The Nanday Parakeet is a noisy, invasive species that’s hard to miss. Their loud, ratchety squawks often draw attention to flocks of bright green birds marked with distinct black heads—hence their nickname, the “black-hooded parakeet.” Once native to Central and South...
The amazing Common Grackle is long-lived, reaching upwards of 24 years, and is extremely resourceful. In a more agricultural setting, the communal bird, sometimes flocks can be numbered in the millions, is the number one threat to corn! They eat ripening corn and corn...
The Wood Duck by Mark L Franzer Of all waterfowl, the Wood Duck reigns supreme! The males have ornate patterns on nearly every feather and are iridescent chestnut and green. The females are equally distinct with their unique profile and white patterns around the...
Don’t let this month scare you by way of ‘mimicry’. The dark metallic blue with white dots and red “tail” gives the threatening appearance of a dangerous wasp but is completely harmless. The caterpillars are a shade of orange with long black hairs again making...
Mfranzer@yahoo.com Did you know that there isn’t an average lifespan for the “gator”? Two of the oldest American Alligators had been in captivity until their early 80s! An average adult alligator is close to 800 lbs growing to approximately 14 feet although...
Great White Egret rank among our most conspicuous and beautiful birds. The Great White Egret is extremely similar to the Great White Heron however, the Egret is a bit smaller in size with black legs. The Heron is larger in stature, less “bright’ with thicker...
