Like so many visiting birders, this was
Rudy and Amy’s first time to Texas, but by the time “Guiding Day” arrived, they
had already been able to visit many of our local hotspots and take advantage of
the bird walks those places have to offer (they had some fun stories to tell J), so most of the
Valley Specialties were already under their belts! So I tossed the prepared itinerary J, asked them what
they still needed to see, and that paved the way for a day birding the back
roads of La Sal del Rey!
Their remaining target birds had a
decidedly “western” flair, so we headed up and started on South Brushline Road,
north of FM 490. A cold front had come
through, so the temperature was a delicious 68 degrees with a stiff wind, so
many of the targets would call from the brush but were reticent to come
out. Pyrrhuloxias happily chattered and
Verdins chirped, but remained stubborn.
Thankfully a White-tailed Hawk banked in the distance, reminding Amy of
their Bald Eagles up north with that beacon of a tail! A much smaller Sharp-shinned Hawk also
decided to bat low overhead, giving great looks. Some immature White Ibis and later a group of
White-faced Ibis flew by, and while we were tracking a flock of blackbirds I
saw a couple of large birds flying in the distance; when I realized what they
were I was stoked – the Sandhill Cranes were back! We later heard some calling, so that was a
wonderful experience! At one point I
heard honking and jumped out of the car:
a small flock of White-fronted Geese were going overhead! Winter had arrived (theoretically)! J
Collared Dove was an exciting find for my Pennsylvania friends
Amy and Rudy check out the wetlands
Loggerhead Shrike fluffs himself up against the cold
There weren’t many wet spots along the
road, but what there was usually had at least a handful of Least Sandpipers
poking around in them. Crossing SR 186
we continued north, and had great encounters with Caracaras, Harris’ Hawks, and
even a single Broad-winged Hawk.
Bobwhite would explode from the grass along the side of the road but
unfortunately never landed where we could see them. We tried for the Ferruginous Pygmy Owl but
couldn’t even find any scolding birds; we had great looks at Black-crested
Titmice, Orange-crowned Warblers, and House Wrens instead. One Pyrrhuloxia finally deigned to land on
the wire, but my charges didn’t get a decent look before he took off… L Heading into the northernmost section, we had
some nice looks at Lark Sparrows (another life bird), but I was sweating the
normal stuff I usually get along there such as Bewick’s and Cactus Wrens,
Roadrunners, and Black Vultures, but finally one of the Verdins decided to
cooperate and everyone got a great look at the yellow head and even the rusty
shoulders! Actually, the most
interesting sighting along here wasn’t a bird at all, but a little Ribbon Snake
chilling out in the road! (We eventually
encouraged him to move into brush so he wouldn’t become road kill…) The farm pond at the end of the road had a
yelling Greater Yellowlegs and some Killdeer, but we managed to get scope views
of a couple of Savannah Sparrows that had been hiding by the road and then
migrated to a mesquite! What was really
amazing were the numbers of Scissor-tailed Flycatchers staging for
migration: there must have been
hundreds, and they lined the wires like so many swallows; it was amusing to see
all these tails poking out from the wires like a line of sticks!
Harris' Hawk
Checking out Brushline Road
One of hundreds of Scissor-tailed Flycatchers getting ready to migrate
Ribbon Snake on the road
Small portion of the mob of Scissortails
At that point we were getting hungry, so
we made a run to Raymondville for lunch, getting a great glimpse of a
White-tailed Hawk with a snake on the way, then returned to the La Sal route via
CR20, picking up a lone Avocet feeding along 186 on the way. The wetland there was almost down to nothing
as well, with just some Mottled Ducks to show for it. Amy had a nice adrenalin rush when, while
continuing north on CR20, I left the nice gravel road and ventured onto the
overgrown two-track road (with that nice dip at the beginning J), but the habitat
was worth it, as we picked up Common Ground Dove (another lifer), and tried
unsuccessfully to pull out more Pyrrs. Near
the area where you can see part of La Sal Viejas, I heard a wobbly Cassin’s
Sparrow in the distance and tried to call it in, to no avail…
CR20 going through the La Sal Viejas tract
As we headed west on Ken Baker Road, a
kettle of vultures over Rio Beef Feedyard got us out of the car, and as I
sifted through them for the coveted Black, Amy suddenly spotted one right
overhead! They mentioned Brewer’s
Blackbird would also be a life bird (I had seen reports that they were back in
the Valley), so we wheeled into the feedyard, asked permission to go in and
look for blackbirds (the only “rule” they ever give me is simply to stay in the
vehicle), and away we went, sifting through hundreds of grackles, cowbirds of
both flavors (Bronzed was a life bird, too, as they especially liked the “creepy”
red eyes J),
and Collared Doves, but try as we might, we just couldn’t pull out a Brewer’s
Blackbird. Another little wetland at the
end of one lane had a mob of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks and some unidentifiable
peeps, and the Cattle Egrets in with a distant herd of cattle was definitely a
hit! The Brahman cattle were almost as fascinating
as the icterids to my guests; I had never really paid attention to the humpy
backs, the lamb-like ears, and the “baggy knees” before!
There were a couple more lanes we could
have poked down, but I think we had all had enough of the flies and the smell
(Amy made the comment that farmers back in Pennsylvania will say to you, “What
smell??” J),
so we continued on Ken Baker Road. When
we got to the T, we still had about 45 minutes before we had to start heading
back, so I suggested that if Roadrunner was still high on their list, we could
revisit north Brushline rather than visiting other places. They unanimously agreed, so up we went, and
while Amy was enjoying another Scissortail, both Rudy and I suddenly noticed
the Roadrunner right in front of the car!
Unfortunately he took off before Amy got a good look, so we snuck up to
where he went in the brush and cooed at him, and sure enough, he came right out
next to the car! He then proceeded to
circle the car like “Jaws” circled the
Orca, and finally flew up to the front, where he put on a great show! Amy had no idea he’d be so big; she said he
looked like the “real” Roadrunner! J
We continued on to the east-west portion
and decided to troll for Cactus Wrens at a good cactus patch. Interestingly, there must have been a
Pyrrhuloxia in the background of the recording, as a group came blasting in and
finally gave everyone good
looks! While we were there we trolled
for Bewick’s Wrens as well (didn’t hear a one along the route), and he came in
right away, giving great looks!
Called it a day after that, but on the way
home along FM 493 we passed a wetland with some goodies; besides Mottled Ducks
and Blue-winged Teal, there was a handful of Long-billed Dowitchers for the
day! Wrapped up with a modest 65 species. Bird List:
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck
Greater White-fronted Goose
Mottled Duck
Blue-winged Teal
Northern Bobwhite
Great Blue Heron
Cattle Egret
White Ibis
White-faced Ibis
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Harris's Hawk
White-tailed Hawk
Broad-winged Hawk
Sandhill Crane
American Avocet
Killdeer
Greater Yellowlegs
Least Sandpiper
Long-billed Dowitcher
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
White-winged Dove
Mourning Dove
Common Ground-Dove
Greater Roadrunner
Golden-fronted Woodpecker
Ladder-backed Woodpecker
Crested Caracara
American Kestrel
Eastern Phoebe
Great Kiskadee
Couch's Kingbird
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
Loggerhead Shrike
Green Jay
Barn Swallow
Black-crested Titmouse
Verdin
House Wren
Bewick's Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Curve-billed Thrasher
Long-billed Thrasher
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Orange-crowned Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Cassin's Sparrow
Lark Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Lincoln's Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Pyrrhuloxia
Indigo Bunting
Dickcissel
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Great-tailed Grackle
Bronzed Cowbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Sparrow
65 SPECIES
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