Second Time is the Charm for Eared Grebe in Tennessee, September 28, 2022

In January 2022 I chased after an Eared Grebe in the northeast corner of TN at South Holston Lake.  The bird had been seen nearly daily for 2 weeks, and was reported 2 days before my trip.  So I was optimistic about my chances.  But it turned out that the last time the Grebe was spotted was indeed 2 days before I made the drive to TN.  Despite lots of searching I was the first person to come up empty on the Grebe.

So when reports of an Eared Grebe started to show up in September 2022 just west of Knoxville they really caught my attention.  The bird was at quite a small lake on the campus of Pellissippi State Community College in Knox County.  It was first reported on September 10 and continued to be seen on a daily basis.  I wasn’t too worried about chasing after it right away since vagrant Eared Grebes are often long-staying birds.  Then again, the South Holston Lake bird only stayed for 2 weeks, so I probably shouldn’t wait too long. 

I finally cleared my calendar to chase after the bird on September 28, and started to make my plans for the trip.  I also needed several migrant passerines for my TN state list, so I searched for migrant hotspots near the Community College that I could stop at while in the area.  A nearby eBird hotspot called Sharp’s Ridge had nearly daily reports of migrants, and was generally on my way back home, so I decided to give that one a try.  Although it would likely be best to look for the migrants in the early morning, my key target was the Eared Grebe.  So I decided to first look for the Grebe as my top priority bird, then try for the passerines afterwards if time allowed.

I was out of the house before 6 on the 28th, and pulled into the campus of Pellissippi State Community College about 8:15.  The small lake was right in front of me as I parked in one of the large parking lots (luckily no parking permits were needed).

I got out of the car and quickly scanned the lake with my binoculars.  There were a few Canada Geese and a number of domestic Muscovy Ducks, but no Grebe.  I scanned again but once again came up empty.  Several of the recent reports mentioned that the Grebe would dive frequently so I tried to remain optimistic.  Though with each additional negative scan I couldn’t help but remember my failed search for this same species in TN back in January.  Finally on one of my scans I briefly spotted a bird near the northeast end of the lake just a fraction of a second before it dove.  Was it the Grebe?  I trained my binocs at that end of the lake for several seconds until a bird finally popped up to the surface – it was indeed the Eared Grebe.

The Grebe continued to feed at that far end of the lake, so I walked around for a closer look.  Eventually the bird stopped diving and swam quite close to shore.  I got these passable “digi-binned” shots of my target bird. 

My statebird map for Eared Grebe is inserted below.  The blue-shaded states are those where I’ve seen this species in its regular range; cross-hatched MO is the last one in its regular range where I have not yet seen it.  And now TN is the 8th eastern state (shaded in brown) where I’ve seen Eared Grebe as a rarity.  It was #253 for my TN state list.

The Grebe continued at the community college stay at least through October 4.  Like I said – no need to rush after it. 

I only stayed at the college for a few minutes – after all there were other birds to chase after.  Next I headed to Sharp’s Ridge for some migrants.  My most likely target was Gray-cheeked Thrush which was seen there a number of times recently, including the previous day.  One recent report had Gray-cheeked and other thrushes at a fruiting black gum tree by “the ranger’s house”. 

I pulled into the park just before 9:30 and after a bit of driving found what was likely the ranger’s house.  And about 150 ft away found the fruiting black gum tree and it was indeed full of activity.  I spent at least 60 minutes watching the tree as numerous thrushes and mimids came in to feed including – Mockingbirds, Robins, Catbirds, Thrashers, and Bluebirds.  Eventually I spotted a couple Catharus thrushes but they were just Swainson’s.  I wandered around the park a bit and ended up with a respectable tally of 10 warbler species, but couldn’t come up with a Gray-cheeked.  At least the views from the ridge were nice.

 Oh well, it gives me a reason to come back to TN during fall passerine migration.

Five “Low Hanging Fruit” in South Carolina, September 2020

One of my objectives for fall migration in 2020 was to focus on filling some gaps in my SC list.  Even after a year living in the area, I still had a number of “low hanging fruit” to pursue – birds that were regular migrants or residents that I just hadn’t been lucky enough to run into yet.  And now that I had nearly exhausted expected new statebirds in western NC, I could devote more time in SC during the upcoming fall season.

