Updated: Sunday March 01, 2009

Images from Texas - Winter 2009:

• January 8th - Wadley Barron Park, Midland, TX
  
  
• January 14th - Attwater Prairie-Chicken NWR, Eagle Lake, TX
  
  
• January 15th - Brazos Bend State Park, TX
  
  
• January 15th - Quintana Jetty, Fields Along Route 36, TX
  
  
• January 16th - San Bernard NWR, Brazoria, TX
  
  
• January 17th - Crab Street Marsh, Surfside Beach, TX
  
  
• January 18th - Frontera Audubon, Weslaco, TX
  
  
• January 19th - WBC Bentsen-Rio Grande State Park, Mission, TX
  
  
• January 20th - Laguna Atascosa NWR, Isla Blanca County Park, Hondo/South Padre Island, TX
  
  
• January 21st - Sabal Palms Sanctuary, Brownsville, TX
  
  
• January 21st - Frontera Audubon, Weslaco, TX
  
  

• Bufflehead #7 - In the right light, a rainbow of colors!
  
  
• Bufflehead #13 - But, turn the other way, and it's a study in black and white
  
  
• Bufflehead #15 - Trivia question: What color are a Bufflehead's feet?
  
  
• Bufflehead #17 - This female was VERY popular!
  
  
• Bufflehead #23 - Playing "hard to get"
  
  
• Neotropic Cormorant #19 - Drying out after a hard day of fishing
  
  
• Wood Duck #19 - Perhaps the most stunning American duck
  
  
• Wood Duck #30 - A picture is truly worth a thousand words
  
  
• Lesser Scaup #6 - A handsome male casually drifts by
  
  
• Lesser Scaup #10 - But his mate gives me the "evil eye"
  
  
• Lesser Scaup #12 - And a few harsh words...check out those "teeth"
  
  
• American Wigeon #15 - A male swimming by looking for a handout
  
  
• American Wigeon #16 - A female swimming by looking for a handout
  
  

• Attwater Prairie-Chicken NWR - the entrance sign
  
  
• Crested Caracara #2 - hunting at the end of the day
  
  
• Sandhill Cranes #5 - the queue for lunch gets longer every year!
  
  
• Sandhill Cranes #6 - ...and the rush hour traffic is awful!
  
  
• Loggerhead Shrike's Handiwork - can you guess what the Shrike will have for dinner?
  
  
• Wilson's Snipe #2 - the Snipe approaches the small pool
  
  
• Wilson's Snipe #4 - the Snipe wades boldly into the pool
  
  
• Wilson's Snipe #1 - the Snipe finds a tasty morsel in the mud
  
  
• Wilson's Snipe #11 - the Snipe is ready for bed
  
  
• Savannah Sparrow #7 - a typical bird with bright yellow lores
  
  
• Savannah Sparrow #10 - a pale bird with little or no hint of yellow lores
  
  
• Savannah Sparrow #12 - an intermediate bird with yellow lores
  
  
• Savannah Sparrow #13 - a darkly marked bird with pale yellow lores
  
  
• Savannah Sparrow #16 - a darkly marked bird with yellow lores
  
  
• Savannah Sparrow #14 - most of the birds were skulking like this one
  
  
• Black Vulture #2 - a pair perched in a tree
  
  
• Black Vulture #3 - a new experience for me - a Vulture "lies down"
  
  
• Black Vulture #5 - a more typical view of a Black Vulture
  
  
• Turkey Vulture #5 - a day wouldn't be complete without a Turkey Vulture, too
  
  

• Rusty Blackbird #24 - male
  
  
• Rusty Blackbird #26 - female or first year male?
  
  
• Rusty Blackbird #8 - both the male and female waded in the shallow water picking up leaves and taking them to a shallower spot to look for invertebrates on them
  
  
• Rusty Blackbird #14 - both the male and female waded in the shallow water picking up leaves and taking them to a shallower spot to look for invertebrates on them
  
  
• Rusty Blackbird #28 - at one point something (a raptor?) flew overhead and the female watched it intently
  
  
• Rusty Blackbird #29 - still watching intently
  
  
• Rusty Blackbird #30 - still watching intently
  
  
• American Crow #2 - one of several patrolling the picnic area at Elm Lake
  
  
• Great Egret #12 - an attempt at an artistic portrait
  
  
• Blue-gray Gnatcatcher #3 - an energetic little bird actively feeding and tough to photograph
  
  
• Eastern Phoebe #8 - any perch will do
  
  
• Yellow-rumped ("Myrtle") Warbler #15 - these "wood" warblers spent a lot of time down by the water today
  
  

