Long Distance Flyers! 

These 3 species were all found within a 5 day period!

The Wandering Glider is considered to be the most widespread dragonfly on the planet with good populations on every continent except Antarctica. I found my first one along the edge of Canatara Beach today. They make an annual multigenerational journey of 18,000 kilometres and are believed to be the world's "longest known distance insect traveler". Due to its worldwide distribution, this species has occurred on many stamps!  

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/108344-Pantala-flavescens

I often struggle to identify Sulphur Butterflies. This one seemed a little different so I snapped several photos. Upon checking the identification guide, I learned that the Little Yellow is a mainly tropical and subtropical species that can migrate northward! Sometimes several individuals arrive in Ontario and can occasionally breed but it does not overwinter in our province. 

The ROM Field Guide to Butterflies of Ontario, Peter W. Hall et al.

Thanks to our friend Dale, we were able to see a pair of Marine Blue butterflies in south Lambton last weekend! They are only 25mm in width. It is a very rare migrant to Ontario and the last time this species was recorded in Ontario was in 2008. It's permanent range extends from Guatemala to the southern U.S. 

Both of these photos are of the same individual but I understand that we found a male and a female Marine Blue! This species has twice established temporary breeding colonies in Ontario: Point Pelee in 1993 and Toronto in 2008. The ROM Field Guide to Butterflies of Ontario, Peter W. Hall et al.

 An American Lady Visitor!

An American Lady visited our backyard recently. 

The expansion of our native garden provided her with the host plant required to lay eggs. A friend warned me that  American Lady caterpillars construct tents from silk to bind together the leaves and create shelter. A quick glance might lead me to think that my Pearly Everlasting was dying.

I found 26 shelters made by the larva! 

Above, one is peeking out of its nest on a cloudy day.

Larva on the move! I haven't found a chrysalis yet but hope that some of the 26 caterpillars will make it to adulthood. Cardinals in particular, fancy eating the larva.

In the summer months, American Lady butterflies can be found in the southern parts of Canada and northern U.S. As winter approaches, they migrate to warmer weather in the southern U.S. and Mexico. www.insectidentification.org

 Green Year Update!

Deryl added another mode of transportation to his Green Big Year this morning out on Lake Huron! He is spending 2022 locating birds in Lambton County exclusively without the use of fossil fuel powered transportation. He has observed 219 species since January 1st.

The first rare bird of the year was a Ross' Goose.

Cycling provided an opportunity to hear birds more easily than from a car. This Dickcissel was observed along a roadside after hearing its song in the distance.

This Short-billed Dowitcher is his favourite find to date. It was hanging out in a mud puddle in a residential construction zone.

His best bird to date is a Whimbrel found on Canatara Beach in the middle of June!

He even cycled to Pinery Provincial Park in June. A Red-spotted Purple enjoyed the sweat on his bike seat!

STATISTICS TO DATE:

Total species observed: 219

Total distance walked: 410 km

Total distance cycled: 1,025 km

Total distance on snowshoes: 4 km.

Total distance on cross-country skis 6 km

Total distance by kayak: 3 km

Total weight lost: 20 lbs.

And he still returned to the house with a smile on his face!

 Some Cool Finds!!

American Giant Millipede: Although "Milli" means a thousand, they don't really have that many legs. Depending upon the species, they can have anywhere between 24 and 750 legs. (2 pairs of legs per body section.)   https://animals.howstuffworks.com/insects/big-insects.htm.  We found this critter which was 4 inches long, crawling down a tree branch while hiking on Friday. I had no idea a millipede could grow to that size in Ontario and that they climbed trees! We never found any that large in all my years of teaching Outdoor Education. 

