Dot com status

Please visit my new website:http://www.trudybentleyrech.com/
I am looking forward to growing more professionally. I hope you will check out this new site often. I will be updating it at least weekly. For now, it may be daily in the fashion of Blogs!

Big Cypress Fox Squirrel

This critter is a threatened species in south Florida. He visited earlier this week and graced one of our pond cypress trees with his presence. I have shared this image with the Florida Master Naturalist Program for their educational use. I retain all rights to this picture in all other circumstances. To learn more about the Master Naturalist program, visit this great website linked below. I have shared other nature photos with other naturalists via this page in the past.
http://www.masternaturalist.ifas.ufl.edu/index.htm
The scientific name for this large rare fellow is Sciurus niger avicennia. Google this name and learn more about this treatened mammal. You can click on the image to enlarge it and then hit the back button to come back to this page.

This drawing represents the interest I have in nature around me. It is a drawing of a fallen sabal palmetto frond. The sabal palm is Florida's state tree.

The Natural History of Florida is of great interest to me. I love living in an area where I have native plants and some critters in my own yard.
There is at least one gopher tortoise burrow in our front yard. The animal can be seen infrequently in the yard and neighborhood. It is a joy to watch him.
I am a Florida Master Naturalist. Check out this link on the program to view more information about the program. Several of my photos were chosen for the featured species and appear currently in the picture archives.
http://www.masternaturalist.ifas.ufl.edu/index.htm

Decide to expand the blog into another area of interest which fuels a lot of my imagery. This area is about the REAL Florida.