Exploring New Places

 

Wildflowers and more by the lake

It's fun to explore new places. The Rolling Plains Chapter Texas Master Naturalist decided this year to host public hikes in all 10 counties we cover. April was Archer County. We originally planned the hike for the 5th, but we had that wonderful rain, so rescheduled for this Saturday.

I was responsible for selecting the place for this month's hike so decided to check out Archer City to see what I could find. I thought about a few other locations in the county, but I have been meaning to check out some other things in Archer City and just haven't gotten around to it, so decided to make it a day.

I checked out Burkett Park. Initially, it looked like a typical community park with a playground, a picnic pavilion, and a ball field. However, after some exploration, I found the entrance to a hiking path and decided this would be a good short hike for this event.

Saturday turned out to be a nice morning for a hike, although it was very windy, which for me was disappointing, since it reduces the number of birds seen. We had 15 people participate in the hike. Because the wind was so strong, the lake was very choppy, so other than a couple of Canada geese flying by, there were no waterfowl. However, there were still some nice birds. Canada goose, turkey vulture, black vulture, cedar waxwing, Carolina wren, blue jay, northern cardinal, northern mockingbird, scissor-tailed flycatcher, western kingbird, barn swallow, red-winged blackbird, common grackle, European starling, and house sparrow. A couple of the hikers saw a roadrunner cross the trail, but I missed it. Nothing striking, but any day birdwatching is better than housework. I will need to come back when I can explore more of the trails behind the park.

After the hike, I decided to try Murn's Cafe. I have seen it many times when driving through Archer City, but I have never stopped. If you haven't been there, I would recommend it. Good food and very economical. 

I also stopped in Booked Up. Formerly, Larry McMurtry owned the bookstore, which was housed in multiple buildings. Currently, it is a rare and fine book store. If you are a collector, or a Larry McMurtry fan, you definitely need to stop in to browse. Many of the used books are overpriced (in my opinion), but there are some interesting collectibles, and they do have signed copies of Larry McMurtry's books as well as many books from his personal collection with his bookplate in them. It also houses the Larry McMurtry Literary Center and book sales are considered a donation. I did find an Encyclopedia of Nursery Rhymes I felt I had to have.

Archer City is known for the filming location for The Last Picture Show and Texasville, both based on novels by Larry McMurtry. The courthouse on the square is an interesting building. I need to go back and explore some more another time.

Next time you are driving through Archer City, take a little extra time and stop.

Good Birding!

Rainy Morning at Lake Arrowhead State Park

Snowy Plover

Well, this morning wasn't the nicest for a bird outing but a couple of us braved the rain to see what we could find for the monthly bird outing at Lake Arrowhead SP. The best bird of the morning was a snowy plover, which is considered a rarity for our area at this time of year. I did get an admittedly poor picture (left). I am sure Debra got a better one.

Like I said, it was raining, windy, and in the low 40's when we started out, so we didn't expect much. However, we had a good walk and saw a fair number of birds. 

In addition to the snowy plover, we saw and/or heard American coot, double-crested cormorant, neotropic cormorant, gadwall, norther shoveler, white pelican, killdeer, ladder-backed woodpecker, mourning dove, northern cardinal, northern mockingbird, spotted towhee, Harris' sparrow, white-crowned sparrow, ruby-crowned kinglet, dark-eyed junco, American pipit, western meadowlark (and some others that could have been either eastern or western), red-winged blackbird, and great-tailed grackle.

We need the rain, so no complaints, especially since we saw some good birds. This is a good time of year to bird, so get outside, wherever you are.

Good birding!

Hummingbirds Arriving Soon

Male ruby-throated hummingbird

 I haven't had a lot of luck with hummingbirds the last few years, but I get a few, so I make sure there is always a feeder with fresh nectar available.

There have been reports of hummingbirds in Austin, so they should be arriving here before too much longer. That means it is time to get out your feeders and get them cleaned up.

The picture to the left shows a common bottle-type feeder, which is fairly inexpensive.  As I rule I don't recommend them as they are difficult to clean. I had one of these and even with a bottle brush, I couldn't reach all the corners of the nectar bottle. 

