Tag: Creatures Among Us
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Jetties Creatures: A Few Varied Invertebrates
by M. Kathy Raines Lace-trimmed waters crash, swirling among jumbled blocks of granite, exploding in shimmering mist. Carpets of bright green algae glimmer in sunlight. Terns and pelicans criss-cross skies, plummeting for fish. The jetties at Isla Blanca Park vibrate with life. Octopuses ooze through crevices. Sea urchins rest in washes between rocks. Sea…
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Green and Brown Anoles: One Native, One Introduced
by M. Kathy Raines Glancing from my book, I delighted to glimpse the ballooning speckled pink dewlap, or throat fan, of a green anole as it did push-ups against the wall of the gazebo. Noticing me a few photographs later, it leapt onto a nearby leaf, instantly changing from green to brown. “It’s…
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Welcome, Hooded Warbler!
by M. Kathy Raines Fall migration is in full swing, and the charming little hooded warbler is resting and filling up on Valley insects as it journeys from the eastern U.S. to the tropics. A black hood, like Batman’s cowl, encircles the lemon-yellow face of the male, making it one of our most easily identifiable…
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Groove-Billed Ani
by M. Kathy Raines I mistook the black bird swaying atop the hackberry for a great-tailed grackle. I didn’t recognize its chirruping “TEE-ho”, but then grackles do possess a broad repertoire of whistles, clacks and shrieks. But, trying out a new camera that morning, I opted to take one final shot before escaping the sweltering…
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Great Kiskadees—Voices of the Rio Grande Valley
by M. Kathy Raines “Kis-ka DEE! Kis-ka-DEE!” The great kiskadee, a feisty, strikingly-colored flycatcher, shrieked its name as it swooped through the foliage fringing a boardwalk at Sabal Palm Sanctuary in Brownsville. Though chirps and calls often baffle me as I seek out flitting songsters, I never fail to recognize the brash call of this…
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The Black-bellied Whistling Duck: Our Perpetual Neighbors
by M. Kathy Raines We’re surrounded. These perky, red-billed, red-footed black-bellied whistling ducks— like cats—think they belong everywhere, it seems. They perch with their buddies on rooftops, fences and telephone poles, and, in the summer, they shepherd their fuzzy black-and-white striped children down irrigation canals. They even paddle in our swimming pools. Then, near…