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South Padre Island is a beach resort - you can tell by the garishly decorated buildings full of tacky treasure
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The Vistor Center is known for the world's largest indoor sand sculpture, rebuilt every so often
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The sculptor said she'd much rather be working outdoors . . . .
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Surf fishing is a big thing, and you drive out on the beach to do it
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South Padre Island is very proud of their Birding and Nature Center
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Almost two miles of boardwalks wind through several acres of seabird habitat slowly going wild again
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Inside the Birding Center, some mounted specimans - including this big-foot bird
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Outside, the live birds reign - including this Great Snowy Egret showing breeding plumage
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The views from the top of the observation tower are pretty good . . .
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The Yucca plants were in full flower - spectacular blooms
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Some of these blooms were truly spectacular
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The Iwo Jima Memorial has a beautiful setting
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This is a plaster version of the original - needs frequent painting
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The Gladys Porter Zoo in Brownsville is very proud of their gorillas
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For a small zoo, the habitats were very well done
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Monkeys are very popular with kids and folks like us
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Remember that stuffed bird with the big feet? Here's a live one.
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Somehow they look so wise
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Even when trying to squeeze through an impossible opening
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The bald eagle is always impressive
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Joey's too big for the pouch, but still likes to be close to mom
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This Madagascan eye-eye lemur is adorable . . .
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The Cassawary is reported to be one of the nastiest-tempered birds alive
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THis fellow, on the other hand, looks just plain cuddly
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A rare photo of a gibbon just hangin' out. They're usually in motion
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The little one kept getting in the bigger one's face. Big one doesn't look thrilled
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Looks like he heard about the Spay and Neuter Program
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Rhinos are so impressive
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Chimps always look like they're thinking hard
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One hump = Dromedary, looking aloof
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There's something symbolic here - bank, down the drain, - something . . . .
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Pigmy Hippo. Still too big for a pet . . .
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Ibex with horn protectors - they're messing with his masculinity again
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One way to discourage tree-huggers
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Giraffes are always fun to watch - they look so improbable
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Don't often see a reclining giraffe
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The King reposes
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Some antelope look so delicate . . .
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These African cranes are so showy
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A three-flippered Ridley's Sea Turtle would have a tough time in the wild
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Al used to have a pet fish just like this one . . . a big male Oscar
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Say what you will, we think the tiger is the most impressive cat of all
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Great colors
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The African Wattled Crane stands around 6ft tall
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The Madagascan Radiated Tortoise is about about a foot long, with a beautiful shell
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Great colors
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A lazy Lemur - Black and White Ruffed variety
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From Mexico, the curiously-nosed and fluffy-headed Great Curassow
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So far, the only living Armadillo we've seen in Texas
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Awww - a bay-bee!
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Looked like a huge fire, but it was gone an hour later
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Oysterfest at Fulton TX - kids love the carnival
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Vendors selling big hats
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And cute sculptures
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And dressing silly for a serious cause
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The Rockport Maritime Museum is small but very nice . .
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Any maritime museum must have a knot display
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The Texas lighthouse display was very interesting
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Each lighthouse was represented by an original watercolor
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In addition to the usual stuff, they have a few old outboard motors
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Another older putt-putt
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We found out this is a Laughing Gull. Doesn't look all that happy
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The Blue Heron is always impressive
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The Brown Pelican is endangered along the Gulf Coast
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White pelicans, on the other hand, are thriving
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Corpus Christi is quite proud of the USS Lexington
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The Lex is now a floating museum with lots of interesting things to see
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There are vintage aircraft on the hanger deck and the flight deck
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This floating runway is most impressive
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Somehow, the idea of flying a plane with folding wings doesn't inspire confidence
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The GH-3 Nightingale was the military version of the Howard DGA ("Damn Good Airplane", it said on the sign)
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Judy takes aim on the US-181 bridge
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He said he was trying to make that hatch work. Said he'd done much the same work 50 years ago.
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The "Flag Bag" near the bridge stores all the signal flags and lines used to fly them
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View from the bridge
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Didn't expect a brass steering wheel
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Captain's bridge quarters, with private biffy
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Judy wouldn't go there, and somebody had to . . .
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The bridge tower is impressive - and huge
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Below decks, the barber shop looks pretty conventional
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One of the retired Blue Angel aircraft from a few years ago
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On our bird-watching boat ride, cormorants and pelicans will perch anywhere
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Captain said there were about 10,000 ducks in that flock. We took his word . . .
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Our first sighting of Whooping Cranes, about 200 yards away
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The brown pelicans are making a good recovery
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It always seems surprising that a pelican can actually fly
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In a few weeks, these white pelicans will be heading north
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Wish we had a better telephoto . . . four Whoopers in the same shot!
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Whooping Cranes are omivores, but around here feed mostly on blue crab
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We were in just 2ft of water to get this close
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Which apparently was too close for the cranes
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These birds will migrate home to Canada in April and May
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For now, they just want to be further away from us
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Capt Tommy, just left of center, isa bird expert who just happens to drive a boat
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Everyone had great fun watching the dolphins. There were about 1 dozen of them
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They surfed the wake on both sides of the boat for about 5 minutes
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Herons and Egrets nest on almost any small island - relatively safe from predators
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We'd never seen a Reddish Egret before . . .
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Looks like a breeding pair and a spare . . .
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Blue Herons are always magnificent
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A colony of about 50 Roseate Spoonbills
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This Loon was quite the successful fisherman
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The harbor at Fulton is home to many commercial shrimpers . . .
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A magnificent sculpture of Whooping Cranes near the local aquarium
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It's a small aquarium - just a dozen tanks - with all local fish
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It's staffed by very friendly and knowledgable volunteers
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The winds tend to sculpt the trees into fascinating shapes
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The Fulton Mansion dates to the late 1870s, built by the local successful rancher
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Most everything needed to build and furnish the house was barged in from New Orleans
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Inside, one of the original plant stands has been cloned to display flowers
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The home had central hot air heat - the "fireplace" in each room was actually a heat vent
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The house had a checkered history before being restored, so most of the funiture is not original
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Most of the woodwork is original
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That's the "Big Tree" - one of the largest, oldest Live Oaks anywhere
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It is a big tree. OK - been there, seen that, move on
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On our tour of the Aransas Wildlife Refuge, a view from the observation tower
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It was a beautiful day, and lots of fishing charters were about
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Locals say that Feral Pigs are a big nuisance in Texas.
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These fellas were sure busy
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Generations ago, ancestors of these Feral Pigs escaped from area farms and ranches
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They say it takes just one generation for a domestic pig to go completely wild
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A Whooping Crane made from gardening tools. Well, we liked it . . .
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We've seen hundreds of alligators, and yet . . .
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In some places, erosion is bringing trees into the water
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This gator was grabbing some rays near a dock
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It was very aware of us, and kepts us in view at all times
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Sweet . . .
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He was basking for warmth - usually they float lower in the water
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This guy, on the other hand, was right on the shoulder of the road as we drove by.
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That's Sharon and Marty Lang, our tour guides. They're winter volunteers from the Indianapolis area.
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Neat car parked near us in the RV Park
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Outside, it's a 1932 Auburn. Under the skin, it's mostly Corvette
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We'll end on this beautiful tropical Texas sunset . . . .