Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: spots

This photo was taken yesterday, 28 June 2016, when I went with friends, Dorothy and Stephen, to Bow Valley Provincial Park They are leading a day trip out there in the near future and wanted to do a dry run and very kindly invited me to go with them. These mountains are the first ones you come to, when you drive westwards on Highway 1A from Calgary. Mt. Yamnuska is a spectacular sight, and very popular with rock-climbers and hikers. I've never hiked up there - and am never likely to : ) The flat area at the foot of these mountains is Bow Valley Provincial Park, very popular with botanists and birders. It is less than an hour's drive west from Calgary. Our main walk was following the Many Springs Trail, which is perhaps the most rewarding in the park. We saw a reasonably good variety of wildflowers, including Western Wood Lilies, Yellow Lady's-slippers, Sticky False Asphodel, and lots of Gaillardia. Though the end of June is usually the best time to go for the wildflowers, you still never know what you will find. We barely had a spring this year, it was so hot and so dry, more like summer. Birds were much harder to find, even though we heard them. There were quite a few small birds flitting about, but our best sightings were of a brightly coloured male Yellow Warbler and some kind of flycatcher (Least Flycatcher?) near the boardwalk at Many Springs. Both were on the move constantly, though I did manage to get a few less-than-good photos. One of my Warbler shots made me smile when I saw it on my computer. The bird was perched, with a beak full of insects, right next to a large spider's web. Kind of robbing ones neighbour. I took three or four rapid shots of this Spotted Sandpiper and then we left the area, as she was making it clear that she had a nest or young ones somewhere. The weather forecast for yesterday mentioned the risk of thunderstorms, but we were so lucky. The sun shone all day and the sky was full of puffy clouds. Once our visit was over and we were ready to drive back to Calgary, a bit of rain did arrive. Thanks so much, Dorothy and Stephen, for such an enjoyable day! It was a real treat to go to the mountains, as I so rarely go. www.albertaparks.ca/bow-valley-pp/ The link below is a map showing the turn off to the park and the layout of the lake areas. The roads at the junction with highway 1A are quite confusing! x-powered.com/camping/maps/BowValleyPP_Map.gif

On the first day of three spent in Waterton Lakes National Park, my friends and I came across this beautiful sight along one of the roads in the small town of Waterton. This tiny baby Mule Deer could barely stand and kept falling down. It was trying to nurse - amazingly, its mother eventually lay down to make nursing easier for her new little one. "With its merging landforms, connected ecoregions and its mild, moist, windy climate, Waterton Lakes National Park is an amazing meeting place for an abundant and diverse collection of vegetation. Despite it's small size (505 sq km) Waterton is graced with over 1000 species of vascular plants . Over half of Alberta's plant species are found in this tiny place. The park's four ecoregions - foothills parkland, montane, subalpine and alpine - embrace forty-five vegetation communities. Sixteen of these are considered significant because they are rare or fragile and threatened. Waterton also has an unusually high number of rare plants - over 175 are provincially rare (e.g. mountain lady's-slipper, pygmy poppy, mountain hollyhock), and over twenty of these are found only in the Waterton area (e.g. western wakerobin, Lewis' mock-orange, white-veined wintergreen). Over 50 species are rare in Canada (e.g. Bolander's quillwort, Lyall's scorpionweed, Brewer's monkeyflower.)" From Parks Canada website. www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/ab/waterton/natcul/natcul1/f.aspx I was so lucky to be invited to join friends Sandy and Heide on a three-day trip to Waterton Lakes National Park, from 19-21 (inclusive) June 2015. We met up with other members of the Alberta Native Plant Council for their annual Botany Alberta weekend. Most people who attended stayed at the Crooked Creek Campground, a 5.6 km drive east of the Waterton Park Gate on Highway 5, but my friends and I stayed at the Crandell Mountain Lodge on the edge of Waterton town. The ANPC people had a list of particular rare species that they hoped to find, and they were very successful. Our stay down south overlapped the annual Waterton Wildflower Festival, but we came across very few people on our various drives and hikes. Needless to say, I was extremely fortunate to spend three days with people who are very knowledgeable about plants and many other things. This meant that I got to see many wildflower species, including several that were new to me, such as the gorgeous Mariposa Lily. It was one of the flowers that was on my mental Wish List - and there were hundreds of them to be seen! I had also never seen the white Mountain Lady's Slipper or the spectacular Bear Grass and I was so thrilled that there were still several of the latter plants in bloom. Absolutely made my day! Our two main hikes of the weekend were the Bertha Lake Trail as far as the Bertha Falls (on 20 June), and the Crandell Lake Trail (on 21 June). Makes me smile when a described "short, easy hike" in a book or on the Internet turns into a full day of exploration along the trail, taking hours to reach the destination, though returning to the cars in a much shorter time. The wind made photographing some of the plants a real challenge, including the beautiful Mariposa Lilies in the meadow along the Hay Barn road. Though I took plenty of photos, I wasn't sure that I would end up with any that were sharp enough. Trying to catch a quick shot when a flower is blowing in and out of the viewfinder is not easy! Unfortunately, I'm no longer able to get down and take macro shots (my lens needs to be about 4" away from the subject), so my photos have to be telemacro. Thank you so much, Sandy and Heide, for a great three-day trip in such spectacular scenery, surrounded by amazing nature. The wildflowers were top priority, but I was so happy to see insects, scenery and even a bit of wildlife that included a very distant female Grizzly with a cub from last year and two Black Bears, one of which was along the Crandell Lake trail at the same time we were there. Thanks, too, Sandy, for doing all the driving - so much appreciated by Heide and myself! Also have to thank you both for being so thoughtful as far as my limitations go (lol, I can move much better than I was expecting today!) and for your patience in allowing me to take lots of photos! Heide, you'll be glad to know that I have a bottle of water sitting by my computer - thanks for all the reminders to keep hydrated while hiking. Two other people to mention - Arnold, it was so good to see you at the meeting place. Been a long time since our paths crossed. Jerry (from Calgary), good to bump into you in Waterton, and thanks so much for telling us about various sightings and even taking us to several of the locations, despite the fact that you had just returned from a major mountain hike that day. Loved seeing the distant (nesting) Loon lying in the grass at the edge of one of the wetlands. Great trip, great company! How lucky I am.

