Recent Non-mothing Highlights

I'll get back to some moth features in a future post. But I have been out looking and finding other flying creatures and things, during the daylight hours!

Butterfly counts are just around the corner, and recently I stopped in at the Reid Conservation Area which always has a good variety of butterflies at this time of year. Hairstreaks are always fun to look for. There is usually no shortage of Banded Hairstreaks. I think I counted at least 8 on this day.

The main target species, and highlight, was to see not one, but three Oak Hairstreaks, as shown in this next photo.

There were several other species of butterfly that I saw over the couple of hours I spent here, but only photographed one other species, this European Skipper,

Southern Chatham-Kent is often the direction I head. A stop in at the Keith McLean Conservation Lands can yield some surprises. There was a couple of White-faced Ibis that showed up briefly a few days ago, but due to a commitment, I was unable to make the trip that day and so missed them. I have seen them in Manitoba, but never in Ontario. Chances are they might still be around, somewhere, but they can be in the most difficult wetland habitats to access. But during the couple of times I have been there since, there have been a few things to enjoy.

This Northern Map Turtle was surprisingly tolerant of my presence.

This Dunlin is either a very late migrant, or a failed nester that decided to return to southern Ontario.

Great Egrets don't nest in the immediate vicinity, but one or two are often found at this time of year.

Like the Dunlin, this Least Sandpiper is a little atypical for the time of year.

A male Lesser Scaup is a little unusual.

Monarch butterflies have not been very plentiful this year so far, in my experience. This one was feeding on some Canada Thistle along the edge of 'Lake McLean'.

Continuing on a bit of a butterfly theme, I came across these while roaming the southern part of Rondeau.

Hobomok Skipper

Common Buckeye

Mourning Cloak

The east side of the South Point Trail continues to be quite wet in places. Rubber boots are necessary, as there was up to 10 cm of water in places. Therefore it wasn't entirely unusual to see shorebirds along the trail, including a couple of Spotted Sandpipers.

I was also on the lookout for Northern Mockingbird, at least one pair of which has been seen regularly just before the last cottage along Lakeshore Road. I got some decent photos, with a bit of patience.

While this pair seems to be consistently between the last cottage and the Beach Access #11, I was surprised to see a pair of them about 500 metres south, just a bit north of the Light Beacon. It was only a couple of hours later, which made me wonder if there was a second pair, or the first pair decided to wander.

One of my favourite June wildflowers, Wood Lily, was in full bloom in the semi open woodland edges.

While hiking along the southeast beach dune area, one will come across a few scattered clumps of this next species.

Prickly Pear Cactus

It should be made known that while this species is legally endangered in Ontario, it does not occur naturally at Rondeau. Some well-meaning individual(s) planted about a dozen small clumps in various places along this beach dune area back in the mid 1990s. It creates a dilemma: should one accept the planting of an endangered species into a natural area of a natural environment park, especially in a habitat that itself is endangered? Or should they be removed? So far they've been left alone over the last 25 years, but they are expanding and who knows what kind of impact they will have on this endangered vegetation ecosystem in the future.

There are many species of plants which are non-native to the park. In some of the former cottage lots where the cottages were removed years ago, there are many non-native plants of various types that persist, and even thrive. One of them is in flower right now, and is rather showy. It is known as Beautybush.

Even though it is not native, some types of wildlife have found it useful. This first image shows a moth a type of Looper, resting on it.

Meanwhile another moth, the Snowberry Clearwing, is seen sipping nectar from the abundant flower clusters.

As this post ends with moths, the next post will likely begin with moths.

And Happy Birthday Canada!

Bold and Beautiful Creatures

For some readers, the title may invoke memories of a soap opera. However after reading this post, I'm hoping that it will give a different perspective on things that are bold and beautiful!

I'm talking about some things in the world of nature of course, and in reality, there are so many things that may fit. In this particular post, I am featuring none other than the incredible colours and patterns which may be bold but definitely beautiful, in the world of moths.

