If you see a bird flying over Mexico can you count it for your American bird list?

The group in search of Green Kingfisher and Muscovy Duck

Saturday, April 30th threatened to be a 104 degree day so we got an early start with plans to end birding just after noon to avoid the blistering heat.  We drove an hour and a half west to reach Las Palamos Wildlife Management area located on the Rio Grande. 

Once we arrived we immediately began scanning the water for birds and saw a Groove-billed Ani fly into a near by bush.  Once again we got great looks at this oddly looking bird. 

The group decided to begin the trek into the woods which bordered the river.  Our hope was to get to a clear spot to view some of the islands in the river for Red-billed pigeon.  Immediately we noticed this was not a groomed trail-but we all made the best of it and it paid off.  We saw the red-billed pigeon on an island in the river!  After that the trail got even worse so we decided to head back to our first open spot on the river to continue to look for the Muscovy Duck and Green Kingfisher. 

Green Kingfisher

After grabbing and snack and hydrating our search began.  Within minutes we saw this gorgeous, small kingfisher with a huge bill land in a nearby tree.  Sure enough it was a Green Kingfisher.  We were fortunate enough to watch this little fish. 

Other birds we saw were:  Yellow-headed blackbird, Mississippi Kite, Tricolored Heron, Caspian Tern, White-tipped Dove, Great Kiskadee, Couch's Kingbird, Purple Martin, Chipping Sparrow and Olive Sparrow to name a few.

Green Parrots are cavity nesters

After we got a siesta and an early dinner we went searching for the Green Parrot.  This city bird had been rumored to be seen within McAllen city proper.  The sun was setting, wind blowing and we all felt great walking off the good dinner we had just had.  As we walked listening for the loudness of a flock of parrots we saw a kettle of Mississippi Kites fly overhead.  One of our members shouted, "Green Parrots overhead"!  Sure enough it seemed they were headed north of us and landing nearby.  We followed the migration and found hundreds of them in a tree outside an apartment building.  The tree was brilliant green.  They seem to be pairing up ad lots of courting was happening.  We all wondered why they would flock like this when they should be pairing up and laying eggs.  When we tried to research further via the internet it seems that there is not a lot known about the behavior of the green parrot.   

Once again we ended a great day with a great bird!

Friday in the Valley



Back:  Ron Weeks, James Oates, Robert Zirl, Carolyn Goren, Bill Decou, Cynthia Hudson, Larry Weeks
Front:  Raylene Wall, Rose Leach, Brian Williams, Nancy Decou, Peggy Harger-Allen

Friday morning we woke up in the Rio Grande Valley.  Excitement was in the air with anticipation to explore this subtropical habitats.  We started our morning at Santa Ana Wildlife Refuge located along the Rio Grande river in Alamo, TX.  This 2,088 acre refuge is home to over 400 species of birds.  The refuge had miles of trails that cut through thorn forest habitat, board walks over wetlands and a great canopy tower for perfect viewing.  This tower gave us great views of Hooded Oriole,a kettle of Mississippi Kites, nesting Golden Fronted Woodpeckers, White Ibis and a rookery of Great Egret.  This great view inspired us to take our group photo as well. 



Northern Beardless Tyrannulet



Our highlight at this site was a bird we failed to see on King's Ranch, the Northern Beardless Tyrannulet.  This is an extremely plain looking flycatcher who lacks the whiskers of most flycatchers. 

We also picked up some migratory warblers including:  Black and White, Tennessee, Northern Waterthrush, American Redstart and Common Yellowthroat.

After Santa Ana WR we headed to Bentson State Park.  This riparian habitat promised some good migrants and resident bird sightings.  Which included:  Black Pheobe, Groove-billed Ani, Altimira Oriole, and Audubon's Oriole.  We even were lucky enough o flush a Lesser Nighthawk which perched in a tree for all of us to study through the scope. 

Clay-colored Thrush

One bird we needed to see but had been unsuccessful so far was the Clay-colored Thrush.  so, we decided to head to Estero Llano Grande where they had been known to reside.  After working quite hard to see this bird the group was successful!  We also added to our tour list:  Semipalamated Sandpiper, Solitary Sandpiper and Pectorial Sandpiper.

