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Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve
In 1999, the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve (GTM Research Reserve) was designated in St. Johns and Flagler counties, Florida as a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) system. The GTM Research Reserve represents the east Florida sub-region of the Carolinian bioregion. It is one of 29 NERRs in 23 states and one territory. GTM is one of three NERRs in Florida, and is administered on behalf of the state by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection's Florida Coastal Office as part of a network that includes forty-one aquatic preserves, three NERRs, a National Marine Sanctuary, the Coral Reef Conservation Program and the Florida Oceans and Coastal Council. Additional interests are held in the research and management of the GTM and connected preserved or conserved lands including: * National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration * Friends of the GTM * Florida Fish and Wildlif ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flagler County
Flagler County is a county located in the northeastern portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 115,378. Its county seat is Bunnell. Created in 1917 from portions of Saint Johns and Volusia Counties, it was named for Henry Flagler, who built the Florida East Coast Railway. Flagler County is included in the Deltona–Daytona Beach–Ormond Beach, FL metropolitan statistical area, and is also included in the Orlando-Deltona-Daytona Beach, FL Combined Statistical Area. History In 1974, Marco Polo Park, a theme park off Interstate 95 opened. It was never profitable and closed soon after. In 1998, when two brush fires threatened to become one huge brush fire in Flagler County, a mandatory evacuation was ordered for the entire county. This was the first and so far the only time a whole county was evacuated in Florida for a wildfire. Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sea Turtle
Sea turtles (superfamily Chelonioidea), sometimes called marine turtles, are reptiles of the order Testudines and of the suborder Cryptodira. The seven existing species of sea turtles are the flatback, green, hawksbill, leatherback, loggerhead, Kemp's ridley, and olive ridley sea turtles. All six of the sea turtle species present in US waters (all of those listed above except the flatback) are listed as endangered and/or threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The seventh sea turtle species is the flatback, which exists in the waters of Australia, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. Sea turtles can be separated into the categories of hard-shelled ( cheloniid) and leathery-shelled ( dermochelyid).Wyneken, J. 2001. The Anatomy of Sea Turtles. U.S Department of Commerce NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS-SEFSC-470, 1-172 pp. There is only one dermochelyid species which is the leatherback sea turtle. Description For each of the seven types of sea turtles, females and males are t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Roseate Spoonbill
The roseate spoonbill (''Platalea ajaja'') is a gregarious wading bird of the ibis and spoonbill family, Threskiornithidae. It is a resident breeder in both South and North America. Taxonomy The roseate spoonbill is sometimes placed in its own genus - ''Ajaia''. A 2010 study of mitochondrial DNA of the spoonbills by Chesser and colleagues found that the roseate and yellow-billed spoonbills were each other's closest relatives, and the two were descended from an early offshoot from the ancestors of the other four spoonbill species. They felt the genetic evidence meant it was equally valid to consider all six to be classified within the genus ''Platalea'' or alternatively the two placed in the monotypic genera ''Platibis'' and ''Ajaia'', respectively. However, as the six species were so similar morphologically, keeping them within the one genus made more sense. Description The roseate spoonbill is long, with a wingspan and a body mass of . The tarsus measures , the culmen me ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wood Stork
The wood stork (''Mycteria americana'') is a large American wading bird in the family Ciconiidae (storks), the only member of the family to breed in North America. It was formerly called the "wood ibis", though it is not an ibis. It is found in subtropical and tropical habitats in the Americas, including the Caribbean. In South America, it is resident, but in North America, it may disperse as far as Florida. Originally described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, this stork likely evolved in tropical regions. The head and neck are bare of feathers, and dark grey in colour. The plumage is mostly white, with the exception of the tail and some of the wing feathers, which are black with a greenish-purplish sheen. The juvenile differs from the adult, with the former having a feathered head and a yellow bill, compared to the black adult bill. There is little sexual dimorphism. The wood stork's habitat can vary, but it must have a tropical or subtropical climate with fluctuating water levels ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American White Pelican
The American white pelican (''Pelecanus erythrorhynchos'') is a large Aquatic animal, aquatic soaring bird from the order (biology), order Pelecaniformes. It breeds in interior North America, moving south and to the coasts, as far as Central America and South America, in winter. Taxonomy The American white pelican was Species description, formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's ''Systema Naturae''. He placed it with the other pelicans in the genus ''Pelecanus'' and coined the binomial nomenclature, binomial name ''Pelecanus erythrorhynchos''. Gmelin based his description on the "rough-billed pelican" that had been described in 1785 by the English ornithologist John Latham (ornithologist), John Latham. Latham had access to three specimens that had been brought to London from New York and the Hudson Bay area of North America. The scientific name means "red-billed pelican", from the Latin term ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brown Pelican
