Big Bend Day 1: The Window

The jampacked birding summer has commenced! I spent Memorial Day weekend in my favorite place to bird in Texas: Big Bend National Park. Although I love to bird this park, birding wasn't the entire focus, so I didn't make it to all of the birding spots, but this was an incredible adventure.

Black-tailed Prairie Dog with a Greater Roadrunner at Marathon Prairie Dog Town

Day 1 began at 6 AM on Friday morning. My current roommate, Gordon, my former roommate, TJ, and I left Houston to drive to Big Bend where we spent the first night in the Chisos Mountains. The highlight of the drive was stunning views at Lake Amistad near Del Rio and the best Mexican food I have ever had at Live Oak Drive Thru in Uvalde. We also stopped at the Marathon Prairie Dog Town After 9 hours of driving you'd think we were dead and had no energy, right? WRONG. We arrived around 5:00 at the Chisos Mountains Lodge and ate a massive chicken fried steak with an appetizer of hot wings. We all ate the same thing, how adorable of us. After that we made the terrible decision to hike the Window Trail at sunset. While the idea was awful, it was completely worth it.

Female Pronghorn

Before we get into it let's rewind a bit. In 2017 TJ and I went to Big Bend over July 4th and saw some amazing birds and amazing views. Highlights included Lucifer Hummingbird, Painted Redstart, Scott's Oriole, and Zone-tailed Hawk. But we missed my ultimate prize: Colima Warbler. Big Bend, specifically, Boot Canyon, is the only place this bird can be seen in the United States. One canyon in the entire country holds this bird. Due to a number of factors that boil down to inexperience I missed it, and it was heartbreaking. It bothered me for 2 years, and this trip was a chance to redeem myself.

Casa Grande 

Back to 2019. My birding experience has increased exponentially and I was ready to see some birds, although hiking the Window at 6:30 PM isn't going to pick up birds. But I have to say this trail is a must do in the park for both birders and non-birders. Going at sunset yields amazing views as you descend to the bottom of the Chisos Basin. Heading down we got Blue Grosbeak, Canyon Wren, Cactus Wren, and Say's Phoebe among other common birds. The 6 mile round trip was spectacular, and I especially loved it because I got my lifer Varied Bunting, a bird I'm sure I saw in 2017 but couldn't count out of now being 100% certain I saw it. But now there was no debating. This bunting looks like it was dipped in blue paint with a reddish purple splattered on it. I wish I got a picture in the fading light.

Winding through the canyons was a treat. Gordon took this one.

What's crazy is that wasn't the highlight of the hike. I detected movement in my peripheral as we walked out of the canyon, 3 not so small dots on the mountainside. BEARS! A sow black bear and her 2 cubs were scampering up the mountain. The sow heard us a rose up on 2 feet to check us out and they continued on their way. Luckily we were a few thousand feet below them so we didn't have to worry, but that was a really cool encounter.

Sow with her 2 cubs. Park rangers told us these cubs in particular were born in January

Bears, both black and brown, wolves, mountain lions, and even jaguars used to inhabit Big Bend before being killed off. For a while only mountain lions remained, and in Big Bend you are always within territory of one so the population is pretty stable. Jaguars lasted a while, with the last one being killed in the 1940s. Can you believe that? A jaguar was alive in Big Bend in my grandparents' lifetime. It's surreal how wild that place still is, and it wouldn't shock me if one was still out there, but that's for a different post that I've been working on.

Anyways, Black Bears were extirpated from the park a while ago before naturally reclaiming the Chisos again in the 1980s and now being regularly seen throughout the park, even in the low desert areas. This is extremely rare to have an animal recolonize it's former region and it's a blessing to have our NPS do the amazing work that they've done to make it possible for something like that to happen in Texas. Seeing those bears was an experience that I can't put into words, although spoiler alert, I have a few essays penned on bears, jaguars, and nature that will be dropping soon on here.

Little did I know that the best was still to come. We hiked back to the room, guided by Black-throated Sparrows and Northern Mockingbirds along the trail. TJ and Gordon slept like rocks, but I was too excited for the next day. Despite a great birding day with a few lifers I couldn't wait for the clock to strike 6 AM. As I laid down all I could think about was one hike that goes down in birding lore: the Colima Death March. 

