Birding on Broadmeade

Great Egret with Fish

2012-01-30T18:53:00.000-06:00

When I was birding the neighborhood a week ago and found all the ducks, I also came across a Great Egret that had just caught a fish in the Parmer Village pond. I took a few photos and also recorded some video. These birds stand about four feet tall and are very common on local bodies of water. They're just a little bit smaller than the Great Blue Herons which are also common here. Great Egrets hunt fish, insect larvae, or any other animal they can catch and swallow, by standing still or slowly walking through shallow water. I think it's amazing that a bird so large and striking is easily found along our creek. Here's a photo.

I think the fish it's holding is some kind of Mosquitofish, a member of the Gambusia genus. Click below to see the video I shot.

If you watch the video above, you see how fast and accurate this bird is with its long sharp bill. Remember this and never try to rescue an injured or trapped egret or heron unless you really know what you're doing. They'll try to stab your eye!

I'm hoping to post more short videos like this in the future. I've just started experimenting with my camera's video recording abilities and iMovie on my MacBook. It's a whole new world compared to photo processing!

Ducks

2012-01-22T20:49:00.004-06:00

I had a banner morning on Lake Creek Trail today. I spent about three and a half hours birding all the way from the Braes Valley parking lot to Parmer Village and recorded 59 species of birds. But I was particularly excited about the ducks I found on Lake Creek today. Since I started birding in this neighborhood in 2004, I've found twelve species of wild ducks on the creek and this morning I found six. If you live in the neighborhood and haven't seen the wild ducks on the creek, you really owe it to yourself to find and observe them. They're a local source of natural beauty that we are so fortunate to have. Despite the overcast sky, poorly suited for photography, I couldn't resist taking photos of them. Here's a male Green-winged Teal. Look at the colors! The cinnamon head with a green stripe through the eye, the cream-colored tail. And the gray body and flight feathers have intricate patterns when you get a close enough look.

There were several American Wigeon on the Creek, and the males are even more stunning than Green-winged Teal. I only got this slightly fuzzy flight shot of a male and a female this morning.

Here's a pair of Gadwalls. From a distance, the males look just grayish brown with a black tail. But you can just see some of the details in this poor photo that show that show its subtle complex beauty.

I was most excited this morning to find a species of duck I've never seen on Lake Creek before. Near the last dam I found a pair of Buffleheads. These are small diving ducks and the males are bright black-and-white with iridescence in the head. The females have a white cheek patch. This was the first time I've seen Buffleheads on Lake Creek, bringing my neighborhood bird species list up to 209! I only got a couple distant photos.

Besides these species there were also Northern Shovelers and Lesser Scaup on the creek this morning. (And here is my complete species list from the morning.) It has really been a great winter for both numbers and diversity of wild ducks on our creek. Why is this? I think it's because the drought has made duck habitat scarce this winter, so the birds are finding and using small patches like our creek more often than in other years. I'm also hopeful that the construction of Parmer Village has slowed down enough to be less disruptive to the ducks.

Most of our wild ducks are only here in the winter. If you want to see these birds, keep in mind that they spook easily. These wild ducks are not like the domestic ducks that people feed at park ponds. If you get too close, entire flocks will fly away. And if this happens often enough they probably won't come back. So bring your binoculars, approach the water slowly and quietly, and stay as far back as you can to view these beautiful animals!

NASWC Bird Walk

2012-01-01T14:34:00.001-06:00

I try to lead my neighborhood bird walks on the first Sunday of every month, and this month the first Sunday was New Year's Day. I decided to stick to that date and I was pleasantly surprised that 9 people joined me this morning! Finding birds on Lake Creek Trail with friends was a great way to start the new year. We started at the Parmer Village model homes and here are some highlights.

We got a great look at a Wilson's Snipe by the edge of the drainage pond which is often a difficult bird to see due to its skulking nature. In the pond were two American Coots, a Pied-billed Grebe, and a beautiful male Ring-necked Duck. Wild ducks are mostly winter birds for central Texas, and Lake Creek Trail hosts a wide variety of them. Many male wild ducks have stunningly colorful iridescent plumage, and we got some great looks at several different species in the clear morning light. In addition to the Ring-necked Duck we were treated to great scope views of an American Wigeon, several male Green-winged Teal, a Blue-winged Teal, Gadwalls, Northern Shovelers, and Lesser Scaup. Here's a photo of a male American Wigeon I took yesterday on the creek.

We tried to find marsh birds in the cattails near the Parmer Lane bridge but after playing recordings of several different species' calls, nothing responded. We did have great looks at a Red-shouldered Hawk and a Loggerhead Shrike nearby. Grassland sparrows are having a tough year in central Texas. The drought has left most areas of native grasses without many seeds or insects. On Lake Creek Trail this is evident in the grassy area beside the creek bed between the marsh and the last dam. In most winters Savannah Sparrows and Vesper Sparrows are pretty easy to find here, with a few others like Grasshopper Sparrows making an occasional appearance. But this winter it's mostly empty. We encountered only one Savannah Sparrow in this stretch.

We had much better luck with sparrows that prefer woods and low dense brush. Song Sparrows were relatively thick in the creek bed and near the last dam. We got a few decent looks at this species. Here's one I photographed yesterday eating poison ivy berries (an important food source for birds in the winter):

Other sparrows we encountered were Spotted Towhees, White-crowned Sparrows, White-throated Sparrows, and a few Lincoln's Sparrows.

A few more fun birds of the morning were two Greater Yellowlegs on the last dam, a female Belted Kingfisher that flew over a few times making its rattling call, bright Yellow-rumped Warblers in the morning sun, Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, and an almost hidden immature Red-tailed Hawk perched by the creek. Here is our complete species list. Happy New Year!

Neighborhood Rarities

2011-12-11T17:27:00.001-06:00

I spent a little over two hours birding Lake Creek Trail this morning, starting at the end of Braes Valley. It was cold and overcast, but the birds were relatively active. And I was happy to end up finding several neighborhood rarities. Not far from the Braes Valley parking lot I heard the high-pitched call of a Brown Creeper. I've posted before about these hard-to-find small brown birds that cling to tree trunks and large branches like woodpeckers. I usually only see a few of them each winter, and they have always been in the large mature native trees among our houses. This morning was the first time I've found one on the hike-and-bike trail. It was in a willow tree by the creek and I got this photo.

Past the footbridge I was happy to see that the tall brush in the creek bed had not been mowed. It was full of Song Sparrows, Northern Cardinals, and Red-winged Blackbirds. And I was excited to find two Harris's Sparrows. I've only observed this species in the neighborhood once before. Usually it's a bird that prefers habitat further from urban or suburban areas. I got this photo of one of the two, and then I found a third further downstream.

I wanted to see what ducks were on the creek, so I kept going further downstream where there are three dammed areas that often attract wild ducks. Just east of the playing fields I crept out to the edge of the water and watched a mix of about 15 Northern Shovelers, 25 Gadwall, and 12 Green-winged Teal. Mixed in with a few of the Gadwall was a black and white duck, periodically diving. It was a male Lesser Scaup! I hadn't seen one on our creek since 2006. Here's a long-distance low resolution photo of it, showing a female Gadwall in front.

I ended up finding 49 species this morning and here's the complete list.

Street Birding

2011-11-20T13:58:00.001-06:00

This morning I spent about two hours birding on the streets near my house. I haven't done this in quite a while. Lately I've been doing most of my neighborhood birding on our hike-and-bike trail. The trail has the most habitat types and is the best bet for finding the most bird species, but there are a few kinds of birds that are easier to find in the trees among our houses. We're lucky to have lots of mature native trees here that are often close enough together to form a forest canopy. Many songbird species prefer this forest canopy habitat and one that I was excited to find this morning is Brown Creeper. I found one on Newberry Drive this morning and got this photo.

Brown Creepers are small brown birds that forage for insects in the bark of tree trunks and thick branches instead of among the leaves and twigs like most insectivorous songbirds. So they "creep" up and down tree trunks like a woodpecker. But instead of hammering and prying into the bark like woodpeckers, they have delicate slightly curved bills that they just use to probe existing crevices. Brown Creepers are only here in the winter, and I usually only see them a handful of times each season. But local birders are finding more of them in central Texas than usual, so keep your eyes open for one!

Some other species I found in our forest canopy habitat this morning were year-round residents like Carolina Chickadee, Black-crested Titmouse, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, and winter species like Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Orange-crowned Warbler, Northern Flicker, and Yellow-rumped Warbler.

A habitat type that is much less common on the streets near my house is low, dense brush and tall grass. Most people consider this habitat type messy or ugly, so they keep grass trimmed short, and bushes and shrubs limited and neatly trimmed. Many species of songbirds prefer this type of habitat and therefore usually cannot be found near our houses. (We're lucky to have lots of this habitat type on our hike-and-bike trail, adding greatly to the diversity of birds that can be found there.) But this morning I was excited to find a two of these bird species in just a few tucked away patches of this habitat type. The only native sparrow I found was a Field Sparrow in a yard on Longvale Drive that looks like it's maintained for wildlife habitat. And on Shady Oaks in a brushy patch between yards there were at least two Hermit Thrushes calling. I got this photo of one.

The fact that such small patches of specific habitat types are often used by birds shows how important it is. I'd love to see more of this habitat type from the streets.

I ended up finding 27 species of birds and here's the complete list.

NASWC Bird Walk

2011-11-06T14:20:00.000-06:00

12 folks joined me this morning for the November NASWC Bird walk. The weather was pleasantly overcast with just a bit of rain when we started by the Parmer Village model homes. We found a nice diversity of birds (especially our native sparrows) but we didn't get many good looks at them. That's sometimes how birding goes. Still it was a fun morning and here are some highlights.

Northern Mockingbirds were plentiful as usual, and I couldn't resist photographing this one near the east end of the creek.

Near the east end of Lake Creek we were treated to some beautiful views of light rain mixed with sunlight over tall grass in the creek bed. The creek bed was full of sparrows, and we got brief looks at Spotted Towhee, Swamp Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Lincoln's Sparrow, and Savannah Sparrow. Red-winged Blackbirds were numerous there, and we got some good looks at the males' red wing patches as they flew past us. Near the last dam on the creek we stumbled on a Grasshopper Sparrow that came back when I played a recording of its song. I got this mediocre photo of it and most of us got pretty good looks at it perched high in a Roosevelt Weed.

By the last dam on the creek we were treated to a female Belted Kingfisher flying in and chattering. But more exciting to me were two distant ducks upstream. Based mostly on the profiles of their heads, we figured out that they were female Hooded Mergansers. I got this distant photo of one, barely good enough to identity the species. And the birds flew off before we could get closer. But this was a new bird for my neighborhood list, bringing my personal total up to 208 species!

In the woods upstream of the last dam we found Ruby-crowned Kinglets and got good looks at several White-throated Sparrows. We also got to hear the White-throated Sparrows sing. Just west of these woods a few of us found a male Common Yellowthroat in the reeds alongside the trail. We continued west to the Town and Country playing fields where we walked the perimeter of the soccer fields to try and find the Lark Buntings that Barry Noret found on Friday. We couldn't find them but we did get good looks at a meadowlark and a Vesper Sparrow. And some of us briefly saw a Merlin fly right over our heads. I've only seen this small falcon a handful of times in the neighborhood.

We made our way back to the creek and watched a few more sparrows in the tall bushes and grass including Field Sparrows, White-crowned Sparrows, and Lincoln's Sparrows. A male and female House Sparrow even showed up providing a great opportunity to compare them with our native sparrows.

On our way back we found a Dark-eyed Junco, bringing our sparrow species total to 11! We found 43 species of birds total, and here's the complete list. What a fun morning!

Lark Buntings!

2011-11-05T13:43:00.001-05:00

Yesterday afternoon Barry Noret found four Lark Buntings on the soccer fields by Lake Creek Trail near the eastern border of the Town and Country playing fields (in soccer field #27). Lark Buntings are grassland species that are largely nomadic in the winter, always searching for a natural food supply. It might be that the drought is forcing these birds to search for food outside of their preferred natural habitat, thus finding them in a soccer field. Here's Barry's photo of one of the buntings:

According to my records this is the 208th species of bird we've found in the neighborhood since 2004. Great find, Barry!

Sparrows!

2011-10-30T11:44:00.000-05:00

It has been weeks since I birded the neighborhood, so I was excited to get out yesterday morning and see what I could find. I found sparrows! Unlike our year-round common House Sparrows that were actually introduced here from Europe over 100 years ago, most native sparrow species are only here in the winter. They've only recently started showing up again over the last few weeks, but yesterday they were back in force! Starting from my house on Broadmeade I walked down Stillforest and was surprised to find this Lincoln's Sparrow foraging in a tree with a House Finch. Lincoln's Sparrows are the most common winter sparrow in the neighborhood, but like most sparrows, they prefer low, dense brush or tall grass. You rarely find them up in the trees.

I had already run into a few mixed species foraging flocks on Stillforest that included more winter resident species like Blue-headed Vireo, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Orange-crowned Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, and a few fall migrant Nashville Warblers...
These are all species you expect to find up in the trees. And they were challenging to find and see because they were staying very high in the canopy, probably because that's where the sun was getting through on that cold morning. There were a few Chipping Sparrows up in the trees too, which is one of the few sparrow species that is also expected to be found up in the canopy. I got this photo of one a little further down Stillforest:

I took almost an hour to cover the half-mile length of Stillforest. On quiet weekend mornings this is one of my favorite streets in the neighborhood to bird. I finally got to Meadowheath and headed towards the Town and Country playing fields and Lake Creek Trail. When I got there I discovered that the creek bed was loaded with birds, most of them sparrows. As parents yelled and screamed at a baseball game on the other side of the creek, I stood in one spot for about 30 minutes watching sparrows in the tall grass and brush. The first I saw was this Field Sparrow that was eating grass seeds right beside the trail. It wasn't too worried about me and I got this relatively close photo:

This was the first Field Sparrow of the winter for me. It sure was fun watching it hop onto stalks of grass, often riding them down as they bent under its weight as it reached for the seed heads. Other sparrow species I found in the creek bed were Savannah Sparrow, Clay-colored Sparrow, Chipping Sparrow, Lincoln's Sparrow, and White-crowned Sparrow. I was most excited to find the White-crowned Sparrows. This is a species I don't often find in the neighborhood and I estimated that there were at least 8 of them foraging in the creek bed. Here's one:

Sparrows can be an intimidating group of birds to learn. Most are cryptic mixes of relatively drab colors. Most have skulking behavior that makes them difficult to find and observe. But it's not too hard to start learning some of the basic differences. Is the breast streaked or not? Is there a ring around the eye? If so, what color is the eye-ring? Is there a dark stripe through the eye? What color is the bill? What colors are in the face? You can see the differences in these features in the photos above. And once you start looking more closely for these and other features, you can't help but start to appreciate their subtle and intricate beauty.

I split up yesterday morning into two bird lists:

Post-rain Fall Migrants

2011-10-12T18:22:00.001-05:00

Finally, we got some substantial rain last weekend! Early Sunday morning storms cancelled by monthly bird walk, but I couldn't resist getting out on Lake Creek Trail around lunchtime for a couple hours to see what I could find. Fall migration was still going strong. Things started out kind of quiet, but one by one I started finding south-bound migrating birds. I found five species of warblers, including Nashville Warbler, Mourning Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Yellow-breasted Chat, and this Wilson's Warbler.

Most native sparrows are just in our neighborhood during the winter...
There were still Clay-colored Sparrows around (which actually just pass through). And I found my first few Lincoln's Sparrows of the fall. These are our most common winter-resident sparrows. I got this photo of one. The fine streaking on the breast and the band of buff color on across the breast help distinguish this species from other sparrows.

Some other fall migrants were Blue Grosbeaks and Indigo Buntings (both in their winter or immature brown plumages). But I was most excited to find a first-year Sora on the creek. These secretive migratory marsh birds are usually hidden in the tall reeds, so it was fun finding one walking around in our creek bed. I got this photo.

Here's a complete list of the birds I found on Sunday.

Barry Noret was on the other end of the trail this afternoon and found a female Chestnut-sided Warbler. He posted this nifty photo showing its dramatic white eye-ring and green back. There are still neat south-bound birds to find, and some winter residents starting to show up as well. And it's finally cooler!

The other monthly bird walk I lead, for Hill Country Conservancy on their Nalle Bunny Run Wildlife Preserve, is this Saturday. Sign up here and join us if you like! (It starts at 9:00 AM despite what the web site says.)

Sparrows and Wrens

2011-09-25T14:28:00.000-05:00

I spent about three and a half hours on Lake Creek Trail this morning, starting at the Pamer Village pond and working my way upstream about a mile. The best photo I got was of a Clay-colored Sparrow. These small delicately patterned birds are still moving south through our neighborhood in good numbers. Dickcissels are still moving through as well, and there was a mix of these two species in the tall grass alongside the creek and in the creek bed. Here's the photo of the Clay-colored Sparrow:

The biggest change from last week was the appearance of House Wrens...
These drably colored wrens are winter residents in central Texas. They can be found in the same tall grass areas, but also in dense undergrowth. They usually stay hidden and are often much more easily heard than seen. They can be recognized by there chattering or rasping calls.

I found a female Belted Kingfisher perched near the last dam on the creek. One unusual thing about this species is that the female is more colorful than the male. In addition to the blue and white colors, the female has a narrow band of reddish brown across its belly. Belted Kingfishers can be found here year-round, but they are more common in the winter. Here's the photo I got of this female:

I walked to where the trail crosses the creek in the Town and Country playing fields. There I was pleased to find a group of Clay-colored Sparrows (and it's where I got the photo above). I was also happy to find my first Song Sparrow and Lincoln's Sparrow of the season -- both are common winter residents in the tall grass and dense brush along the trail. I found the Lincoln's Sparrow in a patch of sunflowers. It stayed too hidden to get a picture of it, but I got this nice photo of a male Lesser Goldfinch in the same patch of flowers.

Lesser Goldfinches are year-round residents here, and soon will be joined by the slightly larger American Goldfinches which are only here in the winter. Here's the complete list of birds I found this morning.

NASWC Bird Walk

2011-09-18T16:50:00.000-05:00

This morning, ten folks participated in this month's NASWC Bird walk. We started at 7:30 AM in the Lake Creek Trail parking lot (at the end of Braes Valley) and spent nearly three hours covering about half a mile of the trail. It was one of those special mornings that happens only a few times per year during spring or fall migration. Birds were everywhere! We spent over an hour in one spot just watching a group of willow trees between the parking lot and the creek. Blue-gray Gnatcatchers were the most numerous bird, and you could hear their raspy calls almost constantly. They were followed by Yellow Warblers, Wilson's Warblers, and Black-and-white Warblers. We almost got tired of seeing these four species!

These willow trees are a hot-spot for migrating songbirds, so I knew if we stayed there for awhile we'd likely see more. We did...
A Northern Parula made a brief appearance, and most of us got great looks at a male Mourning Warbler and a Yellow-breasted Chat. A waterthrush showed up that we decided was a Louisiana Waterthrush instead of a Northern, based on its broad white eye-stripe and unstreaked throat. A Red-eyed Vireo appeared and flew just a feet over our heads. It foraged very close for a bit and I was able to get this photo.

