Time for the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC)!

One of my favorite birding activities is the Great Backyard Bird Count every February. Birders have several bird count activities, all of which provide data used to monitor population trends.

Basically, participants count birds in any location they wish (yard, local park, etc.) for a minimum of 15 minutes during a 4-day period. This year that is Friday, Feb 13 - Monday, Feb 16. Then you provide the information via Merlin or eBird.  Merlin is probably the app of choice for a new birder; eBird has more functions, but a little more complicated to learn for a newbie. You count every bird you see and you can count as long as you want, just at least 15 minutes.

Our monthly bird outing at Lake Arrowhead State Park on Saturday, Feb 14 will be part of the GBBC. If the weather forecast is accurate, we might get a little wet. We meet in the parking lot near the fishing pier at 8:00 AM. You might arrive a little early in order to stop at the self-pay station, since the office doesn't open until 8:00. We saunter for about 1 - 1.5 hours (depending on the weather and the birds) and cover around a mile. We don't move very fast. We're there to watch birds, not set speed records. The route is paved and level. We do have people come with limited mobility, so don't let physical restrictions put you off.

I will also be birdwatching on the other days as well. Friday at Lucy Park, Sunday at Wichita Bluff, and Monday at Lake Wichita Park.  I may try to slip in a couple of other short observation periods at a few other locations, time permitting. It's a busy weekend already, so it will be a spur of the moment thing.

This is a fun activity to get kids involved. Since you only have to take part for 15 minutes, it isn't a challenge to keep them involved. If you have a budding birder, then you can stretch the activity as long as you want. Instructions for participating are available on the GBBC website.

If you have any questions or would like to participate in one or more of the counts, contact me at txbirds@gmail.com.

Good birding!

Catching Up on Recent Birding

 Yep. I'm behind. I have actually been out and doing some birding recently, although most has been incidental while walking the dogs. They are not the most patient when it comes to allowing me to look for birds. You can see in the photo at the left, Loki is ready to walk, not stand still and look for birds. This was a beautiful, crisp morning with frost. We did see some nice birds (briefly).

I have seen a lot of birds, even with all the "help" from the dogs.  I didn't post about the bird outing at Lake Arrowhead State Park on the 11th, so I'll start with that. It was a bit nippy when we started (around 26 degrees), but as usual in January, we had some good birds. Nothing special, but a nice variety. We saw Canada goose, white pelican, double-crested cormorant, mallard, green-winged teal, American coot, northern shoveler, killdeer, least sandpiper, ring-billed gull, yellow-shafted and red-shafted flicker, eastern/western meadowlark, Bewick's wren, northern cardinal, northern mockingbird, orange-crowned warbler, fox sparrow, white-crowned sparrow, song sparrow, Harris' sparrow, red-winged blackbird, great-tailed grackle, spotted towhee, dark-eyed junco, American pipit, and house finch.

Most of my birding lately has been at Lake Wichita Park, which is close to my house. Again, because of the dogs, I wasn't able to focus on birding, but still saw some good birds the last couple of weeks. Some notable birds (for me) were a repeat of the black phoebe (this time, at the west end of the pond at the end of the chat trail), a pair of Cooper's hawks talking (they are usually pretty quiet), a couple of long-billed dowitchers, and a great horned owl sitting atop a tree.

The weather is starting to warm up, which means summer won't be far behind, so get out and see the birds before it gets miserably hot!

Good birding!

Lifer!!

Black phoebe at Lake Wichita spillway

Getting adjusted to retirement is harder than I thought. I have a dozen posts in my head, but haven't managed to get them up. But a lifer can break through the logjam.

I got a text yesterday from a birding friend, Debra, that there was a black phoebe at the Lake Wichita spillway. She texted me later that she took her mother out later, and it was still there. Since it was Thanksgiving day, I wasn't able to get out there.

I decided to go out this morning, in hopes the bird was still there and I could score a lifer (for those who may not be birders, a lifer is the first time you see/identify a new bird). It took a little bit, but it made an appearance. A very pretty bird. It reminds me of a slate-colored junco, only with a longer tail and the typical flycatcher behavior.  I didn't get the greatest picture with my cell phone, but I did get one.

In addition to the black phoebe, there were a couple of rock wrens just below, in the rocks.

Other birds seen at the spillway were Eurasian collared dove, mallard duck, ruddy duck, American coot, double-crested cormorant, northern shoveler, Canada goose, killdeer, ring-billed gull, northern mockingbird, American robin, blue jay, and eastern phoebe.

I decided to go around to Lake Wichita park, near the veterans' memorial and walk the trail west behind the American Legion post 169. A good choice. Birds seen included mallard, northern shoveler, American wigeon, ruddy duck, American coot, pied-billed grebe, double-crested cormorant, white pelican, great blue heron, northern mockingbird, American robin, Bewick's wren, common yellow throat, orange-crowned warbler, ruby-crowned kinglet, American goldfinch, European starling, northern cardinal, blue jay, belted kingfisher, and song sparrow.

Good birding!

Three Mornings in Lake Wichita Park

 

White-faced ibis at Lake Wichita Park

Fall migration is definitely underway. It started several weeks ago with the departure of purple martins, but many birds are moving, or preparing to, now.

I spent a coupe of hours in Lake Wichita Park three mornings this week. I tend to go to Lake Wichita Park more often than other locations because it is close to my house.

The barrow pit is now a mudflat, which does attract shore birds, like the white-faced ibis in the picture to the left. Right now, this nearly dry pond is hosting several species of herons/egrets, as they prepare to move south or pass through on their way. There are several individuals of various species there, forming the groups that will one day, leave together. (Great egrets, snowy egrets, little blue herons, yellow-crowned night herons, black-necked stilts, killdeer). 

I also saw several warblers passing through. I am not the greatest at warbler identification. The birds are tiny and they are usually moving constantly. But I am confident of a yellow warbler and a mourning warbler, but I saw one or two others that I couldn't be sure of in the extremely short time I was able to see them.

I saw some individual Mississippi kites earlier this week, but not this morning. One of my friends said she saw a group of about 15 circling over her house, so they should be gone soon. Usually, these birds head out the end of August/early September.

