California recap and back in Ohio for a bit

Everyone always assumes that a vacation  in California means beaches and sunshine, sidewalks of stars and beautiful people; all the while racing down PCH in a convertible with the top down and the Beach Boys blaring on the radio. But yet I don't "vacation" like most people do. 

We spent seven very long days running around California and into Oregon adding new birds for the year... I was passed out before 9 almost every night...The majority of the people we encountered were on a similar mission and not from CA either....Our rental car was littered with coffee cups, take out wrappers, guides and Pringles cans.... Once again I didn't pack the correct clothing and spent almost the entire time in the same sweatshirt and cargos. (keep those comments to yourself-I did remember deodorant). Not a vacation most people would enjoy. 

It was cool, even cold at times, wet with rain and fog and windy as hell. There were only a few occasions where I was bitching about the sun but I was glad I had remembered the new Ray-Bans. No movie stars and no Beach Boys either. Just birds. 

Seeing life birds (birds I'm seeing for the first time for those of you out there who still have no idea what I'm talking about) is always a great way to start off a trip. Tundra Bean-Goose and Rustic Bunting were a perfect kickoff to this one.  Missing out on Falcated Duck and Brambling took a bit of the shine away but plenty of other birds and mammals made up for it. River otters and American badger were very cool to see. 

Even though the weather and luck weren't completely on my side it still was a great expedition. There are groves of redwoods where the road winds through them that momentarily make you realize how very small we are in this world. The trees and forest floor were so thick with moss in some areas that sound barely carries and whether you want to or not, you can't help but to whisper. The endless horizon and clear blue water stretching out for miles while the waves and tides erase our footsteps can almost leave you speechless.  Pelicans, gulls and seabirds rule this coast. I spent a fair amount of time with one eye closed tight while the other peered through the scope to identify everything winging by. 

But the smell of the Pacific is different than the Atlantic to me. Mingled with freshness, evergreen and earthy smells that calm and refresh rather than the more stagnant, salty, humid eastern shores of Florida . It's one of those places that I never want to leave and each time I'm there I wish for more time. This was no exception. 

55 new birds were added on this trip making it well worth it and bringing my year total to 307. 

Upon our return to the frozen landscape of Cleveland I took a few days off to work and generally catch up on things. 

I then decided to run around the northern part of the state just a little bit to pick up some birds that may be tricky to get later on. The Toledo area was hosting a few common redpolls and a Hoary redpoll which took two visits before finding them. The hoary is a good pick up because those birds can be difficult to track down and it saves me some ridiculous chase later on. The obliging northern saw-whet owl at Maumee Bay SP and the northern shrike were also fine additions.  I went to see a snowy owl at Hopkins with my sister and then found another out in Lucas County on a drive-by. That evening the short-eared Owls at Ottawa didn't disappoint.  Four owls put on a nice show over the Stange Road prairie just after sunset. All in all bringing my year up to 315. 

I'll be headed to the southwest shortly to chase a few more rarities via Dallas. How do you pass up a $96.16 round trip flight. It will be my first timing using Spirit Airlines but as long as they get me there and back what the hell, right? I'm in the process of putting together an attack plan that will most likely include 5-6 states. Thank god for unlimited mileage on rental cars. 

I'm going to try to work on putting a running list on the blog so you can see what's been seen....and let me know if something pops up that I should see. Thanks to everyone who has been helpful so far this year with directions and info. I appreciate all the help I can get. 

So long CA....I'll be back

Once again we hit Colusa NWR, this time before sunrise. Great horned owls called in the darkness and the sounds of geese and ducks progressively got louder. Once daylight broke we began scanning and searching all over again. We again met up with more birders and exchanged numbers in case anyone found it.  To get right to the point, three hours later: still no duck. I'd had it and there were still a few birds to track down. 

We headed over to a little park a few miles away where before we got out of the car we could tell there were a lot of birds around. It seemed like there were birds everywhere. Juncos, sparrows and thrushes were everywhere. Nuttall's woodpeckers and red-breasted sapsuckers were abundant. Spotted towhees and California towhees were in every tangle and a mixed flock of chickadees, warblers and oak titmouse were fun to pick through. We spent about an hour wandering around the park checking off 5 new year birds in the process. Not a bad stop.  

Next we headed down to Nimbus Fish Hatchery to look for reported Barrow's goldeneyes. An hour and half later we were standing looking at 5 in the water below us. Peregrine falcon, red-tails, turkey vultures, kestrel and an osprey kept all of the ducks on high alert.

