Walking around the Mission Marsh conservation area on afternoon we spotted this magnificent male Monarch Butterfly feeding on the Golden Rod (along side a couple of honey bees).
These really are amazing insects. Did you know that the monarch is unique among butterflies in that rather than hibernate they migrate to a warmer climate with the changing seasons. For those that spend the summer months in Ontario it means a 6,000 km commute to Mexico. I find that really amazing, they look so fragile but they can travel such enormous distances. It is no wonder they spend such a long time feeding up on the sweet nectar that nature provides.
I tried hard walking round the zoo to remember the different species I photographed and at one point it occurred to me that I should write them down. Now as I sit and write this I really really wish I had. I have no idea what either of these beautiful birds are so sorry about that.
They are beautiful though so just enjoy the pictures.
In today's blog I have made quite a shift from the big cats of the past few days and gone from mammals to amphibians.
The first four pictures show three different species of poison dart frogs. They were really tiny and as you can see beautifully coloured.
The final two pictures were tree frogs. I really like the fifth picture with the frog peering around the branch with its beautiful yellow eye.
In the last picture the frog was squished up against the glass and so it presents a really interesting view of a fascinating creature.