Gordon got an amazing shot of the Window at sunset. Perfect end to the night.

Woodland Park

I've been looking for a good local birding park since I've moved to Houston. In College Station I had Lick Creek Park and in Dallas I had White Rock Lake. I had seen some stuff on an Upper Texas Coast Facebook group the last few days about Woodland Park, which is located in The Heights area of Houston. That's less than 3 miles from my apartment, and it seems like an underbirded park that has made some waves like Golden-winged Warbler and Great Kiskadee over the last few days. While it may be no High Island or Sabine Woods I figured it was worth a shot on a Friday afternoon. It's not like I was going to the coast anyways.

It's a small park with a network of trails that is cut in half by a stormwater drain. This is critical for a good migrant spot, and it probably helps make Brison Park the amazing migrant spot that it is, as a smaller storm drain passes through it as well.

For a park in the middle of the city you definitely get the feel that you're away from it all

I descended the hill into the trees, greeted by tons of Great-tailed Grackles. It was a warm afternoon so I had really low expectations, but when I saw the storm drain I got pumped. There are some portions that are too deep for birds, that I actually saw bass and gar swimming in, but there are some places that are very shallow and flow enough for birds to bathe in, which is great for some of these tired migrants. I immediately saw male and female Indigo Buntings bathing, and a bird with a yellow crown, almost golden. I thought it could have been Chestnut-sided or Golden-winged Warbler, but by the time I got to a vantage point it was gone. I found the perfect spot to camp out for about 30 minutes while I watched various migrants come in.

There were a bunch of Indigo Buntings throughout the park

Indigo Bunting was the bird of the day, but Summer Tanager was also pretty common. The only positive ID on a warbler that I got was Common Yellowthroat, but I cleaned up on tanagers. A Swainson's Thrush was bathing in the creek, but a flash of red got me on one of my favorite migrants, Rose-breasted Grosbeak. I would see a few throughout the afternoon.

The male Rose-breasted Grosbeak is a stunning bird, seeing one is a highlight of migration

The star of the show was a gorgeous Scarlet Tanager. This was a bird I looked at in my field guide as a kid and thought I would never see. I noticed it through the trees because this is an almost neon red bird. All I could do at that point was stare in awe at such a beautiful bird.

Scarlet Tanager. Look. At. That.

By that point I was sweating and I wanted to get back and relax before the draft started. Overall this looks to be a great migration park I look forward to coming back!

Still can't get over this bird

Migration

This is my favorite birding time of the year. Mid-April to mid-May is one of the craziest times on the Texas coast. Neotropical migrants from Central America are coming through on their way to breeding grounds all over the country. Some will breed in Maine and some will breed in Alaska. Some are settling down in breeding territory in Texas. It's an exciting time where lots of color fills the sky and hopeful birders sit around all day waiting for a mega rarity to blow through. Huge rarities like Double-toothed Kite and Greenish Elaenia have blown in off the coast before, and the cool thing about migration is you never know what will show up. It changes week to week, even day to day. Some days are dead, some days the trees are dripping with tired birds and you have to be careful where you walk so you don't step on a bird.

One of my favorite birds, the Roseate Spoonbill can be found everywhere on the island

There are few places on the Texas coast where legendary migration experiences can be found. Padre Island and Hazel Bazemore Park in Corpus Christi are good places, although I have never been there. High Island near Anahuac is probably the most popular place. That's where the kite and elaenia were found at High Island. I'm making my next migration trip there. Quintana, near Lake Jackson, has an amazing sanctuary there and Sabine Woods is another good place up in Beaumont, although it was dead when I went there. Why are these places so great? They are literally right off the beach. As these tired migrants literally fly nonstop across the Gulf of Mexico from the Yucatan Peninsula they get so tired that as much as 40% die en route. Those that survive, especially after a storm, will drop in to the nearest patch of green they can find. With so much development on the coast these tiny sanctuaries are a beacon for the birds. Anyways, enough rambling. My favorite migration sanctuary is Lafitte's Cove in Galveston.

