Bewick's Wren

I was out birding for about 3 hours this morning. I got this picture of a singing Bewick's Wren on Stillforest near Meadowheath. It's one of our 2 common neighborhood wrens -- the other is Carolina Wren. Other interesting birds were the first Yellow Warbler I've seen this fall and a lone Dickcissel flying over my house which I recognized by its low buzzy flight call. Blue-gray Gnatcatchers were much less numerous than last weekend. I only heard 2.

Bird # 166: Black-capped Vireo

Our neighborhood keeps surprising me. I was out birding this morning and had followed the creek southeast of the T&C playing fields to the last dam. I turned around and was walking back along the tree line between the green belt and the new construction area when I heard what I thought was a White-eyed Vireo. As I walked closer I saw it moving in the lower branches of an oak and got my binoculars on it. What I saw was Black-capped Vireo! Then I tried to convince myself it was not a Black-capped Vireo. I have only a little experience with this species but I have quite a bit more experience with the similar White-eyed and Blue-headed Vireos. It was not a White-eyed -- the spectacle marks were white not yellow. And White-eyed has no cap. Blue-headed is more similar but this bird's cap was black -- not blue. The spectacles were not quite shaped right either. And the clincher? My bird had red eyes.

So I was convinced. Then I decided I should try my best to get a picture. And Black-capped Vireos are infamous for staying in deep brush and constantly moving. But I remembered years ago calling up a Black-capped Vireo at Kickapoo Caverns State Park by "pishing". This is a sound you can make that sounds something like most small birds' alarm calls or scold notes. Sometimes it has the effect of calling birds in and making them come out in the open. (I think it triggers their mobbing behavior.) So I stood still and started making "pshhhh" noises. A minute later I saw the vireo low and close in the brush. A few minutes later it moved higher and started scolding. Finally it popped out in the open and I got these grainy pictures. What luck!

There are preserves for this endangered species in the Austin area. This bird was most likely just passing through our neighborhood on its way south. We don't have the right kind of habitat for it to nest here.

Blue-gray Gnatcatchers and other migrants

This morning was the most interesting birding in the neighborhood since spring migration. Some south-bound fall migrants are starting to show up. The most numerous were the Blue-gray Gnatcatchers. I counted 18 on my 2 mile walk. I got this mediocre picture of one of them on the flood plain property. They are very small and have a thin raspy call. Often they are easier heard than seen. I also found a single orangey yellow female Summer Tanager, 4 Orchard Orioles, and 3 Eastern Wood-Pewees. On my way back there were 2 Broad-winged Hawks flying and vocalizing over Stillforest and Hazelhurst. A neighbor on Hazelhurst told me the hawks had been circling and calling all morning. Maybe these were summer residents! Red-shouldered Hawks are much more common here, but a few Broad-wings nest in the Austin area.

August NASWC Bird Walk

This was the hottest bird walk yet. It was clear and sunny with only an occasional breeze on the T&C playing fields. But Steven McDonald and I spent about 2 and a half hours this morning finding 40 species of birds -- much better than we expected! We saw Great Blue Herons, Snowy Egrets, Yellow-crowned Night-Herons, and Green Herons. This Great Blue Heron was sunning itself in a strange posture that I've only seen before on the coast. Shorebirds included Killdeer, Least Sandpiper, Solitary Sandpiper, Spotted Sandpiper and probably a Semipalmated Sandpiper.

We had good luck with land birds too. There were 50-100 Purple Martins and many Barn Swallows as well. We found all 3 common doves in the neighborhood including this Inca Dove. (Notice how its feathers appear scaly.) And we found 5 species of flycatchers: Eastern Wood-Pewee, Eastern Phoebe, Western Kingbird, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, and 1 unidentified Empidonax species. This was the first time since spring migration I've seen Pewees in the area.

Black and Yellow Garden Spider

After a bike ride this morning I found this huge spider on my bedroom window. The body and head are over an inch long! I've seen them before but always in more rural areas. It's a Black and Yellow Garden Spider (Argiope aurantia). This one is a female (the males are much smaller). This genus has species all over the world. They are known for their bright colors, large size, and the interesting zig-zag patterns they weave into their webs. The purpose of these patterns is not currently known. One theory is that it makes the web more visible to large animals so they will be less likely to walk into the web and damage it. Here's another account of this species.