Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival: Saturday

Did you catch the five previous posts? If not, go here, here, here, here and here.

Saturday -- our last day together at Harlingen's annual birding festival -- brought a definite change in the weather: much cooler, brisk, even chilly. My roommates, Catherine and Sharon, teased me for my Southern Californian intolerance for cooler temperatures, so I wore layers before we made another pilgrimage to Alicia's Mexican Restaurant. Behold, my chilaquiles!

Hungry?

Then we set off east for Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge -- and the promise of Green Jays. I have no shame in declaring a fondness for these colorful birds that keep me riveted to the refuge's feeding station.


See the small sign about paying the visitor fee? You can forego that fee if you show a Duck Stamp to the ranger inside the visitor center. That $15 stamp allows for free access to NWRs across the United States between July 1 and June 30 -- quite the deal... and an excellent way to fund habitat conservation for waterfowl and other species.

As I sat on the bench facing the feeding stations and the water feature...


Catherine and Sharon aimed their optics at the birds and clicked away. The Great-tailed Grackles did a superb job of shooing the jays from the feeders, much to my chagrin. As much as grackles amuse me, I wanted to focus on the Chara Verde, thankyouverymuch.

After a stint at the feeding station and a stroll around the grounds, we opted to drive around the refuge and then take the Bayside Drive, which begins with a very cool sign:


Endangered and thought to be down to 50 animals, ocelots desperately rely on the habitat at and around Laguna Atascosa. During the festival, some very lucky birders saw an ocelot at the refuge, and the rangers wisely restricted access to the area for the small cat's protection. If the ocelots' status piques your interest, consider attending the Ocelot Conservation Festival in May 2011 or adopting an ocelot.

As we slowly drove the asphalt, we occasionally stopped to peek more closely at the birds. Sometimes optics sufficed for the closer look, and other times, a stretch of the legs yielded better views.


Some birds posed next to the car, such as this Common Yellowthroat photographed by Catherine.

Courtesy of Birdspot

The other species I enjoyed seeing include Pied-billed Grebe, Northern Harrier, Osprey and Crested Caracara -- a good number of 'em. Sharon digiscoped one atop a palm as it preened.

Courtesy of Birdchick.com

Harris' Hawks, spied along the drive west to Harlingen, served as my final species during this visit to the Rio Grande Valley. The trip ended too soon for my taste, so I left on Sunday still with an appetite for more birds, birders and Alicia's food. My next visit can't come too soon!

Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival: Friday

Did you catch the four previous posts? If not, go here, here, here and here.

Friday's birding began a bit earlier. Catherine departed before dawn for a shorebird field trip with WildBird contributors Kevin Karlson (of "The Shorebird Guide" with Michael O'Brien and Richard Crossley) and Jessie Barry of The Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Our recently arrived roommate, Sharon -- also known as Birdchick -- wanted to see Ruddy Ground-Dove and Common Pauraque at Estero Llano Grande State Park, so that's where she and I went. Even though I'd been to the park the day before, I wasn't going to complain about another visit -- plus, Sharon had an experiment in mind.

The experiment involved the Internet and our friend in Michigan who'd planned to attend the festival but was thwarted. Mark Robinson, aka Blobbybirdman, sadly remained in Michigan while we three attended the festival and provided updates of our adventures.

Re the experiment: Estero offers free wireless Internet access near its visitor center (thank you very much!). Combine that with a laptop, a webcam and a video chat website -- and you have birding by Skype, or Skyrding or birping or something.

At the visitor center, Sharon connected online with Mark -- who's not birded yet in south Texas -- and started sharing the sights from the visitor center's observation deck next to Ibis Pond...


and the Texas Wildscapes demonstration site...


and the feeding station with a water drip tucked behind the visitor center. With Sharon's laptop on the ground, seed sprinkled in front of the computer and water dripping into the rock feature, Mark awaited the appearance of Plain Chachalaca, Inca Dove, anything that would thrill a Brit who hasn't set foot in the valley.


I couldn't help but chortle when my ears caught the sound of Mark pishing via the webcam. Actually, after a few pishing sessions, some Orange-crowned Warblers and doves ventured closer to the computer, but they didn't come into full view.

Mark didn't receive a clear view of any species, but we enjoyed showing him around and introducing him to other birders, such as field trip leader Michael O'Brien. I like the idea of more visitor centers offering wireless Internet access for more virtual birding.

