June 30, 2019

Location: St. Augustine, St. Augustine Alligator Park

I'm an immature Little Blue Heron
My photo is too easy to shoot
Dee takes annual pictures of me
Because I am so stinkin' cute.

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 29, 2019

Location: Sebastian, Riverwalk

I'm known as a Yellow-crowned Night Heron
But I don't let the time of day be my guide
I can be active at any time of night or day,
I'm known to forage based on the tide.

Sources: Cornell Lab - All About Birds: Yellow-crowned Night Heron

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 28, 2019

Location: Vero Beach, private residence

This is a Passion Vine flower
This beautiful plant hosts many things -
Including a bunch of butterflies
Such as Gulf Fritillary and Zebra Longwing.

Sources: Florida Native Plant Society - Passiflora incarnata

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 27, 2019

Location: Vero Beach, private residence

I am an adult Zebra Longwing butterfly
Zoom in to see my proboscis is curled up tight
When I find some nectar, I'm gonna let loose
And let my probosscisy freak flag fly.

Sources: UF | IFAS Featured Creatures Zebr Longwing butterfly 

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 26, 2019

Location: Vero Beach, private residence

I am an immature Zebra Longwing
Notice the black stuff between my sibling and me
That is the skin that we shed between our instars
Each instar lasts for about 2 weeks.

Sources: The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University - Butterfly Life Cycle

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 25, 2019

Location: Vero Beach, private residence

I am a mature Zebra Longwing larvae
That's my younger sibling, shown here on the left
Although he is smaller and cuter than me,
I am much better dressed!

(Note: The bestie mentioned in my blog a few days ago brought it to my attention that if you click on the May 13th blog picture to enlarge it, you can see that the lady bug is eating light green aphids. How cool is that?! And I never even noticed!)

Sources: UF | IFAS Featured Creatures - Zebra Longwing (Heliconius charitonia)

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 24, 2019

Location: Vero Beach, private residence

This is known as Hercules Club,
Also known as the "Toothache Tree".
The oil in the tiny dots, when chewed
Numb the mouth and taste citrusy.

Sources: Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - Zanthoxylum clava-herculis

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 23, 2019

Location: Vero Beach, private residence

This is known as Jamaica Caper
Its flower looks like fireworks.
It's awesome to have a bestie that's a naturalist,
Her yard is just one of the perks!

Sources: University of Florida Landscape Plants - Capparis cynophallophora, Jamaica Caper

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 22, 2019

Location: Vero Beach, private residence

This is the fruit of the Hercules Club
Birds and other wildlife find it quite tasty
The leaves are host for the Giant Swallowtail
But if you touch it, watch for thorns, don't be hasty.

Sources: Florida Native Plant Society - Hercules club (Zanthoxylum clava-herculis)

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 21, 2019

Location: Vero Beach, private residence

This is knows as the Hercules Club
Notice the spikes growing on the trunk
When in the woods be sure to watch out,
It's not something you want to bump!

Sources: Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - Zanthoxylum clava-herculis

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 20, 2019

Location: Vero Beach, Lagoon Greenway

Sometimes while walking though the forest,
You smell an awful, truly awful, stench.
It's the mangroves decaying, which is a good thing,
But it smells like hell, if you'll pardon my french.

Sources: Marine Education Society of Austrailasia - Mangroves of Australia

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 19, 2019

Location: Vero Beach, Lagoon Greenway

These are known as Red Mangrove roots
They look like a tangled web
But they are vitally important to river life
Cause they keep fish and birds sheltered and fed.

Sources: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations - Mangrove Management

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 18, 2019

Location: Vero Beach, Lagoon Greenway

I'm a Common Buckeye
I'm common in the United States
Adults in the south migrate north in the spring
To colonize and look for mates.

Sources: Butterflies and Moths of North America - Common Buckeye (Junonia coenia)

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 17, 2019

Location: Vero Beach, Lagoon Greenway

I'm known as a Marsh Rabbit
Shown here chewing on a blade of grass
Don't confuse me with a Cottontail,
He's got bigger ears and a fluffy, white ass.

Sources: Virginia Department of Game & Inland Fisheries - Marsh Rabbit (Sylvilagus palustris)

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 16, 2019

Location: Sebastian, Fran B. Adams Park

I am a Magnolia Green Jumping Spider
I am a pretty translucent green
I like to hang out in Magnolias and Oaks
The leaves make it difficult for me to be seen.

Sources: UF | IFAS Blogs - Jumping Spiders?

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 15, 2019

Location: Sugarloaf Key

I am a Histrio histrio
Commonly known as a Sargassumfish
This Green Heron is kind of a jerk
He said we were just gonna kiss.

