Thursday 5 September 2019

Some Summer Winged Things

Since my last post, the collared dove seems to have finally moved on.  It stayed around for about a month giving periodic sightings.  Some visitors were able to find it and some weren't (sorry Barb Charlton). 

As summer winds down and I start to spend more time watching migrating birds, it seemed appropriate to look back at some highlights of my other winged sightings.

 I've always considered White Admiral to be more of a northern species compared to our common Red Spotted Purple, but this year I found what is now my second for the county.


Skippers can take some careful studying to be able to ID.  This one pictured below has caused some interesting discussion on Inaturalist.   The tentative identification so far is a dark Tawny-Edged Skipper

I managed to bump into the larval form of two of Ontario's more common giant silkmoths.

Polyphemus Moth

Cecropia Moth

I found the camouflage on this Porcelain Gray moth to be exceptional.
And of course it's the time of year for monarch migration.  I'm again participating in the Monarch Watch tagging program.  A lot of data on this incredible migration is gained through recoveries of tagged individuals.


Next week I'm planning to be spending a few days on Manitoulin Island.  It will be later in the year than past visits and I'm looking forward to what might be migrating through.

6 comments:

  1. Cool caterpillars! Not sure I have seen the larval stage.
    I have seen both Red-spotted Purple and White Admiral at Pinery PP.
    Have fun on Manitoulin. Been a long time since I have been over there!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Those caterpillars sure look interesting! I've never seen moth caterpillars.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Enjoy Manitoulin Island, Jonathan. It is a place I have never visited. Perhaps I will put it on my list for next year!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks David. It really is a special place. I have fond memories of summers there.

    ReplyDelete