This is a continuation of Part 1…
After a few days in the Corpus Christi area, I headed south to the Rio Grande Valley. One might even argue that my bird migration instincts led me to the McAllen Texas, and the Alamo Inn – a B&B catering to birders. As I checked-in, of the first things I was told was “Lesser Nighthawks are nesting on the roof, Buff-bellied Hummingbirds are on the bushes”. Great – just what I needed to know.
The Alamo Inn is centrally located to a number of birding hot-spots, 15-30 minutes in all directions. The recent windstorm had caused enough damage to close a couple of popular locations (the National Butterfly Center and Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge), but others were still open. Over the next few days, I rotated through a few different locations.
Coming this far south, this late (start of May), meant that migration was on the wane. Many species had already passed completely through this area in the preceding weeks. There were still a fair number of migrants around though, and different species migrate early or late, so it’s just a different mix of birds.
One of these locations was Benston-Rio Grande Valley State Park. The park features a 3-mile road closed to motor vehicles, plus a number of spur trails (though some were closed due to wind damage). It was there I found my first certain Buff-bellied Hummingbird.
The park also had a couple photography blinds. These consisted of a spacious wooden structure with benches to sit on, and slats on hinges that could be opened to allow a camera to poke outside. The view outside included a feeding station (though these were not stocked with food when I was there), and a pond with a steady trickle of fresh water dripping into it (birds like that sound). I was skeptical that anything would happen at the blind, but after sitting in one of them for only 5 minutes, this Painted Bunting came for an afternoon bath.
I had a full 15 minutes with this cooperative and striking bird – a special moment. Then as a bonus, a Green Jay showed up.
I’d seen Green Jays in other locations – they’re noisy and conspicuous. But, this one was a much better model. On another visit to the same blind, another Green Jay (or maybe the same one?) took a bath in the pond. Looks refreshing!
Another bird frequently seen at Benston-Rio was the Bronzed Cowbird. From a distance, these might look like another non-descript black bird, but its wings shimmer in blue hues, and that eye is like a glowing ember.
Groove-billed Anis were present at many locations. From a distance, they look similar to the ubiquitous Great-tailed Grackle – a common and obnoxious bird. Groove-billed Anis by contrast are quiet and timid. They’re also gifted with a lovely song.
I saw a number of other birds at Benston-Rio Grande. The park was a little spread-out and didn’t have as much variety in environments, but was still worth the visit.
Next I headed to Estero Llano Grande State Park. When I talked to other birders in Texas about where to visit, this was almost always at the top of the list. It’s for good reasons – the park is very compact, but diverse. There’s is a “tropical section” with big old trees, wetlands, dry forests, lakes… In a short walk, you can visit many different ecosystems. The Yellow-crowned Night-heron was a staple at many of the wetlands in the area – out in front, and stationary.
The Long-billed Thrasher is at times invisible among the ground cover, and at other times singing loudly from the tops of trees. These birds are fairly common in the area.
In the tropical zone, Golden-fronted Woodpeckers are hard to miss. they’re large, loud and showy.
I had heard the Common Pauraque was frequently found at “Estero” (as it’s often called). These are medium-sized nightjars that remain motionless on the forest floor during the day. They are masters at camouflage.
This is a situation where the thermal monocular came in handy. I used it to scan the undergrowth in a number of likely places. I then noticed a closed section of trail, and figured it might be closed to protect these birds. I stood back on the open part of the trail and peered into the undergrowth with the thermal monocular – there it was, a clear glowing ball of heat. There was only one unobstructed view through 20 feet of bushes and small trees. I don’t think it would have been possible to find this bird without using the thermal monocular.
I showed how the thermal monocular worked to a couple other birders in the area, and probably could have sold one on the spot. It worked remarkably well, when it was cloudy. I’ll come back to this topic later in an update on my other post linked above.
It wasn’t all birds at Estro… This Cotton Rat was having a good day.
