Ian Toal Curator

Joined: Sep 4, 2016 Last Active: Aug 19, 2022 iNaturalist Canada

I'm Ian's wife, Barb. I am very saddened to give this news to all the people at inat with whom he worked, respected and liked.

Our Ian died very suddenly on July 17, 2022. (The August, 2022 entry into his account was me, editing this page.)

Ian was a lifelong teacher and had a huge love for, and interest in, wildlife. He enjoyed meeting and helping others on inat.ca. He was the same even-handed thoughtful person in his daily life. His last act was to conserve a black swallowtail and protect and feed it as a caterpillar and as it pupated. .The pupa was taken over by our neighbour's 7 yr old son (after Ian's death) who watched it eagerly everyday until it finally became a beautiful black swallow tail with yellow markings. It flew straight up into the sky. A testament to the beauty of nature and the importance of conservation. - Barb

Joined iNaturalist Sept/16

Degree in Entomology from U of Manitoba, worked at Ag Can in Winnipeg as a technician in the 80's. Mostly with Noctuids and pheromones. Also worked with flea beetles on Canola, and Root maggots on rutabagas. Was also unofficially in charge of the moth collection at the station, which had specimens from Norman Criddle. Have real fondness for invertebrates, but moths are my main thing.

Also a lifelong bird watcher, but not a very good one. I believe strongly in the first guideline of iNat - Assume people mean no harm. If I sound brusque it's never intended. If you want more information on any of my identifications, or anything else, just contact me. I'm always willing to help, but I'm not always right.
I really could do with a binocular dissecting microscope!

God bless, Ian .
Flickr account - https://www.flickr.com/photos/187198506@N03/
Visual aid to identifying NA Noctuid moths - https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/wiki-common-north-american-noctuid-moth-identification/10831

View All