More From The Valley: Aquatic Texans

No megas to report on today, although I did miss being on a Hawaiian Petrel boat on Saturday. It hurts, I won't lie. The only Pterodroma I've seen in California was a Murphy's Petrel, and it was so bloody far by the time I got glass on it that I couldn't make out any field marks to speak of (thus I do not count it, for I am an honorable birder). But before BB&B goes into full fall seabird mode, here is some more terrestrial spring coverage from Texas instead. After all, Texas is notorious for it's awful pelagic trips...not that anyone can blame the birders who organize and lead those trips, but let's face it; the Gulf is a desolate place compared to waters off California or North Carolina.

Right. Sorry Texans. Despite being impressively unadorned, semi-aquatic Northern Waterthrushes are quite variable in appearance. This is a "yellower" bird with legs on the pink end of the spectrum. South Padre Island, TX.

And here is a "white" individual, with duller legs. This isn't an uncommon variation, despite what some field guides and a lot of birders will tell you. It even appears to have some color on the flanks, LOWA style. Note how heavy the streaking on the breast is compared to LOWA. South Padre Island, TX.

It took me a long time to see a White-rumped Sanpiper...I had seen a grand total of 3 before this year. Thankfully they are a plentiful spring migrant in south Texas, and I even got side-by-side comparisons with Baird's Sandpiper. Pretty sick. Near Boca Chica Beach, TX.

This bird isn't quite as far into it's alternate plumage. Seeing a fish-eating Calidrid is not an everyday occurrence.

Long wings. White rump. Classic.

Hey, it's a Wilson's Plover. Did you know there is a Collared Plover in south Texas right now? It's the second U.S. record. Dan Jones found it, who you may know from the Global Birder Ranking System's Lower Rio Grande Valley Honor Roll. I called up the GBRS statisticians to do some math for me, and it turns out that on average 0.91 Collared Plovers actually occur in Texas every year. Why are they not found? Two reasons...the large amount of shorebird habitat available, and the impressive number of low-ranking birders in the area (mostly visiting birders) who misidentify COPL for other species. A lethal combination, if ever there was one. Near Boca Chica Beach, TX.

Fulvous Whistling-Ducks...birds I have not seen since the 90's. We had quite the reunion. Bummer that these birds are essentially gone from California now. Lake Harlingen, TX.

Fulvous are dwarfed by their more abundant black-bellied counterpart. On one of my last days on my Texas work site, there were hundreds of Fulvous Whistling-Ducks flying around (Willacy County). It was a vexing experience, to be sure. Other spots I turned up FUWD were at Estero Llano Grande and South Padre Island.

Least Bittern. I've had better looks at these skulky bastards, but never with sherbert lores! What a delicious flavor of facemelt. Estero Llano Grande WBC, TX.

The bittern unleashes a deafening bellow in the direction of some prey. Within seconds, a 7-foot alligator went belly up in the pond. Adult alligators are the preferred prey for Least Bitterns...it is known.

Lesser Yellowlegs are quite stylish a few months of the year. South Padre Island, TX.

Graduating the yellowlegs course is an important first step for beginning birders. Overcome this hurtle (Greater vs. Lesser vs. Solitary Sandpiper), and you will find yourself skyrocketing up the GBRS ladder...until you have to take the dowitcher test, that is.

Not only is the south blessed with winning wading bird diversity, the birds themselves are far more tolerant of humans. Here is a fearless Green Heron. South Padre Island, TX.

Maybe the next sushi craze will be consuming fish in this manner (swallowed whole, head first, in the ancient tradition of the Ardeidae).

I'm still looking for a Reddish Egret crush. I should have just crawled out there on my belly like the nerds below, but I was too busy birding and not wanting to wallow in mud. South Padre Island, TX.

Stately, but frantic when it comes to feeding. I wonder what a Reddish Egret would do if prescribed Ritalin. My hypothesis? Starve to death.

The challenges of dowitcher identification seem never-ending. This Short-billed Dowitcher, which actually has a short bill, is probably a male. A few things to note on this bird are the spotting on the sides, steep forehead and gentle (yet noticeable) decurve of the mandible. South Padre Island, TX.

Another Short-billed. Take a look at this comprehensive article on dowitcher ID, you might learn a thing or two.

Like Fulvous Whistling-Duck, Least Grebe is one of the birds that brings in birders from all corners of the country. They're not much to look at compared to some of the valley specialties, but if that doesn't put you off you can get a hell of a look at Sabal Palm Sanctuary (where this bird was photographed).

Hard to get better looks than this.

I failed to photograph Speckled Racer on this day, so this Rio Grande Leopard Frog (I think) will have to do. Sabal Palm Sanctuary, TX.

Look at these nerds crawling around in the mud. I feel bad for the girl they dragged along, through the mud, who has to carry their shit. Crazy photogs.

