Hello everyone, it’s been a while. Things are a bit chaotic at the moment as both Brad and I are out in the field. This means the Intrigued HQ is under the supervision of our legal department and, well, “shudder”. I am pretty sure it is going to devolve into a Project X event (link here) purely based on the “Incident that shall never be mentioned” that occurred the last time they were in charge. For a group that prefers to wear suits and gets $300 haircuts, they go balls out without supervision. Brad will be getting back sooner, so he will have to deal with the cleanup, bail money and/or the angry neighbors. Meanwhile we have made it to southern Texas and today was the FIRST day it hasn’t rained the entire day. Of course, that means the humidity spiked and those $#%!@#!% bugs are out in force to make up for lost blood. Now I can get back to some serious birding and press that little ISO button on my camera and turn the dial down from 1600. I should see if there are photo competitions with a category for “Best Use of Grey”.
This being the first time down here during spring break we have noticed a few differences. On the disappointing side, our favorite state park Estero Llano Grande is basically bone dry (the rain over these last few days isn’t going to improve that situation at all. For those familiar with that park, there is no water out from the visitor center or any of the middle ponds before Alligator Lake. Luckily a lot of the waterfowl and shorebirds have moved to the reservoir beyond the back levee. Also on the negative scale, there is more foliage on the trees making it far more difficult to get a clear shot. Hmmm, maybe another competition category – “Most Obscured Bird”. Counterbalancing those, we are getting looks at several new lifers and the other birders and park volunteers we have met continue to be the shining examples of goodness in our society. Refresh your mental state by burning the newspapers, turning off the babbling TV heads, putting your phone away and simply go birding. If that happens to be in south Texas, we do recommend taking gallons of bug spray unless you want a blood transfusion to go along with your mental therapy.
While I try to dry out and recover from early morning ups and late night Paraque hunts (link here), going to go with a short feature today. One that south Texas birders now quite well.
Hit the jump for a couple more quick shots before I lather up in DEET.
These shots were taken while wintering at South Padre Island last year. The Brown Pelican has been featured numerous times here at Intrigued (link here, here and here for example). As we do not get this species in the Midwest, they are a glass magnet whenever we are hanging out along the Gulf Coast. Sure, the all-white ones in our parts are fun to watch soaring overhead or group spinning to take down a school of fish…but the Brown’s splash of color is a pleasant change of pace. A warm feeling washes over us whenever we see their long bills and chunky bodies as memories of the sandy beaches and gently breaking waves come to mind. Before you ask, yes, we bought the large wooden Pelicans at the little mainland gift shop just across the South Padre Island bridge. They are proudly displayed on our fireplace hearth to help us get through the sub-zero Midwestern tundra days.
It is hard to imagine how violent these birds fish compared to their demeanor when not on the hunt. I was unable to find our post on it in my quick search, but just imagine them flying up to a good height, bringing the wings in while slowly arcing down and then accelerating directly into the water with a hearty pop and engulfing splash. Fun to watch, hard to get crisp shots in the tin. When their belly meter goes into the green, they’ll spend they day watching life go by, gawking from a rock, relaxing on a wave or just letting it all hang out with wind beneath their wings.
I get the feeling that very little gets under the skin. A shining example of “Salt Life”. “All I need are some tasty waves, a cool buzz and I’m fine (link here).”
May your days be as relaxing as a Pelican with a full belly. Time for me to call it a night. Tomorrow we are going after 3 new lifers at Resaca de la Palma State Park and I need all the blood I can give, I mean all the sleep I can get. Take care everyone, we’ll be back to our normal posting levels in the next week or so.
Wildlife Intrigued 
Nice browns. They look very regal when they aren’t dunking themselves for fish. I shudder to think what HQ looks like with both of us in the field.
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Yep! I can only imagine what the place looks like now.
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“You’re at 1600 what to you get?
A lot of grainy, grey photos, and POed no less
The sun’s back out, down to a 100 or 2
And some photos of a Brown Pelican will do”
Just think Tennessee as in Tennessee Ernie Ford.
Wonderful photos of the Brown Peli. They look like silly birds.
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Perfect! Immediately thought of Tennessee when I read your first line. “I was travel’n one mornin’ when the sun didn’t shine”. Now on the island and the weather and birding is dramatically improved. Time to hit the beach and put sand between my toes and rays on the skin.
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Son of a beach it sounds like you’re having a good time.
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Hahahaha, yes, living the salt life, although Linda and I are now bright red from a little too much sun…well, a LOT too much sun.
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When we went to the beach in Valencia, Spain, there were a lot of bright red people from countries north. Ouch!
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I call it the summer base … except right now I look like a farmer.
