Saturday 31 December 2016
Top ten from 2016
In 2015 I saved 764 photographs, that is to say I thought that they were decent enough to keep and do something with. I dread to think what pitiful percentage of the overall number taken that is, but this is entirely normal and 2014 saw a similar number of keepers. Looking back on 2016 I already knew that this was far from a vintage year, but I was surprised to only have 369 in my "best of" folder. In old money that's barely ten rolls of film. I am at a loss to explain what has happened, after all it is not as if I have been out birding much is it? But there you have it, a low total, but on the plus side one that should be easy to surpass in 2017. It has also made it a lot easier to sift out a small selection of favourites, which are shown below, each with a teensy little bit of a story as I do so like typing.
Thursday 29 December 2016
There shall be less wallowing
2017 needs to see significantly less
wallowing. Reading this I expect many of you are thinking self pity. Though the
level of self-inflicted injuries may partially determine that, what I’m
actually talking about is wallowing around in bed. 2016 has been notable for a
dramatic shift in my ability to get out of bed in the morning. It was bad
before we got the electric blanket in the autumn, now it is just a disgrace. This
morning would have been a wonderful time to be out on Wanstead Flats – a heavy
frost, a clear day, it would be have been beautiful. As it was I lay under my duvet
doing nothing other than wasting time. I wasn’t asleep, I was just wallowing in
snuggly warmth. It was very nice of course, but I regret it, just as I regret
most of the other mornings where I have done the same thing in preference to
leaping out of bed and getting on with something worthwhile.
I mean even getting up and pottering around the house would be better than flopping in bed. I could water plants and check for bugs, I could fill up empty bird feeders, I could pick up things from the floor where the children have left them. I could do the recycling, I could clean the fish tank, I could unstack the dishwasher, I could crack on through my never-ending to-do lists…. I don’t have unstack the dishwasher on my to-do list by the way, that was just an example of the regular tedium that all of us have to bear, but doing useful tasks isn’t what I meant as an alternative to wallowing. Rather than tumble out of bed, shower and then head off to the salt mines, what I really want to do is go birding, go take photos in beautiful early morning light.
This is all feeling a little New Year’s Resolution-y. That’s not my intent either, but I really must pull my finger out. Part of the problem is that I go to bed too late, mostly as I am zapping around like a blue-arsed fly trying to maintain a thousand hobbies whilst simultaneously preventing Chateau L from descending into complete squalor. It does not help that I regularly get home at 8pm which doesn’t leave a lot of time for getting things done. I persevere of course, as I am spectacularly pig-headed and insistent that I will do everything. And then of course rather than a nice relaxing weekend which normal people use for catching up, I bugger off to foreign climes before the crack of dawn and return after dark on Sunday.
I mean even getting up and pottering around the house would be better than flopping in bed. I could water plants and check for bugs, I could fill up empty bird feeders, I could pick up things from the floor where the children have left them. I could do the recycling, I could clean the fish tank, I could unstack the dishwasher, I could crack on through my never-ending to-do lists…. I don’t have unstack the dishwasher on my to-do list by the way, that was just an example of the regular tedium that all of us have to bear, but doing useful tasks isn’t what I meant as an alternative to wallowing. Rather than tumble out of bed, shower and then head off to the salt mines, what I really want to do is go birding, go take photos in beautiful early morning light.
This is all feeling a little New Year’s Resolution-y. That’s not my intent either, but I really must pull my finger out. Part of the problem is that I go to bed too late, mostly as I am zapping around like a blue-arsed fly trying to maintain a thousand hobbies whilst simultaneously preventing Chateau L from descending into complete squalor. It does not help that I regularly get home at 8pm which doesn’t leave a lot of time for getting things done. I persevere of course, as I am spectacularly pig-headed and insistent that I will do everything. And then of course rather than a nice relaxing weekend which normal people use for catching up, I bugger off to foreign climes before the crack of dawn and return after dark on Sunday.
This is a state of affairs entirely
of my own making. My own stupid fault. It has been like this for many years, and it means I am perpetually knackered, and
that I – regretfully – really enjoy lying around in bed doing absolutely
nothing. But for all my moaning, I genuinely really enjoy almost everything that
I do which is why I can’t change the way things are. And the key thing that I
do that I don’t enjoy is what unfortunately funds all of the other things…. so
I had better get used it! Which of course I am after many years, being run off my feet is quotidian and I think I might miss it were it to stop. Imagine if I just took all of my plants to the tip, gave
away my one remaining pair of binoculars, handed my passport in and sold my
camera? What would I do all day? Stay in bed for a lot longer I expect!
No. I am determined that this will change.
And fortunately the answer is close at hand and I don’t even need an alarm
clock. Middle age and the tummy stuff I am on means that almost every day I now
wake up at about 5am needing to go to the loo. At the moment I carefully replace
the duvet to preserve the warmth before tiptoeing out. In future however I
shall leave it cruelly cast aside and be forced to get dressed for warmth. And
then I might go downstairs and make a nice cup of tea. I just need to avoid the
sofa….