There were several flycatchers around, including a singing Eastern Wood-Pewee and a few empids, one of which I identified as a Least Flycatcher. We encountered at least three Olive-sided Flycatchers, more than I've ever seen on this trail before. I photographed this one, showing its vest-like body pattern and relatively short tail.

Further down the trail we found several Dickcissels and more gnatcatchers, Yellow Warblers, and Wilson's Warblers. At the footbridge we got good looks at a few Clay-colored Sparrows, and brief looks at two Baltimore Orioles. Also a Cooper's Hawk soared almost right over us. On our way back we found a few Blue Grosbeaks, including one mature male. And right by our original spot by the willow trees, we were treated to a long close look at a beautiful first-year female Northern Parula. I was able to get this photo of it.

What a morning! Like I mentioned at the beginning, mornings like this only happen a few times per year. Local weather patterns that can seem too subtle to make a difference actually seem to affect migrating birds' decisions to stop or continue their journey. And sometimes this leads to large numbers moving through at the same time. I'm glad I could share this migration event with the folks on my neighborhood bird walk! Here is the complete list of bird species we recorded.

Fall Migrants and New Camera

2011-09-11T18:24:00.001-05:00

I enjoyed a great morning of fall birding on Lake Creek Trail this morning! I started at the Braes Valley trailhead and soon ran into Barry Noret. We birded the trail for about 3.5 hours covering just over a mile and found 50 species of birds. The willow trees between the trailhead and the creek were hopping! We saw Yellow Warblers, Wilson's Warblers, Nashville Warblers, a Northern Parula, Yellow-breasted Chat, Black-and-white Warbler, and a Warbling Vireo. Here's one of the Nashville Warblers.

A little further down the trail we heard the metallic "chink" call-note of Blue Grosbeaks...
We found half a dozen of them in the tall grass near the end of Holbrook St. Several Dickcissels were mixed in with them. I have never encountered that many Blue Grosbeaks on the trail before. Here's a photo I got of a female. (I didn't see any mature males.) Notice the big heavy bill, and how the top edge of the bill makes a continuous straight line with the top of the forehead up to the bird's crown.

At the footbridge we were treated to a large mixed flog of Dickcissels and Clay-colored Sparrows. There were more of these species than I've ever encountered in the neighborhood as well, and they were allowing themselves to be seen much easier than usual. Dickcissels are grassland birds, and they breed in central Texas but I only see them in the neighborhood during migration. Clay-colored Sparrows only pass through central Texas during migration. Here are both species on a wire -- the smaller Clay-colored Sparrows on the left, and the larger Dickcissels on the right.

The biggest surprise of the morning was in the tall grass in the creek bed right in the middle of the playing fields. We heard an unfamiliar chip note and patiently watched the grass until a Marsh Wren emerged! We've had a few of these winter in the marshy area by the Parmer bridge in years past, but this one was obviously just heading south and using whatever marsh-like habitat it could find. I managed to get this poor but identifiable photo.

We saw two migrating hawk species while we were on the parts of the trail that go through the playing fields -- an immature Mississippi Kite and a Broad-winged Hawk. We also had close encounters with a female Orchard Oriole and a bright male Yellow Warbler in the shrubs along the creek further downstream. Here's the Orchard Oriole. Can anyone identify the plant it's on?

And here's the Yellow Warbler. Both were probably my best two shots of the morning.

If you're still reading this far down, thanks! I posted more photos than usual because I got a new camera! I finally replaced my old Panasonic DMC-FZ30 with a new Panasonic DMC-G3. It's a Micro Four Thirds camera, so it has a larger light sensor than the old FZ30 which is what they call a "compact super-zoom". But the light sensor isn't as large as the ones in most SLR cameras. So it'll get better photos than a compact camera, and zoom lenses are not as large and expensive as they are for SLR cameras. So far it's a great compromise. I have the equivalent of a 200-600 mm telephoto zoom lens for it and the whole thing is still small enough to throw over my shoulder every time I got out birding.

Here's the complete list of birds we recorded.

Hot Birding

2011-08-28T15:51:00.000-05:00

It's 110 degrees in Austin as I write this. I don't know what the temperature was when I started birding Lake Creek Trail this morning at 7:30, but according to my car it was 100 when I finished at 10:45. It was very tempting to stay in bed this morning, but I sure am glad I didn't. The birding was great! I found 51 species including many fall migrants, and I got some pretty good photos. The first photo was near the Parmer Village drainage pond. This is one of the Loggerhead Shrikes that can often be found in this area. The photo shows off its heavy, hooked predatory bill quite well.

Between the Parmer Village pond and the last dam on the creek, the tall grass in the creek bed had lots of south-bound migrating birds...
These included my first Eastern Wood-Pewee of the fall (near the Parmer Lane bridge), a Least Flycatcher, several Yellow Warblers, my first Wilson's Warbler of the fall, lots of Dickcissels, 3 Orchard Orioles, and 5 Blue Grosbeaks. The grosbeaks were a treat for me. I was able to observe their close relation to Northern Cardinal by their similar chip notes, heavy conical bills, and partial crests.

Upstream I ran into Barry Noret and we remarked on how numerous Yellow Warblers were this morning. Yellow Warbler is one of the most common spring and fall migrant warblers in central Texas, and they are all over the place right now. If you have a water feature in your yard, keep an eye out for these bright yellow visitors. Here's a great photo Barry got of a female Yellow Warbler this morning.

We continued up the trail just a short ways and then stopped to bird a small group of trees at the eastern edge of the Town and Country playing fields. These trees were loaded with birds. They were mostly Yellow Warblers, but we also found another Wilson's Warbler, Eastern Phoebes, a Black-and-white Warbler, and a Canada Warbler. Here are photos I got of the last two species.

When we finally tore ourselves away from these trees and moved up the trail, I heard the flight call note of an Upland Sandpiper and we spotted it flying over the tree line. As we watched, it landed near the far northern edge of the soccer fields. We started walking towards it and got close enough to observe it's long neck and overall tall appearance. But it took flight again before we could get close enough for photographs, and it continued its way south. This distant look was the best look I've gotten of this species in the neighborhood. I usually only hear its flight call note as it passes high overhead.

The last surprise of the morning was further upstream. We were checking a few more trees and had found more Yellow Warblers, a few "empid" flycatchers, and a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. Then a sleek bird flew by fast that turned out to be a female American Kestrel. These small exotic-looking falcons are winter residents in central Texas, and this was the first I've seen this fall. As we watched, it flew south over the playing fields and it dived at something on the ground at the south edge. It came up empty-taloned and continued its strong, direct flight south.

What a morning! Here's the complete list of birds I recorded. Don't let the heat discourage you -- the birds are coming through!

Poor Photos of Fall Migrants

2011-08-14T15:59:00.001-05:00

I spent about 2.5 hours on Lake Creek Trail this morning, starting at the end of Braes Valley. The first half-mile of the hike-and-bike trail staring here has proven to be great birding during both spring and fall migration. The lush combination of riparian woods, tall grass, and low, dense brush attracts many different species of migrating birds. The numbers and diversity of south-bound fall migrating birds is increasing, but they weren't very cooperative for photos this morning. One of the most numerous species was Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. Their squeaky call could be heard all along the trail. Here's the best photo I got of one of these tiny active birds.

Many Dickcissels are also moving through the area now...
They're a grassland species that is best recognized by their loud rude-sounding flight call. (That's how I identified most of them this morning. You can listen to the call here.) A few were mixed in with the large groups of House Sparrows, House Finches, and Lesser Goldfinches in the tall grass in the creek bed. I managed to get this single poor photo of a first-year bird.

Increased numbers of Orchard Orioles are moving through the area compared to last week. I counted at least 6 this morning, and I got a photo of a first-year male bird in the creek bed. First year males go through a unique immature plumage with a black mask that does not look like their adult plumage. You can just make out the black mask in this photo.

Little flycatchers in the Empidonax genus were also common on the trail this morning. This genus is infamous for having about a dozen species that breed in North America that are very difficult to tell apart by sight. About 5 of these species move through central Texas in the spring and the fall. The best way to identify them is by sound, and not many were vocal this morning. The only ones I positively identified were the most common: a few Least Flycatchers. Here's the only photo I got of an "empid". I couldn't identify this one.

A few other fall migrants I found this morning were Painted Buntings, an Indigo Bunting, a Black-and-white Warbler, and a Yellow Warbler. These were the first south-bound warblers I've seen this fall. I also got a fleeting glimpse of a hawk in the Accipiter family -- either a Cooper's Hawk or a Sharp-shinned Hawk.

Here's the complete list of species I recorded. I just might go back out to the trail this evening just before dark to see if any of those "empids" are vocalizing. I'd love to identify a few more!

NASWC Bird Walk

2011-08-07T18:05:00.000-05:00

Despite the heat eight of us participated in the monthly NASWC bird walk this morning. We found 41 species of birds and enjoyed breezy partly cloudy conditions for part of the morning.

Here's a link to our bird species list. And here are some highlights from the walk:

Most of us got good looks at a male Painted Bunting and 2 male Orchard Orioles in the creek bed between the Parmer Village model homes and the last dam on the creek. Orchard Orioles are an early south-bound migrant moving through central Texas right now.

The water by the last dam was full of minnows. We found two Blotched Water Snakes that feed on them and I got this photo of one:

A little further upstream we found a Red-shouldered Hawk, Green Herons, Snowy Egrets, an immature Little Blue Heron, a Great Blue Heron, and an immature Tricolored Heron. I was most excited to find the Tricolored Heron. This is mostly a coastal species, but this time of year a few usually immature birds can be found inland. I got this poor photo.

We found several interesting dragonflies and damselflies by the creek. Some of them are strikingly colorful, like this Eastern Pond Hawk.

At our turn-around point an immature Red-tailed Hawk soared right over us. Young Red-tailed Hawks don't have red tails yet, but they can be identified by the dark leading edge of their wings. Sukumar Veena got this great photo showing that field mark.

Thanks to all who joined me this morning. Don't let the heat keep you indoors all summer. There are still plenty of birds out there this time of year, and early in the morning it's not too bad out there!

Many Young Birds and 2 Early Migrants

2011-07-31T13:36:00.001-05:00

This morning I spent about 2 hours covering 1 mile of Lake Creek Trail starting at Parmer Village. I found 40 species of birds, and if you're interested in seeing the list it's here. High numbers of young birds continue. Often immature birds are not as wary as adults, so it's easier to get close looks at them. One fun example this morning was this immature Scissor-tailed Flycatcher.

You can see how short its tail is, and you can even see some pink around the shoulder which is usually only visible when the bird is in flight. I found this bird by the last dam on the creek. It was bathing by flying out low over the water and splashing through the surface to get wet. Then it would return to its perch to preen.

I was excited to find 2 early south-bound migrants: a single immature male Orchard Oriole, and a single Least Flycatcher. Least Flycatchers breed in the the northern United States and throughout much of Canada. They are famous for spending very little time on their breeding grounds -- barely over 2 months. Then they head south to Mexico and Central America. This is the first species I've heard of that maintains territories on its wintering grounds as well as its breeding grounds. So there's pressure to get back to its wintering grounds fast and claim the best territory.

Late Breeding, Early Migration

2011-07-24T17:35:00.000-05:00

Despite drought and record-breaking high temperatures in Austin, yearly bird life cycles continue. For many summer- and year-round-resident birds, breeding season is in its late stages. And for some, south-bound migration has already started! I spent 3 hours on Lake Creek Trail this morning and saw evidence of both. There are many new birds out of their nests and nearly fully grown now, and most parent birds aren't restricted to incubating eggs or feeding nestlings anymore. So I'm seeing higher numbers of neighborhood breeding species like Western Kingbirds, Barn Swallows, Killdeer, White-winged Doves, hummingbirds, Chimney Swifts, House Finches, and House Sparrows. Here's one of 15 Western Kingbirds I saw on the trail this morning.

Three species that breed in central Texas but probably don't breed in the neighborhood are Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, Painted Buntings, and Orchard Orioles. I found a few Blue-gray Gnatcatchers and Painted Buntings on the trail today. These might be young birds dispersing away from their parents' breeding territories and looking for new suitable habitat before migrating south. These also might be adult birds that are finished breeding and are no longer staying in their breeding territories. Here's one poor photo I got of a male Painted Bunting. (A good photo of a mature male in the neighborhood has eluded me so far. But at least you can see the colors.)

Orchard Orioles are already headed south, and some are already being reported in the Austin area. I might have seen one this morning. A small bird with a relatively long tail appeared making blackbird-like chucking calls. But the sun was behind it and all I could see was a silhouette. It could have been a Red-winged Blackbird or cowbird.

Many American shorebirds are migratory and start heading south through central Texas in middle and late July, so I was hoping to find a few on our creek this morning besides the ubiquitous Killdeer. I had almost given up hope when I finally found 3 Least Sandpipers and 2 Solitary Sandpipers just upstream of the dam near the end of Saddlebrook Trail. Both of these species breed in the boreal forests of Canada and Alaska. Least Sandpipers have an extremely broad winter range that includes northern South America and central Texas! They actually winter on our creek and can commonly be found on it during spring and fall migration. So June is just about the only month of the year Least Sandpipers are absent from the neighborhood. Here are the three that are on their way south.

Here's a list of the 43 species I found on the trail this morning. Don't let the heat keep you indoors. And hey, the temperature's not too high the first few hours after dawn!

You might have noticed that my posts here have decreased in frequency. I'll tell you more about that soon, but I have no plans to abandon this blog. Even though I'm not birding the neighborhood as often these days, I'm still dedicated to local birding and nature observation.

NASWC Bird Walk

2011-07-03T17:38:00.001-05:00

Despite warm temperatures 11 folks met for the monthly NASWC Bird Walk this morning! Starting at the Lake Creek Trail parking lot near the end of Braes Valley, we covered about 0.75 miles in 2 hours. We observed 30 species of birds and here are some highlights.

Not too far down the trail we heard a cicada buzzing and looked up to see an immature Red-bellied Woodpecker fly over carrying it. The woodpecker landed on a nearby utility pole and we watched it eat the cicada. Often when you hear one of these insects start to buzz loudly and abruptly, it's because a bird just grabbed it!

Barn Swallows, Purple Martins, and Chimney Swifts were in the air, and we got some good opportunities to learn how to distinguish them by sight and sound. Northern Cardinals, Carolina Wrens, and Northern Mockingbirds were all along the trail. We could almost always hear one of these species and we got some good looks at them too. Here's one of the male cardinals.

In and over the creek bed we got great looks at Red-winged Blackbirds (and got to listen to the males singing), a Western Kingbird, a Great Blue Heron, and 3 or 4 immature Green Herons. Here's one of the Green Herons.

As usual, we spent some time watching and listening on the footbridge. It's usually a great spot to find birds since it's at the edge of the woods and overlooks two branches of the creek. We watched several Lesser Goldfinches in the tall sunflowers and other plants down in the creek bed. And a few of us saw a female Painted Bunting with them. Gracen Duffield got this great photo of the bunting later on.

On our way back we found a large Red-eared Slider turtle walking across one of the playing fields. This time of year the females can often be found away from water. They're walking around looking for a place to dig a hole and lay eggs.

A little later we got to see and hear 2 or 3 Great Crested Flycatchers making their wheeep! call. The color on these birds was a little more washed out than I'm used to seeing on Great Crested Flycatchers. I didn't realize until I got home that's because they were immature birds, probably from a nest nearby.

Don't let the warm weather keep you inside this summer -- there's still plenty to see out there!

Ringtail!

2011-06-26T18:45:00.000-05:00

Ringtails are interesting mammals related to raccoons but a little smaller. I didn't know they occurred in our neighborhood until I talked with John and Cathy Mandell recently, who have been seeing Ringtails on Sherbourne St. since 2009! These nocturnal hunters are sneakier than raccoons. They eat all kinds of insects, snakes, rats, mice, squirrels, and even birds. Has anyone else been seeing them around? Here's a photo that John and Cathy took back in 2009 in their backyard. How neat!

Young Birds

2011-06-19T10:47:00.000-05:00

Barbara McKnight on Shasta Lane sent me this neat photo of one of a few juvenile Eastern Screech-Owls that have been visiting her birdbath lately. It's that time of year. Many of our breeding birds have already fledged young from their first nests of the season. So there are lots of new birds out there trying to figure out all the skills it takes to be an adult bird of their species. Many of these new birds are still following their parents around and sometimes still begging for food. Lately I've seen family groups of Northern Cardinals, American Robins, Eastern Phoebes, Carolina Chickadees, and Black-crested Titmice. Some adult birds have started second nests by now too. So don't let the heat keep you inside all the time. There's still neat bird activity out there to observe and enjoy!

NASWC Bird Walk

2011-06-12T15:30:00.002-05:00

Starting at the Parmer Village demo homes, 6 of us participated in the monthly NASWC Bird Walk this morning. Partial cloud cover and a light breeze made it a surprisingly pleasant morning and we found 31 species of birds. The bird of the morning was Red-winged Blackbird. They were everywhere along the creek, singing and foraging in the reeds. Here's one of them singing:

More highlights from this morning's walk:
We saw a doe White-tailed Deer and 2 fawns emerge from the reeds near the Parmer Lane bridge. The cattails here are recovering nicely from being decimated by tropical storm Hermine (9/7/2010). I'm hopeful I'll find marsh birds here again next winter.

At the last dam on the creek we saw lots of Killdeer in the shallow water and we were surprised to see an Eastern Cottontail come out for a drink. Several wading birds made appearances including 2 Great Blue Herons, a Great Egret, a Green Heron, and a distant Snowy Egret. Here's one of the Great Blue Herons that was watching us from behind a patch of tall grass. Its dark cap and streaks on the neck show that it's an immature bird.

In the woods along the creek we heard several Carolina Wrens and a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. We got to see a Bewick's Wren which readily responded to some pishing. A little further upstream we were looking at a nice male Northern Cardinal at the edge of the creek when we realized that behind it were this large softshell turtle and 2 Red-eared Sliders. My guess is that it's a Spiny Softshell Turtle based on its habitat preference, but I'm not sure. Here's a photo I got before it slithered back into the creek!

We saw some neat dragonflies and damselflies along the creek this morning, including several Common Whitetails, one brilliant shimmering female Widow Skimmer, and this Blue-ringed Dancer. The Blue-ringed Dancer was my favorite. It was a tiny brilliant jewel hidden in the plants along the creek. This photo I got came out better than I expected.

On our way back we watched Barn Swallows, Brown-headed Cowbirds, and a molting Northern Cardinal foraging under some trees by the soccer fields. The cardinal had lost most of the feather on its head and looked quite odd. Further downstream we got a distant look at 3 beautiful Western Kingbirds in an open area along the creek.

What a fun morning! Don't let the heat keep you inside all summer. If you get an early start it can be quite nice outside, and there's lots of neat stuff to see out there!

Feeling like Summer

2011-05-29T17:50:00.000-05:00

I spent about 2 hours on Lake Creek Trail this morning, starting from the Parmer Village end. It was warm and breezy and for the first time since spring migration started I did not see any north-bound migrating birds. So I guess it's time to enjoy our year-round and summer resident birds, and whatever other wildlife is out there. Speaking of other wildlife, I was excited flush this Eastern Cottontail in the patch of woods by the last dam on the creek. I haven't seen one on the trail in months.