Then Sharon and I set off for Common Pauraque near Alligator Lake. Just past Grebe Marsh, though, we encountered a soft-shelled turtle in the middle of the road. Sharon picked it up...


and let me get a good look before setting it next to the marsh's waterline. When we returned later, it was gone, so we crossed our fingers and hoped for the best.

I led Sharon to the spot where we saw the pauraque on Thursday, and after we marvelled at the bird, Sharon spotted another camouflage artist next to a tree.


Then she spied another hidden among some branches -- a hat trick of nightjars! (Can you pick it out at the top of the greenery?)


You can read Sharon's account and enjoy her photographs here. As Sharon worked on taking those pictures, we had the pleasure of pointing out the three birds to another birder -- and sharing the birds always makes birding more fun.

Then our stomachs said lunchtime had arrived, so we returned to Harlingen to pay homage to Alicia's Mexican Restaurant on North Commerce Street. I leave you with a photo of "Big Quesadilla."

Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival: Thursday

Did you catch the three previous posts? If not, go here, here and here.

Thursday got off to a leisurely start. My roommate and I hadn't signed up for field trips on this day, so we took our time before driving to Estero Llano Grande State Park in Weslaco. We'd heard at Wednesday night's reception about the rarity identified by Jon Dunn -- a Ruddy Ground-Dove -- so the possibility of seeing that bird determined our destination.


When we arrived at the park, we didn't have to wait long before learning the ground-dove's location: to the left of a hanging platform feeder in sight of the visitor center's deck. Of course, we weren't the only birders aiming our binoculars at the Mexican visitor, news of its appearance having been spread far and wide via Texbirds, North American Rare Bird Alert, Facebook, Twitter and blogs with photos.

Turning away from the star performer, we began looking elsewhere and then wandering deeper into the park. This visit to the Rio Grande Valley marked my fifth time to the festival and maybe my 12th to the region, counting WildBird's Birder of the Year trips as well as the Great Texas Birding Classic in which WildBird sponsors a team each year. The great weather -- cool but not cold, breezy but not windy, almost lacking in flying biting insects -- added to a delightful morning.






Along the trail next to Grebe Marsh, we encountered Jim and Cindy Beckman again with friends. They invited us to follow them and see Common Pauraque. We gladly accepted since the species appears nowhere else in the United States.

That species stands out fondly in my memories of a Birder of the Year trip with 17-year-old Leigh Johnson Lindstrom and her mom. We met with Sheridan Coffey and Martin Reid to search for pauraque near our lodging, Alamo Inn. Leigh's mom, a nonbirder, had not planned to bird with us every day, but she opted to join us on this nighttime scavenger hunt -- and she came back bug-bitten but intrigued enough to go birding each day. The search for that species sparked a better understanding of birding and added to Leigh's relationship with her mom, which still makes me smile.

Back at Estero, the trail adjacent to Alligator Lake yielded a cryptically colored nightjar in close proximity to the dirt path. We felt ecstatic to enjoy such great looks at the cleverly camouflaged bird.


My friend Catherine -- also known as Birdspot -- set to creating photos while I enjoyed peering at the bird's incredible plumage. Mother Nature never fails to amaze me, particularly when we got to see the flashy green gorget of a male Buff-bellied Hummingbird as he visited a sugarwater feeder just a foot from us at the visitor center.

Next on our itinerary: Frontera Audubon, also in Weslaco. A hop, skip and jump away from Estero, Frontera offers a more intimate setting to wander trails and watch feeders.


Catherine and I saw few birds along the trails, and a flycatcherlike sprite caused some I.D. questions. When the birding's slow, my point-and-shoot camera focuses on other bits of nature.






We eventually found ourselves at the feeding station and settled into two of the many chairs. There, we enjoyed the Plain Chachalacas, Inca Doves, White-tipped Dove, Black-crested Titmouse and Blue-headed Vireo.


I also enjoyed seeing Father Tom Pincelli again. Four years ago, I had the pleasure of serving as part-time driver for the Swarovski Roadside Hawks in the Great Texas Birding Classic, the team consisting of John Arvin, Nick Block, Father Tom and Clay Taylor. It was a distinct treat to see and watch those knowledgeable birders in action as they tried to I.D. the most species in 24 hours in the competition's lower coast.


