Birdwatcher Jeff Mohamed joined us today to describe some of the birds that can be found in our own backyard. Texas has a lot of birds
- 680 species, with the United States having about 985. Our Lone
Star-CyFair campus alone has spotted 169 species. People come from all
over the world to Texas just to see the birds. It's a big industry here in
Texas. And we have so many habitats: prairie, piney woods, marshes, beaches,
and urban spaces for our feathered friends. We also are so close to Mexico and
on migration paths "fly ways" of birds up from South America and down
from Canada and Alaska.
Jeff explained
that we have some birds we see year round and others are migrants who come
and go. He showed us a slide show of local birds that he actually saw and
photographed. His favorite haunts to spot birds here in Harris County are as
follows: Kleb Woods Park, Katie Prairie, Paul Rushing Chain-of-Lakes Park,
Warren Ranch Lake, Bear Creek Park, the Brazos Bend State Park (alligators,
too), the Baytown Nature Center, Carpenter's Bayou, Sheldon Lake Environmental
Center, Rookery at Smith Oaks and the Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge. The
college pylons and buildings are also homes to many local birds.
Did you know the bald
eagle is so lazy that he steals his fish if he can? Benjamin Franklin didn't
like this character trait and preferred the industrious wild turkey for our
national bird. But the mighty bald eagle won out.
And learn more information about birds in our area at the Audubon Society: www.houstonaudubon.org
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