red mangrove in bloom!

amazing to see the red mangroves bloom... and in/under saltwater! I am blown away by natures designs once again...

golden chalice vine and snails!

The golden chalice vine, which I had mistakenly called a night bloomer on this blog, always blows me away. Each flower is about 10-12 inches long and one will often find the sidewalk littered with their fallen blossoms. Naturally, one throws them in their bike basket to take home and further investigate, slice open and whatnot. After sitting on my desk for a bit, this handsome snail emerged. Hello! Seems like a lovely home, a golden chalice vine blossom. After marvelling at his grace and movements, he spent the night at the pineapple cottage with me, and it the morning, went to live in some foliage out front. Good luck!
ps this all reminds me of Joel Beverly a member of the river farm who is a biologist. He and his wife Amelia came down to key west for an impromptu visit. He specializes in bats, but oh boy, does he have a thing for snails and was more often than not seen emerging from the undergrowth with a handful of snail shells he had just uncovered. He really put them on my radar, Thanks Joel!