Behind the Bathhouse Cultural Center on White Rock Lake’s eastern shore lies what some might at first consider the remnants of a failed development project. From the water’s surface rise pipes and concrete pillars of varying sizes.
Despite preliminary impressions, the menagerie of jutting and reaching arms represent an intentional construction. It is the lake’s water theater.
But this is not a performance hall intended for humans. On the contrary, the entire area has been developed to cater specifically to waterfowl, from the theater’s many singular columns to the floating platform resting behind them. Whether preening or resting or trying to woo a potential mate, wildlife in the area have come to utilize the structure just as it was intended.
During my early morning walk today, the water theater provided a nice abstract interest for some photographs. Avian visitors were scarce at that hour, although some were milling about or trying to grab a few more minutes of sleep before starting the day.
From the back veranda of the cultural center and looking down at the lake, you can see the totality of the theater. The individual pipes and pillars form a broad semi-oval facing the shore, while behind them the wooden float bobs lazily. Also noticeable in that photo is downtown Dallas huddling quietly in the background, like a child trying to hide behind hills too small to provide shelter. You can see it just left of center.
[some photos unintentionally contain a few American coots (Fulica americana) and mallard ducks (Anas platyrhynchos), as well as perhaps other species I didn’t see or didn’t recognize; I wasn’t focused on the wildlife when taking these images, so pardon me for not paying closer attention to those trying to get their faces in a picture or two]
