Rivers

1965: Gorges du Tarn

The Tarn River in Southern France carving it way through limestone cliffs which tower up to 600m above it.. The gorge has a microclimate that can be hot in summer and mild in winter. A canoeist says it is a most amenable river to paddle along. 

1982: Navigation on the Danube - Danube Commission

The Danube - a  river that has been in the news in this long hot summer as it reaches record lows. The stamp show the ferry Kamzic passing under the SNP (Slovak National Uprising) Bridge, today called the New Bridge. The Kamzic was built in 1972 and could carry up to 200 passengers. It was a popular attraction for Bratislava residents but stopped operating in 2003

1970: Floating Logs - Log Driver Johan Eriksson

Timmerflotting (historic log driving) from the times past when harvested timber was floated down rivers to saw mills. The trees were cut in winter and the spring floods sent them on their watery journey. Commercial floating ended in 1991 with a final drive on the River Klaralven. 

2023: River Wildlife

An Atlantic Salmon making its epic journey from ocean to the freshwater river or stream where  it was hatched, jumping up and over weirs and waterfalls to reach their ultimate destination. But for lazy summer days for humans what could be more pleasant than sitting on a river bank and spotting a Kingfisher. The juveniles will leave home this month in search of territories of their own so there may be more opportunities to see Kingfishers in unexpected places than normal. 

Sunday Stamps theme - Rivers - See  It On A Postcard

Curves

See It On A Postcard's  Thursday Postcard Hunt for shapes - Curves

2021: Lockdown Birds

A curvaceous bird. During Jersey's first Covid Lockdown in 2020 Berni Martin set herself a project to paint a bird every day. Using a box of paints girted to her by a friend she painted on 100 consecutive days sharing these cute little characters on social media. A selection appeared on Jersey Post's stamps in 2021.

It was especially glorious weather in the British Isles for the first lockdown. The traffic stilled and the birds sang their songs into the air.

The Domes of the Eden Project in Cornwall. The site was an old clay pit. It opened in 2000 and fully opened in 2001.. The largest biome houses a rain-forest and the other is a Mediterranean environment. Botanical gardens with plants for temperate climates are outside, the paths curving amongst them. Cornwall has a mild maritime climate influenced by the warm waters of the Gulf Stream and has  micro-climates ranging from tropical-like gardens to misty moorlands.

The Grace of Swans

 

1971: Definitive - Mute Swan

A serene swan

1956: Nordic Day

Whooper swans on the wing,  The five swans symbolise the five Nordic nations.

1986: Water Birds

 A Tundra or Whistling swan who use Mongolia's lakes and wetlands as a temporary resting and feeding place during their spring and autumn migrations.

1987: Swans

Mute swan on land deciding on its next move. A preening Bewick's swan (a subspecies of the Tundra Swan).

Sunday Stamps A-Z for Swans and Sweden - See It On A Postcard 

Nature

 

Heart in Nature (Designer Jenny Burman)

The colours of nature

2003: New Zealand Landscapes

on land

and sea

1984: Flower

A  pink Mexican Creeper with its heart shaped leaves, also known as the Bee Bush 

1991 and 1988: Native Birds

Rock Wren - a songbird of the mountains where it stays even in winter. A kingfisher bringing colour to rivers and watery places.

Sunday Stamps A-Z today N for Nature, New Zealand and Nicaragua - See It On A Postcard 

Majestic

 

1965: Birds

Its that time of year when ones mind turns to holidays. Perhaps a trip to Malaysia where the locals might point out a Murai Gajah (Asian Fairy Bluebird) on a tree.

 

1994: Malaysian Airlines inaugural flight cover

 Fly out of Malaysia to Buenos Aires to dance the tango under a moonlit Brazilian sky.  Where next? 

 

Travel back in time to the 1950s and the Hotel Majestic in Acapulco, Mexico

 

 

A sea view from their rooms

 

Definitive 1950s: Architecture and Archaeology 

 

Buy a Michoacan Mask as a memento although a lot of these dance masks look very scary.

 

 

Catch some sport at the Mexico City University Stadium. Built in 1952, at the time the largest stadium in Mexico. It is now called the Olympic Stadium after hosting the 1968 Summer Olympics

1969: Tourism

Enjoy visiting the Pyramids in the ancient city of Teotihuacan (place of the gods).  Not built by the Aztecs or Mayans but an ancient race, origins unknown.

  

Sunday Stamps A-Z for Mexico, Malaysia and Majestic - See It On A Postcard 

Kosmos

 

1993: Birds

Karemkerem is the Swahili name for Bee-eater and this one lives in the upland regions of East Africa.  

1976: Space Flight

Christina Koch, Artemis II crew member said "The thing that changed for me looking back at Earth, was that I found myself not only noticing the beauty of Earth, but how much blackness there was around it and how it just made it even more special"

A Korean artist brought a little bit of colour into Outer Space.

Sunday Stamps A-Z for Kenya, Korea and keremkerem - See It On A Postcard 

J for Jays

 

1961: Birds of Woods and Fields

A Jay for J. Walking in the woods its screeching sound may be heard before being lucky enough to see it.

