More insects from Ivvavik National Park - Conclusion of 2011

I hope I haven't post these photos yet. Life is incredibly busy at the moment. I am still in the processing of sorting and analyzing my data from my first field season. On top of that, I need to find and hire a field assistant, have my second supervisory committee meeting before I leave for fieldwork, buy my plane tickets and field equipments, do my taxes, sort out my housing situation while I am gone as well as when I return from the field, and I am going to St. Louis for 10 days in April to take part in a pollination biology field course. Just listing it makes me wonder how I am going to get it all done, even though I know I will somehow.

Well, before I head out to Inuvik in two months, I really should post the remaining of my insect photos from Ivvavik National Park. So here they are, the final photographic post of my 2011 field season. Once again, thanks to all the kind folks at BugGuide for their help.

Nordic Mountain Grasshopper (Melanoplus frigidus) - male

Definitely a leafhopper (Family Cicadellidae), perhaps a Limotettix sp.?


I really should take more photos of the bees last summer. Will try to do more of that this summer. Here is an Andrena sp. (Mining Bee) collecting pollen from Lapland rosebay (Rhododendron lapponicum) flowers.






Here's a plant bug (Family Miridae) on a soapberry plant, people think it is a Lygus sp.


One of the rare visitors of my soapberry plant - an Azure butterfly.


Towards the end of the day, I was tired and took my socks off and laid them on the field. Pretty soon, a Silvery Blue (Glaucopsyche lygdamus) showed up and starting drinking the salts, I suppose.


Lastly, a Freija Fritillary (Boloria freija) on a vaccinium (blueberry) plant. It is surprising how much you learn about plants and insects after one field season of studying them.

Time for bed.

Update post, inc. trip to Dyer's Bay

Hi all. I am back at the cafe using wireless internet. This might be the only post for the upcoming weeks/month as the birds are arriving next week, and after that everyone will be very busy and has less time for non-work related things.

While driving to the cafe this morning, my colleague and I saw an Eastern Meadowlark and 3 Wild Turkeys - both of which are lifers for me. I will share them next time.

Now, the usual views and creatures from the Fox Den (where we are currently housed). Once again, please click on the photos for more descriptions about each image.