Lunchtime Birding

.
Wednesday at noon I decided to use my lunch hour to make a quick birding trip to Longenbaugh Road on the Katy prairie. As it takes almost 20 minutes to get there from the college, it left me only about 20 minutes for birding.

I started by spending ten minutes where Longenbaugh crosses Bear Creek. Although there were none of the Harris's Sparrows I was hoping to see, several Savannah Sparrows were  present.

So, too, was a pair of White-crowned Sparrows.
 

 

An Eastern Phoebe and an Eastern Bluebird were perched nearby.
 

 

As is usual on Longenbaugh, I didn't have to look far to spot a Loggerhead Shrike.

While I photographing the Shrike, a flock of 200 Cedar Waxwings flew in. Most had the normal yellow-tipped tail.

However, at least one had the much lesson common orange-tipped tail.

After Longenbaugh, I had only a few minutes left for a drive over to Paul Rushing Park, where I was hoping to add Brown-headed Cowbird to my 2016 Harris County list.

As soon as I parked, I saw several Brown-headed Cowbirds mixed in with a large flock of Red-winged Blackbirds. They were too far off for photos, so I had to make do with a shot of a closer American Crow instead.

With two minutes left, I got lucky! A Long-billed Curlew appeared and landed only a short distance from where I was standing.

  

So, overall, not a bad little birding trip, considering that it lasted just 20 minutes.   
.  

Paul Rushing and Longenbaugh

.
I'm afraid I'm still finding it difficult to make time for birding, which is why I haven't been posting as often as usual. However, Dee and I did make it to Paul Rushing Park for an hour on Suday morning.

I had promised Dee that she would see Common Nighthawks in the park and, sure enough, a couple were sitting on fences when we arrived.

 

As usual, Eurasian Collared-Doves were perched on the higher fences.

The ponds were quiet for birds except for a pair of Pied-billed Grebes on the water and a few large waders (Great and Snowy Egrets and a Great Blue Heron). The observation deck railings were attracting lots of birds, though, including Cave Swallows, Red-winged Blackbirds, a Green Heron (below) and a Little Blue Heron (below).

I didn't bother taking photos of the Killdeer that were everywhere but a Loggerhead Shrike caught my eye because it looked like a juvenile. (If so, it's the first juvenile Shrike that I've seen in years.)

On our way home, we did a quick drive along Longenbaugh and Porter Road End, in hopes of getting good looks at some Scissor-tailed Flycatchers. As always in summer, there were plenty! Most were on utility wires.

 

However, a few were handing out (with Eastern Kingbirds) in the hedges.

Longenbaugh had more Northern Mockingbirds than you could shake a stick at, and it also had numerous Loggerhead Shrikes. As at Paul Rushing Paul, one of the Shrikes appeared to be a juvenile.

The utility wires over the Bear Creek bridge on Longenbaugh were crowded with dozens of swallows. These looked to me to be Cliff Swallows and mainly juveniles but don't hesitate to correct me if I'm wrong!

 

 

.

Friday Fotos

.
Winter is the time for sparrows, many species of which are now moving into our area. I see large numbers of Savannah Sparrows every time I venture out onto the Katy Prairie and I've now seen quite a few other species, including White-crowned, Field, Vesper and White-throated. I've also started seeing a few of my favorite sparrow species, the Harris's Sparrow.

At 7.5 inches, the Harris's is our largest sparrow and its pink bill and black face make it easy to recognize.

As it happens, the one in the photos was in exactly the same place where I saw my first-ever Harris's Sparrow several years ago - right next to the Bear Creek bridge on Longenbaugh Road just east of Porter Road End. For all I know it could be the very same bird.
.  

Longenbaugh Road

.
The other day, after visiting Paul Rushing Park, I  drove back to work via Longenbaugh Road. I never tire of visiting Longenbaugh, because there is virtually always something worth seeing there. If all else fails, you are sure to see several Loggerhead Shrikes.

On this particular day, a flock of 100 or more Brown-headed Cowbirds was constantly moving from one side of the road to the other. One male stayed still lomg enough for me to get some photos.. 

In the winter Longenbaugh is one of the best spots for sparrow-watching in our area. It is still early for sparrows, though, and so I spotted only a solitary Savannah Sparrow.

