Pets/Wildlife

DG Moore captured the incredible moment when this gator decided to chow down, in the backyard pond. Moore lives in Northwoods Palms in Wesley Chapel.

Otis is a 13-year-old Shih-poo. He loves fishing, boating and the beach. He loves his owner and follows her wherever she goes, even to the bathroom. Otis is part of the Karen Williams family and lives in Land O’ Lakes with his feline buddy, Moe, too.

White ibises are large wading birds with football-shaped bodies, and long curved bills. They usually gather in groups in shallow wetlands and estuaries, and nest in colonies in trees and shrubs along the water’s edge, changing locations nearly every year. Betsy Crisp snapped this photo of a couple of white ibises in search of a snack, in Land O’ Lakes.

Oscar is a Yorkie/Maltese mix and is about 5 months old. His owner picked him up last December at Lonestar Dog Ranch Rescue in Anna, Texas. Oscar has two other rescue siblings — Beans, a French bulldog, and Lady, a Labrador Retriever — who both are very patient with Oscar’s sassy-pants puppy behavior. Oscar lives with Lindsey Paris in Wesley Chapel.

Deanna Dempsey caught this great blue heron, red-handed, stealing her catch. Dempsey took this photo of ‘Charlie’ on Lake Pasadena, in Dade City.

Basil was adopted almost two years ago from Cat Haven Rescue. Since then, she has doubled in size, and has brought so much joy into her owners’ lives. Basil loves to sunbathe, stare at water, and play with her cat sister, Bonnie. She even knows how to play fetch. She has definitely turned her owner, Shannon Joyce of Land O’ Lakes, into a cat person for life!

John Oddo, of San Antonio, is an avid amateur photographer and has a lot of wildlife in his community that he enjoys taking photos of, as is evidenced by his striking portrait of a little blue heron.

This sweet golden retriever joined the Smith family on Jan 29, 2021, when she was only 12 weeks old. Lady Sawyer Smith turned 1 year old last December, and enjoyed being pampered on her special day, with yummy treats and a doggie splash pad to cool off on hot Florida days. She loves long walks to the dog park, chewing on sticks, pup cups from the coffee shop, and jumping to catch ice cubes. Sawyer lives in Land O’ Lakes with her family – Kevin, Sherri, Colton, Eden, Addison and Carsen Smith.

Numerous recent nature sightings in his yard found Steve Vinik, of Wesley Chapel, grabbing for his camera, again. These whistling ducks seemed to be parachuting onto the ground at a nearby lake. Whistling ducks are more closely related to geese and swans than to a ‘true duck,’ because of their long necks, long legs, bone structure and erect stance.