113th CBC Texas Regional Summary

                                                           By Brent Ortego

Fork-tailed Flycatcher at Austin, Greater Pewee at Buffalo Bayou, Red-throated Loon at Aransas N.W.R., Red-necked Grebe at Matagorda County, Little Gull at Lake Ray Hubbard, and Great Black-backed Gull at Freeport and Guadalupe River Delta were the headliners in a landscape that has undergone serious droughts during 2009, 2011 and 2012.  Red Crossbills and Red-breasted Nuthatches invaded Texas in record numbers.  Eighty-four Red Crossbills were reported on three CBCs and a remarkable 466 Red-breasted Nuthatches were recorded in 70 of the 109 CBCs.  Other nomadic species like Cedar Waxwing, American Robin and blackbirds occurred in relatively low numbers.  More species than normal showed below average numbers as species densities adjusted to continuing drought in Texas.

A total of 3103 birders (9% increase over last year) used 29,766 party-hours (2% increase) at 109 (no change) Christmas Bird Counts (CBCs) produced 369 species, 14 infraspecific forms and 14 exotics which was the lowest species tally in 13 years.  Three additional species were found only during Count Week:  Rose-throated Becard, Tropical Parula, and MacGillivray’s Warbler.  Six species were deleted because of unsatisfactory documentation, and 108 species were missed that were reported during the last 10 CBC seasons.    Two CBCs did not make the data reporting deadline.  We welcome new CBC Cedar Hill which is near Dallas.

Matagorda County was Number One in the Nation with 232 species and Guadalupe River Delta was 4^th with 212 species.  Freeport had 196 species, San Bernard 193, Port Aransas 183, Weslaco 176, Corpus Christi 174, Galveston 165, Harlingen 160 and 14 additional CBCs had at least 150 species.

Reporting sightings is getting easier with the development of numerous educational materials which can be used in the office and field, and production of better optical equipment and lighter cameras to take birding.  Texas birders submitted documentation on 202 of the 368 species reported and provided photographs of 145 of these species.  A total of 392 sets of details were submitted and this was 76% of those desired.

The Fork-tailed Flycatcher is a very rare visitor to Texas originating from the tropics.  It was photographed by Shelia Hargis during the Austin CBC for the 3^rd CBC record for the United States.  It was viewed by at least 60 birders from 15-26 December.  The bird appeared to hang out with Scissor-tails during its stay.

The Greater Pewee is a very rare visitor to Texas and even rarer bird to be found on a CBC in the United States.   This makes the 2^nd time this decade a Greater Pewee was recorded on a CBC in Texas.  The Pewee was found at Bear Creek Park in Houston on 5 October by Jim Hinson and Greg Page and stayed in the area through the CBC season.  It was identified by its characteristic vocalization by Adam Wood and Jim Hinson during the Buffalo Bayou CBC.

The Red-throated Loon is considered a very rare Texas winter resident along the upper coast and on lakes and reservoirs.  The species has been reported four times on CBCs during the last 10 years.  It was observed flying from Tommy Moore’s “Skimmer” boat during the Aransas N.W.R. CBC by Clay Taylor.

The Red-necked Grebe is considered to be a very rare winter visitor to Texas.  I found this bird foraging amongst scattered flocks of Eared/Horned Grebes and Common Loons in East Matagorda Bay during the Matagorda County CBC.  This bay has greater water clarity than most Texas bays because no river empties into it and as a result usually has several hundred grebes and loons of various species foraging in it.  The Red-necked was with a small group of very skittish grebes and was only viewed for about one-half minute.

The Little Gull is a very rare visitor to eastern Texas.  Although rare, it has been reported with regularity on CBCs.  The first reports of the species this season occurred on 11 December and the species was present through the CBC season in the Dallas area.  A number of Little Gulls were reported on CBCs, but only the one at Lake Ray Hubbard was adequately documented. It was seen by Blaine Carnes and Caleb Frome while scoping the gull flock at Wynn-Joyce Park.