Wednesday 28 December 2016
Best Trip of 2016
Lucky so-and-so that I am, by my own admission I have been a lot of trips this year. I
knew that this was likely, nonetheless I have surprised even myself by quite how
much I have travelled. As usual it has been a healthy mix of birding trips and
city breaks, either solo, with some or all of the family, or with a
friend.
Taking these latter first, I had four fun trips with friends
– Cyprus in January with Andrew M for Finsch’s Wheatear, a daring Rubythroat twitch to Holland with Bradders, a photographic
long-weekend in Iceland with Shaun in late May, and then after a long gap, a few days in Shetland
during the autumn mirgation with Bradders, Bob and Howard. All four were enjoyable in
their own way, but if I had to pick one to repeat it would the Icelandic jaunt. I
wasn’t very well during the trip (this is the new norm I suppose), but the landscape and
the photographic opportunities are almost unparalleled, and travelling with “I need a cup
of tea” Shaun was a lot of fun. I’m planning another trip next year focused on a very
specific area and just a handful of species, but nothing is booked yet. As for Shetland 2017 I am undecided at
the moment – a waning enthusiasm for rare birds so we’ll see what transpires. I
am taking one of my daughters to Cyprus in the spring though…
There have been a lot of family holidays too - nothing long range this time, just European cities mainly. We went to
Extramadura and Seville in the spring for a wonderful half-term break, a week split
equally between the two locations. In particular I would move to Seville
tomorrow, a wonderful city, east meets west architecture and culture, with fine food and a laid-back atmosphere. We also
had a summer holiday split between Budapest and Vienna, exploring these two capital cities. Mrs L and I had been to the former last year and had wanted to bring the
kids back, and none of us had ever been to Vienna. We enjoyed this very much,
especially the vast slabs of cake, and later in the day the wine from the Wachau valley. We also had our
traditional Scottish break in the summer with my parents, and then for larks
went to Hamburg for the day earlier this month to buy some new Christmas
decorations. We also tend to go places in smaller
groups; Mrs L and I went on quasi-romantic trips to New York and Prague, Henry
and I went to Texas for a manic birding break in October, Mrs L and middle kiddo went on
another trip to Scotland, there was a cycling holiday in Suffolk, and I took
various combinations of girls to Athens, Bordeaux and Provence.
And then of course there are my solo forays, which this year
took me mostly westbound to America, with a couple of shorter diversions in
Europe such as to Malta and Istanbul. The big trips were New York for wader and
skimmer photography, to the UAE for Wheatear photography, to Arizona for an
exploratory birding trip, and then a wonderfully ridiculous trip to Hawaii. Of
these four I know which I would most prefer to repeat! New York was OK, I came
back with some of what I wanted, but overall it was let down by poor weather and
a poor choice of accommodation. Abu Dhabi was a lot better until I fell over, with wonderful
weather and light, and at least one target Wheatear was present and correct. Arizona was out and out birding – the pressure was off in other words, and I
could just enjoy myself. I just love going to new areas with brand new birds –
just me and a field guide. Four days was just enough for a taster of this
wonderful area, dipping into some key sites close to the Mexican border,
and I came back with a handful of pleasing photos too.
But it is the long
weekend to Hawaii that I keep smiling about. Mostly that I was daft enough to do
it in the first place, and that it went off without a hitch including a flying
visit with my Aunt and Uncle on the way. But also that once I got there it was
simply a stunning place and I got to stand on a mountain ridge with amazing
views and with Tropicbirds drifting round. I mainlined on fruit, swam in the pacific, walked along sandy beaches and hired a convertible. A mid-life crisis perhaps, but rarely have I felt as relaxed as that
first evening lying in my hammock between two palm trees looking at the stars and swigging on a cold beer. I don’t think I took a
single photograph I would even consider publishing on my bird website, but that
was never the aim and this is a trip I would do again in a heartbeat. Stupid unashamed fun.