Between Thursday and today, I saw the following birds: mallard duck, great egret, snowy egret, yellow-crowned night heron, little blue heron, great blue heron. white-faced ibis, black-necked stilt, killdeer, Mississippi kite, turkey vulture, Eurasian collared dove, white-winged dove, mourning doves, downy woodpecker, barn swallow, Northern cardinal, blue jay, Carolina chickadee, northern mockingbird, Carolina wren, yellow warbler, mourning warbler, Baltimore oriole, American pipit, American robin, red-winged blackbird, great-tailed grackle, European starling, house sparrow. In addition, I did see some small peeps fly over that I couldn't identify and a couple of other warblers that stumped me.

A runner went by me today and asked what my best bird seen was this morning. For me, it was the little blue heron, although it is tough to beat the black-necked stilt, but I had to make a quick decision, since he was running off.

Many of our summer birds are gone (or I just haven't seen them in the last week or so). I haven't yet seen any of the birds that come in here to stay for the winter, but I am sure they are coming. It does seem like there are more robins than are here in the summer, but it could just be they are starting to form up their winter flocks (more on that behavior in another post soon).

Fall migration is more drawn out than the spring migration, when the birds are rushing to get to their breeding grounds and get the best spots. We should have a few more weeks of prime birding coming up, so get outside.

Good birding!

Doing the Spider Dance

When you've got your eye on a bird and trying to identify it, you can get so focused, you're not paying attention to much of anything else--not a good thing. 

I took a bit of time on Thursday morning to take a walk in Lake Wichita Park and twice walked into a spider's web. In my rational mind, I know there is no harmful spider in our area that builds a web that I am going to walk into, but as soon as I feel that spider silk on my skin, the reptilian brain takes over and I'm doing the spider dance trying to get it off me and to reassure myself the web resident is NOT crawling on me.

Safety should be a big concern for every birder, especially those, like me, who most often are out by themselves. Spiders are not a huge safety concern, but in years past I have had other near misses. A few years ago I was peering intently through my binoculars and moving forward, nearly stepping on a rattlesnake. He was nice enough to rattle to let me know I was getting too close, and allowed me to back away. However, most commonly, I stop to watch bird and don't notice I am standing in or close to a fire ant bed. They are not nice enough to give a warning before biting.

Although other critters are a hazard, it is more likely for me to twist an ankle or fall because I stepped into a hole I didn't see or off the edge of the trail with a bigger level change that I expected. Fortunately, other than some bumps and bruises (mostly to my pride), I haven't had any serious injuries. But I carry a cell phone and a duress alarm, just in case.

My Mom used to say, "I shoulda named you Grace." Sarcasm was her strong suit.

Get out and enjoy your birding, and be safe.

Good birding!

 

I Am Over Summer

Dominic Sherony, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

 I am not a Summer fan. The prediction for today is 106 degrees. Ugh! Come on, Fall!

However, I did get out this morning early and did a short bird walk in Lake Wichita Park. I spent almost an hour, going down the chat trail, around the barrow pit, and most of the way around to Murphy's Mound. It was 80 degrees with a light breeze at 7AM when I started out and too darned hot by the time I got back to my car.

July is not the best time for birdwatching in Wichita Falls. The birds are finishing up raising their broods and most have ceased their territorial singing, making them harder to find in the foliage. Since we had more rain than usual so far this summer (yeah!), the foliage is fairly full. The birds are also too darned hot and not expending more energy than necessary and hiding out in the shade. Fall migration has now started. Our first spring migrant, the purple martin, has departed the area within the last week.

Having explained all the reasons birding sucks in late summer, I had a good morning. My favorite bird was the yellow-billed cuckoo (shown above). These birds are considered a threatened species and are secretive. I didn't see it this morning, but I heard its distinctive call. My birds this morning: double-crested cormorant, cattle egret, great egret, yellow-crowned night heron, green heron, mallard duck, Mississippi kite, Eurasian collared dove, mourning dove, yellow-billed cuckoo, northern cardinal, Carolina wren, blue jay, western kingbird, robin, scissor-tailed flycatcher, barn swallow, chimney swift, red-winged blackbird, common grackle, and great-tailed grackle.

Good birding!

Feast or Famine

Chat Trail

The objective of birding is to see birds, but some days you have better luck than others. You can bird an area one day and see birds everywhere and the next, you get skunked. On Saturday, the 6th, I went out to the chat trail in Lake Wichita Park. As a rule, the chat trail is one of the best locations to see a variety of birds in Wichita Falls.  Not on Saturday. Winter is close and as you can see, there are few leaves on the trees. However, I didn't see much when I was there, partly because I went later than usual (11 AM - Noon). In the hour I was walking the trail, I saw: mallard ducks, Canada geese, rock pigeons, a red-tailed hawk, a northern flicker, northern cardinals, a blue jay, a house finch, a Lincoln's sparrow, white-crowned sparrows, and Harris's sparrows. Not the longest list, but I was happy with the exceptionally good look at the Lincoln's sparrow.

Circle Trail in Lucy Park

The next day, I decided to try Lucy Park. This used to be my favorite place to bird before the city tried to control flooding by denuding the park several years ago. I won't say I don't see some good birds on occasion, but it is no comparison to what it used to be. The loss of almost all of the understory and many of the older trees greatly impacted the bird habitat. But it is worth a walk now and again. The best areas now are the 3rd Street entrance to the falls and the fence line between the park and River Bend Nature Center. I turned in the other direction, toward the log cabin. Again, I was there later than my usual time (10:40 - 11:40) and saw just a few birds: a northern cardinal, a couple of blue jays, some Carolina chickadees, robins, dark-eyed juncos, a great-tailed grackle (yes, just one) and a solitary cedar waxwing. Initially, when I saw the waxwing in the cedar tree, I thought it was a titmouse, but once I got my binoculars on it, it was definitely a waxwing. I listened and looked around for more, but didn't see or hear any.

