TRANSCRIPT

INTRODUCTION

I'm Marty Stouffer. I'm in this seafood market to make a point about our swamps. That may seem funny because many people love seafood, yet hate swamps. Much of the seafood we enjoy begins life in our marshes and swamps. The borderline area where land meets water is the richest nursery of life anywhere. Hundreds of different species and thousands of individuals can be found in one pool. Many ocean species - shrimp, crab, and fish, grow up there.

But, the closest most of us ever get to the swamp is a seafood dinner. People avoid swamps, thinking of them as muddy, dark, forbidding, and stagnant. In reality, those murky waters are incredibly rich in nutrients, and they teem with life. They're home for a varied array of animals I like to call "SWAMP CRITTERS".


TRANSITION TO TITLE

Water, sunlight, the nourishing earth, the primary elements for life. Nowhere are they more abundant than here, the great swamps of our southern lowlands. Plants, using the sun's energy, transform inert matter into living cells, the building blocks of all life. Life and growth flow from death and decay, imparting a special mood of mystery and timelessness to the swamp.

TRANSITION INTO SWAMP

In its benevolent atmosphere, plants and animals have diversified with incredible complexity. Prospering within a system many times older than man himself, are countless fishes, mammals, birds, insects, and reptiles, each where it fits best, each doing what it does best. For many, the swamp is a permanent home, for others a stop-over on their annual migration, nursery for their growing young, or refuge from civilization.

AMERICAN ANOLE

The American Anole turns colors to match its mood, or its surroundings. These small lizards fit in anywhere, from swamp to surburbia, and they are important insect controllers. Broadened toes ending with adhesive pads make the Anole an excellent climber. Chirping and various head nodding motions express an Anole's moods. But even the most violent nod of the head won't help a lizard that's bitten more than it can chew.



CRAWFISH/RIVER OTTER

A River Otter will eat nearly anything it can get its paws on, but this turtle would rather play the old "shell game." The hungry Otter must find easier prey, like fish. In water the Otter is quicker and more graceful than many of the fish it hunts. Although it is also at home on land, its webbed feet are made for swimming, not for walking.

CATFISH

Muddy water means "Catfish." One of the factors determining what lives where in the swamp is the amount of oxygen dissolved in the water. In oxygen depleted water Catfish not only survive, but prosper. The Otter couldn't care less what kind of water this is, as long as there are fish in it.

It will eat a small fish right in the water but will carry a large one to shore. The Otter's sleek, oily double layered fur is the perfect covering for an animal that spends most of its time in the water as one of the swamp's finest fishermen.

These Catfish are prolific breeders, which is a good thing because they can produce faster than otters, and humans, can eat them.

RACCOON/COPPERHEAD

Now that other large predators, Bobcats and Panthers, are nearly gone, the raccoon is flourishing. It has an appetite for everything from blackberries to alligator eggs. But given a choice it will avoid a poisonous snake like this Copperhead.

ALLIGATORS/OPOSSUMS

Alligators are the swamp critters. And, like Opossums, they are primitive and prehistoric.

One hunts, the other is hunted. Even with many other species pursuing it, the Opossum is not likely to disappear. It's been here for thousands of years. But, at one time, the Alligator was hard to find, greatly over hunted for its hide. With continued protection, they are recovering, and their future looks promising.

CRAWFISH/YELLOW CROWNED NIGHT HERON

Crawling everywhere in the swamp is the Crawfish, also called Crayfish or Crawdad, a miniature freshwater lobster. Its pointed claws and armored shell are not enough to stop a mother Yellow Crowned Night Heron. With two hungry chicks waiting for her back at the nest, this mother heron has only begun to fish. Swallowed armor and all, the Crawfish will be served up in a slightly more digestible form at the nest. And, for this mud bug, the coast is clear, at least until another heron comes along.

CLOSE-UP OF CRAWFISH CARRYING YOUNG

A mother Crawfish, too, cares for her young, not in a nest like the heron, but rather "tied to her apron strings." Of course, there are always runaways. Even these are fiercely protected. Eventually, these hungry young, perfect replicas of their parents, will hitch a ride under their mother's tail, and join hundreds of others there, hanging on for dear life.

A live fish has little to fear from Crawfish. They are mainly scavengers eating all kinds of dead animals. A dead minnow is a desirable meal, and in the wrong claws, it can be reason for battle.

RED AND BLUE CRAWFISH FIGHTING OVER MINNOW

Their color is very different, but both the red and the blue are the same species. The blue's coloring comes from a gene carried in its family. A Crawfish can be blue in the same way a mammal can be an albino. To the victor goes the prize.

The freshwater Grass Shrimp is a close relative and another favorite food.

