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Nature Has No Calendar

(Click on images to enlarge, click again to zoom.) The posted speed limit on this particular road is 60 mph. Traveling at that speed is hazardous to one’s safety. Especially at this hour, just before sunrise. The road is 35 miles in length and connects two major U.S. highways, one of which is a short distance from Interstate 75, a main north-south route through the peninsula. Commercial trucks and commuters use this… Read More

Category: Birds, Flora, Florida, Insects, Photography Tags: american lady, bluejacket, brown-headed nuthatch, carolina wren, common yellowthroat, coral honeysuckle, coralbean, delaware skipper, florida bellflower, green swamp, large four-spotted scoliid wasp, northern cardinal, northern parula, palamedes swallowtail, pale meadowbeauty, pearl crescent, showy milkwort, southern beeblossom, spicebush swallowtail, swamp rose, white ibis

Spring Resurrected (2)

(Click on images to enlarge, click again to zoom.) The bottom of that shoebox we found for the previous post held a few more pictures, so we thought we would share. Looking in our rear view mirror back to the second week of March, we found ourselves surrounded by Spring. The Green Swamp was decked out in multiple shades of green thanks to the diverse species of trees and plants found here…. Read More

Category: Birds, Flora, Florida, Insects, Photography Tags: blue-eyed grass, blueflower butterwort, carolina wren, green swamp, leavenworth's tickseed, sawtooth blackberry, shiny blueberry., starrush whitetop, western honeybee, yellow milkwort, zephyrlily

Fresh From Florida!

Heat. Humidity. Hurricanes. Mosquitoes. Traffic. Plus – the most incredibly diverse natural environment you could possibly imagine. Welcome to our home. Gini and I were both born in the Sunshine State. Our childhoods were remarkably similar. Fond memories of trips to the beach, going fishing, picking fresh tomatoes for canning (in Gini’s case, for eating as many as possible before her Mom scolded her), earning respect of our elders, learning the value… Read More

Category: Birds, Flora, Florida, Insects, Photography Tags: balsampear, barred yellow, carolina wren, cassius blue, eastern amberwing, gulf fritillary, little blue heron, little yellow, rambur's forktail, red-shouldered hawk, slaty skimmer, southern carpenter bee, spicebush swallowtail, variegated fritillary, water moccasin, western honeybee

The Ridge (4)

Header Image: Carolina Wren (Weather Note: Hurricane Idalia passed a couple of hundred miles west of us this past Tuesday and Wednesday. We experienced periodic intense rainfall and gusty winds up to about 50 mph. We are safe and had no problems. Please keep all those along the storm’s path who suffered damage and the many who are still without electric power today in your thoughts.) Our morning in the Lake Wales… Read More

Category: Birds, Fauna, Flora, Florida, Photography Tags: arbuckle tract, camphorweed, carolina wren, florida yellow flax, green anole, lake wales ridge state forest, manyflower beardtongue, stinging nettle

Balancing Act

Header Image: Spotted Beebalm (Monarda punctata) Early morning sunshine illuminated the forest’s shadowy places and dried the dampness left by last night’s dew. Insects roused from their torpor to start their daily routine of survival. Just above the bugs on the food chain, hungry birds also began their daily routine of survival. Slightly next in line on that food chain thing, a couple of humans raised binoculars in unison to watch the… Read More

Category: Birds, Fauna, Flora, Florida, Insects, Photography Tags: band-winged dragonlet, barred yellow, camphorweed, carolina wren, eastern amberwing, eastern bluebird, eastern pondhawk, giant swallowtail, gophter tortoise, great pondhawk, ovenbird, roseate skimmer, royal river cruiser, showy rattlebox, snowy egret, southern green-striped grasshopper, spicebush swallowtail, spotted beebalm, tenoroc fish management area, wild hogs

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Our Natural Places

Exploring - Naturally