The end of an era?

Well ladies and gentlemen, the time has come...I'm officially closing down the blog. If we're honest, it's basically been closed down for a while now.  With so many other ways to share photos these days, it just doesn't make much sense anymore.  Maybe someday, if I ever get my act together to do some actual writing, I'll bring it back to life in one form or another.

Never fear though, as there are still plenty of ways to find me on the interwebs.  Here are some of them:

Website: www.kylehorner.com/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/KyleHornerNature
Twitter: www.twitter.com/KHornerNature
Instagram: www.instagram.com/khornernature/

That'll be all for now.  I leave you with this photo of a dragonfly:

Swift River Cruiser (Macromia illinoiensis)

New year, new (old) blog?

Hello!

Well it's a full 7 months since I last posted here - in fact I let pretty much all of my social-media-type things go in the latter half of 2014.  Just needed a break I suppose, and a bit of a re-think.  But with the onset of 2015 I'm diving back into the mix, and there are many changes and updates to annouce!

First and foremost, about a month back I published a new website!  The old one was long overdue for an upgrade, and I'm excited to have something new, simple and clean.  You can see it in the same bat-place:

www.kylehorner.com

Secondly, I have taken yet a third reluctant plunge (Facebook and Twitter being long under the belt) into a social medium, and gotten an Instagram account.  Do you Instagram?  If so, you can find me here:

http://instagram.com/khornernature/

Thirdly, I'm excited to be guiding a trip to Florida for Eagle Eye Tours in about a month's time.  If you have some spare cash and nothing to do mid-Feb, you can find the details here:

http://www.eagle-eye.com/florida-birding-tour

And finally, with photography and other activities being slow in the winter, I have been working hard to process as many photos as I can, and finally get my collection up-to-date!  Here's a whole bunch of shiny new edits from the last few months:

Definite Tussock Moth (Orgyia definata)

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Dun Skipper (Euphyes vestris)

Band-winged Meadowhawk (Sympetrum semicinctum)

Long-tailed Salamander (Eurycea longicauda)

Ebony Jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata)

White-faced Meadowhawk (Sympetrum obtrusum)

American Robin (Turdus migratorius)


American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla)


Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis)


Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca)

Herring Gull (Larus smithsonianus)

Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake (Sistrurus catenatus)

Mississippi Green Water Snake (Nerodia cyclopion)

Masked Treefrog (Smilisca phaeota)

Trout Lily (Erythronium americanum)

Fingers crossed for more to come (New Years resolutions being what they will)!

Kyle

More Odes!

Spring seems to finally be springing - what a gorgeous day!  Had my first Killdeer of the year, and my first stoneflies too.  There is hope for the future.

In the meantime, the dragonfly (and damselfly) editing spree continues!  Here are some more:

Cherry-faced or Ruby Meadowhawk (Sympetrum sp.)

Cherry-faced or Ruby Meadowhawk (Sympetrum sp.)

Powdered Dancer (Argia moesta)

Slaty Skimmer (Libellula incesta)

Hopefully we'll be seeing some in-person soon!

Kyle

Playing catchup...as always!

Hello!

Somehow managed to get motivated to edit some photos still in the sort pile from last year today!  Here are some dragonflies and damselflies from the year that was 2013:

Eastern Pondhawk (Erythemis simplicicollis)

Ebony Jewelwing (Calopteryx maculata)

Four-spotted Skimmer (Libellula quadrimaculata)

Frosted Whiteface (Leucorrhinia frigida)

Hagen's Bluet (Enallagma hageni)

Lance-tipped Darner (Aeshna constricta)

Hopefully progress continues!  Won't be long (hopefully) until we're seeing dragonflies for real!

Kyle

Boring Odes?

I am playing catch-up as usual, but managing to get a few shots edited.  On my recent foray to shield country, I picked up a few photo-lifer odes.  Exciting for me, but I suspect that to many, they are some of the less charismatic dragons and damsels out there.  Nevertheless, I like 'em, so here they are!

If any odonate experts out there see issues with my identifications, let me know!  These freakin' things are hard!!

Ashy Clubtail (Gomphus lividus)

Lancet Clubtail (Gomphus exilis)

Stream Bluet (Enallagma exsulans) - and a lot of mites!

Hagen's Bluet (Enallagma hageni)

They may be the sparrows of the odonate world...

Kyle

Dragonfly Study

Dragonfly season is fast approaching!  Are you as excited as I am?  You should be!

I was getting caught up on some photos from last year, and came upon this series taken of a single animal.  It was my first crack at Black Saddlebags, and some patience and excellent lighting produced some favourable results (I think, anyway).  They may be one of my favourite species because of their instant recognizability (made-up word), striking patterns and migratory behaviour.  The latter means you are often chasing them in cool places, like a beach on the Lake Erie shore (where these photos were taken).

Black Saddlebags (Tramea lacerata)

Black Saddlebags (Tramea lacerata)

Black Saddlebags (Tramea lacerata)

Black Saddlebags (Tramea lacerata)

Black Saddlebags (Tramea lacerata)

Toad Hunt

Decided yesterday to head out on a search for a species I have never photographed: the ever-so-elusive Fowler's Toad!  A day of searching produced a single toad, but I can't fault him for cooperativeness.