The Great Black-backed Gull is a very rare visitor to the Texas Coast.  The first sighting this season was 29 November and they continued through the CBC season.  Many observers had opportunities to view this species throughout the winter, and it is not known how many different gulls were observed amongst the reports.  The species was satisfactorily documented at Freeport by Janet Rathjen and Adam Wood, and at the Guadalupe River Delta by Jon McIntyre. 

EXCLUSIVES

One exiting aspect of participating in CBCs is finding the only species for a count and maybe for the state.  There were many “exclusives” this season.  Texas had 28 instances where only one individual was found.  This is amazing when you realize birders spent 29,766 days in the field and they only found one individual of each of those species.  Eleven other exclusives were reported at only one CBC but were more numerous.  Production of exclusives varied from eight at Matagorda County, three at El Paso and Weslaco to one at 17 CBCs.  Rarities ranged from the expected, Attwater’s Greater Prairie-Chicken at Attwater N.W.R., to the surprise of somebody’s season like:  Louisiana Waterthrush photographed by Bill Godley and Prothonotary Warbler described by Fred Land, Keith Kunkle & Wayne Lea at Brazos Bend; Chestnut-sided Warbler documented by Paul Crowe in Dallas County; Magnificent Frigatebird spotted by Petra Hockey during her “Seawatch” and the Pectoral Sandpiper photographed by Brad Lirette in a waterfowl impoundment at Matagorda County; Purple Martin described by Terry Fuller at Harlingen; Summer Tanager photographed by Stephen Lewis at Laredo; Dickcissel reported by Karen McBride at Granger; or the Black-headed Grosbeak I photographed at San Bernard N.W.R.

Christmas Bird Counts with exclusive species for Texas this season:

                                                        MISSED SPECIES

With only one individual found for each of 28 species with almost 30,000 birding days, it is likely there were several more species present that were not found during the CBCs. Looking at the data for Texas during the last decade, there were 15 species which were reported on 70% of the CBCs that were missed or not adequately documented.  They were Muscovy Duck, Ring-necked Pheasant, Hook-billed Kite, Broad-winged Hawk, Wilson’s Phalarope, Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, Eastern Whip-poor-will, Yellow-throated Vireo, Plumbeous Vireo, Bank Swallow, Wood Thrush, Tropical Parula, Prairie Warbler, Bullock’s Oriole, and Cassin’s Finch.  In addition, Rose-throated Becard and MacGillivray’s Warbler were found during Count Week.

 POPULATION TRENDS

I review population trends of species reported each season by comparing the results of the season for each species to the average number reported for the previous 10 years.  I view a population as changed if it varies from the 10-year average of a species by greater than one standard deviation; i.e., Northern Bobwhite 10-year avg = 1701, std dev = 842, 737 during 113^th = population decrease.

Many factors affect the number of birds available to be counted with habitat conditions believed to have the greatest influence.  Short term localized events like hurricanes/wildfires and season long rainfall patterns can have dramatic effects on habitat conditions and the availability of food.  Texas has experienced severe droughts during the years 2009, 2011 and 2012, and the central United States experienced one in 2012.

Countering these very dry conditions in the States, there was an abundance of water in the major waterfowl production areas during the breeding season in Canada.  According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the 2012 estimate of breeding ducks in the traditional survey area was 48.6 million birds, a seven percent increase from last year's record total and the largest estimate since annual surveys began in 1955. In especially good news for waterfowlers, Mallards were up 15 percent—from 9.2 million birds in 2011 to 10.6 million this year. Populations of all other major duck species, except northern pintails, were either above or statistically similar to 2011 estimates. 

With droughts in the central United States and abundant wetlands in Canada which serve as major production areas for Texas wintering species, I examined how the birds responded to conditions in Texas as reported by birders.  This season was the first time in five years where a greater percentage of species decreased than increased.  In the table below, percentage of species increasing or decreasing is shown. In normal years there are more species increasing in populations than those declining, and the results are fairly typical in the seasons from the 109^th through the 112^th, with the exception being the 111^th season which had record participation and percent of species increasing.  The 113^th CBC season (this year) had 1% above average birder participation, but greater percent of species declining.

