www.thefilemyrs.com > Birding > Texas Hill Country 2004 > Trip Report

We conceived this adventure as a quick run to the Texas Hill Country to see Golden-cheeked Warbler and Black-capped Vireo. Somewhere along the line it became more than that.

Sunday April 25, 2004
Karl Lukens, Art McMorris, and Frank Windfelder flew into Austin, Texas around 1:40 pm. They picked up their luggage and waited for Bert Filemyr to arrive. Bert was already in Austin with his wife Leslie visiting their daughter Lisa. At 2:30, the three Filemyrs arrived at the airport and met Karl, Art and Frank. After Bert took care of the rental vehicle, Les prepared to fly back to Philadelphia, Lisa returned to her house and the four birders pilled in the rental SUV. Leaving the airport we saw the first of the hundreds of Scissor-tailed Flycatchers that we would encounter.

The first stop was the nearby Hornsby Bend Bird Observatory. Birders are allowed to view the impoundments and walk the wooded areas along the Colorado River at this waste water management facility. This was to be our primary shorebird stop and we quickly spotted 13 species of shorebirds plus several species of ducks. A flyby Franklin’s Gull was to be the only individual of that species we saw on the trip. A walk down a dirt access road paralleled a field with innumerable singing Dickcissels and provided a quick view of a distant Vermillion Flycatcher. We spent three hours on the property and could have spent several more but we had to move on. We had reservations at the Hampton Inn in Kerrville and that was over two hours away.

Right by the Hampton Inn is a Luby’s Restaurant and we arrived 15 minutes before their 8:30 closing time. By 9:00, we were in our motel rooms and relaxing. For Karl, Art and Frank who had started the day in Philadelphia, it was the end of a long day.

Monday April 26, 2004
By 6:10 in the morning breakfast was finished, the SUV was loaded, and we were on our way. This day we had two goals: Golden-cheeked Warbler and Black-capped Vireo. We had other things to do if we saw these birds with time left in the day but we did not want to look ahead. We were prepared to spend two days in the Hill Country seeking these birds if necessary. Preparing for this trip, Bert had made contact with a local birder, Tony Gallucci, who generously offered to help us out. No matter how profuse our praise is of this person, the praise is falls short of what he meant to our trip. He was SUPER.

By prior arrangement, we met Tony in the parking lot of the TJ Moore store in Ingram at 6:25. We had arranged to meet at 6:30 and he was early and so were we. This was a good sign. After a brief period of getting to know each other, it was time to go see some birds. We headed into the hill country about 25 miles from Ingram. Our first stop was at a wildlife study area that is part of Kerr Wildlife Management Area. Immediately upon exiting the SUV, Bert spotted our target warbler in the top of a tree. As soon as he called for people to get on the bird, the bird reacted as expected – it flew. At his point, we figured it would be easy to find another one but that was not going to be the case. We worked the area for another hour with no luck. The overcast sky seemed to keep them from singing as expected. Tony suggested we move over to another spot and look for the vireo and then comeback when things brightened up. A brief drive took us to another habitat and we started to look for the vireo. Almost immediately, we heard several vireo individuals singing and within 10 minutes we had beautiful views of this bird. One target down and one target to go.

We drove back to the warbler spot and again almost immediately upon exiting the SUV one of the warblers was spotted at the top of the tree. Tony, Bert, Karl and Art gone on the bird but before Frank got on it, the bird flew. After another half hour of searching and listening, Tony said that we should try a different area. He knew a location about 30 minutes away that provided a view over the canopy and we would be able to scan a larger area. On the way to this location, we stooped and viewed a Zone-tailed Hawk on nest. At the overlook area we did some pishing and a male Golden-cheeked Warbler came in and gave us views that are burned in our minds. Great views of a great bird! It was now 10:30 and it was time to say goodbye to Tony. Again, we cannot adequately express our debt to him. He loves the Hill Country and shared his love with us.

Now the pressure was off and it was time to play. We piled in the SUV and headed to the Rio Grande Valley. By 3:15 pm we had driven through Laredo (Yes, the “Streets of Laredo” was sung) and we arrived at the town of Zapata. Here we sought the White-collared Seedeater. This bird is common south of the border but only a few individuals are findable north of the Rio Grande. The traditional spot is behind the pond next to the Zapata Library. The access has become much more over grown since Bert and Karl were there in 1999. It took about an hour of listening and scanning but we did end up with great views of the bird. We were done there at 4:15 and we headed to Bentsen - Rio Grande State Park. Dinner was a grab and go at Popeye’s Chicken. Frank was impressed by the food there.

