Montreal Biodome (1/4)
August 16th, 2011
I took a trip to the Biodome last week and got some photos.
Great Horned Owl. Yes, he's real :-) This species is common in Ottawa, but I seldom get the opportunity to see one so close, or in such good lighting!
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I've seen, in the wild, most of the ducks that breed in Canada. But the magnificent Harlequin Duck is one I'm still missing. Harlequins breed on fast-flowing mountain streams (primarily in the west) and winter on the coast--their mastery of rough water is second to none. A male/female pair is shown above.
Matching Colors
August 5th, 2011
I'm not usually a fly enthusiast, but this one enchanted me: metallic green and gold, with eyes as red as the meadowhawk perched next to it! If my research led me aright it's a Green Bottle Fly.
My telephoto really struggled with getting a focus on this. I keep pressing the poor thing into service as a macro lens, and in this case, I'm impressed with how well it did.
White-Faced Meadowhawk
August 3rd, 2011
If you see a bright red dragonfly in late summer or autumn, it's probably a meadowhawk. White-Faced is one of the most common of the seven species that occur in Ottawa.
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A Beautiful Spot
July 31st, 2011
A view of Chelsea Creek in the Gatineau, from Sugarbush Loop. Michael and I went there yesterday, sat at the waterside and watched jewelwings perch on the rocks.
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Steeplebush
July 29th, 2011
Ebony Jewelwing
July 28th, 2011
Sugarbush Loop is becoming one of my favorite hiking spots. Foremost of the reasons for this is its population of Ebony Jewelwings, a magnificent odonate. When you first see one fluttering around, it looks like a dark butterfly. Then it perches, revealing its vivid metallic blue-green body and its eponymous delicate ebony wings. Jewelwings prefer wooded streams and creeks, which is perhaps why they're not a common sight in Ottawa--our greenspace has a lot more marsh and pond than it does fast-flowing water. But in appropriate habitat, they occur in good numbers.
I was delighted to find one hunting for food on Chelsea Creek. He perched on grasses leaning over the water, and periodically sallied forth to snap up insects from the surface. He had a habit of returning to exactly the same position on exactly the same perch after one of his sallies, which was fortunate for me! Once I'd set the focus on my lens, it stayed good for some time.
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The females and juveniles are duller-colored, and have pale spots on the tips of their wings. My favorite female picture of the day is this rather startling flight shot.
A Selection Of Odes
July 21st, 2011
No, not poetry. "Odes" is shorthand for odonates: dragonflies and damselflies. Here are some I've come across recently.
Four-Spotted Skimmer (wallpaper available)
Mosaic Darner (wallpaper available)
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Cooper's Hawk
July 18th, 2011
Cooper's Hawks have nested in the tall pines at Mud Lake for a few years now. These long-tailed raptors are voracious consumer of songbirds. The Mud Lake pair also seem to enjoy, and have helped temper, its bountiful squirrel population! Before the hawks took up residence, squirrels used to follow hikers down paths looking for handouts, or come out when you were sitting on the platform and just stare at you. The Black Squirrel Mafia, I called them. They've since learned to make themselves a little less conspicuous.
This Cooper's, judging by eye color, is a young'un--likely fledged from this year's nest.
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Eastern Kingbird
July 17th, 2011
Eastern Kingbirds are common throughout Ottawa, but Mer Bleue is an especially good place to watch and photograph them. They perch on the boardwalk and make flycatching sallies over the bog.
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Hexagenia Limbata
July 16th, 2011
...which is to say, a mayfly. I like mayflies--both the pale waxy subimagos that cling to windows in spring, and the colorful adults.
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