Texas - Trip list
150 Species
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck - Port Aransas, Estero Llano, Brazos Bend SP
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mottled Duck - Port Aransas
Blue-winged Teal
Cinnamon Teal - Estero Llano
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Plain Chachalaca - Estero Llano, Bentsen SP, Frontera Audobon
Wild Turkey - Aransas NWR
Greater Flamingo - Port Aransas
Least Grebe - Port Aransas
Pied-billed Grebe
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Inca Dove
White-tipped Dove - Estero Llano
White-winged Dove
Mourning Dove
Yellow-billed Cuckoo - Quintana Neotropical Bird Sanctuary
Greater Roadrunner - Bentsen SP
Common Pauraque - Estero Llano
Ruby-throated Hummingbird - Estero Llano, Bentsen SP
Black-chinned Hummingbird - Bentsen SP
Buff-bellied Hummingbird - Estero Llano, Frontera Audubon
Sora - Estero Llano
Common Gallinule
American Coot
Black-necked Stilt
American Avocet
American Oystercatcher
Black-bellied Plover
Wilson's Plover
Piping Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Killdeer
Long-billed Curlew
Ruddy Turnstone
Stilt Sandpiper - Estero Llano
Sanderling
Dunlin
Least Sandpiper - Estero Llano
Western Sandpiper
Long-billed Dowitcher - Estero Llano
Short-billed Dowitcher - Port Aransas
Wilson's Snipe - Estero Llano
Spotted Sandpiper
Willet
Lesser Yellowlegs - Estero Llano
Laughing Gull
Franklin's Gull - Quintana beach
Ring-billed Gull
American Herring Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull - Quintana beach
Forster's Tern - Quintana beach
Royal Tern
Sandwich Tern
Black Skimmer - Port Isabel/Boca Chica SP
Wood Stork - Santa Ana NWR
Neotropic Cormorant
Double-crested Cormorant
Anhinga - Brownsville
American White Pelican
Brown Pelican
Least Bittern - Leona Turnbull Birding Centre (Port Aransas)
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Reddish Egret
Cattle Egret - Quintana beach
Green Heron - Leona Turnbull BC
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron - Port Isabel, Estero Llano
White Ibis
White-faced Ibis - Estero Llano
Roseate Spoonbill - Port Aransas
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
White-tailed Kite - Boca Chica SP
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Harris's Hawk
White-tailed Hawk - nr Falfurrias
Red-shouldered Hawk - Estero Llano
Broad-winged Hawk - Bentsen SP
Red-tailed Hawk - nr Falfurrias
Eastern Screech-Owl - Estero Llano
Ringed Kingfisher - Estero Llano
Belted Kingfisher - Quintana beach
Green Kingfisher - Frontera Audubon, Santa Ana NWR
Golden-fronted Woodpecker - nr Rio Hondo, Estero Llano, Frontera Audobon
Red-bellied Woodpecker - Brazos Bend SP
Ladder-backed Woodpecker - Estero Llano
Crested Caracara - open country south of Riviera
American Kestrel
Black Phoebe
Eastern Phoebe
Vermilion Flycatcher - Estero Llano
Great Kiskadee - Estero Llano
Tropical Kingbird - Estero Llano
Couch's Kingbird - Estero Llano
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher - widespread alongside I-77 south of Riviera
Loggerhead Shrike
White-eyed Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Green Jay - Sarita rest stop, Estero Llano, Bentsen SP
Blue Jay
American Crow
Chihuahuan Raven
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Tree Swallow
Cave Swallow
Barn Swallow
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse - Brazos Bend SP
Black-crested Titmouse - Sarita rest stop
House Wren
Sedge Wren
Carolina Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Hermit Thrush - Estero Llano
Clay-colored Thrush - Estero Llano
Gray Catbird - Quintana Neotropical Bird Sanctuary
Long-billed Thrasher - Bentsen SP
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
House Sparrow
House Finch
Black-and-white Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler
Nashville Warbler - Santa Ana NWR
Magnolia Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Canada Warbler
Chipping Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Indigo Bunting
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Brewer's Blackbird
Great-tailed Grackle
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Altimira Oriole - Bentsen SP
(Yellow-chevroned Parakeet - Corpus Christi)
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck - Port Aransas, Estero Llano, Brazos Bend SP
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mottled Duck - Port Aransas
Blue-winged Teal
Cinnamon Teal - Estero Llano
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Green-winged Teal
Plain Chachalaca - Estero Llano, Bentsen SP, Frontera Audobon
Wild Turkey - Aransas NWR
Greater Flamingo - Port Aransas
Least Grebe - Port Aransas
Pied-billed Grebe
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Inca Dove
White-tipped Dove - Estero Llano
White-winged Dove
Mourning Dove
Yellow-billed Cuckoo - Quintana Neotropical Bird Sanctuary
Greater Roadrunner - Bentsen SP
Common Pauraque - Estero Llano
Ruby-throated Hummingbird - Estero Llano, Bentsen SP
Black-chinned Hummingbird - Bentsen SP
Buff-bellied Hummingbird - Estero Llano, Frontera Audubon
Sora - Estero Llano
Common Gallinule
American Coot
Black-necked Stilt
American Avocet
American Oystercatcher
Black-bellied Plover
Wilson's Plover
Piping Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Killdeer
Long-billed Curlew
Ruddy Turnstone
Stilt Sandpiper - Estero Llano
Sanderling
Dunlin
Least Sandpiper - Estero Llano
Western Sandpiper
Long-billed Dowitcher - Estero Llano
Short-billed Dowitcher - Port Aransas
Wilson's Snipe - Estero Llano
Spotted Sandpiper
Willet
Lesser Yellowlegs - Estero Llano
Laughing Gull
Franklin's Gull - Quintana beach
