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Northern carrion beetle Yesterday I found a dead bird.  Normally, that would give me pause for the loss of one of my feathered friends, but in this case it meant that I might be able to find some carrion beetles.  And I found at least three, possibly four different species I have never seen before. The largest was the northern carrion beetle.  There were a couple of them I found crawling around the remains of whatever flesh was left, even a pair engaged in reproducing.  They could be seen crawling through various cavities; I moved the bird and managed to photograph one by itself.  The black, dimpled elytra (wing covers) are characteristic, as is the fact that they do not cover the entire abdomen. Another common feature is the clubbed antennae, which you can see in the specimen.  Northern carrier beetles live in temperate climates and often manage to go through two generations per year.  The adults from the fall generation overwinter and begin the next ...

California broad-necked darkling beetle (according to Google) I found this beetle 100 feet from our campsite in Clearwater, BC.  It is a darkling beetle.  They are similar to ground beetles but are usually have a matte sheen versus a shiny one.  I wrote about the differences between darkling beetles and ground beetles in a blog you can find here . When I disturbed it, the beetle lowered its head and raised its abdomen up in the air.  There was a dark, shiny liquid that was emitted from glands located in its back end.  I have seen this behaviour before in other darkling beetles.  My brother and I found a much bigger one in Texas that did the same thing. The dark brown liquid is made of benzoquinone, which is a noxious chemical that smells bad and tastes worse.  It is used defensively to prevent an attack from some potential predator.  The beetle isn't fast, does not have strong jaws, and is easily seen if in the open.  It uses the chemical as ...

Ornate checkered beetle, Dutch Lake, Clearwater. It's funny how pretty can be dangerous.  In nature, bright colours are used as a warning sign.  "Mess with me and you may die."  Then there are the fakers, those mimics that sport colours as a warning sign but are empty of peril.   The ornate checkered beetle is not poisonous, and I doubt it is using any kind of mimicry.  As an adult, the beetle spends a lot of time on flowers.  It eats the pollen and nectar.  It may eat smaller insects it comes across.  It also lays its eggs there.  I am inclined to believe that it blends in with the bright colours of the flowers it lives on.  They are fabulous pollinators.  Their hairy bodies pick up and distribute pollen.  They do dive deeply into flowers in search of nectar.   The insidious thing about ornate checkered beetles is that they kill solitary bees like leaf-cutter bees or potter wasps.  They do this by laying eg...

Western tanager eating an insect, Kentucky / Alleyne Provincial Park near Merritt, BC. I remember seeing my first western tanager many years ago; it was at a distance, but the moment remains burned in my mind.  It was a long time before my second sighting, and then, while camping near Merritt, I saw one on three separate occasions.   The above photo was the first of the three encounters.  I must have gotten forty photos.  The cool thing was that it saw an insect about ten feet away from me; it flew down from the tree, picked it up, and returned.  That was an amazing moment!   The second encounter happened while I was paddling my kayak.  I was near the shore of Kentucky Lake when a tanager flew down, landed in the water, and started bathing.  I brought a camera and long lens with me for just such an opportunity (I keep it in a case or a waterproof bag) and took more photos.  One is below. Western tanager bathing in the cold waters of...

Northern checkerspot butterfly feeding on a strawberry flower in Clearwater, BC. A small, black and orange butterfly got my attention as we were walking along the hiking trails near Dutch Lake in Clearwater.  I followed it for 50 or 60 feet as it lit from flower to flower.  It finally stayed in one spot long enough for me to get a few good images of it. Most butterflies rest with their wings folded vertically; you can only see the bottom of the wings when they are resting.  This is common in moths.  Northern checkerspots can easily be confused with other butterfly species, namely rockslide and Hoffman's; in fact, they may interbreed.  So I am not 100% sure of the identification, but the pattern seems to be about right. The caterpillars are black and thorny - you can see one here .  I find it hard to find caterpillars as they hide so well, are often only present at certain times of the year, and have very specific plant hosts.  The northern checkerspot ...

Oregon tiger beetle - photographed at Kentucky /Alleyne Lake Park. There are about 120 species of tiger beetles in North America; most of them occur in western half. The one above is the Oregon tiger beetle; I have photographed this species before in northern Washington. Tiger beetles are active hunters with strong jaws that can inflict a painful bite if you pick one up. There is a close up of the jaws in the image below (left). Picking one up in itself is an unlikely proposition though as they see well, are very fast runners, and are excellent flyers. I have never caught one by hand. A good insect net would be highly recommended and handling them with care is well warranted. Oregon tiger beetle - Jaws that mean business (left).  A mating pair (right). The larvae are like the adults in that they are predaceous. The difference is that they are stationary. They dig holes that they live in and lie beneath the surface in wait for passing prey. When triggered, they extend out of the hol...