Horseshoe Canyon

Spotted this very small spider (sorry, fotographix.ca, you commented before I typed my description!) on the cracked, parched floor of Horseshoe Canyon three days ago. This Canyon is part of the spectacular Badlands of Alberta - land of the Dinosaurs! - and is found just before you reach Drumheller, coming from Calgary. Haven't identified this little guy, but he looks different from spiders that I've seen before. (By the way, I added the black frame because the photo just looked so washed out on a white page background. I do this with some of my photos, but just for myself at home. I find that photos without frames make more attractive (to my mind) mosaics, which is why I don't normally post the framed versions here on Flickr.) Thanks so much to The Kav (Pat Kavanagh) and Lynette S. for the ID of Wolf Spider (probably Pardosa sp.). Much appreciated.

This is where we spent the day botanizing on Saturday, 21st August - Horshoe Canyon, near Drumheller, in the Badlands of Alberta. To the north east of our city, there are endless miles of flat prairie. Then, suddenly, one comes across the amazing Badlands - our own mini Grand Canyon! This is one of the best-known sites in the Canadian Badlands, located 17 kilometres west of Drumheller on Highway 9. Horseshoe Canyon is about 145 km (88 miles) from Calgary. It takes between 1½ hours and 2 hours to drive there from Calgary. This shot was taken just before I reached the top rim after a day of plant search. Unfortunately, the invasive Creeping/Canada Thistle was growing here in abundance. "Horseshoe Canyon is an isolated pocket of badlands amidst the Alberta prairie. Apart from its aesthetic value, Horseshoe Canyon also represents three unique habitats or ecosystems: the prairie, the wooded coulee slopes and the badlands." www.natureconservancy.ca/site/PageServer?pagename=ab_ncc_... www.tyrrellmuseum.com/

Macro shot of a beautiful Coneflower growing at Horseshoe Canyon, Badlands of Alberta (east of the city), on August 21st. Sorry that my photos all seem to be of the same few, limited subjects, even more so than usual! I'm getting very little time to dig into my archives and I don't have time (and it's too cold) to go out to take photos. Roll on spring! Our deep-freeze continues, -21C with a windchill of -31C this morning. Can't even remember when I last went out, lol! A rather difficult day, as I have to choose a casket for my brother and been getting closer to finalizing the Service over in England. I know John would have wanted an eco-friendly one (for cremation), as he was very environmentally conscious and had such very simple, unsophisticated tastes. So, I'm thinking, maybe one of the ones made from wicker/cane. I had great respect for him for these reasons - and oh, for so many other reasons, too. More and more people are coming forward with incredibly kind things to say about John. Very heart-warming for me. Once all this is over, I'll be back with my usual, cheery self (which IS still here, lol) - please bear with me. Just want to thank you all again for your continuing help and support, and your much-appreciated thoughts.

This attractive grass is also known as Blue Gramma and Gramma's Eyebrows. Photographed on 21st August at Horseshoe Canyon, in the Alberta Badlands. This is only a short, small grass, shot with a macro lens.

This was a new plant found two days ago, on our climb down into Horseshoe Canyon, near Drumheller, north east of Calgary. The whole, solitary plant (a dense, spike-like cluster), was maybe three inches tall and this is a macro of just a few of the very tiny flowers in the cluster. This is native to North America. In a United Nations Environment Programme, World Conservation Monitoring Centre, for Dinosaur Provincial Park, also in the Badlands of Alberta, the following was reported: "Threatened species, or those at the limit of their biogeographic range, include Orobanche ludoviciana ..."

A macro of a small Canada Thistle flower, Cirsium arvense, (also known locally as Creeping Thistle). This species was introduced from France. Also called Field Thistle. The stems of this noxious weed (with beautiful flowers) creep underground, forming colonies and it seems to have invaded everywhere, preventing our native species from growing. Photographed this one at Horseshoe Canyon, near Drumheller, in the Alberta Badlands. talkaboutwildlife.ca/profile/?s=1281

This is where seven of us spent the day yesterday, botanizing the slopes and floor of the spectacular Horseshoe Canyon, near Drumheller, Alberta. To the north east of our city, there are endless miles of flat prairie. Then, suddenly, one comes across the amazing Badlands - our own mini Grand Canyon! This is one of the best-known sites in the Canadian Badlands, located 17 kilometres west of Drumheller on Highway 9. The buildings and trees on the far distant rim give an idea of the size of this portion of the canyon. Horseshoe Canyon is about 145 km (88 miles) from Calgary. It takes between 1½ hours and 2 hours to drive there from Calgary. "Horseshoe Canyon is an isolated pocket of badlands amidst the Alberta prairie. Apart from its aesthetic value, Horseshoe Canyon also represents three unique habitats or ecosystems: the prairie, the wooded coulee slopes and the badlands." www.natureconservancy.ca/site/PageServer?pagename=ab_ncc_... www.tyrrellmuseum.com/

Happened to notice this Hoverfly species sitting on a wild Coneflower petal at the top of Horseshoe Canyon, near Drumheller (the Badlands of Alberta, which is Dinosaur country!) on August 21st. I'm amazed it didn't fly off, the closer my lens got to it : )

A macro photo of this tiny-flowered plant, found on Saturday, when several of us spent the day botanizing Horseshoe Canyon in the Badlands of Alberta. This place is a 1 1/2 to 2 hour drive, north east of Calgary. I don't remember seeing this plant before and found that it's quite pretty when seen magnified this way. www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/crops/facts/ontweeds/prostra...