Main Waterlily Pond and Bridge

Pink Waterlilies

Purple Waterlily

White Spider Lily Side View

White Spider Lily Front View

Lotus Leaves

Spider Amaryllis

Pelican Flower Bud

Pelican Flower Bloom

Sausage Tree

Old Man Palm (left) and Rainbow Gum Eucalyptus (right)

Rainbow Gum Eucalyptus Bark

Ornamental Pink Pineapple

Shell Ginger

McKee Gardens is especially gorgeous in May. What a beautiful time of year in Florida!

Hungry Purple Martin Babies

Purple Martin Nest with 5 Eggs

Purple Martin Babies with 1 Egg Hatching

Nest of Newly Hatched Purple Martins

Nesting time is here for our purple martins. Nests are being built, eggs are being laid, and babies are hatching! As of today we have 7 active nests with 10 tiny babies and 28 eggs. So fun!

El Galeon at Port Canaveral

El Galeon: Front of Ship

El Galeon: Wooden Deck

El Galeon: Wheel

El Galeon: Bell

El Galeon: Admiralty Anchor

El Galeon: Cannon

El Galeon: Crow’s Nest Lookout

First Official Map of Florida (1584). Note Cape Canaveral is already on map.

El Galeon Sailing at Sea (from Visitor Movie)

This year marks the 500th anniversary of Ponce de Leon’s landing in Florida (“Land of Flowers”).  In celebration, a replica 16th century Spanish tall ship named El Galeon is stopping at ports along the state’s Atlantic coast.  It is on a path similar to that taken by the explorer.  The ship is currently at Port Canaveral from May 1-12.  It is a real beauty!  The ship is 170 feet long and weighs 495 tons.  The anchor alone weighs over one ton.  The ship has 6 decks, and 3 masts with 7 sails.  Most striking is the wood, which is found throughout the ship and is gorgeous in scale and detail.  Below deck are interpretive displays.  Tour info is at: http://www.vivaflorida.org/About-Viva-Florida/Viva-Florida-500-Galeon-Tour

Alligator in Our Florida Pond

Got a surprise this morning – an alligator is back in our pond again! This little guy is enjoying the warm sunshine and eating the plentiful fish.

Dali Museum’s Unique Glass

Glass Side View with Reflection

Enigma Glass Bubble

Glass Atrium

Atrium Spiral

Tampa Bay Waterfront View

Painting on Display

The Dali Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida, has been called one of the most beautiful museums in the world! The building opened in 2011 and was designed by architect Yann Weymouth. This hurricane-proof fortress features 18-inch thick walls, a 12-inch thick concrete roof, and impact-resistant glass. Dali’s priceless art is protected behind storm doors and a vault on the upper floors.

The most striking feature of the building is the glass. It forms two free-style bubbles named Enigma and Igloo that project out from the side of the building. The bubbles are composed of 1,062 unique triangular pieces of glass. Visitors look out of Enigma’s glass bubble as they climb a helical staircase to the art galleries on the third floor.

Salvador Dali had a fascination with spirals and the double-helix structure of DNA. He described himself as a fish swimming between “the cold water of art and the warm water of science”. The unusual shape of the museum perfectly complements his surrealistic art. This collection is the largest one in the world outside of Dali’s hometown museum in Spain. More info is at: http://thedali.org/home.php

Northern Bobwhite Quail

Northern Bobwhite Quail Pair

Cute little northern bobwhite quail have been coming to our front yard recently. The top picture was taken through our dining room window. The bird’s call sounds just like its name – BOB-WHITE! If I whistle the song, they whistle it right back to me. If you don’t know the song, it is here: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/northern_bobwhite/sounds

Piedras Blancas Light Station

Piedras Blancas Lighthouse Tower with Beacon

The Piedras Blancas Lighthouse was built in 1875. The top of the tower was sheared off during a fierce storm in 1949. Afterward an automated beacon was placed on top of the shortened tower and it was returned to service. Currently the lighthouse is undergoing restoration. Visitors can only access the lighthouse grounds by guided tour. Especially popular is the “Sunset and Whale Watching Tour” every March.

