Insects | Our Natural Places

Falling Toward Winter

(Click to enlarge images, click again to zoom.) Winter solstice begins in two days. That may not mean too much, temperature-wise, to us here in central Florida, but in many areas...

Category: Birds, Fauna, Flora, Florida, Insects, Photography Tags: american beautyberry, carolina satyr, chapman's blazing star, colt creek state park, eastern bluebird, eastern phoebe, four-petal st. john's-wort, goldenrod, gray wall jumper, gulf fritillary, house wren, narrowleaf sunflower, northern cardinal, prairie warbler, swamp sparrow, tropical checkered-skipper, white ibis, whitetailed deer, wood stork

Our Patch Overfloweth

Streaks of light from the sun rising above the cypress trees lit up the opposite shore of the lake where a Great Blue Heron and Great Egret were wading in search...

Category: Birds, Flora, Florida, Insects, Photography Tags: barred yellow, blue dasher, blue-gray gnatcatcher, clay-colored sparrow, common yellowthroat, eastern phoebe, loggerhead shrike, pine warbler, red-shouldered hawk, salt marsh moth larva, snail, tropical checkered-skipper, yellow-throated warbler

Ridge Redux: Bugs

Our excursion to Lake Wales Ridge State Forest had been typical of past visits. We encountered old friends and were treated to surprises which nature has a way of placing in...

Category: Florida, Insects, Photography Tags: ant lion, band-winged dragonlet, ceraunus blue, citrine forktail, delaware skipper, eastern amberwing, gray hairstreak, lake wales ridge, little blue dragonlet, pine savannah, queen

Nature’s Very Busy Most Excellent Day

(Click images to enlarge, click again to zoom.) The Sun. The Moon. Sky, earth, water. Life. Death. Nature has it all. Spending time away from human-influenced distractions allows us to realize...

Category: Birds, Florida, Insects, Photography Tags: abbot's bagworm moth, acadian flycatcher, american crow, blue-gray gnatcatcher, carpenter-mimic leafcutter bee, cooper's hawk, eastern pondhawk, four-spotted pennant, gulf frittilary, hyacinth glider, red-shouldered hawk, royal river cruiser, snail, southern skipperling, two-striped forceptail

The Collecting Jar

(Reminder: Click to enlarge, click again to zoom on images.) During the first week of September, Gini and I spent a morning roaming around the Richloam Wildlife Management Area (WMA). The...

Category: Flora, Florida, Insects, Photography Tags: blue dasher, blue waterhyssop, common eastern bumble bee, crane fly, dorantes longtail, eastern amberwing, great black digger wasp, mole cricket hunter wasp, needham's skimmer, pearl crescent, pinebarren goldenrod, red-femured spotted orbweaver, richloam wma, skyflower, yaupon holly

Our Natural Places

Exploring - Naturally