We went to Benson Rio State Park for the day and rented bicycles to better see the park. I got a three wheeler with a large basket to carry my 600 mm lens. The bicycles were in bad repair with poor steering; keeping them on the road was a challenge. I set up my gear near a promising location.
Benson Rio State Park
132) Clay-coloured Thrush
This thrush is a Mexican bird that is starting to expand its range into southern Texas.
When we returned to our campground there was a flurry of squawking as a large flock of Green Parakeets descended on the tall fruit trees around the park..There were hundreds of parakeets hanging upside down eating berries from the trees.
Green Parakeet
February 14
A birding tour was organized by the people in the RV park. Ed and Billy led the tour. Emma and I got a ride to Estero Llano Grande Park with Billy. For my money, this is the best birding location in the lower Rio Grande valley. We had a great day birding .... well I did. Emma is more of a hiker and the constant stopping was interfering with her aerobic walking.
When Emma and I bird she sets a steady pace and I fire off shots while trying to keep up. Ed and Billy were less inclined to do this.
134) Least Grebe
135) Roseate Spoonbill
136) Blue-winged Teal
137) Ruddy Duck
138) Mottled Duck
139) Anhinga
The Anhinga is also called the snake bird because of its extremely long neck.
140) Neotropic Cormorant
The Neotropic cormorant is a smaller version of the Double-crested Cormorant. It has a white frame around the base of its bill where the other cormorant has yellow.
141) Little Blue Heron
142) Tri-coloured Heron
143) Green Heron
Green Herons tend to be shy and elusive. They do a good job of keeping bushes between you and them.
144) Snowy Egret
Most of the southern bird sanctuaries are badly affected by the extended drought. Estero Llano Grande is one of the few Rio Grande bird sanctuaries that has lots of water. All of the ducks and wading birds are here in large numbers. I like the Snowy Egrets with their black legs and big yellow feet. They are usually wading in water and you don't see their cool yellow feet too often.
145) Yellow-crowned Night Heron
146) White Ibis
147) Black Vulture; 148) Common Moorhen; 149) Solitary Sandpiper
11] American Alligator
12] Water Snake
Birding Texas has an extra dimension compared to Vancouver, BC. As you slog through the swamp trails be sure to look down as well as up.
150) Common Pauraque
The Pauraque is a nightjar that roosts on the ground during the day and feeds on insects at night. It hides in the bush and will not fly as you approach. It's easy to take its picture if you can see it.
13] Red-eared Sliders
151) Rufous Hummingbird
152) Ruby-throated Hummingbird - female
153) Eastern Phoebe; 154) Tropical Kingbird; 155) Cave Swallow; 156) Purple Martin; 157) Carolina Wren
February 15
We drove to the Hidalgo Pumphouse on a mission to see Monk Parakeets.
Hidalgo Pumphouse
This location is one of smallest of the nine World Bird Centres along the southern Rio Grande.
Monk parakeets are starting to appear in pockets in the southern USA. They are unusual for parakeets because they build a communal nest of twigs instead of nesting in tree cavities.
Monk Parakeet and Communal Nest
158) Monk Parakeet
The largest Killer Bee Statue is in Hidalgo
In the afternoon, we continued on to the Santa Ana National Wildlife Sanctuary. This is one of the largest sanctuaries along the southern Rio Grande. It has one of the few remaining natural thorn bush habitats left north of the Mexican border. Approxiamtely, 98 % of the land has been transformed and exploited for short-term economic benefit .
For the past several years, Santa Ana has suffered from a lack of water and the bird numbers are down. With so many people tapping into the water supply there is not enough left to maintain the natural ecosystem.
Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge
Harris's Hawk
We also saw a few159) Redhead ducks
Rio Grande bordering Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge
We saw a 160) Green Kingfisher on the banks of the Rio Grande. I saw it on the American side. When I called Emma over it had flown to the Mexican side. According to birding protocol Emma can only count the Green Kingfisher as a Mexican sighting. You can imagine how concerned Emma would be about birding protocol after a hot, dry, buggy three-hour hike through the sanctuary. I kept that information to myself.
Treetop Walkway
161) White-eyed Vireo
It's great when a bird's name is also a good description of the bird.
February 16
We had such a good time at Estero Llano Grande that we decided to visit there again. Well, I drove back to this park after dropping Emma off at the nearby outlet shopping centre in Mission. We both had a wonderful day. At the bird sanctuary, I saw all of the birds from the previous day and a few new ones. 162) White-faced Ibis
163) Osprey
We headed south from the Americana RV Park arriving in the afternoon at Port Isabel. This port is across the Laguna Madre from South Padre Island. We did a long walk around the port.
Port Isabel Lighthouse
164) Laughing Gulls changing into breeding plumage.
165) Brown Pelican
