On my way back to Corpus Christi from Harlingen yesterday afternoon, I exited
at Sarita to see what was happening.
Our recent rains have turned low spots into large puddles, and large puddles
into ponds, and of course that attracts birds.
Before I turned east onto La Parra Rd., there was a nice pond to the right of
the exit ramp where I saw two Vermilion Flycatchers, a Red-tailed Hawk (well,
that was on a utility pole) and some American Coots, a Great Egret, and eight
Black-bellied Whistling Ducks - two adults and 6 teenagers.
There were many opportunities to stop and examine ponds and puddles as I
traveled along the road. American Kestrels in fresh, crisp plumage sparred for
territory, and Scissor-tailed Flycatchers were everywhere. A trickle of
swallows headed south overhead (please don't ask me what kind....).
Around one pond was a large flock of Cattle Egrets - 65 I estimated - and in
the water, a large school of young Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, maybe 60 in
all.
A nice White-tailed Hawk wheeled above the landscape.
I turned around at the end of the road and went back into Sarita, where I
discovered a new pond on the north side of town that was swarming with grebes.
Least Grebes fed their peeping young - there were probably 30 all together -
and some Pied-Billed Grebes paddled around too.
I wish I had had my scope as there were birds too far out for me to see.
Judy Kestner
Calallen (NW Corpus Christi)
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