Native Florida flowers are simply beautiful.

--- Roseate Spoonbill ( Ajaia ajaja) ---
The Roseate Spoonbill is a dramatic comeback bird. Plume hunters had reduced the bird to just 25 in 1901. With the banning of the plume-hunting trade, Florida set a national example for preservation. By the late 1970s, there were nearly 1300 nests.

This is an elegant, rose-colored, wading bird with a shovel-like beak. Spoonbills can be found in mangrove swamps, tidal ponds, and saltwater lagoons or other sources of brackish water. The bird is 30 to 36 inches tall with a wingspread approaching 3 to 4 feet. Spoonbills have a white neck with pink or rose feathers covering much of its body. The feathers on their wings are bright red to magenta depending on the age of the bird. The legs are pinkish red. The irises of the eyes of adult birds are bright red.

A Spoonbill's most distinctive feature is the greenish-gray, spoon-shaped beak. On the beak, the nostrils are located near the head, allowing the bird to breathe even with much of its beak underwater. Water must be present for feeding because they can not feed on land. They open their beaks slightly and begin to swing their heads back and forth in the water. This creates small whirlpools and the vibrations of escaping prey are felt by sensors in the beak. The beak then snaps shut, not allowing the prey to escape. Their prey includes shrimp, crawfish, small fish, insects, and other small mammals. Their red color comes from the red algae ingested along with the crustaceans.

Males are slightly larger than females but their coloration is identical. March through June is mating season. Spoonbills form mating pairs for the season but not for life. Females attract males by shaking branches with their beaks. The male approaches while nodding his head and attempts to perch next to her. Six days after mating, 2 to 4 eggs are deposited in the nest. Both male and female help incubate the nest and feed the young. The young Spoonbills leave the nest at 8 weeks. They reach maturity at 3 years.

“How can hope be denied when there is always the possibility of an American flamingo or a roseate spoonbill floating down from the sky like pink rose petals?”
Quote -Terry Tempest Williams

Photo credit -Dan Kon

!! -- Explore the State. Share your Photos. Imagine Our Florida -- !!

Built to serve as an "Eco-Insta" we invite you to share your photos of plants, animals, insects, landscapes, ecosystems and more with the Get Outside Discovery Center web application.

Exploring the Get Outside Discovery Center
1. Open the app http://bit.ly/IOF-Get-Outside-App
2. Close the Splash Screen by clicking "Ok"
3. Navigate the Map using the tools provided
4. Click on points in the map to view what was found there
5. Share the discovery with your friends and family

Sharing in the Get Outside Discovery Center
1. Get Outside to your backyard, local park, wildlife refuge, etc..
2. Take Photos of Florida with your phone or camera.
3. Open the Submission Form http://bit.ly/IOF-Get-Outside-Submit
4. Enter as much information as possible and about where you took the photo (you can use the locate me button on your smartphone device if you'd like)
5. Share the discovery and the app with your friends and family

These beautiful butterflies are another reason to plant Native Milkweed.
Watch for our next Tuesday Trivia post for your chance to win a packet of native milkweed seeds.
From our friends at the Cuplet Fern Chapter

----- O2B Kids ------

IOF Directors Andy, Dan, and Nancy had so much fun teaching the after school kids at O2B Kids about gopher tortoises, the ecosystems they make their homes in, and the friends they share their burrow with.

The children learned about the animals in a Longleaf pine forest and what they eat for dinner. They learned about the interdependence between the forest and the bears. Of course, they learned the importance of poop!

Slow Mama was the star of the show. She did a wonderful job meeting 112 kids and their teachers while showing the kids how they can coexist with gopher tortoises and other wild animals.

Connect. Respect. Coexist.

--- World Frog Day ---

The Little Grass Frog (Pseudacris ocularis), is the smallest of frogs, they are 1/2 an inch long. They range in color from light beige to dark brown and tan. They have dark eye strips extending along the side of the body, and thin white strips above the lip and below the eye. They have tiny pads with slightly webbed toes. Despite its size, The Little Grass Frog can jump 20 times their body length.

The Little Grass Frog will lay between 1 to 25 creamy brown eggs on vegetation or submerged debris. The eggs hatch in less than 2 days. The metamorphosis happens in 10 days from tadpole to frog.

This frog can be found in wet prairies and flooded grassy meadows. They are active during the day climbing among the grasses.

The Little Grass Frog has a high pitched chirp which is difficult to hear. If you hear the chirping it is usually at night when the humidity is high or during rain and is coming from grassy areas.
To hear the Little Grass Frog call go to:
https://srelherp.uga.edu/anurans/sounds/pseocu.mp3