The agenda then turned to lunch, followed by ice cream and a visit to the municipal auditorium to roam Birder's Bazaar. For many years, The Raptor Project has brought various birds of prey to the festival, and Catherine delighted in posing with a Crested Caracara while a Burrowing Owl scowled nearby.

Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival: Wednesday

Did you catch the two previous posts about the festival? If not, go here and here.

With much anticipation, I boarded a 12:30 a.m. flight from Los Angeles International Airport to Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston. This journey to southern Texas marked my fifth year as an attendee at Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival, and I knew that incredible birds, wonderful people and tasty vittles awaited me in Harlingen and other nearby cities.

After landing in Houston, I followed the earlier advice of online friends and found Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen in Terminal E. The vanilla latte tasted delicious.


While walking toward the boarding area for the 9:30 a.m. flight to Harlingen, I spied two familiar faces: Jim and Cindy Beckman. We'd traveled to Costa Rica after Cindy received the 2007 Birder of the Year award from WildBird's readers. It felt great to catch up with them.

Before walking through the boarding gate, I heard "Hoooop. Hoooop" very quietly, and there was Jen Brumfield, an enthusiastic character with incredible skills. What a treat to see her before finding our seats on the commuter plane -- which happened to contain even more birders on their way to the festival.


While Jen and Julian Hough immediately set off to find Sprague's Pipits, I had other quarry in mind: food, specifically from Alicia's Mexican Restaurant on North Commerce Street in Harlingen. That authentic food proved to be perfect fuel for a red-eyed sleep-deprived traveler. If you crave filling and inexpensive meals for breakfast and lunch, keep that spot in mind.


Feeling more functional, I drove a couple blocks and then walked into Harlingen's municipal auditorium on Fair Park Boulevard, also known as festival headquarters. Vendors were beginning to arrive and set up their booths within the Birders Bazaar area, and the entire facility seemed abuzz with activity. It felt wonderful to see familiar faces and then buy a pink festival hat (having left mine at home).

The sunshine lured me across the street to the park, where I found a shady spot to listen to and watch birds. The sliced half of an orange on a signpost lured a Northern Mockingbird and a Golden-fronted Woodpecker into sight, but the woodpecker proved to be very skittish.

Great-tailed Grackles seemed to be everywhere, and that suited me just fine. Their odd calls amuse me, and when they gather to roost in the evenings -- seemingly coating entire trees and telephone lines -- they amuse me even more. Listen to the recording of their "typical voice" at the link above; aren't they wild?

That evening, a friend and I joined the festival's opening reception at the Harlingen Arts & Heritage Museum. Local culinary students provided a smorgasbord of appetizers and beverages for the festival attendees, speakers and field trip leaders.

One of the great pleasures of birding festivals is the opportunity to gab with so many wonderful people who live around the country. I had so much fun catching up with friends and colleagues that I forgot to play paparazzi and don't have any photos to share now. The reception ended too soon, and I looked forward to revelling in the festival's activities for three more days.

More news of Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival

While birders who cannot attend bird events -- like the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival on Nov. 10-14 -- can keep track of the field trips, presentations and other activities via newspapers' websites, they have other online options, too. Many birders attending festivals -- and even the festivals themselves -- now use Twitter, Facebook and blogs to relay information, providing another way for those at home to follow along.

Many festival attendees with Twitter accounts used a hashtag to mark their festival-related 140-character updates during the RGV festival. #RGVBF yields a stream of attendees' tweets and retweets, revealing various birders including Chip Clouse, Catherine Hamilton, Laura Kammermeier (shown right), Tom Kuenzli, Justine Riegel, Sharon Stiteler and me. Other festival attendees posted tweets but opted not to use the hashtag, such as Steve Ingraham and Clay Taylor.

The more widespread use of smartphones makes it easy for birders to use Twitter and other websites while in the field, sharing their whereabouts and sightings, and folks at home as well as other festival attendees can keep tabs and interact in real time. Plus, with many newer smartphones featuring better digital cameras, birders can snap photos -- even through their spotting scopes -- and upload them to Twitter, Facebook and other sites.

If you're Facebook friends with birders attending a festival, you might receive a very good glimpse of the various events. Last week's Facebook roster of RGVBF updaters entails two hands (according to my count), and the group offered a nice selection of photographs and words to their friends.

