RBA . * Texas * Lower Rio Grande Valley * June 7, 2012 . To report rare birds, e-mail rgvbirds AT hotmail.com (preferred)orcall (956) 584-2731 option 3. . Capitalized birds marked with a + are Review Species for Texas.Please send sightings/photographs to the Texas Bird Review Committee,ecarpeATgmail.com. . NEW STATE PARK TRAM AND STORE OPERATING DAYS STARTING JUNE 1–Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park and Resaca de la Palma State Park will bewithout tram service on every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday starting June 1.Gift shops and offices are also closed these days. Estero Llano Grande StatePark will have the offices and gift shop closed Monday only. The parks are openfor visitation every day. Please use theself-pay stations on days the park offices are closed. Park pass holders can register their use ofthe parks and support their local parks by checking in at the self-pay stationsor ‘iron rangers’. . PELAGIC BIRDING OPPORTUNITY – Eric Carpenter is organizing threepelagic trips out of South Padre Island this summer. The dates are June 30, July 28, and August25. Contact Eric for registrationinformation at ecarpe@xxxxxxxxxx . Our rare bird alert this week includes: . +MASKED DUCK Purple Gallinule American Golden-Plover +ROSE-THROATED BECARD Tropical Parula Mangrove [Yellow] Warbler . This is a general reminder that playing recordings is not allowedin Texas State Parks and many LRGV birding sites. All State Park and NationalWildlife Refuge visitors must stay on trails. Thank you for not disturbing thewildlife or damaging the vegetation. . The Valley from east to west. . Purple Gallinules continue on the SPI boardwalks, with up to fourbirds. . Mangrove Warbler, a well-marked subspecies of Yellow Warbler thatmay be distinct enough to warrant full species status, can be seen bycontacting the Sealife Center at (956) 299-1957. . A MASKED DUCK in female plumage appeared 6/5 at Sabal PalmSanctuary and remained through at least 6/7! An Audubon’s Oriole was a single person heard-only bird at the leveejust north of Sabal Palm Sanctuary east of Brownsville. No additional reports. . At Estero Llano Grande State Park a female +ROSE-THROATED BECARDinitially found on the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival on 11/9 is nestbuilding in the Tropical Zone! She is evidently still not paired so no fertileeggs are expected unless a male turns up quickly. Huck Hutchens, a volunteerpark host, found the Becard nest building on 5/8 and she remains in the areaand readily visible through 6/8. The nest is high in a palm tree, ask at thepark HQ for directions. The Rose-throated Becard is more difficult to see asshe is spending time in the nest. . Still at Estero, a stunning adult Purple Gallinule may continueoff the deck. . An American Golden-Plover was a very late find 6/5-6 in a rapidlydrying flooded field in Donna on 1423 south of Business 83. . A Tropical Parula continues at Santa Ana NWR near the CattailLakes through May 27. No recent reports either way. . A leucistic Black-chinned Hummingbird continues at the EdinburgScenic Wetlands. . Red-crowned Parrots are sometimes seen in the areas of QuintaMazatlan in McAllen, Valley Nature Center in Weslaco in the evening, and EsteroLlano Grande State Park in the mornings. Red-crowned Parrots are also reportedfrom Calvary Baptist Church in Harlingen (1815 N 7th Street) and atRio Hondo/ 7th Street in Harlingen in the evenings(exit Expressway 77 on EdCarey, heading north on Ed Carey about 3.5 miles to Rio Hondo Road just beforethe Airport, turn right onto Rio Hondo going to 7th Street), and also atOliveira Park (Los Ebanos Road/El Paso Road across from Pace High School) inBrownsville, mingling at dusk with Yellow-headed and Red-lored Parrots (bothspecies are escapes). Red-crowned Parrots and Green Parakeets are seen in urbanareas irregularly all over the Valley. . Green Parakeets can be seen staging in McAllen near 10th and Dovein the evening, sometimes winging a few blocks over to Nolana/McColl – a reportlast month had 200 at the latter site. A couple of Mitred Parakeets (escapes)were present this winter. . In Hidalgo at 5th and Gardenia near the HidalgoPumphouse World Birding Center, a few Monk Parakeets have taken up residencebuilding a nest on a telephone pole. . 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, Laredo's Las Palmas Trail, North Central Park, or Father McNaboe Park.Seedeaters are widely distributed this spring with birds at all locations.Access to La Laja Ranch, also a Seedeater site, is by advance reservationsonly. E-mail the owner at Edward.herbst@xxxxxxxxxxxx is a fee site. . FERRUGINOUS PYGMY-OWL INFORMATION – Ferruginous Pygmy-Owls arepresent at El Canelo, San Miguelito Ranch and King Ranch (Norias Divisiononly). San Miguelito is closed until March 1. King Ranch Norias bird trips are completed for the spering. This owl is very difficult to find at anyother location at present. Ferruginous Pygmy-Owls have not been seen or heardat Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park since the summer of 2010, when the parkwas inundated by the Rio Grande. . Directions are provided only for sites not included in the ABABirders' Guide to the Rio Grande Valley or the Birders' Guide to the TexasCoast. These guides are indispensable for visiting birders. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Site Closures: Allen Williams Wildscape, Pharr, open by appointment ONLY; Call ortext 956-460-9864. Edinburg Scenic Wetlands World Birding Center, building closedSunday (grounds open). Bentsen-RGV State Park, office and store closed/no trams onMonday, Tuesday and Wednesday, grounds open (self-pay station). Estero Llano Grande State Park, building closed Mondays, groundsopen (self-pay station). Frontera Audubon Thicket, Weslaco, closed Sunday mornings and allday Mondays except by appt. Los Ebanos Preserve, San Benito, Appointment ONLY; 956-241-2494. Methodist Camp Thicket, Weslaco, group reservations (fee) only.Contact Estero Llano Grande State Park – days change in July Quinta Mazatlan, McAllen, closed Sundays and Mondays. Resaca de la Palma State Park, office and store closed/no tramsMonday, Tuesday, Wednesday, grounds open (self-pay station). San Miguelito Ranch - Lety at 956-365-3118 or Buny55@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx until March 2013. Santa Ana NWR- closed to bicycles Valley Nature Center, Weslaco, closed Sunday morning and Mondays. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Mary Gustafson Mission, Texas