Standing water in the barrow pit

I skipped Monday, as it was raining (hurray!), but walked the chat trail again Tuesday. Work sucked up my morning, so since I didn't get to the park until around 3 PM, I decided just to walk and if I saw any birds, great. Since I decided to try the Conqueror Challenge for 2024 (365 miles), I focused on walking, but did see some incidental birds. And with the decent rain on Monday, there was a pool of water in the barrow pit--I haven't seen any standing water in there for months. Proof is in the picture to the left. A northern harrier was hawking around the pit, looking for a snack. There was a group of northern flickers hanging around also--both yellow-shafted and red-shafted. Besides those birds, there were several Eurasian collared doves, some white-winged doves, some robins and a cardinal. 

All-in-all, this week has been a bird famine, but it's still better than working.

Good birding!
 

Long Time, No "See"!

Washed out sign

It has been quite a while since I posted to this blog. Longer than I thought when I looked.  I have had people periodically ask when I was going to get back to writing. The answer is, Now!

The good news (for me) is that I am retiring (mostly), and one of the things I plan to spend a lot more time doing is birdwatching. 

I spent some time out today in Lake Wichita Park, primarily along the Chat Trail. A beautiful morning, although the trail was empty. I notice that if the temperature is below 50, there aren't many people out and about.

I didn't see anything spectacular, but it was still a good morning. I did notice the sign about birds was washed out along the bottom from the sun. It's going to happen, but the Parks Department needs to change the sign. I know this isn't the greatest picture, but as luck would have it, the sun was in the wrong place to get a good photo.

The birds this morning along the chat trail:

Canada goose

Double-crested cormorant

Mallard duck

Ring-billed gull

White-winged dove

Northern flicker

Blue jay

Mockingbird

Northern cardinal

Robin

Harris' sparrow

Song sparrow

White-crowned sparrow

Dark-eyed junco

Yellow-rumped warbler

Ruby-crowned kinglet

Red-winged blackbird

American goldfinch

I hope to have many more birding outings to tell you about.

Good birding!

Great Backyard Bird Count Coming Soon!

One of my favorite birding "events" of the year is the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) that occurs mid-February every year.

This is a great project to do with your kids or grandkids as you only have to participate for 15 minutes. For homeschoolers, this is a great science project to show how field data is collected and compiled for use in various studies.

Want to participate? It's easy. Here is a link to instructions.

Again this year I will be doing the GBBC all four days and invite anyone who would like to come. I am a little restricted on time on Monday, February 18, but I plan to go anyway for a couple of hours. Here is where and when I intend to start each day:

Friday, February 15: 8:00 AM, Wichita Bluff Nature Area, off Seymour Highway. Meet in the parking lot. We'll walk the entire trail to Loop 11 and back (about 2.5 miles round trip). This will probably be the longest in terms of time, so expect around 3 or 4 hours, depending upon the birds. Although not a strenuous hike, it is the most hilly of the GBBC target places. People with limited mobility may find this difficult, but the trail is paved.

Saturday, February 16, 8:00 AM, Lake Arrowhead State Park. This is the regularly scheduled monthly bird walk. We usually walk about 1 mile. We take our time, so it normally takes around 1.5 hours. The ground is level, but there are places where we are not on a paved surface surface.

Saturday, February 16. TBD. I am thinking about heading from Lake Arrowhead to do a short walk along the Wichita Valley Rail Trail. I have been meaning to hike this trail and haven't yet. The trail is 5.6 miles and I don't have any intention of hiking the entire distance (especially as I would have to walk the return as well.) I thought I would hike a mile or so and then turn around. If someone wants to go, we can iron out the details. The trail is reported to be cinder and gravel.

Sunday, February 17, 8:00 AM. Circle Trail between Lucy Park and Williams Park. This is a very pretty section of the trail. We had some good birds here last year. This is not a strenuous walk. There are a couple of low-grade hills. The entire distance is paved. I have never measured the distance but I estimate the walk there and back would be around 2 - 2.5 miles.

Monday, February 18, 8:00 AM. I have some limitations on time on Monday, so my plan is to go to the Chat Trail in Lake Wichita Park and walk around the borrow pit as well. When the birds are cooperative, this is "the" birding location in Wichita Falls. This is a short hike on gravel and some on a paved surface. About a half mile total. If I have time, I may walk more of the trail toward the spillway or along the lake shoreline--weather dependent.

Contact me at green.wichitafalls@gmail.com if you would like to bird with me one of these days.

Good birding!

Yes, Fall Migration is Upon Us!

Blue-gray gnatcatchers are a treat
Photo: Wikimedia Commons, mauricholas

Tuesday night at the North Texas Bird and Wildlife Club we discussed sightings, as we always do. I didn't have a lot to contribute (except a Hudsonian godwit at Lake Arrowhead SP I saw September 8.) I haven't been out much. I told everyone that with the front expected to come through with significantly cooler temps, I was going out this weekend. Today was the day, and I am very glad I went.

It has been raining since Thursday night. This morning has been a light drizzle on and off, but nothing of significance. I decided to hit the Chat Trail at Lake Wichita Park since it is usually a great spot for migrant warblers.

I was starting onto the trail and noted two raptors high up, circling. They reminded me of ospreys, but I couldn't get a good look so decided it was wishful thinking. Later, back by the borrow pit, an osprey flew low over my head with a fish clutched in his talons, so it seems very possible the birds I saw at the head of the trail were indeed osprey. Regardless, I know the one was.

As it turned out, the warblers are moving through. I saw several common yellowthroat, a Wilson's warbler, two blue-gray gnatcatchers, a mourning warbler, and others I didn't get a good enough look at to identify. There were also some interesting calls that I recorded. I also got a good look at a clay-colored sparrow. My favorite sparrow spot was an excellent spot for warblers today.

I saw a hummingbird zip by but didn't see enough to identify the species. But if you have a hummingbird feeder up, don't take it down yet.

Overall, a good hour of birding. Total list for this morning:

Great egret
Snowy egret
Killdeer
Eurasian collared dove
White-winged dove
Cardinal
Carolina chickadee
Blue Jay
Bewick's wren
Barn swallow
Scissor-tailed flycatcher
Blue-gray gnatcatcher
Common yellowthroat
Mourning warbler
Wilson's warbler
Robin
Red-winged blackbird
Clay-colored sparrow

Don't let a little rain keep you in the house now that migration has hit its stride. There are some great birds out there.

