. * Texas * Lower Rio Grande Valley * April 18, 2013 . To report rare birds, e-mail rgvbirds AT hotmail.com(preferred) or call 956)584-2731 option 3. . Updates can be seen on the web athttp://rgvbirds.blogspot.com . Capitalized birds marked with a + are Review Species forTexas. Please send sightings/photographs to the Texas Bird Review Committee:ecarpeATgmail.com. . Reports on roosting Swainsonâs Hawks in the LRGV are highly desired by a local researcher. Please call Bill Clark with reports of flocks of Swainsonâs Hawks sitting in fields in the early morning before liftoff. Bill can be reached at 956 793-3112. . IMPORTANT REMINDER: Biker Festinvades South Padre Island this weekend â starting FRIDAY. Be prepared for long lines, loud music, noparking at the convention center, and temporary road closures for motorcycleparades on SPI. Go early tomorrow or beprepared for traffic, congestion, and noise! . Our rare bird alert this week includes: . Glossy Ibis Red-breasted Nuthatch Mangrove [Yellow] Warbler + CRIMSON-COLLARED GROSBEAK . This is a general reminder that playing recordings is notallowed in Texas State Parks nor in many LRGV birding sites. All State Park andNational Wildlife Refuge visitors must stay on trails. Thank you for not disturbing the wildlife or damaging the vegetation. . Nightjars continue to move through, Dickcissels arearriving. Wilsonâs Plover have returnedto Hargill where they nest each year; they are regular on the coast. Localbirds are nesting is well underway with Clay-colored Thrush constructing theirlarge messy basket nests. The firstBuff-bellied Hummingbirds are fledged a week ago. . Grasspipers including Buff-breasted Sandpiper continue topass through; also present are American Golden-Plover, Upland, Pectoral andBairdâs Sandpiper. . Mississippi Kites are joining the numerous Swainsonâs andBroad-winged Hawks on migration. Territorial Cooperâs Hawks are displaying. SwainsonâsHawks are nest building. . The Valley from east to west. . Mangrove Warbler, a well-marked subspecies of YellowWarbler that may be distinct enough to warrant full species status, can be seenby contacting the Sealife Center at (956) 299-1957. . A Red-breasted Nuthatch continued into last week on SouthPadre Island with reports from various locations through 4/16. Arrivals this week include a Prairie Warbler. Migrants galore were reported from SPItoday. . A female-plumaged +CRIMSON-COLLARED GROSBEAK wasphotographed at Sabal Palm Sanctuary on 2/12 and returned daily through atleast 4/18. It is being seen in the area of the water feature and feedingstation at the Headquarters, feeding on potato trees. . An adult Glossy Ibis was at Estero Llano Grande StatePark through 3/31 and was likely present since 3/25. Another was reported at Santa Ana on 4/16after a long gap without observations. . Hooded Mergansers continue at Santa Ana NWR through 4/1. Norecent reports. . Not one but TWO Royal Terns were reported from Anzalduason 4/10. This is a very rare species inHidalgo Co. . Varied Buntings were excellent finds at Quinta Mazatlanand Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park this week. They are rare on migration and as a nestingspecies, observers are wondering if the drought may move some into moreaccessible locations. . PARROT REPORT Red-crowned Parrots are sometimes seen in the areas ofQuinta Mazatlan in McAllen, Valley Nature Center in Weslaco in the evening,Calvary Baptist Church in Harlingen (1815 N 7th Street). Brownsvilleâs OliveiraPark (Los Ebanos Road/El Paso Road across from Pace High School)has Red-crownedParrots as well, mingling at dusk with escaped Yellow-headed, White-fronted,Lilac-crowned and Red-lored Parrots. Red-crowned Parrots and Green Parakeetsare seen in urban areas irregularly all over the Valley. . Green Parakeets can be seen staging in McAllen near 10thand Dove in the evening, sometimes winging a few blocks over to Nolana xMcColl. Watch for a couple of Mitred Parakeets that sometimes mingle with them. . In Hidalgo, at 5th and Gardenia near the HidalgoPumphouse World Birding Center, a few Monk Parakeets have taken up residencebuilding nests on telephone poles, keeping company with an escaped Rose-ringedParakeet. These birds are present since winter 2010. In Harlingen, MonkParakeets have constructed a roost nest on the cell tower northwest of 106 andEd Carey. These birds were discovered in December 2012. . WHITE-COLLARED SEEDEATER INFORMATION - Most sites forWhite-collared Seedeaters are in Zapata and Webb counties. Information isprovided as a service to visiting birders. Sites to check include the SanYgnacio County Park/Seedeater Sanctuary at the foot of Washington Street in SanYgnacio, the Raptor Trail at the west end of San Ygnacio, the library pond inZapata, and Laredo's Las Palmas Trail, North Central and Father McNaboe Park.Access to La Laja Ranch, also a Seedeater site, is by advance reservationsonly. E-mail the owner at Edward.herbst AT att.net. This is a fee site. . FERRUGINOUS PYGMY-OWL INFORMATION - FerruginousPygmy-Owls are present at El Canelo, San Miguelito Ranch and King Ranch (NoriasDivision only). Recent reports have *not* found Ferruginous Pygmy-Owls at SanMiguelito Ranch or El Canelo. This owl is very difficult to find at any otherlocation at present and have not been seen or heard at Bentsen-Rio GrandeValley State Park since the summer of 2010, when the park was inundated by theRio Grande. . Seehttp://rgvbirds.blogspot.com/p/ferruginous-pygmy-owl-sites.html for moreinformation. . Directions are provided only for sites not included inthe ABA Birders' Guide to the Rio Grande Valley or the Birders' Guide to theTexas Coast. These guides are indispensable for visiting birders. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Site Closures: Allen Williams Wildscape, Pharr, open by appointmentONLY; Call or text 956-460-9864. Bentsen-RGV State Park, building/store closed/no trams onMonday, but the grounds are open (self-pay station). Edinburg Scenic Wetlands World Birding Center, buildingand grounds both closed on Sundays. Estero Llano Grande State Park, building/store open 7days a week! Frontera Audubon Thicket, Weslaco, closed Sunday morningsand all day Mondays except by appointment. Los Ebanos Preserve, San Benito, Appointment ONLY; 956-241-2494. Methodist Camp Thicket, Weslaco, group reservations (fee)only. Contact Estero Llano Grande State Park. Quinta Mazatlan, McAllen, closed Sundays and Mondays. Resaca de la Palma State Park, building/store closed/notrams Mondays & Tuesdays, grounds open (self-pay station). SALINENO âtemporary feeding station on the FWS Keplertract ends Saturday. San Miguelito Ranch â reopened March 1! Closes for theseason in May. Letty at 956-369-3118 or Buny55ATaol.com Santa Ana NWR- closed to bicycles Valley Nature Center, Weslaco, closed Sunday mornings andMondays. Mary Gustafson Mission, Texas Edit your Freelists account settings for TEXBIRDS at //www.freelists.org/list/texbirds Reposting of traffic from TEXBIRDS is prohibited without seeking permission from the List Owner