Birding at Goliad

When Hurricane Harvey hit East Texas in August, we knew our experience as camp hosts would be a different. Turns out it has been a different kind of experience on our days off as well. When the storm hit we immediately wondered how it impacted the two parks we were scheduled to visit this winter as well as the people who work in them. Luckily, no one was injured at either park. There was substantial damage to Goliad in the form of downed trees from 80 mph straight line winds that lasted several hours.

[caption id="attachment_505" align="alignleft" width="200"] Broken trees and Brambles[/caption]

The trees are twisted up high as if the wind grabbed them like a wash cloth and wrung them out before breaking them off. I can’t imagine what it was like and can only imagine what this place looked like with over 300 large trees strewn about. By the time we came in January, the camp and mission grounds were clear, although many uprooted stumps remain as evidence of the aftermath.

 

 

Birding here on days off is challenging at best. There are several trails around, some still closed from downed trees.  The storm debris provides dense habitat for the birds. Great for cover and nesting; difficult for viewing and nearly impossible for photography. Good thing I like a challenge. I’ve had good experiences both alone and with our friends John and Cathy when they were hear last week. I got a bird list for the area and managed to identify 20 or so on my own, with my rudimentary knowledge gained in my first year as a birder. When John came we went out several times and he helped me identify some 20 more species that had gone unnoticed by me on my solo walks.

Birding alone or with a companion is a Catch 22 for me. When I go with an experienced birder I learn something new each time, see many things I would have otherwise missed and usually commit a new song to memory. Like Cathy says of her husband, people learn birding by osmosis when with him. When I go alone I move very quietly with no one to talk to and one less set of footsteps crackling on the leaves. It is so quiet in fact that a fart can be heard a half mile away and will scare up a dozen birds. With nothing to listen to but the woods, the symphony of different calls is music to my ears and I learn songs by watching and listening.

A typical solo trip can be quite satisfying. On the trail this morning I set out to find a Golden Front Woodpecker that I heard calling. As I walked along, the ever-present chorus of the breeding Northern Cardinals was punctuated by Eastern Phoebes, several warblers, a Kiskadee that followed me through the woods, other Woodpeckers and the occasional Red Shoulder Hawk calling in the distance. The nearly silent greenish San Antonio River flowed to the west of me and the humming of county highway truck traffic was a mile to my east. I was a guest in a very active woodland community going about its day. I did see a new warbler and wish John had been there to tell me what it was.

Another challenge this winter is the terrible light. Unlike sunny hill country with it’s high desert like climate, Goliad is near the coast, humid and foggy with more overcast days than sunny. The timber is gray with bare winter deciduous trees, gray skies and very dense dried down invasive vines and brambles covering fallen and broken trees. My usual method of identification is to get a picture and come back to compare pictures in my bird book or online with my birding app. That is proving to be hard here.

One fun highlight of John and Cathy’s visit happened right from our campsite. John thought he saw a Rose Breasted Grosbeak in the tree. He got an okay picture with his phone and sent it to Ebird for confirmation. It is rare but not unheard of to see here compared to the more common Back Headed Grosbeak. Ebird asked for further verification and the next night we saw it again on a walk in the evening. This time he had his good camera and got some nice pictures of it. Ebird confirmed the sighting and recorded it.

New birds to me that I’ve seen in the park have been Blue Headed and White Eyed Vireos, Orange Crowned Warbler, Golden Fronted Woodpecker (all species I would not find in Iowa) and the Yellow-Bellied Sap Sucker.  Funny thing about the Sap Sucker, Champ new the name as a favorite insult hurled by Yosemite Sam in the old cartoons. He was amused to learn it was a real bird!

Fun things await in March.  The reenactment of the battle that won Tejas from Mexico, will take place at Presidio La Bahia next to the park. We’ll be involved in that event as part of our volunteer duties, the County Fair and Rodeo will be across the road and of course spring break will be happening over the course of two weeks. We’ll have lots of work as the campground will be full the entire month and plenty to see and do on our days off. By April 1^st when our 90-day commitment comes to and end we’ll be ready for a break.

Until next time…

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