It is definitely going to be hard to top last year’s productivity. That 400 threshold was an incredible surprise for me and fueled significantly by trips to Texas, Arizona, Las Vegas and a late run to the Florida Panhandle. This year we will not be going to Arizona, however, in its place we will be heading up to the northeast for Ruger to compete in the CPE Agility Nationals. Hoping to pick up a number of lifers from that trip as that will be my first time in that region outside work assignments. It will be fun to see how this year plays out. Best of all, I will be back on my feet from last year’s ankle surgery which did cost me several months of solid birding time – thoughts of how much over 400 I could have been without that setback. Ron actually had a rather down year last year and is looking for redemption in ’26. If he is able to meet us down in Texas again this year it should give him a good boost for the year. As in the previous years, I’ll do my best to keep this page updated with our progress as we proceed through the year.
To another year of birding … and brotherly competition!
Quick summary of 2025 counts:
The Cumulative Species graph for 2025:
Daily Species 2025 graph:
Monthly Species 2025 graph:
Comparison with 2024 graphs:
Updates:
01/21/2026: Slow birding day due to traveling from Weslaco to South Padre Island KOA. Once we got the RV all set up, took a walk over to the nearby mangrove marsh to see if I could spot the Mangrove Yellow Warbler – no luck, but there will be more time in the next couple of days to get that check. I did pick up a Gull-Billed Tern that was flying overhead for a nice +1 that officially puts me at 200+2 for a mere 21 days into the season.
01/20/2026: Today, Linda and I went on the chase. There were reportings of large numbers of Snow Geese with Ross’s Geese mixed in and Greater White-Fronted Geese at Delta Lake, about 45 minutes to the northwest. Got there and could not figure out we were supposed to get access to the water. None of the roads inside the park got us close and the one road we did find had a gate in front with a no trespassing sign near it. If you are going to have a park…on a lake.. why would you obscure the water view. My only guess is the reports were coming from people with a scope standing on their picnic tables. One brightspot was I did find a leucistic Golden-Fronted Woodpecker that was pretty cool – originally though it was a Red-Headed WP until I noticed the wings and back were missing pigment. Disappointed we went after a Cassin’s Sparrow out in the country – zero luck there as well. Did find some Pyrrhuloxia which I didn’t know they had over here. Now extremely frustrated, so went after a sure thing, the Monk Parakeets at the Hildalgo Parakeet Colonies near the Hildalgo Pump House. An easy score to bring the new count to 2 for the day. Decided to spend the rest of the light hours in Estero before we head to SPI in the morning. Not much new, but I always like walking their paths. Saw the two White-Tail Kites in the Camino de Aves area. Said goodbye to the Pauraque (only spotted one on the ground today) and called it a stay. Oh, we also had dinner at Nana’s which was absolutely delicious!
01/19/2026: Ron’s last day down here as he heads back to the zero degree tundra of Chicago. Noticed there were some birds we missed on our previous visit to Santa Ana, so we opted to spend the morning there looking for them. Overall, felt pretty dead today but we did manage to get some really good finds. Wasn’t able to get good pictures, but a Blue-Headed Vireo was hunting a thicket near the Pintail lakes. Although it took a review of the pictures later in the day, we did finally get the Stilted Sandpiper we were hunting for along with a complete surprise, the Clay-Colored Sparrow. More Green Kingfishers (of course) and a nice Hermit Thrush put a nice cap on the day. Decided to blast some Swallow pictures and also later confirmed the Cave Swallow (Merlin also confirmed), Northern Roughwinged and the Tree got their checks today. Also spotted a Couch’s Kingbird hanging around the waters. With limited time before Ron had to be at the airport, dropped into Resaca de La Palma in the longshot we could see the Tropical Parula. No luck there, but did hear a Cooper’s Hawk in the parking lot. Nothing else new, but good looks at a Nashville Warbler and several Plain Chacalacas made the stop worthwhile. Got Ron to the airport and got back in time to watch the College Football Championship.
