January 16, 2014: Winter Hummingbird

365 Project, Day 148

Here is my day 148 submission to my 365Project:

While the rest of Canada is in the depths of winter the Anna's hummingbirds (Calypte anna) flit around the leafless shrubs and trees all around Victoria. Today I was on a walk along Dallas Road in Victoria and spotted this little guy sitting on the tip of these branches. 

It's amazing how many of these little birds are around once you learn to ID them by their call and the fact that the males are easy to spot by scanning the branches of trees and shrubs where they like to sit and sing loudly. So much fun watching them in action and capturing them in photos :)  

Fun Fact of the Day
Anna's hummingbirds make wonderful courtship displays with males climbing up to 130 ft in the air and then swooping to the ground with a burst of noise produced through their tail feathers. 

Read more about Anna's hummingbirds at this Cornell Lab of Ornithology webpage. 

December 24, 2013: Christmas Suckling Pig

365 Project, Day 145

Here is my day 145 submission to my 365Project:

Well, it's Christmas eve offshore and, as seems to be tradition on all offshore seismic vessels (this is my third Christmas offshore), the deck and galley crew roasted a suckling pig at the top of the back deck. 

Being somebody who doesn't eat red meat or chicken (I will eat some seafood as it is often the best way to still get some protein while working offshore) I am not usually too excited about the prospect of the roasted suckling pig. Despite this, I will usually go check out the process of roasting the pig... and it still shocks me to see that whole suckling pig roasting on the spit. Don't get me wrong, I fully understand the realities of the 'circle of life' (I have observed many Transient killer whales killing porpoises, seals, sea lion and a minke whale!), but I know that if I had to hunt and kill my own food I'd probably only capable of doing so with fish and I still feel bad when I have to whack a fish on the head or kill a crab to eat it. 

Here's an image I got of one of our Filipino deck crew turning the spit. The guys have to do this for many hours while the pig roasts trading off on spit turning duty the entire time.

Fact of the day:

A suckling pig is a piglet fed on its mother's milk and, in culinary contexts, is slaughtered between two and six weeks. Often, piglets are fed on a liquid diet after they're weaned for up to 10 weeks and then sold as larger suckling pigs. In reality these are 'faux' suckling pigs since they aren't still feeding (or suckling) on their mother's milk.

Read more about suckling pigs at this wiseGeek webpage.

Some more images from the pig roast:

December 20, 2013: Katydid Face Off

365 Project, Day 143

Here is my day 143 submission to my 365Project:

My days on the heli-deck spending hours scanning the water and skies for wildlife can often be a bit solitary but when something, like a little insect, comes along and hangs out with me, I often get pretty excited...which results in me taking lots of photos of such little visitors :) 

Here are some images of a katydid (Family Tettigoniidae) who joined me on the helideck for a couple hours today:

Katydid Face Off!

Fun fact of the day:

In all species of katydid the front wings have special structures that can be rubbed together to make sounds. They hear these sounds with flat patches on their legs that act as ears.

Read more about Katydid's at this BioKIDS webpage.

I loved this series of the katydid's long antenna blowing around in the breeze:

October 8, 2013: To Infinity

365 Project, Day 101

Here is my day one hundred one submission to my 365Project:

Tonight I started the journey back to the west coast of Canada...the first part of the trip was a 16 hour overnight train journey from New Brunswick to Montreal. I snapped a couple of shots of the interior of the train before we departed and I really liked how using my wide angle lens gave the photo an interesting feeling of the train extending off into the distance. 

Fun fact of the day:
Via Rail, the railway operating the train I was traveling on, operates 497 trains per week in eight Canadian provinces. The train network consists of 12 500 (7800 mi) km of track. Approximately 4.1 million passengers travel on Via Rail tracks annually. 

To read more about Via Rail check out the Wikipedia webpage Via Rail. 

Here are a couple more interesting shots from inside the train:

October 7, 2013: Village of Gagetown Barn

365 Project, Day 100

Here is my day one hundred submission to my 365Project:

Wow! I've posted 100 photos in my 365 Project now. I think I managed to get a photo up most days but I have realized it would be more difficult than I had anticipated when I started. Still, it is fun to look back on the many photos I've taken. I think I have also learned something about my photography in the process. 

I'm still visiting my family in New Brunswick and while I was on a walk around the cute Village of Gagetown I snapped some photos of this barn. Recently, I learned it is a good idea to have a strong foreground in landscape photos and I liked the detail in the wood of the fence post and the wire leading away from it. 

Fun fact of the day:
The Village of Gagetown (to be distinguished from the nearby Canadian Forces base CFB Gagetown) was founded in 1783. The village is steeped in history and became a busy and vibrant farming community. Today it is a mecca for artists, artisans, bird watchers and boaters.

Read more about the Village of Gagetown at the village webpage here. 

And some more photos from around Gagetown :)

Another photo of my parent's cute pup, Yoko, the Shiba Inu

While taking photos for an assignment for a photo class I'm taking I snapped this photo in my parent's dining room and I liked the lighting, the contrast in the wall colours and the old feel it had. 

October 6, 2013: Black-eyed Susans

365 Project, Day 99

Here is my day ninety-nine submission to my 365Project:

While visiting the golf course in Saint John's for lunch this afternoon I snapped this photo of Black-eyed Susans (Rudbeckia hirta) outside the clubhouse. I loved how, even though this was just outside the clubhouse, it looked like a they were in a lovely field of flowers!

Fun fact of the day:
Black-eyed susans are known as pioneer plants because it is one of the first plants to grow in areas decimated by fire and other natural disasters.

Read more about Black-eyed Susans at this Fall Wildflowers of New England webpage. 

We had lunch  this afternoon on the patio overlooking the golf course...it was a lovely sunny afternoon and, fortunately, not quite cold enough for us to have to sit inside :) 

Underpass at sunset

The Saint John river waiting to get on the ferry to go over to the village of Gagetown

On the cute little ferry (we were the only car) crossing over the Saint John River

Ferry lights at sunset on the Saint John River

October 2, 2013: Looking For A Meal

365 Project, Day 95

Here is my day ninety-five submission to my 365Project:

While out at my step-dad's property in New Brunswick we spotted quite a few turkey vultures (Cathartes aura) circling around above us...most likely looking for a dinner OR taking a break from a meal on some unfortunate dead critter!

Fun fact of the day:
Tibetan Buddhists practice "sky burials" where animals, usually vultures, consume their dead. Zoroastrians also offer their dead to be consumed by vultures and regard vultures as precious animals that release the soul from the body. 

To read more interesting facts about Vultures check out this All About Birds webpage.

Here are some more photos from today's adventures:

Doctor's Hill B and B in the lovely Village of Gagetown

Yoko, my parents' (and sister's!) cute Shiba Inu dog, Yoko, taking in the sun

Going for a stroll on my step-dad's property in New Brunswick

More photos of that turkey vulture :)

September 25, 2013: Feeding Hummingbird

365 Project, Day 90

Here is my day ninety submission to my 365Project:

I was delighted when I was walking through Beacon Hill Park in Victoria, BC and I heard and then spotted this Anna's hummingbird (Calypte anna) feeding near me...and I had enough time to get some shots of it in flight and feeding.

Fact of the day:
On rare occasions, bees and wasps may become impaled on the bill of an Anna's hummingbird, causing the bird to starve to death. 

Read more about Anna's Hummingbirds on AllAboutBirds.org

Here are some more shots from today's wanderings around Beacon Hill Park:

I love the colours of the peacock and the fall leaves!

More photos of that Anna's hummingbird! 

And of course...the Canada Geese :)

This mushroom was HUGE!