Delta National Wildlife Refuge
The Delta National Wildlife Refuge is located east of Venice, Louisiana along the Mississippi River. The area formed when a breach in the natural levee of the Mississippi River occurred in 1862 approximately below New Orleans, Louisiana. The refuge was purchased in 1935 with the primary purpose to provide sanctuary and habitat to wintering waterfowl. Access is by boat only. Wildlife and habitat Delta NWR supports a wide variety of wildlife species. Tens of thousands of wintering waterfowl take advantage of the rich food resources found in the delta. Large numbers of other bird species can be found on the refuge, with numbers peaking during the spring and fall migrations. Large numbers of wading birds nest on the refuge, and thousands of shorebirds can be found on tidal mudflats and deltaic splays. Numerous furbearers and game mammals are year-round residents, and the marshes and waterways provide year-round and seasonal habitat for a diversity of fish and shellfish species. Tho ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana
Plaquemines Parish (; French language, French: ''Paroisse de Plaquemine'', Louisiana French: ''Paroisse des Plaquemines'', es, Parroquia de Caquis) is a Parish (subnational entity), parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 23,515 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the parish seat is Pointe à la Hache, Louisiana, Pointe à la Hache and the largest community is Belle Chasse, Louisiana, Belle Chasse. The parish was formed in 1807. Plaquemines Parish is part of the New Orleans–Metairie, Louisiana, Metairie New Orleans metropolitan area, metropolitan statistical area. It was severely damaged in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005, and in hurricane events in 2011 and 2021. History The name ''"Plaquemines,"'' in French Creole, was derived from the Atakapa word, ''piakimin'', meaning the local fruit persimmon. The French used it to name a military post they built on the banks of the Mississippi River, as the site was surround ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Northern Harrier
The northern harrier (''Circus hudsonius''), or ring-tailed hawk, is a bird of prey. It breeds throughout the northern parts of the northern hemisphere in Canada and the northernmost USA. The northern harrier migrates to more southerly areas in winter, with breeding birds in more northern areas moving to the southernmost USA, Mexico, and Central America. In milder regions in the southern US, they may be present all year, but the higher ground is largely deserted in winter. This bird inhabits prairies, open areas, and marshes. The northern harrier was formerly considered to be a subspecies of the Eurasian hen harrier. Taxonomy In 1750 the English naturalist George Edwards included an illustration and a description of the northern harrier in the third volume of his ''A Natural History of Uncommon Birds''. He used the English name "The Ring-tail'd Hawk". Edwards based his hand-coloured etching on a bird collected near the Hudson Bay in Canada and brought to London by James Ish ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Shrimp
Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are referred to as "shrimp". More narrow definitions may be restricted to Caridea, to smaller species of either group or to only the marine species. Under a broader definition, ''shrimp'' may be synonymous with prawn, covering stalk-eyed swimming crustaceans with long, narrow muscular tails (abdomens), long whiskers ( antennae), and slender legs. Any small crustacean which resembles a shrimp tends to be called one. They swim forward by paddling with swimmerets on the underside of their abdomens, although their escape response is typically repeated flicks with the tail driving them backwards very quickly. Crabs and lobsters have strong walking legs, whereas shrimp have thin, fragile legs which they use primarily for perching.Rudloe & Rudloe (2009 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Callinectes Sapidus
''Callinectes sapidus'' (from the Ancient Greek ,"beautiful" + , "swimmer", and Latin , "savory"), the blue crab, Atlantic blue crab, or regionally as the Chesapeake blue crab, is a species of crab native to the waters of the western Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, and introduced internationally. ''C. sapidus'' is of considerable culinary and economic importance in the United States, particularly in Louisiana, the Carolinas, the Chesapeake Bay, Delaware, and New Jersey. It is the Maryland state crustacean and the state's largest commercial fishery. Due to overfishing and environmental pressures some of the fisheries have seen declining yields, especially in the Chesapeake Bay fishery. Unlike other fisheries affected by climate change, blue crab is expected to do well; warming causes better breeding conditions, more survivable winters, and a greater range of habitable areas in the Atlantic coast. Whether this will have negative effects on the surrounding ecosystems ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Flounder
Flounders are a group of flatfish species. They are demersal fish, found at the bottom of oceans around the world; some species will also enter estuaries. Taxonomy The name "flounder" is used for several only distantly related species, though all are in the suborder Pleuronectoidei (families Achiropsettidae, Bothidae, Pleuronectidae, Paralichthyidae, and Samaridae). Some of the better known species that are important in fisheries are: * Western Atlantic ** Gulf flounder – ''Paralichthys albigutta'' ** Southern flounder – ''Paralichthys lethostigma'' ** Summer flounder (also known as ''fluke'') – ''Paralichthys dentatus'' ** Winter flounder – ''Pseudopleuronectes americanus'' * European waters **European flounder – ''Platichthys flesus'' ** Witch flounder – ''Glyptocephalus cynoglossus'' * North Pacific ** Halibut – ''Hippoglossus stenolepis'' ** Olive flounder – ''Paralichthys olivaceus'' Eye migration Larval flounder are born with one eye on each side o ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Redfish
