Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge

Hi Blog! Today is Friday, January 30, 2015. Today's adventure was a bike ride in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. Our first stop was the Visitor's Center. We had learned from the internet that there was a seven mile scenic drive called the Black Point Wildlife Drive. We were hoping to be able to ride our bikes along the route. (Great White tends to scare wildlife.) After talking with the volunteer ranger, he confirmed that riding bikes was allowed on park roads, and that it is a great way to see more wildlife. He also suggested a couple other bike rides and hikes for future visits.

Just out back of the Visitor Center is a 1/4 mile boardwalk which goes past two freshwater ponds, a native butterfly garden, forest hammock and wetland prairie. We stopped and ate our picnic lunch next to one of the fresh water ponds. Lucky for us, Mr. Al E. Gator was not interested in sharing our turkey and cheese sandwiches. He never budges from this spot.

Here is an example of what the boardwalk looked like. All of the oranges that were left were just out of reach. Kathy waited patiently for one to fall into her waiting arms. Unfortunately, we couldn't wait for ever. It was time to ride. No free oranges today.

We learned that Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1963 as an overlay of NASA’s John F. Kennedy Space Center.  Consisting of 140,000 acres, the Refuge provides a wide variety of habitats:  coastal dunes, saltwater estuaries and marshes, freshwater impoundments, scrub, pine flatwoods, and hardwood hammocks provide habitat for more than 1,500 species of plants and animals. It also provides lots of open space just in case some of those NASA rockets go astray.

As we rode over to the start of the Black Point Drive, we passed one of NASA's signal towers which a young Bald Eagle was using as a perch.

Just around the corner, we found an Osprey using one of the power lines.

With the weather being so cold, we weren't expecting to see very many alligators. However, we did catch a glimpse of this big boy sunning himself. It was probably about 1:00 p.m. when we took this picture. By the time we finished the loop road it was about 4:30. He was still in the exact same spot three and half hours later. I guess when you got it good, there is no reason to move.

Before long, we were heading down the Black Point Wildlife Drive. Since most folks drive their cars, the wildlife has gotten pretty habituated to folks driving by. Unfortunately, they have no idea what a bicycle is. The first time Dave braked his bike, the birds beat a hasty retreat. We got much better at approaching slowly and not letting the bike brakes squeak.

One of the easiest birds to spot is the Great Egret. He is huge and white, so he stand out. The great egret is a large heron with all-white plumage. Standing up to 3.3 feet tall, this species can measure 31 to 41 inches in length and have a wingspan of 52 to 67 inches. He is also much more likely to stand and pose for a phone than, say, a Great Blue Heron.

This little guys is a Tricolored Heron. The tricolored heron, formerly known in North America as the Louisiana heron, is a small heron. His multiple colors make him standout.

This little guys is an American Avocet. He is a shorebird that spends his days foraging for worms, clams, snails, shrimp and crabs burrowed beneath the soft mud. This avocet has long, thin, gray legs, giving it its colloquial name, "blue shanks". The plumage is black and white on the back with white on the underbelly. The neck and head are cinnamon colored in the summer and gray in the winter. The long, thin bill is upturned at the end.

This is the first time we have ever seen a Reddish Egret in action. The reddish egret is considered one of the most active herons, and is often seen on the move. It stalks its prey visually in shallow water far more actively than other herons and egrets, frequently running energetically and using the shadow of its wings to reduce glare on the water once it is in position to spear a fish; the result is a fascinating dance. Due to its bold, rapacious yet graceful feeding behavior, author Pete Dunne nicknamed the reddish egret "the Tyrannosaurus Rex of the Flats." We watched this guy fish for several minutes and it was pretty amazing watching him dance and swoop and plunge.

While we don't consider ourselves birders, we do enjoy being out in nature and seeing wild things in their natural habitat. That said, we know enough birders to know that one of the most sought after birds in Florida is the Roseate Spoonbill. This species feeds in shallow fresh or coastal waters by swinging its bill from side to side as it steadily walks through the water, often in groups. The spoon-shaped bill allows it to sift easily through mud. It feeds on crustaceans, aquatic insects, frogs, newts and very small fish ignored by larger waders. Like the American flamingo, their pink color is diet-derived. The colors can range from pale pink to bright magenta, depending on age and location. If you look really carefully at the photo below, you will see a bright pink roseate spoonbill, to the right in the mid-ground!

Another favorite among the birders is the Wood Stork.  It appears all white on the ground, with blackish-gray legs and pink feet. In flight, the trailing edge of the wings is black. The head is dark brown with a bald, black face, and the thick downcurved bill is dusky yellow. The wood stork is big and easy to spot.

German folklore held that storks found babies in caves or marshes and brought them to households in a basket on their backs or held in their beaks. These caves contained adebarsteine or "stork stones". The babies would then be given to the mother or dropped down the chimney. Households would notify when they wanted children by placing sweets for the stork on the window sill. So, just to be safe, keep all those sweet treats away from any windows.

What can you say about an armadillo?  The word armadillo means "little armored one" in Spanish. Armadillos have short legs, but can move quite quickly, and have the ability to remain under water for as long as six minutes. Because of the density of its armor, an armadillo will sink in water unless it swallows air, inflating its stomach to twice normal size and raising its buoyancy above that of water, allowing it to swim across narrow streams and ditches. This guy had no trouble scampering across the road as we approached. In fact, he did a little hop, hop when he got to the other side. They may look like little tanks, but they are very light on their tiny little piggy-like toes.

The seven miles were over way too fast. Hopefully, we will be able to get back over to the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge before we leave on Tuesday. Until then, stay thirsty my friends.