Audubon observation

Walking around Audubon Park on Wednesday, I chose to observe my surroundings through historical and biological lenses. Historically, I saw the awe inspiring live oak trees that date back a century or more. I saw squirrels and birds inhabiting the trees and wondered how many thousands of birds, bugs, and other critters had relied on these trees over the past hundred years. The ancient trees were complimented by a pathway for bikers and joggers to enjoy the park. Through conservation, as opposed to preservation, efforts, the park has turned into a functional space for New Orleans society. What was unusual was the tree clearing that was going on on bird island. A few trees are being cleared in order to sustain the future of bird island. It seemed a bit contradictory to clear trees in order to conserve a habitat. Trees have also been cleared to make way for field space, a golf course has been put in, swings, a hut with bathrooms, grills, etc.. It made me wonder what the space was like before development.

Looking at the park through a biological lens, i noticed the biodiversity in the park. There are different kinds of palm trees, live oaks, and flower gardens. There are also massive ant hills that I noticed. What I spent the most time observing the ducks in the pond. I was particularly watching a few smaller ducks, I'm not sure what kind they were, but they were brownish with bright orange beaks. They were perched on some dead trees sitting on the bank of the pond. They were competing for the best spot on the perch. They would occasionally hiss and one another and flap their wings in a show of dominance. It was quite interesting to see them interact. It is even more interesting to see all the birds around sunset compete in a similar fashion for a spot on the trees on bird island. They jump around from limb to limb competing for the best spot until the sun goes down and they are to remain their for the rest of the night.