[texbirds] Re: Bar-tailed Godwit, Corpus Christi
- From: Willie Sekula <williebird22@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: "cooksey@xxxxxxxxxx" <cooksey@xxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 10 Aug 2014 08:56:06 -0500
Currently present on the Texas A&M side of The Oso.
Willie Sekula
Falls City
Sent from my iPhone
> On Aug 9, 2014, at 10:39 PM, "Arlie Cooksey" <cooksey@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
> I spotted a Bar-tailed Godwit among the Marbled Godwits this evening in the
> Cayo del Oso,
> adjacent to Texas A&M- Corpus Christi Campus. The bird was quite distant,
> but most field
> characters were seen. I posted some poor digiscope photos at
> http://s1319.photobucket.com/user/cybrbrdr/library/?sort=3&page=1
>
> I was rather unfamiliar with this plumage, and my extent of personal
> experience with BTGO was
> one basic-plumaged bird from California years ago, and that plumage was quite
> different than
> the Oso bird. I consulted with the "San Antonio Bird Think Tank", Martin and
> Willie.Both
> confirmed the ID, and Martin feels strongly that the bird is a molting adult.
>
> Directions: this is the "Blind Oso", which lies between Ennis Joslin
> Drive/Hans Suter Park on
> the west, and the TAMUCC campus on the east. Directions.. take SPID to Ennis
> Joslin, go north
> and park in the Hans Suter Parking lot. If the lot is full, there is another
> parking lot for the park
> a short distance south. You will then need to walk NORTH along the Ennis
> Joslin sidewalk on the
> east side of Ennis Joslin. Proceed about 200-250 yards, until you cross the
> inflow canal, and the
> pipe rail ends on the right. Here is a path that leads into the Oso flats.
> You will then walk directly
> east to the waters edge, about ¼ mile. A scope is really needed. I saw the
> bird from about 7:15
> PM until 7:45 this evening at about 150 yards.
>
> Note: light conditions are excellent late in the day from this vantage point,
> but you will be
> facing the sun early in the day. As an option, you can enter TAMUCC, and walk
> into the flats
> from the east. Check with the gate attendant, regarding parking requirements.
> There are about
> 125 Marbled Godwits in this area, and they move around a bit. The BTGO will
> be quite obvious,
> as it is a very pale bird, whitish below with orange splotches, pale grayish
> upperparts, and a pale
> head and neck. Look for the barred tail, which shows in one of my mediocre
> photos. If you
> locate the bird, try for better pictures.
>
> Here is a transcript of my field notes, as I dictated into the recorder,
> during the observation.
>
> "I have a strange godwit, very pale godwit, looks like
> size like Marbled.very whitish head, underparts are whitish, with rufous
> splotches,
> from the undertail coverts to the sides of breast. The head is lightly
> streaked. fine
> vermiculation on crown. The wing coverts. I can't really tell what the state
> of wear
> on the wing coverts. They DO look striated..although they don't look uniform
> striated,
> like I would expect BTGO to look like. (?) The tail looks like it is FINELY
> BARRED, ala
> LBDO or SBDO pattern. Bill looks much like size and shape of MAGO. Doesn't
> look like
> it's recurved any more than MAGO.very bright pink on base and dark on distal
> half.
> The scaps, greater coverts, I guess tertials, look to be dark with really
> WHITISH edges."
> (this looked waaaay different than fine, brownish-buff back/scap pattern of
> MAGO. )
> "Looks like the entire edge of those feathers is whitish."
>
> "The bird is about 100 yds from me" (more like 150) "It's about 7:20, Aug. 9,
> 2014, Cayo
> del Oso, the Blind Oso. Sun is directly at my back. Legs appear to be black."
> ( ? Dark)
> "The back feathers of this bird just don't look anything like MAGO, nothing
> at all like
> MAGO..several digiscope photos..Appears it might be slightly smaller than the
> MAGOS.. don't know.. it gives the impression it is slightly smaller." (There
> were lots of
> MAGOS nearby, and the bird may have been shorter-legged, creating the smaller
> impression).
>
> Good Luck,
>
> Mel Cooksey
> Corpus Christi
>
>
>
>
>
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