Weird.
That would be, should we say, interesting, if that was done to my bike ever. It would probably make them look pretty pathetic too.
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eh. It was annoying in the park (Palo Duro many years ago) but I could kinda get it. In a state park, pretty obviously looking for reptiles that might be poachable…and they really did just seem to be making sure I didn’t have bags or deli cups so fair enough.
The one that really made me mad was a county deputy up in Armstrong County; not on protected land, just taking pictures of salamanders during a mass movement. Had pulled out off on the shoulder, etc. Jackass acted like I was there to do god knows what nefarious things, shined a bright light in my face, and it got tense after I informed him I had a CHL when he asked for ID…like yeah jerk, I’m out here with a camera in the mud photographing tiger salamanders as cover for…what, exactly, in your podunk county?
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I was taking some pictures of trees across the street to a turnoff to the local joint PD + sheriff’s department shooting range (solid 0/10 as a method to avoid cops). Cop rolled up, asked me what I was taking pictures of. Not having socialized in a year, my ability to think on my feet was severely hampered and all I could think to say was, “Honestly, just the pine tree. I like plants.” I’ve never had a cop lose interest that quickly before in my life. I’ve had these encounters drag on a little bit with more suspicious cops before, but in the future I think I might offer to show them my closeup shots of leaves and bark.
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I like that one. : )
Officers seem to get bored and have their eyes glaze over once you get all “sciency” and technical, just be careful of which species/genera names you use around them, or else they might think you’re cussing them out, or just calling them names. FYI, Trimerotropis pallidipennis is NOT a good topic for animal presentations in grade school! At all! Does not end well. Don’t do reports on certain rocks/minerals either, those don’t go well. Teacher asks you what it is called, you say it’s schist, she says, what’d you say?!, you repeat yourself. Please don’t say shit at school. I didn’t say shit, I said schist, the metamorphic rock. If you keep saying that, I’m going to have to send to to the office. The conversation(though pathetic and worthless) continued for several more annoying minutes, and ended with my being sent to the office, and being given four days of lunch detention. (Detention there isn’t too bad, it is quiet, there are few people, and, best of all, there is real air conditioning, unlike in the smelly cafeterias!)
Not trying to be completely rude, but sometimes, the teachers who teach you about the stuff you get into trouble for are really illogical and senseless.
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Yah… I can see that being problematic.
The nature center i used to work at did lots of nature hikes. We explained native plants and animals. In the season, where you’re coming across a blooming Dichelostemma capitatum (Blue Dicks), and we always used common names, … many a mother gave me the evil eye after that one when their kid sniggered.
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Here’s one that my teachers all hate when those of us who like nature talk about them:
BUSHTITS. Or even the blue-footed booby, or Red-breasted nuthatches. Like, seriously!? Have you people become that sensitive and isolated from the outside world that you think that these are “bad words?”
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The teachers don’t think they’re bad words, but they’re not looking forward to seeing grade schoolers or high schoolers run every single lame pun/joke imaginable into the ground
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Perhaps he was concerned for you? I have often had people ask me if I am ok, as I am sitting down on grass…actully I love to lie down in long grass or among trees, but that attracts even more concern, so I rarely do unless I am hidden.
I had an old dog that used to get tired, and when I sat down on the grass beside the street with her, sometimes people would stop and ask if I needed help, which was kind and only a little bit embarrassing.
They were nearly always women, and I think men would be reluctant to approach a woman alone as their motives might be misinterpreted.
Just a thought. I have a tendency to imagine threats myself, and its awful to be scared, especially in one’s favourite environments.
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I was sitting on a log, guess yes, looked quite tired, but I looked at him and I believe it could show I’m ok, but he stayed at where he was, so it was an awkward situation. I sometimes was asked if I was ok when I got out of dentist and saw a huge beetle on the ground and sat to photograph it. :D Usually asked if I lost something and yes, I think always by women. Men sometimes ask what I do (and big camera doesn’t help me to avoid them), but all talks with them are very weird, but I think it belongs to another topic!
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Yes, perhaps another topic…what people think when they see naturalists responding to “invisible” things:)
Maybe we should all carry a huge magnifying glass, perhaps a cheap fake plastic one, in front of us!
Well I am glad you are ok.
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Someone should make a movie about your daily life in school!
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Even I wouldn’t watch that! : )
My little brother said that my 6th grade PE teacher is a witch yesterday, and he hasn’t even met her, only heard stories about her from myself, and my friends!(we have been given detention for wearing Dalek shirts that say exterminate, and for high-fives in PE from her.)
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Once the sheriff pulled me over and told me he had been watching me for 45 minutes with his binoculars while I was photographing flowers because it “looked like I was scouting areas for an illegal marijuana farm.” I don’t think he ever fully believed that someone might be so interested in flowers.
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You are more charitable than I am. I would have attributed it to the general human nastiness of, “when in doubt, assume the worst possible motive you can think of.”
Because COVID provided the excuse a lot of authorities were looking for for a lot of things. Remember how long post-9/11 restrictions lasted? Expect the same for COVID restrictions.
See my first paragraph. Case in point.
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No one has stopped me so far. I guess catching small animals is accepted as a weird hobby here
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I don’t collect things, just take pictures. I am new to this. Is there anywhere other than public lands where I might need a permit, just for taking pictures, or for taking insects, etc.?
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For photography, probably not anywhere. The only place I’ve been told not to take pics was in an art museum and at a Covid testing center.
For collecting (that is, actually removing animals or plants), it depends. Some land managers of nature reserves, refuges, etc. will very likely require a collecting permit. Always good to ask the land manager before you start collecting organisms. If the land is an area that is managed for natural resources, assume that collecting things may be restricted.
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It would depend on where you are, and I don’t know what the photography rules are.
As for insect collection;
Wait. Permits are needed on public lands? Like dog parks, city parks, and the side of the road?
Probably not those. I mean public lands where natural resources are managed for conservation. Depends where you live also.
I was on a U.S. national wildlife refuge once, doing some photography, and I pulled up next to an unoccupied car. In the front seat there was a freshly-picked bouquet of flowers that had obviously been collected on the refuge (based on the species, which was present). Collecting plants or other organisms from on the refuge was a no-no, but even worse the particular flowering plant they had collected was a federally protected (Endangered) species.
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Yes, many city parks do require permits for things like that.
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