Hi, all!
I had heard there were some Red Knots on Boca Chica Beach, so Joyce
Davidson, Pat Heirs and I headed down there bright and early this morning,
seeing as low tide was around 5:30 am and high tide would be around one in
the afternoon. It was an absolutely gorgeous day, starting off in the low
50s, but ending up in the upper 70s by the time we were done, with sunny
skies and some clouds! The beach was in great shape, and we had our first
Red Knot feeding almost the minute we set foot on the beach! We headed down
to the mouth of the Rio Grande first, getting the usual suspects (about the
only other shorebirds were Sanderlings and turnstones), but we hit the
jackpot at the mouth with tons of both pelicans, avocets out the yin yang,
and a huge flock of larids hiding behind a sandbar on the Mexican side that
included Bonaparte's Gulls, three kinds of terns, and some Black Skimmers!
Heading back up we had another small flock of Knots, and continuing north to
the jetty the only other bird of note (besides lots of Forster's Terns) was
an Oystercatcher that looked like it might have been ill. Heading back out
Boca Chica Boulevard we stopped a couple of times along the road and picked
up both grebes, both yellowlegs, and female Ring-necked and Ruddy Ducks,
along with Osprey and Harris' Hawks.
We spent about an hour at the PC Flycatcher spot, but he never showed,
although two Wilson's Warblers were rather cooperative. A talkative Green
Kingfisher was a nice consolation prize, picked up some ducks at the blind
(and a flyover Sandhill Crane), and a few minutes at the feeders gave us our
Green Jay fix. Robins on the way out were nice, and the nice volunteer at
the Rabb House gave us some quick history of the place before we had to take
off, but we learned that the flycatcher HAD been seen that morning, so maybe
next time!
Some pictures (and a couple of videos) can be seen on my Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/marybeth.stowe
Bird List:
Gadwall Anas strepera
Mottled Duck Anas fulvigula
Blue-winged Teal Anas discors
Northern Pintail Anas acuta
Ring-necked Duck Aythya collaris
Ruddy Duck Oxyura jamaicensis
Plain Chachalaca Ortalis vetula
Least Grebe Tachybaptus dominicus
Pied-billed Grebe Podilymbus podiceps
Neotropic Cormorant Phalacrocorax brasilianus
Double-crested Cormorant Phalacrocorax auritus
American White Pelican Pelecanus erythrorhynchos
Brown Pelican Pelecanus occidentalis
Great Blue Heron Ardea herodias
Great Egret Ardea alba
Snowy Egret Egretta thula
Tricolored Heron Egretta tricolor
Reddish Egret Egretta rufescens
Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis
Turkey Vulture Cathartes aura
Osprey Pandion haliaetus
Harris's Hawk Parabuteo unicinctus
Gray Hawk Buteo plagiatus
Red-tailed Hawk Buteo jamaicensis
American Coot Fulica americana
Sandhill Crane Grus canadensis
American Avocet Recurvirostra americana
American Oystercatcher Haematopus palliatus
Black-bellied Plover Pluvialis squatarola
Greater Yellowlegs Tringa melanoleuca
Willet Tringa semipalmata
Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa flavipes
Ruddy Turnstone Arenaria interpres
Red Knot Calidris canutus
Sanderling Calidris alba
Bonaparte's Gull Chroicocephalus philadelphia
Laughing Gull Leucophaeus atricilla
Ring-billed Gull Larus delawarensis
Herring Gull Larus argentatus
Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia
Forster's Tern Sterna forsteri
Royal Tern Thalasseus maximus
Black Skimmer Rynchops niger
Rock Pigeon Columba livia
Mourning Dove Zenaida macroura
White-tipped Dove Leptotila verreauxi
Buff-bellied Hummingbird Amazilia yucatanensis
Belted Kingfisher Megaceryle alcyon
Green Kingfisher Chloroceryle americana
Golden-fronted Woodpecker Melanerpes aurifrons
Ladder-backed Woodpecker Picoides scalaris
Crested Caracara Caracara cheriway
American Kestrel Falco sparverius
Eastern Phoebe Sayornis phoebe
Great Kiskadee Pitangus sulphuratus
Loggerhead Shrike Lanius ludovicianus
White-eyed Vireo Vireo griseus
Green Jay Cyanocorax yncas
Chihuahuan Raven Corvus cryptoleucus
Black-crested Titmouse Baeolophus atricristatus
Verdin Auriparus flaviceps
House Wren Troglodytes aedon
Carolina Wren Thryothorus ludovicianus
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Polioptila caerulea
American Robin Turdus migratorius
Long-billed Thrasher Toxostoma longirostre
Northern Mockingbird Mimus polyglottos
Orange-crowned Warbler Oreothlypis celata
Common Yellowthroat Geothlypis trichas
Wilson's Warbler Cardellina pusilla
Olive Sparrow Arremonops rufivirgatus
Northern Cardinal Cardinalis cardinalis
Eastern Meadowlark Sturnella magna
Great-tailed Grackle Quiscalus mexicanus
American Goldfinch Spinus tristis
75 SPECIES
Mary Beth Stowe
Alamo, TX
www.miriameaglemon.com
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