Getting back to birds...

There were lots of new birds (hatched this spring) out and about, including European Starlings, House Sparrows, Carolina Wrens, Northern Mockingbirds, Mourning Doves, and Northern Cardinals. Here's a juvenile cardinal I found near the east end of the Town and Country playing fields.

Even though they're one of our most common backyard birds, I don't have many decent photos of Carolina Wrens. Here's one I got near where I saw the rabbit. These are year-round residents that you can hear just about every morning singing "teakettle teakettle teakettle teakettle".

On my way back I found 2 female Lesser Goldfinches on one of their favorite plants, a sunflower. Here's one of them.

Also fun to find was the first Bronzed Cowbird I've seen in the neighborhood this year. Unfortunately it didn't let me approach close enough for a photo.

I hope everyone is enjoying the long weekend. Happy Memorial Day!

A Fun Morning on the Trail

2011-05-20T19:02:00.002-05:00

I've been too busy to bird the neighborhood for too long, so I took today off from work and spent the morning on Lake Creek Trail. It was a great morning! I started at the Braes Valley parking lot, and the woods along the creek between there and the footbridge was full of birds. Between the parking lot and the creek I've been seeing and hearing at least one Cooper's Hawk on and off through the spring. I saw it again this morning and watched it carry a stick into the top of a dense patch of Hackberry trees. Cooper's Hawks are mostly winter birds in our neighborhood, but in the Austin area they do occur in smaller numbers all year long. I wonder if we have a nesting pair.

I soon realized that most of the birds in the woods along the creek were in the flycatcher family...

I estimated 5 Eastern Wood-Pewees and about 15 birds in the Empidonax genus (commonly called "empids"). There are about 11 empids that can be found in the United States, and most of them are very difficult to distinguish visually. 5 empids move through the Austin area during spring and fall migration. The most common is the Least Flycatcher, which is the only one I can usually identify by sight, via its bold eye-ring and big-headed no-neck appearance. I saw at least one of these this morning. Sound is the best way to identify empids to species, and late May is the only time of year we have the opportunity to hear them in the neighborhood. I heard 2 species vocalize this morning: a single Willow Flycatcher, and 2 Yellow-bellied Flycatchers. I was excited to see one of the Yellow-bellied Flycatchers and watch it as it made its pewee-like tuwee call. This was a new species for my neighborhood list, #207! Here's a photo I got from the footbridge of one of the empids that remained silent, so I couldn't identify it.

The most numerous migrating warbler of the morning was the Common Yellowthroat. I estimated finding at least 10 in the tall grass and low brush along the creek. I was also excited to find at least 3 Mourning Warblers, another low-foraging warbler that makes its way through the Austin area mostly in mid and late May. And there were still a few Painted Buntings and Indigo Buntings feeding on seeds in the tall grass.

I usually don't go birding with target birds in mind, but in late May I always hope I'll see a few White-rumped Sandpipers on our creek. These small birds migrate north every spring from their winter range in southern South America to the Canadian arctic to breed. This is one of the longest migrations in our hemisphere and I'm always thrilled to find a few of these birds recuperating on our neighborhood creek. I found 3 today, just past the eastern edge of the playing fields. Here's a photo. (The White-rumpeds are on the left, and a Pectoral Sandpiper is on the right.)

On my way back I went into the woods hoping to find and hear more empids. I didn't find any new ones, but I did find a Chestnut-sided Warbler, the first I've seen this year. A couple times I thought I heard a Red-eyed Vireo, a pretty common spring migrant, but I could never find it. Then when I emerged from the woods back onto the trail I saw a vireo that turned out to be a Philadelphia Vireo. They sound similar to Red-eyed, and look very similar too. But their face pattern isn't as pronounced, and they have a yellowish throat. This was only the second time I've found this species in the neighborhood. And I was excited to actually watch it sing a bit (something I've never seen before). Here's a mediocre photo I got.

I found 56 species of birds this morning, which was a blast. But I was discouraged to see at least 3 loose cats along the trail, one of them collared. Many of the birds I saw this morning forage near or on the ground, and many are passing through unfamiliar areas trying to find little patches of their favorite habitat where they can find food on their way north. The last thing they need is pet cats hunting them for fun. If you own a cat please keep it indoors. It's safer for the cat too.

NASWC Bird Walk

2011-05-08T16:08:00.001-05:00

Today 10 people showed up for my monthly bird walk on a beautiful breezy Mother's Day morning. We met at the Braes Valley parking lot of Lake Creek Trail and spent 2 hours covering the half-mile to the footbridge. The May walk is one of the most exciting of the year because the first few days of May are the peak of spring migration in the Austin area. As I hoped, we found lots of spring migrants today and found 46 species of birds in all. Here are the highlights...

One of the first birds I recorded was a Mississippi Kite that flew over the parking lot while we waited for everyone to arrive. It probably spent the night in the woods along the trail and was getting an early start on its continued journey north. We also heard a Dickcissel flying over, and we talked about how to distinguish swallows from swifts (both birds you can find in the open sky during the summer).

We started off down the trail and soon stopped to find a Yellow Warbler in the willow trees along the creek and 2 female Painted Buntings in a mulberry tree eating its fruit. We went a little further down the trail but then returned when I thought I heard a Cooper's Hawk. We didn't find the hawk but saw 2 Least Flycatchers.

A little further downstream we started hearing Carolina Chickadees. We found them in another willow tree along the creek and were delighted to find lots of other birds with them. There were Common Yellowthroats, a Blue-headed Vireo, another Yellow Warbler, a Wilson's Warbler, Yellow-breasted Chats, a first year male Orchard Oriole, and the bird of the morning, a beautiful male Magnolia Warbler. I didn't get a photo of it, but here's one Barry Noret took near this same spot last weekend.

I did get this pretty good photo of one of the Common Yellowthroats:

At the footbridge we got good looks at 2 Yellow-crowned Night-Herons and a Red-winged Blackbird singing on a wire nearby. Up the tributary creek we watched a mixed flock of Painted Buntings and Indigo Buntings feeding on seeds in the tall grass. A little later a Clay-colored Sparrow perched on a wire nearby and we got great looks at this often hard-to-see species.

On our way back we found a vocalizing Great Crested Flycatcher and an Eastern Phoebe in the same tree. Here's a photo I got of the Great Crested Flycatcher.

A little later a Cooper's Hawk (maybe the same one I heard earlier) flew over the trail and we watched a Purple Martin dive at it and chase it away.

What a fun morning! I was honored that several of the women on today's walk are mothers, and that they decided to get up early and spend Mother's Day morning on my bird walk.

Lots of Spring Migrants!

2011-04-30T19:20:00.000-05:00

The last few days of April and the first few days of May are usually when the most migrating songbirds pass through the Austin area on their way north. So I was excited to be able to spend over 4 hours birding the neighborhood this morning. Almost as soon as I left my house at about 7:30 AM I saw 14 Mississippi Kites low in the sky. My guess is that they roosted in our neighborhood last night. I got this poor photo of a few of them as they gathered together in the air, gaining altitude and drifting north.

Thanks to a garage sale on Stillforest and lots of activity on the Town and Country playing fields, there was more car traffic on the streets this morning than usual....
At times it was frustrating trying to look for birds while keeping an eye on passing cars, or trying to listen for birds over engine noise. But I was still able to find a few interesting birds while on the streets. Right now Carolina Chickadee parents have fledged their first broods which are following them around still begging to be fed. So a good way to find birds is to listen for this begging sound and find a family group of chickadees foraging in the trees. Sometimes there are a few other birds foraging with these family groups and this morning I found two Black-throated Green Warblers, a Blue-headed Vireo and a Nashville Warbler this way.

I was relieved to finally get to Lake Creek Trail at the end of Meadowheath at around 8:45. I could stop worrying about cars and concentrate on birds. Although there were many people on the playing fields, I only encountered a few other people on the trail. So I was able to spend long periods of time staking out birds I could hear but couldn't see, or just waiting by pockets of good habitat to see what emerged. It was a delightful and mind-clearing way to spend the morning. The birds were there, but they were not very easy to find and see this morning. So I was happy to find these north-bound migrants: Swainson's Thrush, Gray Catbird, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Common Yellowthroat, Yellow Warbler, Wilson's Warbler, Yellow-breasted Chat, Indigo Bunting, Painted Bunting, and Rose-breasted Grosbeak. My only complaint is that the light wasn't better for photography this morning. But I took this mediocre photo of one of the Grosbeaks anyway.

What a fun morning!

South Winds

2011-04-24T12:18:00.000-05:00

It's late April, approaching the peak in species diversity of north-bound migrating birds through central Texas, but not many are being seen. Conventional wisdom in the birding community is that this is because of the steady south winds we've had for so many days. If a bird migrating north has a good tailwind it won't stop as often, so it won't be seen by birders as often. So when I spent 2 hours on Lake Creek Trail yesterday morning, I wasn't expecting to see very many migrants and I didn't. But I enjoyed some of our year-round and summer-resident birds. Right by the Parmer Village drainage pond I watched a Red-tailed Hawk get chased by 2 Loggerhead Shrikes. They were far away but I could identify the hawk by its red tail and the dark leading edges of its wings. I identified the shrikes by their vocalizing. Here's a photo I got of the hawk and one of the shrikes.

By the creek I found 2 Mulberry trees. I don't know my plants very well so I'd be curious if anyone knows if this is a Red Mulberry (Morus rubra) or White Mulberry (Morus alba)? These are great trees to find migratory birds that eat berries in, like orioles, buntings, grosbeaks, etc. One of them was full of Cedar Waxwings when I found it.

I couldn't resist taking this photo of a Northern Mockingbird among the bright red berries of a Possumhaw bush. I believe I was hearing at least 1 mockingbird singing every minute I was outside that morning!

In the creek bed in the middle of the playing fields I was happy to find the first Green Heron I've seen in the neighborhood this year. These birds forage in the creek but actually nest in the trees among our houses. While I was watching the heron I saw a bit of movement and realized I was right in front of over 50 Least Sandpipers without even realizing it! They were just quietly foraging and I hadn't seen them. These tiny birds are almost year-round residents on our creek. They winter here and breed up in Canada and Alaska. But their migration is so spread out and they have such a wide wintering range (from the southern United States all the way to the north half of South America), that there are almost always a few on their way north or south that can be found here. June is the only month that they usually can't be found. Here's a photo I got showing 33 of them. (If you click on it you can see where I marked them all with Flickr notes.)

For Easter morning I decided to sleep in, but I did get out of the house for a jog around mid-morning. And near Hazelhurst and Broadmeade I heard the cry of a Broad-winged Hawk. This is the same area that this summer-resident hawk has nested in years past. What a nice easter egg to find!

Nashville Warblers

2011-04-17T16:04:00.000-05:00

We're approaching the peak of spring bird migration in the Austin area, and for the past week I've been hearing and seeing one of our most common migrating songbirds, the Nashville Warbler. Despite the name, these birds winter in Mexico and breed way up north in the boreal forest of Canada. We only get to see them (and hear them) while they're passing through. Here's a photo I got of one in my backyard almost exactly 2 years ago. It shows the yellow breast and belly, yellow throat, grey cheeks and head, and bright white eye-ring that identify this tiny bird. Look and listen for them in our trees the next time you're out!

Nest in the Garage

2011-04-08T18:20:00.000-05:00

Neighbor and birder Steven McDonald recently posted this neat photo. Like last year (and maybe the year before?) Carolina Wrens are nesting in his garage on Perthshire. How fun! And it looks like this year there's a lot of oak pollen going into their nest!

NASWC Bird Walk

2011-04-03T14:46:00.000-05:00

This morning 18 folks participated in my monthly neighborhood bird walk -- wow! We spent about 2 hours on Lake Creek Trail starting at the Braes Valley parking lot. Despite breezy and overcast conditions we had a great time. I recorded 37 species including two firsts for the year. Here are some highlights.

While waiting to get started a dozen Double-crested Cormorants and a Broad-winged Hawk flew over the parking lot. The hawk was the first Broad-winged Hawk I've seen this year. And just as we started I heard the twittering of Chimney Swifts and saw 2 fly over us. We saw a few more of these newly returned summer residents in the open sky later during the walk too.

Making our way down the trail we heard several Northern Cardinals and Carolina Wrens singing. We also heard at least 2 White-eyed Vireos. We finally got decent looks at one of the vireos a little further down the trail and Gideon McClure got this photo of it:

Near the footbridge we got great looks at a Red-shouldered Hawk perched on a wire above the creek. I got this photo:

From the bridge a few of us got quick looks at a few Lincoln's Sparrows and 2 Swamp Sparrows in a brush pile in the creek bed. Both are winter residents on their way north. And we got a better view of the Red-shouldered Hawk from the bridge, enabling us to see its red-orange barred breast.

Shortly after crossing the bridge we were treated to a great view of a Yellow-crowned Night-Heron hunting in the creek bed. These exotic looking herons specialize in hunting crustaceans like the crawfish in our creek. They are newly returned summer residents here and everyone was thrilled to see this one. Gideon got this great photo:

Further down the trail we briefly saw a female Eastern Bluebird. Then on our way back we got great views of the female again and of the male bluebird in the cottonwood trees by the water fountain. It was a real treat to see the vivid blue and orange colors of the male. Here's a photo of probably the same bird that I took yesterday a little further downstream:

Also on our way back we found a Greater Yellowlegs on the creek. And a Sharp-shinned Hawk flew over us near the footbridge. It was a good view of the hawk, showing the small head, slightly forward-slanting wings, and squared-off tail that distinguish it from Cooper's Hawk. We ended the walk near the parking lot with great looks at the first Great Crested Flycatcher I've seen this year.

Bluebirds, Sparrows, Chimney Swift

2011-04-02T19:50:00.000-05:00

I got a late start and spent a couple hours on Lake Creek Trail starting at Parmer Village this morning. The most interesting birds I saw were 3 Clay-colored Sparrows near the last dam on the creek. Most native sparrows can be found in central Texas during the winter, and a few are year-round residents. But Clay-colored Sparrows spend the winter further to the south and breed in southern Canada and a few of our northern states. So here in Austin we only get to see them during spring and fall migration. I usually see a few around this time of year so I was happy to find these.

The most enjoyable birds of the morning were 2 Eastern Bluebirds that I found on the Town and Country playing fields. There was a male and a female catching insects around the small group of trees near the eastern edge of the fields. I've always thought these fields would be good bluebird habitat, but I've only seen them in the neighborhood a handful of times. My guess is that even though the fields might be good habitat, there are too many people there sometimes for the birds to linger. Here's a photo I got of the male:

I spent the evening on my patio and I was thrilled to see a Chimney Swift in the open sky over my backyard. This was the first I've seen this year. These unique birds are summer residents here and I look forward to hearing their twittering again soon. I also briefly watched a male Black-and-white Warbler foraging in the trees on its way north.

Hooded Warbler

2011-03-27T16:38:00.001-05:00

I spent about 4 hours birding the neighborhood this morning, starting at my house on Broadmeade, working my way to Lake Creek Trail at the end of Meadowheath, and then birding some ways in each direction. The find of the day was a beautiful male Hooded Warbler in the dense woods near the trail's footbridge. Shortly after crossing the bridge and entering the woods I started hearing a faint birdsong I did not recognize. I finally found the bird foraging in dense low brush surrounded by newly leafing out poison ivy. I carefully got a little closer and managed to get this poor photo through many branches in the overcast light:

Hooded Warblers are one of the earlier migrating songbirds that move through our area in the spring. (I've seen one in the neighborhood only once before, in early April 2008.) Wintering in eastern Mexico and central America, they breed in the eastern United States and southern Canada, in mature forests where dense shrub under stories can be found. During the winter they forage for insects and small spiders very low in the trees and sometimes on the ground. (This bird was foraging very low, and I had to wait in a full squat for awhile to get this photo.)

Long-time Williamson County birders Byron Stone and Tim Fennell also saw this bird; Byron thanks to the Travis County Area Texting Rare Bird Alert to which I posted this bird, and Tim because he was already on the trail looking for the Least Grebe (which has not been seen since I photographed it Friday afternoon).

I observed a few other north-bound migrants this morning. There was a male Black-and-white Warbler on Stillforest creeping along the tree trunks. Near the Hooded Warbler I saw my first Nashville Warbler of the season. And by the large baseball field I was excited to see a single Swainson's Hawk soaring by. On my way home on Hazelhurst I thought I heard a Black-throated Green Warbler faintly singing. (One was reported east of town this morning, but I couldn't quite be sure of my own observation.) Cedar Waxwings are quite numerous right now. I counted hundreds this morning and it was especially fun to see them drinking from the creek in large groups. And our winter resident Yellow-rumped Warblers are in various stages of plumage; some are in winter plumage, some are finally in their brilliant breeding plumage, but most are somewhere in between and looking quite disheveled. What a fun morning!

Least Grebe!

2011-03-25T18:57:00.001-05:00

I was birding Travis Audubon's Baker Sanctuary this morning when I got a phone call from Chuck Sexton. He was birding the Parmer Village end of Lake Creek Trail and he had just found a Least Grebe! It was in the creek near the last dam. I've never seen a Least Grebe in our neighborhood so when I finally got home this afternoon I immediately grabbed my spotting scope and drove to the end of Saddlebrook Trail to look for it. The Least Grebe was right out in the open, swimming around, occasionally diving, and occasionally dashing across the surface of the water after something. Here's a photo I got:

And here are a few more photos. Least Grebes range from north Argentina to south Texas. Although you can find them in central Texas, they're not very common. They can be found in all kinds of slow moving or still bodies of fresh or brackish water, including lakes, creeks, marshes, ponds, and even temporary ditches. Like all grebes, they are great underwater swimmers. They catch and eat all kinds of insects, small fish, tadpoles, etc. both under water and on the surface of the water. This Least Grebe was the 204th species I've observed in our neighborhood!

Early Spring Birding

2011-03-19T18:13:00.000-05:00

I spent over 3 hours birding the neighborhood this morning, something I haven't done in too long. And it was a joy to be out on this warm, breezy, partly cloudy day. Now is an interesting time to be birding since most of our winter resident species are still here but they're more active than they've been in the past few months. An example was this Song Sparrow I found near the footbridge on Lake Creek Trail. It was singing, which we don't get to hear very often in Texas:

Just across the bridge I found one of the first spring migrants I've seen in the neighborhood -- a Gray Catbird. These relatives to Northern Mockingbirds are pretty common spring and fall migrants in central Texas, but their skulking habits make them hard to observe. I found a few other interesting birds in the woods between the footbridge and Braes Valley. A few Field Sparrows and Chipping Sparrows were on the edges of the trail. In the woods I got a brief look at a Hermit Thrush. After hearing a White-eyed Vireo most of the time I was there, I finally got a good look at it, along with a White-throated Sparrow.

The most exciting find in those woods was Cooper's Hawks. There have been 2 in these woods most of the winter, and they have been pretty vocal. They've been easy to hear but not easy to see. So I was happy when I was poking around off the trail and heard one, then looked over to see an adult male and a first-year bird. The adult retrieved a large piece of some kind of bird I presume it had killed. It stood on the partial carcass and picked at it while I took some photos. Here's the one that turned out best. Look at that orange eye!

