Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, Winnie, Texas

White-Faced Ibis (dark birds) and undetermined birds in forefront.

White-Faced Ibis

Northern Harrier

Willets

White Ibis

Loggerhead Shrike

Say's Phoebe

Say's Phoebe

 The wetlands are beautiful in this area of the refuge.

Brown Pelican (immature) and Cormorant (to right)

 As we were walking along we spotted this

Brown Pelican resting on the railing.

 The Pelican just sat there and posed for me.

It didn't seem to mind whether I was 

far away or getting rather close.

It just sat there and rested.

The Pelican picked a beautiful spot to relax.

American Coot swimming about the pond.

 This Cormorant was a striking figure

on the stark tree with gray sky as background.

 Usually a Grebe dives at the first sign of a human,

but this Pied-Billed Grebe just paddled around

making circles in the water.

Pelican in the distance... it finally took to water.

 The Great Blue Heron (above)

and the Great White Egret (below)

barely tolerated my presence.

They were searching for a meal and I just wanted

to take photographs of them.

 Great White Egret

On the way back home from our visit to Amelia Island

and Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, the G-man and I

spent the night in Winnie, Texas with plans to visit

the Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge the following morning.

We didn't get out and about at the crack of dawn as most birders do

because we are just damn lazy!

Actually it was late when we rolled into Winnie

the night before, so we slept in and finally

got to the refuge around 9:30 AM.

There were not as many birds about as we have seen on other

of our winter visits. Actually, we were not able

to get to parts of the refuge because there was quite

a bit of roadwork being done.

I was quite happy to see that money is going into this refuge.

A visitor center is being built and roads are being repaired and paved.

This place is a real treasure and is a bit off the beaten path (so to speak).

It is about 15 to 20 miles off IH-10 from Winnie, Texas.

The area is a birder's paradise as there are many places

along the coast and inland to see migratory birds.

 High Island is the place for spring migration and is just a few miles from the refuge.

The "Birding High Island" website gives more information.

Winnie has many hotels to accommodate travelers & birders.

We may make a trip over there in the spring to see what's flying!

Wood Stork on Jekyll Island, GA

This Wood Stork was posing for me.
We spotted him as we were driving
along the highway at Jekyll Island, Georgia.

I don't know much about Wood Storks
but he looks old to me.
He sat and posed for several shots
and then flew away into the marshlands.

This is some beautiful country!

Hunting in the 'Hood

You may laugh at the idea of someone shooting a turkey or a deer in a neighborhood, but a couple of weeks ago a man shot a buck in front of his house. One of the neighbors heard the shot and went to find out what was happening. He was appalled at the sight of a man with a rifle hunting deer in a suburban neighborhood & called the sheriff's department. The sheriff's dept. did not respond, but did send out a game warden to investigate.

The man had a hunting license, shot a buck (not a doe which is fine), and did it during hunting season. The deer was not killed and the game warden had to locate & shoot the buck. He then gave it to the "hunter". Of course there has been a big uproar about this in the very large & wooded subdivision in which we live. It is illegal to discharge a weapon here & I believe the man was ticketed for doing so... but he was rewarded by receiving the deer. Weird!

Today as the G-man and I drove down near the river we came across a meadow and a rather large bob cat was sunning itself by a leafless tree. He looked at us as we gazed through binoculars at him. I had no camera so was unable to take a photograph; he was a bit too far away for me to capture him through my lens. He eventually walked back into the woods and as he did we saw that he had a noticeable limp. We wondered if he could have been shot, hit by a car, or injured in a fight with another animal (deer or perhaps another bob cat). This was the second time I have seen one in this area. They live in the dense undergrowth and roam along the Colorado River.

Ahhh, Texas. I feel so fortunate to experience seeing these animals in our area. I prefer taking shots with a camera to those with a gun. Oh yeah.

Last of the Turkey Saga

When Steven asked if wild turkeys are eaten, I was reminded of a cowboy friend of mine who about 15 years ago rode off on his horse to investigate gobbles on his ranch. Billy Don with shotgun in hand rode his horse, Bugger Red, along the North San Gabriel River. I wish I had a photo of him on his horse. He is over six feet tall and was dressed in his ranch clothes, boots, jeans, shirt & rough jacket and a big felt cowboy hat and was sitting on his beautiful big palomino gelding.