Good birding!

Owl Serenade

I haven't been birding much over the summer. I hate hot weather, and the birds aren't thrilled with it either.

I finally decided I was going this morning. It was sprinkling and looked like the rain could get heavier, so I decided to go to the Chat Trail in Lake Wichita Park instead of the Nature Bluff section of the Circle Trail. The good thing about going birding when there is a little rain is you have the parks to yourself--Wichita Falls people don't go out in the rain.

The decision to go birding turned out to be a good one. I didn't see a lot of birds on the Chat Trail, but I saw some good ones.

When I got out of the car at the parking lot, I saw a large bird perched in some dead branches in the top of a tree a good way down the trail. It was a great horned owl, so things were starting out pretty nice. I am including a short video clip. I took it with my phone, so the picture is not the greatest. I also didn't do a very good job of holding the phone steady. If you listen carefully, you can hear him calling. But that wasn't the best part. I didn't catch it on video, but there was a second great horned owl in the wooded area behind me that occasionally called back.

Great horned owl

I was pretty stoked about this, but I walked further down the trail, near the bridge and heard another great horned owl in the wooded area over by the dam. Then heard another behind me again. All of a sudden, the one behind me flew over my head toward the owl calling by the dam. I got my binoculars on the one in flight and saw it fly into the trees and flush out the other owl.

That was four great horned owls. I don't think I have ever seen that many in one small area, ever. When I was coming back to the parking lot, the first great horned owl was still on the exposed branches, but he had been joined by an immature Mississippi kite and a Cooper's hawk. I was surprised by the Cooper's hawk, as it is a little early for them. The birds finally flushed the great horned owl and chased it back across the trail toward me, and there was a second Cooper's hawk in pursuit as well.

I didn't see a lot of birds this morning, but then I didn't stay out long--the rain did get a little heavier while I was out. I'm glad I decided to go. Here's the complete list.


Great egret
Green heron
Snowy egret
Canada goose
Double-crested cormorant
Black-necked stilt
Great horned owl
Mississippi kite
Cooper's hawk
Black-chinned hummingbird
Eurasian collared dove
Mourning dove
Rock pigeon
Belted kingfisher
Blue jay
Cardinal
Northern mockingbird
Barn swallow
American robin
Red-winged blackbird
House finch

Good birding!

Great Backyard Bird Count

The annual Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) is coming up this week. I hope you are planning to take part sometime between Friday, 16 February and Monday, 19 February.

Thousands of people submit checklists of birds they see in their yards or other places around town during this 4-day event. This is a great project to do with your kids/grandkids, as any period of observation of 15 minutes or longer counts. This is great way to introduce kids and novice birdwatchers to the hobby.

For those in the Wichita Falls area, the Texas Master Naturalist Rolling Plains Chapter will be holding a public count behind Wild Bird Rescue, 4611 Lake Shore Dr, from 8 AM - 10 AM on Sunday, February 18. You can come for part or all of the count. There is usually a good breeze coming off the lake, so I suggest wearing layers.

For those who cannot make this event, you are invited to bird with me. Here are some days/times/locations I plan to bird:

Friday, February 16, 9:30 - 10:30 (I have an earlier appointment, so this is later than I normally go). Lake Wichita Park, Chat trail.

Saturday, February 17, 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM, Lake Arrowhead State Park ($4 entry fee applies). (I may also pick up a couple of other spots this day--weather and other commitments will determine)

Sunday, February 18, 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM, Wild Bird Rescue, with the Texas Master Naturalist (I may also pick up a couple of other spots this day--weather and other commitments will determine)

Monday, February 19, 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM, Nature Bluff Park segment of the Circle Trail (I may decide to do the trail section between Lucy Park and Williams Park, but time may be tight--work day!)

For more information, email me at txbirds@gmail.com or you can call 940-867-8761.

Good Birding!

HItting the Chat Trail

Red Admiral

I haven't been on the Chat Trail in Lake Wichita Park for a while, so I decided to go on Sunday. The birding was average, but there were other attractions. There were a lot of butterflies--the red admirals were thick along the trail. The bullfrogs were all along the shore of the barrow pit. They make a funny noise when they jump in--a type of alarm call. Sounds a little like a squeaky toy.

Anyway, although I didn't come across any excellent birds, I did have a good outing. My favorite bird, the chimney swift, is back for the summer. There are still winter season bird in the area as well.

Birds that morning:

Mallard
American coot
Canada goose
Great blue heron
Killdeer
Red-bellied woodpecker
White-winged dove
Eurasian collared dove
Mourning dove
Chimney swift
Barn swallow
Northern cardinal
Northern mockingbird
Blue jay
Bewick's wren
Carolina wren
Eastern phoebe
Scissor-tailed flycatcher
American robin
Spotted towhee
White-crowned sparrow
Savannah sparrow
Song sparrow
Common yellowthroat
Yellow-rumped warbler
Orange-crowned warbler
Great-tailed grackle
Red-winged blackbird
Brown-headed cowbird

Since I wasn't really feeling the urge to clean house, I decided to head down Southwest Parkway to do a quick drive-by of a few other spots. There was a black vulture sitting on a light pole along Southwest Parkway. Nothing but mallards and Canada geese on Stone Lake. I made a quick pass through Crestview and picked up some gadwall and starlings (Whoopee!) There wasn't much on Sikes Lake either--some double-crested cormorants and pigeons were the only additions. There was a cute little clutch of 5 newly hatched Canada geese along the shore.

Alas! I really did need to get home and do some housework....bleh!...so headed back.

Good birding!

Reporting Out Great Backyard Bird Count

Last week concluded this year's Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) event. I was happy to once again be able to schedule work around participating in this event, so I got to bird four days in a row! Life doesn't get much better than that.

I have finished filing all of the GBBC checklists into eBird, so I can finally report to all of you how it went. Overall, it was pretty good weekend.