March 31 started out hot. Walking down the boardwalk I immediately had Orchard Oriole, Indigo Bunting, and Scissor-tailed Flycatcher in a Mulberry. Eastern Kingbird flew in shortly afterwards.  This was right after a bad storm had blown in and winds were blowing south at 20 mph. I got there around 2 when the wind slowed down. As exciting as it was to get some amazing migrants from the get go, it was nothing compared to what was in store in the trees.

Orchard Orioles are pretty abundant early migrants, can't wait for their cousins, Baltimore Orioles to come through!

The trees were full of warblers that are normally tough to see. Hooded Warbler was abundant, Northern Parula was everywhere, and tired Prothonotary Warblers were all over the ground. Normally parulas and prothontaries are almost impossible to see. They love to be up high and they nest in dense Spanish Moss. You can hear them when you're around them, but good luck seeing them. To be up close with such fantastic views was an awesome experience. As the afternoon wore on there were even better sightings. Black-and-white Warblers came in and Worm-eating Warblers offered brief glimpses. A few Yellow-throated Vireos popped out as well. 

Hooded Warbler

I have learned to always check every single bird. Sometimes you miss really good birds in a flock. Not so this time! I thought it was just a Northern Parula, it was actually a lifer Yellow-throated Warbler! This nemesis bird had taken forever to find, and it was a sigh of relief to be able to get it. About an hour I was checking out what would should have been another of many Prothonotary Warblers, but it had a black stripe along the eye. Somebody had been studying their field guide, because it could only be one thing: BLUE-WINGED WARBLER! Another lifer! As the sun started to set I headed back to Houston, pumped for the next trip down there, which turned out to be 6 days later.

April 6 brought in new birds and better weather. A fog had settled over Galveston Island, but the sun came out for a gorgeous day. I had lunch plans and about 3.5 hours to bird, so I started out at Lafitte's Cove. The first bird I saw was an active Blue-winged Warbler. I had really yearned for this bird for years so it was funny that I looked so long and got it twice this year already. Hooded and Prothonotary Warblers were abundant again, but I will never tire of seeing those little guys hopping around. I took a lap around the preserve, getting Indigo Bunting, Orchard Oriole, Mottled Duck, and a FOY Black-chinned Hummingbird. Still in the early stages of migration, a lot of the birds remained the same, but I did notice a little more warbler variety. The star of the early show was a lifer Glossy Ibis that had been continuing all week. I also had the best views ever of Worm-eating Warbler, a really exciting bird to get. I had some kind of thrush/Ovenbird, but before I could lock in on it flew off.

Migrants normally love these drips when the Blue Jays aren't hogging them!

Without getting repetitive and boring I'll focus on one exciting moment. There is a boardwalk that is pretty productive for shorebirds. There was a rumor of Louisiana Waterthrush hanging around the shore of the pond, and with lunch fast approaching I had to check it out. While looking for it located a Solitary Sandpiper and baby alligator. Sure enough there was a bobbing tail that gave away the Lousiana Waterthrush's location! Huzzah! Then out of nowhere a Common Yellowthroat flew across! There was also a Summer Tanager waiting for me to head out. What an amazing few minutes! That's peak migration madness right there.

Although not the best picture can you pick out the Solitary Sandpiper and Louisiana Waterthrush?

My birding day ended at Galveston Island State Park. I focused on the beach because unbeknownst to me a Groove-billed Ani, one of favorite birds because it looks like a dinosaur, had been seen on the other side of the park. But the beach was very productive. The usual suspects like Laughing Gull, Sanderling, Caspian Tern, Willet, and Brown Pelican were abundant, and I had a great chance to brush up on my shorebirding, which I am admittedly awful at. I got great looks at Western Sandpiper and I had a Piping Plover, which is always an exciting find, especially when you consider that I actually ID'ed it myself. On my way out I had a 1 bird fall out, an exhausted Yellow-throated Warbler that was foraging in the picnic tables maybe 50 yards from the surf. Overall, a great two weeks of birding.

Piping Plover

I cannot wait to get back. I am still debating between High Island and Lafitte's Cove next weekend, and then my girlfriend and probably only reader of this blog, Katie, moves in to UTMB the next weekend so I will for sure be at Lafitte's Cove for a bit that first weekend in May, which is right when the birds will be coming in force!