Within the hour the two returned. Billy rode up with a huge grin on his face and a big ole tom turkey hanging from his saddle. He & Bugger searched out the turkeys along the river and Bugger stood stock still as Billy Don aimed & fired. This was the first time he had shot his gun while sitting on his horse and all sorts of bad things could have happened, but that horse was steadfast. The tom was retrieved, tied by its legs to the saddle & brought it back to the ranch house to pluck & cook in time for Thanksgiving. Now that was pretty darn cool!

Turkeys on the Roof - Sunday 160

Turkeys on the roof
Squirrels in the attic
Steven asks:
"Can you eat wild turkey?"
Lizzy answers:
A resounding "Yes!"
But, not sporting
to shoot such precious critters!

I am trying the "Character 160 Sunday Challenge" from Monkey Man. This came to me this morning when I visited Beth at What I Should Have Said - 160 Envy

Tomorrow I'll end up my "Turkey's on the Roof" story. Enjoy this fun little exercise for the mind.

Turkeys on the Roof

At 7 AM it was 12 degrees on the patio at our house. Pretty chilly for central Texas. As I was preparing the coffee the electricity went out... on, off, on, off, on... OFF for about 3 hours.

I left the G-man in bed, manually opened the garage, & drove to the local Starbucks. One of my neighbors was there. He & I drank coffee & visited for a while until he went to pick up his wife at jazz-ercise.

Back home with extra coffee to fortify us we built a nice roaring fire. Fortunately the electricity came back on about 10 or so & the house began to warm up again.

The turkeys reappeared around noon and flew onto the roof when the neighbor's dog, Mo appeared. Mo likes to tree the squirrels and I suppose he wonders what these big birds are doing in the yard.

The backyard has been busy with all sorts of birds this morning. A chickadee was hoping for a drink of water, but alas the water is still frozen. A pileated woodpecker was in the yaupon eating berries, but alas we have not seen either the male or female buff-belly hummingbird today. I hope they made it through the cold night.

Turkeys on the Roof

They are not fearful of me, but zoom when Mo appears.

Sweet ole Mo

Pileated Woodpecker eating berries

Friday's Wildlife

As I sat working my crossword puzzle this morning,
two deer appeared in the back yard.

First they were munching on the leaves of berry trees,
then they found the cracked corn I put out for the squirrels & turkeys.

The deer stayed around for quite a while...
with Miss Kitty lying under a chair watching them.

When I opened the draperies in the bedroom
to take photos of the ruby-throat hummingbirds
the deer decided to leave...
any little movement & they are gone.

One little hummer

...then two

...now 3, no 4 have arrived.

At times (and as I write this) there are 10 flying around this one favorite feeder.
We have 3 feeders hanging,
but they seem to prefer the one where they can perch
rather than hover to drink the nectar.

Now as I was writing about the deer & hummers
something bright caught my eye.
Not a cardinal,
but an Oriole!


I had to use a smaller camera that would sort of focus through a window.
But because of this I couldn't get a good close-up that I could
achieve with my better camera.


Orioles migrate through here which is what this one is doing.
It is a male and from the photos looks
and the information provided in my
Birds of North America handbook,
I have concluded it is an Orchard Oriole.


Above are the berry bushes are where the oriole was when I first spotted him.
Our area is in its migratory path on its way to Mexico & points south.


Last, but not least is a squirrel.
He ran when I went outside to try to photograph the oriole.
The G-man is going to be disappointed that he missed the oriole...
maybe tomorrow.

The Mockingbird - Texas' State Bird

The Mockingbird has long been one of my favorite birds.
It was adopted as the state bird of Texas in 1927.
Harper Lee made the Mockingbird even more famous when she wrote the following lines
for the book whose title became:

It's A Sin To Kill A Mockingbird

"'Remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird.'
That was the only time I ever heard Atticus
say it was a sin to do something,
and I asked Miss Maude about it."

"Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music
for us to enjoy...but sing their hearts out for us.
That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird."