Lots of birders who tweet and use Facebook also blog. Based on personal experience, I admire folks who create good blog posts during a festival; we're so often busy enjoying the birds and people that we reserve little time to sit at a laptop and craft a coherent post with words and photos. Photo-heavy posts, like this one from Birdchick and this one from Dave Dolan, provide a nice option.

Short-and-sweet posts are the norm, as Laura Kammermeier demonstrates while pointing out a post by Antshrike with more details. Some of us work on our blogs after the festivities cease, as Birdspot did, drawing on her previous tweets. If you know of other bloggers who posted festival entries, kindly let me know.

News of Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival

The Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival took place last week, Nov. 10-14. I was fortunate enough to arrive in Harlingen on Wednesday morning and remain until Sunday morning. Having missed the 2009 festival, it felt especially delightful to return to the valley.

Even when birders can't attend birding events and festivals, we can keep tabs of the goings-on and the bird sightings. It seems as if more newspapers recognize the potential human-interest stories -- plus it doesn't hurt them to highlight the influx of out-of-town visitors who bring their disposable income to the festivals' locations.


View Larger Map

During this year's Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival, the two local newspapers -- The Brownsville Herald and Valley Morning Star -- shared coverage of the event's field trips and other attractions. The first article, Birders see 151 species in eight hours, focused on the friendly-competitive nature of birding when four teams fanned out and tried to identify the most species. Among the folks highlighted in the article are Michael O'Brien and Louise Zemaitis of West Cape May, N.J. -- known by many as birding tour leaders, artists and authors.

O’Brien, of Cape May, N.J., and his wife, Louise Zemaitis, led one of the teams on Wednesday.

Zemaitis walked ahead or behind the group to spot for desirable birds and then O’Brien would bring the other seven birders to see what she had found.

O’Brien listened carefully to the bird calls before pointing out a species that might be new to the visitors.

“That kingbird, by the way, just called and gave its twittering call, which is a really diagnostic way to tell them apart,” he said.

Another thought about keeping tabs on online coverage of birding events: We might counter stereotypes and other negative comments. Did you see the comment at the end of the article? "They forgot two birds. They gray tufted geezer and the blue haired bitty." We can kindly put the kibosh on those comments if we monitor newspapers' websites.

The next day's article, Dream comes true for birding festival participant, highlighted a common reason for attending a festival: the probability of seeing a regional specialty.

For about 20 years, Patricia Wing has been on the trail of the green jay.

“Two of the things I want to do in my life is go to Australia and see a green jay,” Wing, a retired editor who lives near Santa Fe, N.M., said Thursday morning. “Some people want to have a convertible. I want to see a green jay.”

At the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival, Wing’s dream came true.

Green Jay courtesy of Birdchick.com

Friday's article, Birders see raptor action, highlighted one of the specialized field trips, led by author and researcher Bill Clark. If you are a raptor aficionado, you likely know about his contributions to the Peterson field guide about North American hawks and a photographic guide of the same species.

Swooping, circling raptor action is what birders signed up to see with Bill Clark’s “Valley Raptors Field Trip.” And that’s what they got.

A busload of participants from the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival on Friday completed a big circle through Willacy County and eastern Cameron County, taking advantage of dozens of chances to observe and photograph many species of raptors, including American kestrels, aplomado falcons and Cooper’s hawks.

Bonus sightings included sandhill cranes and longhorn cattle.

Friday's coverage, Birding 101 introduces newbies to a popular hobby, focused on a reporter's introduction to this pastime/sport/lifestyle. I like the article's last graf.

The words “Parrots! Parrots!” were the first exclamation I heard just before 8 a.m. Saturday as a woman pointed excitedly to a group of nearby palm trees.

The words left no doubt in my mind as to what the focus of the day would be, as I sat waiting to play my part in the Birding 101 Field Trip of the 17th annual Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival.

In the van outside Municipal Auditorium in Harlingen, this true blue birding newbie did not know what adventures awaited her in the world of bird watching, save the silly exaggerations of it she had seen in pop culture.

But, those exaggerations were challenged as a group of about 20 or so people of different ages, 20s through 80s at least, set off to explore the Rio Hondo area and the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge.

If you worry that birding festivals offer a very narrow agenda of only birds-birds-birds, then you needn't feel concerned about this particular event. It touches on other wildlife, too, as Saturday's article, Butterfly viewing joins RGV Birding Festival tradition, points out.

