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Cyanide Millipedes (Harpaphe haydeniana)

I interrupted a couple of millipedes ‘snuggling’ in the woods today. We see a lot of these millipedes as they are fond of eating forest plants and detritus. They get their first name because of the cyanide they produce when disturbed. Cyanide supposedly smells like almonds and these millipedes are sometimes called almond-scented millipedes. I still haven’t built up the courage to pick one up in my hands to investigate. Their second name comes from their numerous legs but they have nothing close to the 1000 legs that their name implies, closer to 400 maximum. A nice looking creature.

The Art of Antler Making … (2 photos)

Involves a lot of resting

Progress is being made on the new antler front with the points just starting to develop.

Pacific Dogwood (Cornus nuttallii)

The Provincial flower of British Columbia

Spring Flowers (3 photos)

Butterflies & Moths (2 photos)

I’m always confused when it comes to butterflies and moths. The Comma below is called both. A couple of loose rules for identification are: a. butterflies tend to have thin antennae with sometimes a small ball in the end while moth antennae tend to be thicker, 2. butterflies tend to fly in the daytime while moths fly at night.