Hi Everybody:
Alternate Subj. for this could be, "Carol finally gets off her rear end and
writes about a very-good vacation to the South Texas Coast". Warning, this
article will also contain some non-birding info, because I was also there
to windsurf. If the wind was blowing, I was on the water (the wind blows a
lot, there). Highlight of my trip: The Aplomado Falcon!
South Padre Island is a resort area at the very south end of Texas. It's
near Brownsville, so the nearby area is both Texas Gulf Coast and Rio
Grande Valley. Here is what a pamphlet from So Padre has to say:

"A BIT OF BIRDING TRIVIA"
"Nature tourism is the fastest growing sector of the tourism industry.
With 65 million birders, birding is the fastest growing hobby in the US.
Wildlife watching is the #1 outdoor recreational sport in the US.
Texas is the #1 birdwatching destination in the US.
The Rio Grande Valley is the #1 birdwatching area in Texas. Why? Some 465
species of birds, including 34 species found nowhere else in the country,
have been spotted in Texas. Most can be found in the Rio Grande Valley."

My husband and I went w/ another couple. I was the only
birder. My husband goes out and takes pix of birds ("this is a brown-one,
that's a white one,
etc."). The other couple are gnarly surfers and windsurfers. We got a
very-good airfare on American Airlines (less than $240. roundtrip per
person). This
is part of the charm of going to South Texas in the spring. The plane flew
into Dallas, and we caught a commuter plane to Harlingen, which is near
Brownsville. We left on March 24 and returned Apr 2, 1999.
Unfortunately, it was spring break on South Padre which is a resort strip 6
miles long at the southern end of 150-mile long Padre Island. We arrived
at our hotel and it was in spring break mode. Drinking college students
running around and screaming across empty fields to other drinking college
students. Security guards everywhere, even on the elevator. Our room had
been stripped by the hotel. No coffee maker, microwave, remote control.
The kids just throw them off the balcony. Every day the ground below the
balconies was littered.
Fortunately, at the north end of the strip, is the
convention center w/ the Laguna Madre Nature Trail. It was quiet up there
(no spring-breakers) and the birding in the little area there was
wonderful. I tried to spend some short periods of time up there and my
Padre Island bird list was mainly from there. The weather was unseasonably
cool when we were there. It was cloudy the whole time and temps were in
the mid 70's. It rained 2-3 inches one night. This was the first rain in
the area since November.
I've traveled to So. Texas two other years, in the spring, and mainly for
windsurfing. I wasn't a true birder then, but I did manage to ID most of
the ducks and large water birds. We had always gone to Corpus Christi
in the past. It is 150 miles north of So. Padre. My windsurfing up there
had been in
the Laguna Madre on the north end of Padre Island. One time we had gone up
to Aransas and we saw the Whooping Cranes. So I didn't feel the need to ID
a lot of birds that I had already seen. Therefore my lists will be short
(so hang in there).
My guides to the area this year were some messages sent to Tweeters about
birding the Texas coast. They were written by SCRBJAY at aol.com (Phil Kelley
of Lacey, WA). He called them "Lower Rio Grande Valley Trip". I also
picked up the ABA book, "A Birder's Guide To The Texas Coast". These were
invaluable sources. I couldn't find "A Birder's Guide To The Rio Grande
Valley" but should have had it too. I finally bought it the last birding
day of our vacation (too late).
Anyway, here are some highlights of my lists. I have starred * any that
were life-list birds for me.

South Padre Island (most at the nature walk at Convention Center)
Brown Pelican
Least Bittern *
GBH
Great Egret
Tricolored Heron
Reddish Egret (white phase) *
Cattle Egret
Green Heron
White-faced Ibis
Northern Harrier
Peregrine Falcon
Clapper Rail *
Virginia Rail *
Sora *
Common Moorhen
Black-necked Stilt
Whimbrel *
Common Snipe
Laughing Gull
Black Skimmer
Tern spp
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
Nashville Warbler *
Northern Parula *
Myrtle Yel-rumped Warbler
Savannah Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
Great-tailed Grackle

I took a brief walk on the ocean
beach on So. Padre. There was Sanderling, Willet, Dunlin, and Ruddy
Turnstone (I'm just now am starting to learn shorebirds, so my list is very
short).
I had 49 birds total on my So. Padre list.
The boardwalk at the Convention center was wonderful. The Sora and Rails
were skittering about w/in 10 feet of us. I just missed seeing a King Rail
and one lady saw a Yellow Rail there two days before in daylight. Best
viewing of the Rails was early morning and late afternoon. Soras were so
common that when one lady saw one, she apologized and said, "Sorry, it's a
Sora." We all laughed. Once a Sora hopped up on the boardwalk and walked
around at our feet! They are no longer on my Holy Grail list.
I did miss visiting a lady's house on the island. Her name is Barbara
something and she lives on Ling St. It's located near the south end and is
just to the right of the main drag (as you head north). She has feeders,
ponds, and native plants w/ lots of birds, and welcomes birders to come
look. I have a card w/ her name and could look it up if anyone is
interested I was told
the No Parula was at her house a lot.
And the Peregrine at the north end of the strip had his own apartment! He
hangs out at an empty apt near the top of a 6-8 story apt bldg. Even
though this seems like a short bldg. for a Peregrine, it's the tallest one
at the north end of the strip. He perches
on the balcony on a wrought-iron railing. Apparently his food is the
shorebirds, unlike in Seattle where it is pigeons, and unlike the San Juans
where the prey is starlings. These birds are adaptable.

