Naturally Native Gifts Zazzle Gallery

We love to photograph, draw and paint nature and our Naturally Native Zazzle Gallery reflects our love of nature and the outdoors. We take pictures each day when we walk our 2 rescued dogs to the beautiful Tchefuncte River and we can share our view of the animals in our habitat by creating products on Zazzle.

Naturally Native was born out of our love of nature, animals and the great outdoors. We enjoy Louisiana's scenic rivers and the abundant native flora and fauna and we want to share it with the world. Most of the photographs featured here were taken in Southeastern Louisiana both pre and post Katrina. The dog and cat subjects in our photos and art work are our very own, beloved rescued pets.

The proceeds from the sale of our products are used for our Little Tchefuncte Hummingbird Hill Habitat to purchase feed for the wildlife and native trees and shrubs to replace the hundreds that were lost as a result of Hurricane Katrina and other storms as well as man made disasters.

We hope you enjoy browsing through our photographs and reading about the flora and fauna. It's like taking a virtual tour of our habitat on the Little Tchefuncte River.

Every morning on our daily walk to the Little Tchefuncte River, I bring along a camera. We never know what we will see on the trails through the woods. The camera is also always handy throughout the day. Because we live in a backyard wildlife habitat, I often get good shots of unusual birds and animals as well as the hundreds of flowers and butterflies that visit them. It is wonderful to have a living studio in your own backyard.

Please visit our Zazzle Gallery to see more of our work. Most of the pictures featured here are available on a variety of print-on-demand product designs.

I love these small yellow birds with the blue-gray wings. We are fortunate to have Prothonotary warblers that nest on our property. They nest in cavities of all sizes and shapes. For several years birds have fledged from a small woven nest meant for domestic finches which we hung on the front porch of our house.

Eastern bluebirds are permanent residents here in South Louisiana. During the winter, they flock together and travel through the forest foraging for berries. In late winter and early spring the males establish a territory which contains good natural nesting cavities or man made boxes. The females tour a males offerings of houses. If she chooses one, she begins building a nest.

When you create a bluebird nest box trail, you help many species of birds including:

• Eastern, Western and Mountain Bluebirds
• Prothonotary Warblers
• Chickadees
• Tufted Titmice
• Carolina Wrens
• Brown Headed Nuthatches
• Great Crested Flycatchers

Robins spend the winter with us. They arrive in late fall and feast on earthworms and berries. Native holly berries such as the yaupon in the photo are one of their favorites.

Red-shouldered hawks are woodland predators. I happened to see this one swoop down and take a dove in our front yard. It then sat in an Oak tree and devoured it as I snapped away. Halfway through the session, my memory card reached its capacity so I had to run back into the house to get another. Lesson: you must always be prepared with an extra card and batteries on hand.

Louisiana is home to many lovely native plants. Perhaps one of the most famous is the Louisiana iris. The native blue iris is our state wildflower.

The wildflowers of Louisiana poster features (from left to right):

• Leather Flower (Clematis crispa)
• Red Buckeye
• Flame Azalea
• Indian Pink
• Blue Violets
• Copper Iris (Iris fulva)
• Southern Magnolia
• Blazing Star Liatris
• Piedmont Azalea

We must become familiar with our native wildflowers and use them in landscaping. It will save water, time, money and will improve the environment.

Creating a backyard habitat will provide a refuge for the displaced wildlife and will also create an outdoor learning laboratory for you and your children.

Southern magnolias are striking evergreen trees with outstanding, fragrant flowers.

Southern blue flag iris color can range from almost white to deep purplish blue. This pale one appeared among a group of blues.

Native sunflowers are a versatile plant. The colorful fall flowers attract butterflies, bees and other pollinators. The seed heads are filled with tiny seeds which are eaten by goldfinches and other small sunflowers.

Monarch butterfly numbers are declining, but by planting native plants such as these blue asters as well as it's larval plant, milkweed, you can help these lovely butterflies to make a come back.

Planting a garden for Butterflies and Hummingbirds will provide hours of enjoyment for everyone in the family.

Native mist flower, also called wild ageratum is an easy to grow butterfly magnet. Here a long-tailed skipper feeds on the nectar rich flowers.

Native passion vine has gorgeous flowers, edible fruit called maypops and is the host plant of the Gulf Fritillary butterfly. The plant dies back to the ground each winter and comes back when the weather warms up in spring. The vines can grow 20 plus feet in a season.

Hummingbird Clearwing moths are unusual because they fly during the day. Their coloration is similar to hummingbirds, so they are often mistaken for baby hummers. Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot) is a native perennial herb which attracts butterflies, moths and hummingbirds.

Since I was a child, I've loved the little masked faces of raccoons. They are truly rascals, but are so photogenic. They will wipe out a sunflower feeder in one night and keep coming back for more. We use sunflower seeds in only one place in the yard and put safflower in all the other feeders. The birds eat it, but the squirrels and masked raiders do not.

Our wildlife cameras often catch pictures of the white-tailed deer that live in our habitat. This buck was a regular visitor to the winter feeding spot.

When planning a wildlife habitat don't forget about the furry wild mammals that have also been displaced by man.

Cottontails abound here and often venture out in the early morning to munch on greens and weeds in the lawn. We had one that seemed to like our hens and every time we let them out it would feed near them.

I hope you'll visit our Naturally Native store to see the posters, cards and other creations that I have designed.

These small treefrogs have loud voices. The males pick a spot near water and call to their lady love. This one chose our rain barrel.

A pair of bronze frogs set up housekeeping in our water feature. The male sits on the head of a silly frog statue.

Speckled kingsnakes are beneficial constrictors which kill and eat vermin and also venomous snakes.

Many kinds of turtles live in the Little Tchefuncte River.

Abigail was one of our early cats and such a pretty little girl.

Second Chance the cocker spaniel was a rescue. This was his first encounter with snow.

Black Star aka Star Noir showed up one cold day in October after Hurricane Katrina.

We found Rio one extremely cold Christmas. Someone had dumped him and the rest of his litter near my Dad's house. We brought him home and he lived with us for almost 15 years. I miss him.

Little Blaze stumbled up out of the ditch by our mailbox on a busy highway. We nursed her back to health and she has entertained us for years.

We adopted Dax from our Vet's office when the little orange kitten was about 6 weeks old. He grew and grew and now weighs almost 20 pounds. He's quite a cat.