Brown-hooded Owlet Larva (Moth): The Field Guide appropriately states, "Each individual appears as if it were hand-painted and then glazed." The host plants are asters and goldenrod. Found in Canatara Park! Caterpillars of Eastern North America, David L. Wagner

We have an Ant/Aphid farm on a Snakeroot Plant in our garden. Ants and aphids share a well-documented symbiotic relationship, which means they both benefit mutually from their working relationship. Aphids produce a sugary food for the ants. In exchange, ants care for and protect the aphids from predators and parasites. 

Symbiotic Ants and Aphids Have a Strong Relationship (thoughtco.com)

Black Squirrel doing a Prairie Dog impersonation!

 Dazzling Dragonflies!!

Many species of dragonflies are currently active in Southern Ontario including the Blue Dasher (top of photo) and Twelve-spotted Skimmer.

Dragonfly Nymph: In early June, we watched this dragonfly nymph walk along the road shoulder at the edge of a small lake. I have seen MANY dragonfly nymphs in the water during all my years of teaching pond studies, but this is the first I've seen a live one out of the water! 

The nymph was looking for a suitable plant on which to crawl so it could emerge from its exoskeleton or "exuvia". (photo is from last year) Dragonflies in Southern Ontario can spend up to 4 years at the larval stage and complete 17 moults before emerging from the water as an adult!

We recently found a Great Blue Skimmer which is a rare visitor to Southern Ontario. It was a "life" species for us!

2 Blue Dashers attempting to share the same real estate!

Slaty Skimmer

Since dragonflies do not breathe fire, I was curious as to how they got their name. There are many folklore stories to explain the origin of the name. Historically, the shape of the dragonfly's body "freaked out" people enough to associate them with the devil. The Romanians used the same word, "drac" for both "devil" and "dragon".  It is believed that the word "devil's fly" became "dragonfly" somewhere along the line in English translation. 

www.treehugger.com/things-you-never-knew-about-dragonflies-

 

Dragonflies, including this Eastern Pondhawk, have many hairs on their legs. In flight, these hairs can act like a net to assist in catching mosquitoes, gnats and other small insects. A single dragonfly can eat between thirty and hundreds of mosquitos every day! They have up to a 97% success rate when hunting and are often called "Mosquito Hawks"!

www.treehugger.com/things-you-never-knew-about-dragonflies-

Halloween Pennant: one of my favourite dragonflies!

 Some Fun Finds!

When I first noticed this Harvestman, it looked like the legs had been bedazzled! Upon closer inspection, the red "beads" were tiny mites. Although the mites are parasitic, they are unlikely to kill the host.

I loved the pattern on this leaf! Then I loved the name of the leaf miner who created the artwork even more! Aspen Serpentine Leaf Miner Moth! Spied at Skunks Misery during a Butterfly Count. Leaf miners are the larvae of various species of insects that live inside leaves and feed on leaf tissue. The damage looks like discoloured lines or blotches on leaves.

Spicebush Swallowtail Caterpillar: The large eye spots help to scare away potential predators.

A family of Barn Swallows "sang" for their supper whenever Mom and Dad returned with some yummy insects.

Its nesting time for American Goldfinches! They typically nest later than other species, not starting to nest until late June/early July. Exterior nest materials often include twigs and strips of bark held together by spider silk. The interior consists of rootlets and plant fibers with downy lining added to make the nest comfortable.

https://birdfact.com/articles/American-Goldfinch-nesting

The female American Goldfinch in the above 2 pictures is collecting Thistle Down to use in the interior of the nest. Her eyes were almost completely covered by the down which may have made it difficult to fly back to the nest!

 Minerals for Butterflies!

While walking along a gravelly/dirt road today, we found and photographed many butterfly species getting nourishment by drinking minerals from the ground. We unfortunately chose a day when the road was being graded, but after each pass of the machine, the butterflies happily returned to the disturbed road! It must be easier to poke a tiny, straw-like proboscis into soft ground as opposed to hard-packed soil from vehicular traffic! 

Compton Tortoiseshell

Coral Hairstreak

 

Mourning Cloak

 

Question Mark (note the ? on the wing)

Summer Azure

Tawny Emperor