Elf Owl

The group then returned to the hotel to clean up, get dinner then head back to Bentson State Park to search for the Elf Owl.  We walked through the park and came across a red-legged tarantula.  This nocturnal creature has the ability to jump a good distance and feeds on insects, lizards and small mammals.  After about an hour of searching we heard an Eastern Screech Owl singing nearby.  It is always so calming and exciting to hear owls.  We decided to head back to the vans and just as we did we heard the hooting of the Elf Owl.  We managed to find the general area where it was calling and listened and searched for quite some time.  The owl never showed itself but it was still a pleasure to hear it sing.  As we walked back satisfied with our search we heard several Common Paraques, making our evening truly successful.

192 species in 3 days...

This is the first moment I have had to blog since the last entry.  We have covered so many habitats and have seen an additional 91 species to add to the 101 we saw the first day.

Magnificent Frigatebird

On Wednesday, the group hit Rockport H-E-B to see a nesting pair of Tropical Kingbirds.  One of our group members, Ron Weeks, had heard that this bird would be there and we could not pass up the opportunity.  After that we headed to Rockport Beach Park, just southeast of Corpus Christi. Here we spotted a colony of Black Skimmers.  We then headed north to Port Arnasas and Paradise Pond where we saw 23 species of warblers including Mourning, Blackburnian, Blackpole, Magnolia and Canada.  We took advantage of the coast and got many water birds including Common Loon, Roseate Spoonbill, American Oystercatcher and Magnificent Frigatebird.  We saw 148 species by the end of this truly successful day.

Thursday was another spectacular day.  We did not see high numbers of species but we did get to see some rare ones.  Our morning started early at Norias, a southern section of King Ranch.  Our goal for the day was to find the Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl which nests on the ranch, the Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet, and the Tropical Parula.

As soon as we arrived we heard the Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl sing.  Its song is a continuous series of rapidly repeated, slightly rising, whistled notes:  pwip pwip pwip (as explained by David Sibley in the Eastern Field guide).  Within seconds the owl flew up and perched itself for a long time giving all of us a clear look at this adorable small owl.  I particularly enjoyed seeing its false eyes on the back of its head.

Vermillion Flycatcher

For the next 8 hours we drove throughout the ranch in search of known nesting spots for Tropical Parula and Northern Beardless Tyrrannulet.  We were not having great luck on those specific birds but we did get great sightings of:  Eastern Screech Owl, Redhead, White-tailed Kite, Wilson's Plover, White-tipped and Inca Dove, Barn Owl, Great-horned Owl, Vermillion Flycatcher, Botteri's Sparrow, and Blue Grosbeak. 

Tropical Parula

Finally, at our last spot, we heard the Tropical Parula!  After a good amount of searching I spotted the bird! It cooperated and stayed still long enough for everyone to view it through the scope.  It was tremendously gorgeous!  Then we thought we heard another one, but what we were hearing was a Northern Parula which sounds very similar but with Tom and Brian's trained ear they knew it was not the tropical.  We never got a good look but sound was enough to identify it.  It was a perfect way to end a wonderful day of birding.

LaCopita Ranch and King Ranch

Tom speaking to the group

Tuesday morning began at 5am.  Everyone was bright eyed and bushy-tailed, excited about the birds to be seen that day.  We drove 90 miles north from Harlingen to Kingsville to meet our guide, Tom, at the King Ranch visitor's center.  From there we headed to LaCopita Ranch, Texas A&M's demonstration ranch, to begin our week of birding.  LaCopita has several interpretive trails, bird feeders and blinds to make seeing birds such as the Roadrunner, Audubon's Oriole, and Green Jay easy to view and photograph.

Three green jays feeding

As soon as we stepped out of the van we were consumed by the variety of singing birds.  Our first sightings included the long billed and curve-billed thrashers.    The long-billed is similar to the brown thrasher in appearance but their range barely overlaps.  The curve-billed is easily distinguishable with its long curved bill and its sandy brown coloration with faint round spots on its chest.  Next we moved on to the flycatchers, brown-crested and ash-throated.  Both, as many flycatchers, look almost identical except for one small feature-the ash-throated is dark across the tail tip while the brown-crested is rufous to the tip.  The birding from there just got more exciting and colorful as the green jays decided to come out in the open and grab some grub at the feeder.

Audubon's Oriole

We spent the rest of the morning getting great looks at:  Cassin's Sparrow, Couch's Kingbird, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Greater Roadrunner, Common Ground Dove, White-winged Dove, Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Vermillion Flycatcher, Verdin, Cactus Wren, Clay-colored Sparrow, Black-throated Sparrow, Lark Sparrow, Pyrrhuloxia, Painted Bunting, Bullock's Oriole and the highlight of the morning the Audubon's Oriole.

