Boat-tailed Grackle

Boat-tailed Grackles are very common in St Petersburg, FL. We have 2 species here, this one and the Common Grackle. The Boat-tailed Grackle  is much larger, up to 16 inches, while the common Grackle is about 12 inches. They hang in marshes and along the coast. They can also be found on farmlands.

Eastern Eyed Click Beetle

The Eastern Eyed Click Beetle (Alaus oculatus), is about 2 inches long.

The "eyes" are not really his eyes. They are there to scare off predators. Their actual eyes are located at the base of his antennae.

Eyed Click Beetles get their name from their habit of fending off danger by turning on their back, then bending their head and pro-thorax backward and snapping open when straightening out. This produces a loud audible click.

Eyed Click Beetles can be found in the Eastern United States as far west as Texas.

Sawgrass Lake Park is located in St Petersburg, Florida. Visitors there can be reasonably sure of seeing American Alligators in the wild.