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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

Stuck In Summer

We have turned back the clock to mid-July. I guess it is a testament of sorts to how busy we have been that there are several trips which have gone unreported. As we have an opportunity, we shall attempt to catch up. Weather-wise, today in the first week of September, it could just as easily be the middle of July. High temperatures, equally high humidity. Regularly scheduled thunderstorms. We recognize that the… Read More

Category: Birds, Flora, Florida, Insects, Photography Tags: american kestrel, eastern amberwing, green lynx spider, gulf fritillary, northern cardinal, roseate skimmer, snowy egret, spicebush swallowtail, swallow-tailed kite, variegated fritillary

Field, Forest, Fun

Header Image: Sandhill Cranes Thank goodness we have venues nearby where we can travel less than ten minutes and enjoy birds, blooms and bugs! If we had to plan for a long drive, we might “accidentally” oversleep. Our unscientific research reveals that sunrise and the early birds wait for no birder. One of our current favorite patches is Tenoroc Public Use Area. It is near the city of Lakeland in central-west Florida… Read More

Category: Birds, Fauna, Flora, Florida, Insects, Photography Tags: american kestrel, bald eagle, common ground dove, coyote, northern parula, ornate bella moth, palm warbler, prairie warbler, red-femured spotted orbweaver, sandhill crane, spicebush swallowtail, tenoroc public use area, tufted titmouse, wild bushbean

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

Our Favorite Day

Header Image: Red-eyed Vireo “What day is it?” asked Pooh.“It’s today,” squeaked Piglet.“My favorite day,” said Pooh.” ― A.A. Milne As we entered the month of September, thoughts turned to fall migration. Even in a region which barely alters appearance during “autumn“, we can sense all sorts of changes. We actually do have some trees which have leaves showing us a golden or reddish hue instead of forest green. Annual bird migration is… Read More

Category: Birds, Flora, Florida, Insects, Photography Tags: blue-gray gnatcatcher, brown pelican, brown thrasher, cicada, cypressvine, eastern towhee, gulf fritillary, northern cardinal, northern parula, ovenbird, red-eyed vireo, slaty skimmer, spicebush swallowtail, velvetbean caterpillar moth, zebra longwing

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Our Natural Places

Exploring - Naturally