John English sent me this majestic pose of a young Bald Eagle trying out its wings above its nest while holding onto a half eaten fish March 27, 2008. Young eagles do not become breeding adults until five years of age. This is also when they acquire the white feathers on their head and tail.

Also at the end of March John spent some time with a pair of Dyess bluebirds (above) and the resident bobcat (below) sauntered into view for a quick photo shoot. We think the bobcat looks nice and plump…pregnant female?

To see more of John’s photos, check out the Eagles, Bluebirds, and Bobcat photo album.

And yet another rare bird (for this area) has shown up in the Big Country: the Crested Caracara. On February 2, 2008, a friend reported seeing a caracara flying overhead on CR 283 on the county line of Callahan and Coleman. These types of sightings are hard to confirm; how does one chase a bird seen in the sky? Well, this past week the caracara was reported at roadkill on CR 283, just two miles south of Hwy. 36. This sighting was chase-able and that’s just what I and a friend did this morning. I was not able to obtain a photo but I did see the bird fly into the area. The photo used here is from John English and I believe he took this photo at Choke Canyon S.P. We watched the caracara harass a couple of Chihuahuan Ravens and soar with the Turkey Vultures for about ten minutes before disappearing again. Caracaras are found to the south of the Big Country in open habitats, typically grassland, prairie, pastures, or desert with scattered taller trees, shrubs, or cacti in which it nests. This sighting is well north of its normal range.

Anyway, just wanted to let all know that the Crested Caracara has been sighted in the Big Country, about 25 miles from Abilene. The roadkill is still in the area so there’s a good chance it will hang around this area for those that are interested in relocating the bird. The Birds of North America Online has this to say about the Crested Caracara:

The distinctive Crested Caracara “combines the raptorial instincts of the eagle with the base carrion-feeding habits of the vulture” (Hudson 1920). Called ignoble, miserable, and aggressive, yet also dashing, stately, and noble, this medium-sized raptor, with its bold black-and-white plumage pattern and bright yellow-orange face and legs, is easily recognizable as it perches conspicuously on a high point within its territory. In flight it can be distinguished by its regular, powerful wing-beats as it cruises low across the ground or just above the treetops. Known locally as the “Mexican buzzard” for its habit of scavenging alongside vultures, the Crested Caracara is an opportunist and is commonly seen walking about open fields and pastures, feeding on a variety of invertebrate and vertebrate prey, as well as on carrion. The name “caracara” is said to be of Guarani Indian origin, traro-traro, derived from the unusual rattling vocalization that the bird utters when agitated.

Thursday at noon, April 3, 2008, Lorie Black spotted this Brown Pelican at Lake Kirby. A few Audubon members rushed out to the lake and refound the bird and some photos were obtained. This is a very rare sighting for the Big Country. Brown Pelicans are common along the coast and this may be a first Taylor County record. To see more pictures of the Brown Pelican, go to Rare Birds Gallery. I’m sure more pictures will be added if the pelican sticks around for awhile!

March is a great time of year. Many resident birds are staking out territories, singing to attract mates, and starting to build nests. A pair of Eastern Bluebirds were photographed at a natural cavity on Dyess Air Force Base. The couple was pair bonding, evident by the male coming to the cavity and feeding the female:

Wild Turkeys are finding love at Dyess Air Force Base also. But one turkey is finding love in all the wrong places:

Red Crossbills, first spotted in the Buffalo Gap area are now being seen in Abilene!

And a couple of Great Blue Herons are nesting at Nelson Park:

But wait, there’s more Big Country bird news! We’ve got pictures of Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, Lesser Goldfinches, and Snowy Plovers. In fact, we have so many interesting photos of what’s been happening this past month that two photo galleries were created for your viewing pleasure, March Menagerie and the photos about Love is in the Air (and on Cars)!

We hope you enjoy our birds of the Big Country in March. Keep your eyes up, there’s more to come!

