The 4th & Final Monarch

1st Chrysalis Opened

The first 3 of 4 chrysalis opened sometime early this a.m. The remaining chrysalis is 1 or 2 days older than the other 3...

                                                                    

empty chrysalis

pumping it's wings & trying to fly

the last chrysalis...it's so transparent I can see the butterfly inside 

Inspired To Try HDR

I'm inspired to try HDR after noticing the beautiful HDR images on some of the Blogs that I follow. What I'd like  to create is a delicate, painting look. This is a sunshine mimosa which is a groundcover growing in my backyard. It's a pretty plant that opens up in the daytime & closes at night. The butterflies love it & it's a Florida native. This picture is an HDR version of the original image but it doesn't look anything like what I was trying for...I'm going to work on it this weekend.

Waiting For The Butterflies

This is one of 3 Monarch pupa that I found yesterday.  It's attached to the leg of a chair, another ia attached to the bottom of a bamboo table & the 3rd pupa is hanging from a metal plant stand. The butterflies should emerge in 9-15 days.  Originally, there were 4 caterpillars on the same milkweed plant.   All of them were about the same size/age. I took a picture of the last remaining caterpillar & posted it just  before it disappeared. Griswald, my French Bulldog, is really the one that found the pupa/chrysalis's. He keeps checking on them, so I think that if the 4th one is nearby , Grizzy will find it & let me know. These Chrysalis are so amazing & perfect...

  

Munching Monarch Caterpillar

The last few days have been really hot & we've had heavy rain every afternoon ... overnight my yard has become filled with lizards & butterflies. This monarch caterpillar is almost ready to find a place to attach itself & and transform into a  pupa/chrysalis. The monarch's chrysalis is a beautiful shade of green with a spiral of tiny gold dots along its length. Hopefully, I'll find a few so I can post pictures of them & the new butterflies. Happy summer!!

Gray Fox Kits

I found these baby Gray Fox Kits taking a nap in a small patch of sunshine next to the Boardwalk at Gumbo Limbo Nature Center, in Boca Raton, Florida. They woke up when they heard the sound of voices nearby and they quickly scooted underneath the Boardwalk. The Staff at the Nature Center told me that there are four Kits in the litter and that their mother has a litter every spring. An interesting fact about them that I didn't know is that the Gray Fox is the only fox that can climb trees.

Alligator at Loxahatchee Wildlife Refuge

I came across this Alligator sunning itself on one of the banks along the Marsh Trail at Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge in Boynton Beach, Florida, a few weeks ago. It was mid-day, the light was harsh and it was very  hot but I couldn't resist taking a  picture of this alligator.
/www.fws.gov/loxahatchee/

My Dogs...My First Blog Post

For my very first post, I thought that I would introduce my dogs, Kya & Grizwald. I love them a lot & they each love me, but they don't like each other... you'll never see any cute pictures of them playing together or taking a nap in the same dog bed !!! But for now, in exchange for a few treats & assurances from me that each of them is my "Top Model", they tolerate each other while I get to  develop my photography skills. I also post pictures of them & of pets that are available for adoption at: Grizwaldandkya.com

Kya

                                                                                                   

Grizwald