In other news there are some exciting birding trips coming up. Alaska is now totally booked and we are set to go! First is Denali National Park where Arctic Warblers, Northern Hawk-owls, Northern Wheatears, and Willow Ptarmigans will be sought after, followed up by a trip to Kenai Fjords National Park where Kittlitz's Murrelets, Tufted and Horned Puffins, and Pine Grosbeaks will steal the show among probably 100 other incredible species. I also have a Big Bend trip booked for Memorial Day weekend to look for Colima Warbler, Painted Redstart, and Blue-throated Hummingbird! It's an exciting time to be a friend of Birding with Christian!

Little Gull, Massive Find

What's been up with the weather recently? It seems like it's always cold on the weekends. Outside of birding a little bit in January at San Jacinto, the weather has sucked to the point where I'm not down to go birding. I thought this weekend would be pleasant with the weather we were experiencing on Friday but boy was I wrong.

It was a week of anticipation. I spent the long weekend in Dallas with my family, and birding wise it could not have come at a better time. A Little Gull was spotted at White Rock Lake a few weeks ago, and it stuck around. I checked eBird every day excitedly, and it looked like it was going to stay. The Iceland Gull that had been reported disappeared, but it's not as rare as Little Gulls.

The Little Gull is an uncommon winter visitor to the US. It is listed as a Code 3 by the ABA, meaning that it is rare to the United States. For comparison, a Northern Mockingbird is a Code 1 and a Mexican Jay is a Code 2. These are birds that are common and widespread in the ABA area, although a Code 2 will have a smaller range. Code 3 and up is considered rare or have very few numbers in the ABA area. Clay-colored Thrush and Colima Warbler are 2 examples of birds that are Code 3s but can be found in the right places. I'm getting off track.

Anyways, Little Gull can be found in small numbers on the East Coast, but they are generally found in Eurasia and the north coast of Africa. A few turn up in Texas occasionally. Luckily for me White Rock Lake is just a few miles from my house and it is a magnet for rare gulls. But finding this bird was a wild ride. Strap in for the adventure.

I showed up on Sunday morning ready to go. It was windy and in the 30s. As I was walking up a jogger stopped and told me I needed to call 911. There was a dead body floating in the water right above the spillway where the gulls congregate in the mornings. I stayed to answer a few questions from police officers and the operation to actually get the body out of the water commenced with police and fire boats in the water. Due to high winds it took almost an hour to get the body, and in the process a boat even capsized. The gulls were way out in the middle of the lake with all the activity on the spillway so I gave up looking on the day. I did find a Field Sparrow on my way out, a good county bird for me. I'd have to come back the next day.

I got up early Monday morning, because according to reports from other birders you have to get there before about 7:30, otherwise the gulls begin to feed on the water itself and you can kiss the sighting goodbye. The Little Gull looks similar to a Bonaparte's Gull except it is smaller and has a dark cap. I arrived a little after 7 AM and began scoping. Let me tell you, it was miserable. It was freezing and windy, just how I hate it. I looked all over the flock, and those Bonaparte's Gulls were really frustrating me. I thought I saw Little Gull multiple times, only to be fooled. The gulls were beginning their mass exodus to the lake, and I was getting nervous. Bonaparte's are much smaller than other gulls and Ring-billed Gulls are more abundant on the lake, so it's easy to mistake them for Little Gulls.

Then I saw it. A tiny, tiny gull was in a flock of Bonaparte's, but it was smaller than the rest. It could only be one thing: Little Gull! I snapped a few pics, enjoyed about 30 seconds worth of looks, and then I was done freezing. Wingo! I also got Herring and Franklin's Gulls as well as a FOY Purple Martin, making for a very successful weekend. I'm up to 51 species on the year, not bad.

Little Gull with a Ring-billed (L) and 3 Bonaparte's (R). Notice the size difference between all 3 and the black cap.

But wait, there's more! Birding with Christian has an exciting announcement, we're going to Alaska! In June I'll be heading up to Denali and Kenai Fjords National Park with a friend to do some mountain man adventuring, which of course means I'll have my camera and binoculars on me. I'm already giddy with the potential for Grizzly Bear, Caribou, and of course birds likeArctic Warbler, Northern Wheatear, and Tufted and Horned Puffins!

