Help Out New Birdwatchers

The Rolling Plains Chapter Texas Master Naturalist is holding its spring training for new wannabe Master Naturalists or for those who just want to learn more about nature and the environment in our area. I have the opportunity to teach the class on birds and we also have a field trip to teach the fundamentals of bird identification and get to know some of the common birds in our area. This year, the field trip was held at Lake Arrowhead State Park. Terry McKee and Debra Halter also helped the class members identify birds. It's always good to have more eyes and more knowledge when trying to explain, "Why did you say that bird is a .....?"

We didn't have any exciting birds, but we had several of the common ones for our new birdwatchers to cut their teeth. Birds found Saturday morning included: American coot, pied-billed grebe, gadwall, green-winged teal, blue-winged teal, Canada goose, killdeer, least sandpiper, ring-billed gull, ladder-backed woodpecker, barn swallow, Bewick's wren, northern mockingbird, northern cardinal. eastern phoebe, Carolina chickadee, savannah sparrow, song sparrow, white-crowned sparrow, dark-eyed junco, brown-headed cowbird, red-winged blackbird, common grackle, great-tailed grackle, European starling, and house sparrow.

I enjoy working with new birdwatchers. It helps keep the fun in finding a common bird, but seeing it through the eyes of someone who never recognized the birds before.

Good birding!

Birding at 75+

I've been a road warrior for work lately. I've spent way too much time in the truck. As much as I like what I do, the miles on the road sometimes get to be a bit much.

When my husband is driving, it isn't too bad. He doesn't mind driving and I can look around. However, as a rule, he doesn't come with me on work trips, so I have to drive. My husband teases me when we are traveling together because I always have my binoculars at the ready and have my little notebook to record any birds I see while we are flying down the road. But he has gotten pretty good about paying attention and letting me know if we pass a county line. He thinks I am crazy to record birds by county and at high speeds, you can't really get a good look at the birds.

It was hard enough at 70 mph. Since Texas raised the speed limit to 75 (and in some places, 80 or 85), it is even more difficult, especially if you are the one driving. Nonetheless, I do try to keep an eye out for birds, while trying to be safe. I must admit my scribbles are nearly indecipherable, as I have to try to write without actually looking at my note pad.

Over the past few weeks I have put around 2000 miles on my truck, with more than that still to come over the next two weeks. I always say I am going to take time on these work trips to do a little recreational birding, but it never seems to happen that way. I am either driving there, doing my work, or driving back. I was in McAllen a couple of weeks ago and didn't bird at all--that is really sad. I have been in 28 counties over the past two weeks and expect to be several more before I wrap up at the beginning of April.

Open area and wooded lot behind the hotel in Conroe

When you are birding at a high rate of speed, you really only see the birds that are very big, very conspicuous or very common and sitting right in front of your face. If you compared my lists from one county to the next, certain birds would be on more than not. I don't think I have a single county without a turkey vulture, for example. American kestrels and mockingbirds are also on most county lists. Unfortunately, so are starlings.

Good spot for a ruby-crowned kinglet

Why keep lists by county? First, because it is a fairly small area when trying to determine a bird's range. So when you put your counts into eBird, it helps create the range maps all of us rely on. Also, the Texas Ornithological Society created the Texas Century Club some years ago to encourage people to bird some of the more remote counties and find out more about the birds found in our state. The idea was to challenge birders to find 100 birds in 100 different counties. There are some people who have managed to do that. They are more focused than I. I probably have birds in 100 counties, but no where near 100 in many of them. But I am inching my way along-it's a target to work on, but I am not competitive enough in my birding to push for it. I'll get there eventually.

Tonight I am in Conroe, TX, near the beautiful Sam Houston National Forest. I did manage a short walk near the hotel this evening, as much to stretch my legs as to look for birds, but I can multitask. The best bird was probably some eastern bluebirds, although the ruby-crowned kinglet was nice as well. I've put a couple of cell phone pictures in this post. Construction crews are busily cutting down the trees and clearing the lands for stores and hotels, so most of this will likely be gone by next year.

It just goes to show, you can enjoy birds anywhere!

Good birding!

Are Your Purple Martin Houses Ready for Occupancy?

Purple martin pair.
 Photo courtesy of Dori on Wikimedia Commons

Purple martins are back in Wichita Falls! If you haven't done so already, it is time to open up your martin houses. If you left them open over the winter, it is time to evict the starlings and house sparrows to make way for the martins.

