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Nature Notes: Giant Swallowtail Butterfly

We had a little bit of a cool spell over the last weekend – for us. Listen, wherever you live, when the low is 82º one night and 55º the next, it feels a heck of a lot colder than the temperatures alone, sound!

Sly, discovering MJ’s bathrobe, or as we like to call it, the “mobile blankie.”
And no, we didn’t put him there – he crawled in there all by himself!

I looked out the window, Sunday morning, and saw this:

Giant Swallowtail Butterfly


This must be an old, slow Swallowtail, because I have never had one hold still for its close-up before. I think that maybe the sudden temperature drop must have taken it by surprise, too, because it seemed all too happy to hang out, take in a little South Florida sunshine, and maybe have a snack.

Pavonia Bahamensis


This shrub is a relative of the Hibiscus, and is actually native to the Bahamas, but is naturalized here. It’s a great favorite of the bees and hummingbirds (when we get them… but I haven’t spotted any yet – insert frowny face here).

Northern Mockingbird

While I stood there, waiting to see if the Swallowtail would hold still, this young mockingbird popped out of the Pavonia, not three feet away from me, decided that I was no threat, and unconcernedly began snacking on the Beautyberry.

Even though the temperatures will be back up to 90º by the weekend (just in time for my niece’s outdoor wedding – pray for rain!), the signs of fall are beginning to make themselves known.

Please feel free to click on the photos – I’ve resized them larger than usual, so you can really get into the details!

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Michelle at Rambling Woods is hosting Nature Notes: Signs of the Season, a weekly meme dedicated to challenging us to take a moment out of our hectic lives and notice the seasonal changes – large and small – taking place in nature all around each of us, in our own little corners of the world. Please visit Michelle and all the other participants, and maybe take some of your own Nature Notes!

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Comments

  1. Does your niece really want me to pray for rain for her wedding?I suppose when the temperature dips for you, it is quite pleasant!(my nature notes is not yet up…got pics but no post yet-maybe by tomorrow?)

  2. I wondered the same thing about the rain. Perhaps you would prefer to move the wedding indoors? Coming from the Midwest, that sort of temperature range is normal, but still shocking. I can appreciate how much more shocking it might be for everyone down in your neck of the woods!

  5. Your kitty is so cute, warming up like that! Enjoyed the capture of the butterfly and the bird. I see so many birds from inside my home, but opening the door scares them away, of course. Our bird feeders are gone due to raccoons so I suppose I need to read a book and wait quietly with a tripod!

  11. Sly makes me think back to when the tabbyous pestius were kittens here. They still love a warm robe. You will be able to have things for Nature Notes for a long time in Florida RJ…. Michelle