 

I scanned the far hillside and noticed a hole that looked like there may have been something inside. After realigning to get a better look: Barn owl

It's amazing to me how many barn owls are just sitting around in California. 

From the hatchery I decided that since it was our last night to be spent in California I wanted to watch the sunset over the ocean once in this trip. We headed down to Half Moon Bay and had a really nice dinner at the Half Moon Bay Brewing Company watching the sun sink into the water as gulls and Pelicans plunged into the water. It was great ending to a nice day. 

The next morning we had a few hours to kill before boarding the plane home. We went to Pillar Point and walked the beach and the trails. Hundreds of sanderlings scurried along while marbled godwits, Willets and black oystercatchers moved up with the rising tide. Heading to the airport is always a little depressing but the California was a success in my book putting my year total at 308. 

Back to the cold of Ohio for a little while. Maybe a few owls will help pass the time before I run off again. 

Next up: Arizona

F Duck

   Today we had an early start.  Shocking. Winding our way south through dense fog and darkness was again a little unnerving but we pressed on. Driving through the redwoods is always an impressive sight though. These trees are so tall and so immense that they dwarf everything around them including us. We stopped a few times to listen for owls to no avail. We tried to do the "drive through" tree but it was too early and a holiday unfortunately. From the forests we entered into agricultural areas and groves and then orchards until we started seeing rice fields filled with waterfowl.      

       Thousands of ducks, geese and swans dabbled and dove in these vast 'lakes'. Black-necked stilts, Avocets, long-billed curlews and white-faced ibis were plentiful as were long billed dowitchers, egrets and herons. Many red-tailed and red-shouldered Hawks watched these winter visitors waiting for the right moment. Once we finally made it Colusa NWR it was around noon and we set up shop. Scanning, scanning and more scanning. Four hours of scanning. I had a headache and my right eye hurt from scoping for so long and my left eye was damn near swollen shut. It was bright and sunny for once and I wished it wasn't. Every solitary Pintail resting in partial view made my heart skip a beat.  

 

    We drove the one way auto drive through the refuge looking at every bird out there and I shit you not there had to be 200,000 ducks and geese out there. The neat thing about this auto tour is that it is exactly that: an auto tour. Your car is your blind and if you get out of your car you are fined $275. I like this idea. None of the birds flushed and flew away. They didn't mind the traffic and gave us closer views to most species than I have ever had.  I have to wonder why more refuges don't adopt this policy. 

      The proverbial needle in a haystack remained hidden although if I was searching for Eurasian Wigeon I would have been ecstatic in counting 9 throughout our tour and scoping forays.  Even though there were 20 people scouring the refuge, no one could find the Falcated Duck. "F" duck as it shall be known from now on. 

As the sun dipped below the horizon thousands of greater white-fronted, snow and Ross's geese took flight to head out to pastures and parts unknown. Truly an amazing sight. Even the dark morph Ross's goose was a lackluster consolation prize for the "F" duck.  

A great horned owl teed up for us to watch as darkness claimed the refuge. We decided to stay close by for one last shot in the morning.....at the end of the day one thing is certain: I dread doing this again. 

Bramlings are Assholes, Surfers are cool

Again we went back to the neighborhood where the Brambling has been visiting feeders. We decided what the hell since we were close and had a few other places in the area to check out anyway. So we arrived at sunrise. The area is a cul de sac next to a church that the yard backs up to. Of course it was Sunday. We watched the area for about an hour while everyone arrived for services and then decided to get the hell out of there and continued to check the front yard. The backyard where the feeders apparently are cannot be seen but the birds pop up into the trees and sit around a lot. So they say....  We were joined by a group of guys from San Diego, a few people we had seen the other day and a couple others. We scoured the neighbors yards and walked around like we were lost using our binoculars to look high and low. I feel a little bad for the people who live on this street. All of these people walking around for the last two weeks had to be a little unnerving for them.   After a few hours we decided to give up, to hell with this bird, I had wasted enough time on it. 

Next we headed over to the north jetty on Humboldt bay. We arrived just as the tide was beginning to go out and walked along the beach towards the jetty. On our way out we run into a guy who is drinking a beer and just hanging out. He started up a conversation and learned that his name was Chris and that he was a surfer who's family had moved from the Cincinnati area when we was a kid.