After I crossed the footbridge again heading back home, I saw some large birds flying towards me and was thrilled to see 3 Crested Caracara fly right over my head! I've occasionally seen this species in the neighborhood, but only singly -- never 3 together. These exotic-looking hawks have been expanding their range northward for decades. In the past you'd have to travel to south Texas to find them but now they're becoming almost common in the Austin area. I got this photo of one of them.

What a fun morning!

Evening Birding (and Frogging!)

2011-03-13T14:53:00.000-05:00

I arrived at the Parmer Village model homes Saturday evening to meet some Capital Area Master Naturalists (CAMN) who have started to monitor frogs on Lake Creek. (CAMN is a local chapter of the Texas Master Naturalist Program.) I got there a little early to enjoy the sunset and see what birds were around. The grass around the drainage pond was full of Savannah Sparrows and Vesper Sparrows, both winter resident grassland birds that can be challenging to identify. I had my spotting scope with me and got this photo of one of the Vesper Sparrows with my iPhone by holding it up to the eye-piece of the scope (a practice known as digi-scoping). With the setting sun behind me, I think the photo came out pretty good! You can see 2 of the field marks I use to identify this species -- a bright white eye-ring, and a white crescent under the cheek.

As the CAMN folks arrived we noticed a large group of Cave Swallows flying over the creek near the Parmer Lane bridge. I estimated about 60 birds, about three times as many as we've seen in the past few months. My guess is that the roughly 20 Cave Swallows that have spent the winter roosting in their old mud nests under this bridge have recently been joined by north-bound migrating birds. It was fun to see them swirl around in the air closer and closer to the bridge until they all swooped underneath it and disappeared.

We walked to the last dam of the creek to listen for frogs. Just as it was getting dark I was delighted to see a Yellow-crowned Night-Heron fly over the creek, the first I've seen this year. These exotic-looking migratory herons can be found on our creek all summer long, hunting for crawfish. They also nest in the trees among our houses. A little later we heard and saw a pair of Great Horned Owls calling to each other in the patch of woods by the dam. We heard frogs too! The clicking of Blanchard's Cricket Frogs was plentiful and we heard the gurgly croaks of at least 2 Rio Grande Leopard Frogs. It was a great way to spend the early evening.

NASWC Bird Walk

2011-03-06T20:13:00.000-06:00

Today 10 folks showed up for the March NASWC Bird walk! We spent a little over 2 hours covering about 1 mile of Lake Creek Trail starting at the Parmer Village development. The weather was absolutely beautiful and we got some great looks at some neat birds. Here are some highlights.

While waiting for everyone to arrive we watched a beautiful male Green-winged Teal in the drainage pond. There were also a female American Wigeon and three Northern Shovelers.

By the creek near the dam we kept flushing Wilson's Snipe as we got closer to the water. There must have been about a dozen of them. Then I was surprised to find what looked like a beaver dam! I know beavers have been in the area before, but this is the first time I've seen something they've built. I took this photo:

Shortly after 40-50 Cave Swallows appeared, probably from underneath the bridge. I think the 20 that have been wintering here have been joined by some north-bound migrants. We also saw 3 Barn Swallows this morning, the first I've seen in the neighborhood this year.

We hung around by the last dam on the creek for awhile and were treated to some close fly-overs by an Osprey hunting for fish. I got this photo:

We also watched a Great Blue Heron hunt and eventually catch and swallow a good sized fish that created a nice big lump in its throat as it swallowed it. The heron was showing its breeding plumes and was beautiful to see in the morning light.

Nearby we kept hearing and finally tracked down and saw a male Ladder-backed Woodpecker. In the woods by the creek we got brief looks at a Winter Wren and a couple White-throated Sparrows. We also got great looks at a Yellow-rumped Warbler.

On our way back I was pleasantly surprised to find 3 Ring-billed Gulls soaring over the soccer fields. And in the pond by the cars a few new ducks had appeared, including 2 nice male American Wigeons and 1 male Blue-winged Teal.

Merlin and Little Blue Heron

2011-02-28T17:58:00.000-06:00

I've been out of town for the weekend, so I didn't get to bird the neighborhood. But Barry Noret was here, and on Saturday he was excited to find a Merlin and a Little Blue Heron on Lake Creek Trail. Merlins are small elegant falcons that are winter residents in central Texas. I've seen them on the trail before, but never very often and not for a couple years. Little Blue Herons are mostly summer residents here (unlike the much larger Great Blue Herons which are here year-round). So the one Barry found was most likely a north-bound migrant. It's a neat time of year right now and for the next couple months. We are able to see both winter birds and summer birds! Here's a photo Barry got of the Little Blue Heron ruffling its feathers:

I spent the weekend in Port Aransas volunteering for their annual Whooping Crane Festival. Here are some photos I took in the area. I hope to get back out in the neighborhood soon!

GBBC

2011-02-20T15:20:00.000-06:00

The Great Backyard Bird Count is this weekend, so Friday night I sent a late notice email to my bird walk email list to see if anyone wanted to contribute to the GBBC by counting birds Saturday evening at the Parmer Village drainage pond. There ended up being 5 of us (me, Barry Noret, Bill Dodd, and John and Cathy Mandel). We enjoyed a very pleasant 90 minutes watching the sun set and observing birds. As soon as I arrived I found these 5 Greater Yellowlegs on the edge of the pond. (And that's a male Northern Shoveler to the left of them.)

Other bird highlights were the Cave Swallows returning to their roost under the Parmer Lane bridge, 2 Western Meadowlarks, Wilson's Snipe, a Great Egret hunting in the pond, and a Loggerhead Shrike. We ended up recording 21 species. But there were also some non-bird highlights. About 20 minutes after the sun set we found a bat flying around over the streets behind us. And a few minutes later, we realized that the bright light in the sky that was slowly moving north wasn't a plane -- it was the International Space Station! What an unexpected surprise!

Ducks and Cave Swallows

2011-02-13T17:42:00.000-06:00

I ran into Barry Noret on the east end of Lake Creek Trail this morning and we spent about 3 hours birding the area. I'm so happy to see a nice diversity of wild ducks on the creek and in the Parmer Village drainage pond. When I arrived at the pond this morning there were Northern Shovelers, Gadwall, American Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, and a single male Ring-necked Duck. Here's a photo I got of the Ring-necked Duck. It's the dramatically patterned black and white and grey bird with the golden eye. The other ducks are 1 male Gadwall (brownish gray with a black tail) and 2 female Gadwalls.

After checking out the pond Barry and I walked down underneath the Parmer Lane bridge where we found 2 wings from a Green-winged Teal. My guess is that a coyote caught and ate this bird. Maybe a fox or bobcat could have as well? Looking downstream across the fence line on the other side of Parmer Lane, we were excited to find a large group of Wood Ducks. I estimated at least 20. This was the most Wood Ducks I've ever found here in the neighborhood. And seeing the males in the clear morning light was a real treat. Too bad they were too far away for photos.

I've posted about the wintering Cave Swallows under the Parmer Lane bridge a few times lately, and one reason I wanted to walk underneath it was to see their nests. The Cave Swallows are still around. Yesterday evening I counted 17 returning under the bridge as the sun set, and I saw 4 or 5 leave the bridge this morning as we approached. Cave Swallows build mud nests similar to Cliff Swallow nests, but usually with a much wider opening. They are not breeding this time of year, but they roost in their old nests.

I was surprised to see that most of the nests looked like Cliff Swallow nests to me -- totally enclosed except for a round entrance hole. (The majority of swallows I see around this bridge all year long are Cave Swallows.) Here's a photo of several of the nests:

And here's a photo of a single nest that looks much more like a Cave Swallow nest to me:

But after some reading, I learned that Cave Swallows will use abandoned Cliff Swallow nests. And some Cave Swallows actually construct nests that look like Cliff Swallow nests with the single round entrance hole. So I'm curious to learn if the Cave Swallows are using and maybe even building these Cliff Swallow-like nests. I'll have to watch them under the bridge later this year when they start to breed!

NASWC Bird Walk Report

2011-02-06T17:32:00.000-06:00

14 folks showed up this morning for my monthly neighborhood bird walk! We started at the Braes Valley parking lot of Lake Creek Trail at 8:00 AM and spent a little over 2 hours on the trail looking and listening for birds. Here's a nice photo of part of the group that Barry Noret took. (I'm the fat guy with the beard in front.) We ended up finding 41 species and here are some highlights.

Cedar Waxwings are usually a common winter resident in central Texas, but this winter they've been a bit harder to find. So we were happy to see a few small groups of them this morning, including these birds that we saw from the parking lot.

At our first stop on the trail, a few of us got a brief look at a Winter Wren that quickly disappeared and never responded to a recording I played. In the same spot we got to see a Lincoln's Sparrow, Yellow-rumped Warblers, American Goldfinches, and 2 Downy Woodpeckers.

Down the trail a bit further we heard a Cooper's Hawk vocalizing. Through the trees we saw it fly back and forth, and realized a bit later there were 2 Cooper's Hawks both calling and flying around. We never got a clear look at one but I don't ever remember a better opportunity to learn their call.

By the footbridge we discovered an immature Red-shouldered Hawk perched in a very small tree by the creek. It flew a little ways downstream to another small tree. As we looked at it again, we realized 2 Eastern Bluebirds were perched in the same tree with it! Eastern Bluebirds are a pretty common central Texas bird, but for some reason I have only seen them in the neighborhood twice before. So this was a rare treat. I got this poor photo showing the hawk and both bluebirds.

We walked downstream and got great looks at 4 species of shorebirds in the creek bed. Killdeer were prevalent in the creek bed and on the grass around it, as usual. But we got an unusual view of a few showing their orange rumps, which is a field mark many of us had forgotten about. 2 Greater Yellowlegs foraged in the shallow water and we saw them well enough to see the slightly upturned bill on one of them. Here's a photo of them:

The creek bed also had at least half a dozen Wilson's Snipe, offering good views to us as they periodically walked or flew from one patch of cover to another. And a small flock of Least Sandpipers flew in and landed nearby, offering good close views of them. Here's a photo that was close enough to show their yellow lets.

On our way back George Kerr found a Hermit Thrush that responded to recording I played and flew up to give everyone a good view.

Thanks to everyone who came out early on a cold Sunday morning for the walk. It was a blast!

Snow, Snipe, Creeper

2011-02-05T18:12:00.000-06:00

I spent about 3 hours birding the neighborhood this morning, and enjoyed finding these squirrel tracks in the last of Thursday night's snow. Snow is still novel for me, since I've never spent any extended period of time where it's common. I enjoyed walking through the few remaining patches and feeling it crunch under my feet, and grabbing a small handful now and then.

From my house to the creek was a little quieter than I expected, but there were many American Goldfinches and a few Cedar Waxwings around. And I was happy to find 2 Pine Warblers on Meadowheath.

At the creek I was excited to see that 4 or 5 Wilson's Snipe were foraging in the creek bed, mostly out in the open. This winter resident shorebird is usually very well hidden in its wet, grassy, reedy habitat. I only see them when I unknowingly get too close to one and it makes its strange scresh call and bursts into erratic flight. I got this photo of one next to a much more common Killdeer in the creek bed. It's a good comparison of 2 different approaches to camouflage. On the left, the Killdeer has disruptive camouflage. The 2 horizontal black bars on its white chest help break up its shape and make it less recognizable as a bird. On the right, the Wilson's Snipe has cryptic camouflage that blends in with its surroundings.

On my way back home I found a third Pine Warbler, which was a record. I've never seen more than 2 Pine Warblers in the neighborhood. Pine Warbler is one of several unusual winter species in central Texas that we are seeing many more of this winter than usual. Another one of those species is Brown Creeper. I'm seeing more of those this winter as well, and I found one as I walked back home on Broadmeade, just a block or two from my house. I got this photo.

Sunset and Cave Swallows

2011-01-31T19:21:00.000-06:00

I wanted to watch the wintering Cave Swallows under the Parmer Lane bridge return to their roost for the night, so at about 5:15 yesterday evening I went to the Parmer Village drainage pond and waited and watched. The weather was just about perfect and eventually there was a beautiful sunset behind me. Other birds that were around included Mourning Doves, American Pipits, meadowlarks, Great Blue Herons, and a single Great Egret. (I don't know if the meadowlarks were Eastern Meadowlarks or Western Meadowlarks. We get them both here in the winter and the only way I can tell them apart is by sound.) At about 5:50 I spotted a single Cave Swallow flying over the bridge, and it soon disappeared underneath. 10 minutes later at 6:00 on the dot, 20 Cave Swallows appeared over the bridge. They swirled around in the air for less than a minute. Then they joined the first bird, swooping down and disappearing under the bridge. What a great way to end the day.

Cave Swallows

2011-01-26T06:00:00.001-06:00

The Parmer Lane bridge over Lake Creek hosts a colony of Cave Swallows. Most swallows (including these) are migratory and leave central Texas for the winter. But a few Cave Swallows, including the ones under our bridge, stay all year long. In the summer they build mud nests under the bridge and breed there, foraging nearby during the day so they can feed the nestlings. During the winter at night they roost under the bridge in their old nests, but the forage elsewhere during the day. Usually the only time you can see them in the winter months is briefly in the morning when they leave the bridge and then briefly again at dusk when they return. This winter behavior has been observed in other Cave Swallow colonies as well. Why don't they stay in the immediate area during the day like they do in the summer?

Long time central Texas birder and naturalist Brush Freeman has an interesting hypothesis about that. In the winter the air can actually be warmer a few thousand feet up. He thinks these birds spend most of their winter days up in the warmer air. And maybe that's where most of the flying insects that they prey on are in the winter as well. Very interesting! Saturday morning by the bridge I saw 3 small groups of Cave Swallows. The first was at about 8:30 when I saw 5 birds flying near the bridge that soon disappeared. About 45 minutes later I saw a group of about 20 birds, and 15 or 20 minutes later I saw 4 or 5 more. These birds did not stick around either. I wonder if they were headed upwards, to spend the day in the higher and warmer air.

Damaged Marsh and Hawks

2011-01-23T18:15:00.000-06:00

Saturday morning I spent about 3.5 hours birding Lake Creek Trail starting at the Parmer Village drainage pond. It was a clear beautiful morning, with the temperature in the mid 20s when I started at about 7:45. The grass was covered in frost. I spent about an hour in the marshy area by the Parmer Lane bridge since I hadn't birded that area in awhile and I was curious to see if any of the marsh birds I've found there in past winters had returned. Unfortunately the flood from tropical storm Hermine on 9/7/2010 killed most of the cattails in this area. (That night the water was probably 6 feet deep through this area at least!) So the only marsh birds I was able to find were a Swamp Sparrow, a Common Yellowthroat, and 2 Wilson's Snipes. Hopefully the habitat will recover for next winter.

A few other birds I found in the remnants of the cattails were a singing Winter Wren, a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and an Orange-crowned Warbler. The kinglet and warbler were together, pulling seeds out of the cattails. I don't know if they were eating the seeds themselves or foraging for bugs. Here's a photo I got of the Orange-crowned Warbler.

Upstream by the last dam I played an Eastern Screech-Owl recording by a patch of dense woods. I was pleased to see a Brown Thrasher briefly pop up, soon to be chased away by a Northern Mockingbird. Brown Thrashers are winter residents in central Texas but are often hard to observe due to their inconspicuous habits and preference for dense brush.

A rather conspicuous bird was an Osprey that I found hunting over the creek. These dramatic large black and white hawks hunt fish and are mostly in the Austin area only during the winter. I got this photo as it wheeled overhead.

It was a good day for finding hawks. I also saw a Red-tailed Hawk, a Red-shouldered Hawk, a Cooper's Hawk, and a Sharp-shinned Hawk. Cooper's and Sharp-shinned Hawks are in the Accipiter family that preys on other birds. Accipiters don't usually hunt their prey out in the open. They hunt and chase their prey through the dense tree canopy. So they have relatively long tails and short rounded wings to give them amazing maneuverability at high speeds. On my way back an accipiter (I couldn't tell which) flew right in front of me across the trail and into the woods after a Northern Cardinal. I could hear its feathers cutting through the air as it passed. And I couldn't believe how fast it darted and turned through the branches. It took my breath away!

40 Minutes in the Rain

2011-01-16T17:44:00.000-06:00

This morning at brunch I was telling a friend that this weekend was the first I could remember in a long time that I hadn't spent at least one morning birding. This was of course because of the cold rainy and misty weather we've had both mornings. I enjoyed sleeping in, but I missed seeing some neighborhood birds. So even though the rain persisted, this afternoon I spent about 40 minutes on the streets around my house. As soon as I crossed the street I heard the subtle chip notes of small foraging songbirds. When I looked up I realized the trees were alive with birds! I estimated there were 4 Ruby-crowned Kinglets, 3 Golden-crowned Kinglets, 4 Orange-crowned Warblers, 3 Carolina Chickadees, 2 American Goldfinches, 1 Blue-headed Vireo, and 1 male Downy Woodpecker. Neat! But the best was yet to come...

As I studied the flock I heard an American Crow cawing. Then another. Then another and another. They were making a huge racket nearby, but I couldn't tear myself away from the mixed species flock of songbirds. Finally I figured I'd found all the birds in the mixed flock, so I started to follow the crows. They seemed to be on the south side of Chester Forest and I photographed one and got a neat profile shot (above).

American Crows often mob hawks and owls, since the hawks and owls will prey on crow nestlings, and also maybe because they compete with the crows. So when you hear lots of crows making lots of noise, you can usually find a hawk or an owl in the middle of them. This was the case today! I finally found a single Great Horned Owl in the trees below the crows. It was far away and the light was terrible, but I managed to get this poor photo. At least you can see one of its huge yellow eyes.

I'm glad I went out in the rain!

I updated the blog's layout yesterday, and I added an eBird widget to the right-hand column. It shows birds that have been reported to eBird from our neighborhood in the last 30 days. I hope you find it interesting!

NASWC Bird Walk Report

2011-01-09T15:14:00.000-06:00

Despite cold, gloomy, wet weather, 13 people participated in the NASWC Bird Walk this morning! I was worried that today's bird walk would be rained out but the storm passed through well before our meeting time. And the predicted wind was completely absent! So despite being cold and wet, it was still quite bearable and we were able to find about 30 species of birds. Here are the highlights...

We met in front of the Parmer Village drainage pond where a few of us who arrived early got to see 2 beautiful male Ring-necked Ducks that flew off a few minutes before everyone else got there. Fortunately there were also 3 American Wigeons, 1 Northern Shoveler, and 1 male Green-winged Teal in the pond that hung around for everyone to see. There were a few shorebirds around the edges of the pond too: several of our year-round resident Killdeer and Least Sandpipers, a few winter-resident Wilson's Snipe, and 1 winter resident Greater Yellowlegs. Here's a poor photo of the Yellowlegs and one of the Least Sandpipers.

From the pond we walked upstream along the hike-and-bike trail and saw several Vesper Sparrows in the tall grass. Here's a poor photo of one showing one of its main field marks: white outer tail feathers.

A deep puddle kept us from checking out the last dam on the creek which had quite a bit of water flowing over it from the recent rain. So we continued up the trail and watched a few flocks of ducks fly up from the creek. The flocks were mostly Northern Shovelers, and you could see their wide spoon-shaped bills as they flew overhead. There were also a few Gadwalls, American Wigeons, and Green-winged Teal mixed in.