“Green-backed ruby-eye! Oh, that’s a good one!” exclaimed Derek Muschalek as he ran towards a row of low-lying bushes at Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park near Mission on a cool and grey Saturday afternoon.

Muschalek, a naturalist who has served as a birding guide for 13 years, explained how important such a sighting was. “In the fall, to find Mexicans (butterflies) like this, it’s one of the things we hope to see,” he said.

The 1-inch long insect with mottled brown wings and large ruddy red eyes is only spotted about three times a year in the United States, and then only in the Rio Grande Valley. It’s this chance to see rare species that brings the guide to the Valley from Yorktown, Texas, during the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival every year.

Green-backed Ruby-eye courtesy of NABA/B. Bouton & K. Davis

Texas treasures 7

One last reminisce about the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival: The second day that I ventured out with Sharon, we drove west to Estero Llano Grande State Park. Sharon was on a mission for a rarity, with me as navigator.

The birds appears on Sharon's post, while I was transfixed with the dragonfly that she rescued from the pond. We're walking along a wooden boardwalk, with the nature center across the way...


when Sharon uses her scope tripod to move an overturned dragonfly from the water. Lookit the beautiful details and colors of this creature. (As always, click on an image to see a larger version.) Amazing!

Texas treasures 6

During the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival earlier this month, I got to bird with Sharon on two days. The first day, Friday, I joined her and Clay on an excursion to South Padre Island's convention center. Previous experience told me that Clay would insist on Whataburger taquitos for breakfast, and he didn't change his habit. Yum.


With Sharon behind the minivan's wheel, we crossed the causeway and took a right toward the jetty. The water practically teemed with dolphins -- an incredible spectacle. But nothing with wings went unnoticed, including the bee that landed on Sharon's spotting scope.


At the convention center, with a wall covered by Wyland mural...


we encountered Orange-crowned Warblers and a couple Black-throated Green Warblers. Lovely! Then they decided to bathe in the little puddle.



If you visit the convention center, give yourself time to really "set a while" near that watery spot. I doubt you'll regret it.

Texas treasures 5

While traveling to and from south Texas for the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival, I spent a fair amount of time in airports and on planes -- which doesn't bother me. Those scenarios let me catch up on reading, such as Luke Dempsey's book "A Supremely Bad Idea."

Dempsey's tales about "three mad birders and their quest to see it all" made me laugh and nod my head in recognition. It's a good read.

As a book editor, Dempsey knows how to string words together well. This bit caught my attention:

I knew very little about Florida. To me it was merely a gun-shaped slice of Africa that some time before I was born floated across the Atlantic and snuggled below Georgia like a cat under a bed.

Love it.

I was intrigued to read more of the story behind a photo that won an award (first place in the digiscoping category) in WildBird's 2007 photo contest, and the image appears in the book.

Out at sea, an osprey circled and suddenly plunged, plucking from the surf a good-sized fish, and we watched as it heavily flew back to land. Just when we thought the bird would disappear, it suddenly curved back and landed on one of the metal grills not a hundred feet from us. The fish still squirmed in the grip of the bird's talons, until the fish slowed its thrashing enough to start being eaten. By this point, we had our scoped trained on the spectacle and marveled at the amazing scenes the lens offered up. Donna took lots of photographs as the fish's mass decreased and the bird's increased. One of these would subsequently win first prize in a photo competition in WildBird magazine -- not to be confused with the less reputable British publication of the same name.

Texas treasures 4

During the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival, birders can bid on items in a silent auction. The tempting selection can include optics, stays at bed & breakfasts, guided outings and various books.

This year's silent auction, held Nov. 5-8, offered a collection of books -- autographed by the authors -- from Houghton Mifflin. Part of the collection's appeal stemmed from the predominant author, Kenn Kaufman, a prolific author who also contributes to WildBird's Advisory Board.

After making the winning bid, I came home with a heavy suitcase full of titles that'll go to the local Audubon chapter. I'm pleased to provide the various field guides, including the new fifth edition of the Peterson guide.

Texas treasures 3

WildBird has contributed to the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival as a sponsor for a handful of years. In recognition of their financial support, sponsors receive goody bags that typically contain the poster and T-shirt featuring special artwork and other items that celebrate Harlingen and Texas.

This year's artwork showcases the talents of Shawneen Finnegan, who lives in Portland, Ore. She contributes her birding skills and artistic talents to various projects, and she's on the WildBird Advisory Board.