On Friday, February 17, a group of us birded the chat trail and barrow pit in Lake Wichita Park. One of our group is fairly new to birding. I enjoy having new birders in a group--it really helps to go with others when you're first learning. Sue got a lifer marsh wren. One of the highlights was a hairy woodpecker. Although you don't see one every day, I don't think most of the regular birders in the area think of them as rare, but eBird does. Several of the group independently identified the bird, but no one thought to take a picture of it, so we'll see whether they accept the sighting. We had a good morning for woodpeckers overall, with the hairy, a couple of downy woodpeckers, a northern flicker, a ladder-backed woodpecker, a northern flicker, and a red-bellied woodpecker. We didn't do as well on the duck side of the house, but a quick sighting of a great-horned owl in flight made up for the lack of ducks.

Foggy morning at Lake Arrowhead SP

Disputed sandpiper

On Saturday, a few of us tackled Lake Arrowhead State Park. Thick soupy fog made visibility poor and prevented being able to scan the lake and opposite shore for birds. Since the picture to the left was taken with my cell phone, if you haven't been to Lake Arrowhead SP, you probably don't recognize how foggy it was. From this spot, we should be able to see over the lake, but there is just a wall of white. We saw some good birds regardless. The long-eared owls were still on site. There were a lot of people who traveled from elsewhere in the state to get a good look at the owls. One is remarkably mellow about all of the coming and going. Sue King, who had the lifer marsh wren on Friday, picked up another lifer with a golden-crowned kinglet here. We spent a great deal of time studying a flock of sandpipers. To all of us the legs appeared dark and we made an identification of semipalmated sandpiper. The editor for eBird thinks the legs are yellow in the photo. We are still in discussion at this point. The list at the end of this post is accepting the sandpiper as we identified it because the legs were definitely not yellow. But the editor has only the photo and range maps to go by, and semipalmated are not supposed to be here right now. But, as the saying goes, the birds can't read the field guides. However, it is possible the sandpiper is something else, so we will see. I sent out a call to those who were there to forward any clear pictures they might have.

On Sunday, several of us met out back of Wild Bird Rescue for a GBBC in a Big Sit format. It was pretty disappointing in terms of numbers, although James got a lifer with a yellow-rumped warbler. A Bonaparte's gull and a couple of Forster's terns were highlights for me.

River up in Lucy Park

Recent rains mean quishy areas in Lucy Park

On Monday, I birded the Circle trail from the entrance of Lucy Park on Sunset Drive to Williams Park. Lucy Park is not the bird mecca it was before, but there is still some good habitat on this stretch of trail for little dickie birds. As you can see in the photos, the recent rain made much of the park pretty quishy and the river was up and moving fast. I enjoyed seeing a white-throated sparrow--the first I have seen in Lucy Park since they tore out much of the understory. However, there is still a good stand of trees and vines near the footbridge, behind the sanitation building. Down the trail some, Lynn and I saw two brown creepers, which are always a highlight for me. A surprising find in town was the pair of eastern bluebirds behind the MPEC. I have seen bluebirds a couple of times over the past 20 years in Lake Wichita Park, but never here. A belted kingfisher flying up and down the river was also nice.

I am hoping by next year's, GBBC the Nature Bluff area will be ready for visitors.

So what did we see? I am hoping I don't inadvertently leave a bird out, but here goes:

Canada goose
Double-crested cormorant
Mallard
Northern shoveler
Ruddy duck
American wigeon
American coot
Pied-billed grebe
Ring-billed gull
Bonaparte's gull
Forster's tern
White pelican
Great blue heron
Killdeer
Semipalmated sandpiper
Belted kingfisher
Great horned owl
Long-eared owl
Turkey vulture
Red-tailed hawk
Northern flicker
Ladder-backed woodpecker
Downy woodpecker
Hairy woodpecker
Red-bellied woodpecker
Inca dove
Mourning dove
Eurasian collared dove
White-winged dove
Rock pigeon
Northern cardinal
Northern mockingbird
Blue jay
Tufted titmouse (both regular and black-crested)
Eastern phoebe
Eastern bluebird
Ruby-crowned kinglet
Golden-crowned kinglet
Orange-crowned warbler
Yellow-rumped warbler
Common yellowthroat
American robin
Great-tailed grackle
Red-winged blackbird
European starling
House finch
American goldfinch
Cedar waxwing
Song sparrow
White-thrated sparrow
White-crowned sparrow
Field sparrow
Dark-eyed junco
Harris's sparrow
Brown creeper
Marsh wren
Carolina wren
Bewick's wren

If my count is correct, that's 58 species.

Good birding!

Great Fall Birding!

Fall colors at Lake Wichita Park

I decided to make a stop at the Chat Trail in Lake Wichita Park after my Sunday morning grocery run. Honestly, I wasn't in a good mood, and almost decided to go straight home. However, I had no freezer items, and I haven't been out in a while, so thought I would take a quick little walk and get a little exercise, at least. I am so glad I went! I came home in a much better frame of mind and saw some great birds too! I hope I can find many of these again on the Christmas Bird Count on December 17.

Fall has finally arrived in our area. The temperature was in the 40s and it was a little overcast, but no wind, so a great day to be outside birding. We have a little color in the trees now.

Common yellowthroat. Photo by M. Nazelrod. Retrieved from Wikimedia Commons

When I pulled into the park, hundreds of cormorants and white pelicans were making their pilgramage to the settling pond on Fairway--I am sure some of them proceeded on, but I didn't stick around to watch. One of the highlights this morning was the common yellowthroat. If I see one, it is almost always along the chat trail or in the reeds around the barrow pit. I don't see them often. When I do, it is just one. This morning, I saw five! Three males and two females.  They are such pretty little birds.

Anotther favorite was the marsh wren. It is not uncommon to have one in the winter. However, I was able to see a total of four, and I am pretty sure there were others in the reeds, because they were chattering up a storm.

A large raft of 20 pied-billed grebes was on the barrow pit. I don't usually see that many together. And a Wilson's snipe rounded out the day. There were a lot of sparrows in the brushy areas--I hope they all turn up again in a couple of weeks.

