Post by kestrel on Apr 14, 2024 15:11:16 GMT -8
Larry and I recently spent 10 days birding the Gulf Coast and the Hill Country, and saw the total solar eclipse too.
On the first day, we visited High Island, along with Bolivar Flats Shorebird Sanctuary. This was where we both had our first lifers of the trip.
In addition to other good birds, we also lucked out with this Clapper rail preening, right out in the open:
Clapper rail by Joel Schmidt, on Flickr
This was a lifer for Larry.
The next day, we went on a short excursion into Louisiana. At a pullout, just across the state line, I had my lifer Boat-tailed grackle. Even though we didn't see anything super out-of-the-ordinary for the region, it was still nice to bird in a new state. Our day ended with a productive visit to Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge.
Day 3 was a transition day, which meant that we had to drive all the way from the Houston area to San Antonio. However, we did do plenty of birding along the way.
A stop at W.G. Jones State Forest produced two Southern specialties.
The first one was Brown-headed nuthatch:
Brown-headed nuthatch by Joel Schmidt, on Flickr
Which was followed by Red-cockaded woodpecker:
Red-cockaded woodpecker by Joel Schmidt, on Flickr
On our drive west, we also made a detour to pick up a couple of rarities.
Including North America's first Cattle tyrant ever recorded:
Cattle tyrant by Joel Schmidt, on Flickr
This was right in the old part of downtown Corpus Christi, next to a bustling oyster festival, that had live music.
Right after that, we found a nesting pair of Aplomado falcons, at Mustang Island State Park:
Aplomado falcon by Joel Schmidt, on Flickr
Part 2 is next!
On the first day, we visited High Island, along with Bolivar Flats Shorebird Sanctuary. This was where we both had our first lifers of the trip.
In addition to other good birds, we also lucked out with this Clapper rail preening, right out in the open:
Clapper rail by Joel Schmidt, on FlickrThis was a lifer for Larry.
The next day, we went on a short excursion into Louisiana. At a pullout, just across the state line, I had my lifer Boat-tailed grackle. Even though we didn't see anything super out-of-the-ordinary for the region, it was still nice to bird in a new state. Our day ended with a productive visit to Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge.
Day 3 was a transition day, which meant that we had to drive all the way from the Houston area to San Antonio. However, we did do plenty of birding along the way.
A stop at W.G. Jones State Forest produced two Southern specialties.
The first one was Brown-headed nuthatch:
Brown-headed nuthatch by Joel Schmidt, on FlickrWhich was followed by Red-cockaded woodpecker:
Red-cockaded woodpecker by Joel Schmidt, on FlickrOn our drive west, we also made a detour to pick up a couple of rarities.
Including North America's first Cattle tyrant ever recorded:
Cattle tyrant by Joel Schmidt, on FlickrThis was right in the old part of downtown Corpus Christi, next to a bustling oyster festival, that had live music.
Right after that, we found a nesting pair of Aplomado falcons, at Mustang Island State Park:
Aplomado falcon by Joel Schmidt, on FlickrPart 2 is next!