Ring-billed Gull
American Herring Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull - Quintana beach
Forster's Tern - Quintana beach
Royal Tern
Sandwich Tern
Black Skimmer - Port Isabel/Boca Chica SP
Wood Stork - Santa Ana NWR
Neotropic Cormorant
Double-crested Cormorant
Anhinga - Brownsville
American White Pelican
Brown Pelican
Least Bittern - Leona Turnbull Birding Centre (Port Aransas)
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Reddish Egret
Cattle Egret - Quintana beach
Green Heron - Leona Turnbull BC
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron - Port Isabel, Estero Llano
White Ibis
White-faced Ibis - Estero Llano
Roseate Spoonbill - Port Aransas
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
White-tailed Kite - Boca Chica SP
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Harris's Hawk
White-tailed Hawk - nr Falfurrias
Red-shouldered Hawk - Estero Llano
Broad-winged Hawk - Bentsen SP
Red-tailed Hawk - nr Falfurrias
Eastern Screech-Owl - Estero Llano
Ringed Kingfisher - Estero Llano
Belted Kingfisher - Quintana beach
Green Kingfisher - Frontera Audubon, Santa Ana NWR
Golden-fronted Woodpecker - nr Rio Hondo, Estero Llano, Frontera Audobon
Red-bellied Woodpecker - Brazos Bend SP
Ladder-backed Woodpecker - Estero Llano
Crested Caracara - open country south of Riviera
American Kestrel
Black Phoebe
Eastern Phoebe
Vermilion Flycatcher - Estero Llano
Great Kiskadee - Estero Llano
Tropical Kingbird - Estero Llano
Couch's Kingbird - Estero Llano
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher - widespread alongside I-77 south of Riviera
Loggerhead Shrike
White-eyed Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Green Jay - Sarita rest stop, Estero Llano, Bentsen SP
Blue Jay
American Crow
Chihuahuan Raven
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Tree Swallow
Cave Swallow
Barn Swallow
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse - Brazos Bend SP
Black-crested Titmouse - Sarita rest stop
House Wren
Sedge Wren
Carolina Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Hermit Thrush - Estero Llano
Clay-colored Thrush - Estero Llano
Gray Catbird - Quintana Neotropical Bird Sanctuary
Long-billed Thrasher - Bentsen SP
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
House Sparrow
House Finch
Black-and-white Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler
Nashville Warbler - Santa Ana NWR
Magnolia Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Canada Warbler
Chipping Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Indigo Bunting
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Brewer's Blackbird
Great-tailed Grackle
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Altimira Oriole - Bentsen SP
(Yellow-chevroned Parakeet - Corpus Christi)
Saturday 24 December 2016
Texas - Day 4
Our final early start saw us arrive at Quintana Neotropical Bird Sanctuary on the Gulf coast. This is a tiny reserve set amongst residential properties and against the boundary of a huge industrial area. So not that prepossessing on first glance, but this small lot is clearly a labour of love. There is a small tower, and then a number of small paths that run through some dense scrub and some more open areas. Running water and drinking pools, with 'rides' you can view down. Set against the gas works and diggings, and the houses with no cover to speak of, it must stand out like a magnet for small birds as they hit the coast. Obviously this is late October rather than early May, but it was still pretty decent and we added several new birds in the push towards the magic 150 (initial target was of course 100, but I new we would smash that easily. 150 the next boundary but of course it gets progressively harder) including a very elusive Yellow-billed Cuckoo, our first Gray Catbird and a Blue-headed Vireo.
Heading to the beach at the eastern end of the point it became very birdy indeed, with many Terns, Gulls and Pelicans milling around. We hoped to find roosting birds on the sandy beach and soon came across a crowded section with many Franklin's Gulls - my first outside the UK - Royal and Forster's Terns and many Lesser Black-backed Gulls. All were very wary and we could not get close but excellent scope views were obtained. We then drove along the shoreline at Bryan Beach Park, passing an American Oystercatcher alongside the usual selection of waders. The inland water held thousands of American Coots, and it was also here that we lucked out on a Belted Kingfisher, completing the set for the trip.
Working our way inland along the 36 northbound it wasn't long before we arrived at our final birding destination, Brazos Bend State Park - more of a recreational area but a good mix of woodland and swamp habitat. With 141 species under the belt could we make that final push. After enjoying being shown a baby Alligator at the nature centre, we took one of the trails into the woodland. First up, high in the trees, was a vocal Red-bellied Woodpecker. Somehow Henry grasped that 150 meant a lot to his stupid father, and from here on in he transformed into bird-finder extraordinaire. He eeked out Carolina Wren, identified only from snatches and then referenced to the Sibley to get to the answer. A fantastic couple of hours followed as we found some feeding flocks in the scrub and tall trees, coaxing many down with earnest pishing - Magnolia Warbler, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse and White-eyed Vireo all gave themselves up, and with American Crow and Blue Jay added around the carpark we found we got there with ease in the end.