Here is a complete list from this morning:

White pelican
Double-crested cormorant
Ring-billed gull
Great blue heron
Northern shoveler
Bufflehead
Mallard
American coot
Pied-billed grebe
Wilson's snipe
Downy woodpecker
Red-bellied woodpecker
Cooper's hawk
Northern harrier
Eurasian collared dove
Belted kingfisher
Marsh wren
Blue jay
Northern cardinal
Northern mockingbird
Ruby-crowned kinglet
Common yellowthroat
Yellow-rumped warbler
Orange-crowned warbler
Eastern phoebe
White-crowned sparrow
Lincoln's sparrow
Song sparrow
Savannah sparrow
American goldfinch
House finch
Cedar waxwing
Red-winged blackbird
American robin

All-in-all, a great hour and a half on the Chat Trail.

Good birding!

Great Backyard Bird Count Was "Great!"

The Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) was Feb 12 - 15. I have finished updating my checklists, so thought I would give you a summary of four great mornings of birding. Four days worth of birding makes for a long post, but some good birds.

I am not going to provide the number of each species as those are in the eBird checklists I turned in. You can either pull them from eBird or email me at txbirds@gmail.com and I can forward them to you.

Fires in Lucy Park

On Friday, I started the GBBC in Lucy Park. It just makes me want to cry to go to Lucy Park any more. On the advice of hydrological engineers, the city of Wichita Falls has been cutting down many of the old trees in the park, clearing all of the understory and clearing and burning pretty much all of the branches and leaves on the ground. This is intended to reduce the potential for flooding. I know the City Council isn't going to weigh bird habitat heavily against potential property loss among their constituents, but it still makes my heart hurt. This used to be a premier place to bird. Lucy Park still has relatively decent birding, at least for woodpeckers, as there are still many old trees with cavities still in the park. However, as the understory is removed, the habitat is likely to be more favorable to starlings. The birding has steadily declined over the past 2 years. I don't know if Lucy Park will be worth the effort next year. I was joined on this count by Ray and Sharon, fellow Texas Master Naturalist.

We had a pretty decent morning with the following species seen: turkey vulture (unusual for this time of year), red-tailed hawk, Cooper's hawk, mallard, Canada goose, Eurasian collared dove, white-winged dove, mourning dove, northern flicker, downy woodpecker, red-bellied woodpecker, ladder-backed woodpecker, tufted titmouse, American robin, Carolina chickadee, northern cardinal, blue jay, ruby-crowned kinglet, cedar waxwing, northern mockingbird, song sparrow, white-crowned sparrow, dark-eyed junco, great-tailed grackle, red-winged blackbird, rusty blackbird, house finch, American goldfinch, yellow-rumped warbler, and European starling,

Saturday was the regular bird walk at Lake Arrowhead State Park, which we also did as a GBBC count. Mike and June, two regulars for the Saturday walks, came.  For me, the highlight was the yellow-bellied sapsucker, a pretty winter visitor to our area. Our species for the morning included: double-crested cormorant, Canada goose, American coot, pied-billed grebe, mallard, gadwall, white pelican. ring-billed gull, red-bellied woodpecker, yellow-bellied sapsucker, mourning dove, white-winged dove, Eurasian collard dove, eastern bluebird, eastern phoebe, northern mockingbird, northern cardinal, blue jay, ruby-crowned kinglet, Bewick's wren, American pipit, eastern meadowlark, dark-eyed junco, white-crowned sparrow, Harris's sparrow, common grackle, great-tailed grackle, loggerhead shrike, orange-crowned warbler, and house sparrow. On my way home (still in Clay County) I saw a great blue heron, a couple of American kestrels, and a red-tailed hawk. A Cooper's hawk was sitting on a pole on Sisk Road (Archer County.) Altogether a nice outing.

Sunrise on Lake Wichita

Debra, Terry and James at the GBBC count behind Wild
Bird Rescue

People wonder why I like birding. One of the big reasons is that it is so quiet. Look at this picture of Lake Wichita at sunrise. Even with a cell phone photo, you can see just how peaceful it looks. It helps that this time of year, sunrise comes at a very reasonable 7:20 or so. This was right around 7:30. Several Texas Master Naturalist came out for this count--Terry, Debra, James, Tami. Katherine from Wild Birds Unlimited also came out. Both James and Katherine scored a lifer with the yellow-rumped warblers (Myrtle).  We had some momentary excitement when we heard a barred owl calling, but then we remembered where we were--Lindsay, one of the education birds at Wild Bird Rescue was the culprit.

This count was a stationary count behind Wild Bird Rescue, where we also host the Big Sit. Species seen included: white pelican, pied-billed grebe, mallard, northern pintail, gadwall, redhead, American coot, northern shoveler, bufflehead, Canada goose, double-crested cormorant, greater yellowlegs, killdeer, great blue heron, ring-billed gull, Eurasian collared dove, white-winged dove, yellow-shafted flicker, ladder-backed woodpecker. northern mockingbird, northern cardinal, blue jay, cedar waxwing, great-tailed grackle, red-winged blackbird, American robin, western meadowlark, American crow, European starling, song sparrow, dark-eyed junco, American goldfinch, yellow-rumped warbler (Myrtle's), orange-crowned warbler, house finch, and house sparrow.

Monday I was the lone birder for Lake Wichita Park. I limited the walk to the chat trail and the barrow pit--unfortunately, I do have to work sometime as I like to eat. The first bird I heard/saw when I got out of my truck in the parking lot was a belted kingfisher, one of my favorites. I had 11 species of birds before I got out of the parking lot, which boded well for the morning. But then, I came across this mess--can you believe the nerve of people?

Dumped trash at Lake Wichita Park

 Fortunately, some good birds helped my temper. Birds seen this morning included: Canada goose, white-fronted goose, mallard, norhtern shoverler, bufflehead, redhead, ruddy duck, American coot, gadwall, pied-billed grebe, northern pintail, ring-billed gulls (hundreds circling the water treatment pond), killdeer, Eurasian collared dove, white-winged dove, great horned owl,  great blue heron, belted kingfisher, northern flicker, red-bellied woodpecker, northern cardinal, blue jay, eastern bluebird, eastern phoebe, yellow-rumped warbler, Carolina chickadee, Bewick's wren, cedar waxwing, northern mockingbird, white-crowned sparrow, song sparrow, field sparrow, white-crowned sparrow, fox sparrow, great-tailed grackle, European starling, American robin, and American goldfinch.

