Category Archives: Rio Grande Valley

Just Plain Birds

I’ve been showing off flashy birds that are eye candy but we have been seeing lots of less showboat but just as interesting subjects. Here are some:

The Orange-crowned warbler is everywhere.

White Ibis (we see white-faced as well)

A gaggle of Snowy Egrets

Long-billed Curlew working the outfield of a ball park

Black Phoebe in poor light

American Wigeon and below, his main squeeze

Juvenile Red-tailed Hawk

Olive Sparrow

Sick of grey weather, we are moseying westward for some adventures and hopefully some sun.

Buntings

There are a couple of rare buntings in the area and in the last couple of days, we saw them both. The first was at Quinta Matzalan, a sprawling Spanish-revival estate surrounded by sprawling tropical gardens and lots of birds. The juvenile male Blue Bunting has been drawing birders from all over and after a chilly wait, I saw it at a feeder along with a dozen others.

I thought I’d seen a Blue Bunting in Maryland a few years ago and was surprised to find that this was a life bird – #466 – the Maryland bird was a Blue Grosbeak.

The second bunting was a Painted Bunting which has been hanging out at the National Butterfly Center. Sally and I got great looks at it as it foraged along the pathways, oblivious to the clicking telephoto lenses.

Some South Texas Birds

Sunday, we headed out of chilly (31) Goliad State Park enroute to the Rio Grande Valley. We saw some neat birds at Goliad including these two Black Vultures catching some afternoon rays.

Along Highway 59, some movement caught my eye and I spotted a bunch of Sandhill Cranes. After a U-turn, dodging several large trucks, we returned to look them over.

There were 100-200 in the field. We thought the van had spooked them but looking at this photo, I think a raptor got them airborne.

At the first day here at Americana RV park, we are seeing lots of birds, especially during a visit to the Bentsen-Palm State Park.

A handsome White Pelican

 

A Snowy Egret

Two Great Egrets and a Snowy. Note the yellow “slippers” on the Snowy.

The chicken-like Plain Chachalaca is furtive but also very noisy.

Some Birds From Salenino

I first wrote about Salineno, Texas a few years ago and my recent visits to this wonderful site were just as satisfying. It is easy to see, as you sit in lawn chairs watching colorful birds flock to the feeders, why this little patch on the Rio Grande attracts birders from all over. Merle and Lois, the long-time volunteers, do a great job of hosting neophyte to expert visitors.

Here are some shots I took the other day.

The first three shots are an Altimira Oriole, a Golden-fronted Woodpecker, and an Audobon’s Oriole. (The Hooded Orioles have not shown up yet this winter. Here is an Orange-crowned Warbler.

The Green Jays were everywhere as were the Great Kiskadees, like this one.

The Rio Grande is higher than often but still rather narrow. That is Mexico in the background.

Next – some birds of the desert as we head toward New Mexico.

Camping Near a Battle Zone

About five AM yesterday, both Mary and I were wakened by a muffled thumping. I thought it might be some wild pigs messing with our propane grill so Mary yelled out the window while I got some shoes on and put the leash on Penny, who was barking and trying to get out the door. Mary said, “I think something’s hung up,” since the noise was so steady.

Flashlight in hand. I cautiously went out to the yard, just in time to hear a loud explosion in the distance. “They’re fighting over in Mexico,” I said as we listened to a major gun battle going on across the lake. Lots of large guns. 20-second bursts of assault rifle type shooting – it was eerie. The shooting went on for about a half an hour.

We are only a mile or two from the border, which goes right down Falcon Lake. The nearby city is more like five or ten miles away.

Our next door camping family is a local Hispanic couple and their kids here for the weekend. I saw him in the morning and oh yes, they heard it. He wAs wondering for a while if they were safe. He told me that he used to take his daughter over to a dentist for her braces, but stopped that about four years ago.

The park staff here is all Hispanic and none of them cross the border. Their concern is that they might be mistaken for the wrong person.

Earlier this week, about 50 at-risk kids were here on an outing run by the sheriff’s department. They rode bikes, went fishing, had two meals and a great time. Several of the adults with the group talked with a friend of mine and described some of their environment: nearly every day, parts of bodies are deposited on the Laredo bridge, the result of the drug wars. About half the kids were orphans, many having lost family in violence.

We don’t need to go to the mid-east to encounter terrorism and kids caught in war zones. It’s right here along the Rio Grande. Yesterday morning’s gun battle, whatever the reason, was just another reminder.

Note: the campground and U.S. side is very safe and at no time have we felt nervous about our safety.

