Vernal pool prairies support many species of birds. Waterfowl and wading birds mostly hunt in and around the pools when they contain water. Many species of songbirds live in the surrounding uplands. Raptors sail over the prairie hunting for mammals and birds by day. They roost in nearby trees at night. Other raptors roost in the day and hunt in the night. Whooo are they? Read up and figure out whoooo is whoooo.
“If you will stay close to nature, to its simplicity, to the small things hardly noticeable, those things can unexpectedly become great and immeasurable.” - Rainer Maria Rilka
For 2 billion years, bacteria were the only creatures on Earth. Long before the dinosaurs, a special type of bacteria slowly increased the level of oxygen in the Earth’s air to 20 percent. Without this oxygen other plants and animals could not have evolved, including us.
Bill Corbett is a Master Falconer who occasionally visits the Splash Center with three of his feathered friends: Tesla the Golden Eagle, Ethel the Harris Hawk, and Bob the Screech Owl.
Wading Birds
Wading Birds
Ducks & Waterfowl
Ducks & Waterfowl
We have a few different types of ducks and waterfowl that come to eat and rest in the vernal pools.
Raptors
Raptors
Raptors are birds that hunt for and eat other living animals and are also known as “Birds of Prey”.
Small Birds
Small birds
There are many small birds that live in the vernal pool grasslands.