|
Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge
The Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge located in the Lower Rio Grande Valley region of southern Texas. It is along the northern banks and reaches of the Lower Rio Grande, north of the Mexico—United States international border. Ecology Only 5% of the native riparian, floodplain, and wetland habitats remain along the lower Rio Grande and its local tributaries, but the diversity within these fragments adds up to a significant 1,200 species of native plants, 700 species of vertebrates (including nearly 500 bird species), and 300 species of butterflies. Eleven different biological communities exist on the National Wildlife Refuge, from the Chihuahuan Desert thorn forest to tidal wetlands. Wildlife includes the rare ocelot, crested caracara, Mexican bluewing butterfly, great kiskadee, red-billed pigeon, Altamira oriole, ringed kingfisher, and green jay The green jay (''Cyanocorax luxuosus'') is a species of the New World jays ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cameron County, Texas
Cameron County, officially the County of Cameron, is the southernmost county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 421,017. Its county seat is Brownsville. The county was founded in 1848 and is named for Captain Ewen Cameron, a soldier during the Texas Revolution and in the ill-fated Mier Expedition. During the later 19th century and through World War II, Fort Brown was a US Army outpost here, stimulating the development of the city of Brownsville. Cameron County comprises the Brownsville– Harlingen, TX metropolitan statistical area, as well as the Brownsville–Harlingen– Raymondville combined statistical area, which itself is part of the larger Rio Grande Valley region. Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which are land and (30%) are covered by water. To the east, the county borders the Gulf of Mexico. Major highways * Interstate 2 * Interstate 69E/ U.S. Highway 77 * Interstate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vertebrate
Vertebrates () comprise all animal taxa within the subphylum Vertebrata () ( chordates with backbones), including all mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Vertebrates represent the overwhelming majority of the phylum Chordata, with currently about 69,963 species described. Vertebrates comprise such groups as the following: * jawless fish, which include hagfish and lampreys * jawed vertebrates, which include: ** cartilaginous fish (sharks, rays, and ratfish) ** bony vertebrates, which include: *** ray-fins (the majority of living bony fish) *** lobe-fins, which include: **** coelacanths and lungfish **** tetrapods (limbed vertebrates) Extant vertebrates range in size from the frog species ''Paedophryne amauensis'', at as little as , to the blue whale, at up to . Vertebrates make up less than five percent of all described animal species; the rest are invertebrates, which lack vertebral columns. The vertebrates traditionally include the hagfish, which do no ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lower Rio Grande Valley
The Lower Rio Grande Valley ( es, Valle del Río Grande), commonly known as the Rio Grande Valley or locally as the Valley or RGV, is a region spanning the border of Texas and Mexico located in a floodplain of the Rio Grande near its mouth. The region includes the southernmost tip of South Texas and a portion of northern Tamaulipas, Mexico. It consists of the Brownsville, Harlingen, Weslaco, Pharr, McAllen, Edinburg, Mission, San Juan, and Rio Grande City metropolitan areas in the United States and the Matamoros, Río Bravo, and Reynosa metropolitan areas in Mexico. The area is generally bilingual in English and Spanish, with a fair amount of Spanglish due to the region's diverse history and transborder agglomerations It is home to some of the poorest cities in the nation, as well as many unincorporated, persistent poverty communities called ''colonias''. A large seasonal influx occurs of "winter Texans" — people who come down from the north for the winter and then ret ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Wildlife Refuges In Texas
National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, census-designated place * National, Nevada, ghost town * National, Utah, ghost town * National, West Virginia, unincorporated community Commerce * National (brand), a brand name of electronic goods from Panasonic * National Benzole (or simply known as National), former petrol station chain in the UK, merged with BP * National Car Rental, an American rental car company * National Energy Systems, a former name of Eco Marine Power * National Entertainment Commission, a former name of the Media Rating Council * National Motor Vehicle Company, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA 1900-1924 * National Supermarkets, a defunct American grocery store chain * National String Instrument Corporation, a guitar company formed to manufacture the first resonator gu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail
The Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail is a state-designated system of trails, bird sanctuaries, and nature preserves along the entire length of the Texas Gulf Coast in the United States. As the state of Texas hosts more bird species than any other state in the U.S. the trail system offers some of the most unusual opportunities for bird-watching in the world.Schultz (2007), pp. 779–780.Wauer (1998), p. 1. The "trail" is actually 43 separate hiking and driving trails that include 308 birding sites. The sites themselves feature a variety of viewing opportunities with boardwalks, observation decks, and other amenities. The trails boast more than 450 bird species.White (2003), pg. 2. The trail system is managed by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department as part of the Great Texas Wildlife Trails which also include the Heart of Texas Wildlife Trail, the Panhandle Plains Wildlife Trail, and the Prairies and Pineywoods Wildlife Trail. Apart from bird watching the trail system incl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Green Jay
