EXPLORING NATURE: RARE BIRDS & ANIMALS

What are the rarest and most endangered birds and animals?

Let’s start in Texas, where the rarest birds would probably include the green-breasted mango hummingbird and the red-billed pigeon. At one time, the whooping crane was also close to extinction in Texas, with only 15 birds in 1941, but thanks to a captive breeding program and creation of a special refuge just for them, this noble species has made a solid comeback. Today, there are some 650 birds at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge.

Other Texas rarities include the cackling goose, limpkin and purple gallinule.