The species increasing and decreasing are partitioned by commonality of habitats or taxonomic groups in the table below.  Species within these groups that have significant breeding populations within Texas arebold faced.  Seventy-five percent of the species which have significant breeding populations in Texas that are in this table are in the SPECIES DECLINING column as compared to 56% of the species which primarily do not breed in Texas. As expected, the residents/breeders are being impacted greater by the droughts.

Birds depending on wetlands had mixed responses.  Many natural shallow water sites in Texas were dry, and rice production and availability of irrigation water for rice were very limited near the Coast.  The Lower Colorado River Authority delivered little water to rice growers in the vicinity of two major CBCs; Attwater’s and Matagorda County.  In other areas of the Texas rice belt (Coastal Prairie), rice production was suppressed due to a poor rice market.  Production of rice and availability of irrigation water in the fall for waterfowl impoundments have significant effects on waterbirds along the Coast.  Waste grain is a major food supply for wintering waterfowl, blackbirds, and their predators.  Flocks of 20,000+ Snow Geese along the Coast used to be common.  Today, if a flock of 2000 geese occurs along the highway, this is a must stop.  Changing migration habits of the geese, lower food availability in Texas because of rice production trends, extensive goose hunting guide services and the drought all have taken their toll.

 Deep lakes and tidal areas still had water.   Many tidal wetlands which were normally fresh had some salinity and this affected their suitability to some species.  Deep water birds generally did OK with several species showing noticeable above average densities. 

Several species of puddle ducks, marsh birds like herons, egrets, ibises and rails had populations lower than average which is expected when the marshes dried.  However, shorebirds which typically use exposed mudflats had several species with above average densities.  Mottled Duck, Redhead, Horned Grebe, Black-crowned Night-Heron, and Whooping Crane had their highest tally for this decade.

Quail numbers continued to decline with both Northern Bobwhite and Scaled Quail reported at less than half of their 10-year average.  In addition, no Ring-necked Pheasants or Lesser Prairie-Chickens were found.

 Raptors as a group did very well.  Twelve species showed increasing trends versus four species decreasing.  These were similar trends to raptors during the 112^th season.  We are not sure why these larger numbers of raptors occur during droughts.  The suspicion is that birds are being displaced because of poor habitat conditions elsewhere.

Crested Caracara and Merlin were reported in record numbers this season.  Bald Eagle numbers appear to be still increasing after de-listing, and the Aplomado Falcon stocking program by Peregrine Fund continue to help the species along the Coast.

 Nine shorebird species showed increases while two species declined.  This occurred even though the major shorebird CBC in Texas, Kenedy County – Wind Turbines, had to deal with bad weather and was only able to send one party in the field.  Black-bellied Plover, Semipalmated Plover, Mountain Plover, and Short-billed Dowitcher had their highest tallies for the last 10 years.  I remember when there was mandatory documentation for Solitary Sandpiper Nation-wide.  It is a very uncommon bird during winter in Texas, but not rare near the Coast. Nineteen CBCs managed to find it this season with a high of 11 at Matagorda County.

Woodpeckers did very well with five species increasing and one decreasing.  All increasers recorded their highest tally for the last 10 years.  Are woodpeckers responding to increased food supplies during the drought?  Nobody is monitoring their food, but droughts stresses and kill trees.  Stressed and dead trees are very susceptible to wood boring insects which woodpeckers like to eat.

 The drought likely negatively impacted insectivorous birds like flycatchers, wrens, kinglets and gnatcatchers the most.  Native habitats were very dry and insect activity was noticeably absent.  No species in these groups showed increasing trends and 20 species listed below showed decreasing trends.  Seven species of wrens are on this list.

There were some reports during the fall about noticeable declines in Blue Jays and crows.  This brought concerns about maybe West Nile Virus was becoming active again.  The Texas CBC data did not detect any noticeable declines that could be attributed to this virus.  Blue Jays and Common Ravens actually increased, but Mexican Jay and Fish Crow declined.

