Dee At 8 A.M.: 2026

Thursday, July 23, 2026

July 23, 2026

We are in the summer doldrums in Florida right now. Let's resume our (paused but not forgotten) Ecuador trip!

I am a male White-Whiskered Hermit

I am known to feed by trap-lining

This means that have a series of flowers I visit

At regular intervals for my nectar fine dining.

Location: Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Ecuador

Sources: https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/whwher1/cur/introduction#repro

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30585437/

If you are reading and enjoying this blog, please consider supporting me on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/deeat8am, or purchase my current book, The Rhyming Guide to Florida Spiders (details at https://deeateightam.blogspot.com/p/rhyming-guide-to-florida-spiders-now.html). Thank you for being a reader and friend of Dee at 8 A.M.

Wednesday, July 22, 2026

July 22, 2026

I am a Lesser Meadow Katydid

As the name suggests, I live in meadows and fields

I like to eat insects, flowers, and seeds

Whatever the meadow shall yield.

Location: Fellsmere Rd, Sebastian

Sources: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/118890-Conocephalus

Tuesday, July 21, 2026

July 21, 2026

I am a juvenile Gopher Tortoise

I'm about the size of the toes on Dee's boot

Despite the odds, I've lived past the hatchling stage

Now I'll spend 60 years keeping house and in mating pursuit.

Location: St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park

Sources: https://savethetortoises.org/blogs/tortoise-tracks-conservation-journeys/from-hatchling-to-adult-the-life-stages-of-gopher-tortoises

Monday, July 20, 2026

July 20, 2026

I am a Florida Garden Spider

I'm like the Yellow Garden Spider except -

My butt looks like a crown

It has gold and it's round

But at building webs, we are both quite adept.

Location: Seabranch Preserve State Park, Stuart

Sources: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/127353-Argiope-florida

Sunday, July 19, 2026

July 19, 2026

Today's post is in memory of long time friend Mary, who loved Capybaras and will be missed.

We are known as Capybara

We are the largest rodents in the world

We have webbed feet

And eat grasses and leaves

And are so adorable, it's just absurd!

Location: Brevard Zoo, captive

Sources: https://www.ran.org/wildlife-factsheet/wildlife-fact-sheet-capybara/

Saturday, July 18, 2026

July 18, 2026

This is our last day in Japan (at least until Joy stumbles across other cool stuff around her new home. Special thanks again to guest photographer Joy Handley for sharing the wonders of the nature in her new home with us.

We are known as Eurasian Coots

We have have solid white shields and beaks

American Coot beaks have a grey ring on the end

And their shields are dark read at the peak.

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Sources: https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/eurcoo/cur/identification

Friday, July 17, 2026

July 17, 2026

Welcome to Japan Week on Dee at 8 a.m. Today we continue to feature the photography of my favorite expat, Joy Handley.

I am known as a Greater Cormorant

Of the Cormorants, I am the widest spread

I am breed in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australasia

Double-cresteds are smaller and have smaller crests on their heads.

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Sources: http://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/grecor/cur/identification

Thursday, July 16, 2026

July 16, 2026

Welcome to Japan Week on Dee at 8 a.m. Today we continue to feature the photography of my favorite expat, Joy Handley.

I am known as a White Wagtail

My subspecies is either lugens or ocularis

Our breeding habitats, nesting and songs differ

But from a photo, subspecies ID can be a birding abyss.

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Sources: https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/whiwag/cur/introduction

Wednesday, July 15, 2026

July 15, 2026

Welcome to Japan Week on Dee at 8 a.m. Today we continue to feature the photography of my favorite expat, Joy Handley.

I am a Common Bluebottle butterfly

My wings are aqua surrounded by black

You can find me in moist rain forests

Or if I'm male, in a puddle seeking snacks.

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graphium_sarpedon

Tuesday, July 14, 2026

July 14, 2026

Welcome to Japan Week on Dee at 8 a.m. Today we continue to feature the photography of my favorite expat, Joy Handley.

I am a Japanese Common Grass Yellow butterfly

I am yellow with black spots on my wings

I fly around grasslands and forests

And can be seen starting in early spring.

