Panorama photo app showdown: Field of Jewelweed

The following gallery shows a 21-image panorama photo of a field of Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) spotted during a photowalk through the “Wildlife Sanctuary,” one of seven small parks owned and maintained by the Community Association of Hollin Hills, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. The plant covered a broad area in a clearing of a deciduous forest, between two forks of an intermittent stream running through the park. AutoStitch Panorama app  ($2.99) was used to create the photograph: Photo 1 of 2 is a cropped version of the composite image; Photo 2 of 2 is the “raw” composite image.

I used 360 Panorama app ($1.99) to shoot a geotagged panorama photo of the same field of Jewelweed. A hyperlink to an online interactive version of the panorama photo is listed following the “flattened” version, shown below.

360 Panorama photo (interactive version)

Compare and contrast the AutoStitch Panorama composite image with the same shot created using 360 Panorama and I think you’ll agree with me that AutoStitch is still King of the Hill in the field of panorama photo apps.

Pop! goes the Jewelweedel, revisited

Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) is also commonly known as “Touch-me-not.” Here are a few more “raw” video clips (unedited) that show what happens when you touch “Touch-me-not” seed pods.

Pop! goes the Jewelweedel

Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) is also commonly known as “Touch-me-not.” The following “raw” video clips (unedited) show what happens when you touch Touch-me-not seed pods.

The following photo gallery shows some Jewelweed seeds after they “exploded” from seed pods. Photo 2 of 3 was annotated to highlight a single seed; Photo 3 of 3 is the original photograph.

Related Resources:

• Jewelweed flowers and “fruit”
• Explosive dehiscence – a ballistic form of seed dispersal

Jewelweed flowers and "fruit"

Jewelweed is a species of the plant genus, Impatiens. The following gallery features several close-up photos of Jewelweed flowers and “fruit” (seed pods) spotted during a photowalk through the “Wildlife Sanctuary,” one of seven small parks owned and maintained by the Community Association of Hollin Hills, Fairfax County, Virginia USA.

Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) is also commonly known as “Touch-me-not.” “The seed pods are pendant and have projectile seeds that explode out of the pods when they are lightly touched, if ripe, which is where the name ‘touch-me-not’ comes from.” Source Credit: “Impatiens capensis” (Wikipedia). Photo 2 of 4 is a copy of Photo 3, kindly annotated by Project Noah spotter “AshleyBradford” in order to highlight the flower buds and seed pods; Photo 3 of 4 is the original photograph. Ashley’s comment on my initial Project Noah spotting of Jewelweed piqued my curiosity about the meaning of “Touch-me-not,” which led to further discussion and a follow-up spotting. I’m eager to revisit the site to see what happens when the seed pods are touched! More later in a follow-up post. In the meantime, check out a video clip showing what happens when you touch a “Touch-me-not” (Impatiens glandulifera).

Habitat: The plant covered a broad area in a clearing of a deciduous forest, between two forks of an intermittent stream running through the park, as shown in the following photo gallery.

Silver-spotted Skipper butterfly

A Silver-spotted Skipper butterfly (Epargyreus clarus) feeding on Zinnia flowers (Zinnia sp.), spotted during a photowalk through the Children’s Garden, Hollin Meadows Science and Math Focus School. Silver-spotted Skipper is one of the easier-to-identify Skipper butterflies.

Trumpet vine flowers and "fruit"

Trumpet vine (Campsis radicans), a vining plant featuring red trumpet-shaped flowers. Also known as “hummingbird vine.” I spotted the plant growing along a wooden fence enclosing the power supply for a microwave cell tower.

The following gallery shows trumpet vine flowers as they morph into “fruit” (seed pods). The fruit reminds me of plantains. Look closely — black ants seem to like trumpet vine fruit! I spotted the plant growing wildly in a green space between commercial buildings.

Fossil shark tooth

Carcharodon megalodon fossil shark tooth collected at the Texasgulf Aurora Phosphate Mine, Aurora, North Carolina USA. (Lingual side, shown facing up; labial side, facing down.) C. megalodon, commonly considered to be the ancient ancestor of the modern Great White shark (Carcharodon carcharias), is more likely the ancestor of the modern Mako shark (Isurus sp.).

Habitat: A relatively “shallow” sea that existed along the east coast of the United States an estimated 10- to 15 million years ago, during the Miocene Epoch.

The Aurora Phosphate Mine, formerly owned by Texasgulf Inc., is currently owned and operated by Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan (PotashCorp).

Related Resources:

• Two resources from the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History: The Miocene – Overview; The Miocene – Miocene Marine Life.
• A Key to the Common Genera of Neogene Shark Teeth, Robert W. Purdy, Department of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution.

Editor’s Note: There is some scholarly debate regarding the evolutionary lineages of modern Mako- and Great White sharks. One school of thought contends that Carcharodon sp. should be renamed Carcharocles sp., e.g., Carcharocles megalodon. For more information, see “Carcharodon versus Carcharocles: What’s in a Name?“

Insect exuvia

Insect exuvia, most likely a type of Cicada, spotted during a photowalk through the “Wildlife Sanctuary,” one of seven small parks owned and maintained by the Community Association of Hollin Hills, Fairfax County, Virginia USA. Photo 1 of 3 is a copy of the original photograph, cropped to highlight the exuvia. Photo 2 of 3 was annotated to highlight the exuvia; Photo 3 of 3 is the original photograph.

Tech Tips: Photo 1 of 3 was cropped using Apple “Aperture,” a professional-grade tool for organizing and adjusting photos. Apple “Preview” was used to annotate Photo 2 of 3.

Holes in Blue Atlas Cedar tree trunk

Holes drilled by sapsucker birds (Sphyrapicus sp.) in the trunk of a Blue Atlas Cedar tree (Cedrus atlantica). Photo 1 of 3 was annotated to highlight one of several rows of drill holes; Photo 2 of 3 is the original photograph. Habitat: Landscape planting in a residential community, Fairfax County, Virginia USA.

Tech Tips: The geotagged photos in the preceding gallery were taken using an Apple iPhone 3GS; Apple “Preview” was used to annotate Photo 1 of 3. The photos in the following gallery were taken using a Kodak M1093-IS point-and-shoot digital camera; Apple “iPhoto” was used to geotag the photos.

Abelia flowers and a Bumble bee

A Bumble bee (Bombus sp.) feeding on Abelia flowers (Abelia sp.). Abelia, a shrub related to honeysuckle, produces very fragrant bell-shaped flowers from late spring to fall. Abelia is a host plant for some types of butterflies.

The preceding photos were taken during a photowalk through Hollin Hills, a residential community located in Fairfax County, Virginia USA.