Wetland Wildflowers

Friday morning at the park

I drove over to Orlando Wetlands Park last Friday morning and walked around the 2.5 mile 'Birding Route' foot path. I arrived around 9 am and though the wildlife would be long gone, but once again this urban oasis didn't disappoint me. I saw the usual alligators, including one that posed with some flowers, as well as many herons, egrets, ducks, etc. New for me this visit were some Sandhill Cranes, and a raccoon. I was walking quietly down the middle of the path taking pictures when the raccoon came around the corner. It had it's head down and I took several photos before it looked up. It did a double take, decided it didn't like what it saw, and took off pretty quickly. There were also a tremendous number of dragon flies out there. I'm worried that this means the lovebug season will be especially bad for us here in Florida this year. The highlight of this trip was the many varieties of flowers in bloom. It made for a very colorful stroll. The biggest problem this time of year is that our weather is turning very hot. By the time I left the park to head home around 11 am the temperature was approaching 90 degrees. Get out early and get back inside while it's still cool.