After a long and excited morning of birding we were starving, so we traveled back to King Ranch where we had sandwich's and recharged.  By noon, the heat index had reach 104 degrees and was increasing.  Taking the heat into account we would spend the afternoon viewing reservoirs on the ranch to add some shore birds and waterfowl to our list while trying to minimize the time spent in the direct sunshine.

The "Running W" brand has been interpreted to represent the diamonback rattlesnake, pr the horns of a steer or ot may represent past, present and future of the ranch.

King Ranch is over 825, 000 acres located in South Texas.  It has a rich history and at one time was worldwide.  Presently, it has four major income sources which include: ranching, farming, mineral rights and hunting.  Over the course of the afternoon and on Thursday we will only experience a tiny percentage of these massive land area.

As we made our way to the 2nd largest reservoir on the ranch we came across a "bump gate" (for a video of the gate click here).A bump gate is a gate that does not require the driver to get out of the vehicle.  The vehicle bumps the gate open and as it swings the vehicle has to accelerate to get through before the back end of the gate smashes into the back of the vehicle.  It was obvious this takes some practice and could be quite intimidating.  Tom, having led tours on the ranch for 15 years, had no problem maneuvering through. 

At the reservoir, we saw:  Least Grebe, Great Egret, Little Blue Heron, Ruddy Duck, Eared Grebe, Pied-billed Grebe, Anhinga, Tropical Cormorant, Green Heron, Common Moorhen, American Coot and Great Kiskadee.  After about 20 minutes we were melting so we hopped back in the vans and birding from the van as we passed by several wetland areas.  Here we saw:  White Ibis, White-faced Ibis, a Least Grebe with three babies (one on her back), Green Heron, Mottled Duck, Long-billed Dowitcher, Blue-winged and Green-winged Teal, Sora and Spotted Sandpiper.

White-tipped Dove

We made another stop at a feeder which was near two other wetlands.  As soon as Tom placed seed in the feeder it attracted Green Jays, Northern Cardinals and a White-tipped Dove which can only be seen in South Texas-a great sighting!

Groove-billed Ani feeds on berries and insects and nests near water.

After watching the dove for a bit we walked about 50 yards down to come across wetlands filled with shorebirds including:  American Avocet, Black-necked Stilt (one was sitting on a nest), Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Least Sandpiper, Wilson's Phalarope, and Stilt Sandpiper.  Then we got a wonderful surprise.  Tom, announced that he thought he heard a Grooved-billed Ani but was not positive.  He then looked across the wetland and saw one perched in a tree just above the water.  All of us got good long looks at the this uncommon visitor to South Texas.

Purple Gallinule

It was getting late and we had been birding for hours so we decided to hit one more spot before heading home in search of a Purple Gallinule.  Within minutes of arriving it was seen!  A gorgeous adult feeding.  We also saw:  Cattle and Snowy Egret, Fulvous Whistling Duck, an Osprey feeding on a fish and a Crested Caracara feeding on some left overs.  Other raptors I failed to mention that we saw throughout the day were:  Broad-winged Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Barn Owl, White-tailed Hawk, Harris's Hawk, Black and Turkey Vulture, Peregrine Falcon and Swainson's Hawk.

Larry Weeks checking out the "peeps" in the wetland.

We thanked Tom for his wonderful guiding and headed to the hotel in Kingsville to check-in, shower and get some dinner.  Brian, our leader, lived in Kingsville for several years and knew a great local Bar-B-Que restaurant, CB's Mesquite Bar-B-Que, to take us. It was delicious.  after we all filled our faces we headed back to the hotel to get a good night sleep.  But, our birding day was not over-in the palm tree next to the hotel was a hooded oriole-a gorgeous bird to end our day on.  In total we saw 101 species today-can't wait to see what tomorrow brings.

Welcome to Texas

Great-tailed grackle, golden-fronted woodpecker, white-winged dove, chimney swift, house sparrow, northern mockingbird, Swainson's hawk, and black-bellied whistling duck and those were seen between the 10 minute drive from the Harlingen Airport to the Hampton Inn. 

