We have a new contributor today, so say hi to Alex MacMillan, who has provided us with a bunch of photos of animals from several taxa, as well as two videos.
I attach 10 of my favourite pics.
Green frog, Lithobates clamitans. Picture taken in Kilally Meadows, London, Ontario. This is a female: the tympanum that covers the ear is about the same diameter as the eye, while in males it is around twice the diameter of the eye.
Rose-Breasted Grosbeak, Pheucticus ludovicianus. Picture taken in Kilally Meadows, London Ontario. This is a male.
Common Goldeneye, Bucephala clangula. Picture taken on the Thames river in Springbank Park, London Ont. Male bird is caught mid call.
Grey Jay, Perisoreus canadensis. Picture taken Cypress Mountain, British Columbia. The Grey Jay or whiskey jack is a not uncommon bird of the northern and mountain forests. It is very curious and will approach people and readily feed from the hand.
Five-Lined Skink, Plestiodon fasciatus. Picture taked at Rondeau Provincial Park, Ontario. This is a female five-lined skink with her clutch of eggs. It is believed that the females may guard the nest from predators but also help keep them warm by basking in the sun and then going back to the eggs warmed up and transferring some of the heat to the eggs.
Eastern Garter Snake, Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis. Picture was taken on Pelee Island, Ontario. Many populations of Garter Snakes around the great lakes have a high percentage (sometimes ~50%) of melanistic individuals. This may be because the lake water takes longer to warm up than pond water inland and the dark pigment could help them warm up quicker, though there are other hypotheses including camouflage.
Blue-Winged Warbler, Vermivora cyanoptera. Picture taken at Rondeau P.P., Ont. This is a male Blue-Winged Warbler singing.
Eastern Milk Snake, Lampropeltis triangulum triangulum. Picture taken at Fanshawe Conservation area, London Ont. This is a young milk snake. Apparently people used to think they stole milk from the dairy cows—thus the name.
Snapping Turtle, Chelydra serpentina. Picture taken at Big Creek Marsh near Long Point Ont. This snapping turtle was trying to cross the path while I was hiking Big Creek Marsh.
Spring Peeper, Pseudacris crucifer. Picture taken at Rondeau marsh, Ont. The spring peeper is a commonly heard but rarely seen frog in wetlands of eastern north america.
Here are two videos:
I had just watched this mink attack and kill a squirrel, ran to get my camera and recorded this. You can hear other squirrels scolding it in the background.
Here’s a video that is more audio than visual; it is a night walk in Rondeau Marsh. You can hear woodcock, whip-poor-will, toads, spring peepers and grey tree frogs.
The links take me to a sign in page.
Maybe I was too early. Works now. Thanks for the reliable daily entertainment. And for free!
Well, you could always preorder my book as a thank-you. Over five years that works out to only 1.1 cents (US) per day for all that entertainment!
I always knew you were a math guy!
Excellent photos, thanks for sharing them.
Hi, Alex! These are very interesting.
The garter snake (and I would have never thought that that was what it was) looks pretty defensive. When I pick them up, they are usually pretty calm (although they generally poop on me as another defense). Some are really ‘bitey’, however, and I wonder if this might be one like that. These I set back down.
So, did the mink ‘stash’ the squirrel somewhere? Also I wonder why it would dive under water. Maybe to hunt for critters, or to evade squirrel radar.
Anyway, these are all very interesting.
Hi Mark, glad you enjoyed them. The mink did stash the squirrel and just kept on moving. I think its burrow is close by as I saw it in the same area several times, here is a different video from just 10 minutes down the river, where the mink encounters a heron https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Em87FRZSX5A
The garter snake was very aggressive, I find most very calm too but some are just nasty
I certainly know about the ‘nasty’ side of some little, harmless snakes! They can sometimes land more than one bite before I get them under control. I know they are harmless, but man, it gets the heart racing. They leave lots of tiny puncture wounds too.
I could see in the first mink video where s/he looked straight at you and took off into the bush.
In the second video, I was worried that the heron was going to take a stab at Minkie. Nice capture of the flight of the blue heron.
Thanks, Alex.
(although they generally poop on me as another defense)
Yeah, gross feces too…I’ve even had one barf a frog on me when I was a kid.
Super photos and I very much enjoyed the nocturnal soundscape. Rondeau Marsh seems like a lovely place.
Great photos!
Man, that’s the baddest ass looking garter snake I’ve ever seen.
Love the snake pics! I look forward to moar. Thanks for sharing!
Milk snakes stealing milk from dairy cows? How could someone even come up with that?
Either way, the assortment of photos and the two videos were awesome. I love the snapping turtle; the intricate mapping of its face is really cool. Don’t think I’ve noticed that on snapping turtles before. I have three red-eared sliders in a pond. One of them I’ve had since 1991.
What a great find to see a skink with its’ clutch of eggs. I’ve never seen reptile eggs in the wild.
Very cool to have had a turtle since 1991!
Are you positive about the ID of the garter snake? The head looks way too triangular and the body much heavier than ones I have known. I’m not familiar with the eastern variety but have seen many of the western species. Thanks.
sometimes when garter snakes are ornery they will flatten out the head and neck area to make themselves look as scary as possible. The melanistic garter snakes are common around Lake Erie and this was taken on Pelee Island right in the middle of the lake.
I think I will send Jerry another batch of photos and go heavy on the snake pics
OK thanks
Are you sure that’s not a hog-nosed snake? My brother encountered one in the bushes. Sightings are quite rare of this threatened species.
http://cwf-fcf.org/en/discover-wildlife/resources/online-articles/hope-for-the-eastern-hog-nosed-snake.html
http://www.natureconservancy.ca/en/what-we-do/resource-centre/featured-species/eastern_hog-nosed_snake.html?gclid=CMyDnrOVx8QCFcGLaQods2YADw
I can’t make out the nose on your snake though.
Here’s another good picture of an eastern hog-nosed snake:
calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?enlarge=0000+0000+0509+2609
Wonderful! Thanks Alex.
That ain’t no Garter Snake!
As someone who’s caught many herps during my life, that isn’t a garter snake, even a melanistic one. It’s too wide, garter snakes are very slender and the head is all wrong. It’s a banded water snake of some sort, obviously disturbed and agitated, it’s ribs flared and face flattened poised and ready for a defensive strike.
Also garter snakes when encountered their temperament is to rapidly flee relying on their speed to escape, rather than to coil and hold ground which this one is doing.
Do you think it could be a melanistic hog-nosed snake (Heterodon platirhinos)? They are found on Pelee Island and in other areas in Ontario where Alex was.
http://www.virginiaherpetologicalsociety.com/reptiles/snakes/eastern-hog-nosed-snake/Heterodon%20platyrhinos%209%20melanistic%20Campbell%20Co%202006%20copy.jpg
Ooops… didn’t do that right … attribution to:
virginiaherpetologicalsociety.com/reptiles/snakes/eastern-hog-nosed-snake/Heterodon%20platyrhinos%209%20melanistic%20Campbell%20Co%202006%20copy.jpg
Alex, what a delightful assortment of critters! So cool to have been able to observe so much of that mink’s behavior!
And I, too, loved the night-time sound-scape. Whip-poor-wills are a treat to hear!
Even if your blog were the worst piece of crap and drivel that ever existed (it’s NOT–in fact it’s wonderful!!), I would still come here daily to see these glorious photographs. Just amazing. What a beautiful world we live in! AND on this site we can learn how this all came about, and have a handle on understanding it, in a way so many millions and billions of people died without ever having any inkling of. Wow. Just wow.
I’m way behind but loved these photos, especially the snapping turtle.