The Highs and Lows of Birding

2018 was a great year of birding. I got to see some amazing birds. With that said, there were some lows. I had unreal luck with rarities. My first chance was in January with a Red-throated Loon and American Black Duck at White Rock Lake. I got the duck, but not the loon. Dipping on a rarity happens, especially when you're at my level of experience. I did get Tundra Swan in Fort Worth later in the month. It was miserably cold but I got 3 of them. It was a birding highlight of the year.

American Black Duck at White Rock Lake

Tundra Swan at Fort Worth Nature Center

A great start, right? I had another chance to get a rarity when an Elegant Trogon showed up at Landa Park in New Braunfels. My amazing girlfriend Katie braved an enthusiastic birder and a brisk morning to look for a bird that didn't show up. It sucked, but I told myself that dips happen.

Another chance at hard to find birds occurred in the Davis Mountains and South Llano River SP. There Alex and I missed Golden-cheeked Warbler and Montezuma Quail. I expected Montezuma Quail to miss but missing Golden-cheeked Warbler was irritating. We were in the place to see them, and we just missed it.

In November I missed Fork-tailed Flycatcher in Sugar Land. I had to be somewhere during the 24 hours it was seen. I got back in the middle of a storm and the bird was never seen again. That hurt a lot.

December hurt the most for rarities. I already detailed the crushing miss of Great Black Hawk in Maine. I was in the city and there was nothing I could do once it had been found. 20 minutes later I would miss Snowy Owl, a grail bird of mine, at the best place in the state to see it. On Galveston Island on Christmas Eve I missed Prairie Warbler, despite it probably seeing me. A week later I would miss Tropical Parula in Houston at Edith Moore Sanctuary.

Sounds like birding is just a disappointment, but that's far from the truth. The highs always make up for the lows.

In San Francisco I was exhausted after birding the entire city. I was walking out on a pier to look at grebes and I saw a Common Murre just chillin right by the pier. I knew I they were in the area, but I didn't even consider seeing one. A lot of rare birds (which this wasn't) are stumbled upon. You have to be at the right place at the right time. I was in the right place at the right time and I got lucky.

Common Murre in San Francisco

In May at South Llano River it was hot and Alex and I were exhausted. We went out at the wrong time to bird. To be fair, we were just stopping briefly at the park to look for the endangered Black-capped Vireo and Golden-cheeked Warbler. Vireos are hard for me to find an identify. Sweating profusely, we saw the BCVI fly into a tree. We saw the black cap. We drove the remaining 5 hours to Fort Davis more energized than before. 

Later on in that trip we were feeder watching at sunset. The birds were stunning. Black-headed Grosbeak, Western and Hepatic Tanagers, and a flash of...pale blue? We had seen plenty of Blue Grosbeak, but this was baby blue. I nearly jumped through the ceiling. Someone had been studying their field guide, and even though it was the tail end of migration, it was undoubtedly Lazuli Bunting. This was one of the last few flying through and we got a brief glimpse at it. I would have given our chances at seeing it at 5%, and we got it!

A not so great pic of the Lazuli Bunting

Right before I started my job I got to spend some time in Dallas with my family. I got what would be my last shot at Golden-cheeked Warbler. I drove to Dinosaur Valley State Park, which is full of the perfect Ash Juniper habitat that they are exclusively found in. I hiked all day but didn't find one. I heard a few calls, but nothing showed up. Safe to say it was demoralizing and frustrating. But as I descended towards my car I heard the buzzy call of what sounded like Black-throated Green Warbler, except that bird would be very rare in late May. And guess what bird sounds exactly like it! Sunburned and dehydrated I sprinted to where the sound was coming from. There wasn't just one Golden-cheeked Warbler, there were 4 or 5! I went from nearly passing out to feeling energized. What an amazing feeling.

As I highlighted in my last post the disappointment of missing Great Black Hawk and Snowy Owl was negated by the high of seeing Snow Bunting and Razorbill in the span of 5 minutes.

