December 23, 2024

Other Birds at Bosque del Apache

December 23, 2024/ Gwen Morrison

There are birds other than cranes at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge too. They didn’t seem quite as numerous as when we were there pre-Covid…but we didn’t spend as much time looking for them either.

In a trip around the wildlife loop, we saw Northern Pintails, Buffleheads, Northern Shovellers, American Wigeon, White-crowned Sparrows, Sandhill Cranes, Snow Geese, and Ruddy Ducks.

Winter plants/landscapes are also abundant…water, mountains, cottonwoods, cattails….knobby ice on the surface of shallow ponds.

There are two bird feeder areas near the refuge visitor center. Sparrows (white crowned and house), Gambel’s quail, starlings, Red-Winged blackbirds, Curved Bill Thrasher, Spotted Towhee, and White-winged Dove were frequent visitors either on or under the feeders!

My favorite non-crane sighting was the Spotted Towhee.

Previous Festival of the Cranes posts

December 26, 2023

Josey Ranch – December 2023

December 26, 2023/ Gwen Morrison

I took a walk around the larger pond and small garden at Josey Ranch a week ago.

The first birds I noticed were cormorants – very active on the water (finding fish) and in the air.

Most of the ruddy ducks were snoozing…bobbing in the water.

A group of buffleheads were fishing….then spent a lot of time preening.

There were several coots

And I was thrilled when one of them came up onto the bank and I was close enough get good images of their feet! They are so unusual.

The scaups are around but not in as large numbers as last year.

The resident swans were asleep on the back as they have been every time I have visited recently. Are they elderly swans?

There were a few late flowers in the small garden; there has not been a hard frost in Carrollton yet.

Where are the northern shovelers? Maybe they are still further north? Usually they are present at Josey Ranch by November…but not this year.

November 09, 2023

Josey Ranch Lake – November 2023

November 09, 2023/ Gwen Morrison

Josey Ranch Lake in Carrollton (Texas) was not as full of birds as usual although some of the winter migrants were there in small numbers: American Coots

Ruddy Ducks (with a Scaup in the same picture…size comparison)

Scaups

There was a Great Blue Heron, probably a resident, that seemed very interested in something high in the cattails. When I looked at my picture on my larger monitor, I noticed a place high on the wing that seemed devoid of feathers (i.e. pink ‘skin’ showing). I wondered what could have caused that.

Both resident mute swans were sleeping on the bank…surrounded by a few fluffs of feathers dislodged by their preening.

I didn’t stay long…too breezy and cold. I’ll spend more time at Josey Ranch next time I am in Carrollton.

April 06, 2023

Josey Ranch – March 2023

April 06, 2023/ Gwen Morrison

I went to Josey Ranch (Carrollton, TX) in the early morning. The male grackles were posturing. The females seemed to be mostly ignoring them.

There were two Great Egrets in breeding plumage staying together as they looked for breakfast.

There seemed to be more cormorants than usual. They are probably moving northward since their breeding grounds are in the norther part of the US and into Canada.

There were a few scaups and ruddy ducks left. They too are moving northward. I don’t expect to see them in April.

I walked to the garden area between the water and the two buildings. The trees are beginning to leaf out and roses are blooming. The area was impacted by the harsher (hotter and drier) summer and it will be interesting to observe how many of the plants will regain their vigor in the upcoming months.

March is a transition month. It will be interesting to see if more of the summer birds show up when I visit in April. I always check the pond (or is it a lake?); it’s an short, easy outing and their always seems to be something new to observe.

February 05, 2023

Josey Ranch – January 2023

February 05, 2023/ Gwen Morrison

The birds on the water at Josey Ranch in Carrollton, TX changed from when I was there in December. The Northern Shovelers were not there in January! The American Wigeon were there the first day I went in January but not on the second. It seems a little early for them to be migrating; maybe they have moved to a bigger pond. On my first visit – I saw American Wigeon, Lesser Scaup, American Coot, Great Egret, Ruddy Ducks, and gulls.

The surprise birds of the day were a pair of Buffleheads. They were busy diving for food! I’ve seen them occasionally at Josey Ranch before but they are not in the ‘regular’ birds there.

On the second day I visited, there were gulls lined up on the walkway near the parking lot. The Lesser Scaup, American Coot, and Great Egret were still around. The mallards seemed more numerous than on the first day (seemingly skewed toward males). There was a Great Blue Heron almost hidden in the reeds. The Ruddy Ducks were still there but sleeping just as they were on the first day.

I walked around to the native plants in a terraced area between the Library and Senior Center. It was almost too windy for macro pictures…but I tried anyway. Some berries were the only color….but the shapes of the dried remains of the plants from last summer are interesting enough.

December 26, 2022

Favorite Photos – 2022

December 26, 2022/ Gwen Morrison

I picked some favorite photos from the year for a slide show. They are all outdoors. Thematically there are birds and insects more often than lizards or turtles. Some are documentation type pictures and others are artsy. They were taken in four states: Maryland, Virginia, Missouri, and Texas. For some reason – the fluffed up Eastern Bluebird is my favorite. Enjoy the show!

