182 – Natural

Click the video above for 2 minutes of background waves while reading.

I like to walk on the beach. It is good for the mind, body, and soul – and refreshing on my feet.

As I walk, I look up and down the beach seeing a lot of sand. All that sand – those abrasive grains of silicon dioxide from many years of erosion.

In general, the beach is relatively limited in terms of color, but I know the color of beaches around the world varies. Not only from white to grays to browns, but also reds, blacks, greens, pinks, and oranges. These are the sands that refresh the feet of the world.

Some describe the sand here as white. Compared to many other beaches, I agree – but to me, it has a hint of light beige – but from the balcony, it’s an off-white color. No matter the beach, bits of shells, corals, and different rocks meld with the sand to form the beach’s color palette.

Most seashells are neutral earth tones – shades of beige, tan, white, and light gray. Although some shells offer touches of orange, specks of red, and even black – blues and greens seem absent.

I use this long introduction for today’s theme. Natural – the natural colors of nature. Colors not made by humans as the colors of painted buildings and rooms. Not the colors of our clothing. Natural is how it is supposed to be – natural foods, natural silk, natural ingredients, and more.

I think about natural colors and what they do. Natural colors attract attention or blend in. Natural colors are based on how their intent sees them (which may not be us). Colors for displaying male dominance – colors for attracting a mate so the species can continue. Colors displaying age and maturity. Colors for protecting their territory from the competition.

In a search for a more solid walking path of sand, I wander away from the waterline. I pass a crab standing guard by its hole away from the shoreline. I think it’s a sand crab – not a nocturnal ghost crab. I’m amazed at how well it blends in with the color of the sand. No luck finding solid footing with this sand, so I go back toward the water.

The flounders in the sea protect themselves by changing color to blend with their environment. I remember seeing deer in California that looked different than the deer I see at home in Ohio. Not the browns and tans of home, but blackish to blend with the soil in the almond groves.

Photo by Min An on Pexels.com

Not many land animals change like the flounder, but some do it seasonally to blend in with rocks, vegetation, or the colors of the season – even the white of snow. Goldfinch males at home in winter are much drabber than in the summer. I think about the animals of the snow to avoid being eaten – or to be the hidden predator.

I think about how many natural colors are earth tones – but not all. The bright colors of macaws in the rainforest protect them from the way predators see them, but the bright colors of some rainforest frogs say, “Don’t mess with me because I’m poisonous.”

Summer provides many shades of green – each specialized to grab a specific wavelength of light. I’ve stated this before, I would enjoy seeing a color continuum of natural shades of green found in nature.

I think about how colors depend on light’s angle. The brilliance of the male peacock’s display to attract a female – the eyes, the patterns, the bowl shape for reflecting colors to the female – yet done so at the expense of inefficient flight.

I think about the bright colors of the fish in the sea. However, light is different there because less light penetrates the depths. What do the eyes of their predators see? They may not see the brightness we see.

I think about why zebras have the most contrasting colors. Does it get more contrasting than black and white? Does passing each other confuse a predator? Is it because of what their predators can and cannot see? To blend in with an environment? To confuse an insect? For distraction?

I think about colors in nature being obvious to us, but maybe not as obvious to other animals that see them. The color receptors in the eyes differ from animal to animal, therefore not all eyes are created equal.

I think about the colors that we can’t see, such as ultraviolet (UV) light. UV light is an invisible world displaying color we cannot see because it is not meant for us. Yet, some in the natural world use UV light for protection, capturing food, and finding a mate – all aspects of their survival and continuation of the species. Could you see a tiger approaching if you couldn’t see orange?

The colors found in nature are worth pondering. From the bright to the dull, there is a reason they occur that may not be obvious to us. I wonder, has Earth always been this colorful? I doubt it.

It’s been good pondering natural colors today. On second thought, the sand now looks a bit gray, not beige. Oops – I’m wearing sunglasses. It’s time to return inside – but I will return because I like to walk on the beach. It is good for the mind, body, and soul – and refreshing on my feet.

See what other bloggers have posted about Natural

• Camouflage: Expert Level (a photo essay)
• Hidden (a poem)
• A Texas Spiny Lizard (a photo)
• Colors of Nature (a poem)
• Morning-Ugly (a poem with photos)

Next Post: Deep – Saturday 1st April @ 1 AM (Eastern US

Advertisement