another tree...SNAP

we had a lot of rain this past week...

and as sometimes happens, the trees get waterlogged...top-heavy...

and they SNAP, or just keel over...roots lifting out of the ground.

this time, it snapped.

the whole top half of the tree...on the ground...

making for some good hunting grounds for anything that has a taste for bugs.

Gray Catbird

nearby, waiting his turn...

Cardinal

nearby...also waiting his turn to enter the tangle of branches, leaves & vines...

male Anole on a Bromeliad

a dragonfly also in on the action...

otis...a blur of motion on the branches...

off to my left...looking as though he just went for a swim in our 'swampy-ish pond' out back...

Pileated Woodpecker

same bird...scratching his face against the tree!!

caught him with his eyes closed!!  really weird looking!

if i turned that picture sideways...i think he'd look dead.

yep.

so while the critters are feasting...

sam's starting to cut some of it back. 

no rush. 

OK. one last picture. THIS is my lucky shot of the week...month? year?

it's that Red-bellied Woodpecker that made a nesting hole in this tree you see him on.

i didn't realize until i got the pic on the comp, that there's a dragonfly in the pic too!!

cool!

have a good week coming up.

be safe.

dragonflies and fungi. oh, and two dead bats.

last week sam & i watched this show about dragonflies  (suborder Anisoptera).

did you know that fossils of very large ancestors of the dragonfly have been found...

with a wingspan of over 29 inches!?  yikes!  i didn't.

did you know that there are about 3000 species of Anisoptera?  nope,  sure didn't.

up to several years of the insect's life is spent as a nymph living in freshwater; 

the adults may be on the wing for just a few days or weeks. 

dragonflies are an ancient group. they have been around for 300 million years!!

wOw!!!

all of this and more, interested me so much...and since i have such a fondness for bugs (and fungi!)...

i thought i'd go on the hunt for some cool dragonflies and fungi.

Four-spotted Pennant - Brachymesia gravida

earth star

Antillean Skimmer - Orthemis sp

Great Pondhawk - Erythemis vesiculosa

here's a Great Pondhawk munching away on...a butterfly? another dragonfly? something!

Seaside Dragonlet - Erythrodiplax berenice

Eastern Pondhawk - Erythemis simplicicollis

well, that's it!

oh yeah, i almost forgot...the bats!  dead bats.

sam knows me. no doubt about that. forget flowers. chocolates. just bring me some bones!!

(he found these at work. they were caught up in the big roll down warehouse door. poor bats.)

i'll be roaming around blogland this weekend...until then,

thanks for stopping by & reading, or just looking at the pictures!

be cool.  be safe.

laura

love...is in the air - - - spring has sprung.

just the other day,

i opened the front door...stepped onto the porch, camera in hand...

i spotted this anole proudly displaying his dewlap.

aaaaah. love. he spotted a female.

they ran towards each other...

for an afternoon quickie. very quick.

today is the (official) first day of spring. (here in the U.S. anyway)

it may not FEEL like spring in some places...

but here, in north florida, the temp has reached into the low 80's.

some flowers are blooming...and a few butterflies are out and about!

spring has sprung.

a bromeliad bloom

spicebush swallowtail on azalea bush

mini daffodils blooming

a red-spotted purple

a cinnamon fern getting ready to unfurl

dragonfly

flatwoods plum

that's it for now.  catch ya' later.

"Science has never drummed up quite as effective a tranquilizing agent as a sunny spring day." 

~W. Earl Hall

life's a journey. enjoy the ride.

laura

(hmmm. for some reason when i hit 'publish', this post didn't show in feed.
so i reverted it to draft.  will try to publish again. if it still doesn't make it
into the feed...hopefully it will be found...and not lost in space!)  :)

time to peek in...

i'm back.

where have i been?

nowhere in  particular. right here.

living life.

reading books. a lot!

taking pictures. a lot!

enjoying...

a purple passion flower

i've thought about entering blog-land...many times.

but for some reason i just couldn't get motivated to do so.

this morning

emo found a snake in the garden...right by the front steps.

fortunately he (emo) was smart enough to leave it alone!

i did pick him (emo) up and bring him indoors...just to play it safe...

while the  VENOMOUS Moccasin  moves on!

pretty, eh?

(pretty scary too!)

a snake.  

it's the year of the snake.

and i was born in a snake year too.

so i thought it an omen!??

today seemed like a good day to poke my head in and say 'hi'.

i want to ease my way in.

one of the reasons i took a blog hiatus, was i started to feel overwhelmed.

now i plan to take it slower.

less often posting...and not trying to read every post of every blog i follow!

so

come on in

and enjoy a few pictures.

tiny tree snail, out back at the edge of the woods.

a Fence lizard

the next two pictures are of STINK BUGS!

stink bug nymphs

Green stink bug

one morning in may...about 7am, i looked out the back door...

and here's what i saw!!  a Barred Owl perched on the bird feeder...looking right at me!!

a Barred Owl

this is one of my favorite dragonfly shots i've taken lately (in june)!

perched on a cactus

a Zebra Longwing - the state butterfly for florida...feeding on lantana

about dem bOnes.

of course i'm still into bones.

finding them. cleaning them. turning them into...art?  jewelry? it all depends...

a hog skull my son travis found for me! =)

another great find!

i'm pretty sure these are Opossum feet!!

ok

the end is near.

ONE more thing to mention.

emo!

he sure has grown!!

and what a personality!

he is a butterfly, dragonfly, mole & mouse chaser.

he is an expert climber,

drinks out of the sink faucet,

and still sucks on our fingers at night.

here he is...deep n thought.

and here he is...passed out in sam's lap.

“No need to hurry. No need to sparkle. No need to be anybody but oneself.”

~ Virginia Woolf, A Room of One's Own, and Three Guineas

stay cool.  be safe.

laura