Piedras Blancas Elephant Seal Rookery

Alpha Male Elephant Seal

Mock Battles among Young Male Elephant Seals

Scuffle among Young Male Elephant Seals

Female Elephant Seal Face

Elephant Seal Family

Mother and Baby Elephant Seals

Very Young “Weaner” Elephant Seals Playing

Elephant Seal’s Big Eyes

Trio of Sleeping Elephant Seals

Backs of Sleeping Elephant Seals

Elephant Seal Flipping Sand to Cool Down

Elephant Seal Watching an Oystercatcher

Silhouette of Young Male Elephant Seals

Piedras Blancas is Named after White Rocks Offshore

Beautiful Piedras Blancas Coastline

Elephant seals are fun to watch! They are one of our favorite animals. Ano Nuevo and Piedras Blancas in California are the only two places in the world where elephant seals come onto the mainland to have pups (elsewhere they breed on islands). The pupping season runs from December until March. The Piedras Blancas colony began in November 1990 when a dozen northern elephant seals came ashore near San Simeon (at the south end of Big Sur near the Hearst Castle). Now the Piedras Blancas elephant seal colony has over 16,000 adults and 2,500 pups!

Elephant seals can grow up to 16 feet long and weigh up to 2 tons each. Males have trunk-like noses that grow up to 2 feet long. Their vocalization sounds like an outboard motor trying to start. Alpha males battle for dominance and gather up harems of females on the beach.

The babies are born with black wrinkled coats of fur. The black fur allows them to absorb warmth from the sun, and the wrinkled coat gives them room to gain weight quickly. Mother elephant seals lose one-third of their body weight while nursing. Their rich milk is as thick as mayonnaise! Babies grow from 80 pounds at birth to 300 pounds in 3 weeks. When the babies are 4 weeks old, mother elephant seals return to the sea to feed. Meanwhile the young “weaners” are left on the beach to play and swim. At 6 weeks of age the babies’ black fur is replaced by a silver coat.

Elephant seals have big round eyes that help them search for prey in the deep ocean. Dives for squid and fish last from 30-60 minutes, with only a 2-3 minute break at the surface. These mile-deep feeding trips go on continuously for months. Elephant seals return to the beach twice a year to either molt or breed. While on land they do not eat, and they often sleep to conserve energy.

Elephant seals maintain a body temperature of 100 degrees, which is quite a feat in the chilly Pacific Ocean. Their blubber keeps them so warm that they quickly overheat in the sun. They flip sand over themselves to cool down.

Elephant seals have one of the longest animal migrations in the world. Tracking devices have revealed that California elephant seals travel in a big loop that extends far west into the Pacific, north to Alaska, and then south back to the beaches they were born on.

The Piedras Blancas and Ano Nuevo elephant seal rookeries are well worth a visit. The animals are entertaining, and the scenery is fantastic! An excellent website by Friends of the Elephant Seal (including a calendar of activity) is at: http://elephantseal.org/
A live cam of the Piedras Blancas rookery is at: http://www.elephantseal.org/livecam.htm

Eastern Screech Owl in Nest Box

Every evening this week a screech owl has been singing from a palm tree in our yard. She is very good at hiding, so this picture is from the past. You can listen to her song at: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/eastern_screech-owl/sounds

Great Egret’s Feather Display

Great Egret’s Lacy Feathers

Great Egret’s Mating Display

Great Egret and Her Blue Eggs

Great Egret with Baby in Nest

Closeup of Baby Great Egret

Great Egret in Bald Cypress Tree

Great Egret and Alligator in Pond

Great egrets are nesting now in Florida! The bird rookeries are full of activity. What a wonderful time of year!

Vintage Postcard of Nellie’s 20th Birthday Celebration

Today is Nellie the Dolphin’s 60^th birthday!  She was born at Marineland, Florida, on February 27, 1953, to mother Susie and father Happy.  She was famously in several television shows in the 1950’s and a Timex commercial in 1961.  In 1970 she became the mascot for Jacksonville University, and was awarded a master’s degree in marine science.  Nellie is doing very well and is loved by everyone who visits her.  The picture shows a vintage postcard from Nellie’s 20^th birthday celebration.  Marineland’s birthday tribute to Nellie is at:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTIAnCfaoC8

Blue Heron’s Touchdown on Nest

Blue Heron’s Takeoff from Nest

Blue Heron’s Treetop Nest

Blue Heron’s Breeding Colors

Great Blue Herons are nesting now in Florida! Nest building can take up to 2 weeks. Generally, a male blue heron will bring sticks to the female, and she will build the nest. These majestic birds usually nest in colonies. We counted at least six active nests recently at the Viera Wetlands.

