Well I am finally getting around to posting these pictures from my excursion to Brazos Bend in early February. I think I got them all ID'd correctly but feel free to correct any that are wrong!
The first thing I saw when coming up to the lake was this tree full of vultures. There were turkey and black vultures.
Here is a close up of some black vultures (not a great shot though)
And here is one of the turkey vultures
Then as I drove down the road a little more I spotted this little brown bird hopping along the side of the road. I hadn't seen anything like it before so I stopped the car in the middle of the road and got out to take its picture. (there was no one around thank goodness).
I am pretty sure it is a hermit thrush. If anyone else isn't sure, I have more pictures of it if needed for a better ID.
This is where I started out - Elm lake (as the sun came up). It was really cold that morning (28 degrees when I got there) so the lake was "steamy"
A couple of ducks flying over the steamy lake. I was the only person in the park at that time and it was magnificent! You should have heard all the different birds calling
Here a snowy egret (still fluffed up from the cold) watches the moorhen and teals eating breakfast
Here is a common moorhen - they were very abundant here. I had never seen them before so I took lots of pictures of them!
Here is a black bellied whistling duck coming in for a landing (you can really see here where it gets the name)
Here is a group of them in the distance (and a moorhen on the right)
Group of male & female blue winged teals (none of them are flashing their blue wing spot here)
I was amazed at all the male northern cardinals hopping around together
Here's one of the males up in a tree
It's hard to tell in this picture, but this was an eastern bluebird that perched for a second (first time I'd seen one!)
Got this (terrible photo) ID'd as a probable chipping sparrow. (Next to an American goldfinch)
Then this American robin popped in to say hello
He followed me along the path
Is there anyone who wants to try and level this picture?
Another moorhen
Mostly for size comparison, check out this crow and blue winged teal
Nice pics!
Don't see the rocks though, looks like all mud to me ;-)
Resin
Another duck that was pretty common out there - gadwall. This is a male and female.
Even though there were so many I couldn't seem to get a decent shot!
Thanks for sharing your photos. This is the first time I've seen moorhens and teals. I may have seen the teals at Chincoteague, Virginia, but I didn't realize that is what they were. I think the Robin pic is just fine "slanted." Beautiful color, especially on the Cardinal and Robin.
LOL Resin! It is pretty muddy out there, but don't worry the paths were nice and rocky and dry!
When are you coming to Texas for a birding adventure?
Here are some Gadwall with a blue winged teal (again for the size comparison)
Thanks wbbirdwoman. It was a great time to be out for photos - early morning light makes the colors just glow.
Here is a Pied-billed Grebe before it dove under water again. It was tough to get a shot of it because it would only pop up for a second or two, then dive down and I never knew where it would resurface!
Here is an American White Ibis - lots of these in the park
I cropped this photo to show the white eye on the ibis - I love it!
The lake fog/steam was interfering with a clear shot of this ibis, so I'm not for sure if it is a white faced or glossy ibis. Due to the abundance and range I would assume it is most likely a white faced ibis. BUT... I read an article on texasbirding.net that says the glossy ibis have been spotted commonly in Brazos bend state park, especially in winter, so don't count it out!
There were several of these nesting boxes in various locations throughout the park. I am not sure what type of bird they were intended for, but I did see one being used further on the trail...
I love this picture because you can actually see the red bellied woodpeckers red belly!
There were lots of red winged blackbirds too. Here is the male
And here is the female red winged blackbird
Here's a ring necked duck - it was realllllllly far away so this was the best photo I could get with my measly 200mm
Here is one that I am excited to have seen. I didn't even realize it was anything special at the time, just another blackbird. But since it looked different than the grackles and blackbirds I'm used to, I got a picture.
Later in the day I ran in to a group of birders. I asked if they had spotted a vermilion flycatcher yet (they hadn't, but were also looking for it!) and one man asked me if I had spotted a rusty blackbird. I wasn't even sure what that was, so he showed me in his guide and I recognized it instantly as the bird I had seen earlier. Unfortunately for them, it had been several hours since I spotted them.
Apparently these birds are in trouble and populations have been declining since the 60's. It is on the Audubon watch list.
I'm pretty sure the female is the browner one, and the male is the blackish one (although both sexes have some of the rusty feathers over winter).
Then I finally saw my first set of American alligators. Luckily they were still snoozing on the banks.
Here is an American coot - another common bird (but a first for me!)
Here is the bird I thought was a water thrush, but thanks to the ID forum I have learned it is a water pipit AKA American pipit
This bird was really difficult to photograph - a blue gray gnatcatcher. Small and fast!
Close-up of a pair of blue winged teals. Again they are not showing their blue patches.
But in this picture I finally got one flashing its blue wings!
The teals were often seen in large groups. Note the size comparison with the moorhen. They aren't very large ducks.