1963: Audubon's Birds Of America (Plate 96)

The Columbia Jay with more exuberant tail feathers

1988: Wildlife Preservation Trust

Alas I have no more Jays and change colour to the bright yellow of Rodriguez Fody, a sparrow like weaver bird, endemic to the small island of Rodriguez, an island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean

1993: Summer Birds

 Another small bird, the Dartford Warbler, it struggles in harsh winters when numbers have crashed in England but in recent times global warming and mild winters have resulted in increasing numbers and range. Seen on the stamp in its preferred habitat of heaths and gorse bushes.

Sunday Stamps A-Z for Jay and Jersey - See It On A Postcard 

Break Time

 See It On A Postcard's Thursday Postcard Hunt - is seeing Animals in the Wild

A Honey Buzzard wondering where lunch is located.. It eats wasp and bee larvae, evolution has provided thick feathers and extra scaly legs to protect it from stings. 

"Hi There"

The alert tranquility of a fox

 

A "Puffin Patrol" somewhere on the Yorkshire coast

E is for Eagle

 

1921-30: Definitive

The New Imperial Eagle issued by the Wiemar Republic during the German hyperinflation period

1925: Rhineland Millenary

An eagle watches over a bend in the Rhine, its castle and furnaces. A set of three stamps issued between May and July 1925 to celebrate 1000 years of the Union of Rhineland with Germany. Under the Treaty of Versailles after World War I  the Rhineland had been demilitarised to create a buffer zone between Germany and France. It was returned to Germany in 1925 but allied troops remained until 1930 to ensure compliance.

1924: Definitive - National Symbols of |Egypt

The Eagle of Saladin over the Giza pyramids. The emblem is often associated with the 12th Century Ayyubid Dynasty founded by Saladin.

1975: Symbols of America

Eagle and shield holding the a bundle of 13 arrows in its left claw representing the original 13 colonies. The design is based on the Great Seal of the United States.

2016: Birds

Nothing as impressive as the real thing, An alert White tailed eagle

1975: Hunting Scenes

and a Golden Eagle attacking a red fox, its owner galloping behind.

Sunday Stamps A-Z this week E for Eagle and Egypt - See It On A Postcard 

Zambian Birds

 

1968: Decimal Currency definitive

The Grey Crowned Crane, the 'grey' refers to its body plumage but as can be seen, its crown is a wonderful golden yellow. It is the national bird of Uganda and appears on their flag.

1975: Helmeted Guinea-fowl 

I used to walk past a smallholding that had a few of these round spotted birds. Delightful.

African Fish Eagle, the national bird of Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Sudan. Their call is sometimes called the sound of Africa.

Lady Ross's Turaco whose tails are used for balance, useful for foraging for fruit in trees. Their outer toes can rotate backwards and forwards another useful attribute.

2007: Animals of Zambia

And for something completely different, a bat eared fox. Their ears have a role in regulating temperature by dissipating heat. As it mainly eats insects the ears and their exceptional hearing are very useful when burrowing underground for termites and beetles. Their ears can reach 5 inches (13cm) and are able to rotate independently.

Sunday Stamps A-Z  for Zambia - See It On A Postcard 

X

 

1977: Birds

This woodpecker is so unique it decided that it would rather appear at X than W. It is the only species within the genus Xiphidiopicus.  The bird's full Latin name is Xiphidiopicus percussus or Cuban Green Woodpecker. The most widespread and common woodpecker in Cuba, endemic to the island.

1990: 25th Anniversary of the Oceanological  Institute

Cuba is fond of Roman Numerals on their stamps

1930: King Christian X -  60th Birthday

and monarchs like them too.

1970: Bulgarian History

Another king. Cyrillic has an X but with a sound as the ch in the Scottish loch. On the stamp Khan Asparerch and the 'Old Bulgars' are crossing the Danube. An x appears at at the beginning of his title XAH  (Khan) and the end of his name.

2012: United Kingdom  A-Z Part 2

The stand alone X of Station X, Bletchley Park home of the code-breakers who among other things broke the Nazi Enigma code, the result of which it is said cut the length of World War II by an estimated 2 years.

Sunday Stamps A-Z this week has reached X - See It On A Postcard 

Woodpeckers

 

2001: Woodpeckers (Artist - Erik Bruun)

  

An issue designed by Erik Bruun known for his iconic Finnish bird and wildlife stamps  Born in 1926 Finland's Posti will be celebrating his birthday in April with some of those stamp designs. Approaching his 100th year I believe he is still painting and drawing but just for pleasure.

The sheet features 6 woodpecker varieties. The top pair - lesser spotted and three toed woodpeckers, middle. white-backed and great spotted woodpeckers and lastly grey headed and a black woodpecker

1970: Birds (Design- Richard Gerbig)

Another Great spotted but living in Switzerland

1996: Birds (Design- Michael Matherly)

Flying to the USA and another species to add to this list, the Red-headed Woodpecker.

Sunday Stamps A-Z this week here for Woodpeckers and wildlife - See It On A Postcard