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There are few things as beautiful as a newly emerged butterfly.  The perfect mirrored symmetry of the wings, the stained glass-like partitions filled with colour and often showing exquisite patterns, and the insect's remarkable head with antennae and curled proboscis all testify to something wonderful.  Rarely do we take a moment to truly appreciate the wonder of it all as we take them for granted; after all, who hasn't seen a butterfly? The thing that I find most amazing is the transformation from caterpillar to butterfly.  Although the larvae have their own kind of beauty, they rarely equal the majesty of the adults.  In order for a caterpillar to metamorphose into a butterfly, the insect basically has to dissolve within the pupal chrysalis and reassemble into something totally foreign.  The Transformers have nothing on these guys. The actual process is nothing short of miraculous.  The larva's final moult produces a type of epidermis called a chrysalis, ...

Pygmy nuthatch with ant at Kaloya Park, Winfield. It must have been a family brood that I saw the other day while visiting Kaloya Regional Park.  As I walked along a well-worn path, I came upon a group of small birds quickly flitting from branch to branch in the branches of conifer trees.  The peeping sounds seemed infectious as the group weaved through myriad branches searching for food.  Photographing them proved challenging as remaining still f was not one of their strong characteristics. I encountered the same group on different days within the confines of the peninsula.  It was a pleasure to watch the little balls of fluff meandering through the canopy.  They rarely came down to eye level with me, instead staying high up in the branches.  I had to patiently watch and look for an opportunity to photograph one of them when the angle, light, lack of obstructions, and camera focus all came together.  I took 27 photos over the two encounters and got a ...

The willow flycatcher gets its name because of its fondness for associating with shrub-like plants that exist in the understory of larger trees.  Although I associate the term willow with those huge, broad deciduous trees that may grow up to 50 feet (100 feet for the white willow), there is also the common pussy willow that grows between 2 to 25 feet tall.  In fact, there are over 400 species of willow, and many of them are shrubs rather than giant trees. Willow flycatchers prefer the open areas around the edges of woodlands, often near bodies of water, and areas of brush.  As flycatchers, they are primarily carnivorous in nature, eating insects on the wing or those that can be gleaned from vegetation while hovering.  I photographed this one along the edge of a lake perching in an area of shrubs.  You can see from the angle that I was at eye level with it, although I was shooting from a mildly elevated position. I have photographed half a dozen species of flycat...

Finches of all sorts are characterized by having thick, strong beaks capable of shelling and removing the contents of just about any seed you'd care to mention.  This is no less true of the American goldfinch, and while not as robust as its larger cousins the grosbeaks, they enjoy a steady diet of seeds. I came across a field of salsify (those large, dandelion-like flowers and seedheads) being accosted by a small flock of goldfinch.  They were flitting from one bulbous flower or seedhead (that are apparently called blowballs or clocks - that's a first for me) to another.  Of the lot, this one was closest to me and I took a series of photos; I liked this one the best. It is interesting that they know exactly where to go to get food.  No seeds were visible on this young yet-to-flower bloom, but the bird tore into it with abandon.  In fact, it didn't mind my presence at all.  I am thankful for that as it is difficult to get a good photo of any organism uncomfo...

I became fascinated with tiger beetles when I was a boy in Ontario.  We lived on a military base with a vast sandy training area.  You could find them on hot summer days racing across the surface, and if you chased one, it would take to the wing and fly away.  They never flew very far, but approaching one never paid off because of their excellent vision. These adult beetles are fast runners and capable flyers.  They can often be found in sandy areas; you can tell that the above photo was taken on sand.  Beaches are a common habitat for them, which is exactly where I photographed the one above. I have never seen their larvae.  From the research I did, I understand that they live in burrows and ambush any potential prey that happens to be within reach.  They have very odd dorsal hooks mid-body that secure the creature to their vertical tunnel; the pair of recurved spines prevent the larva from being pulled out, either by the prey or by a would-be predato...