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Sources: https://www.takao599museum.jp/treasures/insects/%E3%82%B7%E3%83%AD%E3%83%81%E3%83%A7%E3%82%A6%E7%A7%91/3283/?lang=en

Monday, July 13, 2026

July 13, 2026

Welcome to Japan Week on Dee at 8 a.m. Today we continue to feature the photography of my favorite expat, Joy Handley.

I am known as a Little Egret

I look similar to a Snowy

As in the US my population was decimated

By people with dull hats that they wanted to be showy.

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Sources: https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/litegr/cur/introduction

Sunday, July 12, 2026

July 12, 2026

Welcome to Japan Week on Dee at 8 a.m. Today we continue to feature the photography of my favorite expat, Joy Handley.

We are known as Black-headed Gulls

Though at the moment we are non-breeding

Right now our heads are just smudged here and there

There's just a few months when our name's not misleading.

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Sources: https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/bkhgul/cur/introduction

Saturday, July 11, 2026

July 11, 2026

Welcome to Japan Week on Dee at 8 a.m. Today we continue to feature the photography of my favorite expat, Joy Handley.

I am a Brown-eared Bulbul

I'm considered boisterous and loud

I am mostly grey, with darker wings,

And my ear coverts are chestnut brown.

(Hence, the name.)

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Sources: https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/brebul1/cur/introduction

Friday, July 10, 2026

July 10, 2026

Welcome to Japan Week on Dee at 8 a.m. Today we continue to feature the photography of my favorite expat, Joy Handley.

This tree is Ginkgo Biloba

It can grow to be 100 feet tall

You will mostly find male trees in nurseries

Because female trees get stinky in the fall.

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Sources: https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=c910

Thursday, July 9, 2026

July 9, 2026

Welcome to Japan Week on Dee at 8 a.m. For the next week, we will be featuring the photography of my favorite expat, Joy Handley.

We are Azure-winged Magpies

We call anything from bugs to fruit "food"

You can find us throughout east Asia

Just look for our shiny black hood.

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Sources: https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/azwmag2/cur/introduction

Wednesday, July 8, 2026

July 8, 2026

I am a Hispid Cotton Rat,

My range is wide and expanding

I am mostly found in grassy areas

Where I can produce many offspring.

Location: Brevard Zoo, (NOT a captive animal, just a visitor)

Sources: https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Sigmodon_hispidus/

Tuesday, July 7, 2026

July 7, 2026

I am a Tawny Frogmouth

I'm captive and I live in the Brevard zoo

I'm normally found in Australia

Where I eat invertebrates and play a didgeridoo.

Location: Brevard Zoo (captive bird)

Sources: https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/tawfro1/cur/introduction

Monday, July 6, 2026

July 6, 2026

I am a Black Swallowtail Butterfly

Parasitoids find my larvae by chemicals in their feces

My larvae use their mandibles to throw their poop away

As do other Swallowtail Butterfly species.

Location: Oregon, Ohio

Sources: https://ask.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/IN906

Sunday, July 5, 2026

July 5, 2026

I am a female Brown-headed Cowbird

I leave my eggs in other birds nests

I'll kick out the other birds eggs if there's not room for mine

As a mom, I am not really the best.

Location: Curtice, OH

Sources: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Brown-headed_Cowbird/overview

Saturday, July 4, 2026

July 4, 2026

I am a Savanna Sparrow

As mothers go, I am the best

I gather food - up to 10x my weight

Every day till my kids leave the nest.

Location: Curtice, OH

Sources: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Savannah_Sparrow/

Friday, July 3, 2026

July 3, 2026

I am known as a Killdeer

I like to hangout ion sandbars or mudflats

But you'll also see me in lawns or driveways

- Pretty much anywhere there's water or grass.

Location: Location: Curtice, OH

Sources: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Killdeer/lifehistory

Thursday, July 2, 2026

July 2, 2026

I am known as an Eastern Parson Spider,

Because the mark on my abdomen looks like

A cravat worn by 19th century parsons

But unlike them, I don't give spiritual advice.

Location: Private residence, Warne, NC

Sources: https://www.bugguide.net/node/view/2041

Wednesday, July 1, 2026

July 1, 2026

I am a Black-collared Click Beetle

I like to live under bark

My body is copper colored and tapered

And my head is more reounded and dark.

