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This bush was one of the few plants flowering during the winter. It sits in the Circle B Bar Reserve parking lot at the end of the trail. It was covered in butterflies the day we visited. Monarchs were joined by mimics, such as this Queen Butterfly. Mimics exist because monarch butterflies are inedible as they eat milkweed, a poisonous plant. Circle B Bar Preserve, in Central Florida, is a Polk County Park. It was founded in 1928. There are so many birds, insects and other wildlife, that we visit at least twice a year. Winter, when the weather is cooler is best. There are three lakes plus a wetland and miles of trails.

I love to tell stories. About twenty years ago I had my first freelance travel article accepted by a magazine. Much to my surprise, the magazine expected photos along with words. I had not taken any during the preliminary work for my article. I drove back to the site and took the photos for the article with my little Olympus digital camera. The article was published with those very amateur photos. In time, I bought an Olympus OMD-EM5, a great camera for nature and travel photographers and discovered that I enjoyed telling stories with pictures more than I did with words. The last twenty year have been an incredibly exciting time as resources for photographers have exploded. I have been lucky enough to have some great teachers along the way...