The last high of the year was at Galveston Island State Park. Palm Warbler was a lifer for me, I was unsure I'd be able to find one due to inexperience. 30 minutes into my walk I saw a bird flitting around with yellow near the rump. I figured it was the abundant Yellow-rumped Warbler, but I was wrong. A spitting image of the field guide, Palm Warbler. While locally common, this was a big win for me after Maine. I used to miss a lot of locally common birds because I had no clue where to look. Normally I'd look for Palm Warbler in the tall trees, but I knew to look lower for them. It's a small win that was particularly motivating, just like when I found Louisiana Waterthrush at Bear Creek Park in August.

Louisiana Waterthrush at Bear Creek Park

But that wasn't the only high in Galveston. Rails are all over the marshes down there, but they're crazy secretive. They live in tall grass in and run instead of fly. In fact, they can be so hard to see that the ABA started to allow records of "heard only" because of birds like rails. The most notorious is Black Rail, and few if any are seen in a year. I didn't see Black Rail, but I did get amazing looks at 2 different Clapper Rails on the trail. 2 runners scared one off before I could get a picture of one, and my slow movement to grab my camera scared the other off, but that was after I froze and looked for a few minutes. So much for bad luck, right?

Birding is never a bad time. The unexpected makes every trip an adventure, and usually there's something cool lurking around every corner, even if it's not the most stunning or sought after bird. The highs outweighed the lows by far, and despite the disappointment of a dip you bet I'll chase the next big rarity with gusto. I cannot wait to see what 2019 has in store, and lets just say a few massive moves are in the works.

Birding the Northeast

Portland Head Light

The temperature was 9 degrees when I checked the weather in Portland, Maine the day before my trip. Yikes. I had a crazy weekend planned in the city. I scored a great deal on a flight and rental car for the weekend, so like a rational person I decided to go to Maine in the winter. My plan was to spend Friday afternoon looking for the first ever ABA record of Great Black Hawk that had been seen in a local park, then try to get Snowy Owl at the Portland Jetport. What I didn't realize was that the sun starts setting around 4 PM, and I got off the plane after 3. I was exhausted after getting up at 4:30 to fly to Philly then connect to Portland, and in the fading I did not see the star bird. The weather was actually very pleasant, but it gets COLD once that sun goes down. It got into the low 30s while I was there but during the day it was in the 40s. I decided for a lobster roll, settled in at the Airbnb, and I was in bed at 8:30.

My plan for the weekend was to drive 90 minutes South to Parker River NWR and then work my way north and stop at various places in New Hampshire and Maine. I wanted to spend Sunday in the general area of Portland to make sure I got to my flight in time. I was going to start at Biddleford Pool before heading to Dyer Point and fitting Scarbrough Marsh in if I had time. I was refreshing eBird in case the Great Black Hawk returned, but I booked my flight before it was rediscovered in the area so wasn't gonna spend all day chasing it. No way I would miss it if it showed up, but I came in expecting to not see it.

The High Roller Lobster Roll

A not so great picture of a White-winged Scoter, but a lifer is a lifer!

Lifer Common Loon! I snapped this through my scope

Parker River is a must see. It boasts a species list that is second only to the legendary Cape May. It's as birdy as it is beautiful. Wow. I spent the first chunk of the morning scoping the beach by the entrance, immediately getting lifer Common Loon and Black Scoter. Long-tailed Duck and Herring weren't too far behind. The coastal dunes were picturesque, and it's easy to see why this place draws nature lovers from across the region. A fellow birder pointed me in the direction of a King Eider and Snowy Owl, and although they were gone by the time I got there I got excellent looks at all 3 scoters, Common Eider, and Red-breasted Merganser. American Tree Sparrow was present as well in the lot. Off the beach there was various waterfowl including a ton of American Black Duck. Northern Harriers hovered over the fields and a Bald Eagle scared off a flock of Canada Geese. I will definitely be back at some point. It is gorgeous and there's not a bad place to see birds at all. Overall I had 29 species.
I had such a great time that I ran out of light. I raced across the state line to New Hampshire to go to Hampton Harbor to look for my lifer Glaucous Gull. As the sun went down it got freezing, but I was out there in a parking lot scoping for gulls. The best way for me to tell the difference was the lack of black on the wings. Herring Gulls and Great Black-backed Gulls were abundant, and a Common Loon was floating around. Then in the fading light I looked up and it was right above me! Glaucous Gull! It flew up to a post and I enjoyed good looks of it, but the wind was whipping up and I had to go back and get me a lobster roll!

