Wow! What wonderful birds have come to the yard

Bird chat Nov 2006 Ben and Grampa Birding

Lacassine LABA trip Nov 2006 (Bird List)

Black-bellied Whistling-Duck
Greater White-fronted Goose
Snow Goose
Gadwall
Blue-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Green-winged Teal
Ring-necked Duck
Lesser Scaup
Ruddy Duck
Pied-billed Grebe
Neotropic Cormorant
Anhinga
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Black-crowned Night-Heron
White Ibis
Glossy Ibis
Roseate Spoonbill
Turkey Vulture
Osprey
White-tailed Kite
Northern Harrier
Cooper’s Hawk
Swainson's Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Crested Caracara
American Kestrel
Merlin
Common Moorhen
American Coot
Killdeer
Lesser Yellowlegs
Dowitcher sp.
Laughing Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Black-legged Kittiwake
Royal Turn
Caspian Tern
Black Tern
Mourning Dove
Imca Dove
Belted Kingfisher
Eastern Phoebe
Vermilion Flycatcher
Loggerhead Shrike
American Crow
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Northern Mockingbird
European Starling
Orange-crowned Warbler
Palm Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Savannah Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Common Grackle
Boat-tailed Grackle
Great-tailed Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow

Lacassine LABA trip Nov 2006

LABA Mary Ann Brown Preserve /The Bluffs Trail Sunday, October 15, 2006

Mary Ann Brown Preserve : A beautiful peaceful place .

LABA Mary Ann Brown Preserve /The Bluffs Trail

Toothache Tree.

LABA Mary Ann Brown Preserve /The Bluffs Trail Sunday, October 15, 2006

Belted Kingfisher

LABA Mary Ann Brown Preserve /The Bluffs Trail Sunday, October 15, 2006

LABA Mary Ann Brown Preserve /The Bluffs Trail Sunday, October 15, 2006

October Field Trip to Mary Ann Brown Preserve and The Bluffs Trail - by Al Troy
You would think we had synchronized our watches as seventeen birders converged at the Mary Ann Brown Preserve (MAB) entrance gate at almost exactly the projected 8:30 AM meeting time. The day started out pleasant enough with mild temperatures, light winds and some decent birding, but it got progressively windier, and by the time we got to the Troy’s house for dessert, the wind approached gale force accompanied by a few raindrops. By then, it was so windy the birding was practically nil. The "bird of the day" was the female Scarlet Tanager we saw at MAB in two places about a quarter of a mile apart. Who knows, maybe there were two of them. We couldn’t agree amongst ourselves.
After birding at MAB thirteen of us had a great lunch and bird’s eye view at The Bluffs new restaurant, Cocodrie’s. After lunch, we birded a spot on The Bluff’s trail that is usually quite productive, but it was so windy all we got was the elusive Tufted Titmouse. Most of the group had never been to MAB, Cocodrie's restaurant, or The Bluff's trail. Everyone seemed to enjoy the hilly scenery and plants along the trails. These included a Toothache Tree, bright red Jack-in-the Pulpit seeds, and several wildflowers. Thanks to Cathy Troy and Josette Lester for providing Brownies and cookies for dessert.

Birds Seen on LABA Outing Sunday, October 15, 2006
Red-tailed Hawk
Grey Catbird
Scarlet Tangager (Female)
Eastern Phoebe
Yellow throated Warbler
Yellow bellied Sapsucker
Eastern Bluebird
Belted Kingfisher
Ruby crowned Kinglet
Caroline Chickadee
Red bellied Woodpecker
Pine Warbler
Northern Cardinal
Tufted Titmouse
Caroline Wren
American Crow
Turkey Vulture
Black Vulture
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Northern Flicker
Blue Jay
Red headed Woodpecker
Northern Mockingbird

High Island / Galveston Texas With Hailey

Hailey on Ferry to Galveston

Scissor Tailed Flycatcher

Our Little Beach Beauty

Slideshow from High Island Trip

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LABA Trip to High Island , Texas

