National Wildlife ...

... Day.

It wasn't until later this evening that I learned that today is National Wildlife Day ... honoring the birthday of the late wildlife expert Steve Irwin.  It's also celebrated on February 22. 

So it was a good thing that we encountered this beautiful white-tailed buck ... as well as two females ... on our walk this afternoon at Housenick Memorial park.  And even better was the fact that he "allowed" me to get close enough for some decent shots ... even walking right towards me at one point.  I've added a full body shot of him to my Facebook feed.  

In other news:  We tagged and released three ... yes, three ... monarch butterflies from our nursery this afternoon.  We had two males and one female emerge within hours of each other.  It's such a privilege raising these beauties ... we really enjoy doing this.