My first fall trip to SC was on 9/6, which actually began with a stop in NC at Guion Farm in the DuPont State Forest to meet up with Bill and Anita Hooker.  Red Crossbills had been reliable there for at least a couple months.  And since the site is just a short distance from the SC line, after some fun birding with Bill and Anita, I could head 20 minutes south from there into SC.  The Crossbills turned out to be most cooperative, with our first heard bird within minutes of our arrival.  After an hour we had multiple birds in site overhead and perched in nearby pines, as well as calling overhead and in the treetops.  Excellent observations of a local rarity. 

Then it was on to SC!  One of the species I heard on each of my 3 trips to Guion Farm this year was the Red-breasted Nuthatch.  I still needed that one for SC, principally because there were virtually none around the region the previous winter.  But since they were regular at Guion Farm, surely they should be in similar habitat just a few miles away in SC, right?  The problem was finding accessible suitable high elevation habitat in SC.  First of all, the elevation dropped off quickly once you crossed into SC, so higher elevation habitat was limited.  In this part of the state there was just a 3-mile stretch of US 276 from the stateline to Ceasars Head State Park that was at elevation.  And even though there were a couple trails in the area, they were in deciduous woodlands not typically appealing to a Red-breasted Nuthatch.  So my strategy to look for the Nuthatch was to pull-off on the side of 276 wherever I could find conifers – assuming it was safe to do so.

The first possible roadside location was literally right at the stateline where YMCA Camp Rd. intersected with 276.  Less than 20 minutes after leaving Guion Farm I reached the SC border and pulled onto the shoulder of the YMCA road.  There were several pine trees to the west so I was hopeful.  And sure enough within just a minute I heard the “toot toot toot” of a Red-breasted Nuthatch.  But which state was it in?  I listened more closely and heard the bird call again, allowing me to pinpoint exactly which direction it was calling from.  Now I had to find out where the stateline was.  I opened my GoogleMaps app and figured out how the line passed through the area.  The bird was indeed calling from SC, but no more than perhaps 50 ft from the stateline, and just 6 miles from Guion Farm “as the nuthatch flies”.  Success!

In my statebird map below, the blue-shaded states are those where I’ve seen Red-breasted Nuthatch.  The 4 cross-hatched states are the last ones where I’ve yet to see it.  Although its regular throughout the continental US, it becomes rather rare in much in the southeast.

Another mile farther along the highway I made a stop at a spot labeled in GoogleMaps as “Greylogs Trail”.  This is a short gravel road and parking lot for a trail that was apparently never developed.  As luck would have it, I had a calling Red Nut here as well – needless to say I didn’t need to worry about where the stateline was to conclude that this one was also a SC bird.

Next stop was Ceasars Head State Park, and specifically the overlook there.  This is THE spot for Peregrine Falcon in the Upstate region of SC, as they are reliable at this location year-round.  But I had been here 3 prior times looking for a Peregrine without success.  Though in all fairness 2 of those times the mountain was fogged in.  Today the weather was great, so fog wouldn’t be an issue.  As I arrived at the parking lot I found that most of the lot was closed off, apparently to limit crowds on this Labor Day weekend during these days of Covid.  And there was just 1 open parking space – maybe my luck was looking up.  I parked in that last space and made my way over to the observation point to start my hawk watch. 

The hawk watch was pretty slow, with just a Red-shouldered and a Broad-winged Hawk passing by as likely migrants.  A young Red-tail and a couple Turkey Vultures circled below as presumably local birds.  After an hour I thought that maybe I should call it quits and try for the Peregrine another time.  But then I realized that conditions that day were ideal – not only was there great visibility, but also I had the observation point almost completely to myself.  And since I was free the rest of the afternoon, I decided to stay longer (I’m still trying to figure out how to take advantage of all my free time in retirement).  Another 30 minutes passed and I spotted the Red-tail again.  And just then a Peregrine passed by below me, starting to harass the Red-tail.  It would repeatedly dive bomb the bird, giving loud cackling calls the entire time.  Quite the show which lasted at least 5 minutes.  After 3 unsuccessful tries to see the Peregrine, I guess I was due for a cooperative bird.  Interestingly, all the raptors were below me at the overlook – a notable point for future visits.

Nice to get 2 new statebirds in the same day.  And SC was my 40th state for Peregrine.

