Recent Photos

There are a few squirrels around our complex but usually they aren't very cooperative. This one was a bit more tolerant of my photography.

The blackberries are ripening and this white-crowned sparrow was taking advantage.

Whereas this one was too busy singing.

I caught these two river otters just as they were heading back into the water.

This one was just hanging out.

I spotted this zebra jumping spider on the wall in the house. It stayed there while I got my camera and macro lens, but then it stopped cooperating and I had to chase it back and forth along the wall to photograph it. This is the only shot where it looked up at me and showed off its 8 eyes. The large main pair of eyes are built like a telescope with two lenses. These are used for hunting.

Once I start noticing these common green bottle flies, I realized there are lots around. I like their shiny green color and contrasting red eyes.

Another fly I've seen a few times - a yellow-haired sun fly.

I thought this was another hover or flower fly, but I think it's a Variable Carder Bee (endangered). They are related to mason bees.

Of course, there are lots of honey bees around.

And also quite a few yellow-faced bumblebees.

There don't seem to be many butterflies around. Cabbage whites are one of the most common.

And not much freshwater, so not many dragonflies. (They need freshwater to breed.)

I noticed more wasps than usual around our deck and eventually spotted the start of a paper wasp nest (open cells). I didn't want to kill them but I also didn't want a nest on our deck. I waited till early morning when it was cool and they were less active and washed the nest off the wall with the hose. That probably killed the larva but the adults seemed ok, if a bit shocked at this rude eviction.

The cross orbweavers seem to get more common, or at least more obvious, later in the summer.

And if you're not a fan of insects or spiders, here are a few pretty flowers.

I only had my macro lens so I could only capture a small piece of this Peter Pan sand sculpure. This part was Captain Hook and the crocodile, with the clock in the background. (The crocodile swallowed the clock and its ticking was a warning.)

And a final hazy long distance shot of orcas in the mouth of the harbor. I happened to look up and see a dozen whale watching boats gathered, so I figure there must be orcas. Unfortunately they didn't come any closer and this was the best shot I got.

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Shore Crabs

I've been a fan of shore crabs all the way back to childhood summer holidays on Vancouver Island. They're so different from most land creatures - 10 legs, big claws, eyes on stalks. I remember when I was maybe 8 or 10 years old taking the train from Saskatoon to Vancouver and then arriving at Tsawwassen for the ferry to Vancouver Island. The first thing I had to do was rush down to the shore and start turning over rocks to find crabs.

Happily, there are shore crabs under the rocks in front of our place in Victoria. I've been meaning to bring some inside (temporarily) to "study" them and I finally got around to it. I filled a small container with gravel and water from the beach and grabbed an assortment of crabs. The small ones, roughly pea sized immediately burrowed into the gravel and I didn't see them again. But the three slightly larger ones (~ 2 cm or 3/4 in) were a bit more visible. At first they hid under shells, but they seemed to get accustomed to the environment and roamed around more. They weren't as happy being taken out and put in a white bowl to be photographed.

The largest one got braver as time went by. It would roam the edges of the container, looking for a way out. It occurred to me that it was a good thing it wasn't any bigger or it would be able to escape. I left the container uncovered and went and got some tea. As I was returning I saw something on the floor. It took me several seconds to figure out it was a crab. Luckily I was able to grab it before it hid somewhere I couldn't reach. I was more careful after that and kept the lid on except when I was actually watching them. And yet it managed one more escape when I glanced away for a few seconds. I made a grab for it but it jumped straight off the edge of my desk. I returned it once more and after that managed to avoid any more escapes. It reminded me of when I kept garter snakes as a kid. One of them managed to escape and I swear my father levitated when it came across the living room carpet towards him. Coming from 10 years in East Africa where the snakes tended to be considerably more dangerous might have had something to do with it.

Shore crabs are amphibious, able to survive both in the water and in the air. This one was hiding under a rock underwater.

Here's the escape artist, waiting patiently for an opportunity. I didn't actually see him climb out, but I saw some attempts where he'd stand on a rock and stretch out sidewise. He must have managed to hook one leg over the edge and do a one arm/leg pullup.

Another unique feature of crabs is their eyes. They are compound eyes like an insect, but on "stalks" that allow them to swivel and retract. Their eyes don't have very good resolution, but they can spot an approaching bird or other predator.

This one was slightly smaller, but easily recognized. I called him Spot.

I also picked up some unintentional critters. We tend to think of limpets as fixed in place, but this little one roamed around all the time (eating algae off the rocks presumably). It was tiny, maybe 1/2 cm (1/4 in). I think it's a Mask Limpet.

I fed them a couple of times on tiny pieces of salmon that I stole from Shelley's lunch. They obviously have a good sense of smell in the water. Soon after dropping in the food, they would all emerge and start hunting around for it. Once they grabbed a piece they'd scuttle back to shelter to eat it. After a couple of days I returned them to the beach.

There are a multitude of crabs here. The otters eat them, humans eat them, even the gulls eat them if they can catch them. This morning I kayaked across a shallow muddy bay at low tide and there were hundreds of roughly 5cm (2 in) crabs, one every foot or so.

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Baby Harbor Seal

I spotted some baby harbor seals when I was kayaking last weekend. Other years we've had a mother and baby on the island in front of our place so I've been keeping an eye out. The other morning I saw a seal in the water by the island. In the evening there was a seal out on the island. She (?) looked quite plump.

Usually the front flippers just look like fins, but it's interesting to see in this photo that they actually have 5 fingers and nails.

An hour or so later I looked out again and now there was a baby! At first we weren't sure if it was the same seal, but looking at the photos the markings look the same. She looked less plump after giving birth.

Pups can weigh up to 16 kg (35 lb) and are able to swim within hours of birth. I think you can see some signs of the birth on the mother.

Feeding time

The island is about 100 m (330 ft) from the shore. I was using my longest telephoto and it was a challenge to get sharp photos. I even got out the big tripod but it didn't seem to make much difference. I had been resting on the railing so I was pretty steady even without it. And the stabilization on the OM-1 is very good.

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Recent Photos

The river otters often (but not always) come out on the shore to eat what they catch in the water. This one had caught a fish that was too large to just swallow. It took a certain amount of chewing to get it down.

The Black Oystercatchers are also searching for food (shellfish).

The Great Blue Herons are usually on the shore, not out on the grass. It flew away as soon as I started to approach closer.

I caught another one just as it was taking off. Love those feet!

This time of year there's lots of seaweed for the Canada Geese and ducks to eat.

And to wrap up, a few more of my reflection photos.

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