07 Jul San Antonio Urban Ranger

I am about half way through my internship at the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park, and it has been great! I am really enjoying this experience and have learned so much about the San Antonio environment and the history of the Missions. My position at the park is an Urban Ranger. In this position, myself and my supervisor visit community centers around the community where Summer Youth Programs are taking place and do a Junior Urban Ranger presentation about the San Antonio Missions, the San Antonio River and the ecosystem in this community. In order to learn about our ecosystem, we go right outside the community center with binoculars and hand lenses and make observations. The kids have been fun to work with and get really excited to use these tools to find interesting things. We observe birds, insects, trees and work to learn some of the names of these things. We see white-winged doves, grackles, mockingbirds, rock doves, cardinals, blue jays, woodpeckers, and more. The trees we see are mostly mesquite and oak trees. I have learned how to identify these and others plants and animals and have enjoyed sharing this with the kids. Here you can see a picture of me with the kids looking at some birds!