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Lower Rio Grande Valley, Texas Trip, Part 1 of 2

Trip report covering January 11-13, 1995

Thanks to all the Chatters who sent tips and personal observations to us for birding the Lower Rio Grande Valley in Texas; the pre-planning was indispensable, and made for a very successful trip: we totaled 140 species (list available if anyone would like it sent) and added 27 lifers (bear in mind that we've already done quickie birding trips to Southern California and Arizona). The only thing I would add to future queries about birding in Texas is to seriously consider purchasing one of the Texas Park Conservation passes for $25, which gives you free admittance to all Texas state parks for one year. At $3-5 per state park, the $25 pass would have been the way to go; you'll be amazed at how many state parks you'll be going to in Texas.

Though the first birds we saw in Texas were starlings and house sparrows, birding rapidly improved. Flying in to Houston certainly makes for some long trips between great birding spots, but our cheap fare dictated it. We were tent camping all along the way, so we also used state parks as often as pfossible for our nightly end points. The weather couldn't have been better for us, especially given the rain and cold temps Texas had had several days before we arrived and now upon our return. We had daytime temps in the low to mid 80s, with overnight lows from 42 to 55 degrees, comfortable, even for sleeping in a thin tent. The only thing we never quite became accustomed to was the terrific winds that would build up from a perfectly calm morning; we often feared for our scope on a spindly tripod. One difference between Southern Arizona and RGV is that dozens of samll cities with fast food restaurants and grocery stores abound in RGV. So do the "winter Texans" that flock to RGV, making locals quite polite toward "intruders."

Wednesday, January 11, 1995

On the initial drive from Houston to Aransas, we saw GREAT-TAILED GRACKLE, LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE, KESTRELS, and READ-TAILED HAWK. A brief stop along the highway at Lake Texana yielded good views of hundreds of COOTS, and plenty of SHOVELERS, GADWALL, DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT, ANHINGA, GREAT BLUE HERON, BLUE- WINGED TEAL, WHITE PELICAN, RING-NECKED DUCK, CANVASBACK, AMERICAN WIGEON, and BELTED KINGFISHER. Further down the road, we saw our first WHITE-TAILED KITE and CRESTED CARACARA, the latter of which certainly makes a more striking black-and-white underside view than any book shows.

Our race to Aransas National Wildlife Refuge got us there just as the sun was starting its descent, lending a pleasant light to the many birds feeding on the mud flats viewed from the observation tower. We had good looks at a pair of WHOOPING CRANES with our scope on 36x from the the observation tower. We missed the reported intrusion of a third crane, trying to infringe on the territory of the pair we saw. Other birds of note seen from the tower were GREATER YELLOWLEGS, BROWN PELICANS, AVOCETS, BUFFLEHEAD, PINTAIL, CANADA GEESE, ROYAL TERNS, and MOTTLED DUCK. We didn't even try to identify the many peeps (too far away) and gulls wheeling by. Feral pigs rooted out on the beach by the boardwalk. Our first night ended at the Goose Island State Park camping area, with BARRED OWLS hooting us to sleep.

Thursday, January 12, 1995

A tip from Rick Weidenmann, of Texas A & I, sent us to Dick Kleberg State Park and bird sanctuary near Raymondville, where we added COMMON MOORHEN, LONG-BILLED THRASHER, GREEN JAY, GOLDEN-FRONTED WOODPECKER, PIED-BILLED GREBE, and PYRRHULOXIA. Again following Rick's tip, we found his referenced chicken farm, where dead chickens are tossed in a pile daily. We studied 17 SANDHILL CRANE in a field just before the farm, then had leisurely, and close, looks at dozens of Crested Caracara. We also studied HARRIS HAWK and White-Tailed Hawk. INCA DOVE were also in the area. After returning to the main road, we saw a molting Harris Hawk sitting on a road sign, not ten feet from where we pulled over on the roadside to snap his picture.

We watched a White-Tailed Hawk swoop down on a snake and flip it around before dining. Laguna Atascosa NWR seemed adversely affected by the strong winds, and we only added WILD TURKEY, TRI-COLORED HERON, SNOW GEESE, LESSER YELLOWLEGS, REDHEAD (80% of the continent's redhead population reputedly winters at Laguna Atascosa), LONG BILLED CURLEW, OSPREY, ROESEATE SPOONBILLS, and NORTHERN HARRIER.

Audubon's Sabal Palm gave us a zoom in-and-out view of the BUFF-BELLIED HUMMINGBIRD, great looks at five LEAST GREBE, and PLAIN CHACHALACA and WHITE-TIPPED DOVE. Rose Farmer, Sabal Palm's manager, has a great map for sale that locates the Brownsville specialties for 25 cents, including MEXICAN CROW at the dump (which we didn't have time to do) and RED-CROWNED PARROT, which we did see roosting in a tree in a trailer court. The YELLOW- HEADED PARROT didn't make an appearance while we were there, but we arrived closer to sunset than we should have. We drove straight on to Bentsen-Rio Grande State Park, where we camped for the next three nights.

Friday, January 13, 1995

Friday the thirteenth started out well at Bentsen with looks at PARAQUES fleeing the bright spotlight of Greg Griffith, nature photographer. ALTIMIRA ORIOLE fed on orange slices put out at trailers, and AMERICAN GOLDFINCH, COMMON GRACKLE, LADDERBACK WOODPECKER, and RUBY CROWNED KINGLET hopped around in the treetops. GREAT KISKADEE screamed at each other across the trailer camping area. Santa Anna NWR gave us our trip's best look at OLIVE SPARROW. We also saw BLUE-GRAY GNATCATCHER, GREEN-WINGED TEAL, WHIMBREL, EARED GREBE, ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER, BLACK-NECKED STILT, and GLOSSY IBIS. We had Least Grebes puddling around five feet from the duck blind on Willow Lake at Santa Anna. Back at Bentsen, we had BRONZED COWBIRDS at the feeder of trailer #27, which houses one set of the camp hosts, themselves excellent birder from Delaware (liz and Lew Dumont). The CLAY-COLORED ROBIN, NORTHERN BEARDLESS TYRANNULET, and TROPICAL PARULA, that had been seen near this trailer didn't appear while we were there, though the Tyrannulet was called in by a tape by the Houston Audubon Society. A gusty stop at the Bensetn boat ramp yielded PEREGRINE FALCON and SPOTTED SANDPIPER, but no GREEN KINGFISHER, seen earlier that afternoon. A try at the various Parrots in McAllen didn't pan out, and we ended the day at a slide presentation on peep identification by the Dumonts.

Part 1 | Part 2

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