High Island, Texas: An Introductory Birding Tour Apr 23—27, 2009
Posted by Bob Sundstrom
Bob Sundstrom
Bob Sundstrom has led VENT tours since 1989 to destinations including Hawaii, Mexico, Belize, Trinidad and Tobago, Iceland, Papua New Guinea, the Southwest Pacific islands,...Related Trips
Our High Island Introductory tour offers more astounding variety in a few days of birding than probably any other short tour in North America. The High Island sanctuaries, which are areas of prime coastal migrant habitat now set aside from development, are certainly the best known feature of this very bird-rich region. But several other nearby natural elements rival the sanctuary woods as phenomenal birding sites. These include Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, which includes a vast, freshwater marsh system plus many acres of grassland and brackish marsh; Bolivar Flats, one of the continent's most impressive coastal sites for shorebird and tern aggregations; and the spring rice fields throughout the area, which are flooded temporarily in the cultivation process and serve then as prime stopping areas for many thousands of migratory sandpipers.
With such a wealth of birding opportunities, it is tricky to even try to do them justice in about four days of overall birding time. But we gave it a very good effort. Even though songbird migration slowed down considerably after the first two days, we finished the tour seeing 20 species of warblers—a fine accomplishment. Blackpoll and Bay-breasted warblers came in for close views, as did a lovely male Cerulean Warbler—tiny and blue-backed with a narrow blue necklace. Chestnut-sided Warblers shared oak trees with Tennessee, Magnolia, Black-throated Green, and loads of Yellow warblers. A couple of drives took us to where other warblers were nesting. A Northern Parula, a Yellow-throated Warbler, and a Prothonotary Warbler shared the same half-acre of cypress bayou. A bit farther north, we watched singing Swainson's, Prairie, and Pine warblers, and a Yellow-breasted Chat atop the same small tree for several minutes.
One afternoon the wooded edge came alive with Indigo Buntings, 20 or more glinting among the low branches. In the same patch of woods, a flock of Dickcissels gave their raspy calls, leading us to a closer view of these recent arrivals from South America. A dozen Eastern Kingbirds chased through the treetops, just arrived from across the Gulf of Mexico. Each day we followed flashes of red to find Scarlet and Summer tanagers, more migrants just coming ashore. We found a glorious male Painted Bunting already singing on its breeding grounds.
The Bolivar Flats sanctuary of coastal beach and dunes, though storm-damaged by recent Hurricane Ike, still lived up to its stellar reputation. Piping, Wilson's, and Semipalmated plovers, copper-backed Dunlin, bright Ruddy Turnstones, a flight of American Avocets, and five species of terns shared the beach. At Rollover Pass, Reddish Egrets danced in the tidal shallows and a trio of American Oystercatchers were cause for celebration. Not far from there, we watched a Clapper Rail walking along the roadside—just before a second visit to the Stingaree, one of the Gulf Coast's great local seafood restaurants. Another drive took us along an extensive freshwater canal, where iridescent Purple Gallinules and Green Herons seemed to turn up every hundred yards.
En route to Sabine Pass one morning, we turned down an anonymous side road just to see what was there. Someone soon spotted a good-sized yellow bird which, on closer view and for sure after it gave its distinctive loud call, turned out to be a Couch's Kingbird. This species breeds in far south Texas, and is almost unheard of within sight of Louisiana where we were—a genuine rarity adding luster to an already admirable bird list.