Warblers were noticeably absent or in low number at many CBCs.  While scouting for Guadalupe River Delta and Matagorda County the weather was warm and windy. I found very low densities of passerines near the Coast, and  I initially attributed this to low activity of birds due to the heat/wind, but as we got to count week I was alarmed at the very low densities we were going to have this season.  Getting Orange-crowned was challenging and finding more than one Black-and-white was very hard.  As birders say, “The woods were dead”.

Sparrows also occurred in low numbers at many CBCs.  The exceptions were Brewer’s Sparrow, and the seemingly always abundant Lark Bunting and Savannah Sparrow.  The record 2350 Brewer’s at Balmorhea represented 98% of this species in Texas. 

It is tempting to blame low numbers of blackbirds on the poor rice crop.  This undoubtedly had its impact, but blackbird numbers were very low across the state, not just along the Coast where most rice is produced.  Brazos Bend was the only CBC to report large numbers of birds.  This situation makes me ask the question, did the drought in the mid-West dramatically affect mid-Continent blackbird numbers?

SELECT SPECIES STATUS FROM LAST SEASON

Last season, I focused on Red-tailed Hawk, White-eyed Vireo, Tree Swallow, Green-tailed Towhee, Spotted Towhee, Lincoln’s Sparrow, and Harris’s Sparrow to highlight species that were either having a good or poor year in the State. A brief snapshot is provided below to indicate if those major movements or declines for these select species were continued into this season, or to show that they were one year wonders.

Red-tailed Hawk – Texas reported 3813 during the 111^th season which was close to the 10-year average of 3419.  It reported 4511 during the drought of the 112^th season which was the highest tally during the decade, and reported 4257 this season which is still well above the 10-year average.  Short-term droughts don’t appear to reduce Red-tailed Hawk numbers in Texas, and some might speculate that they increased their abundance since the three highest tallies during the past 10 years occurred during the driest years.

White-eyed Vireo – Texas CBC observers reported 759 during the 111^th season which was one of the highest on record.  Only 240 were reported during the drought of the 112^th season and this tally was 50% lower than the previous lowest report for the decade.  With continuing drought in the 113^th season, 383 were reported.  This is still below the average for the decade and indicative of a declining winter population.  As a comparison, Florida reports were examined and their numbers have essentially been stable except for this season.  Gainesville reported an exceptionally large number, 200, with the rest of Florida being normal.

Tree Swallow – Texas reported 5263 during the 111^th season which was average for the decade.  It only reported 1555 for the 112^th which was the 2^nd lowest for the decade and 2717 during the 113^th season which fell within the normal variation for this species.  Florida normally reports over 1 million Tree Swallows each season, but only tallied 143,000 during the 113^th.  Availability of insects and timing of surveys to correspond with migration are very important to obtain high swallow counts.  I don’t know if the Florida drop in numbers was more related to swallow abundance, or somebody not surveying their major roosts which typically occur during the CBC season.

Green-tailed Towhee – One of the largest movements eastward of Green-tailed Towhees occurred during the 112^th season with 151 being reported in Texas and many being reported in states to the East.  I was real curious if these birds survived the winter, would they return to their abnormal more eastern wintering sites?  None were reported east of Texas this season and the 52 reported in Texas was normal.  Brazos Bend and Freeport were the only eastern CBCs in Texas that adequately documented the species.

Spotted Towhee – The two highest tallies of this species in Texas occurred during dry years and the 1401 last season was the 2^nd highest.  Only 880 were reported during this season’s drought and this number was near normal for the species.

Lincoln’s Sparrow – The 1178 reported last season in Texas was the lowest tally since the 70’s when there were many fewer birders.  The 2715 reported this season is close to average for the decade and it is not known what caused the major dip in numbers from last season.

Harris’s Sparrow – The large numbers of Harris’s Sparrows last season was very entertaining as they produced a tally twice as high as the previous record in the decade.  The number reported this season fell within the normal variation of annual tallies.

I hope you enjoyed looking at these brief snapshots of population changes in selected species.  It is easy to jump to premature conclusions with population changes occurring at the same time of major events like droughts, wet years, lack of irrigation water, hurricanes and fires.  Longer studies usually show that continental responses by avian populations are much more complex and can be very difficult to predict.