The brown pelican (''Pelecanus occidentalis'') is a bird of the pelican family, Pelecanidae, one of three species found in the Americas and one of two that feed by diving into water. It is found on the Atlantic Coast from New Jersey to the mouth of the Amazon River, and along the Pacific Coast from British Columbia to northern Chile, including the Galapagos Islands. The nominate subspecies in its breeding plumage has a white head with a yellowish wash on the crown. The nape and neck are dark maroon–brown. The upper sides of the neck have white lines along the base of the gular pouch, and the lower fore neck has a pale yellowish patch. The male and female are similar, but the female is slightly smaller. The nonbreeding adult has a white head and neck. The pink skin around the eyes becomes dull and gray in the nonbreeding season. It lacks any red hue, and the pouch is strongly olivaceous ochre-tinged and the legs are olivaceous gray to blackish-gray. The brown pelican main ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wader
245px, A flock of Dunlins and Red knots">Red_knot.html" ;"title="Dunlins and Red knot">Dunlins and Red knots Waders or shorebirds are birds of the order Charadriiformes commonly found wikt:wade#Etymology 1, wading along shorelines and mudflats in order to foraging, forage for food crawling or burrowing in the mud and sand, usually small arthropods such as aquatic insects or crustaceans. The term "wader" is used in Europe, while "shorebird" is used in North America, where "wader" may be used instead to refer to long-legged wading birds such as storks and herons. There are about 210 species of wader, most of which live in wetland or coastal environments. Many species of Arctic and temperate regions are strongly migratory, but tropical birds are often resident, or move only in response to rainfall patterns. Some of the Arctic species, such as the little stint, are amongst the longest distance migrants, spending the non-breeding season in the southern hemisphere. Many of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anastasia Island Beach Mouse
The Anastasia Island beach mouse (''Peromyscus polionotus phasma'') is a subspecies of the oldfield mouse of the southeastern United States. It occurs in the sand dunes of Florida and Alabama beaches. It has been classified by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service as an endangered species due to the specificity of its habitat and the natural and human-induced destruction thereof. Description The Anastasia Island beach mouse has an average body length of including tail. The coat tends to be a pale tan color with a white underbelly. Subtle white markings can be found across the face and muzzle. Their coloration, being substantially lighter than inland members of their species, is thought to be an adaptation to help them blend into their sandy habitats and avoid predators. Males and non-reproducing females average a weight of and pregnant females have an average weight of . Habitat The mouse occurs in the sandy dunes of Anastasia Island in Florida. Though the species once ra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endangered Species
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and invasive species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List lists the global conservation status of many species, and various other agencies assess the status of species within particular areas. Many nations have laws that protect conservation-reliant species which, for example, forbid hunting, restrict land development, or create protected areas. Some endangered species are the target of extensive conservation efforts such as captive breeding and habitat restoration. Human activity is a significant cause in causing some species to become endangered. Conservation status The conservation status of a species indicates the likelihood that it will become extinct. Multiple factors are considered when assessing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bald Eagle
The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as the bald eagle in the Palearctic. Its range includes most of Canada and Alaska, all of the contiguous United States, and northern Mexico. It is found near large bodies of open water with an abundant food supply and old-growth trees for nesting. The bald eagle is an opportunistic feeder which subsists mainly on fish, which it swoops down upon and snatches from the water with its talons. It builds the largest nest of any North American bird and the largest tree nests ever recorded for any animal species, up to deep, wide, and in weight. Sexual maturity is attained at the age of four to five years. Bald eagles are not actually bald; the name derives from an older meaning of the word, "white headed". The adult is mainly brown with a w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peregrine Falcon
The peregrine falcon (''Falco peregrinus''), also known as the peregrine, and historically as the duck hawk in North America, is a cosmopolitan bird of prey (raptor) in the family Falconidae. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-grey back, barred white underparts, and a black head. The peregrine is renowned for its speed, reaching over during its characteristic hunting stoop (high-speed dive), making it the fastest bird in the world, as well as the fastest member of the animal kingdom. According to a ''National Geographic'' TV program, the highest measured speed of a peregrine falcon is . As is typical for bird-eating raptors, peregrine falcons are sexually dimorphic, with females being considerably larger than males. The peregrine's breeding range includes land regions from the Arctic tundra to the tropics. It can be found nearly everywhere on Earth, except extreme polar regions, very high mountains, and most tropical rainforests; the only major ice-free landmass fr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
North American River Otter
The North American river otter (''Lontra canadensis''), also known as the northern river otter and river otter, is a semiaquatic mammal that only lives on the North American continent, along its waterways and coasts. An adult North American river otter can weigh between . The river otter is protected and insulated by a thick, water-repellent coat of fur. The North American river otter, a member of the subfamily Lutrinae in the weasel family (Mustelidae), is equally versatile in the water and on land. It establishes a burrow close to the water's edge in river, lake, swamp, coastal shoreline, tidal flat, or estuary ecosystems. The den typically has many tunnel openings, one of which generally allows the otter to enter and exit the body of water. Female North American river otters give birth in these burrows, producing litters of one to six young. North American river otters, like most predators, prey upon the most readily accessible species. Fish is a favored food among the otte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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