01/18/2026: Today we started out at Estero Llano Grande State Park. They were having their bird walk so we joined in – more eyes are always better than less when it comes to birding and these walks are led by volunteers very familiar where the “good” birds are – not to mention there are usually strong birders in these groups. This is exactly our experience today. Met new birders/friends on the walk like Erin (she got us on to the Green Kingfisher a few days earlier), but the real surprise was when one of the group said she knew me and said my last name when I told her my first. Slight panic as I tend to keep a low profile, yet here I was miles from home and yet her was someone that knows me…and my brother. Turns out it was local birder from back home (Lisa) on their first trip down into the Valley. Later on we ran into another birder I met last year (Don) while out in the park. I’ve said it once, I’ve set it a thousand times, it is a very small world. Had a great time exchanging stories, recommending birding sites and pointing out the local feathers. On the walk, FINALLY got some Hummingbirds, the Buff-Bellied and the Ruby-Throated. We may be in a Kingfisher eruption, but the Hummers are few and far between. Picked up a Summer Tanager at the Green Jay Drip to round out the new checks from the walk. Ron definitely upped his numbers. From there we went on the chase thanks to excellent spots from Dan and Emily who we had met at South Padre Birding and Nature Center. They got us onto a Limpkin and and ~23 Wood Storks – glad I will not have to go to Florida get that check this year. Then it was Jimmy Buffet time as we headed over to Oliveira Park for the coming of the Parrots. Seemed like less numbers than our previous years, but still plenty to make quite a racket. Turns out our new friends Mike and Brian were there as well. We were all scanning the trees and lines looking for the 5 unique Parrot species they have down here – The Red-Lored (which came in first), the White-Fronted which were the next to arrive and then the Red-Crowned made their noisy entrance. It took a while, but we managed to finally spot 4 Yellow-Headed specimens. Never managed to get the Lilac-Headed…as in the years past. One of these days I’ll finally get that checked. Now for the big surprise. While we were getting ready for bed, Linda thought she heard an Owl nearby. Grabbed my phone and Linda’s camera (better a lowlight) and went to find it. Merlin confirmed the Great Horned as it was calling back and forth with another one across the orchard. Finally spotted it on top of the telephone right next to our RV. Always good to get that check out of the way. Don’t believe Linda when she tries to claim she is a not a birder.
01/17/2026: Day 2 of Ron being down here, so we went to one of the heavy hitters in south Texas, Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge. This is place is a gem down here, but kind of hit a sour note on this trip. We had gotten up early to get over there by 8:30 to participate in their bird walk only to find out they were not having it that morning due to another event that was going on at a different location. We also learned they had a pump issue and had to drain a number of their ponds – double AAACCKKK. Ron and I decided to head out there on our own and see what we could find. To our surprise there was a lot more water out there than we were led to believe and the birding was still quite good. Ticked off some really good birds including the Cinnamon Teal, White-Tailed Hawk and the Wilson’s Snipe. Best part of the trip was meeting some more incredibly nice and informative birders while out in the refuge. Mike from Wisconsin (several Wisconsites down there this year), Chuck and his group from Tennessee along with several others I didn’t get names or locations for – all engaging and helpful. There is a clearly a Kingfisher eruption taking place down there, especially the Greens as we saw no less than 6 of those and even a Ringed Kingfisher came right over our heads at the far pond. Also nice to be there when it wasn’t muddy or buggy – temps were pretty chilly though. From there we stopped back in at the Progreso Sod Farm to get Ron the Meadowlarks and the Burrowing Owl. Managed to find some Lark Sparrows for an add of my own. After lunch we went on the chase. The premier rarity this year is the Crimson-Collard Grosbeak at Edinburg Scenic Wetlands. Figured this might take multiple attempts, but the birding gods gave me a birthday gift. 1 minute after going through the entrance a lady with a dog caught our attention and asked if we were there to see the bird – why yes we were. She then directed us down a path where her sons and the resident naturalist had eyes on it. We sent Linda to go pay our fee and Ron and I quickly went in the direction she pointed. We came up to the naturalist (kids had just left) and he pointed to the bird – it was literally right there in the tree in front of us maybe have way up. With a little contortion we got excellent shots of it. Our previous fastest chase, the Cattle Tyrant, has been beaten by this Grosbeak. My kind of birding ha!! A great Mexican rarity lifer on my birthday – awesome. Ended up taking Ron over to see Squishy – Linda took it upon herself to name the Burrowing Owl I had found a few days earlier. Still there. Oh, and the other rarity I found in Boerne, TX, the Cape May Warbler has now been confirmed – third sighting ever recorded there of this bird.
