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I have a new puzzle on my hands. I don’t know of any places in the neighborhood with enough coontie to support the Atala Blue butterfly (Eumaeus atala), but I’ve got one “sleeping” on my pool deck: It’s been there all morning, from 8 a.m. when I got the right profile above, to noon, when [...] [...] 
Back around Labor Day I wrote a couple of short pieces about the various egg-laying episodes I’ve seen on the hybrid passionvine in our back yard. This particular plant is a cross between our native Passiflora incarnata and a Mexican variety, thus explaining why our “3-lobed” native has 5-lobed leaves. The star of the September [...] [...] 
There hasn’t been much to post about recently, with all the wind and clouds keeping photo ops to a minimum. The heliconians (zebras and julias) are still hanging out around my passionvines, and the blues are still festooning the scorpion tail. I’m also seeing sulphurs around, as I have been all summer—no surprise with False [...] [...] 
One great thing about working from home is that it’s relatively easy to see wonderful things on your lunch break—that is, if you’ve planted the right backyard habitat. Last week I wrote about the butterfly-attracting qualities of Heliotropium angiospermum, or Scorpion’s-Tail, which is conveniently located between my pool and the backyard fence. Back then, I [...] [...] 
Was out early last Sunday mowing (with a reel mower, no motors) the lawn (all volunteer plants, not watered except by the rain) and watching the boy play in the sandbox when I noticed this striking little butterfly on our good old Florida native scorpion’s-tail (Heliotropium angiospermum, which is a wonderful little plant that I [...] [...] There aren’t a ton of animals visible in the steamy sunny heat of late June here in Boca; those few that there are, apart from the omnipresent mockingbird and his counterpart in red, the cardinal, tend to be insects. Here’s a blue dasher dragonfly that seems to favor a perch on the spicewood tree on [...] [...] A couple of weeks ago (December 2, actually), I happened to be outside and found this larva of Agraulis vanillae, the beautiful Gulf Fritillary, on our maypop (passiflora) vine. I can’t get over how those little feet work so well to keep these guys attached to whatever they’re clinging to at the moment. Seeing this [...] [...] Last month, I finally managed a decent snapshot (still not a great picture) of the Polydamas Swallowtail (Battas polydamas) butterflies that enjoy our pipevine: I still haven’t been able to get the entire animal in focus, but at least it’s better than some of my previous attempts: These guys just love our Aristolochia vine; I’ve [...] [...] You don’t have to travel far to see some amazing things. Take this morning, for instance. Marcella and I had planned carefully to be able to be at Yamato Scrub early in the morning, so we could give Eric a nice stroll, check up on the Least Grebes, and see what else might be seen [...] [...] Most of the people who know me would agree that I’m pretty much a homebody. Sure, from time to time you’ll catch me on a nature walk at Yamato Scrub, or leading a field trip for the local Audubon Society. And as a birder, I’m not immune to the temptation to drive all over creation chasing [...] [...] |
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