A review of last year’s records began as a search for early fall migration arrival dates. It soon devolved into a tragic tale of ancient Babylon, unfulfilled love and blood-soaked —
I’m getting ahead of myself.
The data indicated a few early American Redstarts might begin arriving as early as the last week of July. Where would be the most likely place to search for them? Several choices presented themselves. Wait. What’s this? About this time last year, we found Hummingbird Clearwing Moths (Hemaris thysbe) at Colt Creek State Park. They were feeding on thistles. Hey, thistles are blooming now. This species feeds in the daytime. Hey, that would make taking pictures a bit easier. That settles it. Set the clock early.
Hemaris thysbe. You DO, of course, remember the tale that old Roman Ovid spun about Pyramus and Thisbe, don’t you? What? You DON’T??
Ancient Babylon. The most handsome lad in the city, Pyramus, lived next door to the most desirable girl in the city, Thisbe. Their homes were connected by an adjoining wall but their parents forbid them to associate with one another. A crack in the wall allowed them to communicate and words of love grew more intense as time passed. One day, they agreed to meet under a mulberry tree at the edge of town. Thisbe arrived first but a lioness appeared, blood covering her muzzle as she had just dined on an ox. Thisbe was terrified and ran to a nearby cave, dropping her scarf under the tree. The lioness shredded the scarf, leaving blood stains from the ox on it. Pyramus showed up, saw the lioness, which ran away and discovered the blood-stained scarf. Distraught at what he thought was the demise of the fair Thisbe, he thrust his sword into his heart. Thisbe returned to find Pyramus breathing his last, took his sword and fell on it herself. Ovid tells us the blood of the ill-fated pair splashed on the ripening mulberries, which had, heretofore, been white. From then on, ripe mulberries turn dark red to symbolize the deaths of the Babylonian would-be lovers.
Now you remember!
The Hummingbird Clearwing Moth (Hemaris thysbe) was given its Latin name by Danish entomologist, Johan Christian Fabricius, in the 18th century. He apparently was a fan of Ovid. Hemaris may be from the Greek “hema” meaning blood and “thysbe” refers to Thisbe from our story. The color of the body and wing borders of the moth reminded Fabricius of the blood spilled by the lovers.
Who says science is boring?
Hummingbird Clearwing Moth (Hemaris thysbe) among the thistles. This moth averages about 1.5 inches (38 mm) in length and about the same in wingspan. (Most actual hummingbirds are nearly twice as large.)
After all the drama, the remainder of our morning exploring Colt Creek State Park was rather calm. We didn’t locate any early bird migrants, but we certainly enjoyed spotting a Northern Parula singing his heart out, a gorgeous Red-shouldered Hawk, a diverse selection of insects and for a grand finale we were treated to a fishing exposition by a young River Otter.
Our tangerine breakfast was delicious but small. Time to head home for leftover okra, tomatoes and rice. Mmmmm!
Some additional Beauty! from the morning’s adventure.
A male Northern Parula wouldn’t give me a clear shot but he certainly belted out his wonderful ascending song for us!
Patrolling near a lake shoreline, a Prince Baskettail (Epitheca princeps) shows off his unique wing pattern.
The large Eastern Lubber Grasshopper (Romalea microptera) averages around two inches (55 mm) in length for males and 2.75 inches (70 mm) for females with some up to 3.5 inches (90 mm) not unusual. If nothing else, they are colorful!
The thistles (Cirsium horridulum) attract all sorts of pollinators in addition to the Hummingbird Moth. Here, a Cloudless Sulphur (Phoebis sennae) retrieves a bit of nectar.
Gini spotted a Red Saddlebags (Tramea onusta) atop a spent thistle. No nectar for this lady dragon, but she has a great perch to spot potential breakfast bugs.
A Bumble Bee transports his cargo of pollen from one thistle to another. A quick drink for his efforts and he’s off to take a load to a different flower.
Measuring about an inch (25 mm) in length, the Black and Yellow Argiope (Argiope aurantia) is a colorful spider who usually includes a “zig-zag” design near the center of her web.