  At first glance, the Canadian and pale tiger butterflies above look to be the same species.  A third butterfly (below), the western tiger swallowtail, is similar in many ways to both of the above species.  The three species live in British Columbia and their ranges overlap to some degree.  It is in those places that the species may interbreed producing hybrids. There is an interesting post on the website E-Fauna BC  that discusses the hybridization; I have included the paragraph below. All the tiger swallowtails (subgenus  Pterourus ) hybridize in the wild to some extent. In southern BC there is a broad zone of hybridization between Canadian Tiger Swallowtails and Western Tiger Swallowtails from Manning Provincial Park east to Creston. In the areas where their ranges overlap, Western Tiger Swallowtails prefer low-elevation deciduous forest habitats whereas Canadian Tiger Swallowtails prefer higher-elevation boreal forest habitats. Hybridization between Pa...

Behold, the eight-spotted skimmer.  A largish dragonfly with the scientific name Libellula forensis .  But imagine, if you will, that it was no ordinary dragonfly, but rather a fire-breathing dragonfly.  After all, we think of dragons as being mythical fire-breathing entities, so why not with this insect?  Imagine how amazing that would be. The first thing would be to domesticate them and train them to only breathe fire upon command.  They would lay in wait upon a household perch, preferably outdoors, waiting for a rogue insect to come into its territory.  Then, in an instant, it would spring into action and come up behind its prey, much as a fighter pilot would pursue an enemy from behind.  Then, instead of firing guns or missiles, a bright ball of flame would be emitted from its mouth, causing its quarry to disintegrate upon contact. From the safety of your house or patio, you would witness small bursts of light, not so different from fireflies, but ...

Panoramics can be done easily with cell phones or with single-shot cameras by capturing multiple images and stitching them together.  Both have a way of producing images with more resolution than you would normally get by shooting with a wide angle and cropping in a similar manner.  In the above photo, I shot ten individual images of the turtles basking on the log and then joined them together using Photoshop. The resulting image was massive, being 18760 x 4432 pixels, or a whopping 83 mp.  Even compressed as a jpeg, the file takes up over 93 mb of space.  Printed at 200 dpi (interpolated up to 300 dpi) the image would still have incredible detail at over 2 meters wide. The truth is though that who would have need for such an image?  This, ultimately, is my problem.  I have tens of thousands of photos, many of them pretty good, but few that would ever garner any interest.  Alas, it is a good thing I don't do this for the money.  All I have is the ...

I used to wonder how freshwater turtles survive winters in a frozen world.  After all, like all reptiles, their skin is impermeable to water and gas exchange, unlike amphibians.  A frog can breathe through its skin, a turtle cannot.  And they don't overwinter out of the water.  They would need a den deep enough to prevent freezing.  Many mammals do this, but not turtles.  And they certainly don't migrate south.  So, how do they do it? The answer is stranger than you may think.  Cloacal respiration, otherwise known as butt breathing. The western-painted turtle (photographed two days ago at Wood Lake, BC) hibernates in the winter by burying itself in benthic sediments (aka mud) at the lake's bottom.  With its rectum sticking out, water passes into and out of a portion of the lower digestive tract.  There, the important business of gas exchange takes place; oxygen in and carbon dioxide out.  There may very well be an exchange of metabo...

Great blue heron scratching an itchy spot, Wood Lake, Winfield, BC. I photographed this yesterday while paddling; I have lots of photographs of great blue herons, so why take another one?  Because this one was different. Photography can be more than just what something looks like.  Admittedly, many of my wildlife photos are just that; pictures of what something looks like.  There is certainly value in that because it hones my skill set, is an enjoyable pastime, and has allowed me to produce some remarkable images.  But wouldn't it be nice if the photograph produced both physical and behavioural qualities? The truth is that photographing animal behaviour is hard.  Your very presence almost guarantees an uncooperative subject as most creatures don't go about their daily business when they feel threatened.  Think of what it would be like having the principal at the back of the class you are enrolled in, or the boss watching your back as you work.  Not the...

