Hans and I went for a short hike in the Golden Aster Scrub Nature Preserve

on July 4th, and we finally got to see 4 Florida Scrub Jays!!! Woohoo! There are 2 discrete populations at the preserve, and next time- I plan to check out the other group. They are very beautiful and interesting birds- curious and in some cases, unafraid of humans. This group was cautious, but seemed interested in watching us as we watched them. They live cooperatively, with the offspring staying with the parents for 3-4 years helping to raise the next generation. They are only found in Florida, and are endangered because of the widespread loss of their very specific habitat. The group we saw lived in a tiny isolated Scrub Oak hammock- about the size of your average house in the middle of a scrub palmetto area.

On the way to the Scrub oak hammock, we encountered several large Gopher tortoises who were grazing along the path. This guy was very unimpressed. When I crouched down to take a closer photograph, he hissed at me.