2013 Yearlists

26 - Snow Goose
27 - Bufflehead
28 - Lesser Scaup

So many birds on the river right now. I had no idea we had that much fish here!

29 - Tundra Swan
30 - Thayer's Gull (thank goodness experts were with me…)
31 - American Black Duck
32 - Pied-billed Grebe

Still lots of activity here at the river. Experience birders are reporting all kinds of good gulls, but sooooo confusing to me.
Here's a fun Panoramic photo. And a sunset photo.

Oh my you guys, it's only January!!! Most of you have almost half of last year total already. Can wait to see your big # at the end of this year.

16.Hoary Redpoll
17.Pine Grosbeak


This message was edited Feb 8, 2013 8:10 PM

LOL Margaret! Seriously, where's the watch?

Mrs. Ed, very cool spot. Gull ID is maddening!

Chilly, I had just stopped to look at your Redpoll pics again and you posted twice! Love those Redpolls BTW.

Thanks, Elphaba. We were just thrilled they stayed those few days. No sight of one yesterday or today, but got them for Feeder Watch on Monday!

Oh, one of my sons took this picture. He calls it a "Yelling Redpoll. "

Ach! Hit the wrong button. Here's the photo and gladly not of me yelling...

Nice Redpoll!!! I haven't seen one this season. Last Feb. was my last sighting. Hope they show up at the yard. That panoramic shot is with my iPhone. They have a feature that does it pretty easily. Otherwise, I had some photo-stitch software, but it was too difficult to line up the shots right. Not with the iphone!

35. Lapland Longspur
36. Red-headed Woodpecker
37. Purple Finch


We had planned on going birding with the club this morning, but when the alarm went off the wind was howling like crazy. We didn't think the children (or us) would have a very good time of it, so we just stayed in bed. Later, when the wind didn't seem so bad, we bundled ourselves and went as a family.

Purple finch, really! I'm not expecting those for a while.

They have been in our area for about 3 weeks, in spite of warm weather.

38. Cooper's Hawk 13 January
39. Pine Siskin 14 January

Aching for a purple finch! Nice additions Chilly.

I'm up to 150 with some rarities found by fellow birders and one lifer.

135 - Gadwall
136 - Forster's Tern
137 - Royal Tern
138 - White-crowned Sparrow
139 - Roseate Spoonbill
140 - Brown Creeper
141 - Greater Scaup -- out of the water with good view of round head!
142 - Bufflehead
143 - Pacific Loon
144 - Great Horned Owl -- pair perched in a tree -- awesome!
145 - Brewer's Blackbird
146 - Cackling Goose -- lifer -- friend found it for me. When he showed it to me in his scope, I thought "why is he showing me a black-crowned night heron" and then it lifted its head. Never would have found it on my own.
147 - White-tailed Hawk
148 - Ferruginous Hawk
149 - Black-bellied Whistling Duck
150 - Merlin

Took pictures, but they are all terrible. Haven't taken any good photos this year except one of my friend who was photographing the Greater Scaup when a Vermillion Flycatcher landed right by him. He didn't even see it. He was so surprised when I showed him the photo.

Who Elphy. look at you go. Pays to live in Houston!!!

Well, it pays to live in (or near as in my case) Houston all right. But, you also have to know what you're doing... And, I might figure out this birding thing one of these years. LOL.

57 Red-bellied Woodpecker
58 Black-crowned Night Heron
59 Anhinga
60 Downy Woodpecker
61 Carolina Wren
62 Common Gallinule
63 Eastern Bluebird
64 Crested Caracara
65 Red-shouldered Hawk

I'd love to do the Audubon High Island Tour some day for spring migration.

I guess I should do that. ^_^ I did do South Padre Island's Convention Center last year during spring migration and it was incredible. There were a lot of birders and they were all happy to help out the newbies. High Island is about 1.5 hours from me and S Padre is more like 5 hours, but worth the drive.

oh yes, then do the high island trip. That's pretty close!

#40 Harris's Sparrow
YAY!!! #41 is Mourning Dove. They must feel safe enough to come out of hiding. The hunting season is over. That was a bad idea to ever enact the law. :(
#42 Snow Goose
#43 Northern Harrier

33 Brown Creeper
34 Red-bellied Woodpecker (handsome male!)

This message was edited Jan 21, 2013 3:27 PM

Chilly, jealous of your Harris'! We had them around last winter because of the drought but I haven't seen any this winter.

Patti, you have a nice list going!

Mrs. Ed, good ones! especially the creeper!

My friend had me work like a dog at the Texas Ornithological Meeting, but I brought my list up to 162 including some more rarities.