The thought of moths to many people may conjure up the concept of little nondescript things that flutter around lights, and never seem to make up their mind as to where they should be going. Or they are things that get caught in headlights when you are driving at night and end up being schmucked on your windshield or grille, needing to be cleaned off later. There is no question that many moths are, at least to the human eye, rather drab and unbecoming. But to another moth of the same species, who knows how it may appear.

One of the best ways to appreciate the intricate patterns, colours, sizes and shapes of this incredibly abundant group of insects is to attract them to light. The wave length of black light works wonders. It just so happens that while I have been attempting some black lighting in various places over the past few years, I am on a bit more of a mission this year. I am working primarily with a current Rondeau Provincial Park staff member to try and get the park's moth list a little more respectable. Not long ago after many years of accumulating moth records, it sat at around 450 species, which is much higher than the bird list (which is 362). But if an adequate survey of all the habitats were done, there should easily be more than 2000 species! At this point we are slightly over 500 species, so clearly there is a long way to go.

There is something very appealing to be at Rondeau in the quiet of evening. The wind is calm and the greenery of this time of year is incredibly lush. Most people who have been at the park earlier in the day have packed up and gone home, so the human sounds are minimal.

I drive slowly along the quiet road to where I will set up. On several occasions, it has been at the group campground. The attractions of this location are several: there are no competing lights; there is a good quality of Carolinian forest; it is sheltered from all but the strongest winds.

After getting the equipment set up, it is then time to wait until dark. As the light recedes, there is the flute-like call of the Wood Thrush. There may be a distant drumming of a Pileated Woodpecker. Fireflies are there to welcome us with their flashing lights. After darkness arrives, it is likely that we will hear coyotes howling in the distance, or on occasion quite close by. Great Horned Owls and Eastern Screech Owls call with their respective hoots or quavering twitters.

And then it is time to put the black light on, and the next part of the evening show begins.

Moths don't arrive immediately, but other insects do. Midges and caddisflies are likely the most numerous, and depending on the time, there may be a recent hatch of one of the several species of mosquitoes. Mosquitoes can be very numerous, but are typically at their peak about half an hour just prior to sunset. But on occasion, they can be abundant throughout the black lighting session. Repellent is definitely handy!

Eventually moths appear, scattered throughout the evening hours. Here are some of the more colourful ones I've photographed in the last couple of weeks. Some of the names are more creative, descriptive and endearing than others, it would seem.

Bicolored Pyrausta

Common Spring Moth

Early Button Slug Moth

Fall Webworm

Jewel-tailed Slug Moth

Lemon Plagodis

Pale Beauty

Pink-shaded Fern Moth

Raspberry Pyrausta

Showy Emerald

The Badwing

Walnut Caterpillar Moth

Yellow-shouldered Slug Moth

Green Leuconycta

 

Green Marvel

Harris's Three-spot

Hickory Tussock Moth

Remember seeing those Wooly Bear caterpillars scattered along pathways last year? Those that survived will have turned into this next one.

Isabella Tiger Moth

Marbled-green Leuconycta

Owl-eyed Bird Dropping Moth

One of the highlights of anyone even the least bit interested in moths is seeing one of the silkmoths, or Saturnids. The header feature is an example. It is the Polyphemus moth, which quite literally came banging into us one evening. Kevin was wearing a jacket that reflected off the black light very vividly, and the Polyphemus Moth flew right onto his back, and then fell to the ground. It fluttered for awhile, but then settled down and I got a few shots of it.

Some other Saturnids are these next two. This first one, the Pink-striped Oakworm Moth, came in surreptitiously and all of a sudden appeared at the very bottom of the sheet. It is a fairly large moth, but it just goes to show that they can all of a sudden appear, so one has to be constantly on the watch as most moths are much smaller and easier to miss.

While the Pink-striped Oakworm is rather uncommon in this area, this next one is more likely to be seen. It is the Rosy Maple Moth, and we have seen at least 8 in the last week or so.

It was interesting to see them both quite close together for a few moments. A photo like this is quite unusual.