01/16/2026: Picked up Ron at the Brownsville Airport this morning. He will have a shorted stay compared to his previous stints down here with us so we need to get to work quickly. Took him right from the airport to South Padre Island since we were halfway there already. Incredibly windy day but birding ended up being pretty good. Tide was way out on the flats – maybe the furthest I’ve seen. A good amount of birds hanging about to the tune of 15 new checks. Several of the expected birds like the Black Skimmers, BB Plovers, Brown Pelicans, Sanderlings, Royal Terns etc. but the absolute surprise was the number of Piping Plovers there. Did find one Semipalmated Plover which was a good add as well. From there we went to the South Padre Island Bird Viewing and Nature Center – one of the premier spots for our Texas trips…until today. They have decided to dredge out part of their waterways that have been filling up with Silt. As a result a lot of the water was drained – the far boardwalks were absolutely barren and the other boardwalks were significantly shallower. Paying full price ($12) for those conditions was ridiculous. Felt bad for Ron who was expecting to get a lot of checks there. I got 4 with the Greater Yellowlegs, Pintail, Turnstone and took the Tropical Kingbird based on assessment from another birder there. Met two very nice birders from Wisconsin there (Dan and Emily) and spent the afternoon birding and exchanging information with them. We met again at Laguna Vista (we had recommended they check that place out). This brought me 3 more checks with the Gray Catbird – usually have to wait until I get home for that one, the Nashville Warbler which I’ve seen many times there and the coveted female Hooded Oriole that likes the Hummingbird feeders there. Speaking of which, there were no Hummers there at all – in fact, I have yet to see one this year. Good news, I finally broke into the top 100 birders in Texas leader board.
01/15/2026: Took a breather yesterday to recharge the birding batteries. Hard work this birding thing you know! Glad I did that as today was a huge day for new birds for ’26. We started the day at Estero Llano Grande State Park. One of my favorite places to bird (and not just Texas). Linda and I started in the Tropical Zone and honestly, pretty shocked at how quiet it was – few birds and no people. Star in this area of the park was the Bronzed Cowbird Linda actually spotted first in the blind. Hit or miss with this bird. If it isn’t found off the visitor center deck we have to take a trip to the Progreso Silos and well, take a road we probably are not supposed to take. Luckily one (and only one) made an appearance at the blind, Many White-Tipped Doves, a Clay-Colored Thrush and several Black-Crested Titmice also paraded through the blind. Oh, and 3 Javalinas were enjoying the seed there as well. From there we headed out to Alligator pond to play the Pauraque game. On the way, a nice lady birder alerted us to a Green Kingfisher in the pond. Got some very nice and CLOSE looks at this diminutive fisher – probably got my best shot of all time with a capture of it just coming out of the water with a fish. Little did we know at the time there was going to be 2 more at the Alligator Pond – most I have ever encountered there. Added a Least Sandpiper as we continued on. The Ibis pond was full of Ibis, both White and White-Faced. The first Little Blue Heron of the year was hanging out on a log with a Great Egret, Snowy Egret, White Ibis and a White Ibis Juvi giving a great size comparison shot. Still have my Pauraque eyes as I found 2 in the their usual spot. While shooting those, two White-Eyed Vireos came flying through the trees for a surprise check. On the way back to the RV via the levee, noticed the pink shades of the Roseate Spoonbill hanging out in the waters below. Had some extra time, so headed over to Progreso Farms and picked up both a White-Tailed Kite and the staple in the area, the Burrowing Owl, still hanging out on the cinder blocks – no Long-Billed Curlews though, so Linda went and found a sighting not too far away. Ended up on a private drive, but we were able to spot the Curlews in the field before that. On our way over there I thought I spotted a rounded head at the top of a cement irrigation pipe – history has taught me to watch those closely. Had Linda drive me back to where I thought I saw it and sure enough, it had eyes!! Yes, it was a Burrowing Owl and it was all mine. Linda insists I call it Squishy ha. This is the second time this trip I was the first person to identify. Ended the day back at Estero. Mainly the same menu as before, but did spot a Green Heron at the back of Alligator Pond for a nice end of the day. Almost forgot, earlier in the day, spotted a Ringed Kingfisher (and a Belted) hanging out on the wires over the levee. This is the first time I have ever seen that bird here – this is a good year for Kingfishers!