• Brown Pelican #30 - cruising along the inlet by the south jetty
  
  
• Northern Mockingbird #5 - in the brush pile at the Neotropical Bird Sanctuary
  
  
• Sandhill Crane #7 - part of a small flock in the fields along Route 36
  
  
• Snow Geese #17 in the fields along Route 36
  
  

• San Bernard NWR - the entrance sign
  
  
• American Coots #15 - a small portion of a typical large winter flock
  
  
• Ring-necked Duck #7 - a male molting into breeding plumage
  
  
• Greater White-fronted Goose #2 - one of about a dozen in Moccasin Pond
  
  
• Snow Geese #20 - a small flock flying into Moccasin Pond
  
  
• Snow Geese #18 - two "Blue Phase" Snow Geese on the road around Moccasin Pond
  
  
• Snow Goose #21 - this bird seemed overly tame until I realized it had a broken leg
  
  
• Pied-billed Grebe #4 - a shy bird in the channel along the road around Moccasin Pond
  
  
• Northern Harrier #10 - a male hunting over the marsh around Moccasin Pond
  
  
• Northern Harrier #11 - a male hunting over the marsh around Moccasin Pond
  
  
• White Ibis #8 - an adult and first year bird in Moccasin Pond
  
  
• White-faced Ibis #8 - a winter plumaged bird in Moccasin Pond
  
  
• Belted Kingfisher #22 - a male hunting along the channel in Moccasin Pond (and having a "bad hair day" in the brisk wind!)
  
  
• Belted Kingfisher #23 - a male getting ready to toss a small fish down its throat
  
  
• Belted Kingfisher #25 - is he smiling after he ate the fish?
  
  
• Wilson's Snipe #12 - hunkered down in the grass on the lee side of the road around Moccasin Pond
  
  
• Gull-billed Tern #3 - a winter-plumaged adult hunting over Moccasin Pond
  
  
• Gull-billed Tern #4 - a winter-plumaged adult hunting over Moccasin Pond
  
  
• Gull-billed Tern #7 - a first winter bird riding the wind over Moccasin Pond
  
  
• Gull-billed Tern #5 - a first winter bird riding the wind over Moccasin Pond
  
  
• Yellow-rumped Warbler #5 - one of many working the banks along the channel in Moccasin Pond
  
  

• Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow #3 - foraging along the muddy banks of the marsh
  
  
• Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow #4 - one of the field marks is the lack of a median crown stripe
  
  
• Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow #5 - most of the time the bird skulked in the reeds...
  
  
• Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow #6 - occasionally making a dash across an open space in the reeds
  
  
• Tricolored Heron #15 - one of the other birds foraging in the marsh
  
  
• Yellow-crowned Night-Heron #17 - hiding in the reeds
  
  
• Yellow-crowned Night-Heron #20 - flying away
  
  
• Willet #39 - one of the other birds foraging in the marsh
  
  
• Clapper Rail #15 - this bird emerged from the marsh and began displaying to his mate...
  
  
• Clapper Rail #16 - then he swam across the channel...
  
  
• Clapper Rail #17 - and ran across the road...
  
  
• Clapper Rail #18 - alas, his mate was having nothing to do with him, however
  
  

• Tropical Checkered-Skipper #1 - this is the smallest butterfly I have ever seen! It is only a little bigger than my thumbnail.
  
  
• White Peacock #4 - this one I know
  
  
• Plain Chachalaca #6 - a trip to the valley wouldn't be complete without one
  
  
• Buff-bellied Hummingbird #6 - look carefully and you can see that this bird had a close encounter with a spider's web, perhaps already gathering nesting materials?
  
  
• Buff-bellied Hummingbird #7 - don't stick your tongue out in public!
  
  
• Great Kiskadee #19 - one of my favorite valley birds
  
  
• Northern Mockingbird #7 - not every bird in the valley is exotic
  
  
• Pine Siskin #5 - 4 of these were a pleasant surprise at the water drip
  
  
• Olive Sparrow #5 - everyone comes to the water eventually
  
  
• Olive Sparrow #10 - this bird REALLY enjoyed sitting in the water!
  
  
• Clay-colored Thrush #14 - the Clay-coloreds were a little hesitant at first
  
  
• Clay-colored Thrush #15 - a brave one boldly stood in the open
  
  
• Clay-colored Thrush #19 - while others played "peek-a-boo"
  
  
• Hermit Thrush #23 - one of the shyer birds of the day
  
  
• Hermit Thrush #22 - another bird that liked to sit in the water
  
  
• Black-crested Titmouse #10 - a handsome bird!
  
