Birding the Rio Grande Valley - Part One

One of the highlights of the trip was birding in the Rio Grande Valley.  This area of Texas is home to several tropical bird species.  Some of these species are also found in southern Arizona, but many are found only within a few tens of miles of the Mexico/Texas border. The area is also a major bird migration corridor.  Many species that breed in Canada in the summer fly through this corridor as soon as the spring weather begins to move north. 

Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife refuge is located on the southern tip of Texas but not in the Rio Grande Valley.  It is a habitat of thorn forest, wetlands, costal mudflats and beaches.  They say that nearly half of all bird species found in the continental USA feed, nest or migrate through this region.

Green Jay, an intelligent, gregarious and gorgeous bird

Chachalaca- a very noisy chicken-like bird

Golden-fronted woodpecker-How's that for a colourful hat!

Ladder-backed woodpecker

Roadrunner

We visited 8 of the 9 nature preserves that are part of the World Birding Centre in the Rio Grande Valley.  Here are some photos of some of the birds we saw at each park.

Harlingen Arroyo Colorado/Hugh Ramsey Park

Snowy Egret and Little Blue Heron

Altamira Oriole

Resaca de la Palma (Brownsville)

Tropical Kingbirds

Roseate Spoonbill

Least Grebe

Ibises and Egrets

Ibises, Egrets and Little Blue Heron

Water snakes mating

Black Necked Stilts, an Egret and some Dowitchers

South Padre Island Birding and Nature Centre

Laughing Gulls and Black Skimmers     Look at those beaks, will ya!   

Royal Terns,  Laughing Gull and Marbled Godwits

Laughing Gulls  Ha, Ha, ha!

Great-tailed Grackle

Black Skimmer skimming

Yes, we did see an alligator here

This guy was about 6 feet long

Osprey

White Ibises

Great Egret

Great Blue Heron

Immature Green Heron

Continued in Part Two.....

South Padre Island to Big Bend

As the temperature rose we looked for ways to beat the heat.  What better way than to go to the beach for a few days?  We spent Easter weekend at the county beach park on South Padre Island right across the road from the World Birding Centre wetlands.

Windblown dune sand covers half of the road the farther north you drive on the Island

Maxine on the beach.  You are allowed to drive on most of the beaches in Texas.
Some are better packed than others - we were cautious so we didn't get stuck.

Daily removal of sand from the road, except on weekends.

Enjoying the sunshine on South Padre Island beach

Our indoor dining area - used when too cold, dark or windy to eat outside

BBQ gulf shrimp was our Easter dinner

Eventually we had to begin our slow journey northward, along the Rio Grande with stops to check out the World Birding Centre locations along the way.  We will post another entry with pictures of the wildlife we saw.

A huge cactus in our campsite at the AmeriCana RV park near Mission TX

At Bentson Rio Grande State Park.  We did see some hungry looking alligators there.

Huisache, a type of acacia tree that we saw all over south Texas

The prickly pear cacti were beginning to bloom

On our way north west to Big Bend we passed Laredo, where we only stopped for groceries and gas as the temperature was 42 degrees that day.  No cowboys wrapped in white linen were lying about, but there were lots of Border Patrol trucks cruising around.  We stayed at Seminole Canyon State Park for two nights.  It was very hot there so we didn't go on the guided walk to see the rock paintings.  We sat in the shade for the afternoon watching cactus wrens, mockingbirds and a hooded oriole.

Seminole Canyon

At Big Bend National Park we camped in the mountains at Chisos Basin, where it was a pleasant 26 degrees due to the high elevation.  Down along the Rio Grande Valley it was in the mid 30s - far too hot for much strenuous activity.

Casa Grande Mountain, behind our campsite, with deer in foreground.

Morning light on the Chisos Mountains as we headed out for a day of sightseeing

The yuccas were in bloom at Big Bend

A windy view point of the Chisos Mountains or perhaps just bedhead?

The Rio Grande as it flows along between Mexico and Texas.
The cliff is in Mexico.  

