We had a nice run this
morning (Monday, April 25) in 50 degree weather in the Cedar Point Recreation
Area before driving north to the Fort Macon area at Morehead City and then on
to our 4 pm ferry reservation at Cedar Island. We arrived in plenty of
time to find out that the ferry had some "issues" and might not be
able to go to Ocracoke Island. Two hours later the problem had been fixed
but we had to wait for the Coast Guard to come make sure the problem had been
fixed to their satisfaction. The ferry finally left at 6:30 pm and we
arrived on Ocracoke Island at 8:30 pm and got set up in camp shortly
thereafter. Since we had no cell coverage again last night we will try to
catch up a little with photos.
1. Eastern Mud Turtles
are found in a variety of freshwater wetlands and may spend a significant
amount of time on land during rainy periods
2-7. Brown Water
Snakes: The most common non-venomous snake in the forest; markings
are chocolate brown and black with rectangular patches that do not connect to
make a ring and they have round pupils.
8-11. Cottonmouth
Moccasins are the only venomous species in the swamp. They are Pit Vipers
related to rattlesnakes and display white lining of their mouth when
threatened. Markings to note: large, angular diamond-shaped head with a
relatively thin neck; thick, heavy body with black rings that go all the way
around the body; in all color phases, tail fades to black; vertical
slit pupils; dark line through the eye for the entire length of the head.
12-16. Female
Prothonotary Warblers, the signature bird of this swamp (over 2000 pairs nest
here so many of the birds we saw were banded)
17-19. Males have a little
more striking yellow on their heads
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