[texbirds] Central Texas birding - Austin CBC, Bullock's Oriole, Long-billed Curlew and lots of others

From: Christian Walker <christian.walker@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: texbirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Mon, 22 Dec 2014 20:18:57 -0600

Hello,

I helped out with the Austin CBC on Saturday, and birded again today at Hornsby 
Bend, Buda and Kyle. I am just now taking the time to send in a report. The 
Austin CBC was a lot of fun. I birded with Byron Stone’s group in the morning 
at Stony Point Farm. We found some Grasshopper Sparrows, both Slate-colored and 
Oregon Juncos, 17 Bewick’s Wrens (including a few Easterns) and 33 Harris’s 
Sparrows. Also had great looks at a mobbed Barred Owl and a Great Horned Owl. 
Unfortunately we could not kick up a Common Ground-Dove. 
For the afternoon I joined up with Eric Carpenter and his Hornsby Bend crew to 
help out with the Hornsby section, a veritable CBC in its own right. Our goal 
was to find everything not found in the morning, in order to push the Hornsby 
list over 100. I think we got up to around 105. Eric and I found a female 
Bullock’s Oriole along the river south of the Black Willow Trail. We got some 
excellent looks at this rare bird. We also put the team on our backs and 
flushed a Sprague’s Pipit from the mega-field behind Platt Lane. Although we 
didn’t find Sam Fason’s LeConte’s Sparrow, other highlights were a female 
Ringed Kingfisher along the river and ending the day with a Vermilion 
Flycatcher near the ponds. 
Today I did some birding with Bill and Judy Quick. We started out at Hornsby 
Bend. We made just a quick stop at the ponds (Cinnamon Teal and 13 Rusty 
Blackbirds at the CER Building) before heading over to Platt Lane. 
Unfortunately the gate wasn’t open yet, but we made the most of the entrance 
road with some sparrows and a Least Grebe in the quarry pond. We then headed up 
to Decker Lake (Walter Long Lake). Although the wind was picking up, we found 
some good birds here. Judy spotted a young male Vermilion Flycatcher. Later on 
an adult Bald Eagle came soaring over the lake to join the Ospreys, but the 
true highlight came flying across the lake from the north just before we left. 
I was scanning the horizon with the scope when a saw a gull-sized brown bird 
flying our way. As it got closer the cinnamon underwings and long curved bill 
became apparent. Long-billed Curlew! Got great looks as it flew overhead only 
~50 feet away. Bill and Judy went on to find another Vermilion Flycatcher, 
while I went down to Kyle for a job. Afterwards I stopped by the Soil 
Conservation Reservoir - 2 Neotropic Cormorants and 33(!) Pied-billed Grebes 
were here. On the way home I swung by Stagecoach Park in Buda. Heard a Winter 
Wren.  I was about to leave when I thought I heard a Pyrrhuloxia. Another 
birder (Jeffrey from South Austin) was close by and found it. It was an 
immature and was associating with two cardinals. 
That’s all for now folks.

Good birding,

Christian Walker
Independent Adjuster
Austin, Texas
(512) 431-2495



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[texbirds] Central Texas birding - Austin CBC, Bullock's Oriole, Long-billed Curlew and lots of others

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