Next on my list was Laguna Atascosa NWR. It was the only day we actually
spent
a whole day at a bird refuge and it was great. Weather was cool and
cloudy, as usual for that week.

Laguna Atascosa NWR

Amer White Pelican
GBH
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
White Ibis
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck
No Shoveler
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
White-tailed Kite *
No Harrier
Harris' Hawk *
Aplomado Falcon * Yesss!
Plain Chachalaca *
Wild Turkey *
Willet
Long-billed Curlew *
Laughing Gull
Tern spp
Mourning Dove
White-tipped Dove *
Greater Roadrunner
Golden-fronted Woodpecker * Wow!
Ladder-backed Woodpecker
Great Kiskadee *
Couch's Kingbird *
Eastern Kingbird *
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
Green Jay * Wow!
No Mockingbird
Long-billed thrasher *
Loggerhead Shrike
European Starling
White-eyed Vireo *
Black-throated Green Warbler *
Hooded Warbler
No Cardinal
Blue Grosbeak
Lincoln's Sparrow
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Great-tailed Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird

My husband really appreciated the bird-blind/feeding stn. there for his
camera work.
The Aplomado Falcon was right next to the road where the road came out to
the Laguna (near the end of the loop drive). It's called
Stover Point. The Falcon was sitting on a Yucca looking out at the Laguna.
We
didn't slow too much as we drove past, and we parked well beyond it and
observed it for quite a while. (My $125. that I paid for Bud Anderson's
Hawk class paid off. I told my husband, "DON'T SLOW DOWN" as we drove
past. The bird stayed put. Thanks, Bud! The Aplomado is a beautiful
bird. And large. It's the size of a Peregrine and every bit as handsome.
There are very few of these birds. They introduced 15 pairs to Atascosa
(the only place in the US). These were introduced fairly recently and are
doing quite well. Just last year, a pair made a nest in Brownsville too.

Last NWR was Santa Ana. It was sort of a disappointing day because we
arrived there way too late. I don't think we got there til after 12:30 or
so. There was nothing at the feeder and the park personnel didn't know
much, although when we said we lived near a good raptor area near South
Seattle, they asked us if we were talking about Kent! I wasted a lot of
time in the visitor's center, when I should have
been out walking around. We took a 7-mile car ride which was a TOTAL waste
of time. Didn't see a thing. Nevertheless, we did put the following on
the list:

Santa Ana NWR

Anhinga Lots!
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck Lots!
Hawk spp *
Virginia Rail (heard)
Sora (heard)
Great Kiskadee
Couch's Kingbird
Green Jay

I saw a number of hawks that I really had trouble identifying. I want to
go to Santa Ana again, but it's a long way from So. Padre on crowded roads.
It would be worth it to go there two days at least and stay overnight up
near there. I'd get there early, and try to hook up w/ some birders or get
in a field trip before hand. The park personnel didn't seem to know much
and the visitor's center feeding station was empty when we got there.
Lesson learned: Go early and hook up w/ other birders, or don't go at all.
I did finally find the book Birder's Guide to the Rio Grande Valley (they
had it at Santa Ana) so I will be better prepared to go there next time. I
hadn't been able to get it anywhere else.

I wanted to go birding the last full day we were at So. Padre, but the wind
blew. I just had to go windsurfing!
I'm going back to Texas. I really like it there. I'll probably combine
birding and windsurfing again and go to So. Padre.
I'd like to spend one day at Hawk Alley, which is north of Laguna Atascosa
and is written up in the Birder's Guide to the Texas Coast. I'm into
raptors.
And I definitely want to go back to Santa Ana sometime, perhaps in a guided
tour or something. I needed guidance there!
You don't have to stay w/ the spring breaker's on So. Padre. We were
staying at the Sheraton (we got a deal) and it's in the heart of the action
at the south end of the island. Go a little further north and stay in a
smaller motel. I collected some rental info, and might go back in the
fall. I'll rent a house, and share it w/ birder or windsurfing friends.
Anyone?
Well, my list can't compare to Phil Kelley's or to Laurinda's (she just
wrote to Tweets and got me going). Thanks Laurinda and Phil. But I had
quite a few life-list birds and I was very happy.

Carol Schulz
206-824-7618
DesMoines
linusq at worldnet.att.net