Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: Nymphalidae

"The common wood-nymph can vary greatly. All individuals are brown with two eyespots on each forewing – the lower one often being larger than the upper one. Some may have many, few, or no eyespots on the ventral surface of the hindwing." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_wood-nymph Back to the bio-blitz on Lisa Harbinson' property for my photos tonight. I have just added six extra photos. I really need to get the rest of my suitable shots taken that day edited and posted, so that I can send her the link to my album. The area we visited on 7 August was an 80-acre site near Bottrel, NW of Calgary. The site consisted of mostly open, low, hilly, ungrazed land, with a few Aspens and Spruce, and willows around three ponds (two of which were dry). On 25 May 2018, four people had visited this site for the first time - I had been unable to go, as I was spending the day with my daughter. The original visit was the result of the owners winning a free bioblitz at a Silent Auction, in connection with the Ghost Valley Community. A great idea and always a win-win situation, with the land owners learning a lot about what is found on their land, and the leader and participants enjoying a much-appreciated visit to a different location. We were very lucky to see an adult male Yellow-bellied Sapsucker with two juveniles. I rarely see one of these birds, but love to see the neat rows of small holes that they make on a tree trunk. Did you know that photographing mushrooms can be dangerous? I believe I knew this already and I was reminded of this on this bio-blitz. Towards the end of our hike, I stopped to photograph a not particularly photogenic mushroom that was growing on a very slight incline. I took one step back to focus better and lost my balance - not sure if my foot went down into a shallow hole or if I was tripped up by one of the many very small, short tree stumps. Whatever the cause, I did a most inelegant, slow-motion fall backwards, hitting my head hard on the ground, surrounded by my friends. Because I was wearing a backpack, I think this resulted in some whiplash, with my head falling back. It was not pleasant to drive anywhere the next day, especially each time I had to start off when traffic lights turned green. The muscles all around my neck and my shoulders are painful, but hopefully it will clear up before too long.

Another of the beautiful butterflies that I have been lucky enough to see at the Enmax Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo. What this species lacks in brilliant colour, it certainly makes up for in intricate design! Wing span is 2 3/4 - 3 3/8 inches (7 - 8.6 cm). "Adults rest on tree trunks head downward with their wings spread open. Males perch on trees and make a cracking sound when they dart out at passing insects (and people) .... Range: Argentina north through tropical America to Mexico. A rare stray to the lower Rio Grande Valley of South Texas." www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species?l=1809 The last but one time that I visited the Calgary Zoo was on 6 October 2015. I used to go fairly often, but my usual parking lot and Zoo entrance then closed for the winter. Since then, road construction and bridge replacement have been going on, but have now been completed. The drive to the north entrance of the Zoo is definitely out of my driving comfort zone, so I had been waiting for this day for a long time. June 26th 2018 was THE day - for me and for half the people in the city!! It was packed! I had decided to go before schools close for the summer. However, I suspect some schools had end-of-term Zoo visits on this day. Also, when I checked the weather forecast, rain was in the forecast for the next six days, so I knew i needed to go straight away. My visit only covered about half the Zoo, as I usually spend a lot of time in the Conservatory, enjoying the plants and tropical butterflies. My daughter had taken a photo of a gigantic lily pad, Victoria Water Lily / Victoria amazonica, and I really wanted to see it. There were three or four of these in a tiny pool. I love the pattern on the underside of the upturned edge of each lily pad, I didn't see a huge variety of butterfly species that day, but there were enough to keep me happily clicking for a while. They vary from day to day, as new butterflies emerge from their chrysalises.. My intention had not been to visit the newly arrived Panda family, as I was sure there would be an extremely long line-up. However, I could see that there was no line-up at all and I was able to just walk in, which was great. How lucky we are to have these four amazing animals visit our Zoo. They were in an inside enclosure, full of plants - and Bamboo, of course. I'm not sure how many hours a day these animals sleep, but two of the three that could be seen slept for part of the time I was there. Had to smile at the very uncomfortable positions in which they slept. Part of the enclosure has glass, which made it almost impossible to get photos without the reflections of the crowds of people. The Bactrian Camel had recently given birth to a baby, named Gobi - such a cute little thing. No sign of the Red Pandas when I passed their enclosure. One of the birds I love to see - though these birds tend to hide! - is the amazing Himalayan Monal. The male, especially, takes my breath away each time I see it. A few hours well spent happily clicking. Hopefully, it won't be almost three years before my next visit, though the west entrance does close each winter. It felt so good to once again be back in a place full of colour and interest.

