Category: Animal Encounter

Photography from our encounters with wild animals, from our travels around the world.

Painted Turtles Near Forks of the Credit Provincial Park

2 comments

painted turtle - sits in pond near forks of the credit - ontario

On a beautiful sunny day, Bob and I decided to head to the Forks of the Credit Provincial Park in search of birds that are uncommon in our own part of the province.  As we approached Forks of the Credit Provincial Park near Caledon, along a quiet country road called McLaren Road, a vibrant green sludge drew our eyes to a pond at the side of the highway.  When we spotted a turtle poking its head up through the surface of the water, we had to pull over for a look.  The reptile turned out to be an Eastern Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta). Read more

A Green Frog On The Green River In Ontario



Booking.com

A Green Frog On The Green River In Ontario

green frog. seaton trail. green river. whitevale, ontario

Recently, Bob and I took the opportunity of a break in the rain for a hike along the Seaton Hiking Trail, near Whitevale, Ontario.  How apt that we spotted a Green Frog (Lithobates clamitans) resting at the side of the swiftly moving water on a damp rock.  Now, you are probably thinking, “aren’t all frogs green?”, but the Green Frog is one of Ontario’s 13 recognized frog species. Read more

Various Types of Turtles We Have Sighted Across Ontario

6 comments

various types of turtles - milliken park - toronto - ontario

As Bob and I so often do, we walked to Toronto’s Milliken Park one afternoon in early spring.  It was an unusually hot day which explained the assembly of turtles basking in the sun at the side of the park’s largest pond.  I couldn’t help think of the adage, “get your ducks all in a row” because there were the turtles, all lined up in order.  They certainly occupied  every inch of available space on that log. Read more

A White and Grey Rabbit in Toronto’s Milliken Park

6 comments

White and grey rabbit - looks at me - Milliken Park - Toronto - Ontario

On a walkabout in Milliken Park, in Toronto,  Ontario, Canada, Bob and I were surprised to see, hopping about the lawns and gardens, an unusual looking rabbit.  Unlike our common Cottontail Rabbit, this rabbit was white with a smokey grey snout and a grey wash on its hind quarters.  Could it be that someone’s pet escaped and is now making the park its home?  Or is it possible that someone released their pet for no longer wanting to care for it? Read more

Muskrats Eat, Swim, and Dive at Cranberry Marsh in Whitby

5 comments

Muskrat holds a stick in its hands - Cranberry Marsh - Lynde Shores Conservation Area

On a visit to the West Cranberry Tract at Lynde Shores Conservation Area in Whitby, Ontario, Canada, we were lucky enough to see some muskrats at the edge of the marsh foraging for food. Read more

Eastern Garter Snakes in Whitby’s Thickson’s Woods

9 comments

garter snake sits among pine needles and studies me - thicksons woods - whitby

Bob and I went to Thickson’s Woods Nature Reserve, in Whitby, Ontario, one spring, to check on the growth of the Great Horned Owl chicks, but we were treated to wildlife observations of quite a different kind.  As Ontario’s spring weather finally started to include warmer days, it was no surprise to discover a number of Eastern Garter Snakes taking advantage of the warmth where direct sunlight penetrated to the forest floor. Read more

Mink Hunts Muskrats in Ontario Swamp

16 comments

mink, etobicoke, Ontario

Bob and I spent one afternoon exploring a marsh near Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.  We barely had gotten underway when we spotted a member of the Weasel Family, a Mink, coming towards us, totally unconcerned about our presence in its habitat. Read more

Wild Coyote We Sighted In The Claireville Conservation Area

3 comments

A wild Coyote gives me a look as it stands in a snow covered field in the Claireville Conservation Area, in Toronto - Ontario March 8, 2013

On a visit to the Claireville Conservation Area in west-end Toronto, in Ontario, before we had barely set off from the parking lot, fellow visitors walking their dogs drew our attention to this wild coyote emerging from the edge of the bush. Read more

Red and Grey Squirrels in Canada and Ireland

25 comments

Many different types of animals live in the forests of Ontario, but size aside, you most certainly will come upon the smallest four-legged animals that call the forests of Ontario home.  Those would be squirrels.  This chipmunk is a member of the squirrel family, and this little guy lives in the trees around my parents’ home at Oxtongue Lake, in Ontario, Canada.  Read more

Bowhead Whales Off Kekerten Island

No comments

rock and strewn bones - kerkerten island - nunavut - canada

Another cold wet morning greeted me on Kekerten Island as we prepared for what we hoped would be a day of filming and tracking bowhead whales off Baffin Island in Nunavut, Canada. Read more