Near where the trail enters the T&C playing fields most of us got to see a Ruby-crowned Kinglet and a few of us got a good look at a Song Sparrow. We got to see the heavy marks on either side of its throat that I think are its best distinguishing field marks. A little further down the trail we encountered at least 3 Carolina Wrens that were singing and chasing each other around. They were joined by several Northern Cardinals and 3 Orange-crowned Warblers. A few minutes later all 3 Orange-crowned Warblers crossed the trail and foraged in an isolated Possumhaw bush covered in red berries. The lime-green birds and bright red berries were quite a combination that brightened up such a dark and dreary morning.

When we got past the strip of woods along the trail, we watched the unusually high water in the creek for a few minutes. We saw a Great Blue Heron upstream, and we watched a Red-tailed Hawk fly by and land on a nearby cell tower. Then we started back, but I guess we started back a little too late since the threatening skies finally started raining again. But despite the cold and the rain I think everyone enjoyed themselves. Hot coffee and brunch afterwards were especially satisfying!

Great Winter Birds to start off 2011

2011-01-01T15:58:00.000-06:00

I was able to continue a favorite personal tradition today: going birding in the neighborhood on New Year's morning. Since I've been busy with year-end travel and Christmas Bird Counts, this was the first time I've birded our neighborhood in almost 3 weeks, so I was anxious to get out there and see what I could find. I spent about 3 hours birding parts of Broadmeade, Stillforest, Meadowheath, and Lake Creek Trail, and found 43 species...

Based on my personal experience and reports from other birders in central Texas, this year has been a very good year for several winter species that can be very hard to find most years, including Golden-crowned Kinglets, Brown Creepers, and Pine Warblers. This morning I found all 3 of these birds on Broadmeade and Meadowheath. This has got to be the best winter for Golden-crowned Kinglets I have ever experienced as a birder. Between my house and Lake Creek Trail I found more Golden-crowned Kinglets than Ruby-crowned Kinglets (which are usually much more common). It seemed like every mixed-species foraging flock I encountered had a few Golden-crowns making their high-pitched calls.

Near Broadmeade and Barryknoll I was excited to see 2 Brown Creepers in the same tree -- the first time I've ever found more than one of these birds on a single outing in the neighborhood. It's always fun finding these small, brown, inconspicuous birds and watching their characteristic foraging style. They make their way up tree trunks and thick branches like a woodpecker, then fly down to the bottom of a nearby tree and do it again.

Where Stillforest ends at Meadowheath, I found a large mixed-species foraging flock and as I sorted through it a bright yellow bird popped out of the thick canopy in front of me. It was a beautiful male Pine Warbler. After many tries, I was able to get one mediocre photo of it (posted above).

A few minutes earlier I had heard several Blue Jays and Carolina Wrens scolding together. I tried to find the center of the area they were gathered and saw this Eastern Screech-Owl peeking out of an owl box deep in a large Live Oak's canopy.

I got a few more photos right from this same spot of 3 more winter neighborhood bird species. In order they are Blue headed Vireo, Orange-crowned Warbler, and Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. (The Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers are the birds that make the horizontal rows of holes in tree trunks that you can find on many trees around here.)

It was a great start to 2011. Happy New Year!

Holiday Birding

2010-12-25T10:25:00.000-06:00

Things have been pretty quiet around this blog lately, not because I haven't been birding, but because I haven't been birding in our neighborhood. From mid-December to early January every year the National Audubon Society and many many birder volunteers organize and participate in Christmas Bird Counts (CBC) all over the country. This long-running (over 100 years!) bird census follows a relatively simple protocol. For 1 day, birders count all the birds of all the species they can find within a 15 mile diameter circle. Usually the organizer of each count divides the circle into sections and assigns a team to each section. Then at the end of the day everyone compiles their lists to see what was found. It's usually a very long day, driving to a meeting place long before dawn and birding until dark. But it can be extremely fun and rewarding. And the data collected provides a valuable window into the statuses and locations of wild bird populations and future conservation priorities.

This holiday season I've been lucky enough to participate in 6 counts. In the Austin area I helped out on the Austin CBC (where I was on the Hornsby Bend team), the Westcave Preserve CBC (where I was on the Lago Vista Team), and the Georgetown-Andice CBC. Down on the coast I helped out on the Port Aransas CBC and the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge CBC. One count is left, the Granger CBC on January 2. Some species highlights for me so far are Pyrrhuloxia in Georgetown, Nelson's Sparrows in Port Aransas, White-tailed Kites and Whooping Cranes in Aransas, Common Nighthawk (way out of season) in Austin, Sprague's Pipits in Austin and Aransas, and American Woodcock and Barn Owl in my parents' backyard in Port Aransas.

Here are some photos from all except the Granger CBC and from general birding around the Port Aransas area. Even though it has been lots of fun finding neat birds with great people in all these places, I still can't wait to get back out in the neighborhood soon. Happy holidays!

Cold, Clear, and Windy

2010-12-12T18:47:00.000-06:00

This morning I spent a couple hours birding Lake Creek Trail starting at the Parmer Village end. I wanted to check the patch of marsh by the Parmer Lane bridge for the marsh bird species that I've found there in past winters. The cattails have not recovered from the 9/7/2010 flood yet, so the habitat is probably not as attractive this winter. I found a single Swamp Sparrow but none of the other marsh species. But I was pleased to see a flock of about 45 Cave Swallows. They must have roosted under the Parmer Lane bridge where they build their mud nests in the summer. Most swallows in central Texas are migratory including Cave Swallows, but this species has been expanding its range in Texas for the past 30 years and seems to be staying north longer. A few birds spend the entire winter here. In the summer these birds will forage around the bridge all morning. But when I see them here in the winter, it's always just when they emerge from the bridge and fly around in the sky for a few minutes. Then they leave. Do they forage somewhere else in the daytime during the winter? Was this group of birds on its way south?

It was quite cold and windy this morning, so the best birding was in areas sheltered from the wind but still warmed by the sun. There was a great spot like this at the edge of the woods by the last dam. There were 8-10 species of birds actively foraging including Northern Cardinals, a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, an Orange-crowned Warbler, American Goldfinches, Lincoln's Sparrows, Field Sparrows, and lots of Yellow-rumped Warblers. I got this photo of one of the Yellow-rumped Warblers as it ate berries.

I was disappointed to find a black house cat lurking in the dense brush among these birds. Free roaming cats kill hundreds of millions of birds every year. If you have a pet cat, please keep it indoors. It's safer for the birds and for your pet. I got this photo showing a Northern Cardinal in the top left and the black cat in the bottom right.

I hope to make another post in a few days, but it might be 2-3 weeks before I can post again. I'm scheduled to participate in 5 Christmas Bird Counts during the next 2 weeks and will be out of town for part of that time. So if you do any holiday birding on Lake Creek Trail be sure to report it to eBird.org and if you like, email me about it. Happy Holidays!

NASWC Bird Walk Report

2010-12-05T14:52:00.001-06:00

Despite being quite cold and windy, 8 people participated in this month's NASWC Bird Walk! We spent about 2 hours covering half a mile of Lake Creek Trail, starting at the Braes Valley parking lot. We found 30 species of birds despite the bitter weather and here are some of the highlights:

As expected, a common bird this morning was the Yellow-rumped Warbler. We found them eating poison ivy berries and hackberries in a couple spots, and once or twice a few of us actually got to see their yellow rumps!

I was excited to see my first 2 Cedar Waxwings of the season. The first was across the creek and the second was near the footbridge. Both were in loose association with a few American Robins. Cedar Waxwings are winter birds in Texas and are usually found in flocks of 10 to 50 birds (sometimes larger) as they feed on fruits or berries. So it was interesting that these 2 were alone. I got this poor photo of the first one -- you can just make out the pointed crest, black mask, and yellow edge to the tail.

Taking a side trail, we all got good looks at a single Song Sparrow as it perched on top of the tall grass and ate seeds. A few minutes later a few of us got to briefly see an Osprey fly upstream over the treetops carrying a fish in its talons. (In the winter these striking black and white hawks often hunt for fish on the dammed up portions of Lake Creek further downstream.) Later near this same spot some of us got to see a Lincoln's Sparrow, making a great opportunity to compare it to the very similar Song Sparrow. (When you get to see both species, the heavier and darker streaking of the Song Sparrow's breast and throat is easier to notice.)

Continuing on the main trail downstream, we found an Eastern Phoebe, a Killdeer, and an American Pipit on the creek bed. And as we approached the footbridge we heard and saw many American Robins. One thing I never knew that Shirley LaVergne read in her field guide this morning is that male and female robins have a slightly different appearance. The males are darker overall and have a fuller red breast, while the females have a more faded red and are lighter overall. We saw great examples of each!

Here's a male:

And here's a female:

Thanks Shirley!

From the footbridge we got good close looks at some European Starlings. This is a common species, and it's easy to overlook the iridescence and intricate speckling which make it a beautiful bird. We also got to see the 2 largest birds you'll find on Lake Creek Trail: a Great Egret flew in and landed relatively close, and we got distant views of a Great Blue Heron. Here's the Great Egret.

On our way back we walked through the woods and I had the opportunity to ask Bill Dodd if he could identify a large low sprawling tree with heavily serrated leaves that I've wondered about for years. (I'm not so good at identifying plants.) Bill guessed it was an American Elm and verified the ID when he got home. I'm so used to our tall small-leafed Cedar Elms that I never thought this tree could be in the same family. Very cool, thanks Bill!

It was a fun morning. Thanks to everyone who came out in the cold!

A Reflective Morning

2010-12-04T10:21:00.001-06:00

Instead of my usual trekking through the neighborhood, this morning I spent about an hour counting birds just in my yard. I was quite pleased to see or hear 20 species including 2 Golden-crowned Kinglets. I first thought I heard the kinglets in the front yard near the street. But there were a few cars driving by and the high-pitched calls these birds make sound very similar to the faint squeals that sometimes come from car brakes. (Listen to these "seee calls" here.) So I followed the sounds and verified that it was the birds and not the cars. I found the kinglets in the trees right over my driveway. Some other birds I saw or heard were a singing Northern Cardinal (singing is unusual this time of year), Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, American Goldfinch, and Bewick's Wren.

One reason I stayed in the yard this morning was that I was out late last night attending the Bleet Up where the Austin Blogger Awards were announced. Many many thanks to the folks who nominated my blog and voted for it in the "Hyperlocal" category. It didn't win, but I'm thrilled that enough people read it to get it nominated. And I was very pleased that the blog got some exposure to the local non-birding community. Talking with a few other local bloggers was also fun. Many thanks to the organizers! Events like this keep me thinking about the goals and purpose behind my blog, which is great!

One more note. Here are some photos I took over Thanksgiving weekend down on the Port Aransas beach. These species are mostly very different from the birds we see here, but I've seen 2 of them in the neighorhood! Anyone have any guesses which ones?

Warm and Breezy

2010-11-24T14:14:00.002-06:00

I spent 3.5 hours on Lake Creek Trail this morning, starting at the Braes Valley parking lot. It was unseasonably warm with strong gusts of wind out of the southeast. Things started out slow but it turned into quite a birdy morning and I found 39 species. I took quite a few pictures but lost them because of a faulty SD card. So I'm relying on old photos for today's post. They're all still taken by me in the neighborhood -- just not this morning...

Along most of the trail where there were woods, there were many Yellow-rumped Warblers. This is our most common winter warbler and they have returned in force this season. In some places the tree canopy was alive with movement, and it was mostly these birds. I watched many of them eating poison ivy berries, an important food source for several bird species. Here's one eating a poison ivy berry on the trail on Thanksgiving Day 2009.

By the footbridge I was pleased to find the first American Goldfinches I've seen this season. These are similar to the slightly smaller Lesser Goldfinches that we have year-round. But the American Goldfinches lose most of their color in the winter, leaving a bit of yellow on the face and breast, and the black-and-white wings as ways to tell them from female Lessers. Here's a poor photo of one I took back in February of this year.

I was also excited to see Lincoln's Sparrows, a Song Sparrow, and a few Chipping Sparrows by the bridge -- all winter birds.

In the middle of the T&C playing fields I began hearing 3 very soft high-pitched notes coming from a few isolated trees. I followed the sounds to confirm that I was hearing 2 Golden-crowned Kinglets! These winter residents are very similar in appearance to our much more common winter resident Ruby-crowned Kinglets, but instead of having a big white eye-ring, they have stripes through their face and a bright yellow or orange stripe on top of their head. In central Texas Golden-crowned Kinglet numbers vary from year to year. Usually they are quite hard to find but this seems to be a good year for them. Birders in the Austin area are reporting them quite frequently. Here's a photo of one I took back in 2007.

And here's the much more common Ruby-crowned Kinglet for comparison (photographed in March, 2008).

I continued downstream and eventually ended up at the last dam. I spent some time by a patch of very dense brush and was excited to find a single immature White-crowned Sparrow. This is a common winter resident in central Texas, but I don't have many records of them in the neighborhood.

A few minutes later an Osprey flew in and made a few passes over the creek. It's so fun to see these large beautiful hawks in the neighborhood because they hunt over the dammed sections of the creek which are pretty small. So sometimes you can get close views of them hovering over and diving into the water to capture fish. I didn't see this one catch anything, but here's my favorite Osprey photo which I took from this same spot in January 2009:

More shameless self-promotion! If you enjoy my blog and maybe even consider it your favorite "Hyperlocal/Neighborhood Blog", please nominate it in that category for the Austin Blogger Awards.

Update: The nominations are done and now you can vote! My blog is in the "Hyperlocal" category on the last page of the survey at the link above. Thanks!

Travis Audubon Bird Walk

2010-11-14T16:27:00.001-06:00

This morning I co-led a second November bird walk on Lake Creek Trail. Shirley LaVergne organized and co-led a Beginners Bird Walk for our local Travis Audubon Society. 8 people participated and we spent over 3 hours on just half a mile of the trail between the Braes Valley parking lot and the footbridge. Despite conditions that turned cold and windy, we found 37 species of birds. Here are some highlights...

A Blue-headed Vireo made an early appearance near the parking lot. I played a recording to lure it back, and it flew in right over us so that everyone in the group got a good look at this dapper winter-resident species.

Yellow-rumped Warblers were quite numerous, moving between trees in groups of 5 to 10. Sometimes you could look up into the tree canopy and see small birds moving in almost your complete field of view, and most of them were these newly returned winter warblers. Other species were quite active as well. At any time during the walk you could hear or see at least 2 of these species in addition to the Yellow-rumps: Northern Cardinal, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Blue Jay, Northern Mockingbird, Carolina Wren, Orange-crowned Warbler.

We had good luck with hawks. First a Sharp-shinned Hawk flew over us. Later 2 Cooper's Hawks flew over us vocalizing, and we watched a flock of European Starlings fly near them and group tightly together like a school of small fish near a shark. Near the footbridge a Red-shouldered Hawk was perched on a wire over the creek and let us get pretty good looks at it before flying off. I got this mediocre photo:

On our way back Shirley found a Hermit Thrush and, using a recording again, we were able to lure it and a second thrush out into the open briefly. Most folks got decent looks at this often hard to see winter-resident species.

My favorite bird of the morning was a little later. While we were searching through a large mixed flock of mostly Yellow-rumped Warblers, a single bright male Pine Warbler came into view. This winter-resident warbler is much less common than Yellow-rumped and Orange-crowned, and I think it was just my third record of this species in the neighborhood! I got one decent photo:

What a fun morning!

I'll do some shameless self-promoting now. If you enjoy my blog and maybe even consider it your favorite "Hyperlocal/Neighborhood Blog", please nominate it in that category for the Austin Blogger Awards. Thanks!

Tuesday Morning Expectations

2010-11-10T21:20:00.000-06:00

Over the years I've learned that when I'm out birding, the fewer expectations I have, the more I enjoy myself. Birds are so mobile and unpredictable that if I go out looking for 1 or 2 target species I usually don't find them, and then I feel disappointed. I know this intellectually, but it's one of those lessons I have to re-learn every now and then for it to sink into my emotions. Yesterday (Tuesday) morning was a good example. When I led my neighborhood bird walk on Sunday, there was a stretch of tall grasses by the creek that was loaded with native sparrows. Native sparrows are mostly just in the neighborhood during the winter. I hadn't seen very many yet this season so I was excited to find all these birds. But sparrows are hard to see. They pop up from the grass briefly and pop back down. Or they pop up and fly further away out of view. Trying to see them can be discouraging to beginners and first-time birders, who I try to cater to on my bird walks. So I didn't spend much sifting through these small obscure birds with my group.

But I took yesterday off and returned by myself to this stretch of tall grass to really do some serious sparrow'ing! I could re-find that Grasshopper Sparrow and get a better photo! Maybe there'd be a Le Conte's Sparrow! Who knows what I'd find hidden in the tall grass! (Click below to continue...)

Well actually, it was kind of dead. Where'd the birds go? I missed my chance! So there I was, on vacation, outside during a beautiful morning, on my beloved birding patch... and I was disappointed. I half-heartedly continued upstream out of the tall grass to the last dam on the creek. I spent a few minutes scanning the creek, watching the trees, sullenly thinking this morning was going to be a bust. (It's never a bust, but I often think it's going to be a bust.)

Then I heard a quick jumble of high fluting notes coming from a dense area of trees and brush by the small bridge. What was that? I heard it again. Was that a Winter Wren? I walked over and played a Winter Wren recording on my iPhone. That was it! Soon the bird responded with quick chatters and emerged into view above me. This was a bird I've only seen a handful of times anywhere. I got this mediocre photo.

As I watched and photographed the wren, several Northern Mockingbirds were also responding to the recording, hopping in and out of view, chasing each other around, making noise. Then one of the mockingbirds looked much darker and kind of small. It was a Gray Catbird! They usually just move through our neighborhood during spring and fall migration. And a minute later, boy that mockingbird has a long curved bill... and it's brown. It's a Brown Thrasher! A winter resident in our neighborhood, Brown Thrashers are rarely seen because of their skulking habits and preference for low dense brush. I got this poor photo of the catbird, but missed the thrasher.

So from one spot I saw 3 species of birds that I was very excited to find. What a morning! I wasn't disappointed any more. Why did I even let myself feel disappointed in the first place? Because I had specific expectations. I was set on finding sparrows. And while I focused in on sparrow possibilities, I tuned out the others.

I bird best with no expectations. Expectations narrow my mind. I tend to look for the target birds, and I'm not as receptive to the infinity of other possibilities.

NASWC Bird Walk Report

2010-11-07T16:59:00.000-06:00

14 folks participated in this month's NASWC Bird Walk. For the first time we overflowed the small parking area at the Parmer Village model homes! The weather was wonderful -- cool, clear, and calm. We found 37 species of birds in about 2 and a half hours, and here are some of the highlights:

Sparrows! The tall grass along the creek between our meeting spot and the first dam was loaded with native sparrows. It was difficult to get decent looks at them, but some of us saw several Vesper Sparrows and Savannah Sparrows, the 2 most common winter sparrows along this strip. And a few of us got quick looks at this much less common Grasshopper Sparrow.

