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BIRDS
"A bird doesn't sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song." — Maya Angelou
Frank Dietz, Comal County resident,
CCCA Board Member, &
Herald Zeitung monthly columnist
The Birds — in Song and Flight
August 20, 2020
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In the days of our 2020 quarantine when so much came to a halt, an uncanny silence became notable. Flights overhead were rare. Traffic on roadways and rails nearly ceased. It was the perfect moment for an amazing symphonic crescendo in the avian world. Songs and calls in the woods and across expanses of acreage stood out quite notably. I remarked to Karen about our good fortune in having both cover and open space around us. I was ushered back to my earliest life memories with birds.
Many of my early boyhood summer nights were spent sleeping on my Grandfather's screened porch. His small coastal farmstead was graced with grand oaks and tall pines. Early to bed meant the evening transition as some birds headed for their roosts and nests while dusk introduced the nocturnally gifted along with other woodsy chatter. It was a wondrous way to get a restful night. Dawn brought an early excitement to the new morning as the wooded areas came alive with activity, song as well as call among the birds I'd begun to regard as my special friends. This spring and summer have connected me with those early years of observation and listening. One of our Hill Country gifts