These are the main sources I've used for identification and learning a bit more about what I have photographed. No particular order or importance.
This page is very much an incomplete work in progress.
Amphibians
My most common source of images for Otter Lake area reptiles and amphibians
Birds
A very comprehensive website about birds by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. High quality photos and information and good side-by-side comparison of similar species.
Insects
Good comprehensive source of butterfly photos, specialising in Ontario but extending to Quebec and the Maritimes. Including links to the Ontario Butterfly Atlas. By Rick Cavasin.
Good comprehensive coverage of North America, with maps, photos and detailed information.
An enthusiast run site focused on the dragonflies and damselflies around Eagle Lake, just a few miles away from Otter Lake. By Sandy and Irv Dardick
Identification for Canadian and US insects
Fish
A chart of Ontario fish published by the MNR related to fishing regulations.
Flowers
Many Google wild flower searches have led me to this website by Walter Muma. One of my main identification sources. Fairly comprehensive and seems quite accurate. Photos are 'old school' (meaning small).
Barry Robertson, a neighbour on Otter Lake, gave me this list when we first moved there and I refer to it frequently. I use it mainly as a cross reference to check if others have observed a certain plant in the area, and by what common name they refer to it.
An old-school website run by John Write, an enthusiast of wild flowers.
An enthusiast run site focused on the wild flowers around Eagle Lake, just a few miles away from Otter Lake. By Irv Dardick
Trees
A small but loving website about the trees of eastern Ontario and western Quebec.
Another website by Walter Muma. Fairly comprehensive and seems quite accurate. Photos are 'old school' (meaning small).
Another website by Walter Muma. Fairly comprehensive and seems quite accurate. Photos are 'old school' (meaning small).
Reptiles
A map-referenced listing of trees with good photos of their leaves. Produced by the Ontario government to encourage the planting of trees native to each region.
A simple poster showing the turtles to be found in Ontario. (But I don't remember where I found it.)
Other and general
Not the place for initial identification, but normally a good intermediate source of other information about the species.
Try uploading a photo here and letting Google search for similar images. This is worth a try for species you haven't a clue about! Sometimes some of the selected images give you a starting point for searching in the more specialised web pages.
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