The Mockingbird on a Live Oak tree branch at The Legends Golf Course, Kingsland, TX

Photos by Cheryl Cato, April 2009

The following description of the mockingbird is on a large plaque on the #9 tee box at The Legends Golf Course in Kingsland, TX.

Legend has it that when Texas chose the Mockingbird
as its state bird the resolution stated:

The bird is
"a fighter for the protection of his home, falling,
if need be, in its defense, like any true Texan".

Ask any Texan, and you will no doubt learn that the mockingbird has the prettiest song of any bird native to North America. That's perhaps the chief reason the "mocker" was adopted as the state bird of Texas in 1927.

The song of the mockingbird is, in fact, a medley of the calls of many other birds. Each imitation is repeated two or three times, then another song is started, all in rapid succession. In the above sample audio file, the songs of four distinct species were recorded in the span of about seven seconds. It is common for an individual bird to have as many as 25-30 songs in its repertory.

The mockingbird is also known as a fierce protector of its nest and environment. It is sometimes seen swooping down on a dog, cat or predator that may be venturing too close to the bird's protected territory.

The mimus polyglottos, as the mockingbird is known scientifically, is about ten inches in length, including its relatively long tail. It has a light gray coat and a whitish underside. Its wings and tail are darker gray with white patches.

http://www.lsjunction.com/bird.htm

Theme Thursday - Animal - The Great Blue Heron

While Pelican watching...

a Great Blue Heron flew onto this dock...

On the bay in Fulton, Texas there is an old rickety boardwalk going out to some little boats where the shore birds love to visit. One day I was watching the pelicans when over my shoulder flew in a Great Blue Heron and landed majestically in front of me.

and landed majestically among the seagulls & a cormorant

Along side the heron to the right is a cormorant and seagulls all around.

and stood in a stately manner surveying his domain.

Isn't this a majestic looking bird? He/she is a loner and appears to have no fear.

Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias): This is the largest and most widespread heron in North America. It can be found along ocean shores, fresh water ponds and rivers. The color of mature birds is gray, it has long legs, and a long "S" shaped neck. There is a white striped crown on its head and ruffled feathers at the base of its neck and back. The herons back, wings, and underside are a bluish-gray color. The legs and bill are a pale yellow color. The size is 97 to 137 cm or 34 to 54 in. The wingspan is 167 to 201 cm or 66 to79 in. The heron weighs 2100 to 2500 gm or 74 to 88 oz. Both sexes look alike which is dissimilar to most birds where the male is generally more brilliant in color.

The diet of the Great Blue Heron is mostly fish, but will eat other small animals for example voles, frogs, birds and small lizards.

We find the Great Blue Heron year around in Texas and in most of the United States except the more northern of the mid-western states. Their range in summer during breeding season is from southern Alaska and central Canada to Central America and the Caribbean. In winter they are found from southern Canada southward as far as northern South America and along the west and east coasts as far north as Alaska & Nova Scotia. They live in rural or urban areas as long as there is a good water supply such as ponds or rivers.

The Great Blue nests in colonies sometimes as a lone pair and other times with several groups in an especially nice thicket around a pond or river. Their nests are large, made of sticks, grass and reeds, or sticks and are found high in trees. I read that they occasionally make nests on the ground. The eggs are a dull pale blue and are generally 2 to 6 eggs in a clutch. The chicks are covered in a pale gray down and with open eyes and able to hold their heads up just after hatching.

Resource: Cornell Lab of Ornithology "All About Birds"

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Today the temperatures reached 88 degrees F with a slight breeze out of the southwest ... a beautiful golf day. Most players were in shorts & short-sleeves. We definitely needed sunscreen. The last week in February & temperatures like this is what makes living in central Texas great. Now this summer in July & August we'll be suffering from the heat and humidity and may not enjoy a day on the golf course as much as we did today.


Oak tree beginning to bud on the golf course.

A couple of ladies enjoying a late afternoon game.

A little buck grazing along the Colorado River across from the golf course.

Several deer getting water late in the afternoon.

Waxing Moon and Venus in early evening taken from golf course.

It's been a beautiful day in the neighborhood. As I post this the wind has just switched to the north and a cold front is blowing in. This weekend will be in the 50s & 60s with near freezing temperatures at night. Can't put out the tomato plants just yet ... we'll have to wait until next week.