Texas Birding Trip

Texas Birding Trip - 2006

This page contains information and photos from the second out-of-state birding trip for the "Senior Birding Buddies". The trip took place April 22-29, 2006 in Concan, Texas and the Lower Rio Grande Valley. Our itinerary:

April 22 - Fly from St. Louis into Houston, then to San Antonio and bird/drive to Concan, bird at Concan- Stay overnight at Neal's Lodges;

April 23 - Bird all day at Concan- drive to Laredo in evening, stay overnight in Loredo;

April 24 - Bird at Zapata, San Ygnacio, Falcon State Park and Falcon Dam - stay overnight in Rio Grande City;

April 25 - Bird at Chapeno, Bentsen State Park, Anzalduas County Park, and McAllen Sewer Pond (Yech!) - stay overnight in McAllen;

April 26 - Bird at Santa Ana NWR, Valley Nature Center, Frontera Audubon Society Weslaco Thicket, and Estero Llano Grande Lake - stay overnight in Brownsville ;

April 27 - Bird at Port Isabel/Road to South Padre Island, South Padre Island, Sabal Palm Audubon Center, Brownsville - Utah Avenue (Tamaulipas Crow and nest), and Boca Chica Tract - stay overnight in Brownsville;

April 28 - Bird at Laguna Atascosa NWR and Harlingen City Lake - stay overnight in Harlingen;

April 29 - Bird at South Padre Island in the morning, leave for flight back to St. Louis.

"Senior Birders" at Neal's Lodge in Concan, TX- from Left to Right:

Dave Pierce, Elliot Glassman, "Yours Truly".

Click Here to see favorite photos from this trip.

Birds seen (202 different Species over the 8 day period, including 45 North American life birds for me):

4/22/06	4/24/06	4/26/06
Houston	San Ygnacio	Estero Llano Grande Lake
European Starling	White-tailed Kite	Little Blue Heron
Rock Pigeon	Red-billed Pigeon	American Avocet
Common Grackle	Green Jay	Snowy Egret
Mourning Dove	Couch's Kingbird	Northern Shoveler
Great-tailed Grackle	Black-crowned Night Heron	Black Skimmer
San Antonio -- to Concan	Great Egret	Western Sandpiper
Eastern Meadowlark	Ladder-backed Woodpecker	Roseate Spoonbill
House Sparrow	Bronzed Cowbird	White Pelican
Scissors-tailed Flycatcher	Altimira Oriole (on the nest)	Long-billed Dowitcher
House Finch	Great Kiskadee	Pectoral Sandpiper
Cliff Swallow	Ringed Kingfisher	Least Sandpiper
Barn Swallow	Mississippi Kite	White-rumped Sandpiper
Northern Mockingbird	Blue Grosbeak	4/27/06
Western Kingbird	Chihuahuan Raven	Port Isabel/Road to South Padre Island
Turkey Vulture	White-tipped Dove	Willet
White-winged Dove	Blue-gray Gnatcatcher	Sanderling
Loggerhead Shrike	Green Heron	Black-bellied Plover
Eastern Bluebird	Eurasian Collared-Dove	Wilson's Plover
Red-winged Blackbird	Harris's Hawk	Ruddy Turnstone
American Crow	White-tailed Hawk	Least Tern
Say's Phoebe	Falcon State Park	Caspian Tern
Neal's Lodge - Concan	Verdin	American Oystercatcher
Black Phoebe	Cactus Wren	Herring Gull
Black-chinned Hummingbird	Bullock's Oriole	Reddish Egret
Northern Cardinal	Curve-billed Thrasher	Forester's Tern
Common Ground Dove	Falcon Dam	Gull-billed Tern
Purple Martin	Osprey	Brown Pelican
Black-crested Titmouse	Pied-billed Grebe	Ring-billed Gull
Eastern Phoebe	Laughing Gull	South Padre Island
Chipping Sparrow	Neotropic Cormorant	Snowy Plover
Carolina Wren	Rio Grande City	Baltimore Oriole
Golden-fronted Woodpecker	Lesser Nighthawk	Redhead
Summer Tanager	4/25/06	Marsh Wren
Lesser Goldfinch	Chapeno	Royal Tern
Ruby-throated Hummingbird	Audubon's Oriole	Sandwich Tern
Yellow-breasted Chat (heard - later seen at Santa Ana during the trip)	Brown Jay	Double-crested Cormorant
4/23/06	Great Blue Heron	Sora
Neal's Lodge - Concan	Yellow-headed Blackbird	Gray Catbird
Olive Sparrow	Bentsen State Park	Yellow Warbler
Long-billed Thrasher	Killdeer	Whimbrel
Spotted Towhee	Plain Chachalaca	Sabal Palm Audubon Center
Rufous-crowned Sparrow	Anhinga	Spotted Sandpiper
Bushtit (on the nest)	Blue-winged Teal	Eastern Kingbird
Black-capped Vireo (heard)	Pyrrhuloxia	Gray-crowned Yellowthroat
Hooded Oriole	Anzalduas County Park	Tennessee Warbler
White-eyed Vireo	Northern Rough-winged Swallow	Brownsville - Utah Avenue
White-throated Sparrow	Gray Hawk	Tamaulipas Crow (and nest)
Nashville Warbler	Clay-colored Robin	Boca Chica Tract
Ruby-crowned Kinglet	Least Grebe	Horned Lark
Blue-headed Vireo	American Coot	Dunlin
Clay-colored Sparrow	McAllen Sewer Pond	Piping Plover
Lincoln's Sparrow	Common Tern	Bridled Tern
Carolina Chickadee	Black-necked Stilt	4/28/06
Yellow-throated Warbler	Baird's Sandpiper	Laguna Atascosa NWR
Lark Sparrow	Dickcissel	Northern Bobwhite
Indigo Bunting	4/26/06	Wood Thrush
Red-eyed Vireo	Santa Ana NWR	White Ibis
Pine Siskin	Groove-billed Ani	Savannah Sparrow
Black Vulture	Northern Parula	Lesser Scaup
Vermillion Flycatcher	White-faced Ibis	Mallard
Wilson's Warbler	Common Yellowthroat	Ring-necked Duck
Cooper's Hawk	Black-bellied Whistling Duck	Harlingen City Lake
Black-throated Green Warbler	Bank Swallow	Muscovy Duck
Yellow-rumped Warbler	Broad-winged Hawk	4/29/06
American Goldfinch	Mottled Duck	South Padre Island
Magnolia Warbler	Gadwall	Clapper Rail
White-crowned Sparrow	Cinnamon Teal	Least Flycatcher
Ash-throated Flycatcher	Tri-colored Heron	Orchard Oriole
Bewick's Wren	Common Moorhen
Song Sparrow (heard)	Cattle Egret
Eastern Screech Owl	Greater Yellowlegs
Inca Dove	Purple Gallinule
Greater Roadrunner	Least Bittern
Canyon Towhee	Green Kingfisher
Painted Bunting	Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Crested Caracara	Buff-bellied Hummingbird
Chimney Swift	Valley Nature Center
Common Raven	Golden-winged Warbler
Cave Swallow	Yellow-crowned Night Heron
Red-tailed Hawk	Frontera Audubon Society Weslaco Thicket
	Black & White Warbler

Favorite Bird Photos From this Trip (place pointer over Thumbnail for caption - click on any photo thumbnail to view full size):