Brett Ossman Photography

A few alligator fun facts from https://ourplnt.com/alligator-facts/

 ·         An alligator’s brain has the average size of a walnut, but they have been observed using lures (like bait sticks) to hunt birds.

·         Alligators are much less aggressive than their cousins, crocodiles. They are generally timid towards humans and tend to walk or swim away if one approaches.

        o   <My Edit> Of course, unless you give them no other choice.

·         It is easy to hold an alligator’s mouth shut.

·         Alligator eggs become female or male depending on the temperature.

·         Alligator diet can include fruit and plants.

Anhinga in Our Backyard

Thanks to https://grandstrandmag.com/feature/7_fun_facts_about_the_amazing_anhinga for the following:

- Doesn’t have waterproof feathers like most water birds do. This may seem like a disadvantage, but wet feathers and dense bones help them slowly submerge their bodies under the water so they can slyly stalk prey.

- Despite being a water bird, they soar quite well and are frequently seen soaring on thermals at great heights with a distinctive, cross-shaped silhouette.

- When swimming, only the neck appears above water, so the bird looks like a snake ready to strike.

Thanks to 

https://www.cbc.ca/kidscbc2/the-feed/8-facts-about-raccoons 

for these fun facts

1. Raccoons have been around for 40,000 years.

2. Raccoons migrated north by adapting to new environments and can now be found as far north as Alaska!

3. Raccoons are small, have sensitive hands and can eat just about anything, making them ideal for urban life.

4. Raccoons love life in the big city! Today there are 20 times more raccoons in cities than there were 70 years ago.

5. Toronto is the raccoon capital of the world. Fifty times more raccoons live there than in the surrounding countryside.

6. Raccoons' hands have a bunch of nerves that are like taste buds sending information to the brain.

7. Raccoons use up to 20 den sites at a time, from sheds to sewers.

http://justfunfacts.com/interesting-facts-about-great-egrets/

•             Found on all continents except Antarctica.

•             Lifespan of about 15 years in the wild and about 22 in captivity.

•             Size:

    -         Up to 1 meter (3.3 ft) tall

    -         Wingspan of about 1.3 to 1.7 meters (51 to 67 in)

    -         Weight range from 700 to 1,500 g (1.5 to 3.3 lb), average 1,000 g (2.2 lb).

•             Very territorial, defend nests, mates, and young.

•             Prior to the 20th century, the population nearly decimated by demand for plumage for women’s hats and garments.

•             Placed under protection of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act in 1918. By mid 1900’s populations steadily on the rise. Today, populations doing well.

•             Popular:

    -         5-Brazilian reais banknote.

    -         New Zealand $2 coin

    -         Hungarian 5-forint coin.

    -         Belarus, a commemorative coin.

Yellow-Rumoed Warbler

Thanks to Yellow-Rumped Warbler: Bird Identification, Habits, Facts, Nesting - Bird Informer for the following fun facts:

· They tend to collide into man-made structures like radio towers and buildings

· The oldest recorded Yellow-rumped Warbler was seven years old.

· Male Yellow-rumped Warblers search in higher places for food than female birds.

· They are the only warblers that can digest wax-coated berries.

· They can digest 80% of wax-coated berries.

From my  Florida Wildlife in Black and White project:https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10218245861363708&type=3

Thanks to https://www.birdsandblooms.com/birding/bird-species/interesting-facts-sandhill-cranes/ for these Sandhill Crane fun facts

Sandhill crane offspring can be ready to leave the nest and even start swimming just eight hours after they hatch.

Although the chicks are independently mobile, they will stay with their parents up to 10 months after being born.

From my  Florida Wildlife in Black and White project:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10218245861363708&type=3

Thanks to https://santarosa.wbu.com/chickadee-fun-facts for the these fun facts.

• Chickadees usually mate for life.

• Chestnut-backed and Black-capped chickadees keep an eye on the food-finding success of other individuals, if one bird is doing especially well; they adapt their behavior, whereas unproductive tactics are not copied.

• The oldest banded Black-capped Chickadee recaptured in the wild had lived 12 years and 5 months.

• Have you noticed how ravenously the birds eat at your bird feeders, especially first thing in the morning and just before dusk? Chickadees can gain as much as 10 percent of their body weight each day and lose it all again during a cold winter night.