 My next trip to SC came on 9/8 with a trip to Bunched Arrowhead Heritage Preserve in Travelers Rest with Gary Harbour.  This was my first trip to this spot – sure wish I had been there before.  This 178-acre site has excellent diverse habitats, including various ages of successional fields, upland deciduous woodlands, and swamplands.  Gary showed me around the site visiting each of the habitats, including seeing the namesake endangered Bunched Arrowhead (which is a plant and has nothing to do with a group of Native American artifacts).  We were especially hoping for a few early migrants, which unfortunately were few and far between.  But I was lucky enough to get several glimpses of a less-than-cooperative warbler that turned out to be a Blackburnian – the last “easy” warbler I still needed in SC.

And speaking of “easy” warblers, I now have Blackburnian throughout the east except for VA and DE, and for several states in the Great Plains along the western edge of its migration range.  I’ve also seen this species in CA as a rarity.

My last two SC low hanging fruit in September came while participating in the Greenville County Fall Migration Count on 9/19.  My assigned territory consisted of the same sites I covered in the Spring Migration Count.  I started both counts at dawn in the Greenville Watershed which is an amazing area of extensive upland deciduous woodlands.  On my trips there in spring and summer I’ve tallied very high numbers of woodland nesting species as I drove along the roads through the woods.  But given that I would be birding in deep woodlands rather than along wooded edges, I wasn’t sure how many migrants I might find.  My key target was Gray-cheeked Thrush which was being reported in the area at the time, principally as a pre-dawn migrant.  But since I wouldn’t be arriving till dawn, I may well be too late.  All things considered, I was hopeful but not terribly optimistic.

I arrived at the Greenville Watershed a few minutes before sunrise.  Although there were no longer birds still migrating overhead, there were already a number of call notes coming from the woods nearby.  One of the first birds I heard was a Swainson’s Thrush, and soon there were multiple Swainson’s giving their “pit” and “weep” calls increasing in pitch.  And then I heard the first thrush call note dropping in pitch.  I listened carefully and heard this call again – too short and not clear enough to be a Veery.  I had my first Gray-cheeked.  I guess I shouldn’t have been too worried since I heard 3 others calling from the understory on my next 2 stops.  Another example of a target bird that isn’t too unexpected at the right place and right time – the perfect example of “low hanging fruit”.  And although Gray-cheeked is a regular species in much of the eastern US, I haven’t been in that right place at the right time to see it as it migrated through quite a number of those states. 

As I approached dawn one of the first birds I actually saw was a cooperative Canada Warbler in brush along the roadside.  Weeks later I realized that I needed Canada for my SC statelist – an unexpected surprise that I hadn’t even targeted.  From my statebird map it looks like I need to make Canada Warbler a target in quite a number of states.  Though I did find one in WY years ago as just the 5th state record at the time. 

The 5 new low hanging fruit statebirds bring my SC list to 273.  Not bad for one month, even though they all were regular expected species. 

“But wait there’s more” as they say.  In September I also added 3 rarities for SC - check out my next blog post for a summary of these 3 less common species. 

First Trip to Newfoundland - June/July 2018 - 141 Species, Part 3 of 3

This is the third part of the summary of my birding trip to Newfoundland, detailing Days 9 through 11.  The prior two blog posts summarized the first 8 days of the trip.

Day 9 - June 29 – AM Partly Cloudy and up to 70; PM – cloudy and very windy, temps in the 50s

The day started at 4:30 AM with a pre-dawn attempt for Ptarmigans (and Short-ears) along the Cape St. Mary’s access road, but with no luck.  Though I did find a Merlin perched along the road. 

What to do next?  I still had 2 full days and a half day of birding time remaining on my trip, and would be concentrating on the Avalon Peninsula for birding both along the shorelines as well as with a few inland targets.  The weather was to be good on the 29^th, but was to be rainy and windy the next two days.  Given that forecast I decided to try to hit as many spots as possible on this day just in case conditions weren’t conducive for birding the next couple days.  And if the weather was OK, I could also stop at sites on more than one day, especially the coastal/seawatch sites. 

