Last from Africa

Well it is officially departure day after over 2 months in Africa - it has been an amazing trip but I am definitely ready to get home!  Had a bit of time at the hostel this morning, so here are a few quick picks (and quick edits) from the most recent leg of the journey:

White Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum)

Flap-necked Chameleon (Chamaeleo dilepis)

Spotted Hyena (Crocuta crocuta)

Lots more photos to go through, and I will do my best to post them as I get to them in the coming weeks!

Kyle

Pelagic Birding

Got the internet for a brief period - just long enough to post a couple of quick picks from today's pelagic birding trip with Zest For Birds.  What an amazing day!  Literally thousands of seabirds, many within only metres of the boat!  Personal highlights were definitely 4 species of albatross, and also Subantarctic Skua so close I could almost touch it!  Awesome!!

I spent most of the time staring awestruck at the birds, but I did manage to grab a few photos as well.  I've never shot pelagic before, so it was a bit of an experiment!  All in all, fairly pleased with the preliminary results.

Shy Albatross (Thallasarche cauta)

White-chinned Petrel (Procellaria aequinoctialis)

That's all for now - on the plane to Nelspruit tomorrow then into Kruger for 9 days.  I expect to have no internet there, so it may be a while before next communication.

Until then!
Kyle

First South Africa Photos

Hello!

After a week in the Capetown area, I finally have some internet access and can get some photos up!  It has been an interesting and whirlwind journey around the area, and I've seen lots of amazing things!  I've just had time to get a few photos together, and they're all quick selections hastily edited, so be kind!

Some scenery typical of the Western Cape:

Cape Scenery

One of our first stops was Betty's Bay, the site of an African Penguin colony!

African or Jackass Penguin (Spheniscus demersus)

Upon arriving at Table Mountain National Park, we were treated to a troop of baboons ripping the mirror off a truck in the parking lot.  The occupant of the truck - sleeping at the time - was surprisingly unperturbed.  It was a work truck after all...

Chacma Baboon (Papio ursinus)

While on the mammal train, we picked up some zebras near the Cape of Good Hope.

Cape Mountain Zebra (Equus zebra zebra)

In West Coast National Park, Bryna spotted the snake of the trip!  Not an award-winning photo, but what an animal!

Cape Cobra (Naja nivea)

And finally a bird with fewer than 5000 individuals in the worldwide population!

African Black Oystercatcher (Haematopus moquini)

Headed out pelagic-birding tomorrow, then up to Kruger and the surrounding area for the next few weeks!  Will update when possible!

:)
Kyle

Still Alive in MG!!

Hello!

I have finally returned to the internet after a month-long absence (how did I survive??).  Last full day in Madagascar, flying to South Africa tomorrow.  Internet access in SA should be slightly more frequent than it has been here (none), but probably not significantly.  I will try to update when I can.

In the meantime, prepare for the longest post ever.  To make up for my absence, I have prepped a bunch of photos (quickly, and on a tiny computer, so I hope they're ok!).  I haven't had time to research the IDs yet, so apologize where they are lacking or incorrect!

We've managed about a half-a-dozen snakes in MG, mostly small and terrestrial.  Apparently the Malagasy name of this species means "many snakes in one hole."  Garter Snake anyone? (thanks to Bryna for excellent snake-wrangling!).

Lateral Water Snake (Bibilava lateralis)

Frog diversity here is stunning, and there are more frog species than birds!

Greater Madagascan Green Treefrog (Boophis luteus)

We've seen about a dozen chameleon species in the country, some very big and some very small!

Thiel's Pygmy Chameleon (Brookesia thieli)

Short-horned Chameleon (Calumma brevicorne)

One of my favourite bird species here:

Collared Nightjar (Caprimulgus enarratus)

Another cham!

Jewel Chameleon (Furcifer lateralis)

Truly one of the most bizarre (and among stiff competition) species that MG has to offer:

Giraffe-necked Weevil (Trachelophorus giraffa)

More frogs...

Betsileo Reed Frog (Heterixalus betsileo)

Largest lemur in the world!

Indri (Indri indri)

Sneaky kingfisher photo...

Madagascar Kingfisher (Alcedo vintsioides)

One of the most sought-after frogs in the country!

Baron's Mantella (Mantella baroni)

Total guess on the ID here, but it certainly appears to be a Nephila spider to me.  Check out the male (fully grown) on her back.  Careful little fella!  (not a joke - she would be quite happy to eat him before or after mating).

Giant Orb-Weaver (Nephila sp?)

Frequently shared breakfast with our little friend Larry (well, until we realized that Larry was actually Larries...).  Day-Geckos eat fruit and nectar, so a little jam or honey was not to be passed up.  Apparently chocolate cake is just as good.  (sad to note that although Day-Geckos enjoy chocolate cake, they do not posses a mechanism to ingest it effectively - Larry basically pressed his tongue against it for a while and hoped it would absorb).

Lined Day-Gecko (Phelsuma lineata)

One of my most-wanted Madagascar creatures!

Pill Millipede (Family: Arthrosphaeridae)

Tons of great butterflies, no way to identify them...

Butterfly (Species Unknown)

Craziest thing ever!  Total length about 3 inches.  Start researching turbellarians, prepare to be dumbfounded.

Turbellarian Flatworm (Species Unknown)

Lots of crazy phasmids!

Stick Insect (Species Unknown)

All credit goes to Bryna for this amazing find!  Note the epic common, and latin, names!

Satanic Leaftail Gecko (Uroplatus phantasticus)

A member of one of the endemic bird families - found this lady on a pendulous nest in the middle of a trail!

Velvet Asity (Philepitta castanea)

That is all for now!  Will try to update when possible from SA!

Kyle

Last for a while...

I am pleased to report that I am safely on the ground in Antananarivo, Madagascar.  I haven't been here long, but my first impressions are excellent and I am excited to spend the next month here!  I am catching a ride out of internet-land tomorrow so there won't likely be any posts for a while, but be sure to check back in 4 weeks or so for updates and hopefully photos!

:)

Kyle

Today's the day!

Ok, so I'm definitely a bit stressed out about my impending departure (6:50pm today!), but also excited to get going!  The bags are all packed and final preparations are underway.  The trip schedule is as follows:

Jan 9-Feb 12 - Mananara Lodge, Madagascar.  Possibly some additional traveling in MG.
Feb 12-Feb21 - Capetown, South Africa and surrounding area
Feb 21-Mar 12 - Kruger National Park, South Africa and surrounding area

I have been so busy getting ready that I haven't had much time to edit the photos from the Dominican Republic, but here are a couple that I did quickly:

Palmchat (Dulus dominicus) - the national bird of the DR

Ruddy Turnstones (Arenaria interpres)

I will do my best to post updates when I can, but I'm not sure when I will have internet access in Africa.

Onward and upward!
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