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by Elliotte Rusty Harold.
Original Post: #793-#795 at Bentsen State Park
Feed Title: Mokka mit Schlag
Feed URL: http://www.elharo.com/blog/feed/atom/?
Feed Description: Ranting and Raving
Friday I signed up for a relatively leisurely (six hours, one location) trip to the Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park, once again along the border. At the first feeders, we spent about 45 minutes watching Plain Chachalcas, Green Jays, Orange-crowned Warblers, Red-winged Blackbirds, a Long-billed Thrasher or two, and several Altamira Orioles, #793, a bird I had missed a few times on Wednesday:
We made several more stops inside the park, and at one of them we picked out #794, Northern Beardless Tyrannulet. It’s a small flycatcher, and did not pose for photos.
Final stop was the hawkwatch platform. We were hoping for Hook-billed Kite, but that was a real longshot, and we didn’t get it. We did get some shorebirds, a few ducks, and a Loggerhead Shrike. And just before we left a few Cave Swallows, #795, flew over.
My total count for the site was about 60 avian species (plus a butterfly or two), not counting species a few other folks in the group saw that I missed:
American Avocet
White-tailed Hawk
American Kestrel
American Pipit
Black-necked Stilt
Black Vulture
Cave Swallow
Common Ground-Dove
Crested Caracara
Gadwall
Green-winged Teal
Great Egret
Great Kiskadee
Greater Yellowlegs
Least Sandpiper
Loggerhead Shrike
Northern Harrier
Red-shouldered Hawk
Snowy Egret
Spotted Sandpiper
White Ibis
American Coot
Great-tailed Grackle
Marsh Wren
Snowy Egret
Great Kiskadee
Clay-colored Thrush
Red-winged Blackbird
Golden-fronted Woodpecker
Plain Chachalaca
Pied-billed Grebe
Black Phoebe
Orange-crowned Warbler
Olive Sparrow
Northern Mockingbird
Northern Cardinal
Altamira Oriole
Crested Caracara
Mourning Dove
Inca Dove
Ladder-backed Woodpecker
Long-billed Thrasher
Green Jay
White-crowned Sparrow
Vermilion Flycatcher
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Ringed Kingfisher
Pyrrhuloxia
Osprey
Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet
Neotropic Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Eastern Phoebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Black Vulture
Belted Kingfisher
Barn Swallow
Anhinga
White-winged Dove
American Coot
In addition to the three lifers, there were four more state birds for Texas; and Clay-colored Thrush and Ringed Kingfisher were ABA area birds. Not too bad. After yesterday’s relatively poor showing of one life bird, I was worrying that I had just about exhausted the possibilities, but apparently there’s more to be had yet. Tomorrow we’re visiting another spot along the border, the Southmost Preserve.
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