So since it was still early I decided to head to LaManche Provincial Park to try for Gary-cheeked Thrush.  This was my only key remaining passerine target for which early morning song could be helpful, so it was nice to get to the park at 7:45 that morning.  Recent sightings of Gray-cheek had been along the LaManche village access road (though not for more than 2 weeks), and also within the last week along the park entrance road.  I first spent some time along the entrance road without any luck, so I headed to the LaManche access road.  Luckily I ran into a local resident who explained where to go – first a long hike uphill along a steep gravel road, then a left hand turn onto a trail to the suspension bridge.  Once on the trail there was a fair amount of song, dominated by Yellow-bellied Flycatcher (6 singing birds), with a pair of Boreal Chickadees and a Pine Grosbeak.  I had walked at least a mile when I heard a bird giving some sharp chip notes that I didn’t recognize.  I did some pishing and although this bird never showed itself I started to hear a singing Gray-cheeked Thrush not too far off the trail.  (I’m glad I stopped to listen to the chipping bird)  The Thrush continued to sing off and on for the next 15 minutes, moving around a fair amount through the brushy woods, but unfortunately never in view.  In my 2 hour-long hike I only had 17 species, but one was my key target for this spot.

The next stop was at St. Michael’s a short distance to the north along the coast where there was a large nesting colony of Puffins and a smaller colony of Fulmars.  The nesting islands are just off-shore in this photo.

As soon as I pulled up I could see numerous Puffins flying about.  And then within seconds I picked out the first of several Fulmars soaring through the area.  That was easy.  I spent quite a bit of time continuing to watch these birds as they moved around the islands, along with Guillemots on the water below, and a fair number of Kittiwakes as well.  And during this time both an immature and adult Bald Eagle passed by, each escorted out of the area by gulls.

Next I had planned to head south to look for coastal birds.  But I was about 30 minutes south of a stakeout rare Eastern Kingbird, which had stayed at Gould’s Forest Pond for about a week.  It was unusual for a Kingbird to stick around so long, and since it was a rarity, I decided to head north to give it a try first before heading to the coast.  One post mentioned it was flycatching from “the rock where ducks often perch”, so when I pulled up and saw a rock near the western end of the pond with a Pintail perched on it, I thought I had the correct spot.  I got out and waited a few minutes but didn’t see the Kingbird.  Then I realized that maybe I wasn’t at the correct rock.  I looked to the southeast and noticed another rock in the water with more ducks perched on it.  I drove up to that rock and a family of Pintails was perched on that rock too.  Then I noticed several Waxwings flycatching in some nearby trees.  A couple seconds later I spotted the Eastern Kingbird flycatching along with them.  I got this phonescoped photo as it perched cooperatively with several of the Waxwings.

Next I headed south for some seabirding along the southern coastline of the Avalon Peninsula.  I was planning to be in the same areas tomorrow, but rain was forecasted so I thought it would be good to bird some of these same sites today as well.  Though I did make a quick stop in the town of Renews along the way where a feeding station was well-known to attract southern vagrants.  Most recently a male Ruby-throated Hummingbird had been a sporadic visitor.  I stayed at the feeders for about 30 minutes, but with no visits of the Hummer.  Though a pair of juvenile Red Crossbills was nice, along with a diverse collection of sparrows – Fox, Song, White-throated, and Savannah.

It was now mid-afternoon, and I didn’t have time for detailed stops at all my planned coastal spots.  Plus the weather was going downhill with strong winds and rain predicted for late in the day.  I decided to pass on a drive out to Cape Race - that one would have to wait till tomorrow.  Instead I headed to Portugal Cove South where recent reports had included a large flock of gulls including a Laughing Gull, along with several diving ducks.  As I arrived there was a flock of perhaps 150 Kittiwakes wheeling over  Portugal Cove Pond.  The flock then headed south out to the cove and all landed on the water.  Later they flew out to the open water, then returned to once again to fly as a flock over the pond, and then again to the Cove.  Interesting set of activities. 

Then I tried to position myself to look for seaducks in the cove.  The wind was really howling generally out of the south almost right in my face.  I could see a few ducks in the distance, but viewing conditions were pretty bad.  So I headed to the western side of the cove which was somewhat sheltered from the wind, and was able to scan the cove more effectively.  The best I could find was a small flock of Scoters in the distance, 4 of which I could ID as White-wings, but 6 stayed as Scoter, sp. 

Next I headed a short distance to the west to Biscay Bay for another shot at seaducks.  The orientation of this bay was a little different from the last one, and it was a bit more protected from the wind.  With scanning a lot easier, I picked out 6 different flocks of Scoters – with an exact count of 69 White-wings.  Plus one flock had a pair of male Black Scoters which were new for my Newfoundland list.  But the best bird was an all brown duck that really stood out in one of the scoter flocks.  The flock was distant and the birds were disappearing behind waves and diving, so viewing was difficult.  In the 5 minutes I watched this flock I could see that the bird was similar in size to the White-wings, brown bodied instead of black, had a pale chest, dark head, and pale bill.  It was most likely a young male King Eider.  In my native New England we often find a rare King Eider in with Scoter flocks rather than with Common Eiders.  Not sure if that is the experience in Newfoundland.