He was waiting for others to show up before hitting the water for the day because the day before the "man in the white" had cleared the line at the end of the day. I had to ask him exactly what that meant. It turns out a great white shark had been seen in the area while the guys were surfing the afternoon before and he did not want to be the only person in the water today. He told us a bunch of stories and other places to go look for birds. He said that while he is out there sitting on his board waiting on a wave, Western grebes will swim right up to him and check him out. Close enough to touch. He assured us that it was safe to walk out but to not "turn our backs" on the ocean. We parted ways and headed to the end of the jetty. 

As the tide ebbed, more and more rocks were exposed and birds began to materialize. Black-legged kittiwakes and brown pelicans cruised by, Ancient murrelets and Common murres sheared the waves while booking past us and  Black turnstones, rock sandpipers and surfbirds picked at the newly exposed world below the waterline. Common, Pacific and Red-throated loons, Eared, horned, western and red-necked grebes, Brant's and Pelagic cormorants and all three scoters wave peaking all around as the waves pounded the shore.

That was when we saw Chris on his board waiting on the next curl. We spent the next 20 minutes watching him and his compatriots surf and enjoyed the sunny weather on the jetty. 

Because I am a glutton for punishment I decided to take us back to look for the brambling one last time. We spent about a half hour with Zero results and decided to call it a day. F. U. Brambling. 

I could seawatch all day long here. 

Tundra Bean there, Done that

    We left the hotel at 5 AM in the driving rain. It was a dark, dark road that never seemed to get any brighter. I've driven through a lot of weather situations in my travels but I'm not sure that I've ever driven though rain that was coming at me from five different directions. The first few hours of the trip were through forests of redwoods and along the coast with zero street lights and fewer guardrails in places that needed them. Once the "sun" finally came up I stopped for much needed coffee and to let my hands relax from clenching the steering wheel....we continued on. It took six and a half hours to reach our destination: Nestucca Bay NWR. The rain had eased up as we made the turn into the entrance road and within 14 seconds "there it is" is all I could say. The visiting Tundra Bean-goose that has been overwintering at the refuge stood out like a sore thumb. Well to me it did anyway. We parked and I got out and grabbed the scope at the exact same moment the skies opened up again and the wind almost blew the scope off the deck. Another couple was there and asked if I had seen the bird. I explained where it was, that it was with a dozen Canada geese and put the scope on it and they still couldn't see it. I guess sore thumbs are different for me.... You be the judge:

After viewing the goose and scanning the rest of the geese for ten minutes in the deluge I decided enough was enough. There were plenty of Canada's and Cackling Geese but I was soaked to the bone, exhausted and exhilarated at the same time. Yay! Now let's drive 7 hours south! 

Apparently the Brambling went rambling

  Today we got up early and drove in the rain and dark through the redwoods up to Arcata, California. Our mission was to stake out a Brambling that had been hanging out for about the last three weeks.  The rain stopped when we got there and we spent the next five hours scoping out the entire neighborhood. Large flocks of pine siskins, Oregon juncos, golden-crowned sparrows and stellar's jays kept us entertained but the Brambling never put in an appearance. We were joined by a couple from the Bay Area who are spending the weekend in that area and will let us know if it is seen again for our return trip to the bay. 

Six Band-tailed pigeons were calling and then seen flying out of the forest when we arrived and Anna's Hummingbirds were zipping around relentlessly. 

This part of California in general is actually very pretty. The groves of redwoods are awe inspiring and the drive along the coastline is really something to see. 

Somehow this scene made me think of what California must have been like 40 years ago. 

We passed a lot of places on the way today that I would've liked to have stopped and investigated but I didn't want to "waste" the time this morning. Possibly on the return trip. We're headed up to Oregon tonight to shoot for another rarity tomorrow. I am hoping it is not a wild goose chase..,

Day 1 in Cali

After arriving at midnight we crashed out and got up early to head over to Golden Gate Park. After finally finding the spot we spent five minutes before the celebrity bird made its appearance. The Rustic Bunting that has been hanging out with a group of Juncos stayed true to form and dropped in about 15 feet away from us. We observed the bird for a little while as a herd of Brewer's Blackbirds surrounded us, stumbling around like the walking dead, Varied Thrushes poked around the edges and White-crowned Sparrows owned the brush-pile. Amusing at is was, we had big plans for the day. 

We starting driving north and made the obligatory stop for photos of the Golden Gate Bridge. 

We decided to make a detour to check out Point Reyes National Seashore. Somehow in all my visits to California I had never ventured out there and after today I can say I really love that place. It's vast, beatiful and contains many different habitats from wave crashed shores, rocky cliffs, grassy plateaus, farm lands and pine stands amid coastal scrub. I did not plan to spend the day there, but before we knew it the sun was setting over the Pacific. 