We walked around Elm Lake looking for the other whistling duck species but drew a blank - hundreds of the commoner one though. I surprised Henry with scope views of some truly impressive Alligators basking - he thought I was on a bird when I invited him to have a look! Compared to the small lizard we had petted in the visitor centre a few hours earlier.....wow! By now mid-afternoon we had to head back to the car as it would have been poor to have missed our flight home, and the airport was around the other side of Houston which is so massive that I could forsee it taking some time. This proved to be spot on, and an extremely late lunch later we joined the frankly ridiculous traffic rotating around America's fourth largest city.
One mall stop later for some final clothes shopping we pointed our car towards George Bush Intercontinental. Houston in rush hour is to be avoided, but then again an 8pm flight out is pretty ideal really and we made it with a little time to spare and settled down for nice sleep on one of the newest Dreamliners...
In retrospect it felt like we did a lot of driving, though if you want to bird the Rio Grande Valley then Austin and Houston are the nearest international points of entry and they're several hundred miles away so you have no choice. I suppose therefore that this is mostly down to the extremely short length of our trip - four days is not a lot when you have that much ground to cover. No matter where I go I always feel like I want an extra day, and no doubt this still would have been true had I organised a five day trip to Texas. But this is what I do - I would prefer to have three short trips than one long one, but also it is far easier for me to squeeze in multiple short trips than it would be to be away from home for long stretches at a time, even if it all evens out in the end.
Trip list = 150
Northern Mockingbird |
Eastern Phoebe |
Heading to the beach at the eastern end of the point it became very birdy indeed, with many Terns, Gulls and Pelicans milling around. We hoped to find roosting birds on the sandy beach and soon came across a crowded section with many Franklin's Gulls - my first outside the UK - Royal and Forster's Terns and many Lesser Black-backed Gulls. All were very wary and we could not get close but excellent scope views were obtained. We then drove along the shoreline at Bryan Beach Park, passing an American Oystercatcher alongside the usual selection of waders. The inland water held thousands of American Coots, and it was also here that we lucked out on a Belted Kingfisher, completing the set for the trip.
Nearly a teenager |
Working our way inland along the 36 northbound it wasn't long before we arrived at our final birding destination, Brazos Bend State Park - more of a recreational area but a good mix of woodland and swamp habitat. With 141 species under the belt could we make that final push. After enjoying being shown a baby Alligator at the nature centre, we took one of the trails into the woodland. First up, high in the trees, was a vocal Red-bellied Woodpecker. Somehow Henry grasped that 150 meant a lot to his stupid father, and from here on in he transformed into bird-finder extraordinaire. He eeked out Carolina Wren, identified only from snatches and then referenced to the Sibley to get to the answer. A fantastic couple of hours followed as we found some feeding flocks in the scrub and tall trees, coaxing many down with earnest pishing - Magnolia Warbler, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse and White-eyed Vireo all gave themselves up, and with American Crow and Blue Jay added around the carpark we found we got there with ease in the end.
Cute now....but give it time! |
We walked around Elm Lake looking for the other whistling duck species but drew a blank - hundreds of the commoner one though. I surprised Henry with scope views of some truly impressive Alligators basking - he thought I was on a bird when I invited him to have a look! Compared to the small lizard we had petted in the visitor centre a few hours earlier.....wow! By now mid-afternoon we had to head back to the car as it would have been poor to have missed our flight home, and the airport was around the other side of Houston which is so massive that I could forsee it taking some time. This proved to be spot on, and an extremely late lunch later we joined the frankly ridiculous traffic rotating around America's fourth largest city.
One mall stop later for some final clothes shopping we pointed our car towards George Bush Intercontinental. Houston in rush hour is to be avoided, but then again an 8pm flight out is pretty ideal really and we made it with a little time to spare and settled down for nice sleep on one of the newest Dreamliners...
In retrospect it felt like we did a lot of driving, though if you want to bird the Rio Grande Valley then Austin and Houston are the nearest international points of entry and they're several hundred miles away so you have no choice. I suppose therefore that this is mostly down to the extremely short length of our trip - four days is not a lot when you have that much ground to cover. No matter where I go I always feel like I want an extra day, and no doubt this still would have been true had I organised a five day trip to Texas. But this is what I do - I would prefer to have three short trips than one long one, but also it is far easier for me to squeeze in multiple short trips than it would be to be away from home for long stretches at a time, even if it all evens out in the end.
