Birds of Merritt Island NWR Gallery
The refuge traces its beginnings to the development of the nation’s Space Program. In 1962, NASA acquired 140,000 acres of land, water, and marshes adjacent to Cape Canaveral to establish the John F. Kennedy Space Center. NASA built a launch complex and other space-related facilities, but development of most of the area was not necessary. In 1963 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service signed an agreement to establish the refuge and in 1975 a second agreement established Canaveral National Seashore. Today, the Department of Interior manages most of the unused portions of the Kennedy Space Center as a National Wildlife Refuge and National Seashore.
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Adult Breeding White Ibis Pair
It is still hard for me to believe that the white ibis is common in the southeast. I grew up in Brooklyn and can remember only robins and sparrows. When I first saw these birds on the lawn of my parents’ retirement condominium, I was overwhelmed with excitement. I could think only of Egypt and the Sacred Ibis (which has a black face and legs).
IbisFloridaMerritt IslandWhite Ibisbirdsconservationwater_birdswildlife
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