It was now getting late but I still had time for a stop at Trepassey just to the west of Biscay.  My first stop was in the protected harbor where a female Red Phalarope has been reported each of the last 2 days.  Unfortunately it had moved on – that’s too bad since that would have been an attractive bird to see.  A consolation was this Long-tailed Duck that was perched on a rock with a pair of Common Terns. 

 

Next my attention turned to the seabirds out on the open bay.  Luckily the bay was surprisingly protected from the wind, and the waters were actually quite calm.  Far off to the east I thought I could see a Red-throated Loon, but it was really distant.  So I took a walk along the shoreline to the east at the bottom of Fanny’s Pond.  Now that I was much closer I not only had a good view of the basic plumaged Red-throated I likely saw earlier, but also 2 others in nearly full alternate plumage.  Plus I found a male Common Eider swimming with a pair of Long-tailed Ducks close to shore. 

It was starting to rain a bit, and it was closing in on dinner time, so I decided to call it quits.  Happy with my additions to bring my Newfoundland list up to 137, covering 5.2 miles on foot with 12,400 steps.

Day 10 - June 30 – Dense fog, strong winds, and rain south; cloudy and fog north, highs in the 50s

The forecast was for lots of rain and strong southerly winds for the entire day.  Not the best weather for a day of coastal birding.  But rather than getting depressed about the prospects of birding in the rain, I was instead trying to stay upbeat about the possibilities of the bad weather causing seabird fallouts on the south facing coast.  However, there was one additional factor not in the forecast that I couldn’t prepare for – dense fog.  As I left my B&B in the early morning it was drizzling a bit with a few patches of fog.  But as I got closer to the coast the fog got thicker, and thicker.  On the coast visibility was just a few feet – here are a couple pictures when the fog had actually lifted a bit. 

 

Needless to say not conducive for seawatches.  Stops at Trepassey, Biscay, and Portugal Cove South were basically worthless.  I even tried driving down St. Schott Rd. but hardly saw a single bird in the reduced visibility.

Next I tried Cape Race, but the results were just the same.  I saw one Pipit in the parking lot at the lighthouse, and 2 Least Sandpipers sitting on the road along the way.  So much for hoping to see Short-eared Owls or Ptarmigans.  Around lunchtime I found myself sitting in the lighthouse parking lot in the wind and fog feeling pretty sorry for myself.  Just then a car pulled up and the driver was trying to get my attention.  He said he was Cliff the lighthouse keeper, and was inviting me to his house for lunch.  He said he had just fixed a turkey dinner!  I followed Cliff back to the house and had a very nice dinner – obviously much better than the PB&J I was planning on.  It turned out that Cliff was also a birder, and he could see seabirds flying by right from the house (when it wasn’t foggy that is).  He said he had the province’s first records of Common Swift and Cave Swallow from this spot.  If only the weather conditions were better that day.

The weather wasn’t forecasted to change any time soon, so I thanked Cliff for his hospitality and starting driving north in hopes that I could get out of the fog.  The weather did indeed improve remarkably, and I decided to try yet again at the Renews feeding station.  With lots of extra time on my hands I stayed more than an hour, but again struck out on the Hummingbird. 

During my planning efforts I had noticed a road headed east out of Renews ending at Bear Cove Point.  There were a couple eBird posts from this site, and the weather had improved quite a bit, so I thought I’d give it a try.  Visibility was actually pretty good, though it was raining a bit.  So with the rain suit on I was able to spend a good 90 minutes doing a seawatch from the point.  There was a steady movement of both Puffins and large alcids flying south, though almost all the dark alcids were too far out to ID.  Plus there were Guillemots and a few Razorbills feeding near the coast.  That was all nice, but what I was really hoping for was storm-tossed Storm-Petrels, or Manx Shearwaters – realistically the last seabirds I could hope to add to my list.  I had one Great Shearwater fly north, which was promising.  Then I noticed 4 Shearwaters flying south quite close.  Even before getting them in the scope I could see they were one uniform color above and had rapid wingbeats – Manx Shearwaters.  A nice addition.  By the end of my seawatch I estimated 100 Puffins and 400 large alcids passed by, along with 25 Guillemots, 1 Great Shearwater, and of course the 4 Manx.

