South Padre Island & Last Days at Bentsen

 

We took a day trip with friends to South Padre Island and stopped at the Birding Center.

This Mangrove Warbler was setting up nesting near the boardwalk.

Tricolored Heron preening small feather in beak

Nuptial blue bill of the Tricolored Heron

White Ibis on the hunt

Nuptial facial colors of White Ibis

Green Heron arranging nests sticks

Green Heron incubating eggs

A stop at Sheepshead feeders

Northern Parula

Northern Parula feasts on oranges

Conference Center low tide sand flats - Least Tern

Sandwich Terns

Caspian Tern

Black-necked Stilts

Ruddy Turnstone

Surfbird is a rare visitor to South Padre Island

Surfbird was a life bird for our friends, Gene & Janice

Bentsen State Park - final observations from hawk tower for Spring season

White-tailed Kite

Mississippi Kites roost overnight in Rio Grande riparian trees

Mississippi Kites shift to tops of tree canopy preparing for lift-off

Mississippi Kites lift off at dawn seeking thermals or wind to kettle up in migration

We have had over 8,200 kites this Spring.

Wood Storks migrating

Bloodsucking Conenose - "kissing bug"

Feed on human and mammal blood

Targets lips, ears, eyelids = itching, swelling and severe allergic reactions.

Due to preference of rodent and pack rat nests which are bacteria and virus carriers.

Little Blue Heron juvenile in transition from white to all blue.

Lesser Nighthawk day roosts parallel on tree limb

Lesser Nighthawk, always alert, checks surroundings

Clay Colored Thrush singing on territory at Bentsen Palm RV Park.

Sounds a lot like his cousin the American Robin

One of several Yellow-billed Cuckoos heard and seen at the RV park.

Northern Mockingbird catches a butterfly.

Female Great Horned Owl stretches leg and wing.

Long day watching over fledged owlets.

This fledgling is now six weeks old and flying between trees.

Banded Gray Hawk Adult 

Crested Caracara in cattle pasture adjacent to RV Park

Loggerhead Shrike nesting in hedgerow

Gulf Coast Toad

Great Kiskadee gathering nesting material

Kiskadee egg broken via severe storm

Storm Damage, two days in a row.

Damage from 60 mph winds, torrential rain and hail

Lightning strikes three Palm trees

Burns and splits bark and causes power outage both days.

Major cleanup effort underway.

But God provides His/our sunshine for a new day and start to our next adventure.

Love & Prayers,

Ty & Ida Baumann

Sounds & sights at Bentsen

 

Birds of Bentsen Palm Village RV Park

Hooded Oriole male

Hooded Oriole female

Great Horned Owlets are growing fast

Great Horned Owlet feathering out and where is owlet #1?

Here's #1.   Flew the coop!

Black-bellied Whistling Ducks in daily flight to cattle yard feeding trough.

God's creatures punctuate Ty's daily two and a half mile mile pray/praise hike to the hawk tower.

Common Pauraque

Gulf Coast Toads

Chuck-Wills-Widow

Plain Chachalacas at dawn

From the tower, some of 70+ bird species.

Plain Chachalacas perched high.

Dawn fog in Rio Grande Valley

This Northern Mockingbird is entertaining us with his bird impressions.

We have recognized 8 to 12 different bird songs to date.

Scissors-tailed Flycatchers are in full migration

Scissors-tailed hawking for insects - what a showman!

Olive Sparrow collecting nesting materal below the hawk tower

Verdin is nesting nearby

Two male Cowbirds - Bronzed on top, Brown-headed below

Bronzed Cowbird - all puffed up

Brown-crested Flycatcher

Couch's Kingbird

Hawk migration has been exceptional with over 185,000 raptors so far,  a record high.

Swainson's Hawk

Swainson's comes in low over the tower

Broad-winged Hawk

Broad-wings comprised 43,000 in one morning.

Another one!

Dark morph Broad-winged

After 34 days of no show, the Hook-billed Kites returned

Fun to see them again,

Sharp-shinned Hawk

Mississippi Kites have finally arrived!

A banded Harris's Hawk 

Harris's Hawks are local residents

Great Kiskadee

Kiskadee's basketball sized nest

Altamira Oriole

Altamira Oriole nest hangs two feet down and decorated with red ribbon

10" Cane Toad with engorged wood tick on it's back

Dew laced Spider web anchored on tower

Leaf-footed Bug

Raccoon hunting in recent rain filled depressions below tower.

Another week to go before we start heading north. 

Looking forward to what God has in store for us next.

Love & Prayers,

Ty & Ida Baumann