First while scouting for the peregrine at the BP building before the TOS meeting, I stopped at my friend's house with all the hummers and got:

151 -- Buff-bellied Hummingbird
152 -- Broad-tailed Hummingbird

Then on my 3 trips I got:
153 -- Tri-colored Heron
154 -- Sharp-shinned Hawk
155 -- Wilson's Snipe
156 -- Least Sandpiper
157 -- Long-tailed Duck
158 -- Long-billed Dowitcher
159 -- Northern Bobwhite
160 -- Ladderbacked Woodpecker
161 -- Canada Goose
162 -- Sandhill Crane

It was a fun although exhausting weekend. Met a lot of great people. One of the really neat experiences for me, was standing at the top of the Sheldon Lake tower with a group of really top notch birders from around the state, with scopes going in every direction over the lake, woods and prairie and people just shouting out birds: Eastern towhee! Canvasbacks! Spoonbills, Kestrel! Immature Bald Eagle with prey! Just great!

I'm going to seriously have to consider spending winters in Houston when I retire. Congrats on all of them, but I'd be so happy to see a hummingbird right now!

red bellied turned up at our suet feeder today & then Mr. Hairy landed on the smaller birds' tube feeder.

Glad you got a Brown Creeper, Mrs. Ed. I hope we get one this year.

Elphaba, Amazing list. I do find it interesting, it took you this long to see Canada geese. Are they not as populous in Texas? They are all over here.

Iris, I am trying to picture a Hairy on a small tube feeder. He's so big.

I get the brown creepers all the time. But I work form home and my office window is close to a tree that they visit. It's much easier to see them that way. When they arrived this fall, I was able to sit outside and here their little whistle-y call. I wonder if I'll see any redpolls in the yard this year. I know they are in the area. The food supply must be so plentiful they don't need to come to my feeder.

yes, Hairy covered up all three holes on the one side.

66. Pine Siskin

Elphaba, You saw the long-tailed duck! Cool. I haven't gotten out there yet. I am planning to go try to spot that flammulated owl though. I can't stand reading about everyone seeing it. I wanted to wait until March/April to go to South Padre, but guess I'll just have to do it twice. Went to Anahuac NWR, but still didn't see the tundra swans.

Mrs. Ed, How wonderful to be able to see brown creepers all the time! They are so much fun to watch.

Thanks Patti. I mean in the winter though!

Chilly, we do not get very many if any Canada Geese. Cackling are the default goose, but I was with a group of really experienced birders who said nope those two, yes only two, are Canada because of their size and long necks.

Patti, that Long-tailed Duck is as hard to see as the Tundra Swans. The swans disappear in that grass. The Long-tailed Duck disappears behind other ducks. She's a lot smaller, so a pintail just eclipses her. I'm dying to see the Flamulated Owl too. I have commitments this weekend, so don't know when. Hope it sticks around long enough.

Mrs. Ed, today is such a warm day that the bees are swarming the hummer feeders. I have yet to find a bee guard that works. Wish those darn bees would hibernate! Winter hummers are nice though. We didn't used to have a lot of hummers in the winter. This is a new thing.

I had 16 goldfinch at the feeders today. hahaha. is that impressing anyone but me?

yep!

I'd say that is impressive. Mrs. Ed. :) We did have 25 House Finches yesterday, but hardly saw any today.

Elphaba, it's the other way around here, but then we also get some type of Canada subspecies that is as nearly as small as a Cackling, so we have to look at the bill and head shape. I like birding with the experts, but it isn't very often when we get the chance.

Hey, i'm up to like 25 or 26 goldfinch! Sure, not Dellrose's 100s… but still big numbers for me. Sorry I'm off topic. Go to daily pix thread for… well, pix!

After a long gap due mainly to bad weather, got some more today:

99 Common Buzzard
100 Bar-tailed Godwit
101 Red Knot
102 Northern Pintail
103 Sky Lark
104 Razorbill
105 Common Guillemot
106 Kittiwake
107 Purple Sandpiper
108 Shelduck
109 Peregrine Falcon
110a Greenland White-fronted Goose
110b Eurasian White-fronted Goose
111 Bean Goose
112 Merlin
113 Jack Snipe

Resin


This message was edited Jan 24, 2013 12:36 AM

Nice haul Resin.

I added two yesterday.

163 -- Eastern Screech Owl
164 -- Calliope Hummingbird

Here's a pic of the Calliope.

Got a few today ... Up to 76 now. I might have a few more, but I need to get the right IDs

Tundra Swan - wheeeee. I found them. They were close to where they have been seen.
Wilson's Snipe
European Starling
Common Grackle
Boat-tailed Grackle
Peregrine Falcon
Black-necked Stilt
Gadwall
Willet
White-faced Ibis