 Overall, a great GBBC.

Good birding!

Great Backyard Bird Count

One of my favorite events of each winter is the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC), held mid February of each year. The GBBC is a joint effort of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the Audubon Society. It is a global event, with people in many countries sending information on the birds they see during their backyard count. Last year participants submitted over 147,000 checklists, counting over 5,000 species of birds.

I have blocked out the mornings of the next 4-day count, February 12 - 15, in order to participate.

You do not have to be a great birder to take part. In fact this is an excellent way to introduce new people to birdwatching, so it is perfectly fine if you are new to the hobby. Nor do you have to spend a lot of time (unless you want to.) How do you take part?

• Choose a nearby location (your backyard is fine.)
• Find at least 15 minutes to watch birds
• Count every individual bird you can identify
• Submit your counts (you may have to set up an account if you are not already registered with eBird or one of the Cornell Lab citizen science projects.)

This is a great project to do with your children or grandchildren, since it doesn't require a long attention span. It could also be a great introduction to birds for home schoolers, classrooms and scout troops.

One of the GBBC counts will be the monthly bird walk at Lake Arrowhead State Park on Saturday, February 13. It will start at the firewood shed (1st camping area to your left after you enter the park) at 8:00 AM. The entry fee to the park does apply.

Usually there is a group Rolling Plains Texas Master Naturalist count on Sunday. I haven't heard if that is happening and it isn't on the chapter calendar. I am keeping that date open, just in case.

I will be doing a count at Lucy Park on Friday, beginning at 8:00 AM. If anyone is interested in taking part, just meet at the first parking area on the left after entering the park on Sunset Street (the entrance adjacent to River Bend Nature Center and behind the Sanitation Department.) 

I will also be doing a count at Lake Wichita Park beginning at the head of the Chat Trail beginning at 8:00 AM on Monday, February 15.

Anyone who wants to take part is welcome to come along. If you need more information, send me an email at txbirds@gmail.com. Be sure to put GBBC in the Subject line so I don't think your email is spam.

Good birding!

Beautiful Morning at Lake Wichita Park

Lake Wichita Park is very close to my house, so I often bird there, especially since Lucy Park has been cleared out in the hopes of better flood control.

This morning dawned bright and sunny, although with a chilly bite once the wind came up. I headed out to the Chat Trail, past the barrow pit and then over to Murphy's Mound and back. A pretty good morning. 

A couple of highlights:

Common yellowthroat male,
Matt Tillet, Wikimedia Commons

  - A male common yellowthroat in the reeds in the marshy area at the corner of the Chat Trail and the Circle Trail. I have seen common yellowthroats in this area before, but not since before the drought. I always look for them there. They sound a little like wrens when they are rummaging in the reeds, so do a little extra looking if that is the case. In spite of the "common" in the name, they are not so common here. 

  - One of the great horned owls was perched in his usual spot along the Chat Trail. A lot of trees have fallen down in the that area--I hope that doesn't run the owls off. 

  - As I was heading back to the car, a flock of some 21 cedar waxwings flew into the tree next to the trail. There is a shallow place in the ditch where they were flying down with the robins to take a nice bath. They didn't seem to be overly concerned with me--I was pretty close to them.

The ducks seem to be pairing up before heading back north. There were a few dozen northern shovelers on the barrow pit. Almost all of them were a male/female pair with a few lone males interspersed.

View from the overlook

Now that the lake is full again, the wildlife viewing overlook once again provides good views over the water toward the dam and Pelican's Point. It is has been nothing but weeds for some years with the drought, but a nice area now. I did see several ducks this morning.

I didn't see any pelicans on the lake this morning--there were some good-sized flocks circling yesterday. I am trying to remember when they will be leaving.

When I got home, I had a beautiful little male ladderbacked woodpecker in the pecan tree out front and a orange-crowned warbler looking for insects in the hackberry tree next to the feeders out back. Neither counts for Project Feederwatch, but good birds in my yard. I have had a paucity of good birds in my yard since we moved to this house, so I am happy to see some showing up. Hopefully that means my efforts to make the yard more bird friendly are beginning to pay off.

Birds seen/heard in Lake Wichita Park this morning: Canada goose, mallard, ruddy duck, bufflehead, gadwall, northern shoveler, pied-billed grebe, American coot, great blue heron, ring-billed gull, Eurasian collared dove, mourning dove, great horned owl, red-bellied woodpecker, yellow-shafted flicker,  belted kingfisher, blue jay, cardinal, American robin, northern mockingbird, ruby-crowned kinglet, common yellowthroat, house finch, goldfinch, spotted towhee, song sparrow, white-crowned sparrow, cedar waxwing, and European starling.

Wonderful start to Sunday--unfortunately, housework calls......

Good birding!

(Mostly) Lackluster Holiday Birding

One of the great things about 3-day weekends is the extra time to go birding. I hit the ground running on Saturday to get all of the errands and housework done so I could do some birding Sunday and Monday.

I really do mean it when I say, "A bad day birding is better than most anything else," because Sunday and Monday were not the best birding I have had. I was looking forward to getting out because migration is underway. We certainly are not at the peak yet, but some of the early migrants are coming through and some of our summer birds are already gone.

I got a late start on Sunday. Although we have gone to winter hours at Wild Bird Rescue, there are still enough birds to take a while to clean and feed first thing in the morning, so by the time I got to the Chat Trail at Lake Wichita Park, it was 9:40 and already getting hot. I ran into Robert Mauk, a local photographer who takes some good bird pictures just leaving the trail. He said he hadn't seen many birds at all.  Because of the heat, I just went down the Chat Trail to the barrow pit and back--a sum total of 30 minutes. If there had been many birds, I would have stayed in spite of the temperatures, but no luck. Just as I was coming back, I did have two sightings that saved the morning: a yellow warbler and a blue-gray gnatcatcher. Other birds included: Eurasian collared dove, blue jay, robin, northern cardinal, northern mockingbird, black-chinned hummingbird, great-tailed grackle and a woodpecker. The woodpecker could have been either a downy or a ladder-backed--it was the right size for either, but it was just flying across the trail and I just didn't have time to be sure.