SPECIAL ASPECTS

Compilers have opportunity to write a short narrative describing the special aspects surrounding their CBC.  This has previously only been viewable by reviewers.  A number of the special aspects reports by compilers are displayed below to show localized perspectives during the CBC season.

Amarillo - We still note the effects of severe drought with birds mostly clustered around human activity and significant declines in upland prairie birds and even in blackbirds as a group. Shorebirds were nearly absent as well. The weather was just about perfect for birding which helped the count significantly as well.

Canadian River - Drought in the NE Panhandle continues.  Standing water is well below normal levels to completely gone.  Grass cover is limited and food production in the way of grasses, forbs, and woody species has been limited as well. The area has had little to no growing season over the last two years, and count numbers seem to reflect that.

Chisos Mountains – Very dry and almost no sources of water in the Chisos Mountains.

El Paso - There was a pretty good montane irruption, including Lewis's Woodpecker, Western Scrub-Jay, Red-breasted Nuthatch, and Red Crossbill. A nice selection of wintering hummingbirds included lone Costa's and Calliope - both photographed. New to the count were photographed Western Screech-Owl and count week Zone-tailed Hawk. The desert was suffering from the drought and desert species like Rufous-crowned Sparrow were in short supply. Acorn Woodpeckers set a new high with 11 and are now an expected species in town with colonies at a handful of locations. Notable rarities were Greater Scaup (1), Zone-tailed Hawk (1), Sandhill Crane (15), California Gull (1), Western Screech-Owl (1), the Costa's and Calliope hummingbirds, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (1), a Hammond's/Dusky Flycatcher, N. Rough-winged Swallow (1), Vermilion Flycatcher (1), E. Bluebird (6), and Hooded Oriole(1).

Davis Mountains - 2011 was a year of extreme drought.  2012 was better, but not much.  Additionally, there were wildfires in the Davis Mountains both years.  We attribute the low numbers of species seen and birds counted to these factors.

McNary - Ongoing drought in far west Texas continues to affect the McNary count. A general lack of food available for either seed-eating or insect eating birds was evident. Water levels in the Rio Grande and at reservoirs were generally low to non-existent. This helped in finding some unusual shorebirds but was otherwise detrimental. Also access to some good birding areas north of Interstate 10 is no longer possible, also contributing to lower count totals.

Dallas County - The 2012 Dallas County CBC on December 15 was blessed with warm temperatures (highs in the 70s) but not particularly noteworthy numbers of birds. Species diversity was about average (116 sp. on count day), but the numbers of sparrows and waterfowl were low. Gleaners like Yellow-rumped, Pine, and Orange-crowned Warblers were down as were birds like chickadees, Brown Creepers and some wrens. The exception to the rule was an invasion of Red-breasted Nuthatches, some of which had been around since Thanksgiving.  For reasons unknown, this was the largest count ever for the number of Ring-billed Gulls and Forster's Terns, and White Rock Lake had an amazing six species of gull.

Hagerman - Extreme drought this year again affected this count severely.  Many land birds were at or near all time lows and a number of species that should have been found were either CW or missed completely.  Unseasonably high temperatures and strong winds also adversely affected this count.

Lake O’the Pines - The lake may have been at its lowest water level for a count.

