Robert William Rankin
Connections across the planet
Jul 22nd
It is not long after you’ve been birdwatching that your mind starts to expand to far off continents, high-elevation weather systems, and genomic machinations. What contrivance of weather, bad luck, and instinctual migratory clockwork colluded to drop so many new visitors to the salt ponds and mangroves of Union Island? Today, we were startled to…
Endemic species: a rare encounter on Union Island
Jul 13th
The Union Island Environmental Attackers Bird Watching crew had a rare find today while hiking along the eco-trail above Chattam Bay, on the Western uninhabited portion of the Island. The humid forest with its craggy boulders is the only known location of a tiny, blue-spotted gecko, Gonatodes daudini, which is endemic to Union Island. The…
Survey reveals more birds on Union Island.
Jun 28th
A few days in the field conducting bird surveys has added more species to the group’s birding list! Yesterday, two Whimbrels (Numenius phaeopus) showed up on the Ashton Salt Pond. Whimbrels are one of the more spectacular shorebirds, with an oversized-looking, down-curved bill and impressive gait. They are supposedly rare migrants on the Grenadines. Other…
Learning about the Reptiles of Union Island
Jun 23rd
If you have recently noticed a group of foreigners covered in scrapes and mosquito bites, you might have decided that they are not your average “tourists”. What sets these travelers apart is the substantial amount of time they spend looking up into trees and under bushes, rooting through leaf litter, and carefully examining the soil…
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