In the creek bed we found 3 American Pipits, the first I've seen this season.

Throughout the morning we found several Eastern Phoebes, our only year-round member of the flycatcher family, perched in obvious spots and sometimes singing. Here was one.

By the last dam on the creek Barry Noret played a recording of an Eastern Screech-Owl which brought in several small songbirds because of their instinctive predator mobbing behavior. This included Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Northern Cardinals, a Yellow-rumped Warbler, a Carolina Wren, and half a dozen Blue Jays, squawking up a storm.

In a dead tree over the woods beside the creek 2 Northern Flickers lounged for a bit, allowing us pretty good views from the other side of the water. And when we entered these woods we got great looks at a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker in an elm tree we walked underneath. These are 2 woodpecker species we only see here in the winter. Here's a great photo Gracen Duffield got of most of us just before we found the sapsucker. (I'm the fat guy with the beard in the middle.)

(Here are more of Gracen's photos from this morning. Thanks Gracen!)

In these woods we heard a few White-throated Sparrows and got fleeting glimpses of them. But it wasn't until we were further down the trail that we got a great look at a beautiful singing male. This was my favorite bird of the morning, and the first White-throated Sparrow I've seen this season. This bird sang for us and stayed perched in a visible spot for several minutes, allowing everyone in the group to see and hear him.

On our way back we encountered 2 female Lesser Goldfinches feeding on sunflower seeds. And Gracen got this great photo of one:

As we got back to the cars a Red-tailed Hawk flew over, completing a very enjoyable morning of birding with friends and neighbors. Thanks for joining me!

More Winter Birds

2010-11-01T20:42:00.000-05:00

I spent almost 4 hours Sunday morning birding the neighborhood. It was absolutely clear and beautiful. I think bird activity slows down pretty fast when conditions are so completely clear, and there's a big swing in temperature between dawn and noon. I left the house just before 8:00 and things seemed significantly slower by 9:30. It almost wasn't worth looking for birds by 10:30. Most of the interesting birds I saw were during the first hour and a half. Right across the street from my house I encountered a large mixed-species foraging flock that had many Carolina Chickadees, a few Black-crested Titmice, many Ruby-crowned Kinglets, one Orange-crowned Warbler, and one male Black-throated Green Warbler, high in the canopy. At the corner of Stillforest and Chester Forest I found a single immature Yellow-bellied Sapsucker working on a row of holes high up in an elm. These woodpeckers only occur here in the winter and this was the first one I've seen this season. I got this poor photo of it.

This morning was the first time I've seen significant numbers of some of our common winter birds...
I counted 18 Ruby-crowned Kinglets and 7 Orange-crowned Warblers, mostly along Broadmeade, Stillforest, and Meadowheath. I also counted 7 Yellow-rumped Warblers along Lake Creek Trail. These winter warblers prefer more riparian habitat so I usually see more along the trail than among our houses. There was lots of activity by the Lake Creek Trail footbridge, and that's where I got this photo of an Orange-crowned Warbler.

It seems like all over the state, including in central Texas, birders are reporting Golden-crowned Kinglets, Brown Creepers, and Red-breasted Nuthatches right now. Unfortunately I didn't see any of these yesterday. I usually record a few Golden-crowned Kinglets and Brown Creepers in the neighborhood each winter, but Red-breasted Nuthatch would be a first. I'll have to keep looking!

3 Common Animals

2010-10-25T21:47:00.001-05:00

Sunday morning I spent about 2 and a half hours birding Lake Creek Trail starting at Parmer Village. I hadn't realized that it had been over a month since I've birded this part of the trail. Last time was right after the flood. I started out by the Parmer Lane bridge and saw that most of the old cattails are dead (probably from the high water) but new ones are growing in. I played recordings of some of the marsh birds I've found here in the winter but the only one I saw or heard was a single male Common Yellowthroat in the reeds. Overall it was a breezy and quiet morning, but I was treated to 3 views of 3 common but beautiful animals we have here.

Northern Mockingbirds were particularly numerous yesterday. I counted 19 while I was out and on my way upstream from the bridge 3 or 4 were in some Rattlebush along side the creek bed. I was able to take 1 photo before they flew away and it ended up coming out quite nice. I like the variety of colors the seed pods are right now, and the bushes haven't lost their leaves yet.

Continuing my way upstream I crossed the last dam and birded the woods between the creek and Anderson Mill Road. The only birds I found were a couple Eastern Phoebes but by a smaller drainage that flows in the the creek I found 2 Raccoons. Of course these animals are extremely common, and I wasn't too happy last year when one got into my attic. But I sure did enjoy watching this pair by the creek. I got this photo of one of them.

I made my way back to the creek and across the dam to the patch of woods on the other side. Again, things were mostly quiet except for a Ruby-crowned Kinglet and a couple House Wrens. But I found 2 Monarch Butterflies finding some shelter from the wind and I got this photo of one of them. Monarch Butterflies are migratory and these were making their way south to Mexico.

Just 34 minutes

2010-10-17T10:18:00.000-05:00

In extreme contrast to last weekend's Big Sit, this weekend I only spent 34 minutes birding the neighborhood. I sat in the backyard this morning and watched and listened with my notepad and a cup of coffee. Even birding for such a short amount of time puts me into a better mood, widening my perspective and calming my thoughts. The highlight was when half a dozen perched White-winged Doves noisily exploded into flight because a Sharp-shinned Hawk flew over them. The hawk flew right over me too, and I didn't need my binoculars to see the long squared off tail, the fast and powerful wingbeats from short rounded wings, and the relatively small head with just a hint of a black cap. The view I got was very similar to this photo I took of a Sharp-shinned Hawk back in February of 2009.

It's funny to me that the doves were so scared even though this hawk is almost exactly the same size as they are, maybe even a little bit smaller. But Sharp-shinned Hawks look almost exactly like the larger Cooper's Hawks, and both specialize in hunting other birds. So I guess if I was a White-winged Dove I wouldn't have taken any chances either!

Big Sit Results

2010-10-11T15:40:00.004-05:00

In stark contrast to last year, we had beautiful weather all day long for this year's Big Sit yesterday. In the morning we had partial cloud cover and a nice breeze. The afternoon was warm and clear. 5 folks joined me, mostly in the morning, and in 1 day from 1 spot we ended up observing 50 species of birds, 5 more than last year. Here are some highlights...

When I arrived at our Big Sit circle just after 6:00 AM, the sky was clear and full of stars. It wasn't like being out in the country, but there were more stars visible than I expected for an urban area and I was even able to see 2 satellites. At 6:09 I heard the distant haunting song of an Eastern Screech-Owl. The bird list had begun! As the sky gradually brightened a few bats were silently flying over the water and a single Common Nighthawk made a low pass over me and across the creek.

At about 7:30 we heard a rattle and saw this female Belted Kingfisher fly over the water and perch nearby. It stayed with us through most of the morning and we got to watch it make several dives into the water and catch and eat one small sunfish.

All day long 7 female Blue-winged Teal stayed inconspicuously in a shallow part of the pond in front of our Big Sit circle. Now and then something would scare them and they'd fly downstream, right in front of us, and then disappear down the creek. But a few minutes later they'd be back, returning to the same spot. I got this photo of 6 of them returning. Also all day long near the ducks were anywhere from 5 to 50 Least Sandpiper and 1 Spotted Sandpiper.

The bird activity slowed down through the middle and late morning. It had been over an hour since we'd seen any new species when at about 11:30 a flock of 15 birds in V formation flew over us headed south. They were White-faced Ibis, and I got this photo of them showing their distinctive long curved bills. I had never seen this species in the neighborhood before, so it brought my neighborhood bird list up to 202 species!

In the winter the neighborhood has 2 kinds of hawk in the accipiter family: Cooper's Hawk and Sharp-shinned Hawk. They look very similar and both specialize in hunting other birds on the wing through the dense forest canopy. During the Big Sit we were treated to seeing both species several times throughout the day. The most exciting was at about 6:30 PM when only Barry Noret and I were left observing. Looking downstream we saw a White-winged Dove being chased by an adult Cooper's Hawk. They were heading straight towards us. The hawk took the dove down and followed it out of sight behind a small dam. We watched for a bit and the hawk left empty-handed. It returned after a few minutes and we could see it hopping around below the dam but could not see what it was doing, and there was no sign of the other bird. Finally it left again without carrying anything. I walked over to check it out and only found a small tuft of feathers. A little later Barry checked it out and found the dove hidden in a small bush. It flew off in the opposite direction. Wow, what a lucky bird!

To me, this is the kind of thing that makes something like the Big Sit worth the effort. Wildlife interactions like this happen all the time, but to see them yourself you have to spend enough time outdoors watching and listening. Spending a day in one spot also shows you first-hand which species are present and active all day long, which species only appear in the mornings or evenings, and which species make only single appearances or are conspicuously absent. Plus there's just something satisfying and reflective about watching a day happen, from dawn to dusk.

Many thanks to everyone who joined me for the Birding on Broadmeade Big Sit this year: Barry Noret (who stayed all day long), Gloria Blagg, Stu Wilson, Gracen Duffield, and Cheryl Heinsohn. Here are some of us in a photo Gracen took: (from left to right, Gloria, Barry, me, and Stu)

Barry and I finally called it quits at about 7:30 PM as we showed a neighborhood kid the moons of Jupiter through my spotting scope. As we packed up our stuff and walked back to our cars we heard an Eastern Screech-Owl again. It was a nice book-end to our day. There was just too much to include in a single blog post, so here are more photos with comments about other notable things we saw.

Here's the list of birds we recorded, in the order we first observed each species. I included the time as well to show how active the early morning is compared to other parts of the day.

6:09 AM - Eastern Screech-Owl
6:17 AM - Killdeer
6:50 AM - Northern Mockingbird
6:59 AM - Northern Cardinal
6:59 AM - Great Blue Heron
6:59 AM - Carolina Wren
7:01 AM - Blue Jay
7:04 AM - Common Nighthawk
7:08 AM - Blue-winged Teal
7:08 AM - White-winged Dove
7:10 AM - Least Sandpiper
7:17 AM - Eastern Phoebe
7:19 AM - Common Grackle
7:23 AM - Great Egret
7:23 AM - European Starling
7:27 AM - Cooper's Hawk
7:28 AM - Belted Kingfisher
7:31 AM - Mourning Dove
7:33 AM - Chimney Swift
7:36 AM - American Crow
7:38 AM - Spotted Sandpiper
7:39 AM - Great-tailed Grackle
7:42 AM - Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
7:44 AM - House Wren
7:46 AM - Lesser Goldfinch
7:46 AM - American Robin
7:59 AM - Brown Thrasher
8:02 AM - Indigo Bunting
8:02 AM - Ruby-crowned Kinglet
8:11 AM - Cave Swallow
8:18 AM - Barn Swallow
8:35 AM - Downy Woodpecker
8:53 AM - Red-shouldered Hawk
8:58 AM - Red-bellied Woodpecker
9:00 AM - Lincoln's Sparrow
9:00 AM - Snowy Egret
9:15 AM - Lark Sparrow
9:19 AM - House Sparrow
9:30 AM - Orange-crowned Warbler
9:40 AM - Carolina Chickadee
9:46 AM - House Finch
9:47 AM - Sharp-shinned Hawk
9:52 AM - Turkey Vulture
9:56 AM - American Kestrel
10:14 AM - Black Vulture
10:20 AM - Northern Flicker
11:35 AM - White-faced Ibis
12:35 PM - Rock Pigeon
1:42 PM - Wilson's Snipe
5:30 PM - Loggerhead Shrike

The Big Sit is this Sunday, Oct 10!

2010-10-05T00:30:00.001-05:00

The Big Sit is coming up on Sunday, October 10 and this year I'll be participating again and representing our neighborhood. What is it? The Big Sit is an annual birding event to see how many species of birds you can see or hear from one spot in one day. The spot is a stationary circle 17 feet across, and you have to see or hear all the birds from inside that circle. My circle is going to be on Lake Creek Trail at a bend in the creek by the last dam downstream of the T&C playing fields. The picture above shows the exact spot I picked and clicking on it will take you to a Google map.

Picking the circle is very important. The more kinds of bird habitat you can see from your circle, the more species of birds are possible. My spot has good views of shallow water and deep water, woods, grassland, and open sky. Since I've been birding here I've recorded 91 species of birds just in October, so I'm hoping to see 60 species for the Big Sit, and maybe even 70! (Last year, despite miserable rainy conditions most of the day, we recorded 45 species.)

People all over the country are registering their circles on the Bird Watcher's Digest web site, and so far Texas has the most, including my circle (named "Birding on Broadmeade" of course). You can see them all here. If you'd like to join me, come on out! Stay as long or short as you like. I'll try to be there all day, starting a half hour before dawn to hear owls. Last year I called it quits at 5:00 PM but hopefully this year the weather will be nicer and I'll hold out longer. To get there, just drive to the end of Saddlebrook Trail and park. The sidewalk goes down to the creek and my circle.

A Few Winter Birds

2010-10-02T19:44:00.000-05:00

I spent about 3 hours birding the neighborhood this morning. The weather was cool and clear, starting in the 60's and getting into the mid-70's by the time I was done. Wow, it was nice! The birding was pretty slow and I only found 29 species. But a few of those were birds that we only see here in the winter, and this morning was the first time I've seen them here since last winter. For me this is one of the most satisfying and comforting aspects of birding. I love seeing seasonal birds return. It's like seeing old friends again, and it's vibrant, moving evidence of the changing seasons.

Walking down Stillforest, I heard the quiet typewriter-like call of Ruby-crowned Kinglets a few times. I finally saw one near Meadowheath. These small greenish birds with big white eye-rings and wing-bars are probably our most common winter-resident songbird in the trees around our houses. (I encourage you to learn their call and then listen for it on the cold mornings coming soon. Listen to the 6th sound, "jit and jidit calls NY" here.) I didn't get a picture of one this morning, but here's one I photographed in the neighborhood back in 2008.

Later on the hike and bike trail near Braes Valley I found the first 2 House Wrens I've seen here since last winter. These are winter residents in our neighborhood that look very similar to our year-round wrens (Bewick's and Carolina) but they do not have the white line over their eye. Besides their characteristic wren shape and posture, they are rather nondescript birds and often stay hidden in low thick brush. But their animated calls and scolds make up for their plain appearance.

On my way back at the footbridge near the end of Meadowheath I heard a familiar chip note I couldn't quite place at first. Then I realized it was probably a Lincoln's Sparrow, and I followed the sound until I got a few quick looks at the bird and confirmed that's what it was. In our neighborhood, most sparrows (besides the ubiquitous House Sparrow) are only here in the winter, and prefer the low dense brush you can find along the creek. Lincoln's Sparrow is usually the most common of these. This was the first winter sparrow I've seen here this fall, and I got this poor photo of it. Welcome back!

Longear Sunfish

2010-09-28T20:41:00.000-05:00

I was out of town last weekend so I was unable to bird the neighborhood. But a couple weeks ago I took this photo of another kind of colorful wildlife we have. A few days after the flood I found this beautiful male Longear Sunfish in the creek near the last dam. I was happy to see that all the fish weren't swept away. In fact, the water was much clearer than usual and it was fun to admire the colors on this fish. Red eye, blue lips, bright orange body -- wow!

This male was one of several defending a cleared circle on the bottom where his mate had laid her eggs. Whenever another fish came too close he'd chase it away and then return to the center of his circle. I'd love to learn more about the breeding schedule of the fish on our creek. I would have expected it to be too late to see male fish defending nests. In this photo I tried to show these fish nests. If you click on it you can see where I marked each nest on the Flickr page.

Now that the weather has finally turned I can't wait to get out in the neighborhood again!

Yard Birding

2010-09-18T16:02:00.000-05:00

I drank way too much wine with my neighbors last night at our monthly wine club, so this morning I decided to sleep in a bit and stay home. I spent an hour and a half birding my yard starting at about 7:30. There were no huge surprises, but I found 21 species of birds and enjoyed a beautiful cool and partly cloudy morning in the yard. Besides most of the usual year-round resident species like Carolina Chickadee, Black-crested Titmouse, Carolina Wren, Bewick's Wren, Northern Cardinal, European Starling, and White-winged Dove, I got some great looks at (and a poor photo of) this bright Yellow Warbler, which is one of the most common fall migrating warblers in central Texas.

I also heard and finally saw a Great Crested Flycatcher in the front yard, a species that summers in our neighborhood. At this time of year I assume the bird I saw was passing through on its way south.

Another common neighborhood summer resident species I saw this morning was the Chimney Swift. These neat little dark grey (almost black) birds can be found in the open sky hunting flying insects. They make a distinctive twittering call which will always be linked with bright summer days in my mind. The shape of this bird in the air is very simple and clean. Since this bird often flies without its tail spread, its body looks like a long slender oval. Its wings are simple curved sickles coming off both sides. The old Peterson field guides say a Chimney Swift looks like "a cigar with wings". Here's one that flew over my house today.

Chimney Swifts fly around all day, rarely or never perching until they roost at night. Their roosting and nesting sites were originally hollow tree trunks in the old-growth forests of the eastern United States. As these hollow trees became scarcer with the loss of the forests, these birds made a very interesting adaptation. They started using the chimneys of houses and other buildings built by European settlers. It's thought that their population actually grew from this adaptation. But as old chimneys eventually deteriorate and are replaced by newer ones that are capped or are otherwise unsuitable for these birds, their population has been declining.

There are some very interesting efforts to provide more nesting and roosting sites for Chimney Swifts. Small chimney-like towers can be built just for these birds. (Pat Powers on Stillforest built one of these towers in his backyard, with a video camera inside!) Also many existing chimneys on regular houses can be made suitable for use by these birds simply be uncapping them. More information is available at ChimneySwifts.org.

By now these birds are heading south and can be found in larger groups up in the sky. Listen for them and try to find some of these neat little birds chattering and wheeling around up there!

Post-flood Birding

2010-09-12T18:24:00.000-05:00

I spent 3 hours on Lake Creek Trail this morning, starting at the Parmer Village model homes, and I found 42 species of birds. This was the first time I'd been out on the trail since the heavy rains Tuesday night (9/7/2010) that flooded the creek and several houses in the neighborhood. Here's a trash line a little uphill from the last dam. From it I estimate the top of the dam must have been under 4-5 feet of water. One neighbor whose house flooded said it hadn't rained that much since 1984. There was lots of flattened grass, one tree I found pushed over, and more water in the creek bed by the Parmer Lane bridge than I've ever seen. Here's a photo Barry Noret took on Wednesday morning, showing how high the water still was.

Photo by Barry Noret

But today this dam was easily crossable. In the woods around the drainage creek that parallels Saddlebrook Trail I had the most luck finding fall migrating birds. As I was talking to a neighbor on the sidewalk I watched 2 Great Crested Flycatchers and a Yellow Warbler fly into these woods. Following them I got this photo of one of the flycatchers.

I spent about an hour in those woods and had a great time watching 1 loosely associated mixed species flock of songbirds in the tree canopy. I found a Bell's Vireo, Warbling Vireo, and Blue Headed Vireo in that flock, as well as more Yellow Warblers, Wilson's Warblers, and 1 beautiful male Black-throated Green Warbler. Here's a poor photo I got of the Black-throated Green.

