Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Wildlife--Fifth in a series of the 8 Natural Wonders of the Red Hills

     There are so many iconic wildlife species from which to choose to represent this category. But, we would be completely remiss if wildlife of the Red Hills was not recognized as something very special and deserving of being on this list. While recognizing so many possibilities, this is a selection of some of the most beautiful, interesting, popular, creepy and fascinating animals that call the Red Hills home. There are very few, if any, places in the state where all of these particular animals can be found. A trip through the "hills" at the right time of year could yield any number of these incredible creatures. 

Painted Buntings are a fairly common summer 
resident in the Red Hills.


Big-eared Bats are fairly common in various
caves and old buildings in the Red Hills.
Bison are found at several ranches in the Red Hills. 
One of the largest herds is on the Z-bar Ranch in 
Southwest Barber County.


Watch out for Prairie Rattlesnakes.
They add to the wildness of the Red Hills
.



Watch for Eastern Collared Lizards.
They can bite pretty hard!

The list would not be complete without the
Greater Roadrunner, very commonly seen here.
                         

There are some small herds of Pronghorn
 in the Red Hills region.



The Texas Brown Tarantula is common
and often seen during migrations in the
spring and fall. Otherwise, look under rocks.

And of course, White-tailed Deer--lots of em.



A very intersting and creepy resident is
the Giant Desert Centipede.


A Coachwhip lurks among paperflower. 

And last in this presentation has to be the Nine-banded Armadillo--a menace to yards but fun to watch. It is a very common resident of the Red Hills.