Trip Journal for Hawk Watch 2006 by Joseph G Vallee

Friday, September 22, 2006
I left Abbeville at 9:24 a.m. with the intention of following the coast to Cameron and then going into Texas and following Highway 87 to Beaumont to I-10 to Winnie before turning south to High Island. However, to quote Robert Burns, "The best laid schemes of mice and men...leave us nought but grief and pain" my plans came to an abrupt halt when I was turned around by the Cameron ferries being closed to traffic. I then had to reroute myself back to Highway 27 north to Lake Charles and I-10 West.
When I reached Sulphur I got a cell phone call from Karen and Rick Hoyt who were stopping for lunch in Winnie before going on to Anahuac Wildlife Refuge. I told Karen I hadn’t heard from Elouise Mullen yet but I was sure she was right behind them. About 2:30 Elouise did contact me and let me know that she had reached Anahuac Wildlife Refuge. I asked them to locate Karen and Rick and stay at the refuge until I had reached them in about another hour or so. At 3:45 the entire group met up at the entrance to the refuge. I was delighted to see that Joy and Bob were with Elouise and the group. We stayed at Anahuac and walked a trail that gave us nice views of a Belted Kingfisher and a White-tailed Kite as well as a chance to visit and introduce each other. We left about 4:30 to go check in at the Gulfway Motel. Imagine our surprise when we were told that we were one of the last guests to be staying there as the motel was closing at the end of the month! Guess LABA will have to make some new plans for its Hawk Watch trip.
After checking into our rooms and taking a small break we left at 6 for dinner at Stingaree’s in Crystal Beach. Of course, before we got there we stopped at Rollover Pass for a good look at the White Phase of the Reddish Egret along with immature Herring and Laughing Gulls. I guess I should mention that a strong south wind and low clouds prevented us from getting a high bird count for the day. We were back to the motel for 9 p.m.
Saturday, September 23, 2006
We all met in the motel cafe for a filling breakfast served by the always entertaining Millie, the unforgettable waitress who has been a favorite of LABA previous trips. After breakfast, the group left at 9 a.m. for Hawk Watch at Smith Point. The Hawk Tower was suffering from the strong south wind and only two birds were sighted, a Peregrine Falcon and a Merlin, before we decided to leave at 10:30 a.m. and try our luck elsewhere. At this point, Eloise, Joy and Bob left us for Katy, Texas, to visit relatives. Then the group split up with Joseph, Karen and Rick went to Smith Woods and Lainie and Billy to Boy Scout Woods. Both places were dense with mosquitoes and humidity. The Smith Woods group reported no birds while the Boy Scout Woods group reported some warblers before being driven out by the mosquitoes. By this time it was lunch so we all went back to the motel for a picnic lunch on the grounds. After an afternoon break, the entire group met at 3:30 p.m. to go to Bolivar Flats as well as to ride the ferry across to Galveston for dinner. The south wind kept many of the shorebirds at Bolivar Flats facing south and not flying much so good views were obtained of Black-bellied Plovers, Sanderlings, Willets,
Brown Pelicans, Long-billed Dowitchers, along with other shorebirds. We boarded the ferry at 6:30 although one of the group was pulled over to have his vehicle searched! The group had a delicious dinner at Gaido’s on the beachfront in Galveston before returning to High Island for 11 p.m.
Sunday, September 24, 2006
After having breakfast with Millie for the last time, Rick, Karen, Lainie and Billy left for home. I spent the entire day traveling from Bolivar Peninsula and the flats back to High Island and Smith Point looking for birds who were now just beginning to make themselves visible since the wind was beginning to turn to the north and the clouds were dissipating. One of the best shorebirds I sighted on my way was a solitary Piping Plover at the beach at Crystal Beach. The Hawk Tower was showing signs of returning to high numbers when I got there about 4 p.m. Both of the volunteers reported that the total for Saturday had only been 9 hawks. However, in the hour that I stayed at the tower Sunday I was able to see 15 to 20 Broad-wings as well as a number of Kestrels, Peregrines, and at least two Ospreys. I returned to the motel with high hopes for a much better day on Monday.
Monday, September 25, 2006
Although I didn’t begin birding until 9 a.m. the weather was absolutely beautiful with blue skies and a moderate north wind. I started out at Smith Point where I was fortunate enough to see two kettles of Broad-winged Hawks numbering near 500 birds in each kettle along with a kettle of almost 50 Wood Storks. I only stayed an hour at Smith Point before going on to Anahuac Wildlife Refuge where I birded from 11:30 to 1:30. The welcome center was not open but I drove on all the roads in the refuge and saw many marsh birds including a Least Bittern.
I drove on to Winnie, had a late lunch and then drove home.
The following birds were seen on this trip:
Pied-billed Grebe
American White Pelican
Brown Pelican
Neotropic Cormorant
Double-crested Cormorant
Anhinga
Magnificent Frigatebird
Least Bittern
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Reddish Egret
Cattle Egret
Green Heron
Black-crowned Night Heron
Yellow-crowned Night Heron (immature)
White ibis
White-faced Ibis
Roseate Spoonbill
Turkey Vulture
Mottled Duck
Blue-winged Teal
Osprey
White-tailed Kite
Mississippi Kite
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper’s Hawk
Broad-winged Hawk
Swainson’s Hawk
Crested Caracara
American Kestrel
Merlin
Peregrine Falcon
Clapper Rail
Common Moorhen
American Coot
Black-bellied Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Piping Plover
Black-necked Stilt
Willet
Sanderling
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
Long-billed Dowitcher
Laughing Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Gull-billed Tern
Caspian Tern
Royal Tern
Forester’s Tern
Black Tern
Black Skimmer
Eurasian Collared-Dove
White-winged Dove
Mourning Dove
Inca Dove
Barn Owl
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Least Flycatcher
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
Loggerhead Strike
Blue Jay
Bank Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Barn Swallow
Northern Mockingbird
Brown Thrasher
Black and White Warbler
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Boat-tailed Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Sparrow
79 Species

