Tag Archive | Burnaby

Laphria are back!

I came up to SFU today to give a practice run-through of my PhD defense seminar (it is next week!). The talk went OK, given that I had not practiced it, but afterward, at lunch, I went out to see what I could see in the forest behind the lab. What I saw was this beautiful bee-like robber fly (Laphria spp.) munching down on a bumblebee! I hope you enjoy the pictures!

This fly was being very uncooperative, facing away from the camera on a high bush.

Laphria are likely Batesian mimics of bumblebees, and you can see the resemblance here.

Here is the last shot I got of the pair, as the robber takes off to find a paparazzi-free perch to enjoy its meal.

Weekend Expedition 16: A Grab Bag

May6

Probably the coolest find of teh weekend, this Rough-skinned Newt (Taricha granulosa) was the first I have seen on the Mainland.

Probably the coolest find of the weekend, this Rough-skinned Newt (Taricha granulosa) at Maplewood Park was the first I have seen on the Mainland.

This Weekend Expedition is actually another composite of three trips:

1) to Burnaby Lake with Mike, Catherine, Viorel and Tavi, stalking the elusive goslings

2) back to Hastings Park in the morning for some early insect shots

3) finally making it out to Maplewood Park in North Vancouver, accompanied by Adam Blake.

It was an exhausting weekend, with fine weather and good company, so I think I will let the images do most of the talking here!

Gallery 1: Burnaby Lake

: These are the goslings we were looking for!

: Catherine and Tavi explore the Piper Spit dock

: Viorel tries to show Tavi a goose

: Tavi and Viorel

: Piper Spit

: Western Painted Turtles (I presume) sunning.

: Mike shoots from the observation tower.

: Damsel via 300 mm plus tubes, natural light

: Damsel via 300 mm plus tubes, natural light

: Mike and Tavi stalk damselflies

: A firefly takes flight

: Coleopteran remains in bird dropping.

: Photo by Mike Hrabar, showing a Staphylinid orgy!

: A beautiful stinker

Gallery 2: Hastings Park

: A beautiful snail

: A chironomid

: Magic or spider silk?

: An Ichneumonid surveys the scene

Gallery 3: Maplewood Park

: An Elaterid on Horsetail

: A Soldier Beetle in the hand

: A Mule Deer was unconcerned with our presence

: Siskin food!

: Sleepy Pine Siskin

: Milbert’s Tortoiseshells on the mudflats

: We watched two osprey catch fish.

: This is known as the McBarge, and actually was a McDonald’s restaurant at Expo ’86. It looks shimmery due to heat and distance.

: Rough-skinned Newt!

: Rough-skinned Newt!

: Adam shoots beach flies.

: This Siskin was feeding on dandelion seeds

: A Thistle Tortoise Beetle? Guillaume? Anyone?

: Rough-skinned Newt!

Weekend Expedition 9: Deer Lake Park

Mar17

This weekend, I went to Deer Lake Park in Burnaby with Mike. It is not terribly far from Burnaby Lake Park, and in many respects has some quite similar habitat types. Because it was sunny, we were hoping to find a lot of early insects out basking, but it remained cold and windy most of the day and the insects remained elusive. Some of the photographic highlights of the trip are to be found in the gallery below. For colours I seem to have shot lots of blues and pinks today, with some yellows thrown in for good measure.