Today
it was “Seedeaters Or Bust” for Griffin, as he and his mom had gone up to
Falcon and Salineño the day before and dipped on both the seedeaters and
reported anis, so we headed up once again with the seedeater being our sole
target bird! We got to the boat ramp first
thing with the Osprey pair greeting us, then hiked the short trail, spending
time at each of the “hotspots” where the birds had been seen in the past, along
with other birders also looking for the same quarry! We continued to work the trail, spending extended
time at the “dead end”, and since the birds had
been reported the day before, Griffin was content to wait it out at this spot
rather than continue on to San Ygnacio or even Laredo. While waiting we saw several swallows,
including good looks at Cave, but also Bank and Barn, which we knew would be
flagged by EBird, so Griffin got some documentation shots. Not “flaggable” but still interesting were
three adult Herring Gulls flying downriver, and a flock of Long-billed Curlews
flying overhead! A lovely male Green
Kingfisher came in close and shone like an emerald in the morning sun! Griffin spotted a small flock of Chipping
Sparrows, and somewhere a House Finch chirped.
View of the Rio Grande from the end of the "Seedeater Trail"
This male Green Kingfisher is also peering down, looking for breakfast!
Patience
was definitely the order of the day! I
made a few passes back and forth just to see if I could hear anything, running
into birding buddy Michael who was also taking a couple of people
around to see the avian sights! They
headed down towards the dead end while I continued to pace, and finally at one point heard the
distinctive down-slurred whistle of a seedeater! We all headed towards the sound, and at one
point I caught onto movement and saw the bird just as it exploded from the cane and into the brush, never to be
seen again… L Griffin saw the bird but not well enough to
see any detail (and all I saw was a pale body with some darker smudging), but
he and Diane set up watch at the “hotspot” that’s about midway between the
beginning and the end of the trail (it’s more of an overlook, with an Altamira
Oriole nest off to the left which is a good landmark…). I went on down to the cul-de-sac again, when
before long I heard a whistle and yelled to Griffin just before a big ol’ white
pickup came down the dicey side road and parked! Turned out to be an unmarked Border Patrol
truck, and the guys were amused, I think, when I blurted that I had a
White-collared Seedeater and that my friend was desperate to see this bird and
was going to be running down the trail any minute! Sure enough, here came Griffin (followed more
slowly by Diane), but the bird never showed, and we got to chatting with the BP
guys, extending our appreciation that they were there, making things safer for
tourists!
We
did hear at least two birds on and
off during the course of the day, but with the wind picking up (and the fact
that invariably one of them was calling from the cane across the river), we
were quickly giving up hope of getting a better look! A soaring Zone-tailed Hawk was a nice
consolation prize, and a Mexican Duck hanging out with what looked more to be a
Mottled Duck was interesting, but no Muscovy came barreling down the River
(although the cormorants would get us going for a minute). While Diane and Griffin were back at the
“Oriole Nest Watch Spot”, I was coming back from the cul-de-sac and heard a
descending Keeerrr! Sounding like the real deal and not a Green
Jay imitation, I looked up to see a Gray Hawk making circles overhead,
eventually showing off for all the birders scattered in various parts of the
area! During one lull one of the Ospreys came in with a huge fish, took a
couple of bites, and spent the rest of the time yelling at his
mate/rival/whatever!
Various views of a Zone-tailed Hawk soaring overhead
Powdered Dancer
Blue-ringed Dancer
Griffin scans the Mexican side for seedeaters
"Heppy" guards the parking area at the foot of the "boat ramp"
Towards
2:00 even Griffin’s patience was beginning to wane, so we all agreed it was
time to veg at the feeders! We hadn’t
been seated five minutes before the Audubon’s Oriole showed up in all his
glory! What a show! It was hard to break away when it was time to
go, as even the Chachalacas were starting to come in, but we tore ourselves
away and headed home with 63 species for the day.
A "patriotic" Red Admiral indulges while we wait for the avian diners to show up...
Black-crested Titmouse
Audubon's Oriole
"This is MY orange!"
Bird List:
Gadwall
“Mexican Duck” Mottled Duck
Plain Chachalaca
Neotropic Cormorant
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Cattle Egret
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
Cooper's Hawk
Harris's Hawk
Gray Hawk
Zone-tailed Hawk
American Coot
Spotted Sandpiper
Long-billed Curlew
Herring Gull
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
White-winged Dove
Mourning Dove
White-tipped Dove
Ringed Kingfisher
Green Kingfisher
Golden-fronted Woodpecker
Ladder-backed Woodpecker
Crested Caracara
American Kestrel
Eastern Phoebe
Great Kiskadee
Loggerhead Shrike
White-eyed Vireo
Green Jay
Tree Swallow
Bank Swallow
Barn Swallow
Cave Swallow
Black-crested Titmouse
Verdin
House Wren
Bewick's Wren
Cactus Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Clay-colored Thrush
Long-billed Thrasher
Northern Mockingbird
Orange-crowned Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Yellow-rumped Warbler
White-collared Seedeater
Olive Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Great-tailed Grackle
Altamira Oriole
Audubon's Oriole
House Finch
House Sparrow
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