Sunday was another early morning. I stopped in Saco along the river to get Common Goldeneye on my way to East Point in Biddleford, which is supposed to be a can't miss in the winter. A snowstorm was blowing in, and the wind was bone chilling. East Point has little tree cover and my scope couldn't even stay straight. Staying out of the wind I was able to get up close views of White-winged Scoter and Red-necked Grebe. Just as I was packing up to move on I saw a white flash along the ground. That could only be one thing, SNOW BUNTING. It was right in front of me and I missed the picture. I pretty much walked right over it. I set my scope back up on the other side and I saw plenty of ducks bouncing around, including Razorbill! In the span of 10 minutes I got 2 of the birds I was dying to see. I was the crazy man laughing into the freezing wind. It was glorious. I then drove north to Dyer Point, Portland Head Light, and 2 Lights State Park to get the stunning Harlequin Duck. That was another bird I used to longingly look at in my field guide as a kid.

I've dreamed of seeing Harlequin Ducks, I could not have asked for better looks

As unforgettable as the trip was, there were a few disappointing moments. I couldn't find Common Redpoll, as you either find a flock of 50 or see none. Surprisingly I missed Black Guillemot. I missed Snowy Owl despite chasing it on Saturday and going to the Jetport where it is supposed to be reliable. The worst miss was Great Black Hawk. It had been seen pretty much every day leading up to the trip, and it disappeared the day my flight landed. I looked as I rushed to the airport on Sunday and it wasn't there on Sunday as well. Someone reported it 30 minutes after I had gone through security at the airport. I was crushed. It had been in an adjacent yard all weekend and the owner got around to reporting it at sunset on Sunday. I was frustrated, but that's how birding goes. I had a brutal year with rarities and I'll write a post about that later on.

Long-tailed Duck! This is an immature or female but I got fantastic looks at the long-tailed males as well

This trip was incredible. The Maine/Massachusetts birders were incredibly friendly and extremely helpful with finding some incredible birds. The lobster is out of this world and I got to try an authentic Philly cheesesteak when I stopped in Philadelphia. The Razorbill and Snow Bunting were 100% worth the freezing winds, and the Harlequin Ducks were so stunning that I sat and watched them swim for an hour. Maine in the winter sounds a little insane, but it is a must do and I can't wait to go back!

Still can't get over the Harlequin Ducks!

Big Moves

American White Pelican

It's been a while since I last got out and birded, but this weekend I got a surprise chance to go to Dallas and do a little bit of birding.

In between my last post I picked up a whopping 2 birds on the year, a Tricolored Heron on my way driving back from the A&M-Auburn and Sandhill Cranes while driving to Disney World in Florida.

I decided to brave the freezing weather this weekend while up in Dallas and I headed off to White Rock Lake. A Red-breasted Merganser had been seen by the spillway, but unfortunately it was not there. There was a large raft of various waterbirds, but I could not tell find the duck in question.

Franklin's Gulls at the White Rock spillway

There was not much to note, but I did get Franklin's Gull for number 251 on the year! The gulls are still coming in, and I'm sure the Arctic blast that we got pushed plenty of them down further. I'm sure there was a Herring Gull out there, but unfortunately I'm terrible with gulls. I did get a scope that arrived once I got back from birding, so hopefully I'll get better with gulls and sandpipers.

I'm convinced that the Red-breasted Merganser was in this raft, but with my new scope I should have an easier time finding birds that far out!

More importantly, I'm going to Maine in a month! The flights are booked and I'm going to brave the cold to look for what should be an amazing list of birds. Canadian biologists reported that some bird foods will be scarce this winter, which is already leading to an irruption of winter finches. Maine is already getting lots of Evening Grosbeaks, and Pine Grosbeak and Common Redpoll should be coming in towards where I am as well. I'll be staying in Portland so hopefully some of them make it down to southern Maine, but Snowy Owl and Snow Bunting winter in the area, and Bohemian Waxwing is a potential find as well. I should get amazing winter ducks and alcids like Harlequin Duck and Razorbill, too.

Thanksgiving will be a busy week as well, hopefully Hagerman recovers from the flooding, it would be really nice to get some sparrows for the year out there. Let's get to 300!