COCOA, FL - TRIP TO MERRITT ISLAND NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE

Saturday, March 21st, 2015

Day 229
Miles Traveled: 0
Total Miles Traveled: 2870



  Today we drove a little over 20 miles to the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.  This refuge, which was established in 1963, has a unique partnership with the Kennedy Space Center.  The refuge is 140,000 acres within the Kennedy Space Center.  Within the refuge is a 7 mile driving tour called Black Point Wildlife Drive.  Along the path their are stopping places to view the scenery and wildlife.  The majority of the area is marshland, both brackish and saltwater, with associated mangroves. 

marshland

mangroves

  With lots of wild grasses and flowers, butterflies were in abundance.  We saw several varieties.  One that was particularly beautiful was the Gulf Fritillary. 

Gulf Fritillary

  Most of the wildlife we observed were water birds of all shapes, sizes, and colors.  Some live in the area year round, and, others just winter over here in the refuge.  Many of the migratory birds had moved back towards their summer homes earlier in the month. 

American Avocet with winter colors
in the summer the head is cinnamon colored

Northern Shoveler
male has green head and female is all brown

Tricolored Heron

Great Blue Heron

  We were lucky and got to see a couple of Roseate Spoonbills in flight.  This made a photo op impossible.  They are a bright pink and could be mistaken for a flamingo except for their spoon-shaped bill.  Below is a picture taken off of the Internet. Our picture might have looked something like this if we had lightening fast reflexes and a high speed camera. 

picture of a Roseate Spoonbill in flight

  We also had the pleasure of seeing some juvenile wildlife.  Often, the color scheme is different from juvenile to adulthood.  

Juvenile White Ibis in the lead which will lose its brown coloring with age and turn completely white
(with two adult snowy egrets following)

Juvenile Glossy Ibis
as adult will have a metallic coloring of chestnut on neck, breast, and upper back, and green elsewhere

Juvenile American Alligator
notice yellow striping seen on juvenile American Alligator which they lose as they mature

  With the siting of the juvenile alligator, we were sure mother wasn't far away.  And, we were right.  Female alligators will protect their young for at least one year and sometimes longer.  

Adult American Alligator
probable mother to the little guy above

  Some fun facts about the American Alligator:
     - Hatchling alligators are only about 8-10 inches long
     - Young alligators grow about 12 inches per year until age 4, then it depends on where they live and how they eat
     - Alligators only have to eat about once a week, less if the weather is cold
     - Male alligators average 9-12 feet long and can weight 500-600 pounds
     - Alligators can live up to 25-30 years in the wild
     - To estimate the size of an alligator, estimate the number of inches from the eyes to the nostils, then change the inches to feet.  


  We had a wonderful day exploring nature at the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.  Then is was back to "Seahorse" for OSU basketball, dinner, and bed.