On the first day of three spent in Waterton Lakes National Park, my friends and I came across this beautiful sight along one of the roads in the small town of Waterton. This tiny baby Mule Deer could barely stand and kept falling down. It was trying to nurse - amazingly, its mother eventually lay down to make nursing easier for her new little one. "With its merging landforms, connected ecoregions and its mild, moist, windy climate, Waterton Lakes National Park is an amazing meeting place for an abundant and diverse collection of vegetation. Despite it's small size (505 sq km) Waterton is graced with over 1000 species of vascular plants . Over half of Alberta's plant species are found in this tiny place. The park's four ecoregions - foothills parkland, montane, subalpine and alpine - embrace forty-five vegetation communities. Sixteen of these are considered significant because they are rare or fragile and threatened. Waterton also has an unusually high number of rare plants - over 175 are provincially rare (e.g. mountain lady's-slipper, pygmy poppy, mountain hollyhock), and over twenty of these are found only in the Waterton area (e.g. western wakerobin, Lewis' mock-orange, white-veined wintergreen). Over 50 species are rare in Canada (e.g. Bolander's quillwort, Lyall's scorpionweed, Brewer's monkeyflower.)" From Parks Canada website. www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/ab/waterton/natcul/natcul1/f.aspx I was so lucky to be invited to join friends Sandy and Heide on a three-day trip to Waterton Lakes National Park, from 19-21 (inclusive) June 2015. We met up with other members of the Alberta Native Plant Council for their annual Botany Alberta weekend. Most people who attended stayed at the Crooked Creek Campground, a 5.6 km drive east of the Waterton Park Gate on Highway 5, but my friends and I stayed at the Crandell Mountain Lodge on the edge of Waterton town. The ANPC people had a list of particular rare species that they hoped to find, and they were very successful. Our stay down south overlapped the annual Waterton Wildflower Festival, but we came across very few people on our various drives and hikes. Needless to say, I was extremely fortunate to spend three days with people who are very knowledgeable about plants and many other things. This meant that I got to see many wildflower species, including several that were new to me, such as the gorgeous Mariposa Lily. It was one of the flowers that was on my mental Wish List - and there were hundreds of them to be seen! I had also never seen the spectacular Bear Grass and I was so thrilled that there were still several plants in bloom. Absolutely made my day! Our two main hikes of the weekend were the Bertha Lake Trail as far as the Bertha Falls (on 20 June), and the Crandell Lake Trail (on 21 June). Makes me smile when a described "short, easy hike" in a book or on the Internet turns into a full day of exploration along the trail, taking hours to reach the destination, though returning to the cars in a much shorter time. The wind made photographing plants a real challenge, including the beautiful Mariposa Lilies in the meadow along the Hay Barn road. Though I took plenty of photos, I wasn't sure that I would end up with any that were sharp enough. Trying to catch a quick shot when a flower is blowing in and out of the viewfinder is not easy! Unfortunately, I'm no longer able to get down and take macro shots (my lens needs to be about 4" away from the subject), so my photos have to be telemacro. I've just been trying to find a list of plant species in Waterton Park, but have so far been out of luck. I do have the book, "Wildflowers of Waterton Park" by Jacinthe Lavoie and Ian Wilson, which has an Index of Plant names, but I was hoping to find a list that I could print out. It's going to take me ages to type descriptions for the various photos I'll slowly be posting, and I will no doubt keep adding new bits and pieces over time. There is just so much information I want to add. Also, my photos of quite a few of the plants will be posted for the use of ANPC members and are, unfortunately, really poor images. Need them added to my Waterton Lakes album, so please bear with me : ) Luckily, you don't even need to look at them. Thank you so much, Sandy and Heide, for a great three-day trip in such spectacular scenery, surrounded by amazing nature. The wildflowers were top priority, but I was so happy to see insects, scenery and even a bit of wildlife that included a very distant female Grizzly with a cub from last year and two Black Bears, one of which was along the Crandell Lake trail at the same time we were there. Thanks, too, Sandy, for doing all the driving - so much appreciated by Heide and myself! Also have to thank you both for being so thoughtful as far as my limitations go (lol, I can move much better than I was expecting today!) and for your patience in allowing me to take lots of photos! Heide, you'll be glad to know that I have a bottle of water sitting by my computer - thanks for all the reminders to keep hydrated while hiking. Two other people to mention - Arnold, it was so good to see you at the meeting place. Been a long time since our paths crossed. Jerry (from Calgary), good to bump into you in Waterton, and thanks so much for telling us about various sightings and even taking us to several of the locations, despite the fact that you had just returned from a major mountain hike that day. Loved seeing the distant Loon lying in the grass at the edge of one of the wetlands. Great trip, great company! How lucky I am.