Manx was the only new bird for my Newfoundland list that day, now at 138.  And given that most of the day I was in my car trying to cut the fog with a knife, I only walked 2.3 miles.

Day 11 – July 1 – Partly cloudy, highs in the 50s

My flight out of St. John’s was at 2 PM, so I had the morning to bird in the area.  I had very few targets remaining, and all were long shots.  So I thought I’d be lucky to add anything to my province list, but of course wanted to give it a try.  The first was an adult Purple Gallinule that had been seen rather unreliably along a suburban stream in Waterford Valley.  But it hadn’t been seen for 10 days so I wasn’t optimistic.  I gave it about 90 minutes searching several possible locations along the creek with no success.

My next target was Tufted Duck.  A male had been reported in Burton’s Pond 10 days earlier, but within a couple minutes after I arrived at this small pond I could see that the bird was no longer present.  A couple weeks earlier one was reported several times from Kent’s Pond and nearby Kenny’s Pond, so that was my next option.  I pulled up to Kent’s Pond and quickly spotted a group of 5 diving ducks in the distance.  With a quick binocular view the first thing I noticed was the peaked head of a Lesser Scaup – a nice rarity and addition to my list.  Then through the scope I noticed that one of the birds was a male Tufted Duck.  Along with 3 Greaters, I had 3 Aythya species together.  No Ring-necks in site though. 

The last stop was to try for rare Killdeer at Stick Pond.  A pair had been reported there over 3 weeks earlier but only that one time this year on eBird.  I pulled up to a horse pasture just before getting to the pond and did a quick scan – no Killdeer.  But then I heard a Killdeer calling from behind me, followed by a second bird.  They were calling from another pasture that wasn’t visible from Stick Pond Road, so I headed back to Logy Bay Road and pulled up to a horse barn giving me a view of that field.  Within a few seconds I had the pair calling again, and one landed in a field right in front of me.  Here’s a picture of the bird taken by holding my phone up to my binocs.

What a nice way to end my trip – my 141^st species for Newfoundland.  Perhaps fittingly, as I neared the airport the fog rolled in and the temps dropped to the mid 40s.  That’s July in Newfoundland I guess.

The Trip by the Numbers

• 141 total species in Newfoundland, including finding a bunch of rarities, headlined by a Sandwich Tern, plus multiple stakeouts.  To think I only expected about 96 species.
• Found 95 of the 96 species that I thought were “likely” – I only missed Sharp-shinned Hawk – amazing!
• 19 warbler species, with the most common being 58 Yellows, 56 Black-and-whites, 44 Northern Waterthrushes, 40 Magnolias, and 40 Black-throated Greens.
• 96 Yellow-bellied Flycatchers – likely more than I’ve ever seen in all my 51 years of birding combined!
• 0 species on St. Pierre as that part of my trip was canceled
• 7 new Canada species – total now at 376
• 1,488 ATPAT – sum of my total ticks in the Canadian Provinces
• 4 of days with heavy rain, often strong winds, very dense fog, and even one day when it snowed heavily enough that the roads were slushy.  Often requiring me to vary my plans to do landbirding when it wasn’t raining (or at least not raining very hard), and bird from the car when the conditions were the worst.
• 61.2 miles and 144,600 steps walked.
• 4,000 kilometers driven (2,500 miles) – I had to cover a lot of area.  At least my rental car was a hybrid getting 5.7 L/100 km (or 41.5 mpg if I did the math right)
   
  Once again many thanks to Alvan Buckley and Jared Clarke for their help on a most successful trip to Newfoundland!

Four Migrant Passerine Statebirds, Galveston, TX, April 2016

My typical routine of late in preparing for my monthly business trips to Houston is to set up a Needs Alert in eBird to see if there might be a statebird or two I could try for locally.  And with my next trip coinciding with migration season in late April, the Needs Alert listed quite a number of passerines seen near Houston that I still needed for my TX list.  Usually I can squeeze in a little birding time in the early morning or evening to check out a local hotspot or two, so I was optimistic that I might add at least one or two new birds to my list on this upcoming trip. 

