Red Spotted Purple Admiral

I always seem to find the most beautiful additions to my bug collection when I spend a few days at home!  My dad spotted this one lounging on the side of our house while we were sitting on the porch.  Lying with his wings flat against the brick wall the iridescent aqua and teal colors caught my eye, but it wasn't until my dachshund, Snickers, sniffed the butterfly that he lifted his wings showing off the brilliant orange spots in defense.   The Red-spotted Purple Admiral (Limenitis Arthemis) mimics the poisonous Pipevine Swallowtail butterfly in design so predators will be less likely to attack.

These butterflies are common throughout most of the eastern United States and since males perch 3 feet or more above ground on trees, tall bushes, or dirt and rarely patrol for the slightly larger females, I think this one was definitely a boy since he was alone and sitting about four feet off the cement on the brick wall.  I was thrilled when he stayed in his stance and allowed me to get a close as I wanted, resulting in some bold and vibrant photographs of him!  He is a beautiful addition of my bug collection for a hot summer day after 17 days straight of rain in North Carolina!

Seaquarium

Let me just start off by immediately saying: I love aquariums!  I can never go to too many of them.  They are all completely different and I'm always so excited for an aquarium trip.  This summer the Greensboro Science Center (formerly the Natural Science Center) is opening their brand new addition of a Sciquarium!  And it's literally a half mile from my apartment, so I'm pretty excited to spend many summer afternoons there!  

I don't really know when my amazement of aquariums started.  I'm not a big beach-goer, and I hate going deep into the ocean, as a matter of fact I won't get any further than my knees unless I'm endlessly coaxed and my hand is held.  But yet I love watching the water and the things that live in it.  I certainly have a deep respect their space and their world. 

Vlad and I spent an entire day at the Miami Seaquarium, taking in dolphin and killer whale trick shows and watching the sea lions show off for their audiences. But my favorite part of the day by far was hand feeding pieces of fish to the sting rays.  It was an unbelievable feeling being able to stroke their backs as they swam by.  I thought they would be slimy, like many water-dwelling creatures, but instead they were soft, like silk streaming by the tips of your fingers.  The sting rays were definitely one of the biggest highlights of my entire Florida trip!  

I hope you find something that can connect you back to mother nature as this warmer season begins.  It certainly reminds you of the bigger picture and lets you remember how to look at the small things with a greater appreciation.

Days by the Sea

It's still fairly cold in North Carolina during March. Today it was only 33 degrees when I left for work this morning, so a week in sunny Florida spoiled me!  I'm so ready to feel 70 degrees again I can barely stand it!  While it wasn't quite warm enough to spend everyday beachside, it still was nice enough to go one day and just feel the sand between my toes!  We spent an afternoon lounging in the sunshine and another one walking up to the lighthouse and seeing it all from above so here are my photos from my days by the sea.

We went to the historic Cape Florida lighthouse that's located in Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park in Key Biscayne.  It was original built in 1825 and reconstructed in 1846 and is actually the oldest standing structure in Miami-Dade county.  The view from the top was breathtaking with the stunning teal ocean and brilliant green palm trees in every direction!  If you haven't gotten ready for spring yet, these photos will surely make you want to start!  Happy Wednesday everyone!