Please start sending your posts to texbirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx TexBirders:I spent a long half day exploring San Saba County, including parks in San Saba proper and meandering around in the mesquite country N and NW of there. Highlights of a 60-species day included:
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron - one very young immature on a slough at the San Saba Golf Course; probably locally raised. (No eBird records.)
American Coot - one summering bird on a small lake S of Skeeterville (gotta love that placename); no other waterfowl other than domestics in town.
Long-billed Curlew - one heard in a managed pasture along FM 500 N of San Saba, my FOS migrant.
Couch's Kingbird - One heard several times in a.m. and early p.m. at Mill Pond Park in San Saba; previously reported (Apr 2012 and previous years).
Loggerhead Shrike - One in grasslands along FM 500 N of San Saba; uncommon in summer now?
Yellow-throated Vireo - Two singing in Risien Park and adjacent LCRA San Saba River Nature Park.
Black-and-White Warbler - a female at Risien Park on the San Saba River; probably an early migrant, less likely a local breeder.
Pyrrhuloxia - Three in mesquite woods on CR 117 and CR 203 off FM 500.Bronzed Cowbird - a female was at Mill Pond Park and a prob. male was seen in mesquite/cedar elm woods off FM 502 in N part of county.
NOTE: Beware! A slightly older (5 yrs?) MAPSCO "Roads of Texas" book that I took with me today has all the San Saba Co. Rd. numbers completely wrong. A newer edition I have at home (ca. 2011) has them corrected.
Chuck Sexton Austin, TXEdit your Freelists account settings for TEXBIRDS at //www.freelists.org/list/texbirds