Dear Texbirders,
Despite the good species count on today's walk, the highlight was once
again the people. From beginners to experts, we had a good group. It was
inspiring and humbling to learn, at the end of our miles-long walk, that
one of our participants, who is just now taking up birding as an interest,
is 92 years old. Wow. Just wow. Two of our best spots of the day were made
by participants as well ... a Merlin perched on a snag by the towers and an
Indigo Snake off the trail at Willow Lakes.
Please join one of our guided walks. Meet at the Visitor Center any day of
the week at 8:30 am.
Laura and Steve Paulson
USFWS Volunteers
Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge
Alamo, Texas
Santa Ana NWR (LTC 059), Hidalgo, Texas, US
Feb 7, 2017 8:30 AM - 12:25 PM
Protocol: Traveling
3.0 mile(s)
Comments: Mostly sunny, 70-80 degrees.
74 species (+2 other taxa)
Gadwall (Anas strepera) 10
Mottled Duck (Anas fulvigula) 4
Blue-winged Teal (Anas discors) 20
Northern Shoveler (Anas clypeata) 20
Green-winged Teal (Anas crecca) 15
Ring-necked Duck (Aythya collaris) 1
Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis) 5
Plain Chachalaca (Ortalis vetula) 2
Least Grebe (Tachybaptus dominicus) 12
Pied-billed Grebe (Podilymbus podiceps) 5
Neotropic Cormorant (Phalacrocorax brasilianus) 2
American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) 4
Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) 1
Great Egret (Ardea alba) 1
Snowy Egret (Egretta thula) 2
Tricolored Heron (Egretta tricolor) 3
White Ibis (Eudocimus albus) 1
White-faced Ibis (Plegadis chihi) 2
Black Vulture (Coragyps atratus) 2
Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) 20
Cooper's Hawk (Accipiter cooperii) 1
Harris's Hawk (Parabuteo unicinctus) 3
Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus) 1
Virginia Rail (Rallus limicola) 1 heard only
Sora (Porzana carolina) 1 heard only
American Coot (Fulica americana) 25
Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus) 15
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) 7
Least Sandpiper (Calidris minutilla) 21
Long-billed Dowitcher (Limnodromus scolopaceus) 50
Wilson's Snipe (Gallinago delicata) 1
Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius) 2
Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca) 5
White-tipped Dove (Leptotila verreauxi) 2
Common Pauraque (Nyctidromus albicollis) 1
Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon) 1
Green Kingfisher (Chloroceryle americana) 1
Golden-fronted Woodpecker (Melanerpes aurifrons) 4
Ladder-backed Woodpecker (Picoides scalaris) 6
Crested Caracara (Caracara cheriway) 1
American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) 1
Merlin (Falco columbarius) 1
Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet (Camptostoma imberbe) 2
Empidonax sp. (Empidonax sp.) 1 We had good looks but it was silent.
Bill seemed too long for a Least and appeared all orange from the angle we
were seeing it at, did not have a big-headed look. Eye ring was narrow and
complete. Primary projection seemed short. Earlier in the walk (on the way
out and this was on the way back) but not too far away from where this bird
was seen, a participant asked if we had Willow Flycatchers here because she
thought she heard one. Hmmmm....
Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe) 3
Vermilion Flycatcher (Pyrocephalus rubinus) 1
Great Kiskadee (Pitangus sulphuratus) 12
Couch's Kingbird (Tyrannus couchii) 1
White-eyed Vireo (Vireo griseus) 10 We got eyes on two but they were
singing everywhere we went.
Blue-headed Vireo (Vireo solitarius) 1
Green Jay (Cyanocorax yncas) 4
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) 10
Cave Swallow (Petrochelidon fulva) 2
swallow sp. (Hirundinidae sp.) 20
Black-crested Titmouse (Baeolophus atricristatus) 8
Verdin (Auriparus flaviceps) 3
House Wren (Troglodytes aedon) 1
Marsh Wren (Cistothorus palustris) 1
Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus) 6 all heard only
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (Polioptila caerulea) 10
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Regulus calendula) 3
Long-billed Thrasher (Toxostoma longirostre) 4 Eyes on one, others
heard only.
Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) 3
European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) 2
Black-and-white Warbler (Mniotilta varia) 1
Orange-crowned Warbler (Oreothlypis celata) 6
Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas) 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) (Setophaga coronata coronata) 2
Olive Sparrow (Arremonops rufivirgatus) 1
Lincoln's Sparrow (Melospiza lincolnii) 3
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) 2
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) 200
Eastern Meadowlark (Sturnella magna) 2
Altamira Oriole (Icterus gularis) 4 one seen, others heard only
Lesser Goldfinch (Spinus psaltria) 1
House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) 6
View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/
checklist/S34225740
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)
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