So, I don't think I want to live in Florida. It was really hot and muggy while we were there (and it's only May!), and there were so many mosquitoes (oh, the mosquitoes). But there was one super awesome thing about Florida that kind of made me envy the people who get to live there, and that was the tons of reptiles and amphibians all over the place. We traveled around central Florida a bit, and then went east to the Atlantic Ocean, and everywhere we went there were reptiles and amphibians to see!
As it turns out, Florida is a haven for exotic creatures from all over the world, including lots of introduced herps (just look at this long list of non-native reptiles). Those introduced Brown Anoles we saw in Disney World, for example, were everywhere else we went, too, and they're apparently quite adept at out-competing native anole species, which is probably why they're so common. And just outside of Disney World, we encountered another aggressively invasive species, which happens to also be one of the most adorable things I've seen. It's the Cuban Treefrog (Osteopilus septentrionalis) (I have a real weakness for treefrogs):
These guys were hanging around in the pool area of the house where we were staying in Kissimmee, and they had some really raucous parties at night. One individual calling from the step outside our door woke me up at 5:00 AM because it was so loud that I thought it was in the room with us. (That individual not pictured.)
These creatures are definitely cute, but they could do with a little less noise, and a little less eating of native species, thank you very much.
The most prominent nighttime residents around our home base on the coast, on the other hand, were geckos, also introduced but apparently not too much of a problem for native species:
I'm fairly certain that these creatures are Mediterranean Geckos, but I could be wrong. These little lizards showed some serious ninja skills, shimmying up walls and into crevices, and blending in remarkably well with the texture of the sidewalk:
It wasn't all introduced species, however, and we found some native reptiles and amphibians in a few unexpected places. A Southeastern Five-lined Skink (Plestiodon inexpectatus) was lounging at the side of a path in Disney World, for example:
And what better spot for a native Green Treefrog (Hyla cinerea) to escape from the blazing sun than a nice shady porta-potty. We found quite a few of these bright green blobs hiding out in such sanitary structures at the entrance to one wildlife refuge -- refuge indeed!
(The smaller frog on the right in this picture might possibly be a different species, a Squirrel Treefrog (Hyla squirella), but I'm not exactly confident in my identification of these unfamiliar creatures.)
I couldn't resist this next picture of one of the resident toilet frogs -- I feel like the graffitied smiley-face pretty much perfectly reflects the frog's own expression. :P (Have I mentioned how much I LOVE treefrogs?)
We encountered one final reptile on our trip, and it's a really cool one: the Gopher Tortoise!
Gopher Tortoises are listed as threatened in the state of Florida, and the eastern population is a candidate for the federal endangered species list (the population in the western portion of its range is federally threatened). These big, foot-and-a-half-long tortoises actually dig burrows in the ground (hence "gopher"), providing shelter for themselves but also for hundreds of other species that use the burrows as well.
We found this group of several tortoises right in the middle of a housing development on the Atlantic coast. Some nice people had left a couple of lots undeveloped so that the tortoises could continue to live there -- and I'm glad they did, because we got to hang out with these awesome creatures. What would it be like to live in a place where tortoises lumbered across your lawn?
We saw plenty of other creatures besides reptiles and amphibians on our travels, so there will be one final post to wrap up the Florida trip. Stay tuned!
(Incidentally, you might have noticed a big hole in this account of Florida herps: Alligators! We looked and looked, but managed to somehow see none of these infamous southern residents. Oh well, maybe next time!)
For the first several days of our recent trip to Florida, we were living in Disney World, land of enchantment! With so many people, and such a carefully-maintained environment, I wasn't sure how many wild creatures I would see there, but I kept my camera at the ready just in case. As it turned out, there was quite a bit to see, even aside from the normal (and generally awesome) attractions!
It wasn't just the fantastical architecture and perky employees that made Disney feel like a world apart, it was the animals, too. The common wild birds in the park, especially, were pretty different from what I'm used to seeing in urban areas in the north. There were House Sparrows, yes, but we saw no pigeons or starlings, and instead there were Common Grackles all over the place. And there were no gulls, but rather White Ibises and Great Egrets wandering the pathways and cleaning up dropped food.
And it wasn't just birds that were different. There were Brown Anoles (Anolis sagrei) everywhere:
We figured out that basically every tree had one of these lizards guarding it -- often a male like the one in the picture above, flashing his brilliant dewlap and doing push-ups to intimidate onlookers, but we saw plenty of smaller, plainer females as well. And the lizards weren't just guarding trees. Other, less natural structures served as guard posts for these little reptiles, too:
Brown Anoles are actually non-native (they're from the Caribbean), and are quite invasive. They certainly have colonized Disney World extremely well. Despite their invader status, however, they were fun to watch, and more than a little pretty, with lots of variation in their overall brown patterns. Some of the smaller individuals had striking stripes down the middles of their backs:
And of course the males' displays were stunning (which is the whole point, I believe):
OK, little guy, I'll stay away from your patch of sidewalk, don't worry!