This photo was taken at the Calgary Zoo yesterday, 29 September 2015. The ENMAX Conservatory butterfly house display is coming to an end. The beautiful tropical plants are beginning to fade and the number of butterfly species seems to be down. I noticed this beautiful Malachite butterfly, freshly emerged, inside the display case where various chrysalises were hanging. www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Siproeta-stelenes I had set my alarm clock for 6:30 am so that I could go on a birding walk with friends. Unfortunately, I didn't read the e-mail carefully enough, so hadn't seen that the meeting place was not where I thought. Of course, no one else showed up where I was, so I took myself off to the Calgary Zoo instead. I had planned on going there after the walk, anyway.

This is a photo from my archives, taken in the ENMAX Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo on 9 April 2013. There were very few butterflies in April, but over the following months till around September/October, numbers increased and the tropical plants grew much larger, and it once again became a hot, humid, tropical paradise : ) I'm not sure, but I think the plant in this photos is Duranta (repens?). This year, 2015, I think the Zoo obtained butterfly pupae around mid-April, so about two weeks ago. I haven't been to the Zoo for months, so even if it's still a bit soon to see a good variety of butterfly species, I really should get over there before too long. Part of the trouble is that one of my favourite places to go is Frank Lake, which takes about the same amount of time to drive to as to drive over to the Zoo. www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Siproeta-stelenes

Hey, Phil, this is to give you just a taste of what you'll see tomorrow : )! Enjoy yourself! The butterfly display is now open inside the Calgary Zoo Enmax Conservatory. This beautiful, large Blue Morpho is just one of several species of butterfly flying "freely" indoors. It can be very difficult to catch it resting, LOL. On a window ledge was the best I could do this time: ) "Blue Morphos are Neotropical butterflies found mostly in South America as well as Mexico and Central America ... These colors are not a result of pigmentation but are an example of iridescence: the microscopic scales covering the Morpho's wings reflect incident light repeatedly at successive layers, leading to interference effects that depend on both wavelength and angle of incidence/observance. Thus the colors produced vary with viewing angle ... Morpho butterflies are forest dwellers but will venture into sunny clearings to warm themselves ... The Blue Morphos are reared en masse in commercial breeding programmes. The iridescent wings are used in the manufacture of jewellery and as inlay in woodworking ... Significant quantities of live specimens are exported as pupae from several neotropical countries for exhibition in butterfly houses ... The adults live for about two to three weeks." From Wikipedia. Went on a walk this morning in South Glenmore Park, by the Glenmore Reservoir. There were 500+ Swans on the Reservoir (a mix of Tundra and Trumpeter, plus the rare, solitary Mute Swan which has been hanging out there recently.)

These are large, rather fancy butterflies, and I liked its striped eyes - but not so much its furry body. Taken on 25 September 2012 in the ENMAX Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo. The tropical butterfly season is over now. Once again, the staff and volunteers did a superb job of putting on a great display of tropical plants and butterflies for us over the summer! I know that I, for one, appreciate this so much - a wonderful chance to see and photograph things I would otherwise never see. "Butterflies in the genus Caligo are commonly called owl butterflies, after their huge eyespots, which resemble owls' eyes. Owl butterflies are found in the rainforests and secondary forests of Mexico, Central, and South America. Owl butterflies are very large, 65–200 mm (2.6–7.9 in), and fly only a few metres at a time, so avian predators have little difficulty in following them to their settling place. However, the butterflies preferentially fly in dusk, when few avian predators are around. The Latin name may possibly refer to their active periods. Caligo means darkness." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owl_butterfly

Well, up close with an Owl butterfly : ) These are large, rather fancy butterflies, and I liked its striped eyes - but not so much its furry body. Taken on 6 October 2012 in the ENMAX Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo. The tropical butterfly season is almost over now. Once again, the staff and volunteers did a superb job of putting on a great display of tropical plants and butterflies again for us over the summer! I know that I, for one, appreciate this so much - a wonderful chance to see and photograph things I would otherwise never see. "Butterflies in the genus Caligo are commonly called owl butterflies, after their huge eyespots, which resemble owls' eyes. Owl butterflies are found in the rainforests and secondary forests of Mexico, Central, and South America. Owl butterflies are very large, 65–200 mm (2.6–7.9 in), and fly only a few metres at a time, so avian predators have little difficulty in following them to their settling place. However, the butterflies preferentially fly in dusk, when few avian predators are around. The Latin name may possibly refer to their active periods. Caligo means darkness." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Owl_butterfly

Got the chance to see another Monarch butterfly at the Calgary Zoo - they don't get many there in the ENMAX Conservatory, but I have seen one on maybe three occasions. This summer was a very unusual one here in Alberta, as we don't usually get Monarchs as far north as Calgary, but this year they travelled further north and we were seeing them in this city (and apparently north of us, too). I love their white spots on black and the yellow and orange wings.