For this year's festival, the goody bag included an item right up my alley. Any suggestions for his name?

In the news: Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival

I like to see how well local media outlets cover birding events. From my perspective, newspapers and television stations should send reporters to events that draw hundreds of visitors -- and dollars -- to their communities. Ecotourism can infuse an economy like that of south Texas.

"The Brownsville Herald" and "Valley Morning Star" covered the five-day Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival with a couple articles: November 6 and November 9. It would've been good to find more coverage in their archives.

Texas treasures 2

Thursday's Birds & Beers at the Lone Star gave me the chance to meet more bird bloggers. BirdChick and Born Again Bird Watcher are well known to me, but The Flying Mullet, Round Robin, The Birder's Library and Birdspot stood out as fresh faces. You'll find some of their festival posts at these links; more might appear later.

BirdChick: Thursday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday
Birdspot: Friday, Saturday
Born Again Bird Watcher: Thursday, Thursday, Saturday
Round Robin: Monday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday
The Flying Mullet: Tuesday, Wednesday

Friday afternoon provided another chance to put faces to names and to gab about blogging. In addition to Thursday's group, we enjoyed the company of 10,000 Birds, Birdwatch Radio, Blue Lizard Birding, Eagle Optics and Jeffrey A. Gordon. Some of their festival posts appear at these links.

10,000 Birds: Tuesday, Wednesday
Eagle Optics: Thursday
Jeffrey A. Gordon: Friday

Texas treasures

Leaving Harlingen at the end of the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival always feels bittersweet. Although I enjoy returning to my SoCal abode, I want to stay in south Texas, explore more sites, watch more birds, eat more tasty food and spend more time laughing with fabulous birders.

This year, I came home with lots of goodies -- including the motivation to add Twitter to the blog after attending the birding blogger shindig on Friday afternoon. The Twitter updates appear in the right-hand sidebar and offers snippity updates about WildBird. I'm looking forward to giving readers a glimpse of the glamorous[/sarcasm] life of a magazine editor!

Bird tidings!

The hummingbirds chittered and buzzed in my back yard this morning as I got ready to come to the office. Black Phoebes chipped and dove from the telephone wires during my little walk from the patio door to the garage. Those sounds and sights make me smile as I get ready for a busy day in front of computers.

Today through Wednesday night, I'm on deadline for the January/February 2009 issue. Readers will find new sections and writers in the first issue of the new year. (Yes, the timing throws me off, too.)

Thursday morning, I get to fly to Harlingen, Texas, for the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival. It'll be my fourth year to enjoy the local birds, birders and cuisine. (Yes, the authentic Mexican food is a definite draw.) Posts from previous festivals appear in the November 2005, 2006 and 2007 archives.

At this year's festival, for the first time, birding bloggers will convene on Friday and gab about online publishing. Birdchick has the details. I'm looking forward to putting handshakes to handles.

Happy Monday!

Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival: In the news

The local newspapers in south Texas provided fairly consistent coverage of the 14th annual Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival. If you didn't join the festivities, then you can peek at them here. (Too bad the reporters and copy editors didn't check a field guide for the accurate punctuation of species' common names, not to mention the tour guides' correct names. Sigh.)

The Brownsville Herald
11.8 Birders make way to Laguna Atascosa
11.9 Birders search out King Ranch
11.10 Along the river
11.11 Polly and the Birders
11.12 Birding festival wraps up with emphasis on youth

Valley Morning Star
11.4 Birders flock to Harlingen for birding festival
11.4 festival schedule
11.4 A dream takes flight
11.5 Birder's paradise
11.10 Birders find parrots roosting in downtown Harlingen
11.12 Kiskadee Corner closes festival

Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival: Saturday

Today's Birding 101 workshop/field trip had a stellar teaching team. The 35+ birders on the bus benefitted from the expertise of authors and tour leaders Brad McKinney, Jon Dunn and Kim Eckert. Wow.

The bus left Harlingen's municipal auditorium at the leisurely hour of 8 a.m. After a productive stop with views of Wood Stork, Black Vulture, White-tailed Hawk and Northern Harrier followed by a great stop with Belted Kingfisher, Tricolored Heron and Pied-billed Grebe, the bus reached Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. I felt quite content to watch the Green Jays at the visitor center's feeding stations.




The baby javelina provided some amusement, too. See it in front of the table's right leg? (As always, click on an image to see a larger version.)