What a difference two months can make! Our last visit to John Bunker Sands Wetland Center in Seagoville was in early March – it was cold and the skies were overcast. Apart from Bald Eagles, Herons, and Egrets the only wildlife we saw was migratory waterfowl. The Eaglets had hatched a few days before our visit and the Eagles were bringing fish to the nest for them to eat. The poor light didn’t stop me from getting some nice footage. The video from March and more information about the Wetland Center is in this article :

Video – John Bunker Sands Wetland Center

This visit in early May was very different – the weather was warm and the skies were clear. Lily pads carpeted much of the water in the ponds and wildflowers were blooming on the trails between them. The migratory Ducks, Geese, Sandpipers and Pelicans had moved on. Different birds were in their place – Dickcissels, Barn Swallows, Lesser Yellowlegs, and Black-necked Stilts.

Black-necked Stilt.
Eaglets – almost ready to fly.
Mating Rambur’s Forktails

 

 

 

 

 

 

Warmer Spring weather had brought Insects and Spiders in abundance. We saw Dragonflies and Damselflies mating at the water’s edge of every pond, Orbweavers busy spinning their webs, Jumping Spiders ambushing prey, Butterflies feeding on wildflowers and Sphinx Moth caterpillars looking for a place to begin pupation. European Carp, Spotted Gar, and Turtles were in the ponds and we saw more Water Snakes in a single day than we had ever seen before.

The Wetland Center organised an Eagle Walk in the morning and we joined a large group near the tower where the Bald Eagles have their nest. Both Eaglets were sitting up and one was hopping and beating its wings – they are now only a week or two away from fledging.

In the afternoon we walked round some more of the ponds and you will see in the video the variety of wildlife we observed. This visit was an absolute joy and we plan to return at the same time next year.

Links (these will open in a new tab)

John Bunker Sands Wetland Center

Observations in the Center’s iNaturalist Project

I used slow motion in some of the clips for a better view of birds in flight, insects, and spiders, so this one is set to music. I hope you enjoy watching this as much as I did filming it !

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.