Paynes Prairie

Paynes Praire continues to amaze us.  A one day visit resulted in 32 species including wild pigs, bison, horses, alligators, bald eagle, multiple types of ducks, coots, cranes, hawks, ibis, bittern, vulture, pelicans, plovers, blackbirds, sparrows, warblers, bluebirds, turtles, and a cottonmouth snake.  Any place with hundreds of like species is amazing, but add in small groups of birds like the near extinction whooping crane and it becomes surreal. The gator below was about 12' long.  He bathed in the sun for about an hour while we watched and studied the marsh from a platform above him. Eventually he entered the water to focus on supper.