Day 5 Texas

There were two main sites to visit today from our base in Rio Grande City.

The first Salineno. Salineno is a very small village enroute to Falcon State Park. It is well known among birders for being a site that may produce certain Rio Grande specials; indeed the Rio Grande flows on past the main site which is south of the village. The birding area is sign posted. Even though it is a small village for us it was lifer city!

Salineño (LTC 080), Starr, Texas, US

10-Apr-2017 7:00 AM - 9:30 AM

Protocol: Traveling

0.5 kilometer(s)

28 species

Mallard  2

Northern Bobwhite  5

Neotropic Cormorant  30

Snowy Egret  20

Cattle Egret  6

Turkey Vulture  4

Osprey  1

Broad-winged Hawk  15

Spotted Sandpiper  2

Laughing Gull  2

Caspian Tern  2

Forster's Tern  1

Inca Dove  1

White-winged Dove  2

Mourning Dove  4

Ringed Kingfisher  2

Green Kingfisher  1

Golden-fronted Woodpecker  2

Ladder-backed Woodpecker  1

Great Kiskadee  1

Couch's Kingbird  4

Bank Swallow  2

Barn Swallow  4

Long-billed Thrasher  2

Common Yellowthroat  1

White-collared Seedeater  2    seen well at reasonable distance by multiple people

Great-tailed Grackle  6

Hooded Oriole  2

White-collared Seedeater

Bonus Bird! White-collared Seedeater

Summer Tanager - lifer!

Golden fronted Woodpecker

Couch's Kingbird

Olive Sparrow

The ubiquitous Northern Mockingbird

Ladder-backed Woodpecker - female

Great tailed Grackle - male

Long-billed Thrasher

The second site if Falcon Dam itself. The dam, to be fair is not the main attraction. The surrounding semi arid scrub is for a variety of resident species and, for us at this time of the year, some migrants.

Falcon State Park (LTC 084), Starr, Texas, US
10-Apr-2017 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Protocol: Traveling
3.0 kilometer(s)
30 species

Northern Bobwhite  5
Great Egret  25
Turkey Vulture  20
Cooper's Hawk  1
Swainson's Hawk  1
Laughing Gull  6
Inca Dove  2
Golden-fronted Woodpecker  2
Ladder-backed Woodpecker  1
Vermilion Flycatcher  3
Great Kiskadee  2
Couch's Kingbird  8
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher  6
House Wren  1
Bewick's Wren  1
Curve-billed Thrasher  1
Northern Mockingbird  20
Grasshopper Sparrow  2
Olive Sparrow  2
Clay-colored Sparrow  6
Lark Sparrow  6
Vesper Sparrow  2
Northern Cardinal  2
Pyrrhuloxia  1
Red-winged Blackbird  50
Yellow-headed Blackbird  1
Great-tailed Grackle  10
Brown-headed Cowbird  1
Hooded Oriole  1
Bullock's Oriole  2

Pyrrhuloxia

Cardinal by way of comparison

Vermillion flycatcher - male

Scissor tailed Flycatcher

Scissor tailed flycatcher - preening

Road Runner

Grasshopper Sparrow

Grasshopper Sparrow

Clay coloured Sparrow

Vesper Sparrow

Lark Sparrow

Collared Peccary or Javellina

Yellow-headed Blackbird

We returned in the evening to Salineno after the heat of the day had some what subsided. And saw a few more good species including the much sought after Red-billed Pigeon.

Towards sunset over the Rio Grande

Bronzed Cowbird

l to r - Laurie, Phil, Mike, Leonie, Cerri, Gary, Sandra, Steve, Arthur, Sheryl, Ray.

Salineño (LTC 080), Starr, Texas, US
10-Apr-2017 5:30 PM - 7:00 PM

8 species

Osprey  1
Gull-billed Tern  15
Forster's Tern  1
Red-billed Pigeon  3
Mourning Dove  2
Ash-throated Flycatcher  1
Couch's Kingbird  2
Hooded Oriole  1