Wild Dolphin Pair

Wild Dolphin Surfacing

A new study published in Discovery News says that dolphins call each other by name! Researchers found that each dolphin has a signature whistle that acts as a name. When separated, dolphins use that whistle to search out and call for the missing dolphin. The complete article is at: (http://news.discovery.com/animals/whales-dolphins/dolphins-call-each-other-by-name-130219.htm).

The attached pictures show wild dolphins at Monkey Mia, Australia (north of Perth). Researchers there have been continuously studying dolphins for over 30 years. The dolphins are famous because they are the only ones in the world known to use tools!

The dolphins carry basket sponges on their beaks, and use them to probe for food on the sea bottom. This technique has been passed down from mother to offspring for at least 180 years. Although tool-using dolphins tend to be solitary and make up only 5% of the population, the latest research says that these “nose-wearing spongers” simply prefer the company of other “spongers”. Fascinating!

More info is at: http://www.sharkbay.org/Monkey_Mia_dolphins.aspx and
http://www.livescience.com/21989-dolphin-sponge-tools-culture.html

Bok Tower in Early Spring

Blooming Pink Azalea

Azalea-Lined Trail

Blooming Red Camellia “Royal Velvet”

Flowering Jungle Trail

Colorful Blooming Bromeliads

Bok Tower Gardens has been voted Florida’s “Favorite Garden”.  The peak bloom is now!  The trails are filled with flowering azaleas, camellias, and bromeliads.

Base of Bok Tower

Entrance Through Golden Brass Door

Tree Cutout Peephole Above Lock

Mr. Bok’s Gravesite in Front of Golden Brass Door

Inside Founder’s Room Looking Out Golden Brass Door

Inside Looking Up at Soaring Pink Ceilings (capstone is in middle and lantern is at top)

Wrought Iron Lantern (spider web base and birds encircling top)

Wrought Iron Lantern in Front of Carved Marble Window

Fireplace Mantel

Florida Mural Above Fireplace

Tile Floor with Star of Life

Colorful Animal Tiles

Recently I attended a special member’s only tour of the Founder’s Room on the first floor of Bok Tower. The Founder’s Room was created as Mr. Bok’s private study.  It was exciting to finally go inside the tower!  Access to the top of the tower is extremely limited, but we were told that a man had just proposed to his fiancé there, and she said yes!

The only entrance to the Founder’s Room is the golden brass door. The color was chosen to enhance the glory of the 32 Biblical scenes of Creation on the door. The door weighs 1,000 pounds and is polished monthly. A cutout tree on the door serves as a peephole, and a giant brass key opens the door. Notice the small square of white flowers in the grass in front of the door. That is Mr. Bok’s gravesite situated at the base of his beloved tower.

Once inside the Founder’s Room, you notice the soaring pink marble walls, intricate marble windows (each one carved in place from a single block of stone), hanging wrought iron lanterns, massive marble fireplace with Florida mural above, and elaborate tile floor.

The nature theme of the garden and tower are continued throughout the room. The wrought iron lanterns have birds encircling the top, and spider webs on the bottom. The wrought iron stairway leads to a second level, and from there an inner stairway ascends the tower. Alternatively, an original 1928 Otis elevator (the oldest in Florida) escorts people to the top. The eight levels of Bok Tower are (1) Founder’s Room at ground level; (2) Chao Research Center (archival room); (3) Storage and Mechanical Equipment Room; (4) Maintenance Workshop; (5) Carillon Library; (6) Carillon Player’s Office; (7) Carillon Bells and Soundproof Keyboard Playing Cabinet (bells are too loud to play directly beside them); and (8) Roof Top (statues, finials, and lightning rods).