One other place I visited in this area was the Old Hildalgo Pumphouse. This property has some manicured parks, a fountain, a lake, some brushy & forested bits and up-close views of border wall. It also had this Green Kingfisher.
I saw many other birds in these locations, but it would take some time to list them all. If you like, you can check my e-bird profile for more specifics on what I saw at all these locations. Just look for reports from late April and early May 2023.
Next, I headed east – as east as I could get. This took me to South Padre Island. And what could be a better place to visit on this outpost at the tip of the United States than the Birding and Nature Center? Really, nothing. It’s the best location on South Padre Island by far, with winding boardwalks over expansive wetlands. Close to the visitor center, they have a quiet forested area – roped-off from visitors, with feeding stations. The birds are everywhere here. They offer a $5 morning bird walk with the local naturalist. It’s a no-brainer to do this – there’s always more to learn, and the guide knew so much about the local birdlife. Oh, and they have and alligator rescue operation as well.
Right at the start of the boardwalk a Green Heron family was living their best life.
This Dickcissel was signing from the reeds. These birds were also a common sight throughout the trip. I saw flocks of them at King Ranch.
Finally, I got a good view of a Roseate Spoonbill. This was a young bird, not yet of breeding age. The older birds have bald faces.
Meanwhile, Royal Terns soared past.
One of the highlights here is the Yellow Mangrove Warbler. This bird is officially considered the same species as the common Yellow Warbler. But to many observers, it seems quite different – with a different song, different habits and of course a rusty red face. South Padre Island is about as far north as they’re found.
I returned again to the Birding and Nature Center close to dusk. The visitor center closes at 5pm, but as long as you start on the boardwalk before 5, you can linger as long as you like. I highly recommend this approach as it’s quieter, and many birds are more active in the evening.
The Great-tailed Grackle is hard to miss. These common noisy birds have the vocal apparatus of a malfunctioning car alarm. They make sounds I didn’t think a bird could make. They’re so common, they’re often not appreciated. But they put on quite a show if you’re paying attention.
I was almost shocked to see this Clapper Rail walking into the open. These are normally secretive and wary birds. But they didn’t act that way here. Perhaps they’d gotten so used to people on the boardwalk, they ignored us?
Mudflats abounded in this place, and where there’s mud, there are Northern Waterthrushes.
I’ve seen a lot of Green Herons. But I’ve never before seen one croaking for 5 minutes, 20 feet away.
I try not to repeat species too much in these posts, but the next sequence of photos was a really special moment, as a couple Clapper Rails paraded 4 little black chicks under the boardwalk and poked around for an extended family hour.
It was interesting that the parents left the chicks pretty much alone while they wandered off to forage. Though, they were never too far away.
This Clapper Rail fluffed its feathers for me, just getting everything situated.
I had fun tracking the Least Terns as they hovered before diving into the waters below. I didn’t manage to catch one in mid-dive though – capturing that would take a lot of dedication and bit of luck.
Another secretive wetland bird is the Sora. These are common throughout the United States, but not often seen… especially not in the open like this.
This Least Bittern was another bird I spotted with the thermal monocular. When I first noticed the bird, it had its neck fully drawn-up, basically hiding behind the reeds. It only extended to full zoop after I watched it a while.
Next, I headed to Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. This place is most famous as the only home to the Ocelot in the United States. About 30 of these animals are thought to be living in the park. But don’t expect to see one. The last sighting had been 4 months before my visit, and that’s not for a lack of looking. A lot of people come to Laguna Atascosa with cameras – they’re all keeping one eye open for these secretive cats.
One bird you’ll see at most locations in this part of Texas is the Plain Chachalaca. These are the northernmost representative of a family of birds found mostly further south. As their name suggests, they’re plain looking, save the red bits of skin around the mouth. But what they lack in looks, they make-up for in voice. They have a loud boisterous call that sounds like something straight from the Jurassic era.
The Black-crested Titmouse is another resident bird to much of Texas. I saw them in many places, but this one was especially photogenic.
In case you wanted to see more of the eye of the Bronzed Cowbird… Here you go.