Birds, birds and more birds along with mammals filled the day. Scoping the ocean, hiking trails and glassing basically everything that moved makes for a tired traveller tonight. 33 new birds were added today along with an American Badger for the mammal life list. 

Tomorrow we will continue to head north to Arcata for target #2 since today went a completely different direction than I had planned but I wouldn't change a thing. Even though I love a good chase, I'm a firm believer that spending time outdoors in a beautiful location is never time wasted. It's as much about the journey as it about the trip. Tomorrow is another day...

Back at it: Cali bound

I have been keeping my eye on the rare bird alerts for the last couple of weeks and it seems that the rarities that are hanging out in Northern California are staying put so I am heading out today for a week.   And with the temperature being 2° right now I can't say that I feel bad leaving Ohio at all. Lol. 

It's been about four years since I've been in Northern California so it will be good to experience it all again. I'm taking my sister with me this trip so that I've got some company and so she can also see this beautiful part of the country. My bag was already packed since I didn't use anything I took to Texas because it was so cold there. Hopefully the forecasted 50-60° temps will hold. 

Our chases will take us to Golden Gate Park for Rustic Bunting, Colusa NWR for Falcated Duck, Arcata, Ca for Brambling and then up to Nestucca NWR in Oregon for Tundra Bean-goose. There's the possibility of chasing a tufted duck as well but that is to the south so it will depend how we do up north. Should be an interesting run and should also add close to 80+ new birds for the year if I do well. 

Currently I have 251 birds for the year after adding a few yesterday (Barred owl, Lesser Black-backed Gull and for the 250th bird of the year (on my birthday no less) was the illusive and rare Hairy Woodpecker. Haha. Actually it's an easy bird and a little disappointing as a milestone bird. But what the hell, every bird counts so +1. 

So half of January has flown by and by the time I get back it will be even closer to February. The east coast holds some interesting possibilities as does Arizona right now. I'll be watching the reports to see if any of these birds manage to stick around. Somehow I imagine flying to Tuscon and driving another 5000 miles in the near future. Time will tell.  And let's not forget a certain visiting dove in Florida that deserves my attention...more updates tomorrow. For now it's so long Ohio, hello Pacific Ocean! 

Texas Recap: 10 days - 234 Species

The last ten days kind of flew by. It's hard to believe I'm looking out the window at a frosty Lake Erie when three days ago I was looking across the Rio Grande at palm trees in Mexico. And it's cold here. Really cold.

The trip to Texas was everything I had hoped it would be. We saw beautiful birds, laughed our asses off and had a great time. Anyone who has ever travelled with me knows that I forget about simple things like lunch and dinner when birding. I can't help it. I'm so "in the zone" and always looking at every bird that I lose all track of time. And I assume that is why Pringles were invented. 

   My companions definitely held their own though. From sunrise to sunset and lots of miles driven in between we all managed to walk away from this trip with lifers and a few photos. Oddly enough I didn't take many myself. I figured that there would be plenty and maybe one of these guys would share.          

Highlights of this adventure for me were of course the birds I'd never seen before but there is something else that stands out for me. I don't consider myself a "teacher" or a very patient man by any means, but when I travel with someone to a place I've been before I feel a bit responsible for making sure that everyone has a good time as well as sees all of the birds that they possibly can. My buddies and I managed to only miss seeing a few birds in the area that we had hoped for and I feel good about where we ended up. And seriously, the last few birds that we chased are just stupid luck.  New birds for

me include: Groove-billed Ani, white-collared seedeater, Brown booby and of all things an Ivory Gull. Not a bad way to start the year. 

I'm home feeling rejuvenated and ready for more. I birded today and added 9 new birds to the year including Glaucous and Iceland gulls among other "trash" birds for Ohio. Currently I am looking at options for a quick trip to Northern California by the end of the week. I'll consider it a birthday presant to myself. lol 

A White dream in Illinois

Today we got up at 5:30 and started driving. It was crystal clear skies and 11 degrees. We had 8.5 hours to go until we had the chance to see a bird that I have had dreams about for a long time. It would be a life bird for all of us if it was still there. Around 11 am we received word that the bird was still putting on a

show and we kept trucking. Along our route we saw a field full of wild turkeys and a rough legged hawk, both new for the year. 

At around three o'clock we arrived at a marina on an island in the Mississippi River. Quinsippi island to be exact. And the only bird present was sitting atop a steel dock cover. 