Like so many bird species, I know that calliopes live in the area but I had never seen one, that is until yesterday.  Then, I saw two! It has been a banner year for me for lifers - the term used to express seeing a bird species for the first time.  I have had quite a few lifer experiences this year, having seen a western meadowlark, northern rough-winged swallow, willow flycatcher, wild great-horned owl, and now a calliope hummingbird.  And I have captured photos of each of them to prove it! The calliope is a remarkable hummingbird.  It is the smallest bird native to North America and migrates about 8,000 km each year one way from Mexico to here.  It weighs about the same as a ping pong ball, if you can imagine that.  I have held a barn swallow in my hand, and it felt almost like holding air; how much more would holding one of these be like? The one I witnessed and photographed was "hawking."  This behaviour involves perching on a branch (left) and the...

These are some of the birds I have photographed at Kaloya Regional Park today and a few days ago.  They are as follows (I think): Willow flycatcher Juvenile pygmy nuthatch Red-shafted flicker Male Calliope hummingbird Bullock's oriole Cedar Waxwing California Quail with chicks Male Harry woodpecker California gull Each one has a story and I will no doubt write a blog on it in the near future.  I have already written a blog on the Bullock's oriole (click  here ). If you are interested in finding this amazing site, see the map below. I have been there twice and will likely go again soon hoping to find some other new bird species I haven't seen before.  My best find was the Calliope hummingbird; I have wanted to see one for years and this was my first encounter (I actually saw two). Just a note:  the woodpecker and California gull were seen nearby but not there, although I am sure that they would certainly be in the area at some point. Thanks for reading. Eric Sven...

Some years there are hundreds of these large, yellow and black butterflies flitting around in the spring.  This year, with the severe cold snap we experienced, there seem to be less of them.  That, however, just makes there appearance that much more special. I have never found the caterpillar (click on this link to see one) which feeds on aspen, birch, and black cherry leaves.  The adult above is resting on willow leaves.  The adults take nectar from flowers, as do most adult Lepidoptera,  The swallowtails generally overwinter by pupating in the fall and forming a cacoon called a chrysalis.  The chrysalis is attached to a branch and remains there until spring when the butterfly finishes metamorphosis and finally emerges as an adult.  So, how do the encased papae not freeze to death?  Antifreeze. You heard me right.  The butterfly pupae produce ethylene glycol that lowers the freezing temperature of their blood.  Concentrations are high ...

An adult female snakefly in my wildflower garden at home. The first time I saw a snake fly, I had to ask myself, "What the heck is that?"  I have always been pretty good at determining insect orders, but this one had me stumped.  I may have seen another one since, but I am certain I came across one last week in my wildflower garden at home.  I knew immediately what it was. The Raphidoptera, otherwise known as snakeflies, are insects with about 206 species known worldwide.  There are about 22 species present in North America, according to the website " Bugguide.net ."  Both larvae and adults feed on other insects or their eggs; they are beneficial for the gardener.  The fact that I had one on my wildflower plants was good; the adults have an appetite for aphids. The snakefly above is a female; she has a long ovipositor that projects behind the abdomen.  Males lack such an appendage.  The appendage is used to lay eggs in tiny crevices under leaf lit...

I have a passion for all living things and the photography of them.  I often come across things I would like to photograph but do not have my camera with me.  If those things happen to be small, a camera and regular lens are often not enough to capture the image.  Although I have some very nice macro equipment for my DSLR camera, I rarely have it with me when I find something.  So, I pull out my cell phone. Many cell phones have a dedicated macro mode or can allow you to focus closely enough to get at least a rudimentary picture.  Admittedly, cell phone macros are nothing compared to what you can do with a tricked-out camera system, but it has the advantage of being there when needed.  Having said that, I have managed to get some OK photos with just my cell phone. The above photos were taken using my Android phone set to macro mode.  The sensor is normally 12 mp (megapixels), but when I choose macro it crops the image down to 3 mp.  There is no in...

