Yesterday I went to the Cedar Lake Botanical Garden in Williston, Florida, not far from my home. I had never been there before, so I thought I should check it out. It’s been built out of an old mining quarry and it has an upper level and a lower level down where water has filled the quarry. They have a variety of plants both native and exotic as well as some ducks, koi fish, and three mute swans. The lower level, with all its ponds and areas of still and flowing water was just teeming with dragonflies and damselflies including a couple species I wasn’t familiar with. I took both my Nikon and my Cannon cameras and took plenty of photos. It was definitely an interesting and worthwhile trip.

With all the shots that I took, deciding what to present to you guys first was not an easy decision, but I decided to start with the gorgeous Egyptian lotus flower (Nymphaea nouchali var. caerulea). This flower is native to Egypt, but is cultivated all over the world, mainly for its beauty, but also for its use as a blue fabric dye, and its ability to clean pollutants out of the water it lives in. It is toxic when eaten by humans and by pets and livestock, so even in clean environments it should be kept away from children and animals. This plant is known by a lot of names including blue water lily, blue lotus, blue Egyptian lotus, sacred blue lily, and frog’s pulpit.