But then as this trip neared several of my meetings were cancelled, freeing up an entire morning.  That would give me enough time to head a bit farther afield.  So now I started thinking about whether I had time to head to the coast to visit some of the key TX migrant traps – something I’ve never done before.  With some eBird research I found a couple places on Galveston Island where quite a number of my targets were being seen on an almost daily basis.  Perhaps the best spot was Lafitte’s Cove, which was just over an hour’s drive from Houston.  I could take the morning off, leave Houston pre-dawn to arrive at Lafitte’s Cove at first light, bird the island throughout the morning, and still get back to Houston by just after lunch.  And although migration is always variable, I thought that even an average day could net a few new statebirds. 

Lafitte’s Cove is a veritable oasis of thick natural vegetation surrounded by a suburban neighborhood of upscale homes.  Thankfully a local preservation group had protected this area, built some trails running through the park, and maintained two water drips.  I arrived at the park about 15 minutes before dawn on a cloudy morning, and began the short walk into the park.  Along the way I first came to wetlands with calling Marsh Wrens, Yellowthroats, and Gallinules, but quickly passed through the area - I headed right to the woods to start my search for my target migrant passerines.

The first thing I noticed when I got to the woodlands was the total lack of sound – no songs and not even any call notes.  This didn’t bode well when searching for migrants.  It was still pretty dark in the dense vegetation, and since I wouldn’t be able to identify much yet anyway I decided to wander around the park a bit to get my bearings before the lighting, and hopefully the birding, improved.  I found the two drips, and walked about half the trails, but still didn’t see or hear any birds.  This was not starting well.

As I neared the intersection of two trails I finally spotted some movement – an Ovenbird – not a target but finally a bird.  Then I noticed some movement on the trail up ahead.  Although light was limited, I got brief views of the bird which I thought was a Hooded Warbler.  That’s one I needed for my TX list, so I moved in a bit closer and eventually got good views of the female warbler foraging low in the brush – the yellow face and white in the tail clinched it as a Hooded.  I’ve tried for this species several times in Houston where it is near the western edge of its breeding range, so I was happy to finally fill this gap in my TX list, which was the 31st state where I’ve seen this species.

Then a few seconds later I noticed another bird right on the trail near the Hooded.  It was a dark Catharus thrush, but lighting was still very limimted.  I finally got a good look at its face and it was a Gray-cheeked – another target bird.  My statebird map for this skulking migrant is very spotty, so I was happy to be able to tick it off in TX.

I walked a bit further ahead and was now nearing the edge of the park.  A Cardinal flew by, and then I heard the song of a White-eyed Vireo.  And then I noticed a bit of movement high in a tree - it was one of those confusing female warblers.  Although I recognized the plumage I struggled a bit to remember what species it was until I finally realized it was a Cerulean Warbler – a plumage I haven’t seen in many years.  And another bird I needed for my TX list.  My statebird map for this species is somewhat like my Gray-cheeked map – very spotty although this is a widespread eastern breeder and migrant, though a declining species throughout its range.

So although I had seen or heard just 6 individual birds, 3 of them were new statebirds.  Amazing!

I continued to walk slowly through the park and birding was very slow, though I would occasionally spot a bird either on the trail or low in the brush.  I would eventually end up seeing another Gray-cheeked, a couple Swainson’s, a Veery, and a Wood Thrush.  And at one point I spotted a skulking warbler that finally popped into the open – a Worm-eating Warbler – another target bird, and my third new "southeastern" warbler for my TX list.  

I spent about 3 hours in the park and only heard two singing warblers - a Blackpoll and a Canada.  During that time I saw a female Hooded Warbler five different times feeding low in the brush – was this just the 1 bird or multiple individuals?  I ended up with 11 species of warblers and 4 Catharus thrushes – nice diversity in a morning with very few birds.  I ran into several other birders in the park who saw almost nothing by comparison, so I felt very lucky to have been so successful.

With my available time rapidly coming to an end, I decided to try another migrant spot to see if there might be more birds.  I headed toward the eastern end of the island to a spot called Corps Woods that had had some pretty good sightings of late.  But I was most disappointed in this spot – despite a large patch of natural woodlands there were almost no trails, and I found almost nothing.  Though I was able to get this picture of a most cooperative Yellow-crowned Night-Heron by holding my phone up to my binoculars.

I ended my Galveston Island birding by making a quick stop near the eastern end of the island and found an amazing congregation of terns and shorebirds roosting in a flooded parking lot.  I counted 19 species of shorebirds and 5 species of terns plus Skimmers.  With such a diverse set of habitats I had a feeling that I had racked up a pretty good list for the morning.  After entering everything into eBird I tallied an even 100 species – not bad for just a morning, and for pretty limited passerine migration.

