floridensis
wildlife & nature photography by janson jones
Basiliscus vittatus (juvenile), 21 January 2017
Basiliscus vittatus, the Brown basilisk (juvenile);
Broward county, Florida (21 January 2017).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Aramus guarauna, 07 June 2013
Aramus guarauna, the Limpkin;
Lake county, Florida (07 June 2013).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Pelecanus occidentalis, 11 August 2015
Pelecanus occidentalis, the Brown pelican;
Volusia county, Florida (11 August 2015).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Protonotaria citrea, 10 April 2016
Protonotaria citrea, the Prothontary warbler;
Lake county, Florida (10 April 2016).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
AKtoFL: Alces alces, 31 May 2011
Alces alces, the Moose
Denali Borough, Alaska (31 May 2011).
Day 01 of the 2011 Roadtrip from Alaska to Florida (Mile ~0245 of 7221).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Though not remarkable having just lived in Anchorage for four years, I was delighted to find a moose chilling out near the entrance of Denali National Park. Back in Anchorage, we’d routinely have them foraging around our yard, neighborhood, and campus. Damn near anywhere, actually… Still, seeing one near the entrance to Denali proper was fitting. So very “Alaska.”
AKtoFL: Alongside the Parks Highway, Alaska (31 May 2011)
Alongside the Parks Highway
Denali Borough, Alaska (31 May 2011).
Day 01 of the 2011 Roadtrip from Alaska to Florida (Mile 0219 of 7221).
I remember thinking of the seeming-fragility of utility lines in the rocky climes of Alaska. What a tough place to scratch out an electrified civilization. There’s a reason the vast of majority of Alaska remains undeveloped.
AKtoFL: The Chulitna River in Alaska (31 May 2011)
The Chulitna River
Denali Borough, Alaska (31 May 2011).
Day 01 of the 2011 Roadtrip from Alaska to Florida (Mile 0219 of 7221).
Creeping closer and closer to Denali National Park, here’s another view of the Chulitna River. What a fantastic backdrop, right?
AKtoFL: The Igloo Lodge in Alaska (31 May 2011)
The Igloo Lodge & Gas Station
Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska (31 May 2011).
Day 01 of the 2011 Roadtrip from Alaska to Florida (Mile 0190 of 7221).
As you trudge north along the Parks Highway from Wasilla to Fairbanks, you’ll eventually pass a funky little building on your right. This is the “Igloo Lodge,” the defunct dream of one Leon Smith, an intrepid developer who spent a significant portion of the latter 20th century gradually building his would-be destination vacation hot-spot just south of Denali. Smith eventually retired his mission in 1996 and, sadly, passed away three years later; the lodge was never completed. Since then, the Igloo Lodge has languished through Alaska’s seasonal turns, biding its time in whatever time it has left on this planet. It would be safe to wager a bet that this is the most-photographed igloo-lodge in Alaska.
Read more about Leon Smith’s dream and the legacy of the Igloo at Vice.
AKtoFL: Hurricane Gulch, Alaska (31 May 2011)
Hurricane Gulch
Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska (31 May 2011).
Day 01 of the 2011 Roadtrip from Alaska to Florida (Mile 0175 of 7221).
A view of Hurricane Creek from atop one of the two Hurricane Gulch bridges. Residual snow in Alaskan ravines persists deeper into the summer because it’s protected from much of the day’s direct sunlight.
AKtoFL: Hurricane Gulch, Alaska (31 May 2011)
Hurricane Gulch
Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska (31 May 2011).
Day 01 of the 2011 Roadtrip from Alaska to Florida (Mile 0175 of 7221).
Hurricane Creek is a tributary of the Chulitna River and a deeply-carved facet of Hurricane Gulch. As you head north toward Denali, whether by rail or by automobile, you’ll pass over Hurricane Gulch on one of its two bridges (one for automobiles, the other for trains) — spectacular set of bridges over a spectacularly impressive ravine.
Anisomorpha buprestoides, 08 August 2013
Anisomorpha buprestoides, the Southern two-striped walking stick;
Volusia county, Florida (08 August 2013).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Anisomorpha buprestoides, 08 August 2013
Anisomorpha buprestoides, the Southern two-striped walking stick;
Volusia county, Florida (08 August 2013).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Anisomorpha buprestoides, 08 August 2013
Anisomorpha buprestoides, the Southern two-striped walking stick;
Volusia county, Florida (08 August 2013).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Happy Star Wars Day! 19 December 2019
Alas, today is the day Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker officially hits theaters, the final of the so-called “Skywalker Saga” films. We have our tickets booked for the first screening later this evening. In our family, this is a thang. It’s been a long time coming, so we’re pausing the Floridensis bio-roll today to celebrate the lightsaber mayhem.