A couple of things about feeders. The birds don't care if they are red. Yes, this red and yellow feeder stands out, but somehow, the hummingbirds can tell if the feeder contains the correct percentage of sugar and the nectar is fresh. To prevent ants, get a feeder with an ant moat and keep it full. To prevent bees and wasps, don't fill the feeder all the way or get one with extruders. Looking at the picture above, you can see it has deep flowers. That is intended to discourage bees and wasps, since hummingbirds have longer tongues. I personally prefer an flat feeder that is kept half full. 

Flowers are better than a feeder any day, but it never hurts to have some backup, since we tend to get some pretty hot, dry weather in the summer.

Another recommendation is not to buy nectar at the store. Plain old water and sugar is fine (and less expensive). (DO NOT use honey--this can be deadly to hummingbirds). Tap water is okay, although I do use filtered tap water. You don't have to boil the water. Hot water does make it easier to dissolve the sugar though. Use 4 parts water and one part table sugar (1 c water and 1/4 c sugar). Once the sugar is dissolved, you are ready to go. If you boil the water, let the nectar cool first before putting out the feeder. I can't imagine a hummingbird trying to drink hot sugar water, but you could be scalded if you bobble the feeder when hanging it up.

Keep your feeders clean. Bacteria grows quickly in the warm weather. I clean mine out every other day at a minimum. If you see the water getting cloudy, you definitely need to change it.

I tend to see my hummingbirds more in the early morning and at dusk. I know if the morning they are desperate to tank up. They expend a lot of energy and after several hours of no food, they are in a hurry to find food. I imagine that's why I see them just before their bedtime as well.

I hope you enjoy some hummingbirds this season.

Good birding!

Great Backyard Bird Count Wrap-Up

Small flock of cedar waxwings

 Although I did a post for Day One of GBBC, we're going to summarize the other days, as I have been blowing and going lately.

Day Two I visited Lake Arrowhead State Park. Even though I go to Lake Arrowhead frequently, this is a location that usually has some good birds and people know where it is if they want to go. We didn't get a lot of birds, but there were a couple of good ones (in the sense that we don't see them a lot). We started off with neotropic cormorants. When we see a cormorant here, 99% of the time, it is a double-crested cormorant. But we got lucky with a small group of neotropical. Another good bird was a flock of 32 Bonaparte's gulls flying through. Gulls in the winter here are probably 95% of the time, ring-billed gulls. In addition to these two less common species, we saw ring-billed gull, Canada goose, American coot, gadwall, northern shoveler, ladder-backed woodpecker, great blue heron, killdeer, northern harrier,  meadowlark sp., American pipit, song sparrow, fox sparrow, white-crowned sparrow, Harris's sparrow, northern cardinal. northern mockingbird, eastern phoebe, Bewick's wren, and great-tailed grackle.

On Day 3, it was off to the Wichita Bluff Nature Area. The best part of the count was the cedar waxwings. These elegant birds are winter visitors. They tend to stay in flocks and have a distinctive, high-pitched call. Debra and I watched a few groups flying from tree to tree--easily over 100 individuals altogether. In addition to the cedar waxwings, I saw a single double-crested cormorant flying over, a turkey vulture, and a couple of black vultures. Other birds seen included rock pigeon, yellow-shafted northern flicker, blue jay, northern cardinal, northern mockingbird, ruby-crowned kinglet, dark-eyed junco, yellow-rumped warbler,  American robin, song sparrow, Harris's sparrow, white-crowned sparrow, and spotted towhee.

The last day was at Lucy Park. I wasn't there long because of other commitments that day, and I stayed in the picnic area at the Sunset Drive entrance. This has been a pretty good spot for me to find little dickey birds. I did cross the street to take a quick look in the river, but didn't go down the trail more than a dozen yards. The birds I saw included mallard, Canada goose, Eurasian collared dove, white-winged dove, dark-eyed junco, cedar waxwing, blue jay, Carolina chickadee, black-crested titmouse, golden-crowned kinglet, Carolina wren, American robin, great-tailed grackle, white-throated sparrow, American goldfinch, and house finch.

Across the world, birders submitted 911,000 checklists, documenting 8,004 species of birds. 

Good birding!

Day One Great Backyard Bird Count, Lake Wichita Spillway

 

Beautiful clear morning on
Lake Wichita

It was a cold start to the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC). I started at the Lake Wichita Spillway, arriving just a few minutes before 8 AM. I admit, it was a little warmer than yesterday and not quite as windy, but the wind off the water this morning was still a bit cold with temps in the 20's.