From experience, you may have to evict the starlings and house sparrows more than once before the martins move in. It is amazing how quickly house sparrows can stuff a space full of grass for their nests.

Once pairs are setting up house, I don't bother the martin house any more. True, some starlings and sparrows will move back in, but the martins seem to do a decent job of protecting their apartments, once they claim them.

We've had enough rain that it should be a pretty good year for these noisy little birds.

Good birding!

Big Day for Wild Bird Rescue Wrap-Up

Sitting Ducks and Raven Lunatics run into one another at
the Chat Trail and compare notes.
Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Hawley.
L to R: Joy, Penny, Chuck, Warren, Sue, and Janet.
Not pictured: Katherine and Elizabeth

Sunday, March 6 was the Big Day for Wild Bird Rescue. Three teams covered Wichita, Archer and Clay counties to find the highest numbers of species of birds for the day.

It's not just about the birds. Beautiful giant swallowtail seen
on the Chat Trail in Lake Wichita Park.

It started out a beautiful morning, but about 10 AM a front moved in with high winds, greatly increasing the difficulty of the task. However, in spite of that, we had a good day. This year, the Sitting Ducks took bragging rights with 75 species for the day. The Raven Lunatics had 74 and the Chickadees, 67 species. The combined total of species was 97.  We still can't quite break that 100 species total. It's possible, but not easy.

Many thanks to Dianne and Chuck Thueson for hosting a post-count dinner at their home so the teams could compare lists and relate the day's happenings. Our team, the Raven Lunatics, logged over 150 miles driving and over 20,000 steps walking. Good exercise, birding.

I haven't heard the final fundraising totals. It isn't too late to donate--the baby birds will be coming into Wild Bird Rescue all too soon, so your support is important. You can mail a contribution to them at 4611 Lake Shore Drive, Wichita Falls, TX 76310 (be sure to put "Big Day" on the memo line.) You can also donate on line at their website. Again, please put "Big Day" in the comments. If you really want to make my day, you can add: "Raven Lunatics." But in the end, the important thing is the donation. All of the teams worked hard.

Here is a consolidated list of birds from all three teams.

American coot

American goldfinch

American kestrel

American robin

Bald eagle

Belted kingfisher

Bewick's wren

Black vulture

Blue jay

Blue gray gnatcatcher

Blue-winged teal

Bonaparte's gull

Brewer’s blackbird

Brown thrasher

Brown-headed cowbird

Bufflehead

Canada goose

Canvasback

Carolina chickadee

Carolina wren

Cedar waxwing

Chipping sparrow

Clay-colored sparrow

Common grackle

Dark-eyed junco

Double-crested cormorant

Downy woodpecker

Eastern bluebird

Eastern meadowlark

Eastern phoebe

Eurasian collared dove

European starling

Ferruginous hawk

Field sparrow

Gadwall

Golden-fronted woodpecker

Great blue heron

Great egret

Great horned owl

Greater scaup

Greater roadrunner

Greater yellowlegs

Greater white-fronted goose

Great-tailed grackle

Green-winged teal

Harris' sparrow

Herring gull

Hooded merganser

House finch

House sparrow

Inca dove

Killdeer

Ladder-backed woodpecker

Least sandpiper

Lesser scaup

Lesser yellowlegs

Lincoln's sparrow

Loggerhead shrike

Mallard

Mourning dove

Northern cardinal

Northern flicker

Northern harrier

Northern mockingbird

Northern shoveler

Orange-crowned warbler

Pied-billed grebe

Pine siskin

Purple martin

Red-bellied woodpecker

Redhead

Red-shouldered hawk

Red-tailed hawk

Red-winged blackbird

Ring-billed gull
Ring-necked duck

Rock pigeon

Ruby-crowned kinglet

Ruddy duck

Sandhill crane

Savannah sparrow

Sharp-shinned hawk

Song sparrow

Spotted towhee

Swainson’s hawk

Tufted titmouse

Turkey vulture

Vesper sparrow

Western meadowlark

White pelican

White-crowned sparrow

White-faced ibis

White-winged dove

Wild turkey

Wilson's snipe

Yellow-rumped warbler

All I have to say it, "Wait Until Next Year!"

Good Birding!