Redfish is a common name for several species of fish. It is most commonly applied to certain deep-sea rockfish in the genus ''Sebastes'', red drum from the genus ''Sciaenops'' or the reef dwelling snappers in the genus ''Lutjanus''. It is also applied to the slimehead Slimeheads, also known as roughies and redfish, are mostly small, exceptionally long-lived, deep-sea beryciform fish constituting the family Trachichthyidae (derived from the Greek ''trachys'' – "rough" and ''ichthys'' – "fish"). Found in tem ...s or roughies (family Trachichthyidae), and the alfonsinos (Berycidae). References {{Animal common name Fish common names ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Cynoscion Nebulosus
''Cynoscion nebulosus'', the spotted seatrout, also known as speckled trout, is a common estuarine fish found in the southern United States along coasts of Gulf of Mexico and the coastal Atlantic Ocean from Maryland to Florida. While most of these fish are caught on shallow, grassy flats, spotted seatrout reside in virtually any inshore waters, from the surf of outside islands to far up coastal rivers, where they often come for shelter during cold weather. Contrary to its name, the spotted seatrout is not a member of the trout family (Salmonidae), but of the drum family (Sciaenidae). It is popular for commercial and especially recreational fishing in coastal waters of the southeastern United States. Adults reach 19-37 inches in length and 3-17 pounds in weight. Distribution Spotted seatrout live in the top of the water column and are most numerous along the coasts of the southeastern states, such as Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, and Florida. They are also commo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Osprey
The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown on the upperparts and predominantly greyish on the head and underparts. The osprey tolerates a wide variety of habitats, nesting in any location near a body of water providing an adequate food supply. It is found on all continents except Antarctica, although in South America it occurs only as a non-breeding migrant. As its other common names suggest, the osprey's diet consists almost exclusively of fish. It possesses specialised physical characteristics and exhibits unique behaviour to assist in hunting and catching prey. As a result of these unique characteristics, it has been given its own taxonomic genus, ''Pandion'', and family, Pandionidae. Taxonomy The osprey was described by Carl Linnaeus under the name ''Falco haliaeetus'' in his ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sharp-shinned Hawk
The sharp-shinned hawk (''Accipiter striatus'') is a small hawk, with males being the smallest hawks in the United States and Canada, but with the species averaging larger than some Neotropical realm, Neotropical species, such as the tiny hawk. The Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy is far from resolved, with some authorities considering the southern taxon, taxa to represent three separate species: white-breasted hawk (''A. chionogaster''), plain-breasted hawk (''A. ventralis''), and rufous-thighed hawk (''A. erythronemius''). The American Ornithological Society keeps all four variations conspecific. Taxonomy The sharp-shinned hawk is sometimes separated into four species, with the northern group (''see distribution'') retaining both the scientific name and the common name: sharp-shinned hawk (''A. striatus''). In addition to the nominate taxon (''A. s. striatus''), it includes subspecies ''perobscurus'', ''velox'', ''suttoni'', ''madrensis'', ''fringilloides'', and ''venator''. The t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Red-shouldered Hawk
The red-shouldered hawk (''Buteo lineatus'') is a medium-sized buteo. Its breeding range spans eastern North America and along the coast of California and northern to northeastern-central Mexico. It is a permanent resident throughout most of its range, though northern birds do migrate, mostly to central Mexico. The main conservation threat to the widespread species is deforestation. Taxonomy The red-shouldered hawk was formally described in 1788 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's ''Systema Naturae''. He placed it with the eagles, hawks and relatives in the genus '' Falco'' and coined the binomial name ''Falco lineatus''. Gmelin based his account on the "barred-breasted buzzard" of John Latham and the "red shouldered falcon" of Thomas Pennant. Latham had described a preserved specimen from North America in the Leverian collection while Pennant's specimen formed part of the collection of Anna Blackburne and had ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Merlin (bird)
The merlin (''Falco columbarius'') is a small species of falcon from the Northern Hemisphere, with numerous subspecies throughout North America and Eurasia. A bird of prey once known colloquially as a pigeon hawk in North America, the merlin breeds in the northern Holarctic; some migrate to subtropical and northern tropical regions in winter. Males typically have wingspans of , with females being slightly larger. They are swift fliers and skilled hunters who specialize in preying on small birds in the size range of sparrows to quail. The merlin has for centuries been well regarded as a falconry bird. In recent decades merlin populations in North America have been significantly increasing, with some merlins becoming so well adapted to city life that they forgo migration. Nomenclature The merlin was described and illustrated by the English naturalist Mark Catesby (as the "pigeon hawk") in his ''Natural history of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands'' published in 1729–17 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Cooper's Hawk
Cooper's hawk (''Accipiter cooperii'') is a medium-sized hawk native to the North American continent and found from southern Canada to Mexico. This species is a member of the genus ''Accipiter'', sometimes referred to as true hawks, which are famously agile, relatively small hawks common to wooded habitats around the world and also the most diverse of all diurnal raptor genera. As in many birds of prey, the male is smaller than the female.Snyder, N. F., & Wiley, J. W. (1976). ''Sexual size dimorphism in hawks and owls of North America (No. 20)''. American Ornithologists' Union. The birds found east of the Mississippi River tend to be larger on average than the birds found to the west.Pearlstine, E. V., & Thompson, D. B. (2004). ''Geographic variation in morphology of four species of migratory raptors''. Journal of Raptor Research, 38(4), 334–342. It is easily confused with the smaller but similar sharp-shinned hawk. (''A. striatus'') The species was named in 1828 by Charles Lu ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |