[texbirds] Cattle egrets! ...and

From: Ruth <twofried@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: texbirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Sat, 7 Sep 2013 22:04:55 -0500
Texbirders:

I got an early start at Formosa Tejano Wetlands this morning and then birded 
STP west road and adjacent sod farm in the afternoon.

Had at least 3000 Cattle Egrets roosting at the big marsh in Tejano.  What a 
sight!  Though almost all were gone shortly after sunrise...off to feed on 
grasshoppers and grubs behind farmers shredding and discing their fields.  Also 
had Anhinga, King Rail and Least Bittern at Tejano marsh.  Along the levee had 
Yellow-breasted Chat and a gorgeous male Blue-winged Warbler.  There were a few 
empids and a nice Olive-sided Flycatcher.  Of course, lots of Baltimore and 
Orchard Orioles.  There was one flock of 45 White-winged Doves overhead.

At the sod farms near STP had over 100 Buff-breasted Sandpipers and about that 
many Upland Sandpipers feeding in the adjacent stubble and freshly disced 
field.  These birds were in groups of 2 to 20 and would flush from the fields 
as we drove by.  We tried glassing the fields but they were really difficult to 
see unless you watched them land.  There were very few birds on the sod.  We 
did manage a Pectoral Sandpiper in the sod field.  The highlight here was a 
fly-over Peregrine Falcon that circled right over head and then sailed off to 
the north.  It must have been looking for a Buff-breasted Sandpiper meal.

It was fairly quiet at the Sala Fish Farms except for about 100 Black Terns.  
The STP west road had good numbers of Yellow Warbler, Baltimore Oriole and 
Eastern Kingbird.  We also saw at least another 1500 Cattle Egrets headed 
south. These birds were everywhere today and are really on the move now.

All data entered into eBird.  Trust you had a great day birding as well.

Bob Friedrichs
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[texbirds] Cattle egrets! ...and

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