With 4 new statebirds that gives me 433 for TX.  Although that’s my largest statelist, there are still quite a number of relatively easy species to try for on future trips to the state, especially if those trips occur during spring migration.

Palm Warbler and Gray-cheeked Thrush, Central Park, NY, October 2013

The family is in the midst of the college search process for my daughter, and she has picked a number of possible universities in New York City.  So over the Columbus Day weekend we planned a trip to Manhattan to visit several of them.  And with no schools to tour on Sunday, that would give us some free time to visit some of the local attractions.  I had never been to Central Park, but of course had heard a lot about the birding potential in this urban oasis.  So with everyone likely to sleep in that day, I decided to plan an early morning trip to the park to try for some New York statebirds.  I’ve got a pretty good list for NY (264), but still have a number of fairly easy birds to target that had been seen recently in Central Park (per e-Bird) including Palm and Pine Warblers, White-eyed Vireo, and Gray-cheeked Thrush.

Now I needed to figure out where to go in the park.  Central Park is very large, and I would only have chance to bird a very small portion in one morning.  With some research on the web I found a bit of information about possible birding spots, and there were indeed many spots mentioned.  Though I couldn’t find any good site guides for birding the park (maybe I just wasn’t looking in the right places).  I also found that there are regular birdwalks in the park on Sundays, but they charge $10 to participate.  I’ve never been fond of paying to participate in a birdwalk that is in a publicly accessible spot, so I decided to go it alone.  I would have a taxi drop me off near the middle of the park and I’d wander around from there looking for good habitat.

After a short taxi ride I arrived at 79^th and 5^th Avenue at dawn and began to walk to the west.  Most of the immediate area consisted of manicured lawns and isolated trees, though there was some patches of brush here and there.  Not surprisingly the brush contained the most birds (mostly White-throated and Song Sparrows) and the lawns had quite a number of Robins.  But I needed to find better habitat.  A bit to the west I noticed a more extensive brushy area so I headed there and found some very good habitat.  Highlights were a skulking Winter Wren and a berry-laden bush with a couple Hermit Thrushes.  I turned the corner and found even better habitat in a place which was called the Maintenance Field.  Notable birds here were flocks of 50+ sparrows of 5 species (including 2 Fields), Blue-headed Vireo, more Hermit Thrushes with a couple Swainson’s, a very late “Traill’s” Flycatcher, and a late flyover flock of Chimney Swifts.  In one berry bush I got a brief glimpse of a Catharus thrush that could have been a Gray-cheeked.  But it disappeared in the bush not to be seen again.  Here I ran into a birder who was most helpful and he advised me to head into The Ramble which is an extensive area that is more natural with significant undergrowth and mature deciduous trees, along with some streams and ponds. 

At my first stop in The Ramble I ran into more of the same – sparrows, a couple Sapsuckers, and more Hermit Thrushes.  Then I saw a flash of yellow fly by and it turned out to be a Palm Warbler – a new NY statebird.  As shown in my statebird map below, I’ve seen this species in most of its normal range though still need it in WV.

 Other warblers that morning were numerous Yellow-rumps, a Yellowthroat, a late Black-throated Blue, and a very late Ovenbird.  And along with 3 Blue-headed Vireos that was a pretty good mix of late warblers and vireos.

Maybe the best highlight of the morning was the thrushes.  In addition to many Robins I had an estimated 15 Hermits and 2 Swainson’s Thrushes feeding in the numerous berry bushes in the area.  And at one spot I found a very late Wood Thrush foraging on the ground.  But the best sighting was at a small spring with adjacent berry bushes.  I had run into a novice birder at this spot and was helping him identify the Hermit Thrushes feeding there.  And just then another thrush flew in and posed very cooperatively at the top of the bush – a Gray-cheeked; a second new statebird.  I haven’t seen too many Gray-cheeks – and my statebird map shows that I still need this uncommon migrant in many eastern states.

In my 4 hours birding I ended up with 50 species in this very birdy area, and only had a few Starlings, House Sparrows, and Rock Pigeons.  Birding really slowed down quite a bit after about 10 as more people filled the park so I’m glad I got there early.  I spent almost the entire time in The Ramble, and still only birded less than half of that area.  There will likely be more college trips to NYC so maybe there will be more opportunities to fill gaps in my NY statelist.  And many more areas in Central Park to explore. 

View of "The Lake" looking west