Ivory Gull! 

We added a few other birds in the area to our year list including Eurasian Tree Sparrow.  

Tomorrow we finish the drive home and I say goodbye to my friends. Tonight we celebrated with dinner and laughs.

It's been one hell of a run. 9 days. 12 states. 234 birds. Not a bad start to the year. 

Booby prize

Well it's cold and windy again. But the sun was shining a little so the drive across the state was mostly enjoyable. But it has been lot of driving. I'm not complaining. I like to drive, in fact I kind of love to drive. It helps me to clear my head and relax and after last year I really needed that. My buddies and I have laughed our asses off and I'm a little sorry we are running out of time on this trip but we're going to make the best of the days that remain. And we still have targets to hit. 

We pulled into Travis Lake State Park mid-afternoon and scanned the entire area. Every dock and boathouse roof, each snag and stump, every rock with nothing more than coots and a few common loons diving in the smooth lake. A single cormorant was perched on a log. A pair of osprey squeaked overhead and chip notes of sparrows in the grasses kept us busy but the celebrity we were seeking was not being seen. There was no one else around to ask for help either and after about an hour of walking around in 20 degree weather we were about to give it up. I swung around to pick up Jacob who had walked farther down to the edge of the grasses. Just then a large bird soared into view. "Booby!" 

This brown booby has been hanging out at the inland lake for quite some time apparently enjoying the area. We watched it glide over the water and out to the opposite side of the lake before looping back and perching on a stump. We took a bunch of photos and the bird again flew off around the bend in the sandbar not to be seen again. Score! 

We then headed over to Balcones Canyonlands NWR. Again cold and windy but we managed to add more birds to the year: spotted towhee, chipping sparrows, fox sparrow, Harris's sparrow and western scrub jay. We didn't spend a lot of time here and birded primarily from the van because it was windy and very chilly but still a productive stop. 

Our final spot of the day was a set of ebird coordinates where longspurs had been seen. The McCown's variety to be exact. We searched the "mega-field" with no luck but did manage to finally pull a western meadowlark as it called it's "churt " calls from a fence nearby. 

We were also amazed to see many, many eastern meadowlarks, flocks of brown headed cowbirds and Brewer's blackbirds. Oh yeah, and a little brown bird that popped off the side of the road: 

Burrowing Owl

Tomorrow will be another long day. It's almost 9 hours until our next bird. Until then, sleep is in the very near future. 

Hasta mañana amigos. 

Take me to the river....

Wednesday we explored areas along the Rio Grande trying to clean up on some missing birds. We still hadn't found a few valley specialties and we're hoping to track them down before we left the valley.  First up was Anzelduas County Park. This is an interesting little park right on the river. I really can't figure out why people would go there, there isn't that much to do, but I guess a picnic is always fun and you can look across the river and wave at all the people in Mexico having picnics in their park. There is a large short grass field immediately to the right as you enter this park. The field was filled with meadowlarks and pipits which we scanned for both Western Meadowlark and Sprague's pipit but could not locate. 

Continuing on at the bend in the river there was a ringed Kingfisher perched in a tree which almost immediately took flight heading into Mexico. A large flock of house finches and eastern bluebirds was working the ground beneath the trees with yellow rump warbler's and a vermilion flycatcher adding to the colorful show. A flock of greater white fronted geese flew overhead adding them to our Texas list as well. A feeding flock of lark sparrows and a verdin were also great to see. As we were watching the lark sparrows I looked up and an eastern screech owl was sitting in a hole in a tree looking at us through angry eyes. Only a few photos were taken. Lol. On the way out of the park we spotted a small hawk sitting on a power pole. Great looks at this beautiful adult gray hawk. 

Next we went out to Salineño to the feeding station at the DeWind house. This place is truly unbelievable. And old trailer home, a few plastic chairs and a bunch of feeders comprise the site that sits a few hundred yards from the Rio Grande. There was a light, misty rain as we arrived and continued the duration of out visit.  Hoards of birds called and chattered as they came into the feeders. Close to 20 kiskadees loudly called and dive bombed the yard. Altamira Orioles and hooded Orioles flitted in and out of the yard. We waited patiently for the guest of honor as we watched the feeding frenzy go crazy when a Cooper's hawk invaded the yard. Minutes later a beautiful Audubon's Oriole came in to the bark butter on the tree limb. This is possibly my favorite oriole of the valley and certainly the most difficult to locate. We thanked our hosts and walked down to check the river. A few ducks paddled around down river but otherwise the wet weather kept it pretty quiet. 