Hoping to spot a frog or a lizard, an adult Red-shouldered Hawk didn’t pay us much attention as we admired one of our most common raptors.
A Dorantes Longtail (Urbanus dorantes) has forsaken the sweet nectar of the thistles and gone over to the dark side of sampling the forbidden fruits of an invasive Brazilian Vervain (Verbena brasiliensis). No worries. He’ll be back.
Averaging 1.5-2 inches (45-55 mm), the American Grasshopper (Schistocerca americana) is sometimes referred to as the American Bird Grasshopper due to its strong flying abilities. This insect causes significant agricultural damage each year. It certainly is handsome, though!
It’s hard to miss a male adult Roseate Skimmer (Orthemis ferruginea)! There isn’t much in nature with that color.
One of the smallest of the grass skippers, a Delaware Skipper (Anatrytone logan), has few markings and usually stays hidden near the ground. This one crawled onto a blade of grass for a moment – and a picture.
It’s natural to try and post nice, clear photographs of a subject in its natural environment. As a birder, I can attest that it is far more normal to see only bits and pieces of a bird most of the time! Such is the case with this Red-bellied Woodpecker who remained behind foliage and simply would not allow a decent, clear photo.
One of a half-dozen dark-colored butterflies in our area, the Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes) also enjoys visiting, guess what – thistles!
The morning dew highlighted the golden glow of the wings of Needham’s Skimmer (Libellula needhami).
We watched this young River Otter fishing in Colt Creek for a few minutes until he realized we were there. Sploosh! A disappearing otter.
Okay, so I may have started a little over the top with dramatic license, but it was a great morning to be out in nature! Pretty neat to review old notes, make a plan to see if history would repeat and, ultimately, to enjoy success. Take a look at your own notes or photographs from this time in past years. Perhaps it will lead you to your very own Babylon! Blood! and Beauty!
Enjoy your search for a natural place and come back for a visit!
It is 0645. Sunrise.
Not a hint of a breeze.
The grass path is wet from last night’s rain. Or morning dew. Both.
In the distance, Limpkins call from opposite ends of the wetlands.
Overhead, a pair of Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks whisper about their breakfast plans.
Sandhill Cranes trumpet loudly from an adjacent pasture where they spent the night.
Morning has begun in the marsh as it does every day. The difference today is – I am privileged to be a witness.
Itchepackesassa Creek Wetlands was engineered a few years ago as a method to prevent annual flooding of Itchepackesassa and Blackwater Creeks. The project included digging the wetlands to varying depths to mitigate flooding and potential erosion. A planned side benefit is to offer diverse habitat for waterfowl and other life forms by having sections of deeper, mid-level and shallow water. Care was taken to include plants with filtering properties to help cleanse water as it flows through the wetlands.
A raised berm around the marsh allows for easy walking. The area is bordered on the south and east by stands of hardwood trees which attract a great variety of migrating passerines as well as resident nesting birds.
From an entirely selfish standpoint, one of the best features of the site is on almost any weekday, I can spend a morning here and seldom encounter another human. Especially when it’s 78 F (26 C) with 90% humidity at dawn. Within an hour, it will be 85 F (29 C) and by the time the car is in sight, 94 F (34 C). One must be either crazy or a birder to be out for a two-mile stroll in such conditions! Ahhh, the Sunshine State at its best!
A thin mist clung near the surface of the marsh as I began my slow trek around the berm. Common Gallinules cackled their displeasure as I interrupted their morning routine. Pugnacious Common Green Darners stopped patrolling long enough to challenge my presence, hovering in front of my face, daring me to take one more step. Egrets, herons, ibises – flying singly and in groups, slowly gathered around the marsh to go about the daily business of survival. Beautiful flowers abound in the wetlands, which, in turn, attract pollinators of all types. River otters live here as well as Bobcats. Bald Eagles and Osprey nest nearby and today I saw an American Kestrel family. Very encouraging to see the falcons breeding here! In the woods, I searched in vain for the Yellow-billed Cuckoo I saw last year. My consolation prize was finding two adult and two immature Black-crowned Night Herons perched along the creek.
