the local bird expert. Someone found an injured Snowy.
        Whenever a bird is injured he volunteers to take care of it. He transport It across island for professional help.
        I just searched for the shots but cannot locate them? I have them and If I do find them I’ll send you some copies! Great BIG yellow eyes!

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      2. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

        Hi Wayne, this bird sounds beautiful. I’ve always found owls fascinating from when I first read about owl in Winnie the Pooh. I think I told you I’ve raised a hoopoe and a dove from tiny chicks.

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      3. Avatar de Tofino Photography

        how precious that must have been!
        It must have been upsetting to release them.

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      4. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

        They just went away by themselves. They left to find mates and build nests. A bit like children really.

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      5. Avatar de Tofino Photography

        and I’m sure they will remember you affectionately.

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      6. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

        Yes, they used to visit me now and then for a long time.

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  14. Avatar de Rosie Amber

    A great post and thank you for the introduction to new faces.

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      Hi Rosie, I’m pleased you enjoyed this post and meeting some terrific nature bloggers.

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  15. Avatar de Resa

    Wow! Thanks everyone!

    There are wonderful photos in this post, impressive. Robbie, adore your bat poem. (& pics). They are a bit frightening, but they are quite cute as well.

    A great post, and it flies! ❦༻★༺❦

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      🥰, I’m glad you like it. Bats can carry rabies so I don’t get too close but I think they are fascinating.

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      1. Avatar de Resa

        True, they do carry rabies.
        Recently there have been bats found near here that have rabies.
        They are fascinating… and I think they are very cute. But yes, from a distance. I have become nervous about them in my hair when I encountered them in underground parking.

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  16. Avatar de Jennie

    What a wonderful collection. I especially like the hummingbird moth, and I must say I do not like bats. At all. Childhood trauma never goes away.

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      I remember you don’t like bats. My sister #3 doesn’t like them either. She had a similar unfortunate experience. I really like the hummingbird moth too

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      1. Avatar de Jennie

        🙂

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  17. Avatar de Teri Polen

    Beautiful collection, Robbie. I’ve never heard of a hummingbird hawk moth. so now I’m educated. I know it’s weird, but I always thought bats were pretty cute. Saw the upcoming schedule, and I think I’ll skip the things that slither. Snakes are a big no for me, lol.

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      Hi Teri, I think bats are fascinating but I am drawn to championing creatures I think get a bad deal through unfair perspectives. That includes snakes 😉

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  18. Avatar de Meelosmom

    Wonderful post and photos of birds!

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    1. Avatar de robertawrites235681907

      Thank you, Barbara 💙

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