An hour later we pulled into a small neighborhood along the river. A gate was across a dirt road which was the location of our targeted bird. It took less than 90 seconds. Four white collared seed-eaters  popped up from the tall grasses and perched on the brush nearby. This was a bird I imagined would take a lot of work to find. Nope. Life bird for all of us in less than 5 minutes. Check. 

We headed into Laredo for the night. Tomorrow we will begin to make the swing toward home with a few stops long the way. So long valley. See you soon...

A few cell phone shots from the camera for now. Too tired for the real thing today. 

Ani good birds around?

Tuesday was the best weather day we have had yet. Blue skies, sunshine and warmer weather. We went to Sabal Palm sanctuary first and walked the trails of the jungle like setting. A beautiful hooded oriole was working the trees above the feeder near the visitors center among 15 green jays. A yellow throated warbler put on a nice show right after I spotted a great horned owl hiding in a palm. A small flock of warblers worked the edge of the resaca including a northern parula, but not its tropical cousin I was hoping to find. A loud call note caught our attention and after searching for a minute we located a dusky capped flycatcher on a bare limb. The bird almost immediately took off to a more secluded area but I momentarily had great looks. We spent some time watching a family of least grebes move around the lake as great kiskadees continuously chattered all around us. We decided to walk the native trail where we had our first good Looks at the Rio Grande of the trip amazingly enough. There were plenty of birds on the opposite bank. Mexico life list? Not yet. Lol. 

The trail wound through an open wooded area where a large black bird sailed into the brush. Groove billed ani. We waited it out and two more joined it. One bird perched on top of a shrub giving us great looks and photos. Finally a life bird on this trip. It only took 6 days. Ha

Next we headed out to Old Port Isabel Road. It's been some I've been on this drive but I didn't remember it being quite so rural. The "road" was basically two tire tracks though a mud slide. Although mostly dry, some areas were quite thick and a little unnerving. We stopped before it got too ugly and immediately a cactus wren popped up to scold us.  The angry little fella perched up, believe it or not, on a cactus of all things. A covey of bobwhite darted across the road in front of us as we were getting ready to turn around to find more suitable pavement since the road ahead of us seem to be deteriorating rapidly. We tried to enter the road from the opposite and but it was also a complete pit of mud so we headed out to South Padre Island. 

We decided to go walk the boardwalk's at the convention center to see what kind of birds were around.   Clapper rails were sitting around in the sun, reddish egrets and tricolored Herons gave close up looks and laughing gulls and black skimmers cruised the shore. Virginia rail and sora were also walking around in the marsh but no purple gallinule that had been seen there. 

From there we decided to try Laguna Atascosa NWR. Things have changed since the last time I was there. The wildlife drive that was 15 miles is long no longer open to the public. Since a few assholes decided to run over and kill two ocelots. 

Inside the visitor center we talk to a very nice man and an incredibly strange woman. Now mind you, we have been driving around most of the day and most of the week for that matter, so we are all a little slaphappy and tired. You know how when something is funny and you are tired it makes it even more funny? Well this was one of those moments.  The nice lady at the refuge is about to give us some information about going to find aplomado falcon when she paused and began licking her lips and sticking her tongue out faster than any reptile I have ever seen. Her tongue was moving so fast that it was almost a blur but the sounds that she was making were so loud that it was impossible not to notice. Normally I would not make fun of somebody ( that is a lie) and I tried my best to hold it together without looking at my buddies, but one little poke from shawn and it was all over. I managed to hold my composure as the two of them walked away hysterically laughing, but once we got outside I completely lost it. It will be one of those things that we laugh about for a long time to come. 

So we headed out, parked near a gate and walked out into the refuge. After searching for a little while 2 Falcons were spotted on fence post about a quarter of mile away. Aplomado Falcons. We watched the birds through the scope for a while chasing off northern harrier's and white tailed hawks. We tried to jockey to get a better view but they were not visible from the road. Some crappy digiscoped photos were taken just to record our sighting though.  The sun had set and it was time to end of the day. Wednesday we will explore some border towns seeking a few more rarities....

Long walk. Long drive. Long two days.

On Sunday we started off at Estero Llano and joined the "bird walk". It was windy and cold. Again. Note to self:  I need to pay better attention to weather forcasts when packing for trips. Shorts and t-shirts are not cutting it. 