01/13/2026: Back to Salineno Bird Preserve for one last chance at the Red-Billed Pigeon. We had found a report that mentioned they fly up and down the river in the morning and late afternoon, so we got up early and made our way over by 8am. Cutting to the chase, didn’t see a one of those..the bad luck streak continues for another year. I did see some really good birds though which made for a great day. The count for the day was 12 which puts me at 128+1 for the young year. Finally starting to see numbers I expect to see for south Texas. Some really big highlights for the day starting with my second only sighting of the Zone-Tailed Hawk. Big thanks to Keir for the spot, who I met and had an enjoyable time birding with. He was from Scotland, moved to New York and now Austin. He also spotted the Gray Hawk for me as well. Managed to get the Sora I missed yesterday and surprised to see a White Ibis, Black-Necked Stilts a Spotted Sandpiper and Caspian Terns show up. Although I spotted the Ringed Kingfisher the day before so it wasn’t new, one did give me much better looks today, circling right in front of me several times and then even taking a perch in a nearby tree. I love that bird. As we were leaving, a huge kettle of Vultures formed above us. Mostly Turkey Vultures with Black Vultures mixed in. I checked all the tails…no more Zone-Tailed to add to the report. Had another informative conversation with the nature volunteer Bob while taking another look at the Eastern Screech-Owl in their box. Oh, and Linda flushed a huge Wild Turkey near the Owl, but it was gone before I had a chance to lay eyes on it thus unable to count it. Technically Linda is one up on me now. Audubon’s didn’t show today – good thing we got good looks the day before. Met an individual from Houston that worked or had worked for NASA – he didn’t offer his name. We had a nice conversation about the SpaceX launch coming up – we should be on Padre Island for it, if it doesn’t get postponed. With all the changes they made, it should be a “spectacular” launch. Tomorrow we head to Weslaco and soon after Ron flies down to join us. Should be getting some high count days as a result, Estero never disappoints and always fun to be able to bird with my brother.
01/12/2026: Time to play in the big boy sandbox. Today we headed over to Salineno Bird Preserve, but first a quick stop at the Falcon State bird blind to hopefully get the Bobwhite check – this is one of the easiest places get up close shots of this elusive bird. I’ll go back tomorrow, but I did see the butt of one before it darted back into the brush – a check is a check. To my complete surprise, there was a Green-Tailed Towhee hanging out in the blind. This was a miss from Big Bend, so a nice recovery there. A Great Kiskadee and White-Crowned Sparrows rounded out that quick stop in at the blind. Salineno never disappoints. Between the area down by the river and DeWind’s Yard I added 21 new checks – finally starting to get true south Texas numbers. Extremely appreciative of the nature volunteers there (Bob and his wife) who were incredibly accommodating and informative. Hard to saw what the real highlights were as there were so many. I will have to go with Audubon’s Oriole which are just stunning birds, Ringed Kingfisher and the Eastern Screech-Owl if pressed for my favorites. So many Altamiras, Green Jays, Neotropic Cormorants that I lost count soon after getting there. Did get some finds that I was hoping to pick up later in the trip. Bob got us on a Least Grebe swimming by the island and the Clay-Colored Thrush was busy showing off in the yard area. Both of those are usually found at Estero Llano SP, but this takes the pressure off. Will not have to watch the sky at Santa Ana for the Anhinga now that one flew over the island while we were standing there. Some oddities were there as well. Bob pointed out one of the Green Jays that had lost its tail feathers and now slowly growing them back. Another Green Jay had a wing problem – think they called it “Stumpy”. A Harris Hawk spotting on a telephone as we were leaving the preserve put a nice bow on the day! Last time we were here, there was a lot of construction and clearing going on. Turns out they were working on adding additional border wall. That is done (for now) and you can see it off the river trail. We walked toward it, but took the lower path to see the huge Cypress tree grove. Oh, Bob had told us about a burned out campground down the road that was a good place to bird. We went there and decided it was a bit too sketchy for us so we back out of there – talk about Sabal Palms Sanctuary vibes.