Fowler's Toad (Anaxyrus fowleri)

These endangered toads differ from the garden-variety American Toads (Anaxyrus americanus) in several minor and frustrating ways, including the shape of the ridges on their heads and the number of warts in a cluster.  Mostly though, they differ in their habitat preferences: Fowler's only like sandy beaches and dunes!

Fowler's Toad (Anaxyrus fowleri)

Lots of dragonflies still passing through on their migration south.  We don't have too many migratory dragonflies, and the most familiar is probably the giant Green Darner (Anax junius).  For me though, it's all about the saddlebags.

Black Saddlebags (Tramea lacerata)

As a little bonus for my time spent on the hunt, I came across the prettiest pillbug I've ever seen in Ontario!  These little crustaceans (related to the sowbugs or potato bugs you have in your garden) protect themselves by curling into a ball (or pill) when threatened.  I managed a series of photos that I quite liked.

Pillbug (unknown species, Order: Isopoda)

Pillbug (unknown species)

Pillbug (unknown species)

Pillbug (unknown species)

That's all for now!
Kyle

Boreal Dragonflies

The summer certainly can fly by if you're not paying attention, and mine has been no exception of late!  Once again, I have been absent from the blog for a considerable period of time.  I have been spending some weekends at some of Ontario's lovely parks though, and have had the chance to take a few photos as well.  The sort pile is getting high, but here are a few quick edits from recent weekends:

Calico Pennant (Celithemis elisa) - Silent Lake Provincial Park

Slaty Skimmer (Libellula incesta) - Silent Lake Provincial Park

And a dragonfly that I have always wanted to see because of its impressive size, cannibalistic behaviour and awesome name:

Dragonhunter (Hagenius brevistylus) - Killarney Provincial Park

In other news, I am filling in for a friend at the Guelph Arboretum this Wednesday night and doing a mini-workshop on nature photography!  The tone will be very casual and family-oriented, so come on out for a fun night of shooting.  For more details, go here: http://www.uoguelph.ca/arboretum/educationandevents/tours.shtml

I will really try to get some more shots up soon!

Kyle

Workshops!

Hello!

I am excited to announce a series of new workshops that I will be offering in conjunction with Natura Tours Inc.!  They cover birds, butterflies and dragonflies, and run from summer 2012 through winter 2013.  You can see them on my Workshops page, or directly on Natura's website.  Be sure to take a look and see if any of them interest you!

Got an exciting weekend planned and will hopefully have some photos to show for it soon!  Also I have not forgotten about Africa photos, but have been temporarily stalled :(.

Cheers!
Kyle

Another Year...

Well it seems that everyone is doing a 'year-in-review,' and since I always do what everyone else is doing (hah), I thought I'd repost some of my favourite photos from the past year.  This also helps me continue to avoid the editing that I really should be doing...

I had some trouble whittling it down, so there's a bunch of them!

The year started with a trip to Cuba in early January with a small group, where we found a creature I'd long wanted to see:

Cuban Ground Boa (Tropidophis melanurus) in Cuba

I barely managed to snag this shot of a Great Blue while speeding by in a boat, and it has become one of my favourites!

Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) in Cuba

Not much photography done in the early spring, but late April and May found me birding Point Pelee on several occasions.  I did find some time to search for reptiles too.

Five-lined Skink (Plestiodon fasciatus) at Point Pelee

Northern Map Turtle (Graptemys geographica) at Point Pelee

In the summer I spent a long weekend on Georgian Bay with a few excellent friends, and although the weather definitely didn't cooperate, we had a good weekend and found a few exciting critters.

Robber Fly (species unknown) on Georgian Bay

Grey Treefrog (Hyla versicolor) on Georgian Bay

Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa) on Georgian Bay

In August I spent a lot of time chasing butterflies close to home.  I bought a new camera body, so this gave me a great opportunity to break it in on some of my favourite subjects.  I decided to try resisting my predilection for the extreme close-up, and took a step back for a different perspective on some of the photos.

Question Mark (Polygonia interrogationis) in Guelph

There is something irresistible about a good close-up though...

Silver-spotted Skipper (Epargyreus clarus) in Guelph

I spent some time with Hummingbird Moths this summer, as I find them a very challenging subject!

Hummingbird Clearwing (Hemaris thysbe) in Guelph

It was really a banner year for Giant Swallowtails, and they were showing up everywhere!

Giant Swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes) in Guelph

In the late summer I spent a day herping in Simcoe County with some friends, and one member of our group nearly stepped on a neonate rattlesnake - one of the most amazing wildlife sightings of my life!

Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake (Sistrurus catenatus) in Simcoe County

On Thanksgiving weekend I took my annual pilgrimage to southern Illinois with some amazing people, and had a great weekend searching for some spectacular herps (thanks Steve!).

Western Cottonmouth (Agkistrodon piscivorus) in southern Illinois

This tiny froglet will forever remain unidentified...

Cope's or Bird-voiced Treefrog (Hyla sp.) in southern Illinois

On my last herping excursion of the year I found no herps, but I did grab a quick shot of an American Copper, which has become a real favourite of mine.

American Copper (Lycaena phlaeas) at Long Point

And that brings us up to the present, and one of my favourite (and last) photos of the year:

Zebra Longwing (Heliconius charithonia) in the Dominican Republic

That's all for now!  I am looking forward to kicking off 2012 with a trip to Madagascar and South Africa, and hope to have plenty of exciting photos to post when I get back!

Kyle