Phone Wallpaper - Bing Wallpaper Gallery

Oct 14, 2021Happy birthday, Saguaro National Park

If you know what these distinctively shaped cactuses are called, you can name this patch of public land in the Sonoran Desert. Saguaro National Park was established on this day in 1994 to protect giant saguaros like these. The slow-growing, prickly behemoths have been known to reach almost 80 feet into the Arizona sky. Just don"t be tempted to climb one—take it from us, a closer look at that celestial display isn"t worth getting jabbed by 3-inch saguaro spines.Desktop Version

Oct 15, 2021Autumn in the Prosecco Hills

It"s fall here in the Prosecco Hills of northeastern Italy. We"re just outside Farra di Soligo, a village about 30 miles northwest of Venice. This region is known for growing the glera grape used to make the sparkling white wine called prosecco. Once considered a poor cousin to Champagne, prosecco now eclipses it in global popularity. More than 600 million bottles of prosecco were produced in Italy in 2018, about twice the amount of Champagne.Desktop Version

Oct 16, 2021Unearthing a queen s lost tale

Almost 3,500 years ago under Queen Hatshepsut"s reign, Egypt enjoyed decades of peace and flourishing culture, and this elegant temple is just one piece of her larger-than-life legacy. But the pharaoh who succeeded Hatshepsut forbade all mention of her rule, taking credit for her monuments and leaving her name all but unknown for millennia.Desktop Version

Oct 17, 2021A walk among the giants

On New Zealand"s North Island, Whakarewarewa Forest is home to a diverse range of native plants and animals. There"s also a series of lakes as well as hot springs, bubbling mud pools, and even active geysers. But Whakarewarewa Forest features something that no other forest in New Zealand can claim: a stand of majestic redwood trees called the Redwood Memorial Grove. The redwoods were introduced from their native California at the beginning of the 20th century.Desktop Version

Oct 18, 2021A Welsh wonder turns 70

Here on the west coast of Great Britain, we"re enjoying views of the windswept uplands and jagged peaks that surround the small village of Capel Curig in the heart of Snowdonia National Park. Renowned for its rugged and mountainous landscape, Snowdonia is the largest national park in Wales and home to over 26,000 people and even more sheep—the wooly farm animals outnumber people 3 to 1 in Wales. About 60% of the park"s population speak Welsh, one of Europe"s oldest languages, and today they will be wishing this spectacular setting a "pen-blwydd hapus" (happy birthday) as Snowdonia celebrates its 70th anniversary.Desktop Version

Oct 19, 2021These laurels are hardy

Go back 15 million years and you"d find most of Southern Europe looking like this fantasy forest: thick, scrubby underbrush canopied by wizened laurel trees. An epoch or two of human agricultural advances cleared those ancient woods, but patches persist on a few temperate Atlantic islands—especially here on Madeira, a Portuguese-held island off northwest Africa.Desktop Version

Oct 20, 2021Feeling lazy? Today s your day.

Isn"t it odd that many of us don"t have to work on Labor Day, but International Sloth Day is just another Wednesday? If you"re moving slowly today, that"s just fine: You"re outpacing today"s homepage subject, which spends 90% of its time scarcely moving a muscle.Desktop Version

Oct 21, 2021Here s looking Atchafalaya

Encompassing 14 Louisiana parishes and over 1.4 million acres, the Atchafalaya Basin is one of the United States" 55 National Heritage Areas, the one they call America"s Foreign Country. It"s the nation"s largest river swamp and wetland—the bayous, marshes, and backwater lakes here nurture one of the most diverse ecological and cultural landscapes in North America.Desktop Version

Oct 22, 2021Jasper Dark Sky Festival

We"re in Canada"s Jasper National Park, one of the best stargazing spots in the world, to witness the Comet NEOWISE shooting across the night sky. NEOWISE, discovered on March 27, 2020, happens to be the brightest comet in Earth"s northern skies since Comet Hale-Bopp became visible to the naked eye in 1997.Desktop Version

Oct 23, 2021Eurasian scops owl

In the owl world, you"re either a member of the Strigidae or Tytonidae. That might sound like two warring houses from "Game of Thrones," but these are the two families of classification that make up the 200+ species of owls around the world. The Tytonidae family includes barn owls, which have distinct heart-shaped facial disks, while the larger Strigidae family consists of true (or typical) owls, most of which have round faces.Desktop Version

Oct 24, 2021Bavljenac Island

Of the 1,246 islands on Croatia"s fragmented coast, the unique isle of Bavljenac might be the most identifiable. It"s nicknamed "Fingerprint Island" for its miles of dry-stone walls that look like the whorled ridges of a human fingerprint. The tiny, uninhabited landmass in the Adriatic Sea was once an agricultural center. In the 19th century—the heyday of Croatian wine production— farmers from the nearest populated island built the winding walls on Bavljenac to protect olive trees and grapevines from the winds blowing in from the Adriatic.Desktop Version

Oct 25, 2021Dyavolski Most

You"ve heard of a bridge over troubled waters, but what if the bridge is troubled too? Legend tells of a Bulgarian stonemason, Dimitar, who was tasked with solving a bridge problem here in the early 1500s. Dimitar was hired to construct a crossing that wouldn"t collapse into the rushing Arda River, as had all previous spans in this strange spot.Desktop Version