The group arrived completely today.  No time for birding but we did have an authentic and delicious Mexican dinner (if you are ever in Harlingen I highly recommend Platillos) where we all became acquainted with each other and discussed which birds we are hoping to see:  masked duck, tropical parula, Audubon's oriole, pyrrhuloxia, and clay-colored robin to name a few. 

We head out tomorrow at 5:30am to Kingsville where we will spend our first day exploring King Ranch.  We will travel west on the ranch to the driest habitat.  Here we hope for roadrunner and verdin among many others.

Well, I must head to bed to make sure I am fresh for the morning drive. 

Southern Texas Birding April 25th-May 2nd

The Itinerary

Because of its southern latitude, diverse mix of habitats and unique position along a major migration corridor, South Texas offers a nearly unparalleled opportunity to observe birds in North America. Not only are there a suite of resident species with limited North American ranges like Green Jay, Tropical Parula, Ferruginous Pygmy-owl, Great Kiskadee, Altamira Oriole, Olive Sparrow and more, but in late April, a tremendous variety of neoptropical migrants sweep through the area.

The first part of this trip will involve birding the spectacular King Ranch, which, with 825,000 acres, encompasses a whole range of habitats from coastal grassland to thorn-scrub brush to stands of live oak that are home to nearly all of the South Texas specialty birds. The second part of the trip will be in the Rio Grande Valley, home to more birds with slim U.S. ranges.

Throughout the trip we’ll have the flexibility to take advantage of favorable weather patterns to visit coastal migrant traps to see a wealth of migrating songbirds at close range. We should see between 175 and 200 species, possibly more if conditions are good. For a S. Texas Bird Check list click here.

Monday, April 25th:

Arrive in Harlingen, Texas. Overnite stay in Harlingen.

Tuesday, April 26th

Drive to Kingsville, Texas.  We'll begin by visiting La Copita, a private ranch in the arid western portion of South Texas to look for Ash-throated Flycatcher, Verdin, Cactus Wren, Roadrunner, Black-throated Sparrow, and Painted Bunting.

In the afternoon, we'll begin touring King Ranch, visiting the Santa Gertrudis Division in Kingsville. Here we should begin seeing unique South Texas birds in abundance including:  Black-bellied Whistling Duck; Least Grebe, Neotropic Cormorant, Harris' Hawk, White-tailed Hawk, Crested Caracara, Inca Dove, Common Ground Dove, White-tipped Dove, Groove-billed Ani, Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Vermillion Flycatcher, Great Kiskadee, Couch's Kingbird, Scissor-tail Flycatcher, Green Jay, Black-crested Titmouse, Longbilled Thrasher, Olive Sparrow, Cassin's Sparrow, and Bronzed Cowbird.

Night in Kingsville, Texas.

Wednesday, April 27th:

Today we’ll visit areas along the mid-Texas coast between Corpus Christi and Port Aransas where there are excellent opportunities for viewing neotropical migrants and coastal birds.Several migrant traps in Port Aransas can be spectacular for warblers, vireos and songbirds if the weather conditions are right (and regardless of weather patterns, these areas are quite productive in later April). We’ll also explore the coast line and sand flats for shorebirds, gulls, terns and more.

Thursday, April 28th:

We'll spend today on the Norias Division of King Ranch, home to some of the rarest resident birds in North America. Our targets species will include such rarities as Ferruginous Pygmy-owl, which breeds in fairly good numbers on King Ranch, Tropical Parula, Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet, Audubon's Oriole, and Botteri's Sparrow as well as Buff-breasted Hummingbird and Brown-crested Flycatcher. After leaving Norias, we'll continue down into the Rio Grand Valley and spend the night in McAllen, which will serve as our base of operations to explore the valley the last three days.

Friday-Sunday, April 29th-May 1st:
These final three days will be spent in the Rio Grande Valley, a long corridor filled with quality birding locations. We’ll leave the itinerary for these days loose to take advantage of weather conditions and rarities that may show up. Over the course of the three days, we may visit upper valley locations to search for such elusive birds as the White-collared Seed-eater, Red-billed Pigeon, Muscovy Duck, and the more common such as Plain Chachalaca, Altamira Oriole, Claycolored Robin, Tropical Kingbird, Common Paraque and possibly Gray Hawk and Hook-billed Kite, and lower valley locations like South Padre Island for Fulvous Whistling-duck, coastal birds, and the possibility of a migrant fallout.

Monday, May 2nd:
Depart from Harlingen.