Later on the trail through the playing fields I got to listen to the same trombone player we heard last week as I found 4 or 5 Baltimore Orioles and another Yellow Warbler. I was unable to get a decent photo of any of the orioles. They really are sneaky when the pass through central Texas during spring and fall migration, usually staying behind layers of foliage and out of view. But I did get this photo of the Yellow Warbler.

Further upstream in the creek bed I checked for shorebirds and found Least Sandpipers, Solitary Sandpipers, and of course Killdeer. I also found 3 Inca Doves, our smallest and least common species of dove in the neighborhood. They have ann elegant scaly appearance and have reddish brown wing patches visible when they fly. This one let me get pretty close.

NASWC Bird Walk

2010-09-06T13:45:00.000-05:00

12 folks participated in the September NASWC Bird Walk yesterday morning. It was 70 degrees when we started at 7:30 and got into the low 80s when we finished at around 10:00. Even though there was little or no wind and we got a little warm towards the end, it was nothing like the heat of the past few weeks. The birding was a bit slow, but we did manage to find a few south-bound migrants and other interesting things -- about 30 species of birds altogether. I was disappointed that after seeing hundreds of Mississippi Kites passing over on Saturday morning, not one was to be found on Sunday. But reports from other birders in central Texas reflected similar experiences. There was a big push of these hawks through our area on Friday and Saturday, and on Sunday they were gone! Here are highlights from the walk on Sunday.

Near the Lake Creek Trail parking lot we got to see 3 or 4 female Black-chinned Hummingbirds feeding on what I think was Purple Bindweed (Ipomoea trichocarpa). A few of us got to see a male Ruby-throated Hummingbird as well. And the Purple Bindweed was quite beautiful and all over the place!

Along the trail we saw 2 Yellow Warblers, 2 Red-bellied Woodpeckers, heard a White-eyed Vireo, and heard and got a few glimpses of Baltimore Orioles. On the footbridge a few of us got a brief look at a Bell's Vireo and a possible female or juvenile Painted Bunting. Along the creek through the playing fields we found an Eastern Phoebe and Sukumar Veena got this photo of it, showing its upright flycatcher posture, and its dusky face and light breast.

Eastern Phoebe by Sukumar Veena

Also in the creek bed we found several Least Sandpipers and a single Solitary Sandpiper. Here's a photos I got of the Solitary Sandpiper, showing its white eye-ring.

There were some very interesting tiny damsel flies over the water, a few of which had bright green thoraxes with the tip of their tails electric blue. Learning these beautiful insects is on my to-do list! On our way back we got to see about a dozen Barn Swallows lined up on the power lines over the creek, with a few Cave Swallows mixed in making a good opportunity for comparison.

Back across the footbridge on the trail we stopped to look at this bright hot-pink dragonfly which was a Roseate Skimmer.

By this time we had been hearing slow, peaceful, sliding notes from a trombone drifting through the air. It fit our slow easy pace quite well and was a little bit surreal. We encountered the trombone player practicing on a bench and complimented him on his playing. It was a fun and unexpected end to our walk. Gracen Duffield took this great photo of most of the group and I think you can see a little giddiness the trombone playing triggered in us!

I'm the fat nerdy looking guy with a beard on the far right. And behind me you can just see the trombone player.

A Great Morning with Kites

2010-09-04T21:36:00.000-05:00

This morning was special. After months of birding in t-shirt-soaking weather, today when I started birding at the Parmer Village model homes it was 70 degrees. It got into the low 80s by the time I was done and I found 42 species of birds. Fall migrants were prevalent! By the Parmer Lane bridge several small groups of Eastern Kingbirds flew by, and I found 1 Wilson's Warbler. Upstream by the first dam in the creek there was a mixed flock of birds feeding on seeds in the tall vegetation along side the trail. About half of them were Dickcissels. I got this poor photo of 2 of them that temporarily flew to the top of a tree.

Mixed in with the Dickcissels were 1 Yellow Warbler and 1 Clay-colored Sparrow, the first native sparrow I've seen in the neighborhood this fall. Closer to the creek a very small bird flew out of the woods, across the creek bed, and disappeared into the trees on the other side. It was mostly black with red highlights, and could only have been a male American Redstart. A few moments later several larger birds with yellow-orange tails flew across in the same direction. Hearing their call notes and finally getting quick looks at a couple of them, I realized they were Baltimore Orioles.

A few minutes later I saw a small raptor high in the sky and identified it as a Mississippi Kite. This was the first of 431 Mississippi Kites I counted that passed over me from about 8:45 until 9:30. I counted four hundred and thirty one hawks this morning. Mississippi Kites are one of a few species of raptors that migrate in large flocks. Groups of anywhere from 5 or 10 to 60 or 70 quietly passed overhead on their way south. It was amazing to see. Sometimes one would alter its course to catch a dragonfly in its talons and then eat it on the wing. Mississippi Kites breed in many of the southern states but their winter range is largely unknown. Only a few winter observations have been recorded in Argentina and Paraguay. I got a few photos, but they don't really convey what it's like to see these birds passing through.

Across the creek near Saddlebrook Trail I went into the woods to look for more songbird migrants. By the small creek that drains from Anderson Mill Road I was pishing and suddenly realized 3 first-year Mourning Warblers were 10-12 feet in front of me, foraging and responding to my pishes. I got this photo, much better than the one I posted here last week.

In the past few years Labor Day weekend has been a great birding weekend in the Austin area. It looks like this year is no exception. And it was such a treat to find these birds in such cool weather this morning. I hope it lasts!

Trees and a Butterfly

2010-09-01T06:00:00.001-05:00

Here are a couple non-bird photos I took last weekend while I was out in the neighborhood on Sunday morning. The first was on Stillforest and shows what a lush treescape (I just invented a new word) we have here in Forest North Estates.

And this next one is an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly that was feeding on Purple Bindweed (I believe) near the Lake Creek Trail parking lot. Watching this large insect elegantly glide around was a real treat.

4 Warblers

2010-08-29T17:40:00.000-05:00

Starting at about 7:30 I spent 3 and a half hours birding the neighborhood this morning. Fall migration is going strong! Out of the 45 species I found, 11 were south-bound migrants. On Broadmeade, just a little ways from my house I found a mixed species foraging flock that included a female Wilson's Warbler, a Yellow Warbler, and 1 or 2 other warblers that stayed too hidden for me to identify. Making my way down Stillforest I found at least 2 and maybe 3 Black-throated Green Warblers. They were first year birds, with extra bright yellow faces and without the black throats. I got this poor photo of one of them.

The rest of the way down Stillforest and then down Meadowheath mostly yielded resident birds except for a lone Blue-gray Gnatcatcher and a quick glimpse of a Summer Tanager.

At the T&C playing fields I turned left and crossed the footbridge onto Lake Creek Trail. It seemed slow at first, but there were birds hidden in the tall dense Johnson Grass and Giant Ragweed between the trail and the creek. I caught a few glimpses of them flitting in and out and heard a few unfamiliar chip notes, so I slowed down and staked out a spot. I made a guess at a chip note I was hearing and played a recording of a Mourning Warbler on my iPhone. Bingo! A first year bird responded and gave me a few good looks at it before it disappeared back into the brush. Mourning Warblers breed in the boreal forests of southern Canada and only pass through Texas during migration. They are often hard to see because they prefer low dense brush, and the first year birds are tricky to identify.

A minute later another bird I'd only glimpsed earlier finally emerged and flew right by my head across the trail. It was a Bell's Vireo. Like Mourning Warblers, this species also prefers low, thick vegetation. It breeds in Texas but I've only seen it in the neighborhood a handful of times, only during spring or fall migration. I also found a Painted Bunting. It was an all green bird, which means it's either a female or first-year male.

Near the parking lot I went into the tall grass by a group of willow trees and was able to find another first year Mourning Warbler. Although inconspicuous, this is actually one of the more common spring and fall migrating warblers you can find in the Austin area. It's one of the few neotropical migrant species that might actually be benefitting from humans since the habitat it prefers occurs in newly disturbed meadows and edges of forests. This time I was able to get one very poor photo. You can barely make out the broken eye-ring and yellowish throat that are diagnostic.

It was a fun morning! I was able to spend lots of time completely tuned-in to faint chip notes and tiny movements through the plants. When I do that there's not much else going on in my brain, and that's one of the things I love about birding.

A Few Fall Migrants

2010-08-21T14:29:00.000-05:00

I had been looking forward to birding the neighborhood for the first time in a couple weeks but when my alarm went off this morning my enthusiasm suddenly waned. So I hit snooze a few times and finally got up and got out the door birding at 8:00. I'm glad I did! Right across the street from my house I heard an unfamiliar chip note. I tracked it down and finally got a short look at a beautiful male Black-throated Green Warbler, the first south-bound fall migrating warbler I've seen this year. What a great way to start the morning!

Making my way down Stillforest and Meadowheath yielded only the usual resident species. A couple times I thought I heard the "whit!" call of a Least Flycatcher but I couldn't be sure. At Lake Creek Trail footbridge I found a female Summer Tanager, another fall migrant. This species breeds in central Texas, but I have only seen them in the neighborhood when they're migrating. I got this poor photo, but you can see the large bulbous bill and bright orange-yellow color.

On the other side of the bridge this female hummingbird was catching small insects out of the air. It's easy to forget that they eat bugs and don't exclusively drink nectar and sugar water.

Near the end of Holbrook Street I found this Wheel Bug in the tall grass. It's actually a predator that catches and eats other bugs, and it's one of the largest insects in the Hemiptera order.

On my way back, crossing the footbridge again, I decided to head downstream and look for migrating shorebirds in the creek bed. In the middle of the playing fields I found about 50 Least Sandpiper and got this photo of one of them.

Further downstream I found more Least Sandpiper, 4 Solitary Sandpiper, and 1 Spotted Sandpiper. The Least Sandpipers will be the tiniest bird on our creek all winter long. The other 2 species might be here through the winter as well, but it much smaller numbers. And the birds I saw today were probably all just passing through on their way south.

On my way back in a small group of trees by one of the parking lots I heard unfamiliar chip notes again and this time found 3 Yellow Warblers. These bright yellow birds are also on their way south.

Winter on my Mind

2010-08-16T20:34:00.000-05:00

I just got back from a week-long trip to western Montana to visit my relatives, see as many birds as I could, and temporarily escape the August central Texas heat. (I posted some photos from my trip here.) One of the things I love about birding in Montana in the summer is getting to see some familiar birds that we only see in the neighborhood during the winter. Some of these are Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Yellow-rumped Warblers, American Goldfinches, Vesper Sparrows, Lincoln's Sparrows, Song Sparrows, and Dark-eyed Juncos. Here's a photo I took of a Dark-eyed Junco in our neighborhood in late January, 2009:

And here's one I found in Montana last week, eating a grasshopper:

I think the ones we get in Austin are a subspecies called "Slate-colored" while the Montana birds are a subspecies called "Oregon".

Despite the hot temperatures, birds are already headed south. I hope to get back out into the neighborhood this weekend and see what I can find!

NASWC Bird Walk

2010-08-01T16:58:00.001-05:00

11 folks participated in the August NASWC Bird Walk this morning. I was so impressed that so many people showed up on such a hot morning at a time of year when the birding is relatively slow. When we met at the Parmer Village model homes at 7:30 the sun was already blazing and there was almost no wind. 2 hours later a pleasant breeze was blowing and we had tallied 31 species of birds, including the first south-bound fall migrants I've seen in the neighborhood this summer. Here are the highlights:

A Red-tailed Hawk flew right over us before we even started walking.
This adult Green Heron was at the edge of the Parmer Village drainage pond and didn't mind us viewing it from multiple angles as we started walking down the trail. We saw 2 more juvenile Green Herons this morning as well.

Besides the Green Herons, we saw a Great Egret, Great Blue Heron, and 2 Snowy Egrets as well. The active hunting style of the Snowy Egrets was fun to watch.
Dragonflies were all over the place, and near the last dam on the creek we got a close look at this male Common Whitetail.

Nearby Bill Dodd found this worn Common Buckeye butterfly.

At the edge of the T&C playing fields a couple of us got a brief look at a female or first-year male Painted Bunting.
There were many Purple Martins in the air along the trail this morning, and around the full-size baseball field we saw 40 or 50 perched on the light posts.
In the creek bed nearby I was thrilled to find about 80 Least Sandpipers. You can find these migratory birds on our creek almost all year long. These were the first I've seen in the neighborhood since their short yearly absence during June and part of July.
As we watched the sandpipers we found the first south-bound migrating songbird I've seen this summer -- a first-year male Orchard Oriole.

Purple Martins

2010-07-26T21:27:00.000-05:00

I was visiting family and birding down on the coast this weekend, so I didn't get a chance to get out in the neighborhood. But on my way to the grocery store tonight I saw this small gathering of Purple Martins near Morris Road and Anderson Mill Road (behind the new fitness center). On my way back I stopped and got this photo. After nesting is done Purple Martins gather in communal roosts that can number in the hundreds of thousands. I only counted 45 birds here, but Austin has one of these giant roosts on the north side of Highland Mall. I was there a couple weeks ago and got these photos and videos. It's an amazing spectacle that's impossible to truly appreciate from photos, and it's only here for a few more weeks until the birds head south.

A Quiet Morning

2010-07-18T15:58:00.000-05:00

I spent about 3 hours birding the neighborhood this morning. Walking down Stillforest between 7:00 and 7:30 was a rare treat. The birds were just the summer residents that I expected. But it was so quiet! Not one car drove down the street and no one was out mowing or edging their lawn. No dogs barked at me and I met only one other person out walking. My footsteps were quite audible, and more than once I stopped and just enjoyed hearing the mix of birdsong from White-winged Dove, Northern Cardinal, Carolina Wren, Bewick's Wren, American Robin, Northern Mockingbird, and Carolina Chickadee. For only a few minutes, right in our own suburban neighborhood, nothing but these natural sounds filled my ears and cleared my mind.

The birds got a little more interesting when I got to Lake Creek Trail. There were 2 juvenile Red-bellied Woodpeckers following an adult around. One of the juveniles was making a sound I rarely hear this species make. You can listen to it on the Audubon Guides web site here. It's call #6, labelled "woika-woika (interaction call)". (It's similar to the sound Northern Flickers make that gives them their name.) I got this photo of one of the juveniles. You can see that it doesn't have any red on its head or belly yet.

The only herons or egrets I saw on the creek were Green Herons until I checked the water's edge just downstream of the playing fields. In a single tree were 1 Great Egret, 1 Great Blue Heron, and 7 Snowy Egrets. Here they are. (If you click on the photo you can see the Flickr Notes I added to label each species.)

A little further downstream I found 3 Softshell Turtles hauled out on a rock in the creek bed. The largest was probably 1.5 feet long. These turtles are usually quite wary and slide into the water as soon as they see me. But they let me get close enough to take the photo below. I'm guessing these are Spiny Softshell Turtles but I don't know.

Just like last weekend, I heard the constant cry of a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk that was perched on a dead tree near the last dam. But today it let me get close enough for this photo. Shortly after I took it the bird was joined by another juvenile Red-tailed Hawk. I assume they are siblings.

More Juvenile Birds

2010-07-11T19:09:00.000-05:00

I spent a little over 3 hours birding the neighborhood this morning. Unlike yesterday, today the sun was out early so I was thankful for a light breeze that made things a bit more comfortable. It's a relatively slow time of year to be birding but I found a few interesting things anyway. There are still lots of juvenile birds around, hatched this season and finding their way on their own. I got some decent photos of 2 of them as well as some adult birds and other wildlife.

On Lake Creek Trail near the footbridge I was watching 2 juvenile White-eyed Vireos foraging. They were duller than adults and hadn't gotten their white eyes yet. There were also Eastern Phoebes and a Great Crested Flycatcher nearby. 2 hummingbirds appeared, chasing each other around, and I got this photo of one of them when it briefly perched. You can see just a few of the purple iridescent throat feathers on this bird, which tells me it's a Black-chinned Hummingbird. It's likely both this hummingbird and the vireos are from nests right in this patch of woods.

On the other side of the playing fields at the water's edge I found one of the frogs that you can hear on the creek almost all the time. The tiny Blanchard's Cricket Frog makes a call that sounds like two pebbles smacking together over and over. It's a common sound along the trail, but I don't often get to see who's making it. Here's the photo I got.

While photographing the cricked frog I was hearing a loud squeal repeated over and over. I thought it sounded like a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk and I confirmed this when I entered the woods by the last dam and flushed it from its perch on a dead tree. I wonder if it was the offspring of the adult Red-tailed Hawks I often see here.

When I crossed the last dam on the creek I found a juvenile Green Heron hunting in the shallow water right by the path. Often juvenile birds are less wary of people than adult birds, and I was able to get quite close to this heron. On top of its head you can see a few whitish strands left from its nestling plumage, as well as a little of the green color which gives this species its common name.

On my way back I found 3 Bronzed Cowbirds by the large baseball field. This is a pretty reliable spot for finding this species in the summer. Today I got one of the best photos of the male I've ever gotten. The red eye really caught the light and you can see its puffed out neck feathers.

There were 2 other noteworthy bird species I found this morning, only by sound. On Stillforest at about 7:30 a Dickcissel flew over me, making its characteristic rude-sounding flight call. And 3 hours later at Broadmeade and Holbrook, I heard a Broad-winged Hawk repeatedly calling. This was right by a nest this species made a couple summers ago and I believe they continue to breed in the neighborhood.

NASWC Bird Walk

2010-07-04T16:00:00.001-05:00

Today 6 of us spent a humid, but overcast and surprisingly comfortable morning birding Lake Creek Trail for the monthly NASWC Bird Walk. Covering about 1 mile in a little over 2 hours, we found 31 species of birds and some other interesting wildlife. Here are some highlights.

Northern Cardinals and Northern Mockingbirds created an almost constant background of singing. Here's one of the cardinals.
The Mustang Grape vines were heavy with grapes, and 2 of us tasted them. They were reportedly quite sour!
On the creek we found Green Herons, Snowy Egrets, Killdeer, and House Sparrows. Here are 2 great shots of Green Herons taken by Gracen Duffield. The first is an adult and the second is a juvenile, most likely hatched in the neighborhood this summer.
The most interesting bird of the morning was a single Bronzed Cowbird, a summer-resident species that has gradually been expanding its range north from southern Texas over the past decade or 2. We found it by the baseball fields and I got this photo showing its red eye.
We saw several Gulf Coast Toads on the walk, mostly tiny young ones. But we did find a single large adult in the creek bed. The rolling low song of these toads is a common sound on spring and summer nights in our neighborhood.Here's one of the immature toads, barely bigger than a dime, and then the adult.
There were many Barn Swallows, Purple Martins, Chimney Swifts, Cliff Swallows, and Cave Swallows whizzing through the air over the creek bed and playing fields. Several Purple Martins perched right next to us as we stopped at one point, and Gracen got this neat photo of 4 juvenile birds.

Happy Independence Day!

