I left Louise to have a leisurely morning and headed down to San Luis Pass at the far western tip of the Island. I arrived at 7.30. I wanted to follow up a tip off from Tom who'd informed me there were some Yellow-headed Blackbirds frequenting a sub-division close by. Things were still very quiet as I slowly cruised round the roads within it. Two circuits later...no luck? One more time. On this occasion I tried another road that looked private but wasn't. Glad I did...
Just love this species...for no particular reason! An excellent Galveston tick.
As I was leaving the area I noticed a distinctive and iconic shape on a wire...
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| Scissor-tailed Flycatcher |
Never tire of this one...and plenty of others, come to think of it!
Time for a relaxed session with the scope (after all I'd brought it) at the pass. I positioned the car in a grockle proof position and hoped no-one would "go for a stroll" past the resting group. Luckily they didn't in a wonderful 2 hours watching.
Highlights...
Reddish Egret (White phase)
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| ALWAYS worth watching! |
Just a great species in numerous ways.
Caspian Tern (my first) amongst many Royals...
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| The only one present |
Semi-palmated Plover c50
Knot (scarce here) 2
White-rumped Sandpiper 33
Black Skimmer c200
A wonderful morning. Back for the boss and lunch at 1.
We were planning to return for the afternoon to get away from the crowds but a combination of timing and a 5am start tomorrow found us back at Lafitte's for the remainder of the afternoon. The weather was glorious and Louise sat in the sun reading her novel while I disappeared into the wood (a familiar scenario!).
Plenty of Swainson's Thrushes about this afternoon but sticking to deep cover. A couple of Black-throated Green Warblers hopped about on the path like Sparrows. I managed a frustratingly brief glimpse of my first Yellow-breasted Chat. I waited and waited but it didn't show again.
It was nearly time to leave. A young lad appeared and we started chatting. I told him I'd just seen a Baltimore oriole at what looked like a hanging basket! He told me he'd seen about TEN there earlier! That put me in my place. Here are three of them after the oranges of course...
I've already posted a pic of a female Painted Bunting. I was hoping to get a decent view of a male. Two minutes from departing...
He was in deep cover but you get the idea!!! Fortunately he moved into the sunshine to give us the full show.
Painted Bunting in all his glory...
I even managed a painted pic...
Happy Days indeed!
Heading for the Hills (Country) at 5am for three nights. Stay tuned.
Trip Total 151
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