This section of the website has been added to introduce photographers and naturalists to the skill of identifying wildlife.  It is always nice to know what you are photographing.  You would be surprised, for example, how many so-called professional bird photographers, lugging around their expensive cameras and large telephoto lenses, haven’t got a clue what they are photographing. It can be embarrassing, if not harmful to their reputation when they post the wrong species name under a beautiful bird shot. People will notice the error before they admire the photograph.

This page is divided into four separate categories – insects, amphibians and reptiles, birds, and mammals.  Each category will have representative photographs to assist you in identification.  It is not possible for this site to cover the identification of every animal species, so at the moment it will concentrate on particular groups (e.g. Lepidoptera; Amphibians and Reptiles).

There are numerous field guides to birds and mammals on the market. There are however a very limited number of guides on the identification of the herpetofauna (Amphibians and Reptiles) of Ontario. I have personally seen every herpetofauna species in Ontario and this section of the website will show you how to identify each animal.

Listed below are numerous identification field guides that can be purchased to help anyone learn how to identify wildlife. However, birding for beginners, for example, can be overwhelming. Learning how to use a pair of binoculars correctly to see and identify the sheer number of bird species that you can encounter can be disheartening for a beginner. Add to that the age and seasonal color variations of each species, it can be almost impossible without some assistance. With the correct basic understanding of bird identification skills, mixed with a little time and practice, you can feel more comfortable watching birds and join all the birding enthusiasts in no time.

The shear numbers of species in the insect world makes it an impossible task for any one person to be able to identify every species. So most insect enthusiasts usually choose an Order, or group of insects they are particularly interested in, like Hymenoptera (bees and wasps), Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths), Coleoptera (beetles), and become experts in identifying their favorite group. This site presently focuses on Lepidoptera and will show numerous photos of species and how they are identified.

Courses with a professional biologist will soon be offered for individuals who want to learn how to identify birds and to photograph and identify moths for faster learning.