Dave and I were at a Texas A&M, Galveston Birding Elderhostel centered in Rockport TX March 15-20. It was a great week of birding (23 of us in the group plus our director, our birder, and our bus driver). Everyone was pleased about the inch of rain which fell on March 14 and 15, but they're still deep in drought. It was interesting to read the report SeEtta Moss posted; it echoed much that we heard about the whooping cranes. March 17 we had a boat trip to see cranes -- about 20 that day. On March 19 we drove to Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. From the high tower/platform at the Visitors Center we saw just two distant cranes. We hiked a trail near the center; Dave and I (lagging behind the others) found a vermillion flycatcher high up in a large tree with new leaves -- exciting! The whole group saw a scissor-tail flycatcher on a bare branch above the water; it flew a couple of times while we watched from the bus. In the Refuge we visited a marsh area where shorebirds are usually abundant, but it was dry. We were told that probably a hundred different cranes have visited the various corn feeders. Drought leaves the shallow bay waters too salty for the blue crabs to thrive, the cranes favorite food. We spent most of one day on the Fennessey Ranch. Our birds there included at least two adult bald eagles and one young just starting to fly. They were on a crossbar between two power poles, next to the nest where 2 adults have nested successfully for 3 years now. One of this year's young had flown a week or two earlier. This one did manage to flutter up into the nest. Our group had 140 species on our birdlists by the program's end.
People expressed concern that the whooping cranes aren't in good shape for their journey north. We were told that the coming breeding season would not be as successful as usual following a winter such as this -- if it follows the pattern from the past. Mary Leonard, Boulder --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Join us at the 2009 Convention in Alamosa: http://cfo-link.org/convention/index.php You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.as/group/cobirds?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