November 23, 2022

Josey Ranch – November 2022

November 23, 2022/ Gwen Morrison

Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge was the birding highpoint of my last road trip to Texas, but the big ponds at Josey Ranch are too convenient to not visit every time I am in Carrollton. I was rewarded with even more wintering birds than I had seen in October.

American Coots. There were a few last month…more were on the water in November.

Northern Shovelers had arrived. There were actively feeding. They are easy to ID with their ‘shoveler’ bill.

Lesser Scaups were also new in November. There markings and bill color are distinctive – nothing drab about the birds even in winter.

American Wigeon would be prettier on a sunny day (with the iridescent green swipe on their heads)…but I wanted to document their presence at Josey Ranch even if the day was cloudy.

Ruddy Ducks were around last month. There didn’t seem to be as many this time. I had thought they were just migrating through but maybe some of them stay around.

Mallards are year-round residents. I photographed three birds….feeding in the shallows (2 males and a female). I watched for several minutes; at no time were all three heads visible!

November 09, 2022

Josey Ranch – October 2022

November 09, 2022/ Gwen Morrison

The work to replace the decking on the boardwalks around the cattails end of the lake at Josey Ranch has been completed.

The damage to the concrete walkways from the drought and the maintenance trucks is still there and is evidently not going to be repaired anytime soon.

My visit toward the end of October was later in the morning, and I didn’t see as many birds as usual. There was one female grackle…not the larger crowd that used to be at there all during the year with raucous calls.

The Great Egret that I see almost every time was still there.

The Snowy Egret was new this time. It was on the other side of the lake in the grass at first then moved to the new decking on one of the boardwalks. The wind ruffled its feathers.

The swans were asleep on the bank.

There were a lot of white feathers in the water and in the grass. I took a series of pictures. Many of the feathers looked relatively fresh, and I wondered if they were from normal preening or a disaster that befell some white bird.

I saw some small birds on the water and walked closer to see them. The Ruddy Ducks were either passing through on migration or maybe they will stay for the winter!

These are diving ducks so it takes some effort to photograph them if they are feeding!

As I walked back toward my car, a turtle was poking its nose out of the water. The lake has been cleared of snags that the turtles could use for sitting on cool days, unfortunately.

Overall – the winter birds had not shown up yet at Josey Ranch by late October. I expect to see more in November.

May 08, 2022

Ocean City Inlet & Heron Park Field Trip

May 08, 2022/ Gwen Morrison

The last of our Delmarva Birding field trips started at the Ocean City Inlet…where the high point was seeing an American Oystercatcher fly in and land on the rocks for a short walk.

The next stop was Heron Pond – an area in Berlin, MD that is in an industrial area and on the site of an old chicken processing plant. There are a series of ponds that clean water and provide habitat for water birds. The highway is nearby but there is a screen of vegetation…and there are birds on all the ponds. Some of the first birds we saw were cormorants.

Followed in close succession by ruddy ducks (the males have blue bills!) and northern shovelers.

Two northern shovelers were feeding together…swimming in a tight circle.

The last pond has structures on its surface to filter water and those structures provide a haven for turtles and birds. There were several Canada geese on nests and a little blue heron finding a snack!

And that was the finale for our 4 field trips with Delmarva Birding.

December 08, 2021

Trek to and in Druid Hill Park – Part I

December 08, 2021/ Gwen Morrison

Last weekend we drove into Baltimore for an Audubon sponsored birding walk at Druid Hill Park. It was our first birding event since before the pandemic – outdoors for 1.5 hours in a park with less than an hour to commute into the city and the back home afterward. It was a cool, cloudy morning – cold enough to wear a mask comfortably which we both did once the group started the walk and it was hard to maintain distance.

The walk started at 8 AM and the clouds occasionally parted enough for good lighting. I saw more birds that I was able to photograph. Canada Geese flew overhead and there were ruddy ducks, buffleheads, grebe, and gulls on the lake in the park. They were too far away for great pictures…but I like the light around the gulls. There were also a lot of smaller birds – cardinals, Carolina wrens, down woodpecker, gold finches, house finches, etc.. The only one I photographed was a norther flicker what perched almost right overhead!

There was still some great fall color. The rose bushes (red leaves) were enjoying the cooler weather.

There were some areas of the forest that still had lots of leaves on the trees…like our backyard was several weeks ago. I also saw a small tulip poplar tree; I hadn’t realized that there leaves get much larger when they are young; this one still had green leaves while the big trees around it were already bare showing off their many seed pods.

More tomorrow about our trek to the park…and then home again…through Baltimore.

November 11, 2021

Josey Ranch Birds

November 11, 2021/ Gwen Morrison

The lake at Josey Ranch in Carrollton, Texas is my favorite place to look for water birds. There were not very many this time…only a few of the winter birds have arrived. The two resident swans were still there, and they were both on the water preening.

