Choice Morsels

Just to let you know, Hurricane Irma had no effect on the whole western end of Florida Panhandle where I live.  The weather was beautiful for the most part--and cold! Temps dropped to 62 F with a feel of 52 F!  It was chilly, but fantastic!   On Monday, we only experienced light showers and gusts of wind. Unless you live here, I suppose it's hard to grasp how big Florida is. The the north border runs under most of Alabama and all of Georgia. That's TWO states! That's a lot of square miles! So, when the media said, "Irma was approaching the Panhandle," they really ought to have been more specific to say it was the Eastern Panhandle, at the curve point, that was being approached. The media's lack of geographical clarity on this point certainly caused those living far away who love us unnecessary worry. ***** Today's photogenic garden moment is a Giant Swallowtail visiting one of my Zinnias! I planted a Rue shrub on purpose for these, since...

Here in north Florida, this is major butterfly time. My Zinnias have constant visitors. Today I caught some picks of a Giant Swallowtail--which is difficult since they flutter constantly, so I get a tad of blur. Giant Swallowtail: These Swallowtails are a dark color with strong yellow spotting and are extremely showy, not to mention large. The dots are larger then those on a Black Swallowtail and more organized, being in a neat  line along the outer edges of the wings and in a band across the their shoulders. It's these two rows of bright spotting that give them their distinctive look. Giant Swallow Tail In Profile: In profile, the Giant's wings are mostly light yellow with only a thin decoration of dark lines. Their body is a plain yellow. No striping. As opposed to a Tiger Swallowtail, below: ... which has a yellow body with black stripes and thicker bands of dark color trimming the wing edges.  (They get the name "tiger" fr...

Welcome back! I have a great Picture of the Day for you/?! Every seen a Giant Swallowtail? I got this shot of one a few days ago: A Giant Swallowtail is one huge butterfly. Typically 4 to 6 inches in size with this unusual bright yellow spot pattern. The lower wings have the little "tails" on them that give this these butterflies their name. Also two little orange dot markings that seem common on many Swallowtails. I'm always interested in finding out what different butterflies eat to see if it's something I can add to my garden, since I do want a butterfly-friendly garden. Butterfly caterpillars are fairly gourmet and many only eat specific things, like Monarchs only eat Milkweed. Now the Giant Swallowtail dines on citrus leaves and several other trees, but I have no room for trees. I did find, however, they and also Black Swallowtails enjoy an herb shrub called "Rue." That I could do and I have the perfect location, though I won...