The soaring ceiling is bricked over with a capstone in the middle. This marks the spot where the heavy carillon bells were hoisted up through the tower. Since the bells were too large to fit through the brass door, they entered the tower through the side. That location is now marked by the fireplace on the inside, and the sundial on the outside. The fireplace mantel contains a marble engraving of bell ringers beneath a quote by Bok’s grandmother, “Make you the world a bit better or more beautiful because you have lived in it”. An elaborate mural over the fireplace shows an engraving of the State of Florida with Bok Tower in the middle, a sunrise above, flamingoes and alligator below, a figure blowing the wind and compass star on the left, a Spanish galleon on the upper right, and Neptune riding his horses in the sea at the bottom. Spectacular tiles cover the Founder’s Room floor. At the center of the colorful floor is the Star of Life. The six points of the star are said to symbolize the six days of Creation in the Book of Genesis in the Bible.  Surrounding it are various kinds of animal tiles.

One visit per year to the ground floor Founder’s Room is granted by appointment to sustaining members of Bok Tower Gardens. It is well worth the trip! A video tour of the inside of the tower is at: http://www.youtube.com/user/boktowergardens?feature=watch 

All of our posts on Bok Tower are at:  http://naturetime.wordpress.com/category/florida/gardens-florida/bok-tower-gardens-gardens/

Baby Masai Giraffe Melvin

Today our local Brevard Zoo announced the birth of a male Masai giraffe six days ago. The baby’s birth weight was 159 pounds! When the baby reaches adulthood, he will be 19 feet tall. Since he is not yet on public display, this picture shows a previous baby giraffe named Melvin by the same parents. More info on the award-winning Brevard Zoo is at: http://brevardzoo.org/

Purple Martin Pair

Look who just flew in from Brazil – a pair of purple martins ready to start the nesting season! The male is in the gourd on the left, the female is sitting on the gourd on the right, and a plastic decoy sits on top. Spring is on its way!  Current purple martin sightings are tallied at:  http://purplemartin.org/scoutreport/

Myakka Canopy Walk

Myakka Canopy Tower

Myakka Canopy Tower Inside Looking Down

Myakka Canopy Tower View

Canopy Walks of North America Sign

Myakka River State Park has the only canopy walk/observation tower in the state of Florida. It was the first public treetop trail in North America, and the only one in the world in a subtropical forest! The park is located inland from Sarasota on the west coast of Florida. The 76-foot tower provides a 360-degree view of the wild and scenic Myakka River basin. Scientists have already made important discoveries about life in the oak and palm canopy. The bird’s eye view from the top of the tower is terrific! More info is at: http://www.myakkariver.org/index.php/activities-a-attractions/canopy-walkway

Sebastian Beach: Beautiful Blue Water

Adult Brown Pelican

Young Brown Pelican

Wood Stork

Black Skimmer and Royal Terns

The beaches are perfect here in Florida in January.  The view is absolutely gorgeous, and the birdlife is amazing.  Come and visit to enjoy the warm sunshine!

Scenic Pigeon Point Lighthouse

Pigeon Point Lighthouse with Yellow Buttercup Oxalis Flowers in Spring

Pigeon Point Lighthouse Coastline

Pigeon Point’s Perilous Rocky Coast

Pigeon Point Lighthouse Welcome Sign

Pigeon Point Lighthouse Tower and Flag

Pigeon Point Lighthouse Tower Front with Starburst

Pigeon Point Lighthouse Tower Back with Fence

Pigeon Point Lighthouse Fresnel Lens

Pigeon Point’s Ocean View

Harbor Seal on Rocks below Pigeon Point

Pigeon Point Lighthouse Tower in Fog with Sun Halo

Pigeon Point Lighthouse Tower Top with Fog Shadow and Rainbow Prism

Pigeon Point Lighthouse in Infrared

Pigeon Point Lighthouse is located along the scenic San Mateo coast south of San Francisco.  The lighthouse was built in 1872, and is named after the clipper ship “Carrier Pigeon” that went down off the point. The ship even had a gilded pigeon as its figurehead.  Pigeon Point’s original name was Whale Point, because whales are frequently seen offshore.

Pigeon Point Lighthouse is one of the tallest active lighthouses on the west coast (150 feet above sea level).  Its Fresnel lens flashes a rotating beam of light once every 10 seconds.  The lens has 1,008 glass prisms, and weighs over 4 tons! 

