Susan and I returned to Goethe State Forest yesterday, once it armed up around 1pm. We wanted to walk more of the road looking for insects. As a result I saw more Zebra and Pipevine Swallowtails in a day than in my entire life. The day started with a Carolina Mantis egg case where weContinue reading “Butterflies and thistle”
Tag Archives: Butterflies
Goethe National Forest, Florida
We spent the morning yesterday with Tom, Kathi and Sue looking for birds and butterflies in Goethe National Forest near Dunnellon, Florida. Tom and Kathi, Susan and Sue. Sue is one of the few people that I have known longer than Susan. Tom and Kathi have been my friends for some 40 years. Wow, timeContinue reading “Goethe National Forest, Florida”
Alexander Springs, Florida
Susan and I are always looking for interesting places to stop and walk looking for birds, plants and insects as we head from one spot to another. Yesterday to stopped at Alexander Springs on our way to see Tom and Kathi in Dunnellon, Florida. Variable dancer (left) and Cyprus clubtail (right) to nice Odonata. BarredContinue reading “Alexander Springs, Florida”
Farles Prairie Recreation Area, Ocala State Forest
We spent a day on a trail looking at insects and birds. While the birds were great, the insects were even better. Bird grasshopper. Blue corporal (dragonfly) – female on the left, male on the right. Confusing duskywing on the left, Juvenal’s duskywing on the right. Florida harvester ants. They’re going to have to cutContinue reading “Farles Prairie Recreation Area, Ocala State Forest”
Merritt Island, Florida – 2026
Yesterday we spent the day with our friend Don visiting Merritt Island. Black Point Wildlife Drive never is a let down for birds and even insects. All of the expects wading birds were present. There were a lot of Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, Little Blue Herons and Tricolored Herons. There were tons of White Ibises.Continue reading “Merritt Island, Florida – 2026”
Monarch migration
Sometimes strange, but interesting things show up in my feeds that I follow on the Internet. Recently one appeared that covered new technologies and monarch migration from the US to both Mexico and Florida. Project Monarch has fitted a lot of monarchs with transmitters, which in itself is an amazing feat. The map above showsContinue reading “Monarch migration”
Ubatuba, Brazil: Day-1
We flew to São Paulo from the Pantanal then the next day drove to Ubatuba on the Atlantic Coast. How could things get better? We’ll to start with as we were going through town we spotted a family of at least three Burrowing Owls. While food in the Pantanal was OK, meals here were spectacular.Continue reading “Ubatuba, Brazil: Day-1”
Traveling in the south – Sugar Mill Gardens
Live oak covered with Spanish moss (not a real moss but a member of the genus Tillandsia, which makes it a flowering plant. There is also ball moss (another Tillandsia), resurrection fern and some Florida butterfly orchids as well as lichens. This tree is a true ecosystem onto itself. Here is a mix of ballContinue reading “Traveling in the south – Sugar Mill Gardens”
Searching for a rare bird in Michigan
The other day started out with a beautiful full Moon. Soon Susan and I were heading out to look for a bird that is a rare nesting species in Michigan. We were headed to Sharon Mills. There are nice trails that pass through grasslands and skirt the woods. Milkweeds had monarch caterpillars and milkweed tussockContinue reading “Searching for a rare bird in Michigan”
Butterflies and dinner
Currently there is very little diversity in butterflies at Whitefish Point. But there are still some interesting ones. I’m not a big fan of European skippers, they usually show up in the hundreds or even the thousands. However, seeing just one is OK, even though they are a non-native invasive. Over the past few daysContinue reading “Butterflies and dinner”
Michael's Place 