A long-tailed skipper with its silvery proboscis extended.

RCS500979LongtailedSkipperproboscisRobScharpf

A loggerhead shrike staring at the camera. I imagine this is the last view of the shrike that some bug sees before the shrike zooms down with its formidable beak to snatch the bug for dinner.

RCS501182LoggerheadShrikeRobScharpfMoccasinIslandTractVieraFL

Loggerhead shrike with meal. As I was saying, ...

RCS501185LoggerheadShrikeRobScharpfMoccasinIslandTractVieraFL

Is that a little bulge in this loggerhead shrike’s belly?

RCS501190LoggerheadShrikeRobScharpfMoccasinIslandTractVieraFL

A different kind of bird, one without a formidable beak. By its markngs, this is a former American Airlines DC-3, now part of the Valiant Air Command Warbird Museum in Titusville, FL. I couldn’t find any reference to this bird in my bird books.

RCS501289AmericanAirlinesRobScharpfDC3ValiantAirCommandWarbirdMuseum

This was a pretty sunset taken from the Moccasin Island Tract in Viera, FL, to which I added a little creativity.

RCS501305creativeSunsetRaysRobScharpfMoccasinIslandTractVieraFL

This very young great horned owl chick was hatched in a nest in a tree just a few feet from the windows of the admin building at the Brevard Community College (recently renamed Eastern Florida State College) in Melbourne, FL. So this is a city slicker owl.

RCS501874BabyGreatHornedOwlRobScharpfBrevard Community CollegeBCCCampus

This John Doe (unknown) bug is crouched head down on a dowel I use in my backyard as a dragonfly perch. The dowel is 5/16" in diameter, so the bug is, in actuality, just under ½" long. I thought maybe it was a stick bug or a thorn bug, and while there are stick bugs and thorn bugs, they both look far different from John Doe here.

RCS501900UnknownInsectRobScharpf

This cute yellow-rumped warbler (I don’t know if it’s male or female) is rather plump, and appears to be wearing a top coat. So I’m calling it “Churchill.” I photographed it at the Tosohatchee Wildlife Management Area by Christmas, FL.

RCS501950YellowrumpedWarblerRobScharpfTosoTosohatcheeWMA

Another yellow-rumped warbler, this one with apparently different coloring due to the different light. And for those photographers who are ready to jump on me (as I jump on them) for the “Photoshopped” blue sky, I tell you it is the natural blue as taken from my camera.

RCS501982YellowrumpedWarblerRobScharpfTosoTosohatcheeWMA

And a third yellow-rumped warbler, this one in a bit cuter pose than the other two.

RCS502005YellowrumpedWarblerRobScharpfTosoTosohatcheeWMA

The American bittern is a fantastic bird, from its “gunk-ge-goonk” call to its swaying in the wind to mimic the reeds it hides in. I first saw one in May, 1967, while tent camping at Lewey Lake in the Adirondacks, and its sound was like no other creature I had ever heard. When an adult flies it looks like a feathered ball on a skewer, with a ball of feathers from which extend its neck and head to the front and its legs to the rear. I'm captivated by this bird.

RCS502029AmericanBitternRobScharpfTosoTosohatcheeWMA

This is the same American bittern as in the previous photo, but from a different angle. Its stripes and other markings, as well as the angle it holds its head, provide it good camouflage so it can avoid predators while sneaking up on prey. You can hear its call (different from what I remember) here: http://identify.whatbird.com/obj/33/_/American_Bittern.aspx. Scroll down to the "Songs and Calls" section and click on the "Play" icon to the right of the loudspeaker symbol. DON'T CLICK on the big, green button; IT IS AN AD.

RCS502039AmericanBitternRobScharpfTosoTosohatcheeWMA

Yup, a turtle. At Tosohatchee. This specimen doesn’t have enough yellow stripes on its legs or head for me to make a positive identification, but I’m leaning toward a peninsula cooter.

RCS502071TurtleRobScharpfTosoTosohatcheeWMA

Another critter with a hard (multi-plated) shell, an armadillo. This is the best photo I've ever taken of an armadillo because either it is running away from me so I get a butt shot, or it is looking for food by turning up the ground with its nose, covering its face with dirt, leaves, and grass. And I don't like photographing animals in zoos; where's the challenge?

RCS502092ArmadilloRobScharpfTosoTosohatcheeWMA

My friend Ursula told me this is a Forster's tern. It's a pretty bird, and I'm very happy to have taken a decent shot of it in flight.
Ursula is an excellent photographer. Her website is here:
http://www.udubrickphotos.com/

RCS502116Forster'sTernFlightRobScharpfTosoTosohatcheeWMA