Sometimes light stations use fog horns in addition to light signals to warn ships away from the coast.  Early settlers around Pigeon Point Lighthouse described the fog horn as sounding like “an asthmatic old bovine” or “stuck hog”.  The light station’s dock was used by rumrunners and bootleggers during Prohibition in the 1920’s.  Tens of millions of dollars in whiskey were brought ashore during that period. 

The lighthouse is currently undergoing an $11 million restoration.  The first step (completed) was to remove the Fresnel lens from the tower and put it on temporary display in the Fog Signal Building.  The second step (underway) is to stabilize the tower.  The future third step will be complete restoration of the tower, which will begin once funding is secured.  Progress updates are available at:  http://www.calparks.org/programs/improving/pigeon-point-lighthouse.html

Blue Dasher Dragonfly

Dragonfly Eyes

Dragonfly Wing Veins

Dragonflies are amazing! They are one of nature’s fastest flying insects. They can fly up, down, and backward, and even hover like a helicopter. They only eat while flying, and can catch hundreds of mosquitoes per day. Their eyesight is exceptional. Their eyes have 30,000 lenses each, and they can see in almost every direction. Although modern dragonflies have a wing span of less than 8 inches, fossilized dragonflies had a wingspan of up to 2 feet. The details of the wing pattern are incredible!

Snooty and Coconut

Snooty Sign at Museum

Snooty is the world’s oldest manatee – he is 64 years old! Snooty was born on July 21, 1948, and lives at the South Florida Museum in Bradenton. Snooty is doing very well, and “corresponds” with children across the country. We enjoyed seeing Snooty play with a coconut.
More info is at: http://www.southfloridamuseum.org/TheAquarium/SnootyFacts.aspx
Snooty’s live cam is at: http://www.southfloridamuseum.org/TheAquarium/SnootyCam.aspx

Pebble Beach Overlook

Pebble Beach – Long Exposure

Rainbow Seaweed on Pebble Beach

Colorful Pebbles on Beach

Tafoni Rock Layers

Tafoni Rock with Mushroom Shape

Tafoni Rock Honeycomb Pattern

Tafoni Rock Filled with Pebbles

Close-Up of Colorful Pebbles

Pebble Beach/Bean Hollow State Beach (south of San Francisco) is famous for its tafoni rock and pebble-covered beach.  The lacework tafoni rock is soft sandstone that has been eroded by the wind and waves.  The colorful pebbles are composed of various rocks including green jade, red chert, white agate, jasper, moonstones, and petrified wood.  The rocks are washed in from an offshore Pleistocene-era gravel bed.  Many geological field trips come to this unique location.  More info is at:  http://science.kqed.org/quest/2011/03/03/geological-outings-around-the-bay-pebble-beach/

Tiffany Chapel

Tiffany Stained Glass: Feeding the Flamingoes

Tiffany Stained Glass Window

Tiffany Pottery (octopus bowl on right)

The Morse Museum (north of Orlando) has the most comprehensive Tiffany collection in the world! Objects on display include glass, pottery, jewelry, and paintings. Of special interest is the complete Byzantine chapel interior that was created for the Chicago’s World Fair in 1893. A personal favorite of mine is a stained glass window called “Feeding the Flamingoes”.
Tiffany’s life-long inspiration was nature. He described his Favrile glass as having “brilliant or deeply toned colors … iridescent like the wings of butterflies”. At the end of his career he summed up his life as a “Quest for Beauty”. More info on this spectacular collection is at: http://www.morsemuseum.org/

San Francisco MOMA Owl Painting

When we visited the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, I fell in love with one piece of art in particular by Joseph Cornell from 1957. The painting features an owl and is called “For Sale”.  The delightful text reads:
“FOR SALE. Sequestered bower – numerous compartments, look-outs, guest rooms, cozy nooks (feather-lined), pine-scented lounge, ivy-covered observatory for early dawn views and romantic sunsets, cheese cellar, moss-lined alcoves with dripping water and large variety of snails, cool storage, chalet-view of valley, bird’s eye view of old chateau inhabited by storks, aquarium in base of trunk with rare deep forest specimens, salamander’s crannies, violet-banked approaches, musical waterfalls, natural mineral specimens, and easy walking distance to enchanted lake.”

