Harvested most of my lettuce today since it’s forecasted to freeze here overnight (I left some in the ground just in case it doesn’t).
Pretty impressive haul considering I’ve been eating out of my garden for a couple weeks now. Guess what I’m having for dinner…
After unloading my kayak gear and taking a shower I figured I’d just head out to my beach for sunset. Then I remembered that the little town of Dunedin marks sunset in a special way this time of year, they host bagpipe performances on the pier. It was cutting it close but thankfully traffic flowed nicely and I arrived just in time.
A nice way to end a lovely day!
Yesterday morning I woke up to a beautiful sunny day. Aware of the incoming cold front, I decided to take full advantage of the weather. After checking the tide and wind, I realized that if I hurried, conditions were favorable for a paddle out to Shell Key. So, I loaded up my kayak and drove down to my favorite launch at Butler Hole. Thirty minutes later, I was paddling across flat, glassy water.
Good thing my kayak is shallow-draft because it was just before low tide, meaning there were only a few inches of saltwater between me and the sandy bottom. It made paddling a bit challenging but on the plus side, there were very few people out there.
Every time I looked up from beachcombing I was awed by the clarity and color of the gulf water. Such a gorgeous way to spend the day!
While walking the island I did not collect any shells since most of them were still alive; sand dollars, sea urchins, conchs, whelks, and tulips. It was a treat watching these creatures – I was especially impressed by the agility of a Fighting Conch.
Caught the ship returning just after sunset last night…
While stopped at an intersection down in Venice, FL last week I spotted this sticker on the car next to me. Not sure why someone would go to the effort to put that on their car but I will agree with the sentiment. Perhaps the driver was a herper*?
*Slang for an amateur herpetologist.
Winter storms tend to churn up the bottom of the Gulf which leads to new and interesting items on the beach. When the aftermath of one of those storms coincides with a minus tide, the beachcombing is not to be missed. So, yesterday I drove down early to Siesta Key and met Alyssa, her dad Tom, and step mom Suzanne for a morning of shelling.
It was still dark and a breezy 47° but we didn’t let that stop us! We had our headlamps and wore multiple layers. Since I’m a complete cold weather wimp I even had on ear muffs and gloves. Believe it or not, we weren’t the only ones braving the elements, we could see other little dots of light up and down the beach.
There were plenty of shells for everyone and it seemed every couple feet there was something that caught my interest. After a few hours we left to grab breakfast and rest our necks. By the time we returned to the sand, the sun had done it’s job and it was much warmer!
While the crowd had grown there was still so much to see. Interestingly, there were a lot of occupied shells, either by the original creator or by hermit crabs. We returned all the live ones we found to the gulf. Even had the chance to carefully untangle a Sea Cucumber from the wrack and slide it back into the water.
A quick internet search identified the flat, gray, and very dehydrated fish I found as a Planehead Filefish. I collected a few more Chestnut Turbans, Bubbles, and an Oyster Drill as they are rare on my beach. Came across the molt of a Flame Streak Box Crab, a new species for me. Since I had recently read about them, I knew that the green mussel shell, while colorful, was from an invasive species (at least it was dead).
As for the highlight of the day, I have two favorites and both were firsts for me. I was thrilled to find a Sea Potato, the test of a Heart Urchin (somewhat rare as they are very fragile). While the slightly curved, amber half moon that caught my eye, turned out to be a Shark Eye Moon Snail operculum (the door to their shell).
Definitely worth getting up early for!
After a previous failed attempt to meet the Florida Scrub Jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens), the state’s only endemic bird species, I finally got lucky this past weekend. Within 15 minutes of hitting the trail at Oscar Scherer State Park, I came across a family group of jays in a thicket of scrub oaks. While not as vividly blue or strikingly marked as other jay species, these birds are still quite handsome.
As I watched the busy birds, more birders arrived. Thankfully, our presence didn’t bother the jays, they were focused on harvesting acorns. It was fascinating to watch them scramble around in the branches, looking for just the right one. I don’t know what makes an acorn appealing but these birds definitely had requirements.
After carefully selecting an acorn (or three), the jays would fly a few yards away and then drop down to the ground out of sight, presumably to stash their booty. I read that each jay can collect over 6,000 acorns in a season. Considering that these jays hang out in family groups of 5-7 birds that’s over 30,000 acorns! As with squirrels, not all the nuts are later recovered by the jays. The forgotten ones often propagate, thereby ensuring future oak trees.
Meanwhile, high in a dead snag overlooking this frenzied nuttery, there perched a lone, sentinel jay. After a sharp cry from the lookout above all the jays below flew off to safety. I waited about 10 minutes for their return to no avail, so I continued along the trail.
I was definitely pleased with that sighting but an even better experience waited just around the bend. There was another family group of jays in some oak trees, even closer to the trail. You may be wondering how I knew it was a different group of jays. I didn’t at first but when looking through my photos afterward I could see the various colored leg bands sported by many of them. They were distinct sets, with no overlap, which tracks since I’d read that they are very territorial.
The jays weren’t the only species flocking to those oak trees, there was a pair of Red-bellied Woodpeckers, some Brown Thrashers, Mourning Doves, and even a couple Catbirds (though I have to presume they were after insects and not nuts). The prints in the sand beneath the trees led me to believe these acorns were also favored by deer.
Eventually (and quite reluctantly), I tore myself away from the birds. Since it was such a lovely, warm and sunny day I headed over to the beach south of nearby Venice. The color of the Gulf down there always amazes me, just look at that turquoise blue water! It was a fantastic day, well worth the early morning drive!
While walking the pier at Fort DeSoto Park recently I watched a fisherman reel in this Southern Flounder (Paralichthys lethostigma).
This species is considered the top bottom-dwelling predator. Their technique is simple, they bury themselves in the sand, something they are ideally camouflaged for, and wait for prey to swim overhead.
What makes this method work so well is their migrating eye. Flounders start life with one eye on each side of their head, like normal fish. As they age, and settle into their benthic feeding routine, the right eye migrates to join the left giving them exceptional one-sided vision.
I currently have four water dishes of various sizes and heights in my yard, three up front and one in the back. I don’t call them bird baths because they are intended for, and utilized by, all manner of wildlife.
As I’ve mentioned before, we are in our dry season here in Florida and my region is already experiencing Stage 1 drought conditions, so all these fresh water options draw a crowd.
While birds and pollinators visit during the day, it seems mammals prefer the evening hours, which is why I’m glad I installed a motion-activated camera. Not long ago it caught a video of three young raccoons. After watching them trying to share water dish, I’ve decided to add an even larger water option to my front yard (hopefully soon).
While I’m delighted that wildlife utilizes my yard, I do wish they wouldn’t leave muddy paw prints all over my porch!
Traffic flowed smoothly so I was a bit early for work this morning. I pulled into a nearby park to relax for a few minutes.
It was a quiet outing, just me and a few birds. The humidity has been high recently, and the dew on this little feather caught my attention.
I suppose it’s my version of stopping to smell the flowers…
3rin's View... 