Dreary Day

Today was quiet and drippy. It was very cloudy all day and from time to time there were a few raindrops. It was never enough to need an umbrella, but as I was leaving the park this afternoon, it started to rain a little harder. The first people that came into the park this morning were divers and they didn't mind getting a little wet, in fact, they came to the park just to get wet. Everyone that came in throughout the day would have liked to see a little sunshine, but didn't mind a quiet park. There really weren't many people in today, they were missing out. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday of this week, all Florida State Parks are offering free admission if you have a library card, a library book, or bring a book to donate. I think that this is the 3rd or 4th year that we have offered free admission during the month of September, Literacy Month. You can read more about the event here.
Even though it was a quiet day, somehow it went by quickly. I talked to the few people who were in the park and managed to find a few projects to keep me busy. I scrubbed the algae off of the glass in the fish tank in the Old Log Cabin Visitor Center. I also collected a few snails from the river who might help me with the algae removing task from here on out. Tomorrow I will do a water change and refill the tank. I spent some time in the office too. I returned e-mails, did some reading, and took care of paperwork.
Most of my photos today did not turn out well. The sky was so gray and the sun really was not around to help. Many of my photos are dark as well. Here is what turned out though.

This pair of Love Bugs found a nice place to hide and wait for the sun to come out.

These two probably could have found a little more shelter on another plant.

I guess I really like the Morning Glories. Its so hard for me to walk by without taking a picture. There are dark purple ones by the gate and these light purple ones have been taking over near the river and the spring. The light purple are my favorite. They have such delicate tendrils that they wrap around everything and the purple color is just so slight.

I am definitely not the only one that loves those Morning Glories.

This very hungry caterpillar was happily munching on this leaf. It was fun to watch it eat so methodically, almost like a person working on an ear of corn. It would eat its way across and then return to where it started to take another line off.

Don't be sad. This isn't a dead grasshopper, it is just the clothing that the grasshopper left behind when it out grew it. It is amazing to me how so much of the exoskeleton stays in tact as the complex creature manages to get every limb and antennae out.