Sandhill Crane and Santa

A sandhill crane visited us on Christmas Eve, and posed for a picture with Santa. Hope your holidays are merry!

Merry Christmas Raccoons at our Florida Home

Holiday-Theme Horse at Half Moon Bay, California

Our Santa Teddy Bears

Christmas Tree at Fisherman’s Wharf, San Francisco

Christmas Tree at NASA Kennedy Space Center, Florida

Holiday Table at McKee Gardens, Florida

Merry Christmas Fruit Crate Label with Santa

Merry Christmas from Florida

Holiday scenes are all around.  Enjoy these pictures from coast to coast. Merry Christmas!

Sea Glass Christmas Tree Card

Sea Glass and Sea Shell Christmas Tree Card

Here are Christmas greeting cards that I designed made with sea glass we collected in California, and sea shells we collected in Florida. Happy Holidays!

Card #1 Missileland

Card #2 Spaceport and Moon

Card #3 Spaceport and Capsule

These vintage Christmas cards were created by NASA space artist Don Mackey in the 1960s and 1970s. I got the cards on eBay. Look closely for some really fun details.

Card #1 Missileland features a houseboat called the Indian River Queen.  The flying saucer is powered by Florida swamp gas. The artist himself is on the porch beside the pelican, and he is painting the missile launch. A Christmas tree is inside. Santa is on the roof in his long underwear playing cards with the aliens, and his outfit is hanging on the clothesline. On the lower right are leprechauns and an alligator in a Santa hat!

Card #2 Spaceport and Moon shows Santa with two aliens in a Model T sleigh with a surfboard on back. A sign on the Moon says “Snoopy was Here”! Running away from the reindeer is a little dog in a space helmet. The two aliens are digging up gold. The astronaut on the right has a box of Moon gold, and the astronaut on the left is filming the scene with a TV camera.  Perched on his back is a parrot in a space helmet.

Card #3 Spaceport and Capsule shows three aliens wearing Santa hats in a sleigh that says “Wide Load”. The astronauts in the capsule are waving, and one of them is filming the scene with a TV camera. At the back of the capsule is an antennae with an owl perched on it!

Ice Santa and Sleigh

Ice Santa with Cookies and Milk

Ice Deer in Woods

Ice Nativity

Ice Manger Scene

Ice Angel with Stars

Ice Choirs with Angel

Ice Choir Closeup

Ice Angel with Stained Glass

Ice Snowman

Ice Christmas Tree with Kitty

Ice Alligator

Ice Surfing Santa with Flamingo

Yes, Florida has ice sculptures too! Even when it is a warm sunny day outside, ice sculptures are on view inside at the Gaylord Palms Hotel in Orlando. It takes a month for artisans to carve the ice for the holiday exhibit. This year marks the show’s 10th anniversary. These sculptures are a few of my favorites over the years. More info is at: http://www.gaylordhotels.com/gaylord-palms/christmas-in-orlando/index.html

“I Dream of Jeannie” Display Memorabilia

“I Dream of Jeannie” Display Lunchbox

NASA Administration Building that was Model for Major Nelson’s Workplace

Former Cocoa Beach Street Sign in Honor of Show

New Cocoa Beach Sign Dedicated to Show

As a kid I sat entranced as I watched man take his first steps on the moon in 1969. I watched that fuzzy image on TV all day long and just couldn’t get enough. Then I found a television show that I fell in love with and still enjoy to this day – “I Dream of Jeannie”. The comedy starred Barbara Eden as a genie named Jeannie, and Larry Hagman as an Air Force astronaut named Major Tony Nelson. The series was set in Cocoa Beach, Florida, and centered on activities at the nearby Space Center.
In honor of this fame, Cocoa Beach recently erected a sign at Lori Wilson Park (it replaced the former I Dream of Jeannie Lane sign). There is even a display dedicated to the show at the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Museum at the Launch 26 Blockhouse (http://www.afspacemuseum.org/displays/Jeannie/). You can view the display on Kennedy Space Center’s Cape Canaveral: Then and Now Tour  (http://www.kennedyspacecenter.com/cape-canaveral-then-now.aspx).