Pictured above and below-left are scenes from my 6th birthday party in the late 1970s (back when everything was shaggier and yellower). I’m the Stormtrooper-looking runt; my brother is Luke. As for Leia, that was our friend and neighbor, Jennifer. The original Star Wars (back when it was simply called “Star Wars”) was released in May of 1977. Needless to say, it made quite the impression on our wee little-kid minds and dominated more than a few childhood (and adult) birthday parties in our lives.
As for the fire-and-saber kid featured below, that’s my daughter, Aurelia Zora, rocking the Rey-vibe back in 2016 (after The Force Awakens came out but before The Last Jedi); she was eight at the time, a few clicks older than myself in the stormtrooper gear back in the 1970s. She went straight for the light. I apparently was the one who went straight for the dark side with that pseudo-stormtrooper outfit.
Anyhow, if Star Wars has had a role in your imaginative and fantastical experience of life upon this hurling Starkiller Base we call Earth, I hope you and yours have a fun time with Episode IX. There’s been a depressing torrent of toxic rage within the online/fan communities in recent years, but I try not to pay them too much mind. Life is too short, and there’s much to cherish in the fantastical morality plays Star Wars has given us over the years (along with endless merchandising glory, of course).
If you love it: Awesome!
If you don’t love it: Well, that’s okay, too!
Okay, let’s do this thing!
Palpatine awaits!
Unlimited Power!
We’ll kick back in with the biota-photo-roll tomorrow.
Thalasseus maximus, 11 August 2015
Thalasseus maximus, the Royal tern;
Volusia county, Florida (11 August 2015).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Calidris mauri, 11 August 2015
Calidris mauri, the Western sandpiper;
Volusia county, Florida (11 August 2015).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Tringa semipalmata, 11 August 2015
Tringa semipalmata, the Willet;
Volusia county, Florida (11 August 2015).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Ophisaurus ventralis, 01 October 2012
Ophisaurus ventralis, the Eastern glass lizard;
Lowndes county, Georgia (01 October 2012).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Ophisaurus ventralis, 01 October 2012
Ophisaurus ventralis, the Eastern glass lizard;
Lowndes county, Georgia (01 October 2012).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Leptuca pugilator, 01 July 2019
Leptuca pugilator, the Atlantic sand fiddler crab;
Flagler county, Florida (01 July 2019).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Nerodia fasciata pictiventris, 20 March 2015
Nerodia fasciata pictiventris, the Florida banded watersnake;
Collier county, Florida (20 March 2015).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Nerodia fasciata pictiventris, 20 March 2015
Nerodia fasciata pictiventris, the Florida banded watersnake;
Collier county, Florida (20 March 2015).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Nerodia fasciata pictiventris, 20 March 2015
Nerodia fasciata pictiventris, the Florida banded watersnake;
Collier county, Florida (20 March 2015).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
AKtoFL: Lupinus arcticus (31 May 2011)
Lupinus arcticus, the Arctic lupine
Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska (31 May 2011).
Day 01 of the 2011 Roadtrip from Alaska to Florida (Mile 0163 of 7221).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
My oh my, how I loved lupine. A tremendously gorgeous plant quite abundant throughout much of Alaska. Its vibrant purples play brilliantly with the surrounding deep greens.
AKtoFL: Denali State Park, North (31 May 2011)
Denali State Park North
Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska (31 May 2011).
Day 01 of the 2011 Roadtrip from Alaska to Florida (Mile 0163 of 7221).
A zoomed shot of the Alaska range hovering over and blocking the low horizon to the west. Note the sandy drop at the bottom right. A chunk of hill essentially slid downward leaving an exposed mini-cliff of sorts — a common feature in Alaska’s hillier forests.
AKtoFL: Denali State Park, North (31 May 2011)
Denali State Park North
Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska (31 May 2011).
Day 01 of the 2011 Roadtrip from Alaska to Florida (Mile 0163 of 7221).
A wider angled lens would do this more justice, but here’s Big Sky hovering over Denali State Park, Northern section. Damn near everything felt vast in Alaska — whether the water, the mountains, the forests, or the skies…
AKtoFL: Denali State Park, North (31 May 2011)
Denali State Park North
Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska (31 May 2011).
Day 01 of the 2011 Roadtrip from Alaska to Florida (Mile 0163 of 7221).
