I had an early start this morning for my first field trip with the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival trip to Sabal Palm Sanctuary. As I arrived at the Visitors’ Center, I was greeted by the screeching calls of the Red-crowned Parrot Amazona viridigenalis. These were “ABA Life Bird” No. 655 for me, and are among a population of established “escapes” in the Valley.
I was pleased to be able to join the vanload of birders having for Trip Leaders a couple of West Coast birders - Ann Nightingale from Vancouver Island, and Jim Danzenbaker from Battle Ground, Washington - and local birding expert Sherry Wilson.
The Sabal Palm Sanctuary is managed by the Gorgas Science Foundation and they have done a wonderful job of enhancing the already outstanding habitats as well as restoring the historic Rabb Plantation House, now the sanctuary’s impressive headquarters.
The nice folks at the Rabb House allowed us to use their 'facilities', and I was taken by the old mural in the lavatory.
The forest of native Sabal Palms is the last major remnant of an ecosystem once much more widespread in the Valley and is unique in the U.S.
Its shady depths and managed waterways shelter a remarkable diversity of wildlife, revealed to us along the trails and overlooks. Several feeding stations and butterfly gardens provide photo opportunities.
Glenn Olsen, a remarkable local birder, was also very knowledgeable regarding the local plants . . . I wish I’d taken better notes when listening to him; I might have learned something.
I had to laugh out loud when I heard Ann - a resident of Victoria, BC - telling some East Coast birders how to identify a Verdin, which “is kind of like a Bushtit . . .” The Bushtit is a western specialty, and while the comparison was apt, she was chagrined to realize that the nice Easterners, who likely had never seen a Bushtit, just gave her that blank look . . .
The group missed finding Anis, any orioles, and the Buff-bellied Hummingbird that had been reported at the Sanctuary in recent days.
After the trip, Jerry and Clarice Broadus invited me to go with them to South Padre Island, stopping to scope for falcons, en route. We were unsuccessful in identifying any Aplomado Falcons at the viewing area along Texas 100 (East Ocean Boulevard) although we saw a falcon or Kestrel perched far, far in the distance.
We continued into town where we did some birding at the Convention Center which has the moniker “World Birding Center”. There was a private event at the Center and some of the trails and boardwalks were closed due to storm damage earlier in the season.
We spent a bit of time working the grounds
and a bit on the bayside beach, hoping to find some 'good' birds, but made do with the common residents
As the afternoon waned, we checked out the wooded “lots” that are maintained by the Valley Land Fund along Sheep’s Head Street.
Even though it was a little late in the afternoon, we saw a few warblers.
Our birding done for the day, I joined Jerry & Clarice, eating supper at Daddy’s Cajun Kitchen. Good enough food, but this evening they had dancing, loud music and a loud singer that made conversation difficult. I had the grilled sea bass which was pretty good; Jerry said his blackened redfish was over-cooked. Then, it was time to head back to get some sleep for tomorrow's field trip.
Sabal Palm Sanctuary eBird checklist is Here
Aplomado Falcon
viewing area eBird checklist is Here
South Padre Island - World Birding Center eBird
checklist is Here
South Padre
Island - Valley Land Fund eBird checklist is Here
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