The Eye of a Killer

In some parts of the Fakahatchee Strand in the northwestern Florida Everglades, it is very common to wade into areas heavily populated with alligators...

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Wood Stork

A creature so prehistoric-looking and unusual, with the added bonus of some involvement I had with a special project including video.

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Eaton's Ladies'-Tresses Orchid

A very rare orchid that I found quite by accident in a typical North Florida long-leaf pine scrub near the Gulf coast...

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We are extremely happy and proud to announce a new way of providing you with the very best professional prints for your office, home or gallery. Now we are offering not only prints, but a whole new range of customized frames, mats, and other accessories! All prints are shipped within three business days and come with a no questions asked 30 day return policy.

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…Notes from the Field is our brand new and updated blog (complete with a new look) that will relate experiences and stories about photographing all that is wild in Florida. It has replaced our “New Photos” page, and all of our new images will be presented here - including stories of what was involved to get these shots - camera tips and tricks for other photographers who really enjoy nature and the outdoors and want to learn more. You might even get a chuckle or two out of it!

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Birds

• Great horned and barred owls are courting; listen for their hooting.
• Belted kingfishers become more common as winter migrants join resident populations.
• Goldfinches are plentiful in North Florida.
• Nesting season begins for ospreys in South Florida.
• In North Florida, bald eagles start hatching about Christmas day.
• Snail kites gather in large south Florida roosts, as courtship and nesting activity begins.
• This is the best time for watching waterfowl on wetlands, lakes, and prairies.
• Yellow-rumped warblers will show-up at feeders if it is cold enough.

Mammals

• Right whales appear off east coast, north of Sebastian Inlet.
• During cold spells, manatees congregate at natural springs and industrial warm water sites.
• Bears are still on the move. Watch out for them in Lake, Collier, Marion, Highlands, Jefferson, Gulf, Volusia and Hernando counties.
• Opossum breeding now through mid-summer.

Fish

• Oscars abundant in Everglades Water Conservation Area canals, taking worms, crickets, and beetle spins.

Orchids

• Look for the diminutive Ionopsis utricularoides, as it will start to spike and bloom high in the trees above in the sloughs of SW Florida.
• Southern Twayblades begin to blossom in wooded areas of North and Central Florida. Look carefully - they blend well with their surroundings!

Data provided in part by UF Florida Wildlife Extension

FloridaNaturePhotography is a part of Leighton Photography & Imaging - our local photography business based in Tallahassee, Fl. Nature photography is a large part of what we do, but we are by no means limited to just that. Click HERE to find out more about our company.

Our photographs not related to nature photography can be seen HERE in our online gallery, or through Fine Art America.

If you are or represent a gallery, publisher/publication, exhibition, event, vendor/reseller, or any other group interested in our work, please contact Rich or Galina Leighton HERE for more information.

Updates

I have the great honor to announce that my whooping crane photograph taken in 2008 in Central Florida was selected to be in the 2011 National Audubon Society calendar! Read more about it HERE.



We were the feature story in "Getaways by Design - The Online Magazine for Florida Travel" and it was a great opportunity to tell a little about our nature photography. Read it here - "Interview with Rich Leighton of Florida Nature Photography" by Marcus Adkins.