Late Summer

Haven't had much time to shoot photos lately, but I found a few minutes to browse the yard the other day. I figured I would see a butterfly or two hanging out on the milkweeds and a bee or wasp visiting the horsemint that just recently started flowering. But as I poked around I realized there was a lot going on out there. Although we don't have the fall foliage and other obvious signs of season change, Florida will reveal distinct transitions between the seasons if you are willing to slow down and pay attention.

This Gulf Fritillary was visiting one of the few remaining blanketflowers

A dragonfly rests on a budding tropical sage.

This is one of the most beautiful flowers in the yard. The dotted horsemint is just starting to flower which is always a welcome event.

A handful of rosinweeds have been carrying the meadow now that the blanketflower is mostly spent. Some of them have flowers 4 inches across. The back of the flower is just as interesting as the front in my opinion.

A backlit rosinweed makes a pretty photo.

I love how this photo shows off the superb design of the horsemint flower. This insect (still not good at identifying pollinators) gets its back and wings dusted with pollen while feeding on the fragrant nectar.

The horsemint in the backyard was in the shade and the light was a little more pleasing for a wider shot.

Another species pays a visit.

Not a great photo, but it shows two different insects stopping by.

Another photo with two insects on different flowers.

And yet another species.

In the backyard, the first signs of fall are beginning to appear. In addition to the first horsemint blossoms, late summer means the beautyberry begins the transition to purple.

A closeup of the beautyberries.

Another visitor to the horsemint.

A ladybug traverses a horsemint leaf. That's six different species using one plant just in the photos shown here (only one horsemint blooming in the front yard). And that one plant only has half a dozen flowers on it so far. You should see these things when they are in full bloom. It's like an insect superhighway.

This is a pretty crappy picture, but it's the only one I got of this white-tipped black moth (I think that's the actual common name, not just my generic description) as it landed on a cocoplum.

I decided to investigate the muhly grass since I can always count on them for harboring a few insects. I think I've ID'd this type of spider before, but I'm having trouble remembering. Very cool though.

Not sure if it's because the stalks are so firm, cylindrical or both, but insects seem to enjoy resting on them.

This bee didn't seem to be doing very well, but he was alive.

A tiny dragonfly lands on a stalk.

The firesbush in the front yard was getting out of control, so I whacked it back real hard. It took just a couple weeks to jump back with new vigorous growth.