Hot Air balloon Festival Baton Rouge

Lake Martin ( Rookery Road )

Rick , Hailey and I made a run up to Lake Martin this morning. Not much bird activity.
Barred Owl
Prothonatary Warbler
Yellow -crowned Night Heron*
Little Blue Heron
Chickadee
Great Blue Heron
Common Morehen
Roseate Spoonbill (7)

Girard park Saturday Morning 5/27/06

Saturday Morning 5/27/06
We started the day with the whole family going to Girard park. We took Benny for his first trip to feed the ducks. Hailey ran quickly to give them cereal. Britt sat at the waters edge with Benny. He said "nu nu " to the ducks. With his moms help he threw them some food. Brandon and Christine went ahead to check on the geese. We fed the squirrels some peanuts .
The only bird sightings were
red headed woodpecker
northern flicker
green heron
mallard ducks
chinese goose
eastern king bird
It was a great day for Rick and I to have the family together.

LABA Trip May 2006

This prothonotary warbler had a nest on the electrical pole where we parked.

LABA Trip May 2006

As we walked down the boat launch we saw a little blue heron flying off. We found his prints in the water.

LABA Trip May 2006

Yellow breasted chat

We went on out first fieldtrip with the LABA group.

They are a very fun, knowlegable and giving group.

The first stop at the whiskey Bay exit near the watering hole.

Bird list for the day

Wood Duck
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
Cattle Egret
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
White-faced Ibis
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Swallow-tailed Kite
Mississippi Kite
Killdeer
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Chimney Swift
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker
Pileated Woodpecker
Acadian Flycatcher
Loggerhead Shrike
White-eyed Vireo
Red-eyed Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Purple Martin
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Barn Swallow
Carolina Chickadee
Tufted Titmouse
Carolina Wren
Wood Thrush
Northern Mockingbird
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
American Redstart
Prothonotary Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Summer Tanager
Scarlet Tanager
Eastern Towhee
Northern Cardinal
Indigo Bunting
Painted Bunting
Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole
House Sparrow

Bluebird

Male bluebird on low feeder. He is so awesome.

Pine warbler

Pine warbler at the low platform feeder. He likes the suet.

Female Bluebird

Female Bluebird at the platform feeder outside our bedrom window.

We put mealworms out for them.

Male Bluebird

Male Bluebird on the platform feeder outside our bedroom window

Butterfly

Butterfly on the butterfly bush.

Sherbourne Wildlife Management Area May 13, 2006

Step Outside Day on May 13, 2006 at Sherbourne Wildlife Management Area ...
Had loads of fun. Hailey had her face painted, went fishing, touched the alligator, operated a real fire hose and touched a pine snake .
The highlight of the day was the airboat ride.

Song bird Tour at Sherburne Wildlife Management Area

Song bird Tour at
Sherburne Wildlife
Management Area



Shown here is a white eyed vireo that was netted and banded.








Other Sightings for the day were

Yellow breasted chat *
prothonatary warbler
summer tanager *
Green Heron
Great White Heron
common yellow start
Female painted bunting *
white eyed vireo*
acadian fly catcher *
great crested flycatcher*
tufted titmouse
Mississippi kite *
swallow tail kite*
pileated woodpecker*
purple martins
Red winged black bird
cattle egret
Ruby throat hummingbird

* life list bird