The White-eyed Vireo is a bird I’d been hearing, and getting fleeting glimpses of since Corpus Christi. Finally at Laguna Atascosa, one came out of the bushes for just a moment.
The Olive Sparrow is almost common in this area. You have to look closely to make sure of what you’re seeing though, as some other sparrows are present as well.
This Altamira Oriole was actively building a nest over a small lake. You can see the upper fibers are older and brown, with the newer ones at the bottom, still green. I guess you could measure time with this color gradient. The artist came back every 5-15 minutes with another grassy thread.
Meanwhile, its partner stood watch from a nearby tree.
Just below the Orioles, a Solitary Sandpiper prodded the murky waters.
A few years ago, a driver hit and killed an ocelot in the refuge. This prompted the managers to close-off a number of the big loop roads to motor vehicles. If you have a bike, they’re fantastic routes a dozen or more miles into the heart of the refuge. I was walking, so only had time for one longer hike. I walked from the headquarters to Pelican Lake, starting around sunrise. It was a pleasant walk in the relatively cool morning with expansive views and not a soul in sight. I recommend it. I saw birds ranging from Crested Caracaras to Wilson’s Phalaropes to Eastern Meadowlarks. Among other things, I spotted this Cassin’s Sparrow along the way.
I visited a couple other locations in this area. The Laguna Vista Nature Trail is a nice little place, with 3 blinds / stations / bird baths through otherwise dry parklands. But I was there only briefly at mid-day, and wasn’t able to get back. I also visited Rascal De La Palma State Park. It was fine, but it’s a long walk to get to different ecosystems. Great for a hike, but difficult for finding birds. There were other places I’d like to have visited as well, but just didn’t have the time.
So, I headed back north, on the long road to Houston. This took my right back through Corpus Christi, so I decided to check out one more place I’d heard good things about, in the beach party town of Port Aransas – the Leonabelle Turnbull Birding Center. The Center connects to a couple miles of boardwalk over vast marshlands filled with water birds. Along the edges, songbirds pile-up in the trees and bushes.
Tricolored Herons were another water bird I’d seen many times. They’re always worth a second look.
When I got to the Center, a group of local birding nuts were holding court on the picnic benches. These were a bunch of old guys with birds on the brain perhaps a bit more than is healthy. One of them recollected an article he wrote about how the Yellow-billed Cuckoo fed mostly on fuzzy caterpillars, a food few other birds could manage. I smirked and shrugged, then 15 minutes later came across this.
Roseate Spoonbills drifted by in small flocks.
These Dunlin were sporting their breeding plumage. I see these birds back home, but not looking like this.
Black Skimmers sliced through the water, ready to snap up whatever crossed their path.
I had to do a double-take at this Wilson’s Plover. There were Semipalmated Plovers in the area as well, but this bird is different, with a range extending up the gulf coast in summer.
Young Reddish Egrets aren’t so reddish. But they do have the same wacky behavior as the adults. They fish like it’s a modern dance performance.
When the Reddish Egret grows up, and fluffs its feathers in a steady breeze, it looks a bit like this.
This White Ibis was in full breeding plumage
Perhaps this photo can give you some idea of the situation on the wetlands.
Finally, I made one last stop… to visit what is likely the furthest-north nesting pair of Aplomado Falcons in the world. It wasn’t a glorious location – along the side of a busy highway, with scrubby sand dunes as far as you could see. One bird was sitting on a nesting platform about 100 yards away, but you couldn’t really see it, as there are walls on the platform that obscure a clear view, surely to give the birds some privacy. The other bird is usually around but where? How about at the top of a gigantic power pole?
And that about did it. If this just wasn’t enough for you, check out my ebird trip reports for more photos and lists of the birds I saw at different locations. I don’t have any other grand conclusion about this trip. It’d be worth doing again, perhaps earlier in the migration season, and/or further up the coast. And I’d love to come back for the Whooping Cranes – how could you not? I guess we’ll see what the future has in store.