A slightly yellower portion of forest at Denali State Park, Northern section. Much of the ground you see here is inundated with seasonal melt, with standing water. The ground can be extremely mushy underfoot, and summertime hiking can be an unpredictable and wet affair.
AKtoFL: Denali State Park, North (31 May 2011)
Denali State Park North
Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska (31 May 2011).
Day 01 of the 2011 Roadtrip from Alaska to Florida (Mile 0163 of 7221).
A forested view from the edge of Denali National Park (Northern section). People tend to think of gray and white when they think of Alaska, of rocks and snow, but I was always bewildered by the amazing array of greens — in both the summer and the winter.
AKtoFL: The Parks Highway (31 May 2011)
The Parks Highway
Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska (31 May 2011).
Day 01 of the 2011 Roadtrip from Alaska to Florida (Mile 0140 of 7221).
Cruising northbound on Parks Highway, headed closer to Denali National Park, I had to stop to simply admire the road and its scenic surroundings. I love Florida, and I’m a Floridian swamprat at heart, but I did enjoy roadcruising Alaska. Absolutely stunning.
Nerodia fasciata pictiventris, 20 March 2015
Nerodia fasciata pictiventris, the Florida banded watersnake;
Collier county, Florida (20 March 2015).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Nerodia fasciata pictiventris, 20 March 2015
Nerodia fasciata pictiventris, the Florida banded watersnake;
Collier county, Florida (20 March 2015).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Nerodia fasciata pictiventris, 20 March 2015
Nerodia fasciata pictiventris, the Florida banded watersnake;
Collier county, Florida (20 March 2015).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Alligator mississippiensis, 11 June 2016
Alligator mississippiensis, the American alligator;
Miami-Dade county, Florida (11 June 2016).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Alligator mississippiensis, 11 June 2016
Alligator mississippiensis, the American alligator;
Miami-Dade county, Florida (11 June 2016).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
Alligator mississippiensis, 11 June 2016
Alligator mississippiensis, the American alligator;
Miami-Dade county, Florida (11 June 2016).
Learn more about this species at iNaturalist.org.
HETEROKONTS
• Sargassum
ALISMATALES
• Water lettuce
ARECALES (Palms)
• Cabbage palmetto
COMMELINALES
• Pickerelweed
FABALES
• Arctic lupine
LAMIALES
• Black mangrove
MALPIGHIALES
• Red mangrove
NYMPHAEALES
• Spatterdock
POALES (Grasses)
• Saltmarsh cord grass
• Sea oates
SALVINIALES
• Water spangles
SOLANALES
• Beach morning glory
ARTHONIALES (Lichen)
• Christmas lichen
AGARICALES (Gilled Mushrooms)
• Fluted birds nest
HYPOCREALES (Fungi)
• Ophiocordyceps parasitic fungi
POLYPORALES (Shelf Fungi)
• White-pored chicken of the woods
TREMELLALES (Fungi)
• Snowy fungus
ANTHOZOA
• Hitchhiking anemone
• Christmas anemone
HYDROZOA
• Portuguese man o' war
• Blue button
SCYPHOZOA (True Jellyfish)
• Cannonball jellyfish
ASTEROIDEA
• Royal starfish
ECHINOIDEA
• Five-slotted sanddollar
BIVALVE MOLLUSKS
• Eastern oyster
• Coquina
GASTROPOD MOLLUSKS
• Lettered olive
• Rosy wolf snail
• Grey Atlantic auger
• Florida tree snail
• American crown conch
• Shark eye sea snail
• Eastern whitelip snail
• Banded tree snail
• Sargassum nudibranch
• Lightning whelk
• Cuban brown snail
BARNACLES
• Titan acorn barnacle
• Ribbed barnacle
SHRIMP & CRAYFISH
• Mitten crayfish
• Slender sargassum shrimp
• Brown grass shrimp
• Arrow shrimp
CRABS
• Mangrove tree crab
• Speckled swimming crab
• Flame-streaked box crab
• Atlantic blue crab
• Blue land crab
• Thinstripe hermit crab
• Caribbean land hermit crab
• Atlantic mole crab
• Blackback land crab
• Mangrove root crab
• Thin-shelled rock crab
• Calico box crab