A few of the creatures wandering Disney's grounds seemed remarkably (coincidentally?) suitable for the park's warm-and-fluffy atmosphere. How appropriate, to see a mother Mallard (or possibly a hybrid or domesticated breed of the species) and her fuzzy ducklings paddling around a small pool in the Magic Kingdom:
(You little puffball!)
And almost too perfect to be true, a dainty Eastern Cottontail browsing through a garden outside an English cottage in Epcot's World Showcase:
This rabbit had absolutely no fear, not even of the pre-teenaged girls pointing and squee-ing at it from a few feet away. Apparently it trusted the fence surrounding its little flower-filled haven to keep the dangers away, and it let us watch it quite close up:
What a lovely place for such a lovely creature! And, mmmm, but don't those blue flowers look tasty:
(Nom, nom.)
So Disney World really does have something for everyone! I had a great time doing the more normal things in the park, of course, but it was a nice bonus to get to see some cool wild creatures as well.
Coming up: Some sights from the final days of our trip, in which we traveled outside of Disney World and things got even wilder!
I'm back from our week-long adventure in Florida, and there will be posts about the trip soon to come. But first, I have to make a quick Connecticut-related diversion, because look what was emerging from the ocean when I went to Silver Sands State Park this afternoon:
Mating Horseshoe Crabs!
There were several pairs of these creatures scattered along the shoreline, the smaller male clasping on to the larger female, ready to fertilize the eggs she lays in the sand. Apparently, Horseshoe Crabs come up to reproduce in late spring at high tide, so I guess it was just lucky that I happened to be at the beach at the right time. These are such crazy, cool creatures!
A few lone Horseshoe Crabs (actually more closely related to spiders than crabs, as Wikipedia tells me... weird!) somehow ended up on their backs on the beach, waving their legs around in the air:
I don't know if these Horseshoe Crabs were nearing the ends of their lives anyway, but I flipped them back over just in case they weren't. (Have I mentioned that Horseshoe Crabs are big, and much heavier than I expected? I needed two hands to maneuver these things, and it felt a bit like picking up a flattened, wriggling bowling ball.) This one seemed glad for the assistance, at least, as it dragged itself back into the ocean:
Soooo cool! I'm glad I got to see these creatures up close.
And here's a bonus picture from today's beach visit -- a bunch of Barn Swallows seem to have nests under the boardwalk, and one of the birds landed right next to me to twitter at its fellows:
Pretty bird. :)
I was at Silver Sands State Park on Friday, and it was lovely. No time for a detailed post -- I'm in the middle of packing right now! -- but here are a few quick sights from the visit that I wanted to share.
Pretty little Blue Toadflax (Nuttallanthus canadensis) was blooming at the edges between trees and beach:
And I got my first really good look at a Glossy Ibis (a species of "special concern" in Connecticut) as it foraged in the marshes -- glossy indeed!
That's quite the beak you've got there, bird:
Finally, this Groundhog appears to have made a home in the marsh -- I love the grumpy-old-man expression it's giving me in this picture!
It may be a little while before you hear from me again: On Tuesday, we're leaving for a week-long adventure in Florida! This trip will feature several days in Disney World (Paul's choice vacation spot), followed by a couple of days exploring some nearby natural areas. There will be awesomeness, and there will be animals.... And there's a very good chance I'll be making a post or two about the trip afterwards. Stay tuned!
I'm fitting in as many visits to the woods as I can these days. Early next week, we're leaving for a vacation in Florida -- which will be awesome... more on that later -- and I want to make sure I've had my fill of Connecticut-in-May happenings before I go!
This afternoon's walk in the meadows of Naugatuck State Forest brought sunny skies and warm breezes, and several lovely creatures enjoying the sun. My favorite was this gorgeous American Copper (Lycaena phlaeas), a butterfly I don't think I've ever seen before:
Goodness, butterflies sure do seem to love Wild Strawberry blossoms! This little butterfly is beautiful with its wings spread out, of course, but I actually think it's even prettier with them partially closed -- I feel like this creature is containing a glowing fire within its wings in this next picture:
Other lovely sights dotted the fields, like these delicate Sessile Bellwort (Uvularia sessilifolia) blooms:
And big lavender rays of Robin's Plantain (Erigeron pulchellus), a type of aster:
I've been noticing these tall ferns unfurling for a while now, and today they revealed their fertile spore-bearing fronds, allowing me to identify them as Cinnamon Fern (Osmundastrum cinnamomeum) -- what a perfectly fitting name!
Isn't May wonderful?