Despite the slightly less than stellar weather we pulled a lot of new year birds and valley specialties. Common Paraque is always pretty cool to see. Tropical and Couch's kingbirds calling away, a black chinned and buff bellied hummingbirds zipping around, plain chachalaca lurking in the scrub and kiskadees loudly calling from everywhere make this part of the country a place every bird nerd should visit. 

News came in around the time we were  finishing up that a blue bunting had been found at Santa Ana NWR. So of course we headed over there. Like we wouldn't. Right. We met the man who found the bird in the parking lot, viewed his photos and congratulated him on a great find when we arrived. We set off following a park employee to the spot where the bird had been spotted. We walked the trail for more than an hour with no luck. And virtually no birds except for a few very loud white eyed vireos. We decided at that point to explore more of the park. If you've never been there let me tell you that it is large. Very large. 

More birds new for the trip include 

Altamira Orioles, Harris's hawks and an over wintering juvenile broad winged hawk.  At this point we decided to head back to the car, grab something quick to eat and figure out what we were doing next. For some reason we decided to hike the cattail trail to see if we could spot a Fulvous whistling duck that had been reported earlier but had moved deeper into the park. Remember when I told you that the park was large? Well we really had no idea until we hiked that trail.  Large doesn't even cover it. What was supposed to be "about a mile" turned into a 6 mile round-trip death march.   Without a single fucking whistling duck for that matter. Five hours spent at the refuge with very little to show for it. To say the least we were a little disappointed and exhausted. We headed back to the hotel where I managed to fall asleep in about nine minutes. 

When the alarm went off at 4:30 AM this morning my feet were still throbbing but I managed to pull myself together and haul us on a 4 hour drive up to Goose Island State Park. We had not even parked the car before we spotted the first target for the day. Two whooping cranes were foraging at the side of a small pond on private land just off the road. Photos were taken and within 5 minutes the birds took flight and flew off into Aransas NWR to join three others. Five in a day. Well actually in 15 minutes. Not bad at all. Luck was definitely on our side. After searching around the area for just a little while we decided to book it down to a rest area off of Highway 281. A painted redstart had been seen there for a couple of days and we decided to give it a shot. An hour and a half later we were looking at this beautiful warbler foraging on the ground, fanning its tail and calling nearly at our feet. High-fives all around. This was not a bird I expected to see so early in the year or in Texas for that matter. But it was a welcome pick up after yesterday's misses. From there we decided to head back south and check on a few more of the local parks. On the drive down at 75 miles an hour I spotted a scissor tailed flycatcher and immediately pulled over and backed up on the highway ( yes on the highway) so that we all could get great looks and some photos. Unfortunately all of the places we wanted to see to the south of us were closed on Mondays. Go figure. I suppose a little research ahead of time would have told us that but at least it put us in position for the last couple of targets of the day. 

 We drove around the McAllen area listening for the raucous, jungle like calls of parrots and parakeets. Before long we spotted a large flock of parakeets flying ahead of us. Of course we were on one of the busiest roads with the most traffic lights I have ever been on in Texas at the time. Expletives all around. 

 We managed to track down the flock as they were perched on telephone wires outside of a Chase bank. It really is unbelievable how loud 300 parakeets can be while sitting on wires above your head. Shortly after arriving, the guys had taken 700 photographs when a Harris's  hawk cruises in and makes the birds a little uncomfortable. They took to the sky shrieking and headed off to the east. At this point, with about 45 minutes of daylight left we decided to gun it down the road to try to find red crowned parrots that roost in a neighborhood of McAllen. A quick half spin through the neighborhood and there they were,  doing what these birds do, annoying the shit out of an entire neighborhood. Approximately 130 birds landed in tall tree and squawked nonstop for 10 minutes as the machine gun fire of the cameras managed to capture as much as they could in the fading daylight. Score. It was a great way to end a pretty damn good day in the valley and to erase some of the disappointment of yesterday. Tomorrow we will try to track down some of the birds that we have missed so far and hopefully add to our lists for the 

year.  Hopefully I'll be able to stay awake long enough to upload some pictures tomorrow. 