The water in the Rio Grande at this point is very shallow but there are signs all over saying how dangerous it is to wade across the river.  They really just don't want anyone going over to the Mexican side.

Paintbrush along the roadside

The view from our table in Chisos Basin campground.

The Gulf Coast

We made a few stops on our way to the Gulf of Mexico.
Davis Mountain State Park is in a geologically fascinating volcanic area. The park is a good birding site and also has some trails that are a good length for a half day hike. We did a driving tour through the towns of Marfa and Alpine. Marfa has many restored art deco buildings. Peaky hills of rhyolitic composition revealed lots of cool volcanic structures along the route from Marfa through Alpine and back to Davis Mountain.

Davis Mountain State Park

The local javelinas have no fear of dogs, so we had to keep the dogs on a short leash

Lots of these Yuccas grow in northern Texas

They really do say y'all in Texas

Weirdly weathered 'hobgoblins' of volcanic rock around Davis Mountain State Park

South Llano River State Park is the location of a nesting area for wild turkeys. We stayed there one night and did manage to get a brief look at one turkey.

Sunset at South Llano River

On our way through San Antonio we had a bit of car trouble, which the local Mercedes dealer was able to partially resolve, but which took up a few hours of our travel time, so we stayed one night in Goliad State Park, the site of an old Mission church. It was a pleasant park with a small river running through. We saw an owl and a unidentified furry creature. We think the furry creature was an opossum or a racoon.

The Mission Church at Goliad State Park

We reached the coast at Rockport, near the Aransas National Wildlife Preserve where the Whooping Cranes go for the winter. We stayed in that area for about a week. There were whooping cranes in the fields between our RV park and the ocean. We went almost every day to see them. We saw a group of about 10 the first day, and on the following days we saw some pairs, individuals and a family group and were able to view them from about 300 metres away.

A family of Whooping Cranes

Flowering Yucca

This little armadillo was very busy looking for food in the wildlife preserve right beside a boardwalk trail

We spent a couple of nights camping right on the beach at Goose Island State Park near Rockport.

The oyster shell beach at Goose Island wasn't good for swimming.  The water was about 18 degrees but the oyster shells are to sharp for your feet.

Breakfast at our campsite

A couple of these Crested Caracara hung around the campground.  They are about the size of the vultures.

Scissor-tail flycatcher near Rockport

We stayed on the coast for a couple of weeks, working our way down to Mustang Island State Park on North Padre Island near Corpus Christi and then to Atascosa Wildlife Preserve and South Padre Island near Brownsville. We had some beach days to get our fill of sun and sand. On the mainland we enjoyed going to the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail locations.

On the sand beach at Mustang Island State Park

Pelicans flying over the picnic area at Mustang Island State Park

The sand dune at Mustang Island beach

Heading to Texas

At the New Mexico Tourist information rest area they had a dog walking area that warned you to beware of snakes. It didn't inspire confidence.

The sign behind me says "beware of rattlesnakes"

 

We had a short stay in New Mexico on our way to Texas, in a state park called Rockhound. They let you take home 15 pounds of rocks, including any semi-precious samples you might find, like agate and jasper. We did collect a few rocks there - after all, what is a geologist to do when offered the opportunity to collect rock! There were some good hikes there as well, and we saw a roadrunner and a new species of quail.

The trail above the campground at Rockhound State Park

 

Roadrunner

 

View from the trail

 

We had to drive through strong winds from Rockhound Park into Texas, so we didn't make good time. We decided to stay in a state park near El Paso called Hueco Tanks. On first glance it seemed like a pretty desolate place, but we found some beauty there and decided to stay an extra night so we could go on a guided walk to see the aboriginal rock art, and so we could spend a bit of time climbing amoung the rocks.

The park is named for the natural depressions, huecos, in the rocks. These huecos hold rain water long after the moisture has evaporated down on the plain, and therefore attracted animals, birds and people to this reliable water source.

A cool evening at Hueco Tanks

 

Evanna on the rocks

 

Joe, our guide for the pictograph hike

 

One of the most impressive pictographs

 

Starry-eyed Man

 

Garden among the rocks

 

On the top of the mountain