Trip list = 150
Friday 23 December 2016
Texas - Day 3
We woke up refreshed and looking forward to
our next foray along the Rio Grande. Checking out of our hotel quite early we
made our way the short distance to Bentsen Rio Grande Valley State Park. This is
a big reserve, and whilst you can walk it, it is not really the American way –
believe it or not there is a shuttle that runs loops. We decided to take one of
these but to first spend a bit of time birding around the impressive visitor
centre. This was excellent, with another top target Altimira Oriole found in the
trees here – found by Henry. There were plenty of Plain Chachalacas around too,
and of course lots of Hummingbirds and a variety of other small birds. The
ubiquitous Orange-crowned Warbler, and quite a few Blue-gray Gnatcatchers. After
exhausting the possibilities here a friendly ranger drove us on the shuttle
around to the Hawk Observation Tower, and it was on this short drive that we
managed to bump into a Roadrunner, a bird I was keen that Henry see given his
enjoyment of the eponymous cartoons. He commented that the bird wasn’t
quite as blue and orange. Quite.
At the Hawk Tower, an impressive structure,
we met a volunteer on raptor-watch duties, and he helped us get on to various
spiraling and gliding birds headed south into Mexico. Loads of vultures,
Broad-winged Hawk, an Osprey and a few others, although unfortunately the local
Gray Hawk did not make an appearance. Another Altimira Oriole here, and a Long-billed Thrasher feeding around the base of the tower. All too soon however it was time
to go – we had a monster drive back up to somewhere between Corpus Christi and
Houston. We stopped for lunch briefly at a packed Mexican eatery in Edinburg
where the menus were exclusively in Spanish – one of the best meals we had all
trip – and then we hit the road.
There is something about US road trips that is very enjoyable despite the distances involved, I cannot quite put my finger on it. I think it is just a fundamental part of the American experience. We had good music (or what I call good music!) and as you don’t exactly travel fast we could look for birds as we went, stopping whenever we saw something interesting. Our route was the 69 North to Falfurrias, and then “Raptor Alley” (285) east to Riviera. This did not disappoint, with several White-tailed Hawks and various other birds of prey . Then we rejoined the 77 up to Corpus Christi and passing the USS Lexington headed across the bay towards Aransas NWR, our late afternoon birding stop.
Aransas is some distance from the main road,
as you have to track across small country roads to the coast, or rather the
inner coast – the gulf of Mexico is behind the barrier island of Matagorda at
this point. The place was near empty at this time of day and we headed over to
the amazing observation tower that overlooks Mustang Lake. As we approached the
tower we could see lots of black shapes on the top – Turkey Vultures! Deserted,
they were using it as a huge roost and it was covered in both birds and bird
droppings! As we climbed up the long zig-zags that raise you above the tree line
the birds gradually flapped off, and then to our delight they simply started
cruising around the tower. Birding was momentarily forgotten and the cameras
came out. Although we had taken cameras, generally what happens on exploratory
trips like this is that photography comes a distant second, a few grab shots as
I go but nothing more as I’m much more keen to see stuff and to get a decent
list going. So it was nice to have a half hour session devoted entirely to
seeing what I could get on film, and the light was gorgeous. The wind wasn’t
quite right for banking shots, but with perseverance I got a few nice ones – not
that vultures are the nicest of subjects but sometimes that doesn’t matter. As
the sun set and the birds settled down on other roosting sites we had a quick
scan of Mustang lake – lots of Egrets as you would expect, but we were too early
for the Whooping Cranes.
Our destination for the night was Lake
Jackson, south of Houston near the coast, so we still had some distance to go,
well over 100 miles. I think we did around 350 miles in total so we didn’t
arrive until mid evening. We stocked up on chicken wings at a total dive of a
sports bar before gratefully hitting the sack. Final day
tomorrow!
Trip List = 134
Monday 19 December 2016
Best Twitch 2016
Once again it is the time
of the year for “best ofs”. Fillers, as they are known. This comes as welcome
relief for those like me who occasionally struggle for something to say and
instead say silent…. In the past I’ve sometimes done the whole lot in one hit – the year in review if
you like, but in 2014 I gave up on that approach. I think even then I was
struggling, and so when my carefully constructed post at the end of 2013 sank
without trace I couldn’t be bothered to do it again. For the last two years I’ve
instead broken it out into several posts, best bird and so on. These mostly sank
without trace too but just recently I’ve begun to detect a minor improvement in
blogging conditions, a bit more community spirit rising to the surface perhaps,
so I’m going to give it one more go.
Let’s start with the
best twitch, seeing as 2016 has been a mega year for rare birds and I’ve seen absolutely
loads. Oh wait…. Talk about a pointless exercise! I’ve been on precisely two
twitches all year, well three if you count the Lanceolated Warbler on Shetland but I didn't have much choice on that one. An exercise in futility in many ways but here goes. So one was
a day trip in fabulous fall conditions up to Spurn. The other saw me drive out
to the Essex coast mid-morning and be back for lunch.
