The Austin area Rare Bird Alert is a service of the Travis Audubon Society. This update is as of 3/7/14. Send interesting sightings- complete with species name, LOCATION, and contact information- to Kenny Anderson at kennya290@xxxxxxxxx -Rarities Found This Week- Stillhouse Hollow Lake's Union Grove WMA provided enjoyable birding with a continuing Red-throated Loon (1/18-3/6) and a remarkable alternate plumaged RED-NECKED GREBE that was photographed 3/6 in Bell County. Western Bluebirds, at least 2, have been seen at closed-to-public City of Austin Balcones Canyonlands Preserve- Reicher Ranch in Travis County. Photographs were taken on 2/21 of this species seldom seen in the Austin area. A family group of 3 Whooping Cranes continued at Granger Lake, seen from Sore Finger and Friendship Parks on 2/21,26 in Williamson County. Long-tailed Duck continues to be reliable at Inks Lake Nation Fishery in Burnet County. Latest word 2/21,25. Lesser Black-backed Gull sporadically visits a detention pond seen from Blue Goose Road at the Austin Landfill in Travis County 2/22. A wintering Western Tanager comes to an Austin home's feeder. Updates on 3/2,3. A female Calliope Hummingbird spending the winter frequenting an Austin feeder survived another cold snap- 3/4 latest update. 2 Hutton's Vireos were described at St. Edward's Park in Austin. Birds were near the parking lot on 3/2. A Ross's Goose floated on Granger Lake 2/21 in Williamson County. A Zone-tailed Hawk flew above the access road of I-35 at the crossing of the Blanco River in Hays County on 2/28. Some early shorebirds are: American Golden Plovers (17, photographed) and Black-bellied Plover (2) on a Bastrop County private property, 1 Long-billed Curlew fly-over from a Bastrop County residence, and 2 Baird's Sandpipers at Hornsby 3/4. An Anhinga was reported in Williamson County along the San Gabriel River on 3/1. The Hill County Nature Conservancy's property, Nalle Bunny Run continues to have an Eastern Towhee and a Pyrrhuloxia. 3/6 latest update in Travis County. Rusty Blackbirds continue at Aquarena Springs in Hays County (2/25) and at Hornsby Bend in Travis County (3//2)- many observers. A Nashville Warbler at Roy Guerrero Park in Austin on 3/1 was a good find. Reports for the Austin area RBA cover a 60 mile radius, centered from the Capitol in downtown Austin. Bird sightings mentioned here have been filtered and scrutinized by the compiler and are believed to be genuine. When documentation or photographs were provided that is mentioned, along with the other information about the bird(s) being seen. For questions or updates about birds mentioned here or to report rare or unusual bird sightings in the Austin area, please send an e-mail to kennya290@xxxxxxxxx Kenny Anderson Austin Edit your Freelists account settings for TEXBIRDS at //www.freelists.org/list/texbirds Reposting of traffic from TEXBIRDS is prohibited without seeking permission from the List Owner