Wildflowers Continued

As promised, here are a few more wildflower images from the other day.  Still only halfway through them, so one more installment to come!

Blue Cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides)

Round-lobed Hepatica (Anemone americana)

Trout Lily (Erythronium americanum)

Off to work!
Kyle

Spring Wildflowers

I've been out taking pictures, I swear!  Here's a Red Trillium to prove it:

I added a whole bunch of photos to the sort pile today, so hopefully there will be more coming down the pipe shortly!

Kyle

Long Lost Photos

Sorting and editing photos is perhaps the most tedious task there is, and as I photographer I find that unfortunate.  I have been having some difficulty getting motivated on that front recently, and really haven't touched a photo all winter.  The "to sort" pile has been building as always (albeit slowly because of the winter season) and finally I got so tired of it that I actually did some work!

Rather than start with photos from last fall, I figured I'd start recent and work back.  I didn't take a lot of photos on my recent trip to Florida (it was dominated by conference activities) but I did manage a few.  Here are 3 randoms:

Snowy Egret (Egretta thula)

Willet (Tringa semipalmata)

Mangrove Skipper (Phocides pigmalion)

That's all for now, hopefully my momentum keeps up!

Kyle

Spring is on the way! Slowly...

Hello!

I have once again been blog-absent for a long time...It has been a busy little while, and late winter is definitely my least favourite time for photography.  But I'm back now, and the photography (and blogging) season is on the way!

First some good news - I had a photo published in the spring issue of ON Nature Magazine!  Check out the Spring Peeper on page 11, and be sure to read the article (James is an awesome guy and great herper).

This article got me thinking about spring, as amphibian breeding will be starting up in the next couple of weeks.  This is often my first pursuit of the year, and I'm excited to head out after dark for a wade around in the swamp!  Keep a keen ear for those peeping Spring Peepers, croaking Northern Leopard Frogs and quacking Wood Frogs, and head down to the local pond or ditch to check them out (watch where you step!).  If you're feeling sciencey, be sure to participate in the Backyard Frog Survey like James suggests!

In the meantime, here are some photos to tide you over and get you excited for spring!

Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer)

Northern Leopard Frog (Lithobates pipiens)

Wood Frog (Lithobates sylvaticus)

Grey Treefrog (Hyla versicolor)

Blatant re-use of old photos because I have no new material?  Yes please!

Think frogs!

Kyle

Happy Year of the Snake!

Well it is officially the first day of the Chinese new year, and the beginning of the Year of the Snake!  Although they don't always get the respect they so deserve, these misunderstood and oft-maligned creatures are impossible to hate if you take the time to get to know them.  I have been fascinated with them since I was a child, and continue to love them in adulthood.  Learn a bit about snakes in this new year, you won't be sorry!

Weekend Owling!

I have just arrived in Kingston, and am prepared for two days of owl photography outings on Amherst Island with Natura Tours Inc.  Fingers crossed for some good birds and good shots!

In order to increase my chances while on the island, I decided it was finally time to try a service I've been eyeing for a while: Lens Rentals Canada.  Yesterday I received my rental lens, the Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L.  I've been wanting a crack at this lens for a while as it may be the hole into which I pour my next available $1700, so I thought this would be a great try-before-you-buy.

I'm off to bed so that I'm well rested tomorrow, but I will be sure to post next week with any winning photos!

Kyle

Presentation This Week

It has been a busy bird-count (and holiday) season, so I haven't had much time to edit photos or post to the blog recently.  All told I have done 3 Christmas Bird Counts, one Christmas Bird Count for Kids and the Guelph Arboretum Winter Bird Count.  Counting birds is just so much fun!  Highlights of the counts were as follows:

-one Common Raven on the Port Hope count (this was a very slow day, so highlights were hard to come by!)
-two Iceland Gulls on the Guelph count (both gorgeous adults)
-one Merlin on the Guelph CBC4Kids (mostly notable because the participants got excellent looks!)
-one Great Black Back x Herring Gull hybrid on the CBC4Kids (this was less exciting for the children)
-one Ring-necked Pheasant on the Rice Lake Plains count (almost certainly a game-farm escapee, but still cool!)
-one Brown Thrasher and one Barred Owl on the Arb Winter Bird Count (thrasher in winter...WEIRD!)
-good numbers of Common Redpolls and Bohemian Waxwings all round

If you didn't count this year, be sure to do it next year - even a slow day of bird-counting is tons of fun!

On a more tropical note, I will be delivering my Madagascar presentation this coming Thursday for the Guelph Field Naturalists.  The meeting is at 7:30 at the Arboretum Centre and it is open to the public, so come on by!  Here are a couple of teasers:

Perinet Chameleon (Calumma gastrotaenia)

Unnamed Frog (Platypelis barbouri)

Hope to see you there!
Kyle