Both have
their positives and negatives. If you view twitching as stupid, fundamentally
lacking in skill and having little to do with birding, then the Essex Forster’s
Tern was in many ways the perfect twitch. A leisurely start waiting on
news, not very far away, easy parking, bird on view more or less immediately
and showing quite well, smash and grab. And dull as ditch water. Completely and
utterly boring, a tick in a box. The only way it could have been less
fulfilling would have been if it had been a distant blob. I mean I like seeing
new birds as much as the next guy, but really? Twitching is a mug’s game if this is what it is reduced
to. I drove, I saw. Hmmm. And many of the birds that I have twitched I have often seen far far better abroad. As the years go by this is probably the reason why I
am twitching less and less. And I just gave up my bird news subscription if that is
any indication of what 2017 holds.
Forster's Tern, Mistley Quay, Essex. Oh no, my mistake, Florida. |
The Siberian Accentor
at Spurn was in many ways the exact opposite, leaving at midnight and driving miles through the night
on no news. Generally this is not my preferred approach – for starters I need
more sleep than in the past, and then there is always the risk of a massive
dip. And whilst I generally react to big dips with nothing more with a shrug of
the shoulders, I’d prefer not to be in that situation. I know you have to be in
it to win it, but with no interest in winning I’d rather not be in it really.
Anyway, all that is irrelevant because I went. I do not know why, but I went. The
bird was there of course, but the day is memorable for entirely different
reasons. In fact the twitch element of it was bloody awful if I am honest. It
was still dark when we walked through the village, and it just does not feel
right parking up in front of peoples’ houses in the still of the night, getting
out to stretch legs, have a cup of coffee and so on. If I looked out of my window in the middle of the night I
would not want to see throngs of people walking down the street, or waiting
outside what passes for my front garden. The closing of car doors, the hum of
chatter, imagine if – as must be inevitable – you woke somebody up? None of
that matters though, seeing the bird is all that counts, no?
Anyway, rounding a corner
at 5am and in the dark to find the Dull Men of Great Britain Convention in full swing was a bit
of a shock, if not entirely surprising. The behaviour was less of a shock, and
whilst it didn’t reach the lows of the Dusky Thrush grave-trampling, there is
something about large crowds of desperate birders that sits very uncomfortably
with me. I want to see the bird, but I don’t want to be part of the crowd. Part
of it is self-preservation - I don’t want to be crushed, especially as I appear
to be so fragile these days (MRI scan last week, two X-ray scans already this
week and it is only Monday. Don’t ask….). I don’t want to be tarred by
any accusations of being involved in habitat destruction, trampling, lack of decorum etc. And I also don’t want to be part of
a group of people embarrassing themselves, even though simply being there is
embarrassing enough. So as usual I hung back, unwilling to be part of the
surging mass. One day this will cost me a bird I am sure, as the poor creature
does a bunk immediately, freaked out by the wall of humanity* rushing towards
it, but I just can’t deal with it. That first 90 minutes of waiting slightly removed
from the ever-swelling crowd ranks as a 2016 low, and the hysteria triggered by
the first sighting, or what people understood was a sighting but probably wasn’t
– well you had to be there to believe it.
Thankfully the rest of
the day was a lot better. We birded Spurn in fabulous conditions, with birds
falling out of the sky all around us. We saw nothing overly noteworthy, more decent quantities of good, but it
was bloody brilliant and was topped off when Sam finally saw a Little Bunting.
To be there for that moment was very special, and the day is memorable for good company and superb birding. None
of this really had much to do with the twitch, albeit that without the presence
of a rare bird I wouldn’t have been there. It therefore feels silly to award
this the much coveted title of Best Twitch of 2016, but in the absence of
contenders… Tell you what, let’s call it a draw. Or more realistically, no winner
and so no award. Deferred until 2017. Or never.
*I am being generous….
Saturday 17 December 2016
Texas - Day 2
Day 2
This was one our key
birding day in the Rio Grande Valley, we had no travelling to do and could spend
the entire day out birding. So that’s what we did! We started in the dark – my
poor boy is very understanding – at Estero Llano Grande State Park, hearing all
sorts of wonderful sounds on the Green Jay Nature Trail but not knowing what they were. We did
manage to get a glimpses of Hermit Thrush and Clay-coloured Thrush, and gradually a lot of
rustling resolved itself into Plain Chachalacas moving with remarkable
nimbleness though the low scrubby trees – I had been expecting to see them only
on the ground like Turkeys. We also got really good views of White-tipped Dove
here, but the highlight was the enormous Ringed Kingfisher that flew over with a
huge rattling call in the half-light. Truly impressive.
Once it got fully light
we crossed over to the main side of the road to the visitor centre – what we had
failed to notice in the dark were the unbelievable swarms of ants. Tiny and
non-biting, nonetheless the sheer numbers were staggering – there must have been
millions, they covered every square inch of ground and that is not an
exaggeration. We later learned that they were an invasive species from South
America that were on a steady march across the Gulf Coast.
