If asked “What plant best symbolizes the winter season?”, most people might say “Christmas trees”, but a fair number might instead suggest holly. Several species of holly are native to North America. Most are evergreen, have thick, somewhat shiny leaves that are resistant to colder climates, and are bordered and tipped with sharp points that protect the leaves from winter plant “munchers”, and in winter bear small red fruits that add to their winter holiday appeal. The fruits are eaten by many bird species and the seeds inside the fruits are deposited with a bit of fertilizer to begin growth in the spring. Some holly species grow into large trees. Others remain shrub-sized. Many are sold and planted throughout North America – including in south Florida. But the only holly that is native to south Florida is dahoon holly – generally a small tree or shrub that is at home in shaded wetlands such as at Corkscrew Sanctuary and areas within the Everglades ecosystem. While dahoon holly has thick, heavy, evergreen leaves – characteristic of hollies, dahoon holly leaves have a pointed tip, but are relatively long and have no pointed barbs along the leaf blades as on the leaves of other holly species.

New World Warblers are often referred to as the “butterflies of the bird world” – a designation because of their small size and diverse colors and patterns. A few warblers nest in south Florida, but several -- including the Palm Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, and Black-and-white Warbler are common winter residents. These three have distinctive plumage patterns and behaviors, making them a great trio to begin exploring the diversity of warblers that pass through on migration. Beware, however: watching warblers as they flit among the branches of tall trees in search of insects can be addictive – and lead to a temporary affliction commonly known among birders as “warbler neck”.

Little Blue Herons are medium in size among herons – bigger than a Green Heron, but much smaller than a Great Blue Heron. The “blue color” of adults often tends towards gray and it helps them blend in with their aquatic environment. This heron is unusual in that its juvenile plumage is all white – a characteristic that allows it to blend in with other white birds – which it readily does, thus gaining “group” protection from potential predators and access to food resources found by the other species. Adults are much more solitary.

The Black Skimmer is a very unusual shorebird – in part because of its exceptionally long, knife-like lower bill and much shorter, slightly-curved upper bill. The knife-like lower bill isn’t for cutting, but for slicing through calm surface waters near shore and in shallow ponds and lakes. When the lower bill strikes a small fish, the fish slides up the bill and the upper bill clamps down on it.

Wild Turkeys are birds that most of us know on sight because of their large size, habit of foraging in groups in relatively open areas, and the display of a male with his tail held up and fanned. Of course we know them because of their prominence at our holiday dinner tables – and in holiday advertising -- especially at Thanksgiving. Males are larger than females – even when not “puffed up” and displaying. Males also have iridescent plumage, multiple colors on their mostly bare head and neck, and a prominent fleshy structure called a snood on the forehead that becomes enlarged and more colorful during interactions. Females are smaller, have duller, non-iridescent plumage, only a blue-gray head and neck, and a smaller, less colorful snood. Studies suggest that females prefer males with longer snoods and that the snood may indicate a resistance to some diseases.In this week’s Wild Things we’ll talk a bit about the behavior and ecology of Wild Turkeys, the origins of their name, and our relationship with them.

Molt is defined as the routine loss and replacement of feathers. It can occur at any time of year, but in most birds a complete molt occurs in late summer and fall and a partial molt may occur in early spring. The timing of each molt is important. In late summer and fall, there is generally an abundance of insects, seeds, and fruit that provides the energy for molt. This molt provides birds with fresh plumage and often colors and patterns that help conceal it in winter environments.

The Yellow-bellied Sapsucker is a very unusual woodpecker with distinct male, female, and juvenile plumages as shown in the accompanying photos. Adult males have a red throat, a black bib, and a slightly yellow-tinted breast; adult females have a white throat, black bib, and yellow-tinted breast. Juveniles have a gray throat and breast for much of their first year.

Gray Squirrels are common in cities and towns across eastern North America and made their way across the Great Plains and all the way to California as a result of establishment of cities and towns built and planted with trees. Some squirrels no doubt made the move on their own – well-meaning humans who enjoyed their presence introduced others. The antics of squirrels just seemed to belong in the neighborhood.

Halloween is a holiday that brings to mind creatures of the night such as bats and many spiders. These nocturnal creatures are ones we have some unease about because we rarely see them, encounter them by surprise in the dark, and often have little understanding of their role in nature. We often misinterpret their behavior and they sometimes leave us with a sense of fear of what they might do to us. Yes, tropical American vampire bats drink blood and in doing so can transmit disease to its victims. North American and most other bats are insect eaters that provide an important service in consuming mosquitos that can transmit diseases to the animals they bite. Most bats also consume large numbers of moths and other insects that feed on plants that our livestock or we depend on.

Orb-weaving spiders are those spiders that create webs in which flying or falling insects are captured. Many, such as the Banded Garden Spider, the Golden-silk Orb-weaver, and the tiny Orchard Spider are active during the day, some, such as the Tropical Orb Weaver are primarily active at night. Most create a new web each day. If you have a wooded area, you can often go out shortly after dark with a flashlight and find Tropical Orb-weavers as they begin to create their web for the evening. By morning the web is gone and the Tropical Orb-weaver is in hiding among dense vegetation.