Beaches and Coasts

Lakes and Rivers

Forests

Inland

Everglades

Panoramas

Black and White

Florida is world-renowned for its beautiful landscapes. With over 1350 miles of coastline from the Atlantic Ocean to the Florida Keys to the northern Gulf of Mexico, there are an incredible number of unique and beautiful habitats, especially in the Florida Everglades. We also have thousands of islands, lakes and rivers (many of those are spring-fed) and of course our unique forest habitats from Central and Northern Florida down to our oak and scrub pinelands. The following galleries have a little bit of everything that the best of Sunshine State landscapes have to offer.

Brushfoots

Gossamer Wings

Swallowtails

Skippers

Sulphurs and Whites

Moths

Did you know that Florida is home to over 1,320 species of butterflies and moths? That number is still growing with careful and painstaking research, more new species are being discovered all the time!

Anhingas, Cormorants

Birds of Prey

Carrion Birds

Coots, Rails

Cranes, Limpkins

Ducks, Geese

Egrets, Herons

Gulls, Terns

Shorebirds

Songbirds

Spoonbills, Storks

Woodpeckers

When it comes to birds, the Sunshine State is fantastically rich in species diversity. The geography of Florida’s Peninsula creates a natural migratory route for millions of birds each year as they head south over the Caribbean towards Central and South America (and back). While some species are found all around the world, we are lucky to have 196 species of birds that live and breed in Florida.

Deer

Pigs

Rabbits and Hares

Manatees

Squirrels

Raccoons

Armadillos

We mammals have come a long way since the time of the dinosaurs. Since those times, we’ve conquered the land, sea and air. Florida has at least 99 species of mammals living, breeding and thriving today.

Crustaceans

Dragonflies

Grasshoppers, Locusts

Spiders

Snails, Mollusks

Other Invertebrates

96% of all currently living animal lifeforms alive today are invertebrates. Included are all the insects, arachnids, worms, crabs, shellfish, starfish, corals, and more! One thing they all have in common? No backbone.

Alligators, Crocodiles

Lizards

Snakes

Turtles, Tortoises

Long before the first dinosaur walked the earth, reptiles ruled the world. 65 million years after the last dinosaur drew its final breath, North America’s modern crocodiles, alligators, snakes, lizards, and turtles and tortoises are still keeping our Florida natural history alive!

Tree Frogs

Toads

Did you know the word “amphibian” means “two lives”? All amphibians start their lives in the underwater, but after they go through a series of metamorphosis stages to adulthood, most trade gills for lungs and live the rest of their lives out of the water. Florida is home to 33 native and non-native species of frogs and toads, and many more species of salamanders, newts and sirens!

Arethuseae

Calypsoeae

Cranichideae

Cymbidieae

Epidendreae

Malaxideae

Maxillarieae

Neottieae

Orchideae

Pogoniinae

Polystachyeae

Triphoreae

Vandeae

Vanilleae

One of the largest families in the plant kingdom with nearly 28 thousand species around the globe, orchids are also one of the most popular and most sought-after flowering plants in history. In Victorian times, entire foreign expeditions were sent around the world at great personal risk led by fearless (and often ruthless) orchid hunters to acquire the next new unknown exotic species from the most distant corner of the Earth. Luckily for us, Florida is rich with unique native species found nowhere else in the world!

Wildflowers by Color

Wildflowers by Family

By far our largest collection of galleries, these wildflower image sets are arranged by both color and by taxonomic family for use as a casual identification tool or field guide, or for more thorough scientific research for deeper understanding.

Pitcher Plants

Venus Flytraps

Bladderworts

Butterworts

Sundews

Sometimes called insectivorous plants, these amazing plants have adapted to a life in places where the soil is so poor in nutrients, that they’ve gained the ability to grow by trapping their food with modified leaves. By taking root in a harsh habitat, they have eliminated most of their competition from other plants.

Bromeliads

Mushrooms

Plants

Saprophytes

This last and final collection of galleries include all the non-wildflower images such as our native trees, ferns, palms, fruits and berries, cacti, saprophytes, mosses, bromeliads and more!
The Eye of a Killer

The Eye of a Killer

Feb 4, 2013

Every once in a while I go through my old images and find one I can't believe I missed..... but better late than never! Check out this juvenile alligator, it's got the eyes of a killer! American Alligator  ~ click to enlarge ~ In some parts of the Fakahatchee Strand...

Profiles in Nature #2 – Wood Stork

Profiles in Nature #2 – Wood Stork

Nov 1, 2012

Welcome to the second article of my new series, “Profiles in Nature”.  Thank you so much to everybody for the overwhelming response I received on the first post, I wracked my brain to make sure I followed up with an even better offering and I think I've done so with a...

Orchid Hunting in the Florida Everglades

Orchid Hunting in the Florida Everglades

Aug 2, 2012

Orchids. Just the very word brings to mind a vision of exotic color, delightful texture and fantastic shapes, and the scent of consummate and delicious fragrances. Often it evokes feelings of peaceful reflection, caring, and a love for nature's most wondrous flowers....

American Caesar’s Mushroom

American Caesar’s Mushroom

Nov 12, 2011

Sometimes I find a beautiful specimen in nature that I simply just can't identify. Tonight I finally identified a beautiful red mushroom I photographed five years ago in Fakahatchee Strand of Southwest Florida's Western Everglades. I knew immediately it was an...

A Face only a Mother Could Love

A Face only a Mother Could Love

Nov 7, 2011

Vultures: nature's clean-up crew, scavengers, the nastiest animals alive - whatever you want to call them, they are essential in the promoting health and well-being in nature. They eat the dead, and thus prevent the diseases and harmful germs of rotting and...

Feels Like Home…..

Feels Like Home…..

Oct 24, 2011

Short post for today. Sometimes we make a couple of mistakes in making a photograph, but see so much in it that we still like that we decide to try do a little digital magic to flush out what it was that we like and cover up the mistake(s). ~ click to enlarge ~ That...

My Orchid Photos on Permanent Display in the Ocala National Forest!

My Orchid Photos on Permanent Display in the Ocala National Forest!

Sep 20, 2011

This is pretty cool. Last year I was contacted by the Florida Department of Forestry about a project they were doing in the Ocala National Forest. It seemed they were making some new trails and wanted to add some informative signs and markers along the way to help and inform hikers and visitors as to what they were seeing. Someone in their department had seen my native orchid images and wanted to know about getting an extended license to use them for public display.

In a Flash of Pink – Roseate Spoonbill!

In a Flash of Pink – Roseate Spoonbill!

May 26, 2011

Anyone who has ever tried to walk through mangroves tracking a roseate spoonbill – never mind with a backpack full of photography gear and holding a camera – knows that it is not easy. Twisted above-ground roots and protruding rhizomes make any travel slightly faster...

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