Even much more unusual is this next photo. It show the Pink-striped Webworm at the top and the Rosy Maple at the bottom, and in between is the even larger Tuliptree Beauty. This was not a set up shot, it was completely random the way the moths lit onto the sheet, right amidst a few of the caddisflies and midges. I call this photo the Triple Crown!

Even though the colours and patterns are amazing, a question that certainly comes to my mind is that for creatures of the night, when it is dark, how do these colours make sense for the moths? Can they see things that we don't? Certainly they must as they respond to light wavelengths that our eyes cannot see, hence the effectiveness of black light and mercury vapour light which have quite different wavelengths. Just one of the many amazing things of the world of nature!

Keep a lookout for more moths in a future post.

Orchids, skippers and other highlights

While the spring bird migration is all but over, the fall migration is not far away! But there is a whole host of other things to get out to enjoy.

On a recent trip out to Rondeau, I took a look at what used to be the Marsh Trail. This has always been one of my favourite parts of the park, but getting out to enjoy it will be a lot more challenging than it used to be. For anyone familiar with the trail, this first image shows what it is like just past the parking lot gate.

Just past the second gate, at the end of the line of cottages, the trail looks like this. That small shrub on the right is where many people stood when looking and waiting for the Great Kiskadee that showed up in September, 2018.

And standing beside that shrub and looking south, is what remains of the trail. You can see the base of the trail, but the bay was very calm on this trip.

Looking southwards, one can see the Barn Swallow nesting structure, that was put in place following the destruction of the observation tower. It is completely out in the water now, and it is likely only a matter of time before the ice of a future winter takes it out.

The Barn Swallows better make use of it while they can!

No more will there be views of the marsh like this next one, taken from the upper level of the observation tower a few years ago.

The forest canopy has all but closed in with the leaves out in full. Wildflowers are few and far between, compared with the extensive carpets of spring wildflowers just a few weeks ago. There are still a few, however, including Canada Violet. It is fairly easy to identify, being white, with its dark striped, yellow throat....

....and the tinge of pale violet on the back of the petals.

This isn't a wildflower, but a fern, commonly known as Rattlesnake Fern. It is scattered throughout.

One of the few orchids around right now is Puttyroot. It isn't very colourful, and easily blends in with the subdued colours of the forest floor.

On the topic of orchids, a few days ago Marie and I went to northern Lambton County on a search for some orchids that, while they are not abundant even there, they don't occur at Rondeau. I was particularly interested in checking a small population of Ram's-head Lady's-slipper. This population in the Ipperwash area is believed to be the southernmost population in Canada.

Alas, while I did find about 9 plants, only two had attempted to flower, and it appeared that perhaps a slight frost or something had damaged the flowers, so there were no good photographs to be had.

I did look for other orchids that I knew were in the area, and came across a single flowering Pink Lady's-slipper and a couple of non-flowering ones.

I also found several individuals of this less colourful orchid species, the Hooker's Orchid.

Another target of this trip to north Lambton was to see if I could find and photograph the rare Dusted Skipper, which would be a lifer for me. I had noted on Blake's blog that he had seen about 30 in the day or two preceding my visit, so I thought my chances were good. As it turned out, even after searching the area where Blake had seen them, and with directions from Blake (thanks, Blake!), I was only able to come up with two. I suspect the cooler temperatures of around 15C due to the brisk north winds off the lake probably kept some of them in more sheltered areas. But of the two, I did manage to get several photos of this one.

Before actually finding this Dusted Skipper, I was attracted to this Common Roadside Skipper, which in my experience is anything but common.

Some of the more open and sheltered sandy areas had various other flying critters, including this Eastern Sand Tiger Beetle.

On the return home, we stopped at a location along the Ausable River where years ago I had found several individuals of Green Dragon, a fairly rare plant in Ontario. It may be even rarer now, as I was not able to find any sign of it, although with the forest canopy changing due to the loss of ash trees from the Emerald Ash Borer, the ground cover was exceedingly dense, and so possibly this dragon species still lives along the Ausable. Maybe next time I will be more successful.