Thanks to Special Guest photographer, David Simpson 

Thanks also to Heather Stapleton for the ID confirmation on the fish.

Sources: Florida Museum - Histrio histrio

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 14, 2019

Location: Fellsmere, T.M. Goodwin WMA

I am a Great Southern White butterfly
I have thin black stripe but I'm mostly white
When perched delicately on a flower
I look like a blushing bride!

Sources: Butterflies and Moths of North America - Great Southern White Butterfly

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 13, 2019

Location: Fellsmere, T.M. Goodwi WFMA

I am a male Eastern Amberwing
I am more yellow than my mate
I hover with my abdomen stuck in the air
When I'm trying to get a date.

Sources: Odonata Central - Eastern Amberwing

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 12, 2019

Location: Fellsmere, T.M. Goodwin WMA

I am a female Eastern Amberwing
I am small and can be mistaken for a wasp.
I perch on the ends of grasses and weeds
And pump my abdomen down and up.

Sources: Odonata Central - Eastern Amberwing

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 11, 2019

Location: Fellsmere, T.M. Goodwin WMA

I am known as a Ghost Spider
In the Anyphaenidae family
I sometimes hang out inside houses
But I really prefer shrubbery and trees.

Sources: Common Spiders of North America, Richard A. Bradley. University of California Press, 2013. 

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 10, 2019

Location: Key West

I am a Würdemann’s Heron
You might just think I'm a regular Great Blue
There is an all white Great Blue Heron subspecies,
And I'm somewhere between the two.

Thanks to today's special guest photographer, David Simpson

Sources: Cornell Lab All About Birds - Great Blue Heron

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 9, 2019

Location: Sebastian, Main Street Boat Ramp

I am a Mangrove Tree Crab
I usually eat mangroves but prefer to eat meat
I'm more likely to be predated in water though,
So I stay safe in the Mangrove canopy.

Sources: iNaturalist - Mangrove Tree Crab

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 8, 2019

Location: Sebastian, Fran B. Adams Park

I'm known as a Brown Thrasher
I've got reddish-brown wings and bright yellow eyes.
I forage for insects and berries on the ground
And I'm just about Mockingbird sized.

Sources: Audubon Guide to North American Birds - Brown Thrasher

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 7, 2019

Location: Fellsmere, Rails to Trails

I am Erynnis horatius
Horace's Duskywing, to my friends
When I'm a caterpillar I like to eat oak leaves
As an adult I like Goldenrod and Boneset.

Sources: Butterflies and Moths of North America - Horace's Duskywing

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 6, 2019

Location: Fellsmere, Broadway

This is known as a Sweat Bee
Augochloropsis metallica, possibly
It's hard to get close, I didn't want to get stung,
And there are over 40 species in the Halictidae family

Sources: UF|IFAS Featured Creatures Sweat Bees

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 5, 2019

Location: Fellsmere, Broadway

This is Yellow Alder
It's bright and the color of butter
It is non-native but is frequently used
As a foundation border or a ground cover.

Sources: University of Florida IFAS Extension - Turnera ulmifolia Yellow Alder

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 4, 2019

Location: Fellsmere, Rails to Trails

This is Lycoperdon marginatum
Commonly known as a Peeling Puffball
As with any wild mushroom, do not try to eat it
Mushroom ID can be a tough call.

Important Note: Although this appears to be a Peeling Puffball, you cannot ID mushrooms from a photo. Positive ID requires spore prints and other methods. Many mushrooms look similar, and it is not advisable to EVER eat a wild mushroom with out the guidance of an expert. Note that many mushrooms in Florida look identical to mushrooms from other places, but can be edible elsewhere and highly poisonous here (and vice-versa.)

Sources: MushroomExpert.com - Lycoperdon marginatum
North American Mycological Association

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 3, 2019

Location: Fellsmere, Rails to Trails

I am an Eastern Leaffooted Bug
Leptoglossus phyllopus, is my scientific name
I'm a minor pest to many crops
Throughout the southern United States.

Sources: UF|IFAS Featured Creatures Leaffooted Bug


Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 2, 2019

Location: Fellmere, Rails to Trails

I am a Legless or Glass Lizard
You might mistake me for a snake.
But I have eyelids and external ears
And a tail that easily breaks.

Sources: UF Wildlife Johnson Lab - Florida's Legless Lizards

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson

June 1, 2019

Location: Sebastian, Rails to Trails

This is a Spotless Lady Beetle
You can find them in the Americas, south of Vancouver.
They are born like this, with no spots on their wings,
It's not the result of spot remover.

Sources: iNaturalist - Spotless Lady Beetle Cycloneda sanguinea

Photo and text © 2018 Dee Fairbanks Simpson