Did the coastal strip from bolivar to east beach and the texas city dike
today. Lots of nice birds. And it was wet out there. Most spots had water
that have been dry for a long time and there was a lack of edge. And not
many birds at the new water. Wind was like a march cold front but died down
a little later in the day but crossing the early ferry was wet and choppy
and not many birds.
Not many birds in Port Bolivar either as Frenchtown road water was up to
the pavement and had been over the road. And other ponds were full too.
The tide during the last week and swept all over the sand at Bolivar Flats
past the bollards all the way into the vegetation line. The least terns and
Wilson's plovers that returned after the last washout were washed out
again. Tide was way out and the birds were way down there. Lots of one of a
kind like marbled godwit, Wilson's phalarope, red knot, franklin's gull
etc. 2 short-billed dowitchers. One sandpiper flew by with a white rump and
what looked like a curved bill. But a very distant picture showed a short
straight bill but it got the adrenalin moving.
Still good numbers of sanderlings and dunlin along with ruddy turnstones
and semipalmated sandpipers. A few gulls getting more on the mangy side. A
dark-eyed gull of un-decided nature was right where Retillon ends out on
the beach and a lesser black-backed gull was just a bit away towards the
bollards at a dead fish. 17 avocets remain. A big jump in Caspian terns;
the continuing youngster of last year plus a pair and 2 single adults.
Gull-billed terns crab catching inland from the beach.
Driving out Retillon, several black rails called. Stopped and listened and
had chicks peeping with one of the callers not far from the road. But of
course they did not come out. Walking down the beach a good ways past the
bollards had another black rail calling back in the vegetation. Have had
more black rails along Retillon Road this spring than all the others I have
ever seen or heard.
Young clapper rails also out and about as are young willets. Several pairs
of horned larks up singing
Drove east from Retillon road and had a female surf scoter on the beach.
Then there was a good flock of shorebirds feeding in the cut which was
running deep. Went around to Magnolia road and found the birds which
including a female red-necked phalarope in great plumage which I think was
my first for Texas. Bulldozer arrived to clean the beach and destroyed the
habitat too.
The pair of swainson's hawks is still on territory. Bob road was full of
water and not many birds. Yacht basin road had good water but no birds. Had
my only semipalmated plover with the sandpipers of the same name and my
only white-rumped sandpipers at rollover pass. Baby willets at many spots
all more than a few days old. one brood maybe half grown.
Stopped at east beach and the parking lot was basically flooded with great
habitat but only a couple of laughing gulls. More horned larks. And a
yellow-billed cuckoo came in off the gulf and another headed west from
Galveston roads. Not many birds.
Texas city dike was also quiet although the rain etc had created nice water
areas. Did have several unbanded American oystercatchers and the continuing
male red-breasted merganser and a female plumaged bird that might be a male
with a plumage problem. Both not in the best of plumage but fly well.
Almost no terns and no gulls other than laughing.
--
Joseph C. Kennedy
on Buffalo Bayou in West Houston
Josephkennedy36@xxxxxxxxx
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