#793-#795 at Bentsen State Park

Friday I signed up for a relatively leisurely (six hours, one location) trip to the Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park, once again along the border. At the first feeders, we spent about 45 minutes watching Plain Chachalcas, Green Jays, Orange-crowned Warblers, Red-winged Blackbirds, a Long-billed Thrasher or two, and several Altamira Orioles, #793, a bird I had missed a few times on Wednesday:

We made several more stops inside the park, and at one of them we picked out #794, Northern Beardless Tyrannulet. It’s a small flycatcher, and did not pose for photos.

Final stop was the hawkwatch platform. We were hoping for Hook-billed Kite, but that was a real longshot, and we didn’t get it. We did get some shorebirds, a few ducks, and a Loggerhead Shrike. And just before we left a few Cave Swallows, #795, flew over.

My total count for the site was about 60 avian species (plus a butterfly or two), not counting species a few other folks in the group saw that I missed:

• American Avocet
• White-tailed Hawk
• American Kestrel
• American Pipit
• Black-necked Stilt
• Black Vulture
• Cave Swallow
• Common Ground-Dove
• Crested Caracara
• Gadwall
• Green-winged Teal
• Great Egret
• Great Kiskadee
• Greater Yellowlegs
• Least Sandpiper
• Loggerhead Shrike
• Northern Harrier
• Red-shouldered Hawk
• Snowy Egret
• Spotted Sandpiper
• White Ibis
• American Coot
• Great-tailed Grackle
• Marsh Wren
• Snowy Egret
• Great Kiskadee
• Clay-colored Thrush
• Red-winged Blackbird
• Golden-fronted Woodpecker
• Plain Chachalaca
• Pied-billed Grebe
• Black Phoebe
• Orange-crowned Warbler
• Olive Sparrow
• Northern Mockingbird
• Northern Cardinal
• Altamira Oriole
• Crested Caracara
• Mourning Dove
• Inca Dove
• Ladder-backed Woodpecker
• Long-billed Thrasher
• Green Jay
• White-crowned Sparrow
• Vermilion Flycatcher
• Sharp-shinned Hawk
• Ringed Kingfisher
• Pyrrhuloxia
• Osprey
• Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet
• Neotropic Cormorant
• Great Blue Heron
• Eastern Phoebe
• Double-crested Cormorant
• Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
• Black Vulture
• Belted Kingfisher
• Barn Swallow
• Anhinga
• White-winged Dove
• American Coot

In addition to the three lifers, there were four more state birds for Texas; and Clay-colored Thrush and Ringed Kingfisher were ABA area birds. Not too bad. After yesterday’s relatively poor showing of one life bird, I was worrying that I had just about exhausted the possibilities, but apparently there’s more to be had yet. Tomorrow we’re visiting another spot along the border, the Southmost Preserve.

This entry was posted on Friday, November 11th, 2011 at 7:28 PM and is filed under Birding. You can follow any responses to this entry through the Atom feed. You can skip to the end and make a comment. Pinging is currently not allowed.