As I've mentioned before in this blog, 1012 has turned out to be a great year for Scissor-tailed Flycatchers - and Longenbaugh has been a great place for watching them. The bird below may not be the most colorful Scissor-tailed I've seen lately but it certainly has the longest tail.

.

Longenbaugh

.
One of my favorite birding spots is the mile stretch of Longenbaugh Road east of the Katy Hockley Cutoff Road. In winter this is a great place for finding interesting birds, such as Pyrrhuloxias, Lark Buntings and Harris's Sparrows. The road is much much quieter in summer but there is still almost always something worth looking at.

On Saturday there were several Scissor-tailed Flycatchers.

There were also two Crested Caracaras, a bird that I never tire of watching and photographing.

Here as at Paul Rushing Park, large dragonflies were plentiful.

Driving home from Longenbaugh, I noticed another Common Nighthawk. This one was taking a rest on the traffic signal wires over Barker Cypress Road. It certainly isn't somewhere that I'd choose for a mid-morning a nap, but then I'm not a Nighthawk.

.

Back Home

.
After my recent trips to Utah and Mexico, I thought it was time to visit some local sites and get re-acquainted with some of our local birds. So Tuesday morning I drove to work via the Katy Prairie.

A utility post on 290 had a fine Red-tailed Hawk, while posts along the Katy-Hockley Cutoff had Black Vultures. A Crested Caracara flew ahead of me for a while before disappearing off across the fields.

I decided to visit Paul Rushing Park to see if any migrating shorebirds had dropped in there.

I had gone only 50 yards from the car when I flushed a Green Heron. It fled to the safety of a small tree, from which it dislodged a Common Nighthawk. The Nighthawk moved to another tree, in turn displacing a Northern Mockingbird. A Loggerhead Shrike watched nervously as I passed while Barn and Tree Swallows swooped overhead. A minute later, a pair of Common Nighthawks rose into the air and circled above me, their distinctive white wing stripes flashing in the morning light.



The lakes had a few larger birds: a dozen Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, five Great Egrets, two Yellow-crowned Night Herons and a Little Blue Heron. The only shorebirds I spotted were the usual Killdeer, plus a Black-necked Stilt and a Greater Yellowlegs.

A few Mourning Doves skittered away when I drew near them, as did three Eastern Meadowlarks. For once there was no sign of Horned Larks.

The next stage in my short trip was a drive along Longenbaugh Road, mainly in hopes of seeing Scissor-tailed Flycatchers. Unfortunately, the utility wires had just really common birds: scores of White-winged Doves, dozens of European Starlings and a scattering of Northern Mockingbirds and Loggerhead Shrikes. My spirits were raised by a group of Dickcessels - only to fall when I realized the Dickcissels were actually House Sparrows.


Then, just as I was leaving Longenbaugh, I finally got lucky when three Scissor-tailed Flycatchers posed on a wire. One of them had particularly beautiful plumage.


I wasn't expecting to see anything of interest on my drive back to work along FM529. However, a flock of Cattle Egrets lifting off from a field caught my eye. As I watched, a hawk swooped through the flock. From its dark chest, light belly and distinctive wing patterns I had no problem IDing it as a Swainson's Hawk. A good bird to see on the way to work!
.

.
Being very busy at work and having a bad cold, I haven't managed to do any birding for several days. However, yesterday morning was so beautifully clear, crisp and sunny that I just couldn't resist spending 20 minutes taking a longer route to work. The route went across part of the Katy Prairie and I was sure that, on such a clear winter day, I would see lots of raptors.

I was right. I spotted a total of 16 Red-tailed Hawks, two American Kestrels and three Northern Harriers, as well as innumerable Loggerhead Shrikes.

Red-tailed Hawk

Northern Harrier

Since I didn't have much time and still wasn't feeling great, I never got out of the car. But this didn't stop me seeing and photographing a few smaller birds along Longenbaugh Road.

Savannah Sparrows are always plentiful in this area.


Northern Mockingbirds were were everywhere, too, and one gave me some great views.




An Eastern Phoebe was kind enough to pose close to the car.



And a House Wren popped up and perched on a roadside fence.



I drove on feeling very lucky to live and work where I do, and ready to face another hectic day of teacher-training.
.