Bullock's Oriole photographed in Kaloya Regional Park, Lake Country I just found a new favourite spot to take bird pictures.  Kaloya Park is located between Wood Lake and Kalamalka Lake in Lake Country, BC.  It is a small peninsula, only 3.7 ha in size, with just under a kilometer of trails.  The paths are well maintained and there are a host of activities that can be enjoyed there.  What impressed me the most was the wildlife. I saw quite a few species of bird, beyond the usual varieties abundant in the area.  Perhaps the most unusual one was the male Bullock's Oriole (above) that I got a pretty good photo of.  I have only ever seen the species once, maybe twice, so find it was definitely cool.  It was raining today when I went, so I did not explore the area in the depth I normally would.  Even then, I saw a family of California Quail (2 adults and 14 chicks), a female flicker, a flock of cedar waxwings, and a host of other more familiar birds. ...

Tree swallow sits atop a sparrow-proof nest box. House sparrows.  You know the ones, those little brown and gray birds that have made themselves at home in almost every city on the planet.  They were introduced to North America in New York in 1851, made their way into Canada twenty years later, and were in British Columbia by the turn of the century.  Today it is estimated that there are just under 100,000,000 of them on this continent alone. You may think of them as benign little birds that add a bit more life to an otherwise sterile urban environment, but nothing could be farther from the truth.  They are cavity nesters, meaning that they look for holes to raise their families in, and will take nesting sites away from native species either preemptively or violently.  It is not unusual for swallows, that also are cavity nesters, to be evicted from a site or killed outright. House sparrows are about 50% larger than many swallow species.  Their bills are hea...

You will find mountain bluebirds in open country with sparse trees.  I have seen them three times now, all sightings have been in grasslands dotted with the occasional tree.  I photographed a bluebird chick a few years ago while visiting Drumheller, Alberta.  You can see it in the image below. All bluebirds are cavity nesters.  They readily take to holes found in trees and nest boxes.  The problem is that those nesting sites are often desired by other birds such as house sparrows and starlings, both introduced species that have caused the decline in certain bird populations.  Fewer nesting sites means a declining population. Fortunately, bluebirds readily take to nest boxes.  The problem is with keeping unwanted species out.  Building birdhouses with an oval hole instead of a round hole tends to dissuade house sparrows and starlings.  Another method is to build a slot at the top or bottom of the house to enter.  A narrow slot of 1-1/8th ...

Yesterday I posted a blog on a female great-horned owl.  She was the first of that species I had ever seen in the wild.  Later on that day, I found the single chick and male owls nearby.  I didn't get a great shot of either one, so this morning I was out again and got a better shot of the juvenile. It seems counter-intuitive to see a bird that large and think of it as a chick.  It is about the same size as the male (female great-horned owls are larger than males), which makes me think it is a female with some growing to do.   Most owls rest during the day as they hunt at night.  The chick has its eyes closed and will likely stay perched here until evening.  Yesterday it was in a different tree; it had moved sometime in the night. There is a large nest nearby which is currently unused.  Great-horned owls rarely build their own nests; rather they use 2nd-hand nests from ravens or birds of prey and will line it with feathers or other soft materi...

I have seen great-horned owls before, but always in captivity.  Living specimens have been in zoos or falconers, and I have seen a few stuffed one on display in museums.  But I have never seen one in the wild. Let me tell you, it is a remarkable experience.  First of all, they are big, huge in fact.  A robin sitting next to it would be relatively tiny in comparison.  Living in BC I see lots of birds of prey.  Some of the larger ones include bald eagles (I have never seen a wild golden eagle), gyrfalcons (I have seen a wild one once), and great-gray owls (I have seen a wild one of these too).  But there is something majestic about the great-horned owl that leaves them all in the dust. Great-horned owls are top carnivores.  They have been known to eat other raptors such as ospreys and falcons.  A great-horned owl can outlift a bald eagle; their grip strength is so strong that they can snap the spine of almost any prey it catches.  All owls...