Raptors Rule The Rio Grande Valley

Wherever you go in the Rio Grande Valley, you find hawks – yesterday morning we found a Zone-tailed Hawk in among some Turkey Vultures (it was too far away for photos) and also saw this Osprey waiting for breakfast.

Pretty soon, along the bird came with a fish too large to lift so he/she rested on a rock to think it over. That is the Rio Grande River and you can wade across it – and folks do – but that’s another story.

Grey Hawks are a special bird down here and still rather unique on this side of the border. Here’s one perched on the Mexican side digiscoped at long range.

This one is on U.S. soil and can be counted as such.

Another SW hawk is the Harris’s Hawk distinguished by its rusty color. The one was giving me the hairy eyeball as I viewed him through the scope.

One of my favorite shots of the trip so far is of this Cooper’s Hawk, which I came up on while walking Penny. I stepped on her leash and shot quickly.

I struggle to identify hawks, especially when they are flying. This is a great region to practice and learn to separate Cooper’s, Merlins, Sharp-shinned, and the rare Broadwing from one another. Good birding to you.

Father Bird

Yesterday morning, Mary and I ( and our bird dog) were at Estero Grande Llano State Park to check out some of the wonderful array of birds there – it was Mary’s first visit. As is my custom, I did a quick scan of the parking lot for birder license plates and found this interesting one.

We wondered for a moment about it (not realizing it belonged to one of the pillars of Valley birding) and went on to a great couple of hours with the birds, and a bellowing male alligator, before heading home.

Last evening, I started reading a book, Heralds of Spring in Texas, that I had borrowed from the RV park’s library.
I was just reading the Preface skimming the acknowledgements when I saw, "Father Tom Pincinellli, a Catholic priest with a deep interest in birds of the Rio Grande Valley and in helping other birders;" and I was on to Google to see if this might be the owner.

Three pages of articles flashed up and it was obvious that a.k.a. "Father Bird" had been at Estero as well. He’s a well-known birder, environmentalist, spokesperson, and articulate person of faith and I think we passed him on the trail, but of course, did not know him. From all that I have read, he would (will) be a wonderful guy to talk with. Mary, as a retired Episcopal priest would have a lot in common while I, a "learning" birder, would have a lot of questions.

Here’s a snip from one article describing his leadership role in the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival:

That expert would be Tom Pincelli, a Catholic priest who has been a fixture in RGV birding community since arriving in south Texas in 1980. In birding circles, all you need to say is "Father Tom" or "Father Bird," and many in the Rio Grande Valley and beyond will know exactly who you are talking about. Pincell is a Connecticut native, who started birding in 1972. By the time the church offered him a congregation in Harlingen in 1980, he was well acquainted with the special birding opportunities in south Texas. For a birding priest, this assignment must have been like winning the lottery. Ever since, Father Tom has tirelessly promoted birding and bird habitat conservation in the Valley. When the festival organizers came calling, he was arguably the region’s most well-known birder, thus his involvement brought the fledgling event instant credibility.

Here is a short interview with him.

So, while we are heading westward in a few days, I’m sure that we will try to connect by email now, and in person on a future visit. I’ll also be more aggressive in tracking down the owner’s of birding plates – right then. As this exercise taught me, there are a lot of interesting people driving vehicles with avian vanity plates. Do you know any?

Pop-up Birds

Often when birding, a bird pops around a tree trunk or up to the top of a shrub and you want to get it in your binoculars but at the same time, take a photo. Good photographers are fast and shoot like paparazzi’s when a good bird shows itself while the rest of us fumble and often miss the opportunity. (I usually have a Vizsla on leash jerking my arms as I try to lock on the bird.)

Practice does help and when birds are at feeding stations, they tend to stick around for more photo ops.  Other times you just fire away and check the results later.  Here are a few photos from the last week or so, including one (the Verdin) yesterday morning. They are a nice example of the diversity of birds we just see in our travels (“Oh, it’s just another Altimira Oriole.)

An Altimira Oriole feeding at Bentsen Palm State Park this week.

An Altimira Oriole feeding at Bentsen Palm State Park this week.

A juvenile oriole earlier this week.

A juvenile oriole earlier this week.

A molting Vermillion Flycatcher at the county park.

A molting Vermillion Flycatcher at the county park.

A Northern Cardinal "hiding" yesterday morning.

A Northern Cardinal “hiding” yesterday morning.

A pretty Verdin that posed just long enough before departing.

A pretty Verdin that posed just long enough before departing.

We have a few more days here in the Valley before heading up to Falcon Lake State Park. While it will be tough to leave the birds, we won’t miss the traffic and the barking of local dogs who are left out all night. I’m looking forward to some peace and quiet in the boonies.