Sunday, February 17, 2008

High Island, Anahuac and San Jac

We made it to High Island on the second day of the trip. However, the sanctuaries apparently become active in March. We saw a few cormorants and a Tri-colored heron (but I didn't get a good picture). Then we decided to head over to the Anahuac Wildlife Refuge, where we had more interesting sights.

When we arrived at the refuge, I discovered some sparrows in the grass. When I looked this one up, it appears to be a Vespers Sparrow, a new one for the life list!


This Great Blue Heron was standing among the reeds. I suppose it is some method of camouflage, but these birds are so big, I would think it would be difficult to hide!









Along the way, we saw hundreds of Coots, and along with the Coots, plenty of alligators. This one reminds me of an ancient dragon! (Especially in the reflection.)


Onthe back side of the marsh we saw several of these Pied-billed Greebs. These are small birds, but they can dive and stay under water for quite a while. With these little guys along with the coots, you can see why the alligator was smiling!


By the time we left the wildlife refuge, my cold was getting the better of me and I was ready to take I-10 straight home. However, Marc talked me into stopping by the San Jacinto Monument. We visited the museum, saw a video on the Battle of San Jacinto and the events leading up to it, and went up to the top of the monument. It was quite enjoyable, and I am glad we went.









This trip required another ferry crossing. The Lynchburg ferry crosses a much shorter distance than at Bolivar, and the boats are smaller. As we were waiting for the ferry to head back to I-10, I saw a lot of dusky little sparrows. I thought they were dirty! But, no, they are Seaside Sparrows. We have them marked in the life-list, but now I have pictures!

2 comments:

Larry said...

You have some nice photos! Your blog is a bit of a mystery as you don't give too much detail.I'd like to see an alligator in the wild some day.

Unknown said...

larry,

Thanks for the comment. This is our birding and travel blog. A catch all for what interests us. It is a place to publish our pictures for our friends and anyone else who is interested. How did you discover us?