It’s hot now. Back to the car and a drink of cool water.
Called Gini to see if she needs anything. Home is only ten miles from here. “Cream for my coffee.” Happily. Lox and bagel brunch awaits.
(Header image: A Great Blue Heron wings her way across the wetlands against a backdrop of large oak trees draped in Spanish moss.)
Steamy wetlands at sunrise.
A Great Egret greets the day atop a Wood Duck nesting box.
On patrol, a Common Green Darner (Anax junius) stops long enough to confront me.
Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks have become quite common over the last couple of decades. These large tree ducks have a high, thin whistle which is unmistakable.
The marsh is home to a variety of blooming plants which don’t mind wet feet at all.
Bulltongue Arrowhead (Sagittaria lancifolia)
Bandana-of-the-Everglades (Canna flaccida)
String Lily (Crinum americanum)
One of the small grass skippers, a Whirlabout (Polites vibex) clings to a dew-covered leaf.
A Great Egret spotted a flock of White Ibises feeding and performed an abrupt aerial maneuver to descend quickly and join them.
I counted 12 Long-tailed Skippers (Urbanus proteus) in this one area. The nectar must be sweeter here for some reason.
The uniquely-shaped bill of the White Ibis is designed for probing deep into soft mud and those blue eyes don’t miss much, including a suspicious character on the edge of his marsh.
There are not that many all-dark dragonflies in our area and the unusually thin abdomen where it joins the thorax helps identify this individual as a male Pin-tailed Pondhawk (Erythemis plebja).
The Black-crowned Night Heron family of four was a nice find. Three of them flew away as soon as I rounded a corner, but one youngster remained to gawk at me gawking at her.
Discovering a new species makes a day special! Today, I found my first Hyacinth Glider (Miathyria marcella)!
Salad for breakfast is okay, if you’re a Common Gallinule.
The bluish wash of color on the wings indicates this is a female Spicebush Swallowtail (Papilio troilus). The male has a more greenish tint.
Hot – yes. Humid – yes. Beautiful – undeniable! Beginning the day exploring the marsh was extremely pleasant and rewarding. Do you have such an area near where you live?
Enjoy your search for a natural place and come back for a visit!
I was recently reminded of a series of books developed for children which explained various aspects of science. That was a v-e-r-y long time ago, but one in particular stuck with me. It showed the life cycle of the butterfly. The fact that a caterpillar could turn into a beautiful butterfly was utterly fascinating. Still is.
We have been blessed with an abundance of butterflies where we live and a few weeks ago had a chance to observe the life cycle of butterflies up close and in person. Gini spotted a larva of the Gulf Fritillary on its host plant, the Purple Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata). Later that morning, she forced me to photograph a pair of fritillaries mating. Later still, we found a newly emerged butterfly drying its wings beside the chrysalis it had been encased in for the past week.
The miracle of transformation.
Adult Gulf Fritillary (Agraulis vanillae) Â 2-4 Weeks
Mating
Larval Stage 2-3 Weeks
Chrysalis Stage 5-10 Days
As we all go through changes in our lives, it can be challenging to maintain a positive outlook. Especially these days, negative forces seem almost overwhelming.
Embrace change as an opportunity instead of an obstacle. Live your best life every day!
Enjoy your search for a natural place and come back for a visit!
Once upon a time (stop me if you’ve heard this one), our primary consideration in planning an excursion into the Great Outdoors was limited to researching what birds might be found at a particular location. Was fall or spring migration in progress? Could we hope for wintering birds? Perhaps new bird families would offer an opportunity to observe chicks pestering parents for food or practicing flight lessons.
As time progressed, so did we. It turns out there are more things in nature than just birds! (Do NOT tell birders this. They will not accept your premise.) My Very Best Friend, who is incredibly intelligent, has always been blessed with an open mind and has avoided the curse of tunnel vision with which I am often afflicted. I might be focused on a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher and how best to frame it within the camera’s viewfinder and my VBF will pipe up: “Oooh, what a pretty dragonfly she has caught!”
