Canyon Creek, Redding, Shasta County - 5/18/07

After work on a Friday, I went to Canyon Creek in Redding for about 45 minutes. Saw lots of these Sylvan Hairstreaks, which were very difficult to photograph. Earlier that day, Bruce Deuel had asked me to photograph a Cackling Goose he'd found at Kutras Lake in Redding.

Sylvan Hairstreak.

Sylvan Hairstreak.

Sylvan Hairstreak.

Cackling Goose, obviously much smaller than and proportionately different from surrounding Canadas.

Note tiny bill.

No "chin strap" and a hint of a white band on the breast. But, according to a discussion by Sibley (see http://www.sibleyguides.com/canada_cackling.htm) these characters have no value in determining subspecies.