Move to Florida, and Florida Fern Guide

Greetings from sunny Florida! Actually, it's raining at the moment, and has been with staggering frequency for the entirety of July. This month Gainesville has already received over 11 inches of rain, nearly double its normal rainfall for July. Despite the deluge, I'm pleased to say that I will be able to report on Florida's weather regularly now - I moved here from Tucson about two weeks ago, to take up a position in the Department of Biology at the University of Florida (UF) beginning in August. I'm thrilled to be here, and to once again have regular access to ferns!

The UF Extension office has a neat publication about the Ferns of Florida, which is a great introduction to basic fern identification and some of the common species in the state. The guide is available to download as a PDF.

I can't wait to get started learning the ferns and other plants of this region, particularly so I can put a local spin on the plant taxonomy classes I will be teaching at UF! In the meantime I will try to stay dry, and enjoy the new plant and wildlife here, including the living version of UF's mascot, a large one of which is lurking in the photo below...