Palmetto Hill, Mouth of the River and South Jetties

Palmetto Hill

Mouth of the River

South Jetties

July 21, 2015

Palmito Ranch Battlefield National Historic Landmark was the location of the last battle of the civil war.  The forces in South Texas had already agreed on a truce.  An attack on Brownsville was ordered by Theodore H. Barrett.  This land has been unchanged or developed, thus allowing us to appreciate the way the landscape probably was at the time of the battle.

We moved to the mouth of the river as it comes into the Gulf of Mexico.  It was rich in wildlife.  We were able to see several blue herons, but were disappointed to see the amount of trash lining not only the river but also the beach.

     

Silverside Fish

Catfish

Dr. Garcia used the casting net to catch samples of fish that were in the area at the time. He found silverside fish in the sample.  During another sampling, he caught a catfish. Many dead catfish lay along the shore.  Dr. Garcia explained that anglers don't like catfish and instead of throwing them out to be caught again, they discard them on the shore to die.

   
Dr. Ramirez caught a blue crab in his dragging net.  The crab is a bottom dweller and was caught as the net dragged on the beach.  It looked a little dangerous with it's pinchers.

We also saw a group of pelicans flying over the ocean at the mouth of the river.  The amount of wildlife leads us to believe that we have a healthy ecosystem.  However, the amount of trash along the shore was alarming.

              

At the south jetties, Dr. Garcia pulled out a spiny sea urchin from the water.  It was attached to the marble rocks.  He also pulled up something that looked like green grass.  He told us that this is called sea lettuce.  It is edible but tastes very salty.