At long last, I got out for a botany walk two days ago, 23 July 2014. Having been to this location several times before, I knew it was a short, easy, flat trail, and that I could go as far as I wanted and then turn back early, which is what I did. The main thing I wanted to see were the Nodding /Musk Thistles, as these are my favourite species of Thistle. They are called a "weed", but I love to see them. The sun was unfortunately in the wrong direction, so I was only able to get a handful of shots, but better than nothing. After a volunteer shift that day, I wasn't too far away from the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area, where the walk was going to be held. With a couple of hours to "kill", I spent them at the Reader Rock Garden, which was just a few minutes' drive away from the botany walk location. At the Erlton / Roxboro Natural Area, I found this pair of tiny Spotted Asparagus Beetles (Crioceris duodecimpunctata), on an Asparagus plant. The colourful beetles are 1/4 of an inch long, and they are pests of Asparagus plants. The Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area is located on the east side of the Elbow River above the southwest community of Roxboro. It was completed in 1996. This is one of the richest areas in Calgary for wildlowers, but unfortunately, many non-native plants and shrubs have taken over much of the area - such as Caragana, Goat's-beard, Baby's Breath, and Yellow Clematis. I think I heard that 90% of the area is now weed-covered, which is such a great pity. Some of the plants, such as Baby's Breath, were introduced into the area by someone throwing a discarded cemetery bouquet of flowers from a grave site, over the fence and into the Natural Area. Incredible how just one small action like this can devastate a whole natural area.

It's -15C with a windchill of -21C this morning and the trees are covered in frost, so not too unbearable. A good day to post a colourful image. Photo of this beautiful Lily was taken on 24 July 2013 at the Reader Rock Garden. Just checked the weather forecast for Calgary and we are supposed to get a few mild days coming up, which will feel so good. Sunday is the first of this year's Christmas Bird Counts that I will be going on - for the city of Calgary. I hope all the birders out there who are taking part in any of the Counts, will have fun and find at least a few good species. This is the 62nd Christmas Count for this city and apparently Calgary is always one of the top counts in North America in our level of participation! Last year, there was a record turnout of 249 birders for our count, 136 in the field and 113 feeder-watchers. Today's three photos are the first ones I've posted on ipernity by transferring them individually from my Flickr photostream. Thanks to the ipernity team for setting up such a quick, easy way to make our transfers. Usually, I've been posting to ipernity first - more convenient - but from now on I'm posting to Flickr first and then transferring. Took maybe less than five minutes to transfer today's three shots, compared to the 3-4 hours it has been taking me (for some strange reason!) each day this past week. Feels so good : )

From my archives, taken at the Reader Rock Garden on 30 June 2010. A splash of colour on yet another cold, foggy day - it's still a winter wonderland out there : ) Taken on my old Panasonic FZ35 - it was such a great little point-and-shoot.

