Our SB Vacation

We were in that part of Texas at the right time of year to see the whooping cranes in their wintering grounds in Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. It is estimated that there are only around 400 whooping cranes, give or take a hundred, left in the world. That includes both cranes in the wild and in captivity.

We booked a tour that would take us into the wildlife refuge via the bay. The boat was able to get to places we could not visit on our own. We saw a ton of different species of birds. We also saw at least 40 whooping cranes. The captain knew his stuff and was a good source of information about the local birds. We also saw several dolphin. We had to wait until we drove through the park later in the week to see the other wildlife. Here are some pictures from our tour.

 

Short billed dowitchers

Reddish egret



Black bellied plover in his winter plumage (I think)

American avocets

whooping crane

Roseate spoonbill

Snowy egrets, American avocets, & spoonbill

Lesser yellowlegs & whooping crane

Black necked stilt & spoonbill

 

Juvenile ibis & mottled duck

whooping crane

Juvenile whooping crane with an eel

Juvenile whooping crane with an eel

Osprey

American oystercatchers

Brown booby

 

 

 

Danielle was the only one who seemed noticeably bored at one point. We sat at the top of the boat with the captain and a couple people who were with a conservation group. Everyone else sat in the cabin below, so it was almost like we had the boat to ourselves. We got back around lunch time and walked next door for lunch on the back patio. We amused ourselves with the barstools. It was a good trip.