Birding With Christian: Fall Birding in Galveston County

This is the time of year when our breeding birds begin their migration south for the winter. While not as big as spring migration, there are lots of shorebirds, flycatchers, and warblers moving through. Some birds are just about to leave their summer homes on the UTC as well, and I wanted to snag them before they departed. Fortunately I don't have to be up at the crack of dawn to go find them. I get off of at work at 12:30 on Fridays, so the last two were spent exploring the east end of Galveston County.

My first stop was the Texas City Dike, and 4 mile long tiny peninsula that extends into Galveston Bay. Unfortunately I lost my wallet the day before and didn't have the cash to pay the entrance fee that I didn't know about. Oh well, onward to Galveston!

My nemesis bird has been American Oystercatcher for the last year and a half. It's not a hard bird to see, but it has eluded me despite me spending tons of time in perfect habitat. It looked automatic on East Beach in Galveston. I decided to head there, because Magnificent Frigatebird is seen often in Galveston Bay.

Royal Tern

I set up my scope on Boedekker Road and got to work. A great surprise was Marbled Godwit, a bird that I used to not be able to find to save my life. I saw it for the first time over Christmas, and it was a bird that I had just not considered. Black-necked Stilts were everywhere as usual, and the abundant bird of the day was Royal Tern, a target of mine. As I scoped down the shore I got great looks at Black-bellied Plover and Black Skimmer! I had really wanted to get Black Skimmer, it's a beautiful bird and awesome to watch feed, but I don't get to see them often. Overall Boedekker Road packs a lot of punch for a small area. Alas, there was no Magnificent Frigatebird or American Oystercatcher.

Willets are everywhere in Galveston

The last stop of the day was Lafitte's Cove. Early migration brought Canada Warbler and Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, both were birds I had chalked up as misses. Canada Warbler is a pretty good find on the UTC as well, but I didn't hold my breath. Empids are also extremely tough to ID, especially if you don't know their calls. Luckily someone studied up on them, and I've done some improving when it comes to IDing them.

Black-bellied Whistling-duck Ducklings

Lafitte's Cove was silent and I was the only one there on a late afternoon day. The trees weren't the vibrant green and the sidewalks weren't packed with excited birders like they are in the spring. But there were still birds, although not as many of them. A silent Brown Thrasher was the only thing I noticed before I starting to hear and see movement. Least Flycatcher appeared first, followed by Yellow Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, Worm-eating Warbler, and Olive-sided Flycatcher. It was an unexpected, but welcome flock. I continued to inch along, getting Baltimore Oriole and Eastern Wood-pewee as well. The highlight was an unidentifiable empid. Then it let out its call. YELLOW-BELLIED FLYCATCHER! Big find. No Canada Warbler, but YBFL was worth the drive by itself.

Black-and-White Warbler

The next Friday, this time with cash, I ventured to the Texas City Dike, eager to finally snag some birds that I could not seem to find. Least Tern was an urgent one. They are not expected to last to October. This was also probably my last shot at Magnificent Frigatebird, and the resident but seemingly invisible American Oystercatcher was supposed to be there, too. The first 10 minutes were incredibly productive, as I picked up a lot of needed birds at the first stop. Least Tern was abundant, Ruddy Turnstone was walking around. Driving down towards the end of the 5 mile ish dike is really productive. Gulls and Terns gather at the beach near the end and are very cooperative. Laughing Gull is obviously everywhere, as were Brown Pelican, Royal Tern, and Black Skimmer.

Laughing Gull and Least Terns

The end of the dike offered the best scoping looks. I am PUMPED to get out here in the winter and scope for some ducks and Northern Gannets. The tip offers almost 360 degree water views for a few miles, and a scope on a clear day can be very productive. While it isn't open ocean it should have calm water that will make birding much easier in the shielded bay.

Black Skimmer

The tip also got me good looks along the beach. In a large flock of birds I at first thought that I saw another Black Skimmer with a bright red bill, but this was much too tall. I couldn't believe my eyes. American Oystercatcher! I looked in awe at such a beautiful bird. As I worked my way back down the dike I stopped for better pictures, and there were 2 more! It was an American Oystercatcher-palooza! There was one last surprise waiting for me. I looked hard for a Lesser Black-backed Gull with no luck. Luckily they are relatively easy to ID with their aptly named black back. I slammed on the brakes about halfway down the dike on my way out. One Herring Gull looked a little too dark to me. I snapped a pic, and the helpful Texbirders confirmed my suspicion of LBBG.