Cattle Egret on Water Buffalo, Nariva Swamp afternoon, Trinidad

Just posted 14 new photos tonight, in an attempt to finish off Day 6 of our trip to Trinidad & Tobago. I didn't quite make it, so will have to post the last 10 or 12 photos from that day later tomorrow. Then it will be on to Day 7, 19 March 2017, the last but one day of our adventure.

In the morning of that day, we did quite a challenging walk down from the Asa Wright Nature Centre to see the very unusual and special Oilbirds in their cave! I am posting the following links that I have just found tonight so that I can move them to my photos of Oilbirds when they get posted in a few days.

Finding the cave-dwelling Oilbird! Wild Explorer/Toledo Zoo. Ignore the man's description of the birds' eyes as being red. They are not; they are brown, but they do reflect red.
youtu.be/5Lm5YEsUreY

Conservation Success Stories: The Oilbird:
youtu.be/C644aHIzyBo

In the afternoon of Day 6 of our trip to Trinidad & Tobago, 18 March 2017, my friends and I visited the Nariva Swamp on the east coast of Trinidad, which is mainly agricultural habitats with some wetlands. We had some good birding there, including this Cattle Egret doing just what Cattle Egrets do : ) Tonight, I posted photos of a few more of the birds we saw. We also saw a few interesting plants, especially the Sacred Lotus, which is one of my favourite things to photograph in the Conservatory at the Calgary Zoo.

"The short, thick-necked Cattle Egret spends most of its time in fields rather than streams. It forages at the feet of grazing cattle, head bobbing with each step, or rides on their backs to pick at ticks. This stocky white heron has yellow plumes on its head and neck during breeding season. Originally from Africa, it found its way to North America in 1953 and quickly spread across the continent. Elsewhere in the world, it forages alongside camels, ostriches, rhinos, and tortoises—as well as farmers’ tractors." From AllAboutBirds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Cattle_Egret/id

"The Nariva Swamp is the largest freshwater wetland in Trinidad and Tobago and has been designated a Wetland of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention. The swamp is located on the east coast of Trinidad, immediately inland from the Manzanilla Bay through Biche and covers over 60 square kilometres (23 mi). The Nariva Swamp is extremely biodiverse. It is home to 45 mammal species, 39 reptile species, 33 fish species, 204 bird species, 19 frog species, 213 insect species and 15 mollusc species. All this contained in just 60 square kilometers.

The area provides important habitat for waterfowl and is key habitat for the West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus), caimans, anacondas, boa constrictors, red howler monkeys, white-fronted capuchin monkeys, numerous species of parrots, including both the blue-and-gold macaw and red-bellied macaws, as well as many wetland and savanna birds.

Four major wetland vegetation types occur in the Nariva Swamp - mangrove swamp forest, palm forest, swamp wood, and freshwater marsh." From Wikipedia.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nariva_Swamp

www.destinationtnt.com/nariva-swamp/

This is a video that I found on YouTube, taken by Rigdon Currie and Trish Johnson, at many of the same places we visited on Trinidad and Tobago. Not my video, but it made me feel like I was right there still. Posting the link here again, so that I won't lose it.

youtu.be/BBifhf99f_M

This afternoon, I also came across the following 27-minute YouTube video of the flora and fauna of Trinidad, filmed by John Patrick Smith in February 2015.

youtu.be/6HHBm9MIxnk