Bird-a-thon 2010

I spent the entire day birding. Well, after I cooked omelets and bacon for my family this morning, I spent the rest of the day birding! I started off on my property where things were a little slow. I did add three new birds for the year - Mississippi Kite, Broad-winged Hawk and Common Yellowthroat. I ended up with 35 species on the property, but very few migrants. Most of them were resident birds. I went next to the Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge. One of most encouraging things there was seeing how many alligators there are. Hurricane Ike's storm surge covered the refuge with about ten feet of water and 75% of the alligators dehydrated and died because of the salt water. There were several little ones out there. I ended up seeing 28 species there. I was a little disappointed that I didn't see a Purple Gallinule. There are lots of Barn Swallows there. I left ANWR and went to High Island. The Houston Audubon Society has several sanctuaries there. I went to the two where I have had most luck. I started out at Boy Scout Woods. Before I even walked in the gate, a Tennessee Warbler landed in the front yard of one of the neighbors across the street. Things were a little slow in the sanctuary. It took some slow walking in the woods to find some migrants. I found 13 species of warblers there. There were also more Painted Buntings than I have ever seen at one time! I easily saw 10 males and at least that many females. I went from Boy Scout Woods to Smith Oaks. When I pulled into the parking lot, a male Baltimore Oriole and male Painted Bunting were in the mulberry tree right in front of my car. I went through the gate and there were several species of warblers in the live oak trees to the left. I only saw 7 species of warblers, but there were lots of them. I went through the woods, went to the rookery and then went back to the live oaks. I was watching a Bay-breasted Warbler and Black-throated Green Warblers when a lady came down the trail and told me the Fork-tailed Flycatcher that had been seen the day before was back. She told me where it was and off I went. I rounded the corner and saw a group of about 50 people with their binoculars pointed toward the top of the trees. I got over there and a lady pointed it out to me. It is life bird #369 for me. Fork-tailed Flycatchers are very rare on the Upper Texas Coast. It was a special find!

Overall, I ended up with 97 species. It was a fun day! I am hoping that our woods will be a little more active in the morning. The wind is still blowing pretty strong out of the northwest. I am hoping that the birds left the coastal woodlots and have spread out over the region.

Birds seen April 25 (97 species total):

Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge (28 species): Mottled Duck, Blue-winged Teal, Great Egret, White-faced Ibis, Black Vulture, Sora, Common Moorhen, American Coot, Killdeer, Black-necked Stilt, Lesser Yellowlegs, Willet, Long-billed Dowitcher, Common Tern, Mourning Dove, Eastern Kingbird, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Purple Martin, Barn Swallow, Sedge Wren, Marsh Wren, Northern Mockingbird, Indigo Bunting, Dickcissel, Red-winged Blackbird, Boat-tailed Grackle, Brown-headed Cowbird, Orchard Oriole

Boy Scout Woods (38 species): Turkey Vulture, Laughing Gull, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Inca Dove, Common Nighthawk, Chimney Swift, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Warbling Vireo, Philadelphia Vireo, Red-eyed Vireo, Blue Jay, Carolina Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Swainson's Thrush, Wood Thrush, Gray Catbird, Northern Mockingbird, European Starling, Cedar Waxwing, Blue-winged Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Nashville Warbler, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, Worm-eating Warbler, Northern Waterthrush, Kentucky Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Hooded Warbler, Yellow-breasted Chat, Scarlet Tanager, Northern Cardinal, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Indigo Bunting, Painted Bunting, Baltimore Oriole

Chambers County (2 species seen while driving): Green Heron, Eastern Meadowlark

Property List (35 species): Neotropic Cormorant, Little Blue Heron, Cattle Egret, Black Vulture, Mississippi Kite, Red-shouldered Hawk, Broad-winged Hawk, Upland Sandpiper, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Mourning Dove, Chimney Swift, Red-bellied Woodpecker, White-eyed Vireo, Blue Jay, American Crow, Purple Martin, Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Bank Swallow, Cliff Swallow, Barn Swallow, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Wren, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Wood Thrush, Gray Catbird, Northern Mockingbird, Northern Parula, Black-and-white Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Yellow-breasted Chat, Northern Cardinal, Indigo Bunting, Red-winged Blackbird, House Sparrow

Smith Oaks (41 species): Neotropic Cormorant, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Little Blue Heron, White Ibis, Roseate Spoonbill, Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Common Moorhen, Laughing Gull, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Great Crested Flycatcher, Eastern Kingbird, Fork-tailed Flycatcher, Loggerhead Shrike, White-eyed Vireo, Philadelphia Vireo, Purple Martin, Barn Swallow, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Cedar Waxwing, Northern Parula, Yellow Warbler, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Bay-breasted Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, Summer Tanager, Scarlet Tanager, Northern Cardinal, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Painted Bunting, Red-winged Blackbird, Boat-tailed Grackle, Great-tailed Grackle, Brown-headed Cowbird, Orchard Oriole, Baltimore Oriole