D-Day, June 6, 1944, was 80 years ago.  Over 7,000 ships and landing craft were involved in the greatest maritime operation ever mounted.  The USS Missouri was not there to witness the spectacle or unleash the awesome power of its nine 16-inch guns as it was awaiting completion in the New York Navy Yard in Brookland.  Five days later it would be commissioned; it was the last of the Iowa-class battleships. Although it did not assist the D-Day landings, her crew was there in spirit.  The ship did not see action in the Atlantic but would go on to serve in the Pacific fighting the Japanese.  Its most famous role there was the signing of Japan's surrender in 1945, you can see the photo above, top left corner. I have seen both the USS Missouri and Texas and next year I hope to see the aircraft carrier Midway in San Diego.   I admit to having an emotional reaction to being on the decks of the two battleships.  We owe so much to the men and women that ser...

Yellow-headed Amazon Parrot at Kangaroo Farm, Kelowna I photographed the above parrot a few weeks ago and just got around to working with the image today.  I decided that numerous areas could be improved by making them disappear.  Photoshop has many ways to achieve this task, but I find that the clone-stamp tool (see icon inset) is one of the best. The inset image of the parrot was before I removed the distractions.  Two branches, a blue dish, and a leg ring were the target of the clone tool.  It takes numerous strokes, many brush changes, and a careful selection process to get it just right.  I like to work on the full-sized image first and then reduce it to whatever proportions to make the alterations as seamless as possible. The resulting image had far fewer distractions and displayed the bird in a more natural-looking setting.  I use this technique often when I need to alter parts of an image.  The magic-healing tool is faster and works well when s...

A sugar glider eating an almond at the Kangaroo Farm in Kelowna. Sugar gliders are normally dark gray with black markings around the head.  The one I photographed above is leucistic, a recessive condition that produces a whitish coat.  If you want to see what a normal sugar glider looks like (and a host of other varieties), click here . Sugar gliders get their names because they have a fondness for sugary foods and can glide remarkable distances, up to about the length of a football field.  They do this by stretching the fore and rear limbs far apart which stretches out a soft membrane called a patagium.  They cannot actually fly with this, but it allows them to ride a cushion of air to the ground or another tree.  It uses its tail as a rudder to help it navigate. Sugar gliders are a small type of possum.  To be clear, it is not a type of opossum, which is a North American marsupial.  Possums are small arboreal marsupials that live in or near Australia...

Kayaking on Telford Lake, Leduc, Alberta Kayaking is a favourite pastime for me as it satisfies three desires.  Exercise, being outdoors, and seeing wildlife.  Of the three, it's being around other creatures that I enjoy the most.  I do not know who the kayaker is in the above photo I took, but I am sure the thing he will remember most about his paddle was being surrounded by a gregarious flock of gulls creating an enormous din.   Some of my favourite memories and photographs come from kayaking.  I love going out early when the light is soft and the beasts are just beginning their day.  I have written a lot of blogs on kayaking.  You can see many of them by clicking on this link , and there are more if you click on the archive link on that page. I chatted with the fellow when he was returning from his trip.  He mentioned to me the cacophony that the birds were making.  I could believe him, for they were certainly loud from my perspective...

The one bird species that I (probably) have more photos of than any other is the black-capped chickadee.  Their precocious nature and comfort around humans make them ideal birds for the photographer.  They are easily fed by hand (not something I generally recommend, but I have done so a few times) and will readily take to feeders.  I have photographed them at and around home and abroad.  Although they are not colourful, they are always welcome visitors in any setting. Black-capped chickadees are omnivores, that is they eat both plant and animal material.  In the winter, they forage along branches and cracks in search of hibernating or pupating insects, egg masses, and any other invertebrate fodder they can glean.  They will take seeds of all types and sizes; I love watching them hammer on a sunflower seed to get to the inner kernel.  In the warmer months, they forage for living insects as a protein source for the brood they are raising. Black-capped ch...