Blackbirds, Sandpiper, Butterflies

2010-06-27T17:35:00.001-05:00

I spent about 2 and a half hours birding Lake Creek Trail this morning, starting at the Parmer Village model homes. A breeze and partial cloud cover made the morning more pleasant than I expected, and I found 35 species of birds. Near the drainage pond and along the creek in more than one spot I found groups of female or immature Red-winged Blackbirds. They mostly stayed in the tall grass and reeds and I only got this poor photo of one of them. These birds were very mobile and the whole flock would move when I got too close. Seeing these mobile groups was a hint that maybe most of their nesting is complete and that these were mostly new birds finding their way around, but that's only a guess.

The most interesting bird of the morning was a single Spotted Sandpiper I found on the creek near the second dam. These are common shorebirds in central Texas almost all year long, but in June most are gone to more northern breeding grounds. For the past few weeks the only shorebirds I've seen on the creek have been Killdeer, so finding this guy was a nice surprise. According to the literature, Spotted Sandpipers have reversed sex rules. The males incubate the eggs and care for the young while the females stake out and defend territories. Unfortunately they have not obvious visual differences, so I don't know if this "guy" was really a guy or a gal!

While Killdeer and Spotted Sandpipers are considered "shorebirds", the larger herons and egrets are considered "wading birds". There were the usual wading birds on the creek this morning, including Great Blue Herons, Snowy Egrets, Green Herons, and Yellow-crowned Night-Herons. I found 2 more unusual members of this group for the neighborhood as well -- 5 Cattle Egret and a single Little Blue Heron.

I covered the entire trail, finally turning around at the Braes Valley parking lot. Near the footbridge where I found the Northern Parula last weekend, I saw 2 interesting looking butterflies feeding on flowers. They were Silver-spotted Skippers, and I managed to get a decent photo of one of them.

Young Birds

2010-06-20T19:14:00.000-05:00

I spent about 3 hours birding the neighborhood this morning. June is a pretty slow month in central Texas, but there are still interesting birds out there to be found if you don't mind getting an early start and doing some sweating. In particular, it's a good time to see some of the results of the breeding season. Newly fledged birds are out and about, often still following their parents and begging for food. This morning I saw some neat young birds and a few other interesting things as well.

On Stillforest in a nice canopy of trees over someone's front yard I found 2 young Green Herons following one of their parents around. It looked like these birds were in the awkward stage of being out of the nest but unable to fly. They could hop around but still depended on their parents to bring them food. Several neighbors have told me stories about having Green Herons nesting in their yards, and sometimes dropping small fish in their driveways!

At the corner of Stillforest and Meadowheath I heard a commotion and saw several birds fly into the same tree. It turned out to be a juvenile Cooper's Hawk being chased by Common Grackles and European Starlings. Cooper's Hawks are year-round residents in our neighborhood, although they are much more common in the winter. They prey mostly on other birds, and they can fly low and fast through dense treetops to chase after them. They like to stay hidden in the canopy, so fleeting glimpses are usually the only looks you get. But the juvenile birds have not learned to be as sneaky as the adults, so they are often easier to see.

The young bird I was most excited to find was on Lake Creek Trail just north of the footbridge. As I crossed the bridge I heard the usual distinctive songs of Northern Cardinals and White-eyed Vireos. One of the vireos was singing right by the edge of the trail where I stood. Then I started hearing another warbler-like chip note. I got my binoculars on this new bird and was surprised to see a juvenile male Northern Parula. This is one of the few members of the extremely colorful and diverse Warbler family that breeds in central Texas. But it's likely this bird did not actually hatch in our neighborhood. Northern Parula's like to build their nests in hanging Spanish Moss, which I've never found here. I got this poor photo of the bird:

Another interesting sight was this small butterfly among the Mexican Hat wildflowers. Can someone identify it for me?

And this large Texas Spiny Lizard posed for me for a minute or two, right on the trail.

I found 43 species of birds this morning. Don't let the summer heat keep you inside!

NASWC Bird Walk

2010-06-06T16:07:00.000-05:00

8 of us met at the Parmer Village model homes this morning for the June NASWC Bird walk. Overcast skies and a refreshing breeze offered some respite from a very warm and humid morning. The birding was slow but we managed to find 30 species of birds. We also enjoyed identifying other animals and plants we found along the trail. It's very satisfying to me that our regular bird walk attendees have knowledge spanning plants and insects as well as birds. Here are some highlights from this morning's walk.

At the beginning and end of the walk we got quick looks at a flying Yellow-billed Cuckoo. Seen perched, this species seems slightly hunched over and inconspicuous. But in flight its elegance and grace stands out.
Several male Red-winged Blackbirds were singing and showing off their red and yellow shoulder patches in the reeds by the Parmer Village drainage pond.
This female White-tailed Deer flushed from the creek bed and ran across to the opposite bank before turning to watch us. It was among a lot of Horsemint -- one of the most numerous wild flowers along the trail right now.
This Blue Dasher Dragonfly was one of several different species we could identify along the creek. Some others were the pink Roseate Skimmers and a possible female Widow Skimmer (which is a beautiful combination of black and gold).
On the creek we saw these 6 species of herons and egrets: Green Heron, Snowy Egret, Little Blue Heron, Great Egret, Great Blue Heron, and Yellow-crowned Night-Heron.
Also on the creek we saw this large turtle walking away from us that turned out to be a River Cooter, distinguished from the much more common Red-eared Sliders here by the vertical yellow stripe on its cheek (instead of a red cheek patch).
Right by this turtle we were thrilled to see a Blotched Water Snake casually swimming downstream.
There were many butterflies out this morning and I got this photo of a Viceroy butterfly on the trail by the T & C soccer fields. Nearby were 2 small Soapberry Hairstreaks.

Hot and Noisy

2010-05-31T17:32:00.001-05:00

I spent a couple hours birding Lake Creek Trail this morning, enduring the heat and enjoying our summer and year-round resident bird species. I did not see any north-bound migrants today, for the first time in 2 or 3 months. The marshy area by the Parmer Lane bridge has fewer species of birds in the summertime, but it seems louder. The cattails are full of nesting Red-winged Blackbirds and Common Grackles making almost constant noise this morning. Both are year-round residents in our neighborhood. I got this photo of a singing Red-winged Blackbird in the reeds.

By the last dam on the creek I got close enough to a Green Heron to get this photo. This is a summer-resident species that hunts on the creek but actually nests in the trees among our houses. I also saw Yellow-crowned Night-Herons, Snowy Egrets, Great Egrets, and a Great Blue Heron on the creek this morning.

It was fun getting some good looks at Yellow-billed Cuckoos in the woods along the creek. This is a summer-resident species that has a very distinctive song but can be very secretive and difficult to actually see. European Starlings seem to already have had a very successful breeding season. I counted 464 on the 1.5 miles of the trail I covered this morning, mostly on the Town and Country playing fields. I estimate at least half of these birds were hatched this spring.

Red-shouldered Hawk Nestlings

2010-05-30T16:05:00.000-05:00

I got out for a jog in the afternoon heat today, and as I went by the corner of Chester Forest and Stillforest I looked up at the Red-shouldered Hawk nest I knew was there. There were 3 nestlings and 1 adult all standing up in the nest. 30 minutes later when I was done jogging I got my camera and walked back there. At that time only 2 nestlings were visible and I got this photo. I'm glad to see this nest was successful again this summer. It has been used by 2 of our resident Red-shouldered Hawks for several years, and it's high enough for the hawks to be unconcerned with people walking around below them.

Neighborhood Data in eBird

2010-05-23T16:28:00.000-05:00

As I've written about before, I enter all my neighborhood sightings into the online bird observation database eBird. Our neighborhood has 2 eBird Hotspot locations -- one on either end of Lake Creek Trail. Yesterday I transferred most of my neighborhood sightings to the one called "Lake Creek Trail (Williamson Co.)". Now most of my sightings show up on the "Lake Creek Trail Observations in eBird" link under "Important Stuff" near the top right of my blog. Check out the link and see the over 200 species that I and other local birders have found on our little hike-and-bike trail!

Predator and Prey

2010-05-19T19:58:00.000-05:00

Tuesday morning I got an hour of birding in before work, on Lake Creek Trail starting at the Braes Valley parking lot. I was hoping to find higher numbers of migrating birds stopped by the thunderstorms Monday night. It was slower than I hoped, but I did find a female Orchard Oriole, a Wilson's Warbler, and a Chestnut-sided Warbler.

By the footbridge I was surprise to find a Red-shouldered Hawk and an Eastern Fox Squirrel sitting on top of a fence, right next to each other. Squirrels are sometimes eaten by hawks, and once I saw a Red-shouldered Hawk eat a squirrel like this right across the street from my house. So seeing these 2 year-round neighborhood resident species coexisting so close together was unexpected and very interesting.

Neighborhood Rarities

2010-05-17T21:20:00.000-05:00

Although it's fun and rewarding to keep records of all our resident neighborhood bird species, it's also exciting to see something unexpected here. That's one of the things that makes spring birding so much fun -- you can see new birds without traveling anywhere. They come to you! On Sunday I had a bit of this excitement. I spent about 3 hours birding Lake Creek Trail starting at Parmer Village. I ended up finding 51 species including a couple I only ever see once or twice per year in the neighborhood.

When I started at almost 9:30 I heard a bird singing that sounded too low to be a Painted Bunting and not quite right for a House Finch. It was in the willow trees by the marshy area near the Parmer bridge, so I walked over there and got pretty close but never got a good look at it. I saw it fly upstream and land in a small tree by the last dam on the creek. I could still hear it singing, but it was too far off to identify by sight. By the time I made it over there the bird was gone.

Further upstream at the edge of the playing fields I found 3 Eastern Kingbirds in one of the dead willow trees. This is a common summer-resident species in many parts of Texas, but in the neighborhood I usually only see 1 or 2 per year. As they caught insects I got this photo of 2 of them. You can see the white trailing edge of their tails.

In the middle of the playing fields I found a small group of shorebirds in the creek bed and was excited to see 6 White-rumped Sandpipers! This is another species that I only see once or twice per year in the neighborhood. They are just passing through on a very long migration from their wintering grounds in southern South America to their breeding grounds in the Canadian arctic. It's so neat that a few of these sandpipers can use our creek to rest and recharge. I got these photos.

I kept thinking about the bird I heard but never saw well enough to identify. I listened to a few songs on my iPhone and made an intriguing discovery. Besides our common year-round resident House Finch, the song I heard also sounded similar to a Varied Bunting, a bird of Mexico and the extreme southwest. (The last time I saw one was in Big Bend National Park.) I played the song as I walked back to my car, hoping it was still around. But I never saw or heard it again. It was most likely a House Finch, but many migratory western species have been seen east of their range this spring, so I can't help but wonder!

Warblers after Work

2010-05-13T20:37:00.000-05:00

I was unexpectedly at loose ends tonight, so after work I spent about an hour and a half on Lake Creek Trail starting at the Braes Valley parking lot. Many species of birds we don't usually see are moving north through the area right now, so I was hoping something interesting would come up. I wasn't disappointed. About 20 yards from the parking lot I saw some movement in a large cottonwood tree that turned out to be a female American Redstart fanning her tail as she flitted around. Soon afterwards I found a beautiful male Magnolia Warbler and 2 females. 2 male Wilson's Warblers made an appearance as well.

After spending almost 30 minutes in this one spot, I finally walked further down the trail. All was pretty quiet until I found a single Chestnut-sided Warbler softly singing. Near the footbridge a female Common Yellowthroat was foraging in the narrow strip of trees between the trail and the creek. Across the footbridge half a dozen Bank Swallows flew over. On my way back I listened to a single Eastern Wood-Pewee where I found the warblers. And I watched a Common Nighthawk diving over the Briar Oaks corporate center parking lots. Their wings make an amazing ripping sound when they pull out of their dives, and I wish I had been close enough to hear it.

There are a few days every spring that are just spectacular for finding birds. Warblers and vireos and buntings seem to be everywhere. One of those days in Austin was this last Sunday, Mother's Day. Steven McDonald on Perthshire reported 9 species of warblers in his yard late that afternoon, as well as Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Baltimore Oriole, and Chuck-will's-widow. I'm sorry I missed it, but I'm glad I got to see a few tonight.

A Windy Morning and Relaxing Evening

2010-05-08T22:22:00.000-05:00

I got a late start this morning, but I still spent about 2 hours birding Lake Creek Trail starting at Parmer Village. It was quite windy and cool. Today was probably the last day I'll wear a light jacket until fall. I didn't see much around the marshy area by the Parmer Lane bridge until a flock of 14 Franklin's Gulls flew by, following the creek on their way north. It's always fun seeing these gulls during spring and fall migration in our neighborhood. It makes me feel like I'm on the coast. I got this poor photo.

On my way upstream to the last dam I ran into fellow neighborhood birders Barry Noret and Ken Williams. Barry reported a possible Golden-cheeked Warbler in the nearby woods. I was quite excited because I had never seen this endangered species in the neighborhood, but it was possible one could be passing through. Ken and I tried but failed to find the bird where Barry had found it. We did find 2 Black-throated Green Warblers, which can look very similar, especially in poor light like there was this morning. We also watched an Olive-sided Flycatcher catching multiple insects, including this dragonfly.

Upstream at the edge of the playing fields Ken and I found some shorebirds on in the creek bed. They were mostly Least Sandpipers but we found 1 Pectoral Sandpiper and a juvenile Killdeer. I got this photo of the Pectoral Sandpiper.

In the middle of the playing fields we found a Blue-headed Vireo softly singing in a juniper tree, and then we split up. I headed back to Parmer village and in the large baseball field I found the first Bronzed Cowbirds I've seen in the neighborhood this year. I got this poor photo through the fences. You can just make out its red eye.

I ended up finding 44 species, not bad for a late morning in May. Later this evening I needed to clear my mind so I grabbed my binoculars and went for a quick walk on the streets around my house. I was hoping to find an interesting warbler or 2 in the trees. I only found 1 nice male Yellow Warbler, but I realized it was the first time in quite awhile I'd gone out birding with no camera, no notepad, and no GPS logger. Just my binoculars. It was simple and fun, and it cleared my mind nicely.

NASWC Bird Walk

2010-05-02T17:16:00.000-05:00

7 people participated in this month's NASWC Bird Walk this morning. May is usually the most exciting month of the walk, since so many migrating birds are moving through the area right now. We started at the Braes Valley parking lot and ended up staying on Lake Creek Trail for almost 4 hours. We found 52 species of birds. The morning started out overcast with just a tiny bit of rain, but by 11:00 the sun was out and it was a beautiful day. Here are some highlights.

Throughout the morning we saw at least 20 Baltimore Orioles and a few Orchard Orioles. It's a real treat to see these colorful birds since we only get to see them in the neighborhood during migration.
We found these 6 species of migrating warblers: Yellow, Black-throated Green, Nashville, Chestnut-sided, Common Yellowthroat, and American Redstart. My favorite was the Chestnut-sided Warbler, which we found near the footbridge.
Also near the footbridge we found this Great Crested Flycatcher singing across the creek. These breed here in the neighborhood and it was a great chance to learn its song, which is common here in the summer.

From the footbridge we saw 4 Yellow-crowned Night-Herons on the creek, another neighborhood summer resident species.
We decided to walk through the T&C playing fields and found this interesting sandpiper among 25 Least Sandpipers. At the time I thought it was a Semipalmated Sandpiper but after looking closely at the photos I took I now think it's a Baird's Sandpiper. One thing that finally convinced me is that its wings are slightly longer than its tail.

While we were looking at more shorebirds in the creek bed near the downstream edge of the playing fields, a flock of at least 35 Mississippi Kites flew by, headed north. They were flying low enough that I think they must have roosted nearby and just taken off.
At the same spot we briefly saw a Gray Catbird as well, another species we only see here during migration, and a skulking species that can be quite hard to find.

Chuck-will's-widow

2010-04-20T06:00:00.001-05:00

Saturday morning Moria Darnell and I were up early to survey Golden-cheeked Warblers at The Nature Conservancy's Barton Creek Habitat Preserve. Luckily it wasn't rained out and the survey went well. But I think I was most excited before we left the house. At about 5:20 as we ate breakfast I thought I heard a Chuck-will's-widow singing. I opened the back door and sure enough, we heard one loud and clear singing in my backyard! These members of the nightjar family have a song that is similar to a Whip-poor-will. They are usually a bird that you only hear out in the country during the summer. The only reason this one was in my backyard was that it was just passing through on its way north. It sang for less than 5 minutes in the quiet morning and it was bird number 201 on my neighborhood list.

Cold Wind and More Migrants

2010-04-18T17:39:00.000-05:00

I spent about 4 hours birding the neighborhood this morning. Pretty early on, a cold north wind kicked up that made me wish I had worn more than a t-shirt. But finding 60 species of birds distracted me from being cold. As soon as I left the house I heard a House Wren and a Swainson's Thrush singing in my backyard. I saw several more Swainson's Thrushes this morning and these were the first I've seen this year. It's a bird that I only ever see in Texas during Spring and Fall migration. And I was very happy to hear this one and a few others singing. They have particularly pretty songs which have a strange fluting quality and combine 2 tones at once. I got this picture of one on Meadowheath.

There were lots of migrating hawks flying over our neighborhood today. I counted 47 Swainson's Hawks that I saw in 3 different kettles, with a few Broad-winged Hawks mixed in with them. These 2 species of hawks are 2 of the only ones that migrate in large flocks. Every spring down on the Texas coast some hawk watch sites see single flocks of Broad-winged Hawks that number in the thousands. Here's a photo I got of one of the kettles of Swainson's Hawks.

And here's a single Broad-winged Hawk that was flying low over Lake Creek Trail near the footbridge.

Another first for the year was a single female Summer Tanager that I found near the downstream edge of the Town and Country Playing Fields. I was standing by the creek and it flew across from the other side and briefly perched in a tree right next to me. I got this photo.

Singing Winter Birds, Migrants, New Arrivals

2010-04-14T20:59:00.000-05:00

Sorry about the late post! I spent about 3 hours birding the neighborhood on Sunday morning in the light mist. I found 43 species and was excited to hear some new bird songs for the year. Many species of migratory birds consider our neighborhood "south" and just live here in the winter. And most of these species don't sing when they're here -- they just make relatively quiet chip notes and various louder scolds and alarm calls. These winter sounds are distinctive and very useful to identify these species by ear. But it's a real treat to hear their songs in the early spring, just before they leave our neighborhood for their northern breeding grounds. Sunday morning I heard Yellow-rumped Warblers, an Orange Crowned Warbler, and a Blue-headed Vireo singing.

At the corner of Stillforest and Chester Forest I was glad to see some tail feathers hanging off the edge of the Red-shouldered Hawk nest (which was all I could see of the adult that was probably incubating eggs). Further down Stillforest I found 2 Nashville Warblers, a relatively common spring migrant which is moving north through central Texas right now.

By the creek at the end of Meadowheath I was pleasantly surprised to find the first Western Kingbird I've seen this year, and I got this picture. These birds are a common summer-resident flycatcher along our creek.

Upstream on Lake Creek Trail I ran into a nice mixed-species flock of songbirds that included Yellow-rumped, Orange-crowned, and Nashville Warblers, a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, 2 Spotted Towhees, several Lincoln's Sparrows, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, and a White-eyed Vireo. I got this poor photo of one of the Nashville Warblers. At least it shows its distinctive yellow throat, grey head, and bright white eye-ring.

I was also pleased to find a Yellow-crowned Night-Heron on the creek, the first I've seen this year.