  
• Blue-headed Vireo #2 - a northern bird that didn't quite make it to Mexico
  
  
• White-eyed Vireo #11 - easy to see how this bird got its name
  
  
• Black-and-white Warbler #6 - part of the contingent of wintering warblers
  
  
• Black-throated Green Warbler #16 - this male got about this far and then left without bathing
  
  
• Black-throated Green Warbler #17 - this female was also a bit shy...
  
  
• Black-throated Green Warbler #22 - but she was not going to let anything stop her
  
  
• Nashville Warbler #22 - look carefully and you can see a few of the reddish crown feathers shown in some field guides
  
  
• Orange-crowned Warbler #3 - this was the most numerous warbler
  
  
• Orange-crowned Warbler #9 - checking the water for alligators?
  
  
• Wilson's Warbler #12 - one of my favorite warblers
  
  
• Wilson's Warbler #14 - perhaps the most enthusiastic bather of the day...or is this a new species, the "Black-capped Dipper"?
  
  

• Mexican Bluewing #1 - a beautiful and relatively common butterfly
  
  
• Javelina #7 - a trip to Bentsen wouldn't be complete without one (or two)
  
  
• Javelina #8 - Hey! The feeders are for the birds!
  
  
• Blue Bunting #2 - female coming to a water feature for a drink
  
  
• Blue Bunting #3 - female coming to a water feature for a drink
  
  
• Blue Bunting #4 - female coming to a water feature for a drink
  
  
• "Smudgey" (the hybrid Oriole) #1 - a hybrid of Audubon's and Altamira Orioles
  
  
• "Smudgey" (the hybrid Oriole) #6 - a hybrid of Audubon's and Altamira Orioles
  
  
• Orange-crowned Warbler #11 - a common bird in the valley
  
  
• Golden-fronted Woodpecker #10 - love that peanut butter! And check out that yellow belly!
  
  

• Red Admiral #8 - a striking and relatively common butterfly
  
  
• Red Admiral #9 - now the antennae point forward...
  
  
• Red Admiral #10 - and now the antennae point down!
  
  
• Pipevine Swallowtail #3 - Pipevine 3, you are cleared for landing...
  
  
• Pipevine Swallowtail #2 - Houston Control, the butterfly has landed...
  
  
• Northern Cardinal #27 - one of the shyer birds coming to the feeders
  
  
• Great-tailed Grackle #27 - a female member of the feeder "mob"
  
  
• Great-tailed Grackle #27 - a male member of the feeder "mob"
  
  
• Green Jay #29 - getting a drink in between feeder visits
  
  
• Green Jay #30 - waiting for their turn to visit the feeder
  
  
• White-throated Sparrow #1 - the "rarest" bird of the day!
  
  
• Brown Pelican #31 - about the only bird out on the South Padre Island jetty (the other was a Ruddy Turnstone...but not the Purple Sandpiper!)
  
  

• Red-eared Slider #10 - make room, I'm coming aboard!
  
  
• Anhingas can swim below the surface with their head up like a periscope on a submarine
  
  
  • Anhinga #1 - cruising along
    
    
  • Anhinga #2 - down periscope!
    
    
  • Anhinga #3 - dive! dive!
    
    
• Least Grebe #8 - one of the Rio Grande specialty birds
  
  
• The Grebe and the Fish:
  
  
  • Pied-billed Grebe #5 - are the Grebe's eyes bigger than its stomach (or mouth)?
    
    
  • Pied-billed Grebe #6 - still trying to swallow it
    
    
  • Pied-billed Grebe #7 - still trying to swallow it
    
    
  • Pied-billed Grebe #8 - still trying to swallow it
    
    
  • Pied-billed Grebe #9 - almost done
    
    
  • Pied-billed Grebe #10 - just the tip of the tail left
    
    
  • Pied-billed Grebe #11 - if you didn't see it for yourself, you wouldn't believe it!
    
    
• Sora #9 - why did the Sora cross the channel?
  
  

• Zebra Butterfly #4 - a unique butterfly with long, paddle-shaped wings
  
  
• Lesser Goldfinch #12 - a female coming to drink
  
  
• Lesser Goldfinch #15 - a male checking out the birders
  
  
• House Sparrow #9 - a male getting a quick drink
  
  
• Olive Sparrow #11 - one of the Rio Grande specialty birds
  
  
• Curve-billed Thrasher #16 - everybody needs a bath
  
  
• Blue-headed Vireo #7 - checking us out
  
  
• White-eyed Vireo #12 - getting ready to dive in
  
  
• Black-throated Green Warbler #24 - bathing out in the open
  
  
• Nashville Warbler #5 - bathing along the side
  
  
• Orange-crowned Warbler #15 - why the Orange-crowned Warbler is called that
  
  
• Wilson's Warbler #19 - one of my favorite warblers
  
  
• Common Yellowthroat #2 - a male taking a bath