Day: August 21, 2019

Wednesday (21-August-2019) — New Jersey

Backyard Summertime Nature in New Jersey.

Daily Walkabout, today with a Nikon D810a camera and 70-200 mm f/2.8 VR lens. This lens doesn’t quite have the reach, but the high resolution sensor allows the images to be blown up. The Hummingbird Clearwing moths really like the Bee Balm flowers.


Click on the above image to access the individual images in the slideshow.


Daily Electric Energy Used (58.7 kWh) from Sense and Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (43.2 kWh) from SolSystems and Locus Energy. The WaterFurnace geothermal HVAC had to work hard (21.4 kWh) because the temperature outside went above 90°F. Daily net deficit 15.5 kWh.

One note — the WaterFurnace Symphony software indicated the system used 13 kWh, however the Sense Energy monitor indicated that the geothermal heat pump used 21.4 kWh. I tend to believe the Sense numbers since they more closely the energy being recorded at the external power company (PSE&G) meters. I’ve asked the WaterFurnace folks in the past about the discrepancy, but they didn’t have a good answer. The Sense folks told me they thought that the WaterFurnace/Symphony system was only measuring one phase of the energy even though the system is powered by the 220V circut (using two phases). I wish an electrical engineer that understands this better would correct me here.

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Eight-Years Ago (21-August-2011) — New Jersey

Summertime Nature at the Sourland Mountain Preserve.

Hummingbird Clearwing moth as a meal for a Praying Mantis. Image taken with a Nikon D3x camera and 105 mm f/2.8 VR macro lens (ISO 320, 105 mm, f/8, 1/400 sec). Raw image processed with Capture One Pro 6, Nik Define, and Photoshop CS5.

Clearwing Hummingbird Moth as a Meal for a Praying Mantis. Sourland Mountain Preserve, Summer Nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D3x and 105 mm f/2.8 VR macro lens (ISO 320, 105 mm, f/8, 1/400 sec). Raw image processed with Capture One Pro 6, Nik Define, and Photoshop CS5. (David J Mathre)
Hummingbird Clearwing Moth as a Meal for a Praying Mantis. Image taken with a Nikon D3x and 105 mm f/2.8 VR macro lens (ISO 320, 105 mm, f/8, 1/400 sec). (David J Mathre)

Eight-Years Ago (21-August-2011) — New Jersey

Summertime Nature at the Sourland Mountain Preserve.

Hummingbird Clearwing moth on Thistle flower. Image taken with a Nikon D3s camera and 300 mm f/2.8 VR lens + TC-E III 20 teleconverter (ISO 1600, 600 mm, f/5.6, 1/500 sec). Raw image processed with Capture One Pro 6, Nik Define, and Photoshop CS5.

Clearwing Hummingbird Moth on Thistle Bloom. Sourland Mountain Preserve, Summer Nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D3s and 300 mm f/2.8 VR lens + TC-E III 20 teleconverter (ISO 1600, 600 mm, f/5.6, 1/500 sec). Raw image processed with Capture One Pro 6, Nik Define, and Photoshop CS5. (David J Mathre)
Hummingbird Clearwing Moth on Thistle Bloom. Image taken with a Nikon D3s camera and 300 mm f/2.8 VR lens + TC-E III 20 teleconverter (ISO 1600, 600 mm, f/5.6, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)