Oct 26, 2021Red fox

Even in the most flattering daylight, foxes somehow always seem up to no good. Not to mention when they"re spotted slinking up a fallen tree in a dank, shadowy Black Forest in Germany. These cunning canids get away with a lot just by being cute, don"t you think?Desktop Version

Oct 27, 2021Pumpkin patch

It"s not too late to pick up a pumpkin to add some Halloween flair to your doorstep. Although pumpkins are grown across the country, most of the 2 billion pounds produced annually in the US come from five states: California, Illinois, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and Texas. While California grows the most pumpkins headed for the jack-o"-lantern market, Illinois wins in poundage, though most of its crop ends up as pie filling or other processed products—perhaps even in your pumpkin spice latte?Desktop Version

Oct 28, 2021Necropolis of Dargavs

Be glad we"re merely paying a virtual visit to this "City of the Dead" outside Dargavs, Russia. Local folklore warns that if you set foot here, you won"t escape with your life. We"re not sure the dead pose such a mortal danger, but what"s certain is that this is a dead-quiet village. These vaulted-roof huts are not homes—they"re crypts.Desktop Version

Oct 29, 2021Ravens

With their black feathers standing in sharp contrast to the misty Alaskan background, this group of ravens perched on a leafless tree conjures up a fitting image for this spooky time of year. In the folkloric traditions of many cultures around the world, these highly adaptable, intelligent birds have been considered symbols of all manner of unpleasantness. In Chinese mythology, they"re blamed for bad weather, while Celts associated them with warfare. In some Native American traditions ravens are often represented as mischievous tricksters, while many European cultures associate them with evil spirits, usually of demonic origin. In English, a gathering of ravens like this is even called an "unkindness"!Desktop Version

Oct 30, 2021Central Highlands of Vietnam

The woods are a tranquil place, but they can be scary for a lone wanderer. Out here, you could suddenly find yourself running from the Big Bad Wolf, trying to escape a witch"s clutches, or just plain old lost. Though often in the old stories, scary places like this are also where the hero overcomes a great obstacle or finds a valuable treasure. Could you be in luck?Desktop Version

Oct 31, 2021Happy Halloween!

These mask-like monsters of the Minster wish you a hearty "Happy Halloween"! That"s York Minster, by the way, the towering medieval cathedral in the heart of York, England, decorated with these impish figures meant to scare off evil spirits. Just don"t call them gargoyles (for that title to apply, they"d need waterspouts)! Statues like these fellas bear an even more Halloween-appropriate name: grotesques.Desktop Version

Nov 1, 2021Native American Heritage Month

Today, on the first day of Native American Heritage Month, we"re visiting Bailick Park in County Cork, Ireland. Why come to the Emerald Isle on a day meant to honor the contributions of Native Americans? The answer lies in a tale of shared humanity that begins in the 19th century.Desktop Version

Nov 2, 2021Day of the Dead

If you"ve ever been in Mexico during Day of the Dead festivities, then you"ve no doubt come across the beautiful orange flowers you see here. Marigolds are one of the main symbols of this festive, two-day celebration. The flowers are native to North America, and were deemed sacred by the Aztecs, who likened their bright colors to the sun. According to legend, those colors and the flowers" sweet aroma have the power to lure the souls of the dead back to this world from beyond.Desktop Version

Nov 3, 2021World Jellyfish Day

Today we"re celebrating World Jellyfish Day—even though these creatures are best described as otherworldly. Despite their alien qualities (not to mention their inability to vocalize), jellyfish have a lot to say to us about the history of life on Earth.Desktop Version

Nov 4, 2021Diwali

Diwali is a five-day celebration of the symbolic victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance. Though Diwali is one of the most important festivals of the Hindu faith, it is also embraced by Sikhs, Jains, and even some Buddhists. Celebrants often decorate their homes with oil lamps called diyas and create colorful patterns on the floor known as rangolis. Streets, markets, temples, and other public spaces are also illuminated with hanging lanterns like those seen in our homepage photo.Desktop Version

Nov 5, 2021Pont Rouge

When the Pont Rouge (Red Bridge) of Sainte-Agathe-de-Lotbinière was built over the Palmer River in 1928, covered bridges were already commonplace here in Quebec. Simple designs imported from the United States allowed relatively untrained workers to quickly construct crossings like this. "Ponts rouges" (often called this whether or not they were painted red) popped up wherever rural French Canadians required a convenient river crossing—as many as 1,500 were built between the late 1800s and the 1950s. Today fewer than 100 still stand, and some—like this one—are protected by local and provincial agencies for historic preservation.Desktop Version

Nov 6, 2021World Numbat Day

OK, you might be asking: World What Day? Meet the nifty numbat! Though it"s one of many marsupials found here in Western Australia, the numbat is unique, sharing no relation to any living species. It"s also critically endangered: This cute specimen is one of fewer than 1,000 of its kind left in the wild.Desktop Version

Nov 7, 2021Mack Arch Rock

Much of the Oregon coast is characterized by colossal rock formations, known as sea stacks, jutting dramatically out of the Pacific. The sea stacks you see here run next to a grassy promontory in the southern part of the state that overlooks a mostly inaccessible stretch of coastline.Desktop Version

Bing wallpaper for mobile