I think the left hand end of this beautiful Monarch caterpillar is the head end : ) Seen in someone's garden after our day of botanizing at Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park, 15 July 2012. Monarchs feed on Milkweed, in this case Showy Milkweed.

Showy Milkweed is growing in someone's garden and I was lucky enough to finally see a few Monarch caterpillars. I've seen so many beautiful photos taken by other people over the years and never thought I'd get the chance to see a Monarch. This year, though, has been unusual, as people have been seeing a few of these amazing butterflies in Alberta, including in Calgary. www.monarch-butterfly.com/ I found this beautiful, time-lapse video (only four and a half minutes long) on YouTube. Worth looking at if you have a few moments to spare. "It shows the entire lifecycle of the Monarch butterfly from a tiny caterpillar hatching from an egg on a Milkweed leaf through metamorphosis to become a glorious adult butterfly. Filmed utilizing high powered microscopic cameras and time-lapse photography. Produced for the Chicago Nature Museum in Chicago, IL." youtu.be/7AUeM8MbaIk The link below is to an article by CBC News, about the surprise appearance of Monarch butterflies in Central Alberta this summer. www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2012/06/20/monarch-butte... If you have more free time, this is a longer video by NOVA, about the amazing 2,000-mile migration of Monarchs to a sanctuary in the highlands of Mexico. video.pbs.org/video/1063682334

We saw this beautiful Fritillary butterfly when we went on a botanizing day trip to the Medicine River Wildlife Centre two days ago (27 July 2011). Haven't decided which species of Fritillary it is - I don't find them easy to ID.

Photographed on 27 July 2012, when four of us spent the day botanizing (searching for and recording all species of plants found, plus birds, animals, insects, fungi) at the Medicine River Wildlife Centre, NW of Calgary, near Raven. This colourful butterfly happened to land on the tire of a friend's car in the parking lot. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aglais_milberti

Normally, in Calgary, a very rare Monarch butterfly might be spotted in the city - I'd only ever seen one, from far away. This summer has been different for some reason, with Monarchs travelling to Calgary and quite a bit further north in Alberta. The one in my photo is the fourth one I've seen this summer. Robin, a botany friend, and I had bumped into each other at the Zoo on July 24th and then gone our separate ways. I was busy photographing flowers in the zoo garden a bit later, when an excited Robin found me and let me know where there was a beautiful Monarch near by. It was enjoying the Scabius flowers. Thanks, Robin! www.monarch-butterfly.com/ I found this beautiful, time-lapse video (only four and a half minutes long) on YouTube. Worth looking at if you have a few moments to spare. "It shows the entire lifecycle of the Monarch butterfly from a tiny caterpillar hatching from an egg on a Milkweed leaf through metamorphosis to become a glorious adult butterfly. Filmed utilizing high powered microscopic cameras and time-lapse photography. Produced for the Chicago Nature Museum in Chicago, IL." youtu.be/7AUeM8MbaIk The link below is to an article by CBC News, about the surprise appearance of Monarch butterflies in Central Alberta this summer. www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2012/06/20/monarch-butte... If you have more free time, this is a longer video by NOVA, about the amazing 2,000-mile migration of Monarchs to a sanctuary in the highlands of Mexico. video.pbs.org/video/1063682334

One of the tropical butterflies photographed at the Calgary Zoo during their butterfly season, on 26th September 2011. Hope I've identified this correctly. I just have to add this link (hours later) from YouTube - someone (Kelly-Sue) had posted the link on Facebook. It is a video of a little two-year old boy playing drums - and I mean PLAYING! Fascinating to watch his face while he tries different things. He's mighty GOOD! youtu.be/d_AX0JTogjM

This beautiful butterfly, from Southeast Asia, is also called Rice Paper, or Large Tree Nymph butterfly (Idea leuconoe). Photographed at the Calgary Zoo, ENMAX Conservatory, on September 11th.

September is the month that the butterfly room at the Calgary Zoo winds down. Photographed this beautiful butterfly on September 12th - love it when they land on something where there is no cluttered background : ) Can't help but smile when I see their tiny, "soccer-ball" eyes. As always, I think I have the correct ID, but would really appreciate any confirmation or correction - thanks. Many thanks again to bayucca for the correct ID, Tiger-striped Longwing / Heliconius ismenius telchinia! I appreciate your help so much! I know I will embarrass myself by making the same mistake again.

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.

Not a good photo as far as ID is concerned, but I don't have another photo of a Red Admiral butterfly posted on Flickr, so wanted it for my Insects of Alberta Set. Taken on 6th July at Shannon Terrace, Fish Creek Park. I don't normally see Red Admirals. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vanessa_atalanta_(Red_Admiral)