"Wildflowers and Woodpeckers"

 

I had planned a Wildflower post for April but when I looked at the photos I've taken this week, I decided to sneak the Woodpeckers in, too!

There has been terrible flooding in other parts of Florida but we haven't had any rain in our neck of the woods.

Passion flower

But the wildflowers are putting on a show in the forest!

The Passion flower is in full bloom at the hwy 484 trailhead.

And I also saw Red-headed Woodpeckers for the first time this Spring in that part of the Greenway. (Florida Trails West)

I was thrilled to see 2 of these beauties but they were quite a distance.

So I zoomed and cropped to get a better look at them.

Their heads look like velvet, don't they?

Pretty Pawpaws in the woods. 

Florida Pawpaw

They are showy and easy to spot!

And a regal Pileated Woodpecker on a pine tree. Hubby took the amazing photos of the Pileated!

It's a great time to be out in nature with so many wildflowers in bloom. And the wildflower attract butterflies.

Gulf Fritillary on Butterfly weed

There's so much beauty in the world around us and there's never been a better time to get out in nature!

Have you seen signs of Spring where you live? Our butterflies arrived before the wildflowers bloomed. They have been flitting around for a month already!

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

and I’d Rather B Birdin’.  

  Mosaic Monday HERE and I like Thursdays HERE !  

A Hunter and it's Prey!

 

I'm not trying to make a statement with this post. I love ALL birds and ALL critters.

I'm just showing you what I saw in my backyard this week. 

Had I rather the Hawk catch a mouse or a snake? Maybe!

But we are overrun with squirrels and that's what he found to eat.

The crows were either trying to scare him off or expected him to share! lol

I snapped this photo not knowing what I would get....

but I was pleased with the results. (cropped pic below)

We all eat to live! Have pity on the Red-tailed Hawk!

He was hungry! (and the songbirds at the feeder live another day!)

I'll end with this beautiful passion flower seen at the entrance to the Florida Trails East off C R-484, one of my MOST favorite places to hike!

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

and I’d Rather B Birdin’. 

A Passion for Hiking!

 

Everyone knows I have a passion for hiking! And this week, we are seeing the Passion Flower in full bloom! It's the funniest thing. The vines don't stand out in the forest but when the big beautiful bloom opens, you can see it here there and everywhere. 

We always say that about the cactus. We don't notice how much cactus there is until you look out and see all the yellow blooms. They 'jump' out at you!

It's been perfect weather for hiking this week!

Warm but lower humidity and a nice breeze most days!

(trying to stay away from bugs and bears! lol)

We'll keep going while we are able!

And enjoy the beauty along the way.

We've seen some amazing sights this week.

And just when we think we've 'seen it all', we see something we've never seen before.

Like a hiker on the Florida trails with a guitar on his back. 

There he goes! He was headed to Deer Woods at Halpata Tastanaki Preserve. Other photos taken at the Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway, HTP, Florida Trails, 49th Ave Trail and Limerock Road. Get out and enjoy the sights! 

I'm joining Angie for Mosaic Monday HERE 

AND my Monday post HERE.

The Loggerhead Shrike and friends!

Finally we got a good look at a Loggerhead Shrike. 

We know they are out there but we don't see them up close very often.

These were taken on Hike #100 from the Pruitt Trailhead. We hiked a short distance on the HTP trail and then went over to the Florida Trails in hopes of seeing the Passion Flower again.

We thought we might see the Passion fruit but it was still flowering!

There was a beautiful Red-shouldered Hawk perched in a tree.

And we weren't sure what we were seeing here until we got home and determined it was a Juvenile Blue Grosbeak! How exciting!

More fun in the parking lot...this Bobwhite walked out from under the tree! 

I want to include a butterfly of course! How about this pretty Skipper?

And what do you think this is? Any ideas?

It reminded us of the bag worms that we've seen on evergreen bushes in years past. 

It's still hot but it has improved just a little and we are enjoying getting out more often. It's a job keeping some of these trails mowed but we sure appreciate it!!!

Have you seen anything unusual this week? 

Enjoy your weekend!

There are some AMAZING critter photos at this website, Wildlife Photography Awards HERE !

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

and I’d Rather B Birdin’. 

Appreciation and Compliments

Even though it's been a difficult summer for all of us and we've had more than our share of things to be worried about, it's also been a time to show our appreciation. There are so many people in our lives that do so much good. But this post is about the appreciation I've been shown lately.

Most of you know that I volunteer for Hospice of Marion County. I'm a patient visitor at Legacy House and have worked there for over 2 years. We have not been able to do visits this summer because of the virus but I volunteered in other ways and received this certificate in the mail a few days ago. I was surprised...to say the least!

And compliments go a long way. When our roof leaked and damaged a piece of furniture and the carpet by the wall, a young man from our insurance company came to inspect the damage. I made sure my bedroom was tidy (and made my bed as I always do) and he arrived right on time. But guess what! He had a camera and wanted to photograph EVERY room in the house. At one point, I told him I would have done a little more had I known he was going to do that. And do you know what he said? He said, This is one of the cleanest houses I've ever been inside. Just that. But you know....I took that as a compliment and wrote it down in my journal.

It's been an interesting week. I met a Wildlife Photographer on a hike on the Florida Trails and talked to him while he rode his bike really really slow and I walked as fast as I could! And then another day I hiked at Pruitt and met an artist and talked to him about the beauty of that area. (all safely social distancing!)

I also wrote to the Florida Native Plant Society to let them know I had written a post about them HERE . They've featured me on their twitter feed HERE and Facebook page HERE. How nice is that!

Showing a few of the Wildflowers I've seen this week on my hikes. 

WOW! This is more than I usually write! But I am so thankful to be appreciated AND to have so many compliments! I'm especially thankful for all of YOU! When I wrote to the Native Plant Society I told them to be sure and read the comments! Thanks for making my blog a happy place to visit!

I’m joining Thankful Thursdays and

I like Thursdays HERE too!

Surprise Flowers - Updated at the end of post!

We hiked at Blue Run a couple of weeks ago and looked down from the bridge and saw one flower.

Water Hyacinth

But it was one of the most beautiful flowers we've ever seen.

Is it a wildflower or did a seed drop among the rocks near the water and grow to be this beautiful bloom?

I used a watercolor effect for this photo....

and then made it into a 3D object.

I haven't been able to identify it yet so if you have any ideas, I can update my post later. Updated below!

And then a couple of days ago when we hiked from the Pruitt Trailhead, we saw a vine growing through the plants with these gorgeous flowers.

I did know what it was though!

Passion Flower

Just one vine but it had several blooms.

I love flowers, don't you? Oh and Mosaics!

Thanks Pamela for helping me identify this beautiful flower! It's a Water Hyacinth. Pamela gave me a link to ID info HERE and I found a good article about it HERE. 

I'm joining Angie for Mosaic Monday HERE . 

I'm linking with All Seasons at the Jesh Studio too!