Thursday, November 9, 2023

Halpata Tastanaki Preserve "What's new?"

 
I had another post planned with some neat sightings from this past week's hiking but then I drove over to HTP and hiked from the Pruitt trailhead. 


Eastern Phoebe

And I wanted to dedicate a post to this one hike. 


A new 'bright blue' sign! WOW!

I still won't have space to share it all but I'll share some highlights.


Gulf Frittilary 

And now are you ready for this?


Queen Butterfly


It had some of the darkest and richest colors I've ever seen!


Some views of the underside of the wings!


It stayed in the same area...thank you very much!


The weather is still mild here and there are lots of wildflowers and butterflies! 


And now for an update on the honey bees swarming in a tree along the trail.


They usually send their scouts out to find a hollow tree or good place to build a hive.


But these are starting to build a hive right where they are so that was a surprise! There's an abundance of wildflowers in this area but it still seems like an odd place for a hive.

So a hike that lasted less than 2 hours produced a lot of neat sightings and a LOT of photos!


When you hike, you always have something interesting to talk about.

Have you seen some amazing sights this week too?

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

  and Mosaic Monday HERE !  

37 comments:

Tom said...

...Diane, your butterfly images are delight, Thanks for sharing them.

roentare said...

Eastern phoebe and the butterfly look so gracious and elegant.

QUILTING IS BLISSFUL, DI said...

WOW--that bee hive is something else--!!!
and I love the photos of the Queen's butterfly-great catch--
thanks for sharing all your photos--
hugs, di

Pamela M. Steiner said...

Wow! That Queen Butterfly is so beautiful! At first I thought it was a Monarch, but after looking them both up, I can see the differences. I posted pictures of a Monarch today too. They are so lovely! Loved all your pictures, and those BEES!! WOW! Watch out!! Great post today.

happyone said...

Amazing photos especially the bees.

Terri D said...

Beautiful photos (again!) and the butterflies are amazing. Thanks for always taking us along!

BeachGypsy said...

Looks like a great hike, Diane! Love the pictures, what pretty butterflies! They are still fluttering about here too, lots of them. Our hummingbirds finally flew out on their long journey, I will sure miss them.

Ann said...

Those butterflies are beautiful. The hive is absolutely fascinating.

gluten Free A_Z Blog said...

The photo of the swarming bees is fascinating and I love all your butterfly photos. You managed some beautiful closeups! I have been seeing a lot of butterflies on my walks recently and yesterday I even decided to write a poem about them!

Jeanie said...

I can see why you picked one hike to dedicate the post to -- it definitely was a good one. I love the butterflies. I don't see many of those up here and certainly not now that it has turned cold!

Breathtaking said...

Hello Diane:=)
How wonderful that you are still seeing butterflies and you took the most beautiful photos of them.Thank you!

Wally Jones said...

Another productive hike!

Who says Florida doesn't have Fall colors? You have proved we do. Nice series of the Queen.

And all I can say about those Honey Bees is: "Sweet!"

Enjoy your weekend.

Salty Pumpkin Studio said...

Gorgeous butterflies. A 2 hour hike sounds wonderful.
Florida sounds wonderful!

Lowcarb team member said...

A lovely hike, your butterfly photographs are so beautiful.

Have a wonderful weekend.

All the best Jan

eileeninmd said...

Hello,
What a wonderful hike, love the butterflies and the Eastern Phoebe. The Queen Butterfly is lovely. Neat sighting of the bee hive, it looks huge. Beautiful photos! Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Take care, have a great weekend. PS, thank you for leaving me a comment.

Inger said...

Your photos are beautiful and watching the bees as they decide where to build a new hive must be so interesting. Thanks for sharing.

Lea said...

Wow! What a beautiful butterfly!
I enjoyed seeing your other photos, too.
Have a wonderful weekend!

Aunt Helen said...

A wonderful hike with pretty sights! I have never seen such vivid colors for the butterflies you posted. So beautiful!! Thank you. Love, Aunt Helen

RedPat said...

The butterfly shots are fabulous. Such interesting markings on them.

Aritha V. said...

You make me glad with your "critters". So nice.

carol l mckenna said...

Wow! Amazing butterflies and that beehive is awesome too ~ Great series of photos ~ thanks,


Wishing you good health, laughter and love in your days ~
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)

Shiju Sugunan said...

The Eastern Phoebe is a beautiful bird. I am impressed by the Gulf Frittilary and Queen Butterfly. Great shots!

Adam Jones said...

Fantastic shots of the butterflies. They have such vibrant colours. Not sure I'd like to be so close to that many bees though.

Villrose said...

The Queen Butterfly was breathtaking!

Bob Bushell said...

The Eastern Phoebe is fantastic bird, and your butterflies are wonderful.

Bill said...

The butterflies are beautiful to see. I'd be a bit nervous seeing all those bees together. I like your new header, it's a beauty.

Barbara said...

The rich colors on the butterfly wings are wonderful -- so PERFECT for this time of year!!

My hikes tend to be a 1.3 miles trek in my community after we complete the morning bike ride. What tends to stick out in my mind the most on my walks is how people have added decorations for the current seasons or holidays. Just call me more of a city girl!

So thanks for all the 'back to nature' pictures you share with us!

Cloudia said...

I can't even tell you how wonderful it was to dwell in your post! Thank you dear friend Aloha

Tanza Erlambang said...

lovely butterflies.... beautiful

magiceye said...

Beautiful captures of lovely critters!

Rostrose said...

Dear Diane, I can understand why you wanted to share these beautiful experiences with us! The butterfly is truly an incredibly pretty sight - fascinating, the coloring and the pattern. The Eastern Phoebe is also an adorable sight. I hope it doesn't turn out to be a mistake that the bees build a hive right where they are...
Have a nice week and all the best,
hugs Traude
🍂🍃🍁🍃 🍂
https://rostrose.blogspot.com/2023/11/ausflug-auf-den-harzberg-im-august-ein.htm

Linda said...

What pretty butterflies!

Rain said...

Diane, your photos of the butterflies are gorgeous! ♥

Debbie said...

the butterflies are so magical, you are so lucky to be seeing them this time of year. and pretty wildflowers, i still have a few in my garden, believe it or not, mostly marigolds!!

a 2 hour hike sure did produce a lot of pictures!!

Teresa said...

Otro precioso paseo, con interesantes avistamientos. Me gustó todo, especialmente la colmena. Un abrazo.

Rainbow Evening said...

the sign looks interesting...
Thank you for sharing beautiful photos...

Yogi♪♪♪ said...

I have a soft spot for the fritillaries. They flutter about but sometimes they will sit long enough for a photography. Plus there is such variety.

Thank you for your post. I loved it.