The green jay (''Cyanocorax luxuosus'') is a species of the New World jays, and is found in Central America. Adults are about long and variable in colour across their range; they usually have blue and black heads, green wings and mantle, bluish-green tails, black bills, yellow or brown eye rings, and dark legs. The basic diet consists of arthropods, vertebrates, seeds, and fruit. The nest is usually built in a thorny bush; the female incubates the clutch of three to five eggs. This is a common species of jay with a wide range and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being of "least concern". Taxonomy Some ornithologists treat the green jay as conspecific with the Inca jay of the Andes, with ''C. yncas luxuosus'' as the green jay and ''C. yncas yncas'' as the Inca jay. Description Green jays are in length. Weight ranges from . They have feathers of yellowish-white with blue tips on the top of the head, cheeks and nape, though s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ringed Kingfisher
The ringed kingfisher (''Megaceryle torquata'') is a large, conspicuous and noisy kingfisher bird commonly found along the lower Rio Grande valley in southeasternmost Texas in the United States through Central America to Tierra del Fuego in South America. Description The ringed kingfisher (''Megaceryle torquata'') is a Neotropical kingfisher that lives in habitats ranging between the US and Mexico. In 1888, the species was first discovered in the US, while the first ringed kingfisher nest was found in 1970. They are commonly seen along the Rio Grande and in water bodies in southern Texas. Their distribution is increasing and expanding upwards. Measurement The wings of adult males range between , which on average measures . Their tail range between , and the bill measures . Female wings range 185.0-210.1 mm, as the tail measures and possess a bill measuring . Individuals can weigh between . Such measurements prove that the species do not differ sexually in terms of si ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Red-billed Pigeon
The red-billed pigeon (''Patagioenas flavirostris'') is a relatively large, robust species of pigeon. It's breeding range extends from southern Texas, United States, to Costa Rica. It's primarily found throughout coastal and lowland areas of Mexico and Central America. It belongs to a clade of ''Patagioenas'' which generally lack iridescent display plumage, except some vestiges in the pale-vented pigeon. Description Red-billed pigeons have largely dark, slate-gray plumage with a more maroon, though sometimes described as purple, head, neck, and wing coverts. They have pale red eyes with an orange orbital ring, along with a red bill with a yellow tip. Noticeably, they don't have iridescent collar plumage. A blue-gray belly and tail coverts, as well as a less brown back, distinguish it from most other species., such as the Ruddy Pigeon and Short-billed Pigeon. The only noticeable difference between males and females is that the females have a duller colored head and neck. Juveni ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Kiskadee
The great kiskadee (''Pitangus sulphuratus''), called ''bem-te-vi'' in Brazil and ''benteveo'' in Argentina, is a passerine bird in the tyrant flycatcher family Tyrannidae. It is the only member of the genus ''Pitangus''. It breeds in open woodland with some tall trees, including cultivation and around human habitation. It is mainly found in Belize, and from the Lower Rio Grande Valley in southern Texas and northern Mexico. Cited in Liberia, Guanacaste, Costa Rica in December 2022. Occurs throughout Brazil and Venezuela (especially the central and south-southeastern regions) south to Argentina and Uruguay, Paraguay and central Argentina, the Guyana coastline, and on Trinidad. It was introduced to Bermuda in 1957, and to Tobago in about 1970. Taxonomy The great kiskadee was described and illustrated in 1648 by the German naturalist Georg Marcgrave in the ''Historia Naturalis Brasiliae''. He used the name , the word for a large flycatcher in the Tupi language. In 1760 the French z ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Myscelia Ethusa
''Myscelia ethusa'', the Mexican bluewing or blue wing, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. The species was first described by Louis Michel François Doyère in 1840. It is found from Colombia north through Central America to Mexico. Strays can be found up to the lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas in the United States. The wingspan is . Many generations occur per year. The larvae feed on the ''Dalechampia ''Dalechampia'' is a genus of plant of the family Euphorbiaceae and of the monogeneric subtribe Dalechampiinae. It is widespread across lowland tropical areas (generally below 2,000 m ASL) primarily in the Americas with smaller numbers of species ...'' species. Adults feed on rotting fruit. Subspecies Listed alphabetically: * ''M. e. chiapensis '' Jenkins, 1984 (Mexico) * ''M. e. cyanecula'' C. Felder & R. Felder, 1867 (Mexico) * ''M. e. ethusa'' (Mexico) * ''M. e. pattenia '' Butler & H. Druce, 1872 (Guatemala and Costa Rica) Mexican bluewing (Myscelia ethusa) egg j ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Crested Caracara
The crested caracara (''Caracara plancus'') is a bird of prey in the family Falconidae. It is found from the southern United States through Central and South America to Tierra del Fuego. It was formerly placed in the genus ''Polyborus''. Description The crested caracara has a total length of and a wingspan of . Its weight is , averaging in seven birds from Tierra del Fuego.''CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses, 2nd Edition'' by John B. Dunning Jr. (Editor). CRC Press (2008), . Individuals from the colder southern part of its range average larger than those from tropical regions (as predicted by Bergmann's rule) and are the largest type of caracara. In fact, they are the second-largest species of falcon in the world by mean body mass, second only to the gyrfalcon. The cap, belly, thighs, most of the wings, and tail tip are dark brownish, the auriculars (feathers surrounding the ear), throat, and nape are whitish-buff, and the chest, neck, mantle, back, upper tail coverts, crissu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