Day three: Texas

Waking up finally in Texas was a great way to start the day. We got a pretty early  start considering that once again we were all pretty tired from driving and birding. It was cloudy and cool and began to rain a fine mist on us as we headed to Bolivar. Our first target for the day was a mountain plover that had been hanging out on the beach for the last week or so. We

Made a fast stop at Rollover Pass where we were greeted by hundreds of shorebirds, brown and white Pelicans and black skimmers. Many photos taken and quite a few life birds for my buddies. We decided to make haste to Bolivar Flats Shorebird Sanctuary though since a large thunderstorm was brewing in the gulf. We arrived and in a few fast minutes of searching we located the plover standing alone at the edge of the surf. At the same moment I watched a barn owl flopping his way over the dunes and our attention was divided momentarily.  We all decided that the mountain plover deserved our attention just a bit more. The Barn owl sat on a post off in the distance and we were able to get a few photos before our attention was completely upon the plover. We were able to set up shop and watch this bird along with whimbrel, longbilled curlew, red knots, Sanderlings, black bellied plovers, Willets, marbled godwits, many pelicans, gulls and terns 

and piping plovers. We walked the beach a while to observe and identify all of the species and decided to move on since the rain was moving in. 

We then headed up to Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge where we drive the roads checking for new birds. Just as we entered the refuge a Vermilion Flycatcher was working the maintenance yard. Another liger for my travel companions giving excellent looks and photo opportunities. We travelled on between raindrops to find more birds. Seaside sparrows were active and easily viewed after some searching and again more photos. The refuge held many species of ducks and geese, herons and egrets and two very "easy" American bitterns put on quite a show. At this point the rain picked up a little and we decided to head towards Houston.  

As we got closer, the rain stopped in the clouds moved out; The summer signing in the sky was blue. We headed towards Bear Creek Park to try to locate another bird that had been reported.  Apparently a Greater Pewee has been spending the winter in this part for the last couple of years. We arrived with about an hour of daylight and high hopes of finding this wayward migrant. After about an hour of searching we had added a handful of species to our year list but no pewee. We soeread out to look around and I began to hear the bird calling in the distance. 

We hightailed it over to the area and located the bird sitting in a bare tree continuously calling. Lighting was tough for photographs but we took a lot anyway as to be expected. High-fives all around and then it was into the van to begin the maker trip to Harlingen for the evening. After a 5 1/2 hour drive we arrived and checked into our hotel and currently I'm enjoying a white wing Belgian White Ale. All is right with the world at the moment. Tomorrow morning we got Estero Llano for all of the valley specialties. With some lick we will add quite a few birds to the year list. 

Yes. There are still birds out there.

After some much-needed sleep we hit the road early again to travel farther into Louisiana. Our first stop was at a gas station just off the highway. In the field behind the building there were pipits, shovelers, flocks of snow and Ross's geese flying over, an obliging loggerhead shrike, mockingbirds, Palm warbler, white crowned and savannah sparrows. A beautiful crested caracara did a flyby which was a nice addition to our lists and hopefully the first of many to come. 

Then it was on to Lacassine national wildlife refuge. This refuge has an auto tour which which loops around the ponds. Here we added coots, common gallinules and lots of ducks, herons and egrets.  More snow geese and nearly 300 greater white-fronted geese got plenty of attention. It was Windy and cold but a great way to spend a few hours. 

Our next stop was Cameron Prairie National Wildlife refuge to look for a

previously reported Eurasian wigeon and a ferruginous hawk. We found the wigeon in a matter of minutes and then proceeded to take thousands of photos of ducks, geese, ibis, stilts and egrets, spoonbills and cinamon teal. 

Well they did. Haha.  Then after searching the entire area again and only seeing Krider's red tails we relocated the dark morph ferruginous hawk hunting the wetland and then perched. It was a great way to end the day. Driving another 2 hours to check into a hotel that puts us about an hour away from our targets for tomorrow. Pics and updates numbers and birds tomorrow. Sleep is unavoidable and I fear the six pack will go untouched tonight. 

January 1, 2015: It Begins

Early to bed; early to rise. Or maybe late to bed early to rise. Regardless, the year ended with family and a quiet night at home and the new year started at 6 AM when the alarm sounded to start the crazy 10 days ahead. My buddy Shawn arrived at 7:30 and were on the road by 7:45. Juncos, goldfinches and a bald eagle began the trip. The 3 hour drive south produced a handful of additional birds-kestrel, horned larks, canada geese, blue jays, cardinals, robins etc We arrived in Dayton around 11:30 and momentarily watched a raven being harassed by 6 crows. Jacob packed up, hopped in and we were off.
Turkey and black vultures owned the skies with a few red-tails and loads of starlings as we journeyed south through Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi and finally stopping in Hammond, Louisiana for the night after a 17 hour drive. It's been a long day. The real adventure begins tomorrow.
29 species on the day