Some mushrooms on a recent single short hike in Maine. These last ones are Black Trumpet Mushrooms. My wife's uncle picked quite a few of them, and I made a Shrimp/mushroom risotto using them. Sorry if I went a little overboard today.

linda_in_iowa mentioned in her message about her recent trip to Costa Rica that some of her group went to a Sloth Sanctuary. I don't know if it was the same one, but I went to a Sloth Sanctuary several years ago. The Entrance: A model of a prehistoric giant ground sloth One of the Sloths they are caring for Baby Sloths in the Nursery squabbling (slowly) over a leaf They also offer a guided boat ride on canals behind their facility Where our sharp-eyed guide pointed out many animals and plants including a green basilisk lizard: bright blue crabs a sloth and an egret as well as bats, a caimen, howler monkeys, a brown basilisk lizard, and various other birds, and trees and plants and because today's theme seems to be flowers, I'll end with a flower.

Fireweed...grows wild all over Alaska. So called because it's one of the early plants to appear after a wild fire. The flowers can be harvested for use in nectars and jams and such. The locals watch it as a sign for impending winter when it finishes blooming.

Great pix today...thanks for sharing. Glenda, I thought you were wearing a giant pair of white earrings until I took a second look at the picture. :-) Rosie