Woolly Aphid, possibly the Woolly Apple Aphid | Eriosoma lanigerum Over the last couple of evenings I’ve noticed a massive flight of woolly aphids both in Courtenay and today up at my mother-in-law’s house in Black Creek. I’ve managed to get a few decent images of these white furred aphids (though they are quite small). I initially thought that they …
Courtenay
Crimson Wanderers
In this second post about feral carts on Vancouver Island, a small herd of Crimson Wanderers is discovered on a back lot in Courtenay, British Columbia. These fascinating shopping carts are common throughout the city. Crimson Wanderers Crimson Wanderer Classification: B/1 Fairly common in my neighbourhood near downtown Courtenay, Crimson Wanderers tend to graze in small herds or singly. They …
White Cockle
White Cockle | Silene latifolia ssp. alba Walking the riverside walk along the Puntledge River in Courtenay is a great place to see all sorts of invasive, introduced plants. Lately I’ve taken to strolling our two young children around the Airpark Loop. I always keep my eyes open for interesting plants and birds. The Airpark Lagoon is excellent for migrating …
Vancouver Island Shopping Carts
Why do shopping carts end up where they do? Do they have a specific habitat? What sort of behaviours do they exhibit? With a nod to Hugh Griffith at Rock, Paper, Lizard and Julian Montague at the Stray Shopping Cart Project, I have embarked on a study of wild feral carts. I’ve been inspired to collect images and document species …
In the Pink
One of the sure signs of the season is the return of the fall salmon runs to the east side of Vancouver Island. Puntledge Park in Courtenay, BC is an excellent place to witness the phenomena of pink salmon returning to their birth stream to spawn Pink Salmon | Oncorhynchus gorbuscha Pink Salmon Spawning Spectacle! If you have experienced a …
International Rock Flipping Day
Today is International Rock Flipping Day and in celebration I went out into our garden and turned over a few bricks to see what I could find. Despite living in a fairly urban environment our garden has attracted a number of interesting insects, reptiles, amphibians, arthropods, gastropods, arachnids, and birds. We’ve found Clouded Salamander (Aneides ferreus) under rotting wood beside …
American Dipper
I was out scouting locations for International Rock Flipping Day (September 20) and spotted an expert invertebrate hunter hard at work on the Puntledge River in Courtenay, British Columbia. There’s a lot going on in the Puntledge River right now. This American Dipper (Cinclus mexicanus) was working the river along with a whole host of gulls and other scavengers. The …
Introducing Invasives
An afternoon walk around the Courtenay Estuary revealed almost a dozen of BC’s “least wanted” invasive plant species. These introduced plants are either garden escapees or plants that have been introduced to North America from Eurasia. Over time they spread “naturally” throughout the continent. In bloom were Field Bindweed (Morning Glory)(Convolvulus arvensis), Hedge Bindweed (Calystegia sepium), Japanese Knotweed (Fallopia japonica), …