Tuesday, January 31, 2017

Back by popular demand: More Birds!

Yesterday, with Gail and Mike Perkins from North Farm, we visited the Ritch Grissom Wetlands, a wildlife sanctuary. Later we toured the nearby Brevard Zoo.

Great blue heron - they always make great photos.
Anhinga drying its wings
Purple gallinule - they swim, wade and delicately walk on lilly pads.


Diane and Gail feeding the lorikeets at the Brevard Zoo.

Saturday, January 28, 2017

Mangroves, birds, spiders, butterflies and a racoon

This morning we went on an extended hike through Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge. Our first wildlife refuge was established in 1903 through an executive order by Teddy Roosevelt, protecting shore birds from the plumage industry.


A bandit watching us from the mangroves
 
A Great blue Heron, an Egret, and a Little blue heron perched in the mangroves


An immature Yellow-crowned night heron hiding. 















A Great blue heron, 2 Yellow-crowned night herons and a Little blue heron.



 
Florida orb weaver



































Spinybacked orb weaver
Black mangrove with aerial roots (pneumataphores)

The seeds of many mangrove species germinate while still attached to the parent (viviparous) and begin growing a root structure. After detaching the seeds float about randomly and when the root touches the bottom they grow into the substrate.



The Common buckeye butterfly
 And of course, the pelicans:

American white pelican
Brown pelican

















Sebastian Inlet

We arrived at Sebastian Inlet State Park on Wednesday, Jan. 25, only about 2 hours east of Highlands Hammock. Our campground is on the banks of the inlet which is a popular fishing area, both from boats and shore.
 
Our Casita camped out in a site on the inlet
 We have been to the beach a couple of times which is also very popular for surf fishing. 

The extensive beach on the Atlantic side of the island

Although hard to see in this photo, the fishing people have elaborate "fishing wagons" with multiple poles, tackle, gear, bait, coolers etc. that can travel across the sand or onto the fishing piers
Surf casting
A cheeky Rudy turnstone a little too close

We spent the day with Trudy and Bob Wahrenburg (from North Farm and Sebastian FL). We toured Sebastian and visited the Mel Fisher treasure museum. In 1713 and 1733 two deadly hurricanes sunk Spanish treasure fleets returning to Spain near Sebastian. Although some of the gold and silver was salvaged, a lot remained on the bottom of the sea. Mel Fisher was a diver turned treasure hunter, who devoted his life to finding lost treasures.
Gold native relic recovered from the Atosha


We will NOT be posting any erotica on this blog!





And sunset at Sebastian Inlet.

Great blue heron
Sunset at our campsite

Monday, January 23, 2017

Cypress Swamp Trail

After an overnight thunderstorm, this morning we went on a guided tour of a Cypress Swamp with a very knowledgeable volunteer naturalist. It has been a very dry winter in southern Florida, but after last night's rain (and a tornado watch) this ecosystem sprang into life.

The swamp and Cypress knees.



Although Cypress is a conifer it is also deciduous and grows very tall and straight.


Resurrection ferns can look quite dead during a dry spell, but after a rain they quickly rejuvenate, hence their name.

Resurrection Fern growing on a dead branch.



A large bromeliad on a Live Oak branch.

 Resurrection Fern on an old Live Oak trunk.























This area is home to a large variety of aerophytes.

A bromeiad just ready to bloom.

Lichens on a dead branch


A large flock of Ibises, a gregarious bird, were continuously flying about the swamp and probing with their sensitive curved beaks in the fresh mud.

A solitary great egret in the midst of probing Ibises

Four Ibises checking me out watching them.

And lastly, a Red-shouldered Hawk perched in a Live Oak branch.

Sunday, January 22, 2017

Highlands Hammock - near Sebring


Hammock is a term for a stand of trees that in south central Florida is composed principally of live oak and cabbage palm, that form an ecological island in a contrasting ecosystem. Hammocks grow on elevated areas, often less than a foot higher than surrounding wetlands. 




 

















 

Looking up through a cabbage palm


 We arrived Thursday after a short ride from the Gulf coast. The state park is OK, but the road/bike loop, walks and (to a lesser extent) the exercise stops are fantastic. The bike trail is so shaded that it is cool even in the heat of the day, which was only about 80 degrees yesterday. Why George put in the picture of me standing on my toes, I don't know. It is really an "action shot" of me doing jumping jacks....


Diane riding on the Hammock loop  road

 












A fitness station
on the loop road
and jumping jacks!



After all that exercise, Diane  took a little nap in the afternoon observed by these two turkey vultures-(I was really reading The Undoing Project  by Michael Lewis):


"Do you think there's any movement down there?"


Thursday, January 19, 2017

Kayak Tour & Nokomis Beach

Kayak Tour
Our volunteer from Oscar Scherer State Park, Steve, took us on a wonderful kayak tour into the intercoastal waterway and South Creek which is here in the park. We saw lush vegetation, jumping fish, birds, oyster beds and lots of other kayakers! Steve said, they have a Haunted Spooky Walk on the trails at Halloween...I can see how the trees and hanging moss would be scary enough!

South Creek in Oscar Scherer State Park
 Intercoastal Waterway to the Gulf

Intercoastal waterway with a young White Mangrove in foreground

Sailboat passing the swing bridge at Nokomis
































Lunch at Nokomis Fish House


Lunch was at the Fish House, but I think Blount's Clam Shack in Warren is still better!
We had a wonderful dinner with Donna and Norm Truscott of North Farm Bristol RI and Venice FL. They suggested we go to the Drum Circle at the beach at sunset. It brought back memories of our "hippie days".
Drum circle at Nokomis Beach

Sunset at Nokomis Beach