Birds and Nature

These are two of the migrating warblers (Chestnut-sided Warbler above and Blackburnian Warbler below) that I saw at the Sabal Palm Audubon Sanctuary about 2 weeks ago (and larger photos posted on below on my blog on April 27). They were foraging actively with other migrating warblers including 2 Black-throated Green and several Black-and-White Warblers. The Sabal Palm Audubon Sanctuary provides important stopover habitat for many migrating birds. This is another reason that we must Save Sabal Palm from being isolated behind the Border Wall, which is a taxpayer rip-off as well as a disaster for conservation in the Rio Grande Valley. SeEtta

From the Chronical.com: "Thousands of migrating warblers pass through the Bolivar Peninsula about this time every year, making one last stop for food and water before their 600-mile flight over the Gulf of Mexico. But the warblers and other migratory birds might not be able to find refuge for a while on the remote and particularly vulnerable place. Hurricane Ike stripped the birds' favorite mulberry trees, leaving little fuel for their long journey ahead — one of the sobering consequences of the storm. ------- Up to 20 miles inland, post-Ike samples showed salt levels as much as 25 parts per thousand in water that usually has no salinity. Water begins to taste salty at 6 parts per thousand, Sutherlin said. "That exasperates everything that needs freshwater," he said. "If we don't get a lot of rain soon, then it's gloom and doom for fish, insects and some mammals. For birds, as soon as the water is freshened, they will move back in." At this point, t...