Texas Birding for Three Days

Last night at the Texas Rest Area the temperature dropped to 37°.  I woke up at 4am and drove to Tenaha, Texas, where I napped in front of a Dollar General until 8:30.  The sun came out then but it was still pretty cold.  Back on US 59 I headed toward Houston.  I missed the bypass and went right through the downtown area.  Happily, it was Sunday and there was less traffic than usual.  South of Houston it became warmer and I needed the air conditioner in the van.  For lunch I stopped at Burger King and took my lunch to a rest area south of Lufkin, where I did my first real birding of the trip.  I saw a Black Vulture, Northern Parula (my first warbler of the season), Crested Caracara, a hawk I couldn’t identify, and my first ever Scissor-tailed Flycatcher (click on http://sdakotabirds.com/species_photos/scissor_tailed_flycatcher.htm to see this spectacular bird).

Texas has made available three maps that make finding birding sites much easier.  They are named The Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail, and there is one for the Upper Texas Coast, Central Texas Coast, and Lower Texas Coast.  They are about $3 each.  The reverse side of the map contains detailed directions to each site, along with the best season to go and the birds one can expect to see.  I didn’t plan on spending much time birding the Texas coast and Rio Grand Valley since I had done so quite thoroughly a few years ago, but I thought I might as well stop at the sites that were on my route south. The LNRA Lake Texana Boat Ramp was right on US 59 and I’d enjoyed birding there on my first trip.  I’m glad I stopped because I saw seven deer and sixteen bird species, including:  Red-bellied Woodpecker, Black-and-white Warbler, Northern Cardinal, Mourning Dove, Inca Dove (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikael_behrens/2814236083),   White-eyed Vireo, Northern Parula, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Chickadee, House Wren, Carolina Wren, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Blue-headed Vireo, Northern Mockingbird, Nashville Warbler, and Laughing Gull.  I drove on to Victoria and stayed at a new American Inn & Suites (361-573-4351).  The room had a great tub as well as a shower, large TV, fridge, and microwave for $40 total.  I got a take-out dinner from the H.E.B. deli nearby.  In the area, before I went to bed, I saw a White-winged Dove, Lincoln Sparrow, Chipping Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, Boat-tailed Grackle, and House Sparrow.

The next morning, after a wonderful night’s sleep, I realized I might need a refill on a prescription before I crossed the border.  There was a Walgreen’s across the street from the hotel, so I walked over and waited while they transferred the prescription from my home pharmacy.  They were very efficient in the transfer (and cheaper, as well).  I left Victoria on my way to Aransas National Wildlife Refuge.  On the way I visited CTC Site 026, DuPont Wetlands.  I saw European Starling, Loggerhead Shrike (http://www.flickr.com/photos/48014585@N00/3243514393/), another pair of Scissor-tailed Flycatchers, Turkey Vulture, Red-bellied Woodpecker,  Northern Mockingbird, Laughing Gull (http://www.pbase.com/jpkln/image/102676417), Mourning Dove, and Bald Eagle.  I also saw a group of four deer, and then another eleven, for a total of fifteen.  Farther along I stopped at CTC 036, Guadalupe Delta Wildlife Management Area.  I only saw three birds there:  Northern Harrier, Killdeer, and a pair of ducks too far away to identify.

It was about noon when I reached Aransas, CTC Site 037.  Entrance is free if you have a Golden Age Pass (I think the name of the pass has now changed, but it is for people age 65 and over and only costs $10, allowing entrance into all national parks and a 50% discount on some camping fees).  Aransas has a 16-mile auto tour with various places to pull over and stop/hike.  I spent the next four hours there, after eating lunch from my picnic basket, and saw:  Crested Caracara (http://www.greglasley.net/caracara.html), Wild Turkey, American Kestral, Red-winged Blackbird, Snowy Egret, American Coot, Common Moorhen, White Ibis, Sora, Little Blue Heron (with a white juvenile), Whooping Crane (far off, from atop the observation tower), Brown Pelican, Great Blue Heron, Black-necked Stilt (http://www.pbase.com/garrettlau/blackneckedstilt), Greater Scaup, and Scissor-tailed Flycatcher.  I also saw an alligator, a muskrat, and some wild pigs, including a boar with tusks.  After my eastern detour off US 77, I returned to it at Refugio.  This town has Site CTC 038, Lion’s/Shelley Park.  I’d birded the area when I last came to Texas, and it’s a great migrant trap (lots of migrating birds stop here).  However, I was about two weeks early, it was a bad time of day, and it was very windy.  I stayed only briefly and saw one warbler, a female Common Yellowthroat.

I drove farther south, stopping in Odem for gas ($1.99/gal), and arriving in Kingsville, Texas, near dusk.  I stayed in a Motel 6 ($40.67 total).  The room was clean and nice, but the air conditioner vibrated intermittently, making sleep difficult.  It was nice, though, to call home from a hotel room rather than to stand outside at a phone booth, as I had to do when I camped.

On this third day in Texas I’d planned to get up early and drive the US 77 corridor slowly, scanning the telephone wires and trees for hawks.  However, the amount and speed of traffic prevented me from seeing many—or from pulling over when I did.  I did see a Harris’ Hawk (http://www.pbase.com/ne_wildlife_photography/image/86432343), Brewer’s Blackbird, and a Brown-headed Cowbird.  There is a Rest Area south of Kingsville on US 77, left exit, where one can count on seeing Green Jays.  I wasn't disappointed.  Also, the restrooms at the rest area are magnificently tiled.

I continued driving on to Brownsville and headed toward the Sabal Palm Audubon Center.  On the way I passed the exit for International Gateway.  It looked scary.  I wondered what would happen if I got onto it before I was ready.  Would I end up in Mexico?  Would they let me turn around?  Would I get lost?  I’d done so much research about crossing the border, but now it all seemed insufficient.  Ah, well, I didn’t have to worry about it this afternoon.  I was just going to enjoy birding Sabal Palm.  At a stoplight there was a man with a hand-printed sign asking for help to get a bus ticket out of Brownsville.  I gave him $10, which left him a few dollars short, but I couldn’t get to more cash before the light changed, and I didn’t want to hold up traffic.  At Sabal Palm, again, I was a couple of weeks early for peak migration, and it was too late in the day for the best birding.  However, I still saw:  Least Grebe, Pied-billed Grebe, Turkey Vulture, Gadwall, Blue-winged Teal, Northern Shoveler, Lesser Scaup, Plain Chachalaca, American Coot, Common Ground-Dove, Buff-bellied Hummingbird (http://www.flickr.com/photos/revs45/3467573504), Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Great Kiskadee (http://www.shutterpoint.com/Photos-ViewPhoto.cfm?id=624015) , Couch’s Kingbird, Green Jay (perhaps the most beautifully-colored bird I’ve ever seen) (http://www.pbase.com/dadas115/green_jay) , Northern Rough-winged Swallow, Carolina Wren, Black-crested Titmouse http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-crested_Titmouse),  Northern Mockingbird, Long-billed Thrasher, Common Yellowthroat, Northern Cardinal, Mourning Dove, and Lesser Goldfinch. 

I stopped at a Burger King on my way from Sabal Palm and found another Motel 6 ($36.60 total).  I got directions from the desk clerk for the Brownsville Library, which was quite close to the hotel.  In my room I looked up the phone numbers and addresses for the Mexican Consulate and Sanborn’s insurance.  Tomorrow I hoped to cross the border.