A Great Egret was in the shallows near the cattail bed. I didn’t see it get any fish was it was strutting around

And flying short distances to continue searching. By the time I left, it was standing almost hidden by the cattails…looking out toward the lake.

There were mallard pairs – probably year-round residents.

The American Coots were the most numerous birds. They were interacting with each other…seemingly having spats…taking off running across the water to separate themselves.

There were a few Ruddy Ducks…with their upright tails.

The first Northern Shovellers had arrived. One male looked scruffy (and angry) to me!

As the season progresses, there will be bore Ruddy Ducks and Northern Shovellers…Scaups will also appear. In the previous winters, there always seem to be a few Bufflehead as well. I saw a cormorant in the air but didn’t see any in the lake this time.

February 20, 2020

Laredo Birding Festival – Day 4

February 20, 2020/ Gwen Morrison

The last day of birding at the Laredo Birding Festival started with the van leaving the hotel at 6 AM! It was the earliest start of the festival, but we were accustomed to it by that time. The front of the hotel was alive with activity in the darkness.

Our destination was the La Perla Ranch, prized for its habitat and plentiful birds that thrive near its sensational water features. They had the name of the place on the chairs at the hunting lodge!

The first bird of the morning was a Great Horned Owl on an antennae. What a great start to the day of birding! The bird seemed to be very scrutinizing our van breaking the calm of the morning.

The sun was not quite above the horizon yet…I got a silhouette of a Crested Caracara through a fence. The bird has a very distinctive profile.

2020 02 IMG_4880 (4).jpg — And then we arrived at the hunting lodge the ranch provides…the sun came up. I liked the ‘barn’ birdfeeder in one of the trees.

A Turkey Vulture sat hunched in the top of a palm. Others were soring overhead. Some wild turkey moved rapidly our of my camera range…I missed photographing them entirely.

There were quite a few Meadowlarks although almost out of range of my camera’s zoom. This is an area where the Eastern and Western Meadowlarks overlap. They have such minor distinguishing characteristics; I’m just saying the bird in this photo is a Meadowlark.

We did some walking around ponds. Most of the birds were far away. Pied-billed Grebe are easy to distinguish from the Least Grebe (we saw both). My photo is of a Pied-Billed Grebe because it has dark eyes.

Just barely within the range of my zoom: a Green Kingfisher. The area south Texas along the Rio Grand is the only place to see this bird in the US. This one is female.

Cinnamon Teal were also on the ponds. The coloring of the male is indeed ‘cinnamon’!

I didn’t get a great picture – but was thrilled to see and get a photo of Peregrine Falcon. All the other ones I’ve photographed were on man-made structures (like bridges).

Sometimes I just paused and looked around at the ranch – glistening water surrounded by dry areas… wildflowers. It was a wonderful place to spend the day.

A Belted Kingfisher (female) surveyed the water from a dock on one of the ponds. We had seen a Ringed Kingfisher earlier on one of the larger ponds but I didn’t get a picture; I was surprised at how large it was.

How many birds can you identify in this picture?

The largest white bird is a Great Egret The smaller ones are Snowy Egrets. There are two types of cormorants: the Neotropic Cormorants are the smaller and darker ones; the larger and lighter ones are the Double-crested Cormorants. In the foreground are Ruddy Ducks with their tails pointing upward.

For the last picture of the day – a parade of Egrets (the Great Egret bringing up the rear)!

February 13, 2020

Birding at Josey Ranch Lake – Part 2

February 13, 2020/ Gwen Morrison

Continuing my post about my walks around the lake at Josey Ranch (near the public library on Keller Springs in Carrollton Texas)…

There were 6 birds that I only saw on one of the three days.

I saw a pair of Eastern Bluebirds near the library building. They appeared to be investigating possible nesting sites. There were not nesting boxes around….or trees big enough to have cavities for nesting. They were looking at vent openings in the building --- probably not a good site.

As I walked , I saw a bluebird across the lake from the library. It could have been one of the pair….or not.

On the one sunny day, I saw a juvenile Yellow-crowned Night-heron – I didn’t yet have the distinctive face marking but it’s body shape/posture and leg length made this the likely identification (rather than a juvenile Black-crowned Night-heron).

The Pied-billed Grebe is small and dives….but I did get three pictures. There might have been a pair, or the pictures could have been the same bird.

A small group of Ruddy Ducks made a rest stop on the lake. It was a mixed group of males and females.

Other ducks that were only at the lake one of the cloudy days were Ring-necks – yes, the ring is on the bill rather than the neck….the name is misleading.

Finally – I saw one European Starling. The grackles seem so dominate that the starlings stay away! Or something else might be going on…and they aren’t as numerous as they once were.

While I was in the area – I walked through the Pocket Prairie that will be bursting with spring wildflowers…but is now dormant. The dried vegetation was mostly cleared…but the green leaves of perennials were visible…some of the leaves had red highlights!

I also photographed some feathers on the one sunny day. Birds preen to keep their feathers in working order – the barbicels and barbs perfectly aligned. Once the feathers are detached from the bird, the barbicels unzip…clumps of barbs form…the feather begins to degrade.