I can never remember the name of this small flower - all I can remember is that I have such difficulty in getting a really sharp photo of it, for some strange reason. Photographed in the ENMAX Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo on 25 September 2012.

These beautiful deer crossed the road well ahead of me when I was on my way to Brown-Lowery Provincial Park on 26 August 2012. Light was not good within the trees and I had just a quick moment to pull over and get a shot before a car came barrelling down the road and the deer disappeared. I never seem to get photos of fawns with their beautiful spots, so was happy to get even a half decent shot. I guess no one else turned up at the meeting place for this trip - I had decided to drive straight to the park, but hadn't told anyone my plans. After waiting an extra half hour at the park, I realized no one else had been able, or wanted, to go. The forest sure looked dark before the sun reached it and, even though there was one vehicle parked there, I just didn't fancy going in there. I thought the bears and cougars might still be looking for their breakfast, lol! So, I drove out to Maclean Pond, off Elbow Falls Trail, and had a look around. Funny how things work out - I was amazed and delighted to come across several small Strawberries and Cream fungi hidden in the grass under the Spruce (?) trees. The previous day, I had been on a mushroom foray in West Bragg Creek, and one of the fungi species we were keeping our eyes open for was Strawberries and Cream - but we were out of luck. Couldn't believe my eyes when I spotted them at Maclean Pond. My last photo posted today shows a close-up view of one of these strange fungi. On my way home from Maclean Pond, I decided to call in at the west end of Fish Creek Park, as I have found various species of fungi there before. Was happy to find several little Earth Star fungi (image posted yesterday). So, it definitely turned out to be a rewarding day.

This photo is perhaps a little misleading, as this beautiful Northern Flickr was hard at work making a cavity in the tree trunk. This resulted in most of my captures having a very blurry head - oh, the joys of trying to photograph Woodpeckers, of any kind : ) Photographed this beauty down at Sikome, Fish Creek Park, on April 26th. Quite a dark little spot, in amongst the trees. Good morning, Jim (Garnite) and Linda! Hope you had a restful night (both of you) and that Jim's body was able to rest and grow a little stronger, ready for that wonderful moment when he will wake up and open his eyes. So many people are waiting for this good news! Thinking of you both!

A beautiful yellow Lily seen at Reader Rock Garden on July 28th.

Photographed this beautiful butterfly at the Calgary Zoo, way back in May. They always look very smart and elegant, especially against the rich green foliage. "Heliconius charithonia, commonly known as the Zebra Longwing or Zebra Heliconian, is a species of butterfly belonging to the subfamily Heliconiinae of the Nymphalidae. It was declared the official butterfly for the state of Florida in the United States in 1996. The butterfly ranges over parts of North, Central and South America, as well as the Caribbean. In North America the butterfly is found in the southern parts of the United States including Florida, Georgia, Virginia, North and South Carolina. In South and Central America, it has been recorded in Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela. Because of their relatively long lifespan and their activity throughout the day, this is a popular species with butterfly houses." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heliconius_charithonia Was out walking all morning in the comparatively new Clearwater Park, off Highway 8 in the city.

Wasn't sure whether to post this supermacro shot (taken with Raynox 250) of a very tiny Spotted Coralroot flower or not, as I am not a big fan of very blurry images, LOL! However, if you look carefully, you'll notice that the "important" part, that gives this teeny wild orchid it's common name, is sharper than the rest of the photo. I rarely get to see Spotted Coralroot, so it was great to see it in the wooded area at the Priddis Greens Golf Course that we botanized the other day. Several of us had a long, but so enjoyable, day out south of the city today. We were lucky enough to be given the chance to make a return visit to Janel B. and her family's ranch, near Millarville. A delightful family who make us all feel so welcome! We had such an interesting day, walking though the forest that is part of their land, recording all the flora and fauna that we saw. Best of all, we were accompanied for the whole day by two youngsters: their son, Trystan, and a close friend of his, Casey (sorry guys, I need to check on the spelling of both your names!). Talk about delightful kids, and very helpful in helping to find all sorts of things in the woods, especially fungi and bugs!!! I found myself wishing that all kids could grow up in such a place and being so in-touch with nature! Wonderful to see! Thank you both for your much enjoyed company and for all your help, both of you! I suspect you will both sleep really well tonight - I've just woken up from falling asleep in front of the TV this early evening! Trystan, if you read this, I haven't had time yet to go through my photos from today, but will very slowly get a few of the better ones (if there are any, LOL) added to Flickr. Thank you from all of us for a lovely day! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corallorhiza_maculata

Don't worry, it's not your eyes, just a rather blurry of a flower that I don't normally get the chance to see! I wanted to show why this beautiful, tiny wildflower got its name : ) This was seen on Plateau Mountain, way south of Calgary, on 31st July.

