Florida: Bird Rookery Swamp in Naples

On our last day in Naples, my husband found this bird rookery that we decided to go check out.  Quickly as we got onto the path did it get incredibly swampy and spooky.  As we were deciding if it was really safe for us to keep walking, an alligator crossed the path just in front of us.

Florida: Cackling Birds

These cackling birds in the Everglades were making a ton of noise when we were in Big Cyprus Oasis and disturbing the quiet.  I wish I knew the name of them.

Florida: Big Cyprus Nature Preserve

We continued our quest to see gators in South Florida, and we headed to Big Cypress Oasis Nature Preserve and headed out on the rocky loop road.  And very quickly, we saw many, many gators.  It was raining all day, but that didn't stop the gators from swimming close to the road and eyeing us up whenever we stopped to look.  Below are some of the best shots of the gators swimming.

Florida: Dragon Fly

This dragon fly was following us around for ages in the swamp until I finally started taking his photo - and then he flew off pretty quickly!  I think he was attracted to the smell of our sunscreen.

Florida: Geckos at Corkscrew Swamp

We went to Corkscrew Swamp in Southwest Florida looking for alligators, as I assume gators are what is found in the swamps of South Florida!  But unfortunately, we did not see any gators this time of year, but we did see many many geckos!

Florida: Butterflies

Below are two photos of a butterfly from South West Florida.

Virginia: Ducklings at Huntley Meadows

May in Virginia is Duckling season.  Below are photos of a family of ducklings with their mammy in Huntley Meadows park in Virginia.

Virginia: Huntley Meadows

Huntley Meadows is a nice park not far from Mount Vernon and a short ride from Washington DC.  The most distinguishing feature of the park is all the beavers and beaver damns.  The park lets the beavers have a natural habitat and build their dams, and at dusk, you can see the beavers coming out of their dams and swim through the park.

Below are photos of a frog, beaver and bird from Huntley Meadows in May.