[texbirds] Red-eyed Vireo and Forster's Terns in Lubbock this morning
- From: Anthony Hewetson <fattonybirds@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: texbirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx, leasbirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx, Anthony Hewetson <fattonybirds@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 18 May 2014 11:28:27 -0500
Greetings All:
I spent 1.25 hours birding Lake Six this morning, including a full drive
around the lake and a couple of miles worth of hiking (most of the migrants
were in the mesquite uplands between the lake and the cell phone tower - an
often overlooked portion of the property). During this period I tallied 47
species with the following highlights: 2 Cackling Geese, 1 Double-crested
Cormorant, 2 Common Gallinules, 1 Sora (seen but not heard - weird), 2
Spotted Sandpipers, 3 Forster's Terns, 1 Northern Flicker, 2 Willow
Flycatchers, 1 Least Flycatcher (a late FOS for me in the region), 1
Red-eyed Vireo (seen and then heard - incessantly), 1 Tree Swallow, 2
Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, 5 MacGillivray's Warblers, 2 Common Yellowthroats,
5 Yellow Warblers, 1 Wilson's Warbler, 8 Chipping Sparrows, and 1 Brewer's
Sparrow.
The Red-eyed Vireo was the highlight of the morning for me. They used to
be seen annually in the region but have been sparse during the last five
years or so. Additionally, aside from one I heard singing at White River
Lake many, many years ago, this is only the second time I have heard one
singing vigorously in my region. It can be a little mind-numbing, having
to deal with a woodland full of these critters, but having one singing in
one of our little woodlands, however incessantly, demandingly, or
querulously is quite pleasant.
I then spent 1.25 hours birding the riparian corridor below the lake,
noting 30 species including 1 Snowy Egret, 1 Yellow-crowned Night Heron, 1
Spotted Sandpiper, 2 Northern Flickers, 1 Northern Waterthrush, 1
MacGillivray's Warbler, 1 Yellow Warbler, 2 Yellow-rumped Warblers, 2
Yellow-breasted Chats, 1 female Summer Tanager, and 1 male Bronzed
Cowbird. I also spotted one of my favorite snakes (Ring-necked Snake) and
snagged a White-footed Deermouse, mid-air, as it jumped groundward from a
salt cedar. Fat I may be, but reflexes still I have ... yes?
With the vireo at the top of the heap, followed by snagging a mouse
mid-aird, followed by one of my favorite snakes the fourth best event of
the day - having a male Painted Bunting, a female Summer Tanager, a
stonking MacGillivray's Warbler, and a stonking Yellow Warbler in the same
field of view!
Anthony 'Fat Tony' Hewetson; Lubbock
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