Location: Maumee Bay State Park, Oregon, OH

Sources: https://www.bugguide.net/node/view/17644

Tuesday, June 30, 2026

June 30, 2026

I am a female Horned Lark

I have a light brown mustache

There is a pale yellow tint to my throat

And I eat small seeds and insects for snacks.

Location: Tom Kennedy Memorial Park, Curtice, OH

Sources: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Horned_Lark/id

Monday, June 29, 2026

June 29, 2026

This plant is Mountain Laurel

It's in the blueberry family

It has touch-sensitive anthers in it's corolla

That spring out to leave pollen-covered bees.

Location: Warne, NC

Sources: https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/kalmia-latifolia/

Sunday, June 28, 2026

June 28, 2026

I am an Eastern Black Carpenter Ant

I was the first ant in the US given a name

In 1773

A scientist found me

In sawdust, "a carpenter ant!" he proclaimed!

(I'm dramatizing the situation here - but I assume that is how it happened:-)

Location: Maumee Bay State Park, Oregon, Ohio

Sources: https://www.si.edu/spotlight/buginfo/carpenter-ants

Saturday, June 27, 2026

June 27, 2026

We are a pair of American Bald Eagles

Sometimes we've been seen playing with toys

We get our kicks

Using plastic bottles or sticks

To pass the time it's something we enjoy.

Location: Maumee Bay State Park, Oregon, Ohio

Sources: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Bald_Eagle/

Friday, June 26, 2026

June 26, 2026

I am known as a Trumpeter Swan

My feathers were used for hats and writing quills

My skin was used for women's powder puffs
Aggressive conservation is why I'm here still.

Location: Ottawa County, OH, USA

Sources: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Trumpeter_Swan/

Thursday, June 25, 2026

June 25, 2026

We are male and female Northern Yellow Warblers
Our species was split in 2025

Mangrove Yellow Warblers do not migrate

But we fly north in search of a groom or a bride.

Location: Ottawa County, OH, USA

Sources: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Yellow_Warbler/overview

Wednesday, June 24, 2026

June 24, 2026

I am an Eastern Kingbird

I'm a type of passerine

I'm different from true songbirds,

I perform my songs innately, no one teaches me.

Location: Ottawa County, OH, USA

Sources: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Eastern_Kingbird/overview

Tuesday, June 23, 2026

June 23, 2026

We are European Starlings

We have a very astute sense of taste

When we taste sucrose

We say, "ewww, gross!"

We can't digest it and stop eating posthaste.

Location: Maumee Bay State Park Lodge, Oregon, Ohio

Sources: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/European_Starling/overview

Monday, June 22, 2026

June 22, 2026

I am a duck known as a Mallard

All domestic ducks are descended from me

With one exception, the Muscovy duck
Who is on a different branch of the family tree.

Location: Ottawa County, OH, USA

Sources: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Mallard/overview

https://www.onezoom.org/life/@Aix=765192?otthome=%40Anas_platyrhynchos%3D765167#x899,y254,w1.3741

Sunday, June 21, 2026

June 21, 2026

I am a female Red-winged Blackbird

I helped prove that location's more important than genes

My nestlings were swapped with a nest in a different locale

But still the babies grew up to look just like me.

Location: Maumee Bay State Park, Oregon, Ohio

Sources: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-winged_Blackbird

I do not have a subscription to Science magazine, but here is a link to a synopsis on JSTOR: https://www.jstor.org/stable/1691590

Saturday, June 20, 2026

June 20, 2026

I 'm a type of rail known as a Sora

I like to eat seeds from wetland plants
I use my long toes to get bullrush and grass

I also eat aquatic insects when I get the chance.

Location: Maumee Bay State Park, Oregon, Ohio

Sources: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Sora/lifehistory

Friday, June 19, 2026

June 19, 2026

I am known as a Painted Turtle
My front claws let you know I 'm a guy

They are long and unruly

But don't me judge unduly

In the swamp, there's no manicure supplies.

Location: Maumee Bay State Park, Oregon, Ohio

Sources: https://a-z-animals.com/blog/male-vs-female-painted-turtle-what-are-the-differences/

Thursday, June 18, 2026

June 18, 2026

I am a male House Finch

My color comes from the berries I eat

You might see a more yellow or orange House Finch

If that bird ate different berries than me.

Location: Town Suites, Oregon, Ohio

Sources: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/House_Finch/overview