• Atlantic sand fiddler crab
• Atlantic mangrove fiddler crab
• Portly spider crab
• Atlantic ghost crab
• Mottled shore crab
• Atlantic mud crab
• Mottled purse crab
• Green porcelain crab
• Tidal spray crab
• Sargassum swimming crab
HORSESHOE CRABS
• Horseshoe crab
DADDY LONGLEGS
• Aldrichi harvestman
SPIDERS
• Twinflagged jumping spider
• Yellow garden spider
• Okefenokee fishing spider
• Six-spotted fishing spider
• Spinybacked orbweaver
• Giant crab spider (Huntsman)
• Field wolf spider
• Southern house spider
• Magnolia jumping spider
• Golden jumping spider
• Green lynx spider
• Rabid wolf spider
CENTIPEDES
• Florida Keys centipede
MILLIPEDES
• Bumblebee millipede
• North American millipede
MANTIDS
• Grizzled mantis
WALKING STICKS
• S. Two-striped walking stick
ANTS, BEES, WASPS, Etc
• Neotropical paper wasp
CICADAS
• N. dusk-singing cicada
• Resonant cicada
• Hieroglyphic cicada
• Lyric cicada
• Similar dog-day cicada
TRUE BUGS (Non-Cicada)
• Giant leaf-footed bug
BEETLES
• Eastern eyed click beetle
• Harlequin flower beetle
• Giant stag beetle
MOTHS
• Eastern grass tubeworm
• Luna moth
• Wittfeld's forester
• Spiny oakworm moth
• Pink-striped oakworm moth
• Polyphemus moth
• Spotted apatelodes moth
• Black witch moth
• Ailanthus webworm moth
• Io moth
• Pink-shaded fern moth
• Laugher moth
• Angle-winged emerald moth
• Soybean looper moth
• Angle-lined prominent moth
• Scarlet-bodied wasp moth
• Manto tussock moth
• Pickleworm moth
• Rosy maple moth
• Imperial moth
• Spotted oleander moth
• White furcula moth
• Banded tussock moth
• Harris's three-spot moth
• Esther moth
• Five-spotted hawk moth
• Southern flannel moth
• Live oak metria moth
• Red-bordered emerald moth
• Skiff moth
• Echo moth
• Agreeable tiger moth
• Sweetpotato armyworm
• Black-dotted spragueia moth
BUTTERFLIES
• Gulf fritillary
• Great southern white
• Polydamas swallowtail
• Queen butterfly
• Canadian tiger swallowtail
• Eastern giant swallowtail
• Eastern tiger swallowtail
• Palamedes swallowtail
DRAGONFLIES etc
• Common green darner
• Four-spotted pennant
• Ebony jewelwing
• Halloween pennant
• Regal darner
• Scarlet skimmer
• Swamp darner
• Prince baskettail
• Eastern pondhawk
• Seaside dragonlet
• Dragonhunter
• Rambur's forktail
• Citrine forktail
• Lilypad forktail
• Bar-winged skimmer
• Slaty skimmer
• Great blue skimmer
• Royal river cruiser
• Roseate skimmer
• Blue dasher
• Eastern amberwing
• Common whitetail
• Carolina saddlebags
KATYDIDS
• Florida oblong-winged katydid
• American shieldback
• Robust shieldback
GRASSHOPPERS
• Long-headed toothpick
• Brown winter grasshopper
• Elegant grasshopper
• Short-winged green grasshopper
• Eastern lubber grasshopper
• American bird grasshopper
• Mischievous bird grasshopper
• Rusty bird grasshopper
PLANARIAN FLATWORMS
• Arrowhead flatworm
• Mollusc eating hammerhead worm
• Caenoplana flatworm
SHARKS & RAYS
• Cownose ray
BONY FISH
• Sargassum fish
• Atlantic tripletail
• Northern puffer
FROGS & TOADS
• Dwarf american toad
• Oak toad
• Southern toad
• Eastern spadefoot
• Greenhouse frog
• Eastern narrowmouth toad
• Southern cricket frog
• Pine woods treefrog
• Squirrel treefrog
• Barking treefrog
• Cope's gray treefrog
• Green treefrog
• Cuban treefrog
• Spring peeper
• Plains leopard frog
• Bronze frog
• Pickerel frog
• Southern leopard frog
• American bullfrog
• Pig frog
• Wood frog
AMPHIUMAS
• Two-toed amphiuma
SALAMANDERS
• Dwarf salamander
TURTLES
• Florida softshell turtle
• Spiny softshell turtle
• Green sea turtle
• Common snapping turtle
• Gopher tortoise
• Striped mud turtle
• Eastern mud turtle
• Diamondback terrapin
• Florida red-bellied cooter
• Loggerhead musk turtle
• Common musk turtle
• Eastern box turtle
• Ornate box turtle
• Common slider
WORMLIZARDS
• Florida worm lizard
LIZARDS
• African redhead agama
• Carolina green anole
• Puerto Rican crested anole