Guest post by Heidi Trudell -

This afternoon (3/7/08) while heading back from work I spotted a lump of roadkill just off the shoulder of 351 and out of the kindness of his heart, my coworker obliged and we investigated the lump. Initially the lump looked like a clump of wood or Great-horned Owl, but Carson pointed out that it was too small and quite buffy. Sadly, I’ve never seen a live Long-eared Owl so I was hesitant to call it LEOW but nothing else would have been close. The whole critter is maybe half the size of a GHOW, has quite small talons, slender ear tufts, lemony yellow eyes, very heavily mottled back and wings and tail… The underwings are overall buffy with a distinct dark splotch near the “wrist.” It’s definitely an exciting bird for me, even if it’s not exactly countable - getting such close looks at fresh specimens of any species is exciting. Many thanks to Carson Brown, Laura Packer, Michael Retter and Jay Packer for their assistance in identifying, photographing, documenting and generally cooperating in getting the LEOW online and into the freezer!

***Please note that state & federal permits are required to pick up dead critters, the LEOW in question is under Texas A&M’s salvage permit and will end up in their collection. This is not to say that you should ignore fresh roadkill, but make sure that someone with permits is able to pick it up.

To see more pictures of this first Taylor County record (or until proven otherwise) click on the Long-eared Owl Photos.

Dan Symonds found a Carolina Chickadee excavating a hole in a snag out at the Abilene State Park this past Sunday, February 3, 2008. Nest building in February? I knew our resident birds got started early, but geez, it’s barely February.

And while photographing the excavation, a little red bird flew into the tree top across the creek. This sighting got me excited; do you know what it is?

And since I was already at the Park and curious to see what birds were coming to the feeders at the bird blind, I found some more goodies. To see the chickadee excavation, to find out what the little red bird is, and to see all the other photos, go to the State Park Goodies in February picture gallery. Thanks for looking!

During the Robert Lee CBC conducted by the Midland Naturalists on Saturday, December 15, an adult Golden-crowned Sparrow was located in a small flock of White-crowned Sparrows not far from the town (see below).

This news spread like wildfire in the birding community and soon I was plotting a rarity chase. Commitments were first met, then schedules rearranged, and travel plans were finalized three days later. I had called Kathy to see if she could go with me but her physical therapy regime couldn’t be altered. “That’s OK’” I stated. “Just call me later tonight if you can get free;” and I think I mumbled something about leaving town late to accommodate her PT.

The phone didn’t ring that night so I assumed I was free to head south after an early-morning appointment. About forty minutes out of town the cell phone rang. It was Kathy; “I’ve just finished physical therapy and I’m now ready to chase that sparrow.” Oh no! I guiltily confessed to skipping town without her. A brief reply and a quick hang-up left me wondering if I had strained our friendship. But as I drove on my remorse slowly changed to anticipation; a life bird was waiting! I’d deal with the guilt later.

I arrived at the site and waited a couple of hours without seeing much of anything. To feed my birder’s appetite, I drove elsewhere around Lake Spence. Say’s Phoebe, Lark Buntings (below),

a Cassin’s Sparrow, and Black-throated Sparrows (below)

whetted my appetite. But the thought of seeing a life bird soon drove me back to the original stake-out site. Before long I saw movement in the shrub, raised the bins and there it was! A quick flash of wings and a golden-yellow crown bordered by two black areas was all I had time to see before the bird dropped back down into the shrub. I waited breathlessly for a few minutes but after another two hours of staring at empty brush, I turned the key in the truck and headed for home. The 90 minute ride home gave me plenty of time to contemplate how miscommunications are not a good thing when it comes to maintaining friendships.

