Padre Island National Seashore, Whooping Cranes, King Ranch

 Sunday, we treked down to Padre Island National Seashore.  The sun came out and it was a very nice day to have lunch and walk along this piece of the coast.

Last year, we came after a red tide and the beach was covered in dead fish.  This was much nicer.  These cormorants found a nice place to enjoy a day at the beach.

 On the way back to Port A.  Catherine spotted this hawk.  I am not sure of the Id but I think it could be the dark morph of a red tailed hawk. In any case, it was very cooperative in letting us take a picture.

 Catherine's parents came in on Tuesday.  We took them up to Fulton to see the Whooping Cranes.  We saw 5 this time.

The crane in the middle has kind of rusty smudges on the head.  I believe this indicates that it is a juvenile.

 As we were watching, a couple flew overhead. After some conversation, these three flew off with them.  It is really fun to see them fly, showing off that massive wing span.  I missed getting a good picture.

 We also came upon another spoonbill on the drive to Fulton.  
Yesterday, we drove to Kingsville to tour the King Ranch.   It was a very interesting and informative visit. 

We started at the visitor center where we saw a video about the history of the ranch and the business operation today.

The King Ranch is home to the Santa Gertrudis breed of cattle. They are bred to thrive in the harsh South Texas environment and still produce a tender cut of meat.

The ranch is also home to the quarter horse.  We were able to see several mares who were ready to drop foals. We also saw a very newborn calf.  
It was a good tour. I recommend it, if you are in this area.
I was slow getting on the bus so I got an inside seat and was not able to get many pictures.

Today, we are joining Catherine's parents for a visit to the art museum in Corpus  Christi.