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BTW are you staying down there for the eclipse? We’ll be heading to Comfort, TX between San Antonio and Fredericksburg on April 7th.
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Actually, no, we have actually planned to be home BEFORE the eclipse so we do not get caught in the traffic – the last eclipse we got caught on the road trying to get through Chicago and it took us 3 excruciating hours just to make our way around that area. Good luck on your travels!
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I guess we’ll see how traffic is affected in a small town.
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As long as you don’t have to pass any large cities on the way back, you should be fine.
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All dink towns there and back.
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Good luck, let me know how long it takes you to get back.
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Will do.
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During Easter week in Spain, the roads would have 14 hour long traffic jams with people driving to Seville from Madrid. When we first heard those traffic reports we could hardly believe it. There were often similar type traffic jams with people going to the beach.
We almost got caught up in one of those beach jams in southern France when we were trying to avoid toll roads on our way to Macerata, Italy. I made a uee, and said screw it, and took the toll roads after that. For the drive from Madrid to Macerata, Italy and back, the rental car for a week was $125, gas was $400, and tolls were $600.
We also got caught in a traffic jam on the road to the Leaning Tower of Pisa. The road was lined with hookers, and we were entertained by watching the girls offering themselves to people in the cars ahead of us. Several hookers had offered them selves to the car in front of us, but he rejected them, until one of the hookers walked up close to his window and lifter up her skirt so he could inspect her wears. He gave her a thumbs up, she got in the car, and he made a uee, and they took off the other direction.
Speaking of hookers, the first time we went for a walk in Parque de Retiro, an open space in northern Madrid, there were hookers on all the corners of the dirt roads in the park. I asked friends about it and they said that since lunch break, siesta, was two hours, business men would drive to the park, pick up a hooker, have a little afternoon delight, and then go back to work.
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Over $1100 for only one week .. yikes, that scenery better have been spectacular. This is new insights into the Leaning Tower of Pisa! You would think with all those hookers it would have straightened out that tower (couldn’t resist ha). I admire the “selected one’s” marketing skills. I have this sense that productivity in the afternoons in Madrid is not nearly as much as in the morning there. “Sorry boss, but can we wrap this business meeting up, I need a release”.
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The Tower needed Viagra. They had huge lead counter weights keeping it from falling over when we were there. I think they finally stabilized it.
And the guys who didn’t have hookers for siesta, drank a bottle of wine with their lunches. In the English classes I taught in companies, the women staff wanted American 8 to 4:30 hours with 30 minute lunch breaks. The men argued that after siesta, they worked until 8 or 9 every night. The women countered that the men were so wasted from drinking a bottle of wine with their lunches they were effing useless between 4 and 8. There got to be some colorful discussions between the men in women in corporate Madrid.
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We had a similar issue with our European facilities – not the hookers, of course, but they had wine/alcohol in their cafeterias which was always a shock when our American based employees had to go over there for projects etc. I learned really quick when they would come over here not to try and keep up with them after work – practically put me under the table the first time – their tolerance is unbelievable. From that point on, dark bottled beers so they couldn’t see how much you were consuming or extra tip to the bartender to keep my drinks weak ha.
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When the Spanish government lowered the blood alcohol limit for driving from .08 to .05, I figured .05 was pretty much the normal level for most Spaniards. I drove to Sevilla with a couple of other musicians in the group I played with in Spain. They stopped at every gas station and drank two beers and a shot of whisky. I thought I was going to end up like Princess Diana. Needless to say by the time we got to Sevilla we were late and those two were wasted. They were wasted the whole weekend. Normal people would have died of alcohol poisoning from the amount of liquor those two consumed that weekend. I drove back to Madrid.
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Yikes, could probably play croquet with their livers. Assuming the venue didn’t invite your band back for another gig.
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Sorry to hear Estero Llano continues to be parched. It was almost completely dry when we were there last October – I had hoped the rains we’ve been having would have helped those lakes refill, but I guess not. Funny how there is enough rain to hatch mosquitoes, but not enough to fill bird ponds :-( Hope the rest of your trip is productive.
And Brown Pelicans are a great “fill-in” subject – I need to get out and practice shooting their diving.
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I was absolutely surprised, but this is the first time I have been down here this late in the year. Apparently they do not have water rights and their pump is broken so they are dead in the water so to speak. Alligator Lake still has water as it is deeper, but there wasn’t much hanging around there. The Tropical Zone was still hopping though so still a fun time. I also know several of the volunteers there who were able to get me to where I needed to be to get the rarities. Mosquitoes were bearable at Estero, but Santa Ana was absolutely horrible with them…and the mud. Hoping to get some practice on the diving Browns when we get up in the Port Aransas and Galveston areas – always fun… and tiring on the arms ha. Take care and no rain dances until we get out of your state!
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