LARGE MOUTH BASS

With a huge mouth extending well past its eye, it's not hard to see where the Large Mouth Bass got its name. Yet, a large mouth is no guarantee of a good meal. This particular Bass does not seem to appreciate the gourmet delicacy we call "Escargot," and for the time being the Snail is safe, not so this small Perch.

REDEYE PERCH

For food gathering, certain fish depend not on large mouths, but rather on camouflage. For example, the Redeye Perch. Here, it matches the color of the sandy bottom. But watch closely, for soon it will become a fish of a different color. Completely camouflaged, right down to the stripe in its eye. The small Gambusia minnows swim about normally, unaware that a predator lies waiting nearby.


TURTLE SWIMMING

The underworld world is the heart of the swamp. The coastal marshes and estuaries hold the dozen species taken most often by commercial fisherman. Directly and indirectly, our southern swamps provide one third of our nation's harvest of fish.

The bayous are filled with life, from the water below to the air above.

BARRED OWL

Home for the Barred Owl is a high tree limb, a perch where it can look out for prey. An owl may hunt a single Blue Jay for food, but a flock of noisy jays can ruffle the feathers of even the wisest old owl. Because of the decline of Falcons, Eagles, and Hawks in the swamp, the owl population has grown. A strong predator at night, during the day it's no match for these songbirds. Fortunately for the owl, there are other trees and other perches.

CHILDREN PLAYING IN WATER/MEN FISHING

With our man made boats and nets, we may fish differently than the other creatures here. But, still like them, we reap the bounty of these rich and enduring waters. And, we enjoy the peace and sanctuary brought about by the natural order of the swamp.

CRAWFISH COOK-OUT

The Crawfish is a good excuse for many people to go into the swamp. They're here, of course, not to study the crustacean in its natural habitat, but to eat as many of them as possible, in the shade of an old oak tree.

GREAT EGRET

The Great Egret's wing-spread is five feet of elegance and beauty. What looks like green water is really a surface layer of one of the world's smallest flowering plants, Duckweed. The Egrets' beauty nearly destroyed them. They were hunted into near extinction for their long plumes, which were fashionable in women's hats. By clamping onto their mother's bill, the Egret chicks start the flow of regurgitated food, frogs, fish, and other small creatures. They will remain in this high, flimsy nest until they are old enough to hunt for themselves.

ROSEATE SPOONBILL

The Roseate Spoonbill has a unique feeding method. As it swings its bill, it "feels" for its food. Nerve endings along the inner lining of the bird's bill give it a signal when it makes contact with a living animal, and then, the bill clamps shut.

ANHINGHA

The Anhingha's fanned tail earned it the nickname "water turkey." And, it is just that, half land bird, half water bird. Diving underwater, and spearing its prey, it then returns to shore to position the fish headfirst before swallowing. A tail first swallow of this scaly fish would really go down the wrong way, and probably end in death. Because its feathers are those of a land bird, non-waterproof, the Anhingha has to swim and catch its prey quickly before it becomes water logged and drowns. Once out of the water the bird must dry its feathers before diving again.

WOOD STORK

The swamp is the only home for the only Stork native to North America, the Wood Stork.

WHITETAIL DEER

In the swamp, like everywhere else, the seasons change, from summer into fall, from life into death.

DEAD DEER

The Whitetails here die like creatures anywhere do, from old age, disease, predation, and accident. This buck got its antlers wedged in the tree trunk, probably while he was rubbing the shedding velvet from them.

But the death of an animal is only one tiny part of the unbroken cycle of life and renewal. And, out of one creature's death comes another's livelihood.

COTTON RAT

For the Cotton Rat, antlers provide an important source of calcium. When not gnawing on antlers, these prolific little animals eat a variety of plants and seeds, and will even hunt small Crawfish.

DEER SWIMMING

Smaller in overall size than their northern counterparts, these southern Whitetail deer have adapted larger hooves for better footing on the spongy ground.

With Winter, swollen rivers will flood these hardwood bottomlands, and shrink the dry land down to scattered islands. Greatly reduced, perhaps, but still vital wildlife habitat. A tremendous number of North America's birds winter here, among them Mallard ducks.

For some the swamp is a winter haven, for others, like the deer, the only home they will ever know. Within this system water becomes land, then suddenly, magically melts back again into water. Like the creatures that live here the swamp remains ever changing, ever mysterious, and ever beautiful.


CONCLUSION

Thousands of species depend on the refuge of our swamps. Yet, we have drained them, dredged and channelized their natural waterways, built levees and moved in behind them. We are rapidly drying up our wetlands where wildlife-not man-is meant to live. If we are to continue to reap the bounty and enjoy the beauty of our swamps, we must set aside some of these areas, to remain wild and untouched by man home for the "SWAMP CRITTERS".

I'm Marty Stouffer. Until next time, enjoy our WILD AMERICA.