Texas: Cibolo Creek Workshop Sep 14—20, 2008
Posted by Barry Zimmer
Barry Zimmer
Barry Zimmer has been birding since the age of eight. His main areas of expertise lie in North and Central America, but his travels have taken him throughout much of the wo...Related Trips
Our second Cibolo Creek tour was a huge success, even topping the inaugural trip of last year. We started out with some difficulties, as unprecedented flooding in the vicinity of Presidio had caused the creek to rise enough so that access to the ranch was temporarily prohibited. A one-night stay in a historic hotel in Marfa solved that problem and put us in closer proximity to the Davis Mountains for our day of birding there. We tallied an impressive number of migrants during the trip, as well as many resident southwestern specialty birds, and savored the comforts and great food of Cibolo Creek Lodge.
Our tour started in El Paso, where on the first afternoon we visited McKelligon Canyon (uncharacteristically windy) and my house. McKelligon Canyon produced very close views of Black-throated Sparrow, but little else as winds funneled up the canyon. We decided to head quickly to my yard, where there was little wind, and watch the hummingbird feeders for awhile. We were rewarded with fantastic views of Black-chinned and Rufous (one adult male among the many immatures and females) hummingbirds from just a few feet away, in addition to close studies of Inca and White-winged doves, Warbling Vireo, Curve-billed Thrasher, and Western Tanager. A quick spin around the neighborhood before dinner produced a covey of Gambel's Quail right out in the middle of the road above my house.
The next morning we visited the Fort Bliss Sewage Ponds before working our way eastward toward Cibolo Creek. Trees around the ponds were very active, including such highlights as Cooper's Hawk, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Plumbeous Vireo, Western Wood-Pewee, Wilson's Warbler, Western Tanager, Blue Grosbeak, Painted and Lazuli buntings, Dickcissel, and Clay-colored Sparrow. Nearby evaporation ponds yielded Solitary Sandpiper; Lesser Yellowlegs; Baird's, Western, and Least sandpipers side by side; Wilson's Phalarope; and Black-necked Stilt among others. A real surprise came with the discovery of an Eastern Kingbird (accidental in this area) which we studied at leisure. Two adorable pairs of Burrowing Owls were seen along the border before we began our drive toward Van Horn. We opted for the back roads route from Tornillo to McNary with a stop at a large irrigation impoundment. Here we had Western and Clark's grebes side by side, Black Terns, and a variety of herons, egrets, and waterfowl. Countless Swainson's Hawks and pronghorns entertained us on our journey toward Marfa, as did an unexpected flight of 224 American White Pelicans soaring over the grasslands. Prior to settling into our Marfa hotel for the night, we enjoyed superb studies of two Mississippi Kites, one of which perched for prolonged views.
The next day we traveled northward to the Davis Mountains to sample a higher elevation and more wooded habitat than available at Cibolo Creek, while we waited for the floodwaters to recede. Our first stop along Limpia Creek yielded Black-crested Titmouse, Canyon Wren, stunning Summer Tanagers, many Western Tanagers, and Rufous-crowned Sparrow among others. Someone in the group spotted a perched adult Common Black-Hawk across the road, and we had fantastic walkaway scope views of this magnificent and localized raptor. As we headed for Davis Mountains State Park, we saw a Zone-tailed Hawk circling over the road, and piled out for another great raptor find. The park itself produced Acorn Woodpecker, a very rare Great Crested Flycatcher, Cassin's Kingbird, many Phainopeplas, and a Canyon Towhee on our van! Other highlights of the day included Hutton's Vireo at point-blank range, Western Bluebird, Townsend's Warbler, Hepatic Tanager, and Lark Sparrow. By late afternoon we were headed to Cibolo Creek, as the water had gone down enough to allow us to reach the ranch. We settled into our rooms and enjoyed a delicious dinner.
We spent the entire next day on the western portion of Cibolo Creek Ranch. An early morning walk down to North Springs produced a dazzling array of color with Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Vermilion Flycatcher (they seemed to be everywhere!), Blue Grosbeak, both tanagers, Orchard Oriole, and Scott's Oriole seen. An Osprey roosting with vultures added to the excitement. Higher elevation canyons produced Rock Wren and wonderful views of skylarking Cassin's Sparrow.
Our third full day on the ranch was spent in the eastern section of the property at La Cienega and La Morita. Migrants were on the move in every desert wash and our progress toward La Cienega was slowed. Clay-colored and Chipping sparrows seemed to be everywhere and were joined at points by Lark and Vesper sparrows and Lark Buntings. A couple of Townsend's Warblers were spotted, followed by a couple of skulking Virginia's Warblers. A Green-tailed Towhee perched in the open, and then a pair of Gray Vireos (always a treat) joined in. Black-tailed Gnatcatchers, Western Wood-Pewees, Bell's Vireos, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Scott's Orioles, and too many Western Tanagers and Blue Grosbeaks to count paraded by. We also had scope views of Crissal Thrashers along one stretch of the road. Finally we arrived at the oasis of La Cienega and almost immediately found the bird of the trip, a female Green Kingfisher. This gem of a bird posed from about 20 feet away for over 15 minutes. It represents the westernmost record ever for Texas. Also in the area were a Yellow-billed Cuckoo, a dozen or more Vermilion Flycatchers, and a Solitary Sandpiper. On our way back to the lodge for lunch, a rarely seen badger walked right across the road, followed by a stunning flock of 28 Yellow-headed Blackbirds on the fence next to us. Over 200 White-throated Swifts hawking insects over the ranch pond greeted our arrival back at the lodge. In the afternoon we headed to another oasis at La Morita where we enjoyed daytime views of a roosting Western Screech-Owl, an early Red-naped Sapsucker, Hermit Thrush, and another Townsend's Warbler. This was a fantastic day!
The final day of our trip was spent driving back toward El Paso in the morning (Red-necked Phalarope on a stock pond, Lark Buntings by the hundreds, Scaled Quail, and male Bullock's Oriole among the highlights), and in the afternoon at irrigation impoundments, sewage ponds, and a nature preserve near El Paso, in addition to revisiting my yard. Harris's Hawk, Golden Eagle, American Avocet, and both Calliope and Broad-tailed hummingbirds were among the 19 new species we added that day.
In all we totaled 159 species, with 13 species of shorebirds, 14 species of raptors (hawks and owls combined), 4 species of hummingbirds, 5 species of vireos, and 8 species of warblers. Some species were present in huge numbers such as Lark Bunting (800+), Western Tanager (61), and Blue Grosbeak (56). In addition we saw 10 species of mammals and 28 species of butterflies. We experienced wonderful weather throughout (the high temperature never surpassed 80 degrees until the last day, and one day didn't top 70!), and thoroughly enjoyed our nights at the wonderful Cibolo Creek Ranch. I can hardly wait for next year!