Ish Birds...Four In The Pink...Sora! Sora! Sora!

Reddish Egret. Obviously, this is a white morph, probably a young bird judging by the dull base of the bill. Hella elegant though. Speaking of Reddish Egrets, how come no other "ish" birds are in the U.S. and Canada? What about Purplish Sandpiper? That's a winning name right there. Yellowish Rail? Great Bluish Heron? I think I've struck gold.

Ever since the demise of the Perpetual Weekend, Saturdays and Sundays have taken on meaning again. No longer do I think, "Oh cool, my 9-to-5 friends will be down to go to a bar now". This is because A) I don't know anyone here that I would want to meet at a bar and B) because I work hella and I can only get some genuine and sustained birding in two days a week.

This weekend I am taking the nerdism to a much higher and more embarrassing level than usual and combining forces, once again, with Nate of This Machine Watches Birds. He's going to show me around the Corpus Christi/Port Aransas hotspots and hopefully hand me a lifer on a silver platter. I've spent minimal time birding that area, although I am happy to say that I am a Whooping Crane veteran. We'll see what the weather does, but next weekend I'm crossing fingers for a certain couple warblers and crossing toes for a certain couple nightjars. Or it might be a Life Is Pain weekend, but it will be good to escape the grips of the valley for a couple days.

Before BB&B returns to spring warbler madness, I thought I would pay my respects to some of the waterbirds that were around South Padre Island the other day.

Reddish meets Roseate...Reddish wins. South Florida is not the only place to go to see Reddish Egret and Roseate Spoonbill side by side.

Roseate Gull! Franklin's Gulls are migrating through the area now and they are easy to pick out from a distance because they are the only gulls that are glowing pink.

Here's one with a couple boring-breasted Laughing Gulls in comparison. Of course Franklin is not in possession of the most famous pink gull (that would belong to Ross), but I've always liked them.

You probably like them too. Admit it. Viewing this photo gives you the warm fuzzies. According to whatbird.com, this gull was named after Sir John Franklin, (who according to Wikipedia, died a horrible death while exploring the arctic wastes). The original name for this bird? Franklin's Rosy Gull.

Roseate Tern!!! Oh wait...it's just a roseate-colored tern, not a Roseate Tern. Sandwich Tern is an abundant bird on South Padre Island, and many of them are glowing pink now, much like their Elegant Tern cousins on the west coast.

There is a lot of sandwich courtship going on here. It's not as cool to watch as tandem aerial displays, but it is funnier.

The mighty bellow of a Royal Tern is a thing to behold.

I was lurking on the boardwalk at the birding center (which is next door to the convention center) and this semi-snazzy ibis traipsed out of the vegetation, not giving two fucks. I assumed it was going to be a White-faced (the expected Plegadis here), but a closer look proved me wrong.

Seeing no pink face and a depthless brown eye, I was ready to embrace it as a Glossy Ibis. But why the gray face ibis? Glossy Ibis does not look like this either.

Upon photo review, there does seem to be a slight tinge of pink in the face (apparently pink is the theme of this post), and maybe even some redness in the eye...which compliments the pale gray facial skin nicely if the bird is actually a Glossy X White-faced Ibis. Lifer hybrid! Tragically, I noticed that a "Glossy Ibis" was reported from eBird at the same spot that day.

The Sora. The commonest small rail. And yet, their abundance makes them no less difficult to observe from a very impressive proximity.

Soras of the boardwalk apparently do not know they are supposed to hide all the time. I know that not many people are frothing at the mouth for Sora observations, but it's a nice bird to come across when they are in a confiding mood.

I was pretty happy with these photos, even though the angle is kind of weird. Is there a scene more bucolic than a content Sora in a wetland? Clapper Rails run amok under the boardwalk too, hopefully I'll have a portrait of a Clapper Rail eyeball by the time I leave Texas.

Floridian Goodness

Yellow-throated Warblers are flashy birds year-round. Their everlasting luminescence is a optical reprieve from the hordes of homely Palm Warblers that roam the keys. Key West Botanical Gardens, Stock Island, FL.

Boy, I sure saw a lot of birds on my nonbirding vacation. I hope Booby Brittany doesn't read this, I was pretending to be hung over most of the time. I think I managed to go birding every single day we were there, which is not a feat I expected (or thought I wanted to) pull off. It's just so easy though.

One of the benefits of staying on the semi-dilapidated sailboat (Dragonseeker) moored offshore was how quiet it was at night. On at least three nights, we could hear thousands of thrushes, warblers and who knows what else flying over. My moth frothed, my mind reeled. Being a west coast birder I don't really know my flight calls of eastern migrants very well (let alone a lot of their regular calls), so I felt a bit impotent beyond working on my thrush calls (heard lots of Swainson's, Gray-cheeked and Veeries). It was pretty amazing though...those birds had a big flight ahead of them.