Lake Tawakoni - This year marks the 29th Lake Tawakoni CBC.  It was highlighted by two new birds:  Prairie Falcon and Lesser Black-backed Gull.  Both of which were photographed.  The colder than normal weather produced early morning ice on small pond edges. How on earth did Cave Swallows survive the cold spell?  Waterfowl numbers were variable and all the expected ducks were seen.  Most of which were in about average numbers.  However loons and grebes were very low.  For the first time in several years both Pacific Loon and Eared Grebes were missed.  Neotropic Cormorants set an all time high with 34 and there were very good numbers of White Pelicans. There were some in places they don’t usually occur.  Two lingering Cattle Egrets were a bit of a surprise although they have been seen on several counts in the past.  Several birds were in very low numbers:  Red-breasted Merganser just one-this bird was missed only once on the first count.  Common Loon with just three was stunning low as was the struggle to find Horned Grebes just four.  Blue Jays tallied a mere 50 a very low total. Although not in low numbers, the overall number of gulls and terns were very low lots of them moved off Lake Tawakoni.  Even Crows which are common but were in lower than normal numbers.  Also very low:  just one House Wren and only five Winter Wrens.  Winter Wrens are normally in double digits.  I don’t know where Robins were but 10 is just shocking. Of course Mockers and Brown Thrashers were in low numbers along with Eastern Bluebirds and Hermit Thrushes. Just two Lincoln's Sparrows were found and Swamp Sparrows were about 1/2 half the recent average.  On the positive side an all time high of 151 American Wigeons was set.  Although not in record high numbers Canvasbacks, Ring-necked Duck and Lesser Scaup were in very good numbers for this count. The northwest winds pushed most of the ducks off Lake Tawakoni and unto smaller lakes and ponds. Rich May and I stared in disbelief at the 68 Long-billed Dowitchers we found-- that was hard to believe to say the least.  It was good see so many Bald Eagles (13) and lots of Kestrels (64) for a change.  Although not a record the total of 38 Loggerhead Shrikes was encouraging.  A new high of three Sprague's Pipits wouldn't have been possible without the access to the Sabine River Authority Headquarters.  Other things that struck me were good numbers of White-crowned Sparrows. Overall it was a very impressive count despite the winds. A few birds were seen in just one area.  Thus the importance of getting the whole count covered.

Texarkana - The area is in the third year of severe drought conditions, many trees and other plants have died thus cutting out a great food supply as well as shelter, etc. for bird life.  There is evidence of "brush clearing" in many USCOE areas that has really affected birdlife

Village Creek Drying Beds - A drought has dried up a lot of the wetlands in the count circle-none more so than the Village Creek Drying Beds itself-resulting in very low numbers of water birds especially ducks.  It was a cold day for this area and cloudy to boot which resulted in low numbers of soaring birds especially vultures.  Was able to cover the most important areas in the circle which was unlike many years and certainly helped the numbers.

Uvalde County - Count affected by mild winter and drought.  Mild winter - common winter visitors like American Robin, juncos, Red-winged Blackbirds and others were absent. Warm weather birds still present like the three Rufous/Allens Hummingbirds (reported as hummingbird spp.).   Drought - the rivers are dry gravel beds, also very few muddy areas - no Black Phoebes and few waders.

Cypress Creek - The count saw a nice recovery of the habitat since the drought of 2011-12. Food crops were good. This was the second time the count has exceeded the 150 threshold. One new species was added to the cumulative list, a CW MacGillivray’s Warbler well photographed on Jan 2. Green Heron was also seen on a count for the second record, the first 25 years ago.  Short-eared Owl, White-winged Dove, Merlin, Red-breasted Nuthatch, White-crowned Sparrow, and Northern Cardinal saw new high counts. Oddly most species in general were low. The Short-eared Owl count was double most previous good years. The only year that approached this year’s SEOW count was seven in 1978.  White-tailed Kite also was more common on the prairies and in the circle than at any time since 1995. This was also the third highest observer count we have totaled.

Freeport - Stalled front just north of count circle in a.m. brought heavy, almost continuous rain to the northern half of the circle beginning early afternoon with progressively less accumulation & intensity as one moved south with no rain reported along the coast. Last 1/2 of 2012 was very dry.  Many small lakes & creeks were dry, decreasing our numbers of waterbirds.

Matagorda County - This was the 20th anniversary of the CBC. Drought continues on Coast. 2011 was record dry year for area and 2012 was rated as moderate drought.  Water supply for typically abundant rice fields in area was not available because of drought.  This resulted in very little rice production in area and the effects of this are very evident in waterfowl, waterbird and blackbird numbers.  Outside of conservation properties, there was only one waterfowl impoundment in count circle.  Shorebird numbers were generally high because of suitable conditions within tidal waters.  Tides were generally high in count area, but bay waters were dropping throughout the day because of the north wind.  Small amounts of exposed bay bottom were sufficient to hold sizeable numbers of shorebirds.  Woodlands were dry and had well below average bird densities.  Sparrows as a whole were below average in numbers in grasslands and brushlands. Forty-three species were above average in numbers and 74 species were below average.  Thirteen species were considered unusual and required documentation.  Regularly occurring species missed during this CBC were Canada Goose, Cinnamon Teal, Wild Turkey, Green Heron, Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, Harris's Hawk, Black Rail, Buff-bellied Hummingbird, Barn Swallow, E. Towhee, and Fox Sparrow.