At 7:15, we pulled into Bentsen State Park. The traditional camping area called the “trailer loop” has been closed to camping and we were concerned that birding would be affected. While the campers have been displaced, the area is as good or better than it evr was for birding. There are several active feeding locations being maintained and there were plenty of birds around even though the day was ending. Our target bird here was an Elf Owl that leaves a nest hole at dusk at night. As the sun went down, we joined about 15 other birders standing, staring in silence at a hole in a tree. Nighthawks flew overhead and an Eastern Screech Owl called nearby. This is daily ritual by an ever-changing cast of birders. The mosquitoes have caught on to this pattern and take full advantage of the situation. At 8:15, the owl stuck his head out and looked around for about 30 seconds. Then he flew into a nearby tree. A birder with a flashlight located him and another Elf Owl sitting on a branch deep in foliage. It was a memorable moment.

A drive around Bentsen after dark yielded numerous Common Pauaques sitting in the road. At 8:45 we were on our way to a Best Western in Brownsville. We were checked in and settled by 10:00 pm.

Tuesday April 27, 2004
After the two previous long tiring days we slept in this morning. We at breakfast at the late hour of 6:45 am and were on the road by 7:05 am. Our first stop was the Sabal Palm Audubon Sanctuary. There were two birds reported there that we wanted to see, a Gray-crowned Yellowthroat and a Short-tailed Hawk on a distant nest. Walking muddy trails, we went to the place where the nest was viewable. The nest was barely viewable but there was no obvious bird. While checking out the situation we ran into Debi Shearwater and had a nice chat. She was in town for the ABA Regional Conference and was doing some land birding. Leaving the hawk nest viewing location we tried for the yellowthroat. Luckly this location was only 70 yards away. The bird had been being seen along a 50 yard stretch of trail. About 25 birders were searching for the bird so we had plenty of eyes to cover the territory. Movement was spotted and everyone moved to the trail location closest to the movement. The bird popped up and identification was confirmed. The bird continued to play hide and seek for the next twenty minutes. Then the call was heard – “The Short-tailed Hawk has left the nest”. Well, it had left the nest and but it had flown off. A few birders had seen it but most people were watching the yellowthroat. About 30 minutes the hawk reappeared almost directly overhead. It put on a great show!

We checked the feeders on the way out and saw a Buff-bellied Hummingbird. By 11:00 we had left Sabel Palm and the Brownsville area. Our destination was Santa Ana NWR and Anzalduas County Park. A quick lunch and we were at Santa Ana by 12:15 pm. The two target birds were Clay-colored Robin and Tropical Parula. Both birds were hanging out in the same location and we quickly got great views. Then we heard that a Hook-billed Kite was just seen from the dike by the entrance. We rushed there but the bird was gone. While scanning the skies we found Mississippi Kites and Broad-winged Hawks migrating north. Rather than spend hours waiting for a possible return of the kite we decided to head to Anzalduas County Park for Gray Hawks. We got there and in 20 minutes we found two Gray Hawks circling over head. Walking the open areas under the trees we found another Clay-colored Robin. We then returned to Santa Ana and walked a couple of the trails to do some casual birding. One last stop at the dike and we were out of there by 6:15 pm. A relaxing stop for dinner at a mexican resturant and we headed north to the Best Western in Kingsville. We were checked in and settled at 9:45 pm.

Wednesday April 29, 2004
Our targeted birding was done and it was time to head for the airport. We left Kingsville at 6:45 am and headed to Austin. We stopped several times on the way north and picked up a couple of trip birds. We made “way good time” and arrived early in the Austin area. Taking advantage of the time we headed for Hornsby Bend. We started the trip there and it was fitting to end the trip there. The last two birds added to the list were Baird’s Sandpiper and Song Sparrow. As we packed our bins for the trip home a Great-crested Flycatcher called from the trees. It was hard to pull ourselves away.

Dropped off the car at 12 noon and caught the 1:30 flight out of Austin. An uneventful trip home.

It is hard to convey in a few paragraphs the true feeling of a trip. This was a trip of intensive birding while having lots of laughs and fun. There were plenty of great birds to be seen on this trip and we managed to see them. Now there is the matter of the Colima Warbler, Gray Vireo, Montezuma Quail...............