Evolution. Bird watchers are typically naturalists at heart. Those feathered creations live amongst majestic trees, gorgeous flowers and vast fields all of which also provide homes for hordes of other life forms. It is just not possible to ignore all that nature offers. So, we just try to embrace it.
This poor excuse for a “blog” has been changing somewhat to reflect our interests beyond birds. It is difficult to predict if that trend will continue or if there will be a step back into what has been a “comfort zone”. We’ll see.
Our local state park is 22 minutes from here and provides a pretty good example of how diverse nature can be. Colt Creek State Park contains over 5,000 acres (2,000 Ha) and consists of native long-leaf pine flatwoods, lakes, streams, open vistas, cypress domes and an incredible variety of life which calls it home.
Herewith, a small sampling of what a morning of observation recently produced.
Small clouds of gold hovered above the path along the lake. Wandering Gliders (Pantala flavescens) patrol the area to defend their territory.
A pair of Northern Parula tirelessly hunted for insects and delivered their bounty to hungry new mouths unseen in the nearby oak trees.
Although their nests are common around human habitation, we don’t often notice the Black and Yellow Mud Dauber (Sceliphron caementarium) in the wild. Capable of delivering a sting, they are seldom aggressive. They pack the cells of their nests with spiders, so that may be a mark in their favor for some.
Guardian of the facilities! This Squirrel Treefrog (Hyla squirella) was perched on a door hinge to the restroom. Small but colorful.
The “calico” plumage of a Little Blue Heron lets us know she’s likely less than two years old. I interrupted her preening and you can see a feather remnant in her beak.
I sometimes think film-makers use nature to inspire their on-screen alien creations. A Leaf-footed Bug (Acanthocephala femorata) would make a good movie star!
A New Species! It’s always exciting to come across something new. Gini saw a large butterfly that turned out to be just that. At first, we thought it was one of our dark-colored swallowtail varieties. But wait – no “tails”! Turns out it is a Red-spotted Purple (Limenitis arthemis astyanax) and this area is probably pretty much the southern limit of its range.
One of the few flycatcher species to breed within Florida, the Great Crested Flycatcher, has beautiful lemon-yellow, rich brown and gray plumage. Their loud, clear whistling call rings out through the forest at this time of year.
Sports model. The Blue Dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis) with his racing stripe thorax and dusty blue abdomen looks ready to dash off on a moment’s notice.
Blackberries are ripening and Wild Turkeys are quick to take advantage of the harvest!
Here are a few examples of the parks floral selection, which explains why so many pollinators love it here. Us, too!
Common Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis).
Pale Meadowbeauty (Rhexia mariana).
Leavenworth’s Tickseed (Coreopsis leavenworthii). (Don’t know the insect.)
Spurred Butterfly Pea (Centrosema virginianum).
Purple Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata).
We love birds and birding. We love the fact that birding opened our eyes to so much more to discover. Hopefully, you, too, have a love for Nature’s diversity and places to go to see it all.
Enjoy your search for a natural place and come back for a visit!
Summer is enveloping us. Walking out the front door is like entering a huge sauna. The humidity turns clothing into a heap of sopping wet rags. Camera and binocular lenses fog over and wiping incessantly doesn’t help. Five steps from the car and perspiration runs down your face and stings your eyes.
I. Love. It.
Tenoroc Fish Management Area has become our favorite local patch. With over 7,000 acres of land and diverse habitat consisting of 23 lakes, pine flatwoods, wetlands, hardwood forest and open grassland, the area is extremely attractive to a myriad of flora and fauna species. The number of sportsmen is managed closely in order to prevent over fishing, so it never seems crowded. Opening only Friday through Monday also gives the area a chance to recover from human visitors. Did I mention it takes ten minutes for us to get there?
