Beauty Up-Close. Guest Post by Emma & Tom at Zoomology

Beauty can be found where you least expect it.

Sometimes you don’t even realise it’s there. In our busy lives, you actually have to make a conscious effort to pause and take a closer look.

My partner, Tom, and I are Zoologists. We love the beauty we find in the natural world, just as all humans do. We are all drawn to the beauty of a sunset or of a flower, or of the melody of a dawn chorus.

What not everyone sees, however, is one level deeper. This beauty takes a little more time and effort to view. But, with a keen eye, a magnifying glass, or a macro camera lens, an entirely new world of beauty can be seen.

Zoomology Up-Close (Coromandel Striped Gecko, NZ)
Coromandel Striped Gecko (Toropuku “Coromandel”), New Zealand

The Soldier Fly

Take, for example, the soldier fly. At first glance, they are dull, brown and quite nondescript in appearance. But, take a closer look… What a sight!

Had you ever noticed their iridescent, wildly patterned compound eyes before?

Zoomology Up-Close (Soldier Fly, NZ)
American Soldier Fly (Hermetia illucens), New Zealand

The House Hopper Jumping Spider

What about a jumping spider? Their large, front-facing eyes and cocked heads definitely deserve to be called cute, if not beautiful. If you shooed one away last time, next time take a moment to say, ‘hello’.

Zoomology Up-Close (House Hopper Jumping Spider, NZ)
House Hopper Jumping Spider (Hypoblemum albovittatum), New Zealand

The Ruby-tailed Wasp

A favourite of ours is the ruby-tailed wasp. It is only around 5mm in length, and if you blinked you would miss it. I noticed this little one when it caught the sunlight and glimmered. When we took a closer look, we couldn’t believe our eyes… a precious gem right in our back garden.

Zoomology Up-Close (Ruby-tailed Wasp, UK)
Ruby-Tailed Wasp (Chrysis spp.), England

This beauty has always been here.

We just need to stop and look.

Thank you, Liz, for letting us share with you and your friends.

Readers and Nature-lovers, we’d love to hear the beauty you’ve discovered when you’ve looked up-close. Please share your findings with us!

Many thanks,

Emma and Tom

Emma and Tom write and photograph for their blog, Zoomology, which can be found here: https://zoomologyblog.wordpress.com/

Zoomology Homepage

To read about our encounter with the Coromandel striped gecko, visit here.

To read about the story behind our ruby-tailed wasp photo, visit here.

22 thoughts on “Beauty Up-Close. Guest Post by Emma & Tom at Zoomology”

Add yours

  2. Fabulous close up photos, Emma & Tom! I enjoyed the story of the wasp encounter and that you were able to take advantage of the moment.

    A great addition to your Beauty series, Liz. It really is all around us.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    1. So glad to get your comment Pete! Yes, I’m constantly amazed by their adventures, writing and photography! And I love it that they have both New Zealand and UK connections, shuttling between the two, with plenty of other adventures in between! They’ve recently arrived back in NZ! If you read this Emma and Tom, welcome back to NZ 🙂

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

    2. Thank you, Pete and Liz, for your lovely comments! That means so much to both Tom and I. 🙂

      We are settling well back into New Zealand life. In fact, we have just had the first day of our first contract since we returned. For the next few weeks we’ll be auditing beehives – a new species for us, which is great because we love a new challenge. 😀 🐝

      All the best,
      Emma

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply

Leave a reply to tanjabrittonwriter Cancel reply

Create a website or blog at WordPress.com

Up ↑