01/11/2026: Rolled into Falcon State Park today. While setting up the campsite, an American White Pelican flew overhead for nice check..especially when I wasn’t even in birding mode yet. Did a quick run up to the bird blind and butterfly area to hopefully get some easy checks before hitting Salineno tomorrow. Did not disappoint. In the short time I was there, managed to get 4 quick checks – the Inca Dove, Long-Billed Thrasher and the always sought after Texas specialty the Olive Sparrow. Went out on my first run of 2026 and while out there a Killdeer decided to race me – I’ll take the check, but the fact that Plover beat me is pretty embarrassing ha.
01/10/2026: Busy day today. Started the day with Ruger’s FastCAT runs in Boerne, TX – about 45 minutes from where we are staying at Gaudalupe River State Park. Props to the speed demon who ran with a headwind on dirt/grass/gravel mixture and still clocked in with an 18.98 and 18.63mph. When coming through the city the day before, we noticed they had a river walk that looked like it had a number of birds in it. Dropped in after Ruger’s runs and was not disappointed. A really nice walk that went on quite away along the river. Numerous Muscovy Ducks were hanging out along with over 50 Black-Bellied Whistling Ducks. Added some easy checks that were surprising still missing this far into the season, Double-Crested Cormorant, Snow Egret, Great Egret and Lesser Scaup. The big surprises was the Egyptian Goose and Palm Warbler. Add in two provisionals, the Graylag Goose and Pekin Duck. From there we went to the Guadalupe River South Trail in search of the Hooded Merganser. Struck out on that, but found 10 Egyptian Goose goslings hanging out with their parents…so cute with their grey and white splotches. Probably 50 Black Vultures in the trees. Did manage to get one new check thanks to an American Kestrel that flew into nearby tree as we made it back to the parking lot. Disappointed in missing the Merganser, Linda found a park in (Landa) in New Braunfells that had a reporting, so we headed over there. Very nice park, but due to the weekend it was full of people – a church service and a wedding included. Was taking a picture of a Lesser Scaup when I looked up and saw 3 Yellow-Crowned Night Herons in the tree. Did not expect that. Spotted 4 Pied-Billed Grebes while there. Continued exploring along the river until I found a number of birds some distance out in the water. Started searching with The Beast and quickly identified the desired hoods – score. Might be other birds in there I need once I get a better looks at the shots. A really good tally for the day.
01/9/2026: Made it to Guadalupe River SP this morning. Set up the campsite and immediately went to work..well, to birding to be honest. There are always two birds on the get list when it comes to this state park, the Lesser Goldfinch and Bewick’s Wren. The former is pretty much in the sure thing side of the ledger as I have been able to check it off at the parks blind since we started coming here. Sure enough, went to the blind and three were already the feeders – my kind of birding ha. Also added the Chipping Sparrow which are also regulars there. Even checked off an American Goldfinch which are significantly outnumbered there. Now to hit the trails to find the Bewick’s which is usually down along the river. Struck out there, but glad to see the river is getting back to normal after their awful flooding last year. Went up to my favorite place in the park, the river bluff overlook. You can really see the devastation from those previous rains. A few Black Vultures were up there enjoying the view along with several Cardinals. While taking a picture of one of those red beauties, a small bird that was constantly flicking its tail caught my attention. Made my way closer and confirmed a Bewick’s Wren and then another Bewick’s Wren joined it a few minutes later. Got great looks at this spastic bird and looking forward to seeing them in the digital darkroom. Hiked/Rucked over 3 miles in the area before heading back to the RV, picking up Linda and heading out to the Savannah Blind in hopes of getting a Ground Dove that was reported there. No luck on that, but did pick up a Field Sparrow and the first Northern Mockingbird of the year – shocking it took this long to get the state bird.
