Finding the lizard/gecko the other day got me thinking about the turtle we found a few years ago. It was in the backyard, too, but had gotten stuck in a raised flower bed and had a bit of an ant problem. We scooped it up, cleaned off the ants, and let it go in another part of the backyard (after naming it Crunchy, of course!). We haven't come across our little turtle again, but it was surprisingly feisty when we picked it up. Hopefully it is happily munching on something and basking in the sun.
Found this little guy while gardening last week. It looked like something was wrong with at least one eye. Not sure what species it is, maybe a Mediterranean House Gecko? If so, its an introduced species, but still a very cool looking lizard/gecko!
We've been to many national wildlife refuges (NWR), but Aransas National Wildlife Refuge has very special visitors during the winter months...Whooping Cranes (pictured above)! At 5 ft tall and with a wingspan of 7-8 ft, Whooping Cranes are the tallest birds in North America. They comprise two separate migratory populations and one stationary population. Each migratory population has different areas where they spend their time during the year. Sources vary, but there are 3-6 places in the U.S. and 1 in Canada where these birds can be seen, depending on the season. They are an endangered species and in the 1940's, there were only 15 individuals left. Since then, they have been slowly recovering. The 2011-2012 population estimate for the wild, migratory population that resides at Aransas NWR is around 250 individuals. Current total population estimates are around 600 individuals and includes both migratory populations, the stationary population, and captive raised individuals. Aransas NWR is the winter home of one of the migratory populations from about mid-October to mid-March. The birds do not arrive or leave all at once, so the refuge posts updates throughout the season to report the number of birds on the refuge. This is helpful to determine when to visit to have the best chance to see these incredible birds. We visited in January and saw several family groups. We took the Whooping Crane & Coastal Birding Tour offered by Rockport Birding and Kayak Adventures: http://www.whoopingcranetours.com/Birding.html. The staff on the boat were nice and very knowledgeable. The captain even took requests in case you were looking for a specific species (I really wanted to see Roseate Spoonbills!). Their boat can go into shallower waters than most so we were able to get close to the birds for good views. Dress warm, it's always cooler on the water than it is on land! As we traveled from port to the refuge and back, we saw 35+ species of birds. Many of the birds were gathered on islands made of oyster beds that ran along the waterways. The picture below shows American White Pelicans, Brown Pelicans, and Cormorants on one of the islands. Of the birds we saw, a few of my favorites included Long-billed Curlews (pictured below), Reddish Egrets (pictured below), Roseate Spoonbills (pictured below), Caspian Terns, Dunlins, American Oystercatchers, Little Blue Herons, Tri-colored Herons, Willets, Dowitchers, White Ibis, Forster's Terns, Royal Terns, Avocets, Crested Caracaras, Belted Kingfishers, Osprey, Marbled Godwits, and an Eared Grebe. Dolphins even joined the tour as we headed back to port! We visited several other birding areas along this stretch of the gulf coast including Goose Island State Park, Aransas Pass, and Padre Island National Seashore, and Mustang Island State Park. I will cover these in another post since they were well worth visiting, too! Additional information about the refuge or Whooping Cranes:
Aransas National Wildlife Refuge: http://www.fws.gov/refuge/Aransas/ http://www.fws.gov/refuge/Aransas/wildlife/whooping_cranes.html Texas Parks and Wildlife (TPWD): http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/huntwild/wild/species/whooper/ International Crane Foundation: https://www.savingcranes.org/whooping-crane.html Cornell Lab of Ornithology: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Whooping_Crane/id |
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September 2022
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