Weather for This Week and Last Week

Last week we got 1 inch of rain, and this week we got about 1 inch of rain. Not as much as we have been having, but its something.It doesn't look like we will be having much this week. The rain chance it only 20% for most of the week.

Lettuce Lake Park, 5-24-09

Today was a beautiful day at the park. We walked along the boardwalk and saw some familiar critters. There were still a lot of lovebugs, a blue tailed skink, bees, wasps, snakebirds, etc. This week we also saw a water water moccasin.

Here are the photos of the river:

Water Moccasin Catching Some Morning Sun

Here is our water moccasin:

Weather Report for Last Week

Yes, I know I am a little late. Sorry about that! OK. Last week we had almost 6 inches of rain. Finally the rainy season is upon us. We really needed the rain. The river was even higher when we went to the park Sunday, so I think that the rain is helping.

Last but not Least......

Mr. Spider here getting ready to enjoy his dinner:

Possibly Malacasoma Americana

We think we have identified these beauties as Malacasoma Americana, more commonly known as tent caterpillars.

Red Admiral or Vanessa Atalanta Butterfly

Captured video of this beautiful butterfly at Lettuce Lake Park on May 17, 2009. The Red Admiral or Vanessa atalanta (previously also known as Pyrameis atalanta) is a well-known colourful butterfly, found in temperate Europe, Asia and North America. The species is resident only in warmer areas, but migrates north in spring, and sometimes again in autumn.

Love Bugs Enjoying Some Nectar at the Park

As promised, the Love Bug video:

Sunday, May 17, 20009

These pictures are taken from the same locations as last week in an effort to show the changes in the river throughout the year:






Sunday was a great day for a walk. The love bugs had calmed down but were still out and about. There had been some discussion as to whether or not they actually ate anything. In a video we will post, it appears that they do eat nectar. We will also post a video of a spider eating love bugs. Ah, the circle of life goes on.

Rainfall Last Week

Last week when we took our picture there was hardly any water. It was all dry, but then we started to get rain almost every day. Last week we got 2.76 inches of rain. That really helped make the water level higher. We could still use more rain, but its a start.

Love Bugs at Lettuce Lake Park

Here is a video to try and give you an idea of how many love bugs we encountered. This is just a small sampling. There were actually more at the observation deck.

Mother's Day at Lettuce Lake Park

Lots of love bugs today. We noticed that they were mainly in the sunny parts of the boardwalk. They must love the sun. Also saw wild turkeys, a pileated woodpecker, a snake bird and ducks. We plan to return once a week to monitor the progress of the Hillsborough River from the observation deck and boardwalk. As you will see in these photos, there isn't very much river to look at right now. Pretty scary when you consider that a great deal of our drinking water comes from this river.