I was surprised to keep seeing Clay-colored Sparrows down there, but I guess they aren't that unusual...not something I thought of as a trans-gulf migrant though. Boca Chica Road, Big Coppitt Key, FL.

A lot of my Key birding was done at Zachary Taylor State Park, and I wish I got to spend more time at the botanical gardens and Indigenous Park, which were both very good. Little Hamaca City Park was pretty dull, as was Boca Chica Road on Big Coppitt Key. Of course, I missed the Fork-tailed Flycatcher on Big Pine Key, but at least I didn't drive right by the bird while it was there...

Hope you all had a righteous weekend, full of good birds, safe sex, and responsible drug use.

WHO SAID THAT???? I need to take away The Great Ornithologist Felonious Jive's ability to post on here...great birders always think they're rock stars. - Seagull Steve



Yellow-throated Vireo (year bird). This isn't a great picture but considering the unretouched version is all black and white, it came out out amazingly well. This isn't a bird I've seen too much of, it's been many years since I've laid eyes on one. Zachary Taylor State Park, Key West, FL.

Here's an immature Tricolored Heron (year bird) getting photobombed by a Snowy Egret. I had decent opportunities to see waders in the Keys and the Everglades, but it could have been a lot better...I dipped on Roseate Spoonbill and Limpkin (not a heron, I know), if I'm lucky I'll find them in Costa Rica in a couple months. Photographed at Salt Ponds, Key West, FL.

Eastern Wood-Pewee (year bird) was the most abundant flycatcher. Not much else to say about them, except I enjoyed a few half-heartedly singing on the Dry Tortugas. Key West, FL.

Broad-winged Hawks were present in impressive numbers, and could be seen flying over just about anywhere. Little Hamaca City Park, Key West, FL.

White Ibis (year bird) are pretty tame in many areas. I thought this made for a better picture than one on a lawn or next to a picnic table. Boca Chica Road, Big Coppitt Key, FL.

Reddish Egret. Salt Ponds, Key West, FL.

I think is the best Reddish Egret photo I've taken. Obviously, I need to get back to Florida in spring someday...these subdued basic-plumage birds don't quite cut it.

Graves are very attractive to Green Iguanas. This is an exotic species, basically a pest (being vegetarians, they can't be very good for the native veg left out there), albeit a very amusing one. Key West Cemetery, Key West, FL.

Lots of cool butterflies were out, which I almost entirely failed to photograph. This is a Mangrove Skipper (props to Jason for the ID). Boca Chica Road, Big Coppitt Key, FL.

Modest Accolades and Low-Level Glory

Shorebirds have been barreling south through the continent for over 2 months now, but they won't be stopping anytime soon. This flock, mostly Western Sandpipers, was in Imperial Beach, CA.

Wow. A lot has been happening lately here. I just moved out of San Diego, sold my car and bought another one. This is important, because I am much more enthusiastic about taking birding trips when I am not afraid of my car seizing and dying on me. So some boring shit that definitely is not blogworthy went down, but rest assured Ive made sure to keep birding. Once I get to my migratory staging area in Oakland, CA, things will settle down and I can go back to my routine of seeing incredibly rare, good-looking birds.

Wilson's Phalaropes. They have switched gender roles. They swim in circles. They have a lot of different plumages. What's not to love? Imperial Beach, CA.

Here's a juvenile Red-necked Phalarope. This time of year, I think they are a lot more eye-catching than the adults, who are very gray and blotchy. Imperial Beach, CA.

Adult Reddish Egret. It got too close and I clipped its wing, sorry...it won't happen again. Imperial Beach, CA.

Cooper's Hawks are particularly common throughout the country this time of year...not only are they migrating en masse, but their populations are very high due to the all the young birds (like this one) present. Young raptors have very high mortality rates, most won't make it through the winter. Tijuana River Valley, CA.

This is not a bird you are likely to see in fall migration, at least not in California. If you do find one, expect skepticism...but if you pass the test of the Bird Police, there will be modest accolades and low-level glory. This Least Bell's Vireo was at the Dairy Mart Ponds in the Tijuana River Valley, CA.

Hutton's Vireo. Considering their repetitive 2-note song, and the fact that they look like a Ruby-crowned Kinglet on steroids, I think this is the most boring vireo. This may be a BB&B first though, so I've got to put it up...these birds are generally considered resident but they do show up at migrant traps. Dairy Mart Ponds.

House Wrens are common fall migrants in California lowlands. They don't sing much but they are still loud...it's a good time of year to learn their calls. Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, San Diego, CA.

Common Yellowthroat. You know them, you probably don't love them, but you like them. You have definitely misidentified them for other things, if just for a few seconds. Strangely, a BB&B first. Tijuana River Valley, CA.