The moisture has been wiped from our lenses for the umpteenth time and it seems that may have done the trick. Just in time. A pair of noisy Red-shouldered Hawks are yelling at us from atop an oak tree. We normally see an adult hawk at this location and these two youngsters may be from breeding earlier this year. Most of our local raptors and many wading birds nest during the winter months. A new dragon! The Little Blue Dragonlet is tiny and it’s hard to believe we’ve never encountered one before.
Breakfast AND a show! While we munched a granola bar and a Florida tangerine, a young male Eastern Bluebird spent the entire time entertaining us by trying to figure out where all those bluebirds came from on a truck parked at the boat ramp. There was one in the side-view mirror, one in the window, one on the door, one on the windshield, one on the other side-view mirror – whew! Watching the poor thing flutter at all of the reflections made us tired. He must be exhausted!
Osprey nests with chicks were everywhere. The strange calls of Limpkins rang out across the wetlands. Dragonflies flew patrols along lake shorelines. Turtles and alligators stared from their watery comfort zones. Snake! Several species of snake call this area home. Spotting one of them usually causes me to jump from the car, lie flat in the road and snap a few quick images before following the critter into the grass in the hope of a closer image. Not this one. The unique design of a wedge-shaped head with eyes on the side, thick body and skinny tail identify a Water Moccasin. Venomous. Can be unpredictable. I am not afraid of snakes, but I do have a healthy respect for them. Despite Gini urging me to get out for a better photo, I was thankful for a l-a-r-g-e lens. She loves me so much.
As is usual, time flew by and it was almost lunch time. We had seen so many very special sights this morning!
Siblings? A pair of Red-shouldered Hawks kept screeching at us until we were well out of sight.
A new dragonfly species for us, the Little Blue Dragonlet (Erythrodiplax minuscula) is really small with a total length of about an inch (25-27 mm). We were extra lucky and found female and male at the same spot.
Female
Male
Our breakfast friend, an immature male Eastern Bluebird. He tried his best to make some new friends but, alas, it was not to be.
Butterflies obtain needed minerals from mud as well as other materials which they can’t get from plant nectar. That’s why it’s common to see a multitude of them gathering around a mud puddle. Here, a Horace’s Duskywing (Erynnis horatius) tries to extract a bit of salt from the sand at a lake shore.
Dressed all in black with a dark face, the Slaty Skimmer (Libellula incesta) is the only large all black skimmer in our area.
During the months of migration, American Kestrels (Falco sparverius) fly through Florida headed for South America. A few remain all winter. Florida also has a resident population listed as the Southeastern American Kestrel (Falco sparverius paulus) which breeds from mid-March through June. These non-migratory falcons are currently listed as a threatened species due primarily to loss of habitat. It was very encouraging to see this female in summer!
Water Moccasins (Agkistrodon piscivorus) average 2-4 feet (61 to 122 cm) long when mature, have “cat-eye” pupils and a wedge-shaped head with a somewhat thinner neck. Their overall appearance is “blocky” or “thick”, with head and extreme tail appearing small in proportion to the rest of the body. Their nickname is “Cottonmouth” due to the inside of their mouth being bright white. They open their mouths wide when in a defensive posture. Their venom is quite potent and consists of hemotoxins which prevent blood from clotting. FATALITIES ARE EXTREMELY RARE. If you think you’ve been bitten by any poisonous creature, seek medical help immediately. Unfortunately, each year many harmless snakes are killed needlessly because someone didn’t take the time to learn how to identify them. If you’re going outdoors where dangerous creatures live, learn what they look like! Killing a snake (or any other animal) is seldom necessary.
Our morning ended on a very bright note. A Scarlet Skimmer (Crocothemis servilia) put in a brief appearance. We don’t care that he is not a native Floridian, having been introduced from the Caribbean several decades ago, probably through landscape plants. He’s simply beautiful!
It seems no matter where we explore nature, we always find something at which to marvel. From a small dragonfly to a magnificent hawk to – yes – even a poisonous reptile. A day spent in nature’s realm is never ordinary! You should go. Soon.
Enjoy your search for a natural place and come back for a visit!
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