I only stayed 35 minutes, but saw some good birds., mostly water birds. I haven't found any dead birds in my outings, so hoping the bird flu is staying away from our area.

I saw some ducks that I didn't immediately know so I took a short video. The distance was farther than I would have liked, but it turned out between the poor quality video and my memory of the markings I saw through my binoculars, I was able to identify them as lesser scaups. Their plumage was overall dark, with the base of the bill white, which is not what I am used to seeing. I learn something every day.

All told, I saw 15 species of birds in that 35 minutes, so it was worth getting out in the cold. The birds seen included: green-winged teal, northern shoveler, ruddy duck, mallard, lesser scaup, American coot, Canada goose, white pelican, double-crested cormorant, great blue heron, ring-billed gull. northern cardinal, American robin, red-winged blackbird, and great-tailed grackle. I also saw a couple of shorebirds I could not identify. I was looking toward the sun, so they were just black blobs in the general shape of a shorebird. I can tell you several shorebirds I can definitely say they were not, but couldn't be certain of what they were. That happens.

There are still three more days for the #GBBC, so get out and bird. It looks like the afternoons over then next few days are going to be nice. If you want to go with someone, I posted days, locations, and times in my previous post.

Good birding!

Lots of Upcoming Bird Activites

Bird walk at Lake Arrowhead

Most of us have been cooped up for some weeks and are ready to get out and find some birds. There are several opportunities coming up to learn more about the hobby, practice identifying birds, and just enjoy watching their antics.

Since I got interrupted when starting this and didn't get back to editing in a timely fashion, I am leaving off today's Birding 101 class at Smith's Gardentown and the monthly hike at Lucy Park.  I need to do better.

So, let's look at some other opportunities.

First, the monthly bird outing at Lake Arrowhead State Park will be Saturday, Feb 8, beginning at 8 AM. Entry fees to the park apply, so come a little early as you will need to use the self-pay station. The entry is $4 per person, unless you have a park pass. The outing is fairly level and we tend to saunter, so if isn't a strenuous activity. We occasionally have individuals with limited mobility come, so it is doable by pretty much anyone. The route is about 1 mile and may take anywhere from 1 - 2 hours, depending upon the weather and the birds. Meet at the admin building parking lot near the fishing pier.

Next, the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) is Feb 14 - 17. You can take part in your yard or a local park for as little as 15 minutes. The idea is to document as many birds as possible in that time. For information about the count and how to submit your information, you can read the instructions here, or if you prefer a better visual, watch this webinar.

If you are new to watching birds, or just want to go with someone, here are some places and times I specifically set aside for this event. I would be happy to have you come along.

• 14 Feb, 8:00 - 8:45 AM, Lake Wichita Spillway (this is a short one as I have another appointment at 9:00)
• 15 Feb, 9:00 - 11:00, Lake Arrowhead State Park. Meet at the same location as for the monthly bird outing.
• 16 Feb, 9:00 - 11:00, Wichita Bluff Nature Area. Meet at the trail head off Seymour Hwy. This is a paved trail, a little more challenging due to the hills. The distance will be around 2 miles.
• 17 Feb, 9:00 - 11:00, Lucy Park, Meet at the 3rd Street entrance parking area. We will be staying on the paved trail which is fairly level. My intent is to walk the trail to the falls and on down behind the MPEC and back. 

You can see there are some opportunities to get out, enjoy being outside, and see some birds.

Good birding!

Purple Martins on the Way!

Purple Martin house at Wild Bird Rescue

Spring is just around the corner, so it's time to get outside. Spring migration is just getting started, and right now at least, the weather is moderating, so it is a good time to check out the birds.

A lot of bird activities are scheduled over the next few weeks, and some other bird-related activities are going on, and I will post about those, but let's start with the arrival of purple martins.

Purple Martins will be coming into town soon. We usually have scouts arriving in early February. The Purple Martin Conservation Association keeps a record of scout reports each year, and a number of reports have already been made. In fact, there is a report already posted on January 16 in North Richland Hills. What does that mean for you? If you have purple martin houses, get them cleaned out and ready. The hard part is keeping out house sparrows and starlings until the purple martins start moving in. You might plug the entrances until you see a scout and then unblock the opening.

I love the robotic sounds of these birds in the summer. Enjoy!

Good birding!