I decided to try Lucy Park on Monday. Another late start, but I was there by 8:30. Once breeding season is over, the birds are very quiet. The great-tailed grackles have molted. During those few weeks they don't have tails, they skulk around in the bushes, uncharacteristically quiet. You would think they are embarrassed because they are half dressed. Soon they will look gorgeous once again. If it wasn't for the blue jays, the woods would have been nearly silent.

It is easy to see the level of the flood waters due to the mud line on the trees. Although many of the wonderful birding areas have been torn out for supposed flood control, there are still some good birding opportunities in the park. Not as many as there were certainly. Now, if the people who cut down all of the wonderful trees had just torn out all of the salt cedar--but a rant for another day.

Red-headed woodpecker. Photo by Andy Reaga and Chrissy McClellan,
Wikimedia Commons

This was another day that was very disappointing, until near the end, when a pair of red-headed wookpeckers started chasing each other through the trees, chattering to one another. I donb't see red-headed woodpeckers so often that it isn't a thrill to catch a good sighting. There were also several small kettles of Mississippi kites circling the park with a few turkey vultures. I figured they were getting ready to ride the front that was predicted to move through the area in the next day or two. (The front did come through and I haven't seen or heard a Mississippi kite since.) Other than these birds, the only birds seen/heard that morning were: blue jay, cardinal, Carolina chickadee, yellow warbler, great-tailed grackle, starling, Canada goose, mallard (not the ones at the duck pond--on the river) and Canada goose.

Overall, not a great weekend, but a few good birds to make it all worthwhile.

Good birding!

Great Backyard Bird Count Highlights

The Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) was February 13 - February 16. I was traveling on the 13th, so didn't have the opportunity to bird that day(airports don't try to attract birds.) However, I did take part in two group counts on Saturday and Sunday and did a solo count on Monday.

I was very happy to see 13 people join me for the GBBC at Lake Arrowhead State Park on Saturday. Since the Rolling Plains Chapter of the Texas Master Naturalist counted this as volunteer time, it did help our numbers, and we had several members there. We had some very experienced birders with the McKees and also some very new birders. Our new birders were able to add some life birds to their lists--that always makes for a great day.

It was really a beautiful morning. During our 2-hour walk, we saw several good birds. I am sure I captured all of the species we saw, although I may have missed some of the numbers. Our list:

Canada goose
White pelican  11
Double-crested cormorant   4
Killdeer    10
Greater yellowlegs  1
Great blue heron   1
Ring-billed gull   31
Mourning dove  2
Ladder-backed woodpecker   3
Red-bellied woodpecker   1
Golden-fronted woodpecker   1
Northern flicker  1
Roadrunner   1
Northern mockingbird    5
Bewick's wren    4
Northern cardinal  10
Eastern phoebe  2
Eastern bluebird   2
American crow  3
Red-winged blackbird  2
Western meadowlark  13
Meadowlark species   9
Brown-headed cowbird   5
White-crowned sparrow  8
Fox sparrow   1
Harris's sparrow   13
House finch  15
House sparrow   2


On the way home from Lake Arrowhead, I did see a red-tailed hawk and a couple of kestrels (just nice for me--they didn't count for the GBBC.)

GBBC participants at Wild Bird Rescue trying to locate
the ruby-crowned kinglets

On Sunday, we had a group count that started behind Wild Bird Rescue. However, with no water at that end of the lake, the birding was rather flat, so we moved to the Chat Trail in Lake Wichita Park. We spent an hour at Wild Bird Rescue and another 1 hr, 25 minutes on the Chat Trail.

At Wild Bird Rescue we counted:

Canada goose   2
Mallard duck   2
Ring-billed gull    9
Killdeer    1
White-winged dove   9
Eurasian collared dove   7
Northern harrier   1
Northern cardinal  2
American robin  1
Ruby-crowned kinglet   2
Blue jay   1
American crow   6
Great-tailed grackle   1
Red-winged blackbird   5
European starling    3
House sparrow   6

On the Chat Trail we had the following birds (and I am quite sure the cardinal numbers are low--they were everywhere!)

Canada goose   6
Mallard duck  18
Double-crested cormorant  10
Killdeer  7
Turkey vulture   1
Eurasian collared dove  2
Downy woodpecker   1
Ladder-backed woodpecker  1
Carolina wren   1
Northern mockingbird  2
Blue jay  3
Northern cardinal   13
Eastern phoebe   1
Yellow-rumped warbler  3
Orange-crowned warbler   1
Ruby-crowned kinglet  1
Cedar waxwing   8
American robin   30
Dark-eyed junco  1
White-crowned sparrow   5
Song sparrow   3
Lincoln's sparrow    1
Harris's sparrow  2
Red-winged blackbird    3
Brown-headed cowbird  2
Great-tailed grackle  5
American goldfinch   6
House finch   1

On Monday, I headed to Lucy Park for a count. The temperatures took a nose dive between Sunday and Monday, so I was fairly certain that I would be the Lone Ranger for this walk, and I was right. I've noticed that Texans don't like cold weather much (which here, means anything much below 50 degrees.) My thermometer read 26 degrees when I headed out the door. However, there was very little wind, so it was a fairly pleasant morning.

How do you like the new trail signs? I think they are great--many thanks to the Parks and Recreation Department.

I didn't take the entire route I normally take as Monday was a work day and I always feel like I am playing hooky. If the birding had been stupendous, I would have sucked it up, but it was average at best, so I kept my walk down to 1.25 hour.  The birds found included:

Northern shoveler  2
Mallard duck  28
Ring-billed gull  37
Rock pigeon   14
Mourning dove  1
Red-bellied woodpecker  2
Northern flicker   4
Brown creeper  1
Blue jay   6
Northern mockingbird   1
Northern cardinal  4
Ruby-crowned kinglet  1
Carolina chickadee  4
Tufted titmouse  1
Dark-eyed junco  12
American robin  43
Great-tailed grackle  17
Red-winged blackbird  22
House finch    5

Overall, a fairly good few days of birding. I'm already looking forward to next year's count.

Good birding!