1. Great Blue Heron

Ardea herodias

Size: 3 to 4 in.; 6 ft. wingspan

Diet: small fish, frogs or shellfish

Interesting Facts: They stand motionless on the shore and wait to strike.

 

2. Red-winged Blackbird

Agelaius phoeniceus

Size: 7 to 9 in.

Diet: seeds, insects, small fruits

Interesting Facts: The male has a bright red patch on the shoulder with a yellow fringe. The female is brown to help conceal itself in nests.

 

3. Black-Crowned Night Heron

Nycticorax nycticorax

Size: 22 to 28 in.

Diet: insects, small fish

Interesting Facts: They are nocturnal and competent swimmers. They are known for their loud, throaty calls.

 

4. Opossum

Didelphis virginiana

Size: similar to a house cat

Diet: insects, fruits, carrion, garbage

Interesting Facts: The opossum has a rat-like tail and is strong enough to support the opossum upside down from tree limbs.

 

5. Muskrat

Ondatra zibethicus

Size: 2 ft. in length

Diet: vegetation, freshwater mussels, frogs

Interesting Facts: Being quarrelsome creatures, they have been known to attack humans without provocation.

6. Longear Sunfish

Lepomis megalotis

Size: 4 in.

Diet: snails, leeches, aquatic insects

Interesting Facts: The longear sunfish is very colorful with blue-green bars on the sides of the head.

 

7. Crappie

Pomoxis nigromaculatus

Size: 4 lbs.

Diet: minnows, flies, crustaceans

Interesting Facts: The crappie has irregular black blotches all over its body. It is a big game fish.

 

8. Bluegill

Lepomis macrochirus

Size: 7 to 10 in.

Diet: zooplankton, aquatic insects

Interesting Facts: The Bluegill's color may vary but its earflap is always black.

 

9. Phytoplankton

Size: microscopic

Diet: photosynthetic

Interesting Facts: Phytoplankton are

microscopic plants that contain chlorophyll, which gives them a greenish color and are the backbone of an ecosystem. They have a maximum life of two days.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Dragonfly

Odonata

Size: 2 to 3 in.

Diet: flying insects

Interesting Facts: Dragonflies are territorial.

 

2. Belted Kingfisher

Ceyrle carpio

Size: 11 to14 in.

Diet: Seeds, insects, small fruits

Interesting Facts: The parents teach the young to fish by dropping fish from above.

 

3. Cattle Egret

Bubulcus ibis

Size: 18 to 22 in.

Diet: Beetles, crickets and flies

Interesting Facts: Egrets eat the insects sent out by grazers walking, which are the main competition for grazers.

 

4. Red Bellied Woodpecker

Melanerpes carolinus

Size: 10 in.

Diet: insects, acorns, fruits, seeds

Interesting Facts: They have four toes, two in front and two in the back, which allows them to have a firm grip on trees.

 

5. Common Carp

Cyprinus carpio

Size: 4 ft.

Diet: eats almost anything

Interesting Facts: An adult can lay 300,000 eggs in a single spawning.

 

6. Large Mouth Bass

Micropterus salmoides

Size: 6-12 lbs.

Diet: Fish, crayfish, worms, insects

Interesting Facts: They have 6 senses and they can see about a distance of 30 ft.

 

7. Mayfly

Hexagenia limbata

Size: 1/4 to 2 in.

Diet: vegetation

Interesting Facts: They mature in 4 weeks and rise from the water in a bubble of air.

 

8. Fragrant Water Lily

Nymphoides aquatica

Size: 3 to 5 in.

Interesting Facts: American Indians made flour out of dried roots by pounding them.

 

9. Snapping Turtles

Chelydra serpentina

Size: 8 to 12 in.

Diet: Insects, fish, amphibians, wetland vegetation

Interesting Facts: They bury themselves exposing their heads, waiting for prey.

 

10. Beavers

Castor canadensis

Size: 40-60 lbs. and 4 ft. in length

Diet: tree bark

Interesting Facts: Long, gnawing teeth and powerful jaw muscles allow them to cut down trees.

 

11. Whitetail Deer

Odocoileus virginianus

Size: 100 lbs.

Diet: grass, marine vegetation

Interesting Facts: They are brown-grey during the winter and reddish during the summer.

 

 

1. American Alligator

Alligator mississippiensis

Size: 8 to 15 ft.

Diet: fish, small mammals, birds

Interesting Facts: Alligators cannot chew so they swallow their food whole or in chunks.

 

2. Channel Catfish

Ictalurus punctatus

Size: max of 60 lbs.

Diet: bottom-dwelling organisms, insect larvae, and invertebrates

Interesting Facts: The catfish has 27,000 taste buds.

 

3. Alligator Gar

Atractosteus spatula

Size: max of 10 ft. and 200 lbs.

Diet: fish, ducks, water birds

Interesting Facts: World record of the largest gar is 279 pounds.

 

4. Red-eared Slider

Trachemys elegans

Size: 4 in.

Diet: fish, amphibians, larvae, water snails and a variety of plants

Interesting Facts: They are best identified by the small red patch behind their eyes.

 

5. Zooplankton

Size: microscopic to 2 mm

Diet: phytoplankton

Interesting Facts: Plankton means “wanderer.” They are taken by the current.

 

6. Duckweed

Lemna minor

Size: 2-3 mm wide with single root Diet: photosynthetic

Interesting Facts: It is the smallest flowering plant in the world.

7. Osprey

Pandion haliaetus

Size: 4 to 5 ft. wingspan

Diet: live fish

Interesting Facts: Ospreys have a reversible outer toe which allows it to grab fish easily.

 

8. Red Fox

Vulpes vulpes

Size: 2 ft.

Diet: fruits, berries, small mammals, insects and crayfish

Interesting Facts: Red Foxes can hear low frequency sounds well like when small animals dig underground.

 

9. Black-necked Stilts

Himantopus mexicanus

Size: 13 in.

Diet: brine flies, crayfish, shrimp

Interesting Facts: Males court the female by pecking the ground/water, preening his breast, and flicking water on her.

 

10. Mosquito fish

Gambusia affinis

Size: 2 in.

Diet: mosquito larvae

Interesting Facts: They are a threat to minnows because they are competing for food.

 

11. Raccoon

Procyon lotor

Size: 1 to 2 ft.

Diet: fruits, acorns, seeds, insects, fish, crayfish, and crabs, garbage

Interesting Facts: Often carriers of parasites, raccoons are prone to carry disease.