AAA trip to Amherst Island, Ontario

Trent's Avian Appreciation Association (AAA) has been planning a birding trip to Amherst Island for quite a while now, and I was glad to take a break from sorting my insect collection and go outside for a much needed birding experience. Amherst Island is an island in Lake Ontario and accessible by ferry (or air) and is home to many species of owls during summer and winter.

Leaving Peterborough around 8am.

Birding at school on a Sunday

Before working another long day in the lab, I decided to go to the feeders again and see what I can photograph.

Unknown tracks.

An assortment of photos and topics - flies, spiders, wasp, outdoor, and others

Many photos to share, so I thought I organize them chronologically.

Jan 25 - (Possibly) figured out where the bristles on the meron (the plate just above and behind the mid coxa) are.

Look near where the lower calypter is.

Dipterans - Families Phoridae and Dolichopodidae

This fly belongs in Family Phoridae, also known as scuttle flies or humpback flies. One of the key features would be the enlarged hind femur (shown above).

Quick glimpse of my work

So this is what I have been working on lately.

Washing, drying, and pinning my insects.

Wordless Sunday Sunset

Jumping Plant Lice, Cuckoo wasps, and Dance flies

Sharing some of the photos of insects that I did not know and/or thought was cool-looking.

This critter was captured on June 11, 2011 in a yellow pan trap in my "1" study site. I didn't know what it was until I asked for help at BugGuide. Jumping Plant Lice (Family Psyllidae) can be identified by their hard and shining thorax and has 5 to 10 antennal segments.

Photos from last few days

Jan 19 - Blizzard-like conditions in the afternoon, but the sky cleared by nighttime.

My life nowadays...

...involves washing, drying, and pinning the many many vials of insect samples I collected over the summer.

A potentially Andrenidae bee on a pinning block.

Sunny Sunday at school

I came to school again today to look for the insect samples I collected over the summer, since it is time to start analyzing that part of the project (before starting the second field season).

After a while, I took a break and went to the hills behind the building.

Mine were the only footprint clearly visible.

Snowy but sunny Saturday in Ptbo

The internet connection in my residence is so crappy lately that I decided to come to my office (in school) on a Saturday to do some work. Plus, the weather is too nice to be inside all day.

It's pretty much a wintery wonderland here in Peterborough. This is exactly what winter should be in Canada!

Days prior to leaving BC

Hello all! I came back to Peterborough last night to start another semester of school.

On Jan 6 (Friday), I went to get my passport photos taken and my mother bought me a birthday cake to celebrate my birthday (51 days in advance).

Delicious cake but a bit "smushed" when bringing it home.

Precious photos of Porcupine caribous

On June 19, 2011, a small group of caribou appeared on the other side of the Sheep Creek and they appeared hesitant in coming down the bank and crossing the creek (the side we were on).

Halfway to Heaven of Ivvavik National Park - Part 2

June 21, 2011

Halfway to Heaven of Ivvavik National Park - Part 1

Happy 2012, everybody! Life is still busy regarding school work, and with the BC weather being so normal and so crappy, I have been spending a lot of time indoors.

So I thought I'd share the last of my landscape photos from Ivvavik National Park. In addition to the hikes to popular destinations Inspiration Point and Sheep Slot, the best named and most beautiful destination is Halfway to Heaven. It is about two to three hours from the Sheep Creek campsite and a pretty good hiking-workout. From what I gathered, it was named because the hikers who gave its name experienced a bad storm on that day and thought they'd perish on that day.

I went to this spot twice last year - the first time was on June 21 and it was cloudy and windy. The second time was on Canada Day and it was sunny and hot and humid. Such is the (unpredictable) weather in the north in the summer.

As you can see, there are very few vegetation that survive up here, except some Dryas spp. and Phlox.