Welcome to the Cypress Gardens wildlife blog! We will try to keep you updated on sightings of various creatures and critters so you know what to look forward to on your visits here.
Our staff conducted a butterfly walk yesterday. We try to run one about every 2 weeks, weather permitting, as long as there are still butterflies around. The warm weather encouraged the remaining butterflies to come out and give us a nice late-season show. There's not much flowering now, of course, so we found them nectaring on whatever was available, such as mustard, dandelion, and late-season azalea blooms. As usual, we saw quite a few Cloudless Sulphurs - their sunny presence is always a great pick-me-up. Also spotted during the walk were: Sleepy Orange, Little Yellow, Gulf Fritillary, Common Buckeye, Red Admiral, Long-tailed Skipper, and Painted Lady.
The butterfly house is also full of beautiful butterflies for your enjoyment if you don't have the time or inclination to search our paths. Take a trip to the butterfly house today and you can find: Crimson Patch Longwings, Banded Orange Longwings, Banded Peacocks, Julias, Gulf Fritillaries, Zebra Longwings, Gold-rimmed Swallowtails, Mexican Bluewings, Malachites, Cloudless Sulfurs, and Monarchs. The curator and his staff will be happy to help you with identification and answer all your questions.
Many interesting creatures have been spotted recently from our paths and trails. A pair of bald eagles has been sighted several times soaring over the gardens. These magnificent birds don't obtain their distinctive white head and tail until they reach sexual maturity at about 5 years of age. American woodcocks have been flushed near trail edges as they search through the leaf litter for earthworms to dine on. This is dumpy little bird about 11 inches long with an extremely long straight bill, commonly found along wooded edges of open water.
The current fall migration provides a great opportunity for observing many different species of birds. Our trails are very convenient for curious birders, with benches scattered throughout. Or, if you prefer, we maintain a feeding station which keeps a constant flow of hungry visitors coming by for easy observation.
With such beautiful weather, this would also be a great time to come out and wander our paths and enjoy Camellias, azaleas, and paperwhites in bloom.
Hope to see you soon here in the swamp!
Our staff conducted a butterfly walk yesterday. We try to run one about every 2 weeks, weather permitting, as long as there are still butterflies around. The warm weather encouraged the remaining butterflies to come out and give us a nice late-season show. There's not much flowering now, of course, so we found them nectaring on whatever was available, such as mustard, dandelion, and late-season azalea blooms. As usual, we saw quite a few Cloudless Sulphurs - their sunny presence is always a great pick-me-up. Also spotted during the walk were: Sleepy Orange, Little Yellow, Gulf Fritillary, Common Buckeye, Red Admiral, Long-tailed Skipper, and Painted Lady.
The butterfly house is also full of beautiful butterflies for your enjoyment if you don't have the time or inclination to search our paths. Take a trip to the butterfly house today and you can find: Crimson Patch Longwings, Banded Orange Longwings, Banded Peacocks, Julias, Gulf Fritillaries, Zebra Longwings, Gold-rimmed Swallowtails, Mexican Bluewings, Malachites, Cloudless Sulfurs, and Monarchs. The curator and his staff will be happy to help you with identification and answer all your questions.
Many interesting creatures have been spotted recently from our paths and trails. A pair of bald eagles has been sighted several times soaring over the gardens. These magnificent birds don't obtain their distinctive white head and tail until they reach sexual maturity at about 5 years of age. American woodcocks have been flushed near trail edges as they search through the leaf litter for earthworms to dine on. This is dumpy little bird about 11 inches long with an extremely long straight bill, commonly found along wooded edges of open water.
The current fall migration provides a great opportunity for observing many different species of birds. Our trails are very convenient for curious birders, with benches scattered throughout. Or, if you prefer, we maintain a feeding station which keeps a constant flow of hungry visitors coming by for easy observation.
With such beautiful weather, this would also be a great time to come out and wander our paths and enjoy Camellias, azaleas, and paperwhites in bloom.
Hope to see you soon here in the swamp!
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