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West Volusia Audubon

@wvaudubon.bsky.social

170 followers 120 following 120 posts

We are the West Volusia Audubon chapter from Volusia County, Florida. We also post about the Florida Scrub-Jay and Lyonia Preserve in Deltona, Florida! www.westvolusiaaudubon.org www.lecfriends.com

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Nov 27

We figured a blue bird on a Blue Sky was appropriate for our first post!

We’re the West Volusia Audubon chapter from Volusia County, Florida. And one our favorite places is Lyonia Preserve in Deltona, Florida, home to the Florida Scrub-Jay that you see here!

#birds #nature #photography #florida

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · 1d

Sometimes you just have to let the scrub-jays in your life vent about their day a little bit.

#florida #conservation #scrubjay #wildlife #birds #birding

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · 5d

Spend some time with one of our great volunteers, Danielle, who is here to show you how to make your own bird suet at home for your backyard birds.

youtu.be/B5dgLIPLEfI?...

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · 6d

This Florida Scrub-Jay is exploring a leaf gall, which occurs as a reaction to wasps or other insects laying eggs into the plant tissue. The plant cells respond by growing the gall that you see around the egg sac.

📸: Tyler Lovell

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · 12d

We understand that some of you like gopher tortoises? Here’s one of Lyonia Preserve’s resident gopher tortoises coming up to visit our Lyonia Garden Keepers.

#florida #conservation #tortoise #wildlife

📸: Danielle Linsler Rice

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · 25d

The Lyonia Garden Keepers have been hard at work, and the results are in beautiful blooms like this one of the Largeflower False Rosemary (Conradina grandiflora). This wildflower is endemic to Florida and is a state-threatened species like many other Conradina species.

📸: Danielle Linsler Rice

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Sep 18

It’s a great time to see Gopher Tortoises in Lyonia Preserve. Monthly hikes will begin again soon with the Lyonia Environmental Center, and the Lyonia Photography Club will also be hosting excursions to get great shots like these.

📸: Tyler Lovell

#florida #conservation #tortoise #gophertortoise

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Sep 17

Here’s a look at a Florida Scrub-Jay behavior: the “hiccup” call! This rapid chattering sound (which is followed here by Towhee chirp) is made only by female scrub-jays and is generally considered to be an alarm or territorial vocalization.

#birds #corvids #florida #wildlife

🎥: Chelsea LeNoble

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Sep 11

We’ll definitely make sure to keep posting scrub-jays until you can see them again!

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Sep 11

You don’t always get to appreciate the beauty of a Ruby-Throated Hummingbird this close - but thanks to the Lyonia Photography Club we get to enjoy this stunning shot!

📸: Paul Comazzi

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Sep 10

A fall favorite at Lyonia: Winged sumac (Rhus copallinum). These fuzzy red berries start to appear in late Summer and ripen into Fall. This is one of the few Florida natives that provides “Fall color,” bringing a flash of red leaves to the Preserve.

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Sep 9

Nina Ehmer of the Lyonia Photography Club graced us with this stunning portrait of a Florida Scrub-Jay at Lyonia Preserve.

#conservation #birdphotography #birding #birds #corvid #scrubjay #florida

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Sep 3

The beautiful Rusty Lyonia (Lyonia ferruginea) that gives Lyonia Preserve its name shows off in the early morning light. New growth on this shrub is marked by the rusty-orange leaves you see here, which helps add a dash of color to the greenery you see along the trail.

📸: Chris Kintner

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Sep 2

Join conservation photographer Linda Wilinski for a captivating look into the world of River Otters.

Linda’s last presentation at the LEC drew a full house, so we recommend RSVP’ing as soon as possible to save your spot!

www.eventbrite.com/e/nature-at-...

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Aug 22

Thanks to Avian Research and Conservation Institute and their August 19th blog update we can see that Astor has made it safely past the Andes Mountains in Colombia and has made it further than any of the kites tracked! Not that it’s a competition but we’re very proud of her.

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Aug 18

It’s a Monday, so we’re going to start you out with this absolutely stunning photo of a Florida Scrub-Jay on sentinel duty at Lyonia Preserve from Nina in our Lyonia Photography Club.

📸: Nina Ehmer

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Aug 15

We thought we’d send you into the weekend with this very busy and very chatty Towhee!

#towhee #birds #conservation #florida

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Aug 13

A beautiful view of Lyonia’s wetlands makes for a great post on #wetlandwednesday!

📸: Lori Oulabi
Lyonia Photography Club

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Aug 10

This moment was too special not to share, but it’s also a good opportunity to remind everyone that while a gopher tortoise might approach you on its own, feeding, baiting, or holding them is against the law as they are a Threatened species.

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Aug 10

We always make sure to give Gopher Tortoises their space, but every now and then one decides they want to spend a little extra time with you! This tortoise was determined to visit our LEC Friends leader Stephen Kintner and spent a few minutes resting its head on Stephen’s shoes before moving on.

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Aug 8

Bigflower Pawpaw (Asimina obovata) is mostly known for its showy white flowers, but later in the summer those flowers give way to these small green fruits. This Florida native is a host plant for the zebra swallowtail butterfly and pawpaw sphinx moth.

📸: Chelsea LeNoble @chel.leno

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Aug 7

Thanks in part to a contribution from West Volusia Audubon and our partnership with the Merritt Island Wildlife Association and the Avian Research and Conservation Institute (ARCI), we’re able to see a map of the southward journey to Panama of Astor, the swallow-tailed kite!

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Jul 30

Today we celebrate the Wood Stork (Mycteria americana), shown here foraging in Lyonia Preserve’s small wetland.

This wood stork is hunting using its feet to stir up prey and its incredible reflexes to snap up a small fish when it has the misfortune of brushing against its bill.

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Jul 29

Tyler Lovell got a new lens so YOU get to be up close and personal with one of Lyonia Preserve’s resident gopher tortoises. What a way to celebrate #tortoisetuesday!

📸: Tyler Lovell
Lyonia Photography Club

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Jul 25

Learn about Astor, the swallow-tailed kite who has been banded with a tracker that will help us learn more about the migration patterns of this beautiful bird!

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West Volusia Audubon @wvaudubon.bsky.social · Jul 20

Thanks to everyone who came out to spend their Friday night at the LEC for the Late Night Moth Lighting event!

📸: Chelsea LeNoble

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