We saw this little guy on a botanizing day on Raymond Nadeau's ranchland, west of Head-smashed-in Buffalo Jump, way down south towards the US/Canada border just over a month ago. I still haven't been able to find it on Google - if I ever get time, I need to post it on one of the Bug websites. It was such a beautiful colour. Later: many thanks to Dr. Ted Pike (Calgary) for the ID - a Sawfly larva. "Sawflies are a relative of bees and wasps. There are three or four families of these things which feed on leaves just like this one. I can't tell you more without an adult specimen to key out.". ID much appreciated. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sawfly

At the end of two consecutive walks down in Weaselhead three days ago (the annual Dawn Chorus walk and then a bird group walk), I came across this little Seven-spotted Ladybug hugging a metal sign. "The Seven-spotted Lady Beetle is probably our most familiar Lady Beetle, being found in gardens, parks and natural areas across the continent. It wasn't always this way though - this, large, attractive beetle was brought over in the 1950's from Europe to the eastern US to supplement the aphid-eating prowess of the native lady beetles. This hardy alien has since spread across the continent. There is concern that this alien lady beetle is causing a decline in some native lady beetle species, particularly of the once common Transverse Lady Beetle. Are the robust Seven-spots out-competing the natives, eating the eggs of the natives, spreading disease or hybridizing with natives? No one knows for sure, but it is another cautionary example of the dangers of introducing alien species. One thing that ecologically conscientious gardeners can do is to refrain from buying alien species as biological controls and purchase native ones instead." talkaboutwildlife.ca/profile/index.php?s=1429

Depending on the angle from which you see this butterfly, there is a bright blue edging to the white spots. Also called the Blue Moon. Quite a beautiful tropical butterfly, seen in the ENMAX Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo. Wingspan is about 7–8½ cm (2.8"-3.3"). "Great Eggflies are found in Madagascar in the west, through to South and Southeast Asia, South Pacific islands (French Polynesia, Tonga, Samoa, Vanuatu) and occurs in parts of Australia, Japan and New Zealand. The Great Eggfly is a fairly common butterfly found in lightly wooded country, deciduous forests, thick and moist scrub and the greener parts of human habitation." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypolimnas_bolina

Photographed this little endangered Leopard Frog through very dirty glass at the Calgary Zoo three days ago. "Over the last 35 years, Northern Leopard Frog (Rana piplens) populations have declined dramatically over much of the species' range in North America. Abrupt population declines were first noted in Alberta in 1979. Since then, populations appear to have been extirpated over much of central Alberta and are absent or greatly reduced in southern Alberta. Only a handful of viable breeding populations currently remain in southeastern Alberta. Because of its virtual disappearance from the province, the Northern Leopard Frog has been designated as an endangered species under the Alberta Wildlife Act." From www.abheritage.ca/abnature/speciesatrisk/leopard_frog_int...

This little Seven-spotted Ladybug caught my eye when I was on a walk in Confluence Park a week ago. "With approximately 35 species of Ladybug in Alberta, identifying the exact species is a bit more of a challenge. The Seven-spotted is one of our largest ladybird beetles, getting up to 7 mm long. It has seven round black spots on the elytra (modified front wings that protect the body). Immatures are rather like short caterpillars, and are dark grey with yellow spots ..... Seven-spotted Ladybird Beetles are now the most common ladybird beetle in Alberta and can be found in most habitats. These and other ladybird beetles are often encountered in large numbers in the fall when they are preparing to hibernate .... This species was originally introduced into North America from Europe in the 1950s .... The Seven-spotted Ladybird Beetle was brought in from Europe in the hope that it would help control populations of pests like aphids. It is doubtful that it has made any real difference, but what has happened is some of our native species have suffered a decline in populations since the Seven-spotted was introduced, perhaps because the Seven-spotted outcompetes them." From www.royalalbertamuseum.ca .