That evening before retiring, the phone rang. I cringed when I saw caller ID; it was Kathy. “Hello, friend,” said the cheerful familiar voice. “I’ve rearranged my PT from the morning and moved it to the afternoon so we can chase that sparrow.” Immediately I knew I was forgiven; I also knew I’d be driving back to Robert Lee and watching the sun rise on a familiar patch of brush. But like a bad rerun, we fruitlessly waited for over an hour without seeing any movement. Needing to stretch the legs, I exited the truck and walked stiffly up and down the county road. Then I raised my bins to see what was moving under a tree and found the Golden-crowned Sparrow! “It’s here! The Golden-crowned Sparrow is under the tree,” I shouted excitedly. Running back to the truck, I grabbed the scope and set it on the bird! Kathy got out of the truck; walked as fast as her new hip would allow and we watched it for over 5 minutes, taking in every glorious detail. Several times its head was awash with sunlight, illuminating its brilliant yellow crown. Beyond satisfied, we discussed the next birding adventure since it was still early in the morning and more rarities had been reported in West Texas, specifically around Lake Balmorhea and Fort Davis. Like gamblers, we surmised that if we were lucky in spotting the Golden-crowned Sparrow, we’d be lucky with the next rarities.

We excitedly planned, we plotted, and we figured the mileage and ETA. We were confident we could do this! Of course we’d have to spend the night and the fact we didn’t have overnight bags didn’t dampen our enthusiasm. “We’ll stop and pick up toiletries and sleep in our clothes;” I announced. But slowly it dawned on Kathy, “I don’t have my prescription medications with me,” she confessed. Then I realized I didn’t have a needed prescription medication with me, either. “Bummer, getting older sure removes the spontaneity in life;” I bemoaned. But Kathy quickly consoled, “We just need to be smarter. Next time we’re rarity chasing, we’ll carry our medications with us so we can continue to be impulsive.” We both got a good chuckle over her solution.

Now when I look at my life list and see the checkmark next to Golden-crowned Sparrow I will always remember how my slip of memory and impatience created two trips to Robert Lee.

More pictures of our Robert Lee trip are in the Robert Lee Gallery. As a final follow-up, I took yet a third trip to Robert Lee but this time with other club members. Some enjoyed adding the Golden-crowned Sparrow to their life list and you can see our sightings here.

Eastern Bluebirds are loved for their brilliant plumage, their tameness, and their preference for nesting boxes. Many people view bluebirds as a symbol of representing all that is good in the world. I think I’ll have to agree. Bluebirds make me happy and I wanted to share some happiness with you today.

Some one once asked me if we saw other wildlife (other than birds) when on field trips. Yes we do! Many of our members were in the field in November and some of you sent in photos of your encounters such as this beautiful doe seen in Callahan County by Jay Capra.

During the field trip to O.H. Ivie Reservoir, an eight-point buck stepped out of the brush intent on a mission. He thrilled those of us on this field trip by coming close to the vehicle. He hesitated long enough for a few shots.

And photos of the most unexpected deer encounter came from Kim Walton, Natural Resources Manager, at Dyess Air Force Base. To see the outcome of this encounter and all the other deer photos, go to Oh My Deer! in the photo gallery section.

So the next time you are looking for birds, pay attention to everything. You never know what’s hiding in the brush!

Saturday, December 22, 2007, Heidi Trudell and Cole Wild found this Pectoral Sandpiper at Wastewater Treatment Plant. This is a very very late date for a Pectoral; and if you’re interested in what else they saw this cold and windy day, take a look at their Sightings!

Also, Mark Cranford from Midland reported a small flock of Red Crossbills in Buffalo Gap in pecan trees across the street from the Historic Village main gate. Lorie Black managed to get their photo on New Year’s Day (above). The last time we had crossbills in the Big Country was 1997 when a small flock of 17 was seen regularly at a NE Abilene resident from April through July (I’ll get those exact dates if anyone is interested).

Then on January 1, 2008, Cole Wild and Heidi Trudell stopped at Wastewater after work (anyone else work on New Year’s?) and found this Dunlin. Dunlins are very rare inland according to the TOS Handbook of Texas Birds. The bird on the right is a Least Sandpiper, to give you a size comparison and below is a closeup of the Dunlin. So congrats to them for spotting this cool sighting.

Thanks to all for reporting your sightings!