01/8/2026: On our way to Guadalupe River SP tomorrow. Today we stopped in Junction, TX at N. Llano River RV Park to cut the travel time by an hour or so. Did not expect this campground to actually be on the River although it pretty much says that right in the name ha! Once we were all set up, took a walk around the campgrounds and then along the water. First bird I saw was the Black-Crested Titmouse, a target whenever we head down here. Added in a Hermit Thrush calling from a clump of trees. Now that the ice is broken on getting the Canyon Wren in the tin I am seeing it constantly on this trip. Adding that along with some easy gets like the House Finch, Belted Kingfisher and two Mallards that are fed by one of the nearby trailers. Plus 5 for an overnight stop, can’t beat that.
01/7/2026: Today was our last day at Big Bend National Park, tomorrow we head to San Antonio and hopefully better cell phone coverage. I wanted to explore Chisos Basin a little more, so we headed back to that area in the morning. Decided to take the 2 mile Basin Loop Trail which turned out to be a wise choice. Not only was it a great ruck with an elevation climb of 500 feet, it came with some surprises I was not expecting. Not too far in I heard some lighting pecking on a tree and backtracked a bit to the source. Jaw just about hit the ground when I noticed 4 Acorn Woodpeckers in a nearby tree. Was able to get three ladies on them who were actually there in hopes of seeing them (they had found them last year here). That wasn’t the only surprise. Heard a Brown Creeper in a small grove of pine trees and then towards the end of the loop I heard some rustling in the brush in a ravine. Never did see the source of that one, but I did not miss the Spotted Towhee that called out and crossed the trail in front of me as it headed to the rustling sound. From there we checked out there dino exhibit and since we were relatively close, we went back to the Rio Grande Village in hopes of finding the Chihuahuan Meadowlark. No Meadowlark, but able to add three Black Vultures circling overhead (maybe not a good sign ha), and then heard a Green Kingfisher calling from the tall reeds on their nature trail.
01/6/2026: I have to admit, the birding out here in west Texas has fell short of expectations. I’ve managed to pick up some good birds that I normally only get checked off when we go through Arizona. As we are not doing that trip this year, those will help that gap. Today we checked out the Big Bend Ranch State Park which is the opposite way from Big Bend National Park. As we are out here, we definitely want to hit everything we can. Two birds were on the get list – the Rock Wren and the Green-Tailed Towhee. Two more Arizona centric birds. Went 1 for 2 as we spotted the Rock Wren in the desert gardens next to the visitor center. Ended up seeing three in total for the trip. Unfortunately, no Towhee. Did pick up a Spotted Sandpiper further into the park at a river access point. At this point I am countwise the lowest since we started the Average Year.
01/5/2026: Back to Big Bend. Today we took the scenic drive down to Santa Elena Canyon. Per norm, since getting here, the birding was a bit underwhelming. At the river access Linda spotted me A White-Winged Dove on the roof of a picnic area. Walked down the canoe access path and spotted a solo Ring-Necked Duck paddling around in the Rio Grande River. On the surprise front there was 5 wild horses munching off in weeds. From there I hiked the Santa Elena Trail – amazing views of the Rio Grande going through the canyon walls. Along that walk found a Canyon Wren…in a canyon ha and then on the way out found a Common Yellowthroat palling around with a Common Yellowthroat. Before crossing the Trilinqua Creek, nabbed a Lincoln’s Sparrow handing out with a Pyrruluxia, Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher and a Ruby-Crowned Kinglet. We decided to let the Rubicon have some fun and took the Old Maverick Rd back to the entrance. Good thing we did as all the jarring came with several Black-Throated Sparrows flitting from bush to bush. Five new birds for the fifth.