Now 8am, we mucked about
watching the hummingbird feeders for a while before joining a volunteer-led tour
as we felt this would allow us to see more. Estero Llano is a relatively new
site, but as it has so many diverse areas of habitat the site list is already
very large. We had identified this as a good place to go based primarily on
eBird sightings lists and indeed it was one of the regular contributors who was
leading the walk. We were not wrong, and as there were only five of us it was a
really nice experience and we added heaps of species. Starting off at the
Visitor Centre and then the walking around the lake added lots of
wildfowl including Cinnamon Teal, waders including Stilt Sandpiper (a bird I’d
only ever seen in the UK), Lesser Yellowlegs and Least Sandpiper, as well as a
Sora, a pair of Vermillion Flycatchers, and a Black Phoebe.
At the furthest lake we scanned for Alligators and
Kingfishers but got neither which was a shame – unlucky apparently as most often
you get the Ringed and the Green on this lake. Lots of Yellow-crowned Night
Herons roosting in the trees at the western end of Alligator Lake though, and a fantastically
cryptic Common Parauque at a known roosting spot. Moving up the path and south alongside Dowitcher Pond we were treated to immense flocks of Black-bellied
whistling Ducks on the Llano, perhaps three hundred in total, as well as a number of American
Pelicans.
Back down the levee and we were in yet more different habitat
– Lincoln Sparrows in a grassy field alongside the Spoonbill Trail, and lots of Warblers including a
magnificent Yellow-rumped Warbler and more Orange-crowned. Once back at the
visitor centre I left Henry at the Hummingbird feeders so he could get some
photos, and I continued back to where we started on the other side of the road.
I was glad that I did as we picked up both Tropical and Couch’s Kingbird here,
another Parauque, and had excellent views of Green Jay and more Chachalacas here
at some stocked feeders. Talking of which, be aware that if you travel in
October as we did, many of the feeding stations are not yet in operation, and as
such – not that it is difficult to find many of the birds – the mind-blowing
views of Orioles and Jays that you hear talked-of down by the Rio Grande at
places like Salineno are not on the cards. There is a birding festival at the
beginning of November, by which time they are all in full swing. I am
half-planning a return trip in December next year, so I will let you
know!
"McCall's" Eastern Screech Owl |
Green Jay |
Our next stop was a Denny’s for another monster breakfast. Henry demolished this and then had some pancakes to fill up. Oh to have that metabolism again. With breakfast done it was on to the next birding spot, a delightful reserve called Frontera Audubon Thicket, a wooded lot seemingly in the middle of suburbia. This too was excellent, and thankfully here we had excellent views of Green Kingfisher, probably the most difficult of the three US species. The reserve is extremely well designed, loads of cover but equally loads of open areas with feeders, and deckchairs and benches set up for visiting birders. Henry and I chose one of these and sat down for a little while to aid digestion, and watched a succession of interesting birds come in a visit the feeders. The best of these was a Golden-fronted Woodpecker that stayed for close to twenty minutes and gave great views.
With the day running out already, or that’s what it felt
like, we headed to Santa Ana NWR to see what new birds we could find. First on
the list were two Northern Jacanas, present on two of the different lakes, but
alas we couldn’t find them. We did however enjoy some of the most memorable
birding of the trip whilst a small flock of warblers came through, attracted by
our pishing of an Orange-crowned Warbler. We added all sorts here, probably more
small birds than we had seen combined, with Black-and-White Warbler, Nashville Warbler and Blue-grey Gnatcatcher. The trails took us alongside the Rio Grande so we were literally a stone's throw from Mexico - the closest I have ever been. We added another Green Kingfisher on one of the lakes, and watched a number of Wood Stork coming in to roost - the light was just starting to fade and a great day was nearly over.
So what better than a side trip to Mexico for a country tick? Only a mile of so down the road was the Donna Rio Bravo border crossing. We weren't quite sure whether this was sensible or not but really what could possibly go wrong? Seeing the immense jam of cars trying to get back into the US, we left the car in America and headed towards the bridge. A disinterested security guard let us through and we simply walked across the bridge and into Mexico. At the other side nobody at all was interested in seeing our passports so we had a poke around, attempted a conversation in spanish, and then turned around and came back. We walked past all the queuing cars and were then beckoned over to a booth by one of the CBP guys who I don't think had ever seen anyone on foot before. I don't think he was impressed, but we were let back in and went back to our hotel for a swim followed by lobster tacos.
Trip list = 122
So what better than a side trip to Mexico for a country tick? Only a mile of so down the road was the Donna Rio Bravo border crossing. We weren't quite sure whether this was sensible or not but really what could possibly go wrong? Seeing the immense jam of cars trying to get back into the US, we left the car in America and headed towards the bridge. A disinterested security guard let us through and we simply walked across the bridge and into Mexico. At the other side nobody at all was interested in seeing our passports so we had a poke around, attempted a conversation in spanish, and then turned around and came back. We walked past all the queuing cars and were then beckoned over to a booth by one of the CBP guys who I don't think had ever seen anyone on foot before. I don't think he was impressed, but we were let back in and went back to our hotel for a swim followed by lobster tacos.
Trip list = 122
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