Penetang Animals: Horsehair worm

Horsehair worms are pretty scary parasites of insects. Their eggs are eaten by insects. The small worm grows inside the insect by eating the insides. When the worm is fully grown, it compels the insect to jump into a body of water and drown. Then the worm climbs out of the insect and finds a place to lay its eggs.

From Wikipedia

And Nematomorpha.net.

Waduyasee?

I normally see clouds as a continuous mass and seldom see discrete clouds. This was a beautiful, clear evening so 'What do you see?'

I am not sure my answers are all that creative but I have included them 'below the fold'. Make your own decisions and let me know in the comments.

Penetang animals: Mustela nivalis

Weasels are such cute looking animals. If we could see into the minds of these playful and cuddly creatures, we would find little but thoughts of killing and killing some more. These are the happiest of psychopaths!

I think this is M nivalis but the Internet tells me there is also M frenata in Southern Canada.
Frontenac News tells me that mink are quite similar but larger than what I saw.
Encyclopedia of Life names 42 different species of mustelids.
Wikipedia has entries on Mustelids and on weasels.

Penetang Animals: Ondatra zibethicus

Muskrats in the Canadian Encyclopedia
Muskrats in Hinterland's Who's Who
And in Wikipedia.
The following photos, and video , were taken at The Wye Marsh in Midland, Ontario

Penetang animals: meadowhawk

I think this is a white-faced meadowhawk, Sympetrum obtrusum. 

I found this one, my first dragonfly sighting in Canada in five years, at the Tiny (this is a township, not a description of size) Marsh. Its wings were bent strangely.

Wikpedia
Some of these dragonflies also have a male/female colour morph with the males being red. In Korea, the claim is they turn red at mating season but I don't know if that is true.
Cherry-faced meadowhawk

Penetang animals: Butorides virescens

I typed this entry a week ago and scheduled it for this week. In the intervening time, I was able to see the bird more clearly. I had thought it was a little blue heron. I now think it is a green heron. Still not a common bird around here but more common than the little blue.

This little heron has shaggy feathers that make it look, well, cuddly. My pictures were taken with my phone so I was unable to get better images. I have seen bitterns, green herons and night herons and this isn't one of those. And yet, the guides suggest that the little blue heron is very rare here. I have definitely not seen the immature form.

New photos

Green Heron.

Little Blue Heron links:
Arkive

Maryland biodiversity project

Wikipedia

All About Birds

Penetang animals: Castorinae castor

A lot of aquatic animals pass by my mother's house. This beaver passes by each evening and often in the morning.

This morning (I wrote this on May 22 but put it in the queue so it is appearing around June 7), it carried this snack along with it.

 I can see it, although you may not, deeper in the water, still dragging the branch.

Penetang Animals: Vulpes vulpes

I found this red fox wandering rurals streets outside Penetang. It was entirely unconcerned with me, even when I stopped my car to take these shots.

Wikipedia Red Fox

Penetang Animals: Mergus merganser

I was convinced that these were two different species of bird that always kept together. Finally I decided to look into it and simply found the two genders are hugely different.

All About Birds
Audubon