01/4/2026: It was a big birding day today that got me to the 50 count threshold. The day started out at the Rio Grande Village in Big Bend National Park. We decided to take the full run through the park today and they slowly work our way back as the day went on. It was Sunday and we were worried about midpoint parking lots filling up with weekend traffic. Simply walking around the village area yielded some good checks. Finally got the Greater Roadrunner and the two Woodpecker staples for south Texas – the Golden-Fronted and the Ladder-Backed. The Verdin and Red-Naped Sapsucker were unexpected pickups among a number of standard fare like the Yellow-Rumped Warbler, Ruby-Crowned Kinglet. Favorite checks for this location was the Western Bluebird and the Vermilion Flycatcher. From there I checked out the nearby nature trail. This was a really nice walk, but takes some effort to get to the top of the butte for gorgeous 360 degrees of the Rio Grande River and surrounding rock formations. Picked up the Crissal and Curve-Billed Thrashers on the way to the trail (through the campground). Western Meadowlarks were hunting the campground pads and Black-Tailed Gnatcatcher started calling on my way back to the car. Later back at the RV, identified a flyover duck as a Mexican. Remember, shoot everything, you never know what you will discover in the digital darkroom. We continued on to check out the Boquillas Canyon area. Another great hiking opportunity that takes you right down to the Rio Grande River as it passes through the tall canyon walls. Picked up to Black Phoebes hunting the far banks of the river (Mexico) before hearing a Canyon Wren calling from the rocks behind me. Took a bit, but eventually spotted the calling Wren and was able to get my first pictures ever of this particular species – heard it many times, but they can be really hard to find. Oh, did get a Mexican Great Blue Heron on the way back to the car (as in a Great Blue Heron standing on the rocks on the Mexican side of the river ha! Capping off the bid day was a luck find while we were heading into the High Sierra Bar and Grill in Ghost Town, Terlinquas. A familiar sound was coming from a palm tree next to the Ghost Town Hotel across the parking lot. My ears served me well as I confirmed it was a Cactus Wren. Good rucking, good birds, good scenery and good food – a day to remember!
01/3/2026: Seems like every campground show up produces a new check for the year. We pulled into the Around the Bend RV Park in Study Butte, TX, hooked up and took a look around. A lone Say’s Phoebe was darting between the few campers in the park. On return at the end of the day spotted a Loggerhead Shrike hanging out on a powerline. The time between that was spend on our first visit to Big Bend National Park. This place is HUGE. It took 23 miles for us just to get from the entrance to the visitor center. Talked up the local volunteers and decided to head up to the Chisos Mountain area. On the way up there, spotted several Mexican Jays. Once there, took a short trail near the store and tinned some good birds usually found on our Arizona trip – the Canyon Towhee, Pyrruluxia and the Common Raven. The big find of the day was the Rufous-Crowned Sparrow hanging out near those birds. This was a lifer for me – hoping to get better shots the rest of this stay, but did get some decent ones to get get the check! Did see a Coyote standing by the road on our way to the visitor center.
01/2/2026: The second day of the year brought quite the surprise. We pulled up to the Hilltop RV Park in Fort Stockton, TX and Linda went in to get a site. I happened to look up and spotted some Quail-like birds not far in front hanging out at a wooden fence post – didn’t seem to look like Gambel’s…could it be!!!. I got my camera and dashed out to get some shots. After taking several shots, took a look at the back of the camera to confirm – yes!, they were Scaled Quail. My first encounter was outside Falcon State Park last year, but I was unable to get shots at that brief sighting. Quite the unexpected score for today
01/1/2026: This turned out to be my worst first day of birding in at least the last 3 years. We are on our way to Big Bend National Park and just did runs through our two campgrounds on this day to see what was out – also gives me some new counties on my overall birding map. The morning started out in Oklahoma City East KOA. This place had a really nice set of birding trails through the woods along with some retention ponds. Nothing beyond the normal birds, but a solid start to the year. The second campground in Abilene added a few more of the usuals including the Great-Tailed Grackle and the House Sparrow which I am sure will see more of ha. The highlight of the day was driving towards Seymour, TX and noticing a flock of at least 70 Sandhill Cranes in the fields to the right of the highway. The earliest I have ever checked those off and by far the most I have ever seen at one time.
Wildlife Intrigued 