Beautiful creatures that help our planet.

Each day I come across new creatures / insects / mushrooms/ plants/ trees/ disease/ fungus that fascinate my world through gardening. The App- INaturalist.ca is a run by The National Geographic Society , what a smart easy way to learn while gardening or out for a walk.. I get excited everyday from the beauty I see , its quite amazing to be able to post my pictures to this app and to figure out quickly what I saw and to share with my community on what have learned each day. The majority of my photographs have made it into the research projects for the moths and butterflies of Ontario .
. This has given my life a boost on appreciating these beautiful creatures/insects that help all of us on this planet that we share together., it also helps researchers stay on top of insects that become invasive. This year the Gypsy Moth, Fall Webworm are invasive but can be dealt with in a safe way without the use of chemicals.
Most of these insects are consumed by birds, think twice before introducing insecticides to your gardens.
Information on the Gypsy Moth-
http://www.invadingspecies.com/gypsy-moth/
Information on the Fall Webworm-https://tidcf.nrcan.gc.ca/en/insects/factsheet
More information about the Gypsy Moth and Fall Webworm in Muskoka.
https://www.muskokaregion.com/community-story/10147151-gypsy-moth-outbreak-fall-webworm-season-hits-muskoka-trees-in-2020/

Dragon Hunter Hagenius breulstylus Here are 4 Life stages of the Dragon Hunter.

Turkey Tail Trametes versicolor

Dark Fishing Spider Dolomedes tendorodus

Female Dark Fishing Spider protecting her egg sac filled with hundreds of babies.

Canadian Tiger Swallowtail Papilio canadensis

Milkweed Tussock Moth

Great Garden Digger Wasp Sphex ichneumoneus Collecting pollen from a Globe Thistle Perennial Plant.

Gypsy Moth , eggs nest underneath her body. Lymantria dispar Seen on a number of species of trees- Oak, Maple, Pine Trees.

Northern Red Belt Fomitopsis mournceae

Gypsy Moth caterpillar. This year has been very invasive with the Gypsy Month in Ontario. http://www.invadingspecies.com/gypsy-moth/

Garden Tiger Moth Arctia caja

American White Admiral Limenitis arthemis

Waved Sphinx Ceratomia undulosa

Bleeding Heart Blooms late spring till the end of June.

Jack in the Pulpit Blooms early spring. One of my favorite plants.

Bumble Bee - Bombus on the Globe Thistle in August 2020.

Monarda- Red Scarlet and Purple Rooster contrast each other well. This is the one Perennial that attracts the most hummingbirds to the garden.

Water Lilies add oxygen to the ponds, while adding beautiful flowers throughout the season. These plants attract green frogs to come and reside in your gardens. I now have 6 Green Frogs enjoying 3 new Varieties of Water Lilies. Rembrandt - Native to Canada. Garnet- red flowers, pinkish sepals with large coppery green leaves. Indiana- Native to Canada. Soft Peach flowers that change to orange and red. Mottled leaf pattern. Wanvisa- Native- Apricot Peach-Yellow blooms with variegated flecks of yellow and white. Unique mottled foliage .

Monarch Butterfly has declined this year of 2020. This year I have only seen 2 in my gardens compared to many the year before. I know the Protectors of the Monarchs in Mexico were murdered, this has had a profound impact of the species.

Aphrodite Fritillary on the Magnus Evhinacea. https://inaturalist.ca/taxa/58563?locale=en-CA Speyeria aphrodite