A rare treat

There are many things I want to see in my lifetime. Most of them are big – humpback whales, Alaska, Vatican City…well, you get the idea.  There are some small things, though, and recently I got to see one of them – the Florida scrub jay, an animal that may well be extinct in my lifetime.  Florida scrub jays seem to like living in prime potential real estate.  More human homes = less scrub jay homes. They’re limited to such a small range, and they also have the distinction of being the only bird endemic to Florida.  I took some friends to a place where I know the jays have been spotted before, the Helen and Allan Cruickshank Sanctuary in Rockledge.  We walked along the footpath, seeing nothing and getting more discouraged by the minute. “So, are there dinosaurs on this dinosaur tour?” joked one of my friends.  Haha.  After a few minutes though, we heard a raucous call and saw a shape flit up into a tall pine tree.  “A scrub jay!” I almost shouted, I was so excited to see one, even from a distance (I know, I know…I’m a big geek). Then we heard a rustling all around us, and we looked at the shrubs along the path and found ourselves surrounded by no less than half a dozen of them!  I think I almost fainted (like I said, I’m a geek!).

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~ by JenGrace on January 27, 2009.