Old River - While drought had a negative impact on the northern 2/3rds of the circle, the southern portion had near average rainfall being on the coast.  The morning rain and fog and afternoon north winds did impact the count negatively with one notable exception.  Access by boat to coastal flats, extended by tide and north winds, provided exceptional shorebird counts. Overall the count of species and birds was the lowest since the impact of hurricane IKE. (2008). An indication of the impact of weather, four days before the count I found in four hours a flycatcher (probably Ash-throated), snipe, Sandhill Crane, Snow Geese (overhead), and dark Ibis, all not observed on count day.

San Bernard - The 28th annual San Bernard N.W.R. CBC tallied an unofficial total of 194 species with the best birds reported (documentation not yet fully reviewed) being: Scissor-tailed Flycatcher (2nd for count), Western Kingbird (3rd), two Bronzed Cowbirds (3rd and record high), Surf Scoter (3rd), Black-headed Grosbeak (3rd), Ruby-throated Hummingbird (4th), Couch's Kingbird (4th) and four Red-breasted Nuthatches (4th and record high).  Passerines were generally tough to come by with Wilson's Warbler missed for the first time since 1999.  The one Palm Warbler was the lowest total since 1985 (first year of the count) and the one Ash-throated Flycatcher was the lowest since 1999.  The five Brown Thrashers were the lowest since 1986.  By contrast, we had record highs for Ruddy Duck (407 all from one area), Pied-billed Grebe (327), Crested Caracara (60), Stilt Sandpiper (12), and Marbled Godwit (12).  In general fresh water was scarce with the exception of Wolfweed Reservoir which had exceptional waterbird numbers. The highlight of the day was as always the seafood gumbo at the countdown dinner made possible by Phillips 66.

Sea Rim - the number of birds recorded, when allowance is made for the fact that no large flocks of geese and relatively few flocks of Green-winged Teal were seen, was pretty much normal. Beach birds, continuing a trend we have seen in recent counts and surveys, were relatively low in number. For some reason that is not obvious to us, the current habitat conditions on the Sea Rim and Texas Point beaches seem not to be attractive to gulls and terns. The mud flats deep in Texas Point N.W.R. were more extensive than usual because of the preponderance of fairly strong north winds in the days (and even weeks) preceding the count, and there were many of the shorebirds better classified as "waders" on those flats.

Aransas - Aransas National Wildlife Refuge and the regional area continue to suffer through serious drought conditions that have lasted for over a year and a half.  The results from the drought are a lack of freshwater areas, with Jones and Hog Lake bone dry, as well as many other sections dry in the area.  Saltwater marshes and the bay appear to be in better shape than last year, likely because of some late spring rains which have reduced salinity levels in the brackish and saltwater areas.  With these affects and the lack of a good passerine movement in the area, bird numbers were somewhat suppressed, particularly in diversity.  Nevertheless, some bird species were in high evidence at the refuge for the CBC and we had a number of high counts and several new additions.  Red-throated Loon was the biggest new addition to the Aransas CBC.

Choke Canyon - The Choke Canyon CBC circle continues to suffer from the effects of drought.  The lake level has dropped low enough to have eliminated its attractiveness to most waterfowl, and terrestrial habitats seem to be capable of supporting only small numbers of songbirds.  On top of that, oil and gas development in the circle is rampant, with traffic and noise levels far above historical levels.  This has made it difficult to search for birds on some roads, and has made it difficult to listen for owls in most areas outside of protected state lands. Local motel prices are outrageous, which probably hurt participation this year, and is causing people to drive down for the day from San Antonio and Austin, instead of driving down the night before, with the effect that hours in the field are being reduced.  In short, on-going drought and heavy oil/gas development are trashing this count circle.