• Hispaniolan green anole
• Hispaniolan stout anole
• Bark anole
• Cuban knight anole
• Jamaican giant anole
• Cuban green anole
• Cuban brown anole
• Six-lined racerunner
• Western whiptail
• Brown basilisk
• Eastern collared lizard
• Black spiny-tailed iguana
• Indo-Pacific gecko
• Tropical house gecko
• Mediterranean gecko
• Green iguana
• Northern curly-tailed lizard
• Eastern glass lizard
• Southeastern five-lined skink
• Broadhead skink
• Plateau fence lizard
• Eastern fence lizard
• Florida scrub lizard
• Little brown skink
• Ornate tree lizard
• Common side-blotched lizard
SNAKES
• Florida cottonmouth
• Florida scarlet snake
• Black racer snake
• Eastern diamondback rattlesnake
• Timber rattlesnake
• Ringneck snake
• Mud snake
• Rough earth snake
• Brahminy blindsnake
• Scarlet kingnsnake
• Eastern kingsnake
• Striped swamp snake
• Eastern coachwhip
• Eastern coral snake
• Salt marsh watersnake
• Salt marsh x Banded watersnake
• Plainbelly watersnake
• Banded watersnake
• Florida green watersnake
• Diamondback watersnake
• Northern watersnake
• Brown watersnake
• Rough green snake
• Eastern "Yellow" rat snake
• Eastern "Gray" rat snake
• Eastern "Everglades" rat snake
• Red "Corn" rat snake
• Burmese python
• Ball python
• Queen snake
• Pine woods littersnake
• Desert patchnose snake
• Pigmy rattlesnake
• Florida brown snake
• Eastern garter snake
• Peninsula ribbon snake
CROCODILIANS
• American alligator
• Spectacled caiman
• American crocodile
ACCIPITRIFORMES
• Turkey vulture
• Black vulture
• Osprey
ANSERIFORMES
• Coming Soon
CHARADRIIFORMES
• Western sandpiper
• Brown noddy
• Ruddy turnstone
• Laughing gull
• Black skimmer
• Royal tern
• Willet
CICONIIFORMES
• Wood stork
GALLIFORMES
• Coming Soon
GRUIFORMES
• Sandhill crane
• Limpkin
• Purple gallinule
PASSERIFORMES
• Florida scrub jay
• Prothonotary warbler
• Boat-tailed grackle
PELECANIFORMES
• Roseate spoonbill
• Great egret
• Great blue heron
• Little blue heron
• Reddish egret
• Snowy egret
• Tricolored heron
• American white ibis
• Yellow-crowned night heron
• Black-crowned night heron
• American white pelican
• Brown pelican
• Roseate spoonbill
• Glossy ibis
PHOENICOPTERIFORMES
• American flamingo
PODICIPEDIFORMES
• Pied-billed grebe
STRIGIFORMES
• Barred owl
SULIFORMES
• Anhinga
• Magnificent frigatebird
• Double-crested cormorant
• Masked booby
ARTIODACTYLA
• Moose
• Key deer
• Common bottlenose dolphin
MARSUPIALIA
• Virginia opossum
CARNIVORA
• American mink
• Raccoon
PRIMATES
• Human
RODENTIA
• Arctic ground squirrel
SIRENIA
• West Indian manatee
The TOMOKA & BULOW Circuit: Photographs from the Ormond Beach area through and around the Tomoka Basin. Includes Tomoka, Bulow Creek, North Peninsula, and Bulow Plantation Ruins State Parks.
ANOLIS Lizards: Photographs of all Anolis lizards featured on Floridensis to date. This includes native and non-native species alike, all photographed in the wild.
NERODIA Watersnakes: Photographs of all non-venomous Nerodia watersnakes featured on Floridensis to date. Includes species photographed in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and Oklahoma.
Salt Marshes & Coastal Habitats. Photographs taken on various kayak sojourns through Florida's coastal, salt marsh, and estuarine habitats.
Freshwater Habitats: Photographs taken on various kayak sojourns throughout Florida's freshwater habitats.
From Alaska to Florida, 2011: In the summer of 2011, I sojourned 7,221 miles from Alaska to Florida, exploring the vast range of North American eco-diversity, camping, hiking, and photographing along the way. From mountains to deserts, from glaciers to swamps, it was a bewilderingly awesome trip. These are the photos I collected along the way.
Tropical Storms & Hurricanes: Photographs and posts covering life beneath and within Florida's tropical storm and hurricane events.
