I’ve been in Houston so that I can lock in my new job. While there, I decided to go to the Houston Zoo. I love animals, and have wanted to visit the Houston Zoo because they have the endangered Attwater’s Prairie Chickens there in a restoration project…
From the Houston Zoo website:
Attwater’s prairie chicken [...] is a critically endangered subspecies of prairie grouse that was once very common on the coastal prairies of eastern Texas, including what is today the Houston metropolitan area. This bird is perhaps best known for its “booming” display, a characteristic male behavior that attracts hens during the breeding season, which takes place from late winter through early spring. Unfortunately, the combination of vanishing habitat, predation, and introduced species has taken its toll on the remaining wild population, which now numbers less than 100 birds at three protected sites[.]
There are less than 100 wild Attwater prairie chickens remaining in the wild! They are beautiful, as you can see from the image at the top of this post, and ever since I did a project over them in high school, I have been trying to see one or hold one before they go extinct!! Unfortunately, I was not able to see them! They had some hatching ‘behind the scenes,’ but nothing I could get close to… I asked around and eventually was told that if I really, really wanted to see them, I could possible set up a VIP tour or set up a special tour with the Houston Zoo at a later date… I guess I have to wait until next time I come to visit…
But! There were other cool animals that I saw there!
My party and I were planning on getting to the zoo around noon, but we got there a little later, around 2:30… and we were only going to stay for about 2 hours… But the zoo was just too large and too fun for us to leave so early! We ended up staying until after their closing time at 7 that evening and we still didn’t get to see all of the animals there. (Yes, even the Attwater prairie chicken…) Oh, it would have also been cool to see a Victoria Crowned Pigeon… We will definitely be going there again very soon. Here in a few weeks, I’m going to be going to the Dallas Zoo!
To wrap up this blog post, though, I have to say that my favorite animal that I saw there was the Siamese Fireback Pheasant!
Houston Zoo: Click Here
More about the Attwater’s Prairie Chicken at the Houston Zoo: Click Here
The golden laced wyandotte is a very pretty and rare wyandotte breed of chicken. The wyandotte breed is somewhat common breed because the wyandotte is beautiful to look at, nice, but also very productive. They can also resist the cold easily because they are so fluffy and their combs are of the pea comb variety, which are less prone to frostbite.
They are also heavy, yet very energetic at times and even come in the bantam size! (A bantam is a smaller and lighter version of chicken that comes in a lot of different breeds.)
This breed has been around since 1880 when Joseph McKeen bred a silver laced wyandotte with a chicken that’s called a winnebago. 8 years later, the breed was admitted to the American Standard.
This wyandotte is actually a pullet. A pullet is a female chicken that isn’t a hen, yet. If you have a female chicken that’s younger than a year and is immature (without the comb and wattles), then she’s a pullet!
I would love to have a golden laced wyandotte hen. I already have a blue wyandotte at my house and I love him; He’s large and fluffy but is definitely not nice to people. If he sees a stranger, he will attack them! Not me, though.
The above image is a pigeon. In fact, it’s the world’s largest pigeon. A few weeks ago, I went to the Dallas World Aquarium, which actually was less of an aquarium and more of a zoo. They had a lot of really cool creatures… fish, jellyfish, crabs, monkeys, etc… But the coolest creature was definitely the Victoria Crowned Pigeon. The first animals you see when you get to the aquarium are various species of exotic birds that are each in their own bamboo cages. The last ones down were these beautiful birds.
Of course, this isn’t my video, but it shows that these guys aren’t afraid of people and are pretty docile. I searched around online to find some more information about them.
This species is categorised as Vulnerable because its population is suspected to be rapidly declining through logging and hunting. It is particularly easy to hunt as it is tame, gregarious, and flushed birds are easy to shoot from their low perches.
Apparently, they are very tamable and make great exotic pets. I’m not sure how legal it is to own one in America, though, since a lot of sources are saying different things. I would absolutely looove to have a pet Victoria crowned pigeon! They are beautiful brids…
Texas state law regarding exotic animals:
No person may possess a dangerous wild animal without first obtaining a license (certificate of registration). Dangerous wild animals are defined as lions, tigers, ocelots, cougars, leopards, cheetahs, jaguars, bobcats, lynxes, servals, caracals, hyenas, bears, coyotes, jackals, baboons, chimpanzees, orangutans, gorillas, or any hybrids of the animals listed. However, there are no requirements for a person possessing all other animal not listed above, such as monkeys, wolves etc.
If I did happen to have one as a pet, I’d allow it to roam around my yard with my pet chickens since they need a lot of room. It would even get along well with my chickens, as it’s stated in the bird fact sheet. (Below.) Of course, I’d have to clip it’s feathers, but they are grounded birds, like ducks. And since they are from a similar climate, I think it would be comfortable and under the watch of my rooster, it’ll be safe from predators. Another note: feeding the pigeon would be quite easy… it’ll forage with my other birds, eating grain, bugs, and dirt, and get the rest of its very simple diet from the chicken mix that I have.
Looking at more and more pictures of these birds, they are very, very beautiful. I absolutely love the brilliant blue colors that they can have. Some are duller, though. I’m assuming that they are dull because they have a different, less ballanced, diet than the ones raised in captivity. Their eyes just pull me in; The red is just stunning, especially contrasted against their blue feathers.
I just don’t understand why people are so afraid by chickens? They’re so cute! And harmless! And … brave.
This is how you have to handle a rooster that’s trying to attack you! (Even though that’s a goose.) You have to be firm, stand over the creature, no matter how beautiful it is, and just show it that you’re not going to back off. I’ve never met a human smaller than a rooster, so there’s no reason you should run.
The Black Silver-Laced Polish is a beautiful breed of chickens. It’s my absolute favorite white/black breed, just above the Black-Tailed White Japanese bantams. I’m not a big fan of their afro-type of hair feathers.
Welcome to crait’s Lunchbox! First of all, I’d like to tell everyone Happy new years! I’m Jonathan Holmes and I created this website to share some influences of mine. I’m a software engineer and I am always making new, free software for everyone. I’ll also be posting all the software updates for my programs here, and re-releasing some of my older games and tools here, too.
I feel like putting all of my projects into a single, organized website, I’ll be able to streamline my progress and won’t be so scatter-brained. I have a lot of interests in my life, like politics, chickens, movies, etc. So I’ll be sharing a lot of these kinds of things, also.
Along side the updates to my games, programs, graphics, and tutorials, I’ll be posting the following on a regular schedule:
Sunday – Weekly Ponder
Monday – Game Of The Week
Tuesday – Weekly Infogram
Wednesday – Movie Of The Week
Thursday – Funny video and some cool Lego stuff
Friday – Political cartoons and funny photos
Saturday – Chicken Of The Week
Also, I’ll be posting one or two songs a day. I’m really interested in a great variety of music, so I’m bound to find some cool music that you’ve yet to hear!
So, I hope you enjoy my website! If you’d like to contact me, you can reach me at crait.is@gmail.com or follow mention me on Twitter @crait. Of course, you can also directly comment on my articles that get posted!
My party and I were planning on getting to the zoo around noon, but we got there a little later, around 2:30… and we were only going to stay for about 2 hours… But the zoo was just too large and too fun for us to leave so early! We ended up staying until after their closing time at 7 that evening and we still didn’t get to see all of the animals there. (Yes, even the Attwater prairie chicken…) Oh, it would have also been cool to see a Victoria Crowned Pigeon… We will definitely be going there again very soon. Here in a few weeks, I’m going to be going to the Dallas Zoo!
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