Corpus Christi – The total species seen was well below the ten year average for the count. Numerous species were missed. The numbers for many species was also low.  There was a scarcity of passerines which was likely due to the continued drought.

Corpus Christi FB - This year's species total was well below the average for the last ten years.  Several common species were missed and apparently were not present.  The number of passerines was well below average.

Guadalupe River Delta - Second year of drought and arrival of a major cold front with 35 mph winds had major impacts on bird tally.  Drought reduced surface water, insect availability and vigor of plant community.  Woods and grasslands were essentially "dead" for passerines.  35 mph north winds made finding what few birds available very challenging.  Strong north winds did aid shorebirding by blowing out most of the water in Hynes Bay exposed several hundred acres of bay bottoms resulting in large counts.  Species missed which normally occur during the count were Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, Canada Goose, Cackling Goose, N. Bobwhite, Green Heron, Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, Bonaparte's Gull, Pauraque, Blue Jay, Green Jay, Ovenbird, Am. Redstart, Olive Sparrow, Indigo Bunting, House Finch and Pine Siskin.

Kenedy County - Strong northwest winds prevented launching boats.  CBC required a 40 mile boat run across the Laguna Madre which is oriented north-south. Strong winds, cold temperatures and light precipitation made it fruitless to send crews on the east side of the Laguna by UTV.  Strong NW winds pushed water on the east side up to the vegetation line.  There is normally about 1/2 mile of exposed wind tidal flats on this side.  One crew in a 4-wheel drive vehicle drove down the beach the 18 miles to get to the count circle and located only 36 species.  Wind velocity made it difficult walking and scoping.

Welder Wildlife - All wetlands have been dry for about 1.5 years and most tanks have very little water or are dry.  Very dry conditions. 

Anzalduas-Bentsen - The continued drought continues to plaque the Lower Rio Grande Valley with water shortages for irrigation and rain deficits across the region.  At the flood plain habitats of Bentsen-RGV State Park, this year marked the first time that entire stands of Sugar Hackberry and Cedar Elm have died - representing nearly 80% of the old growth stands in the park. Low numbers of insects keeping bird numbers down as well. 

Coastal Tip – rain

Falcon Dam - This year waterfowl and sparrow counts were way down.

Harlingen - Additional participants helped the count numbers.  Drought conditions have noticeably decreased the number of some species of birds in the Harlingen circle.

La Sal Vieja - This year saw a slightly lower number of species than last year, 152 compared to last year’s 158.  This is right at average for this count, with the highest ever at 165. Not bad for a long drought with few ponds with water.   However, we did see about 11,000 less birds over all.  We had six high species for the count, compared to last year’s  five.  If documentation holds, we did add one new species to the count: Eastern Kingbird.  We have seven species that needed to be written up (RBR's), including two write in: Eastern Kingbird, Black Phoebe.  Our effort was just about identical to last year, and weather was a bit better with no real issues besides a rather cold morning.   We had 26 counters, one more than last year.  We had about the same miles on foot this year, as well in vehicles, and we had about the same hours on foot, and by vehicle.  Over all we had just a few miles difference in total miles covered, and almost same total hours spent in field. Thank you everyone who made the count

 MOST COMMON SPECIES

Data provided below are to satisfy birding trivia as to which are the most widely distributed species in Texas.  There were 109 CBCs conducted this season and Mourning Dove ended up being on 107.  So, how did two counts miss the species.  Kenedy County – Wind Turbines missed the species mostly due to very bad weather; strong winds, cold temps and light rain.  Last season that CBC only had five MODO.  So, it is not a very common species in that area.  Guadalupe Mountains was the other CBC missing the Mourning Dove and it also did not have any last season.

In closing, there were many more stories of Great Birds found through careful scouting and planning, many birds found by surprise when conducting good surveys, and frustratingly many misses that occurred after much planning and scouting that will go untold because of time constraints on my part.  As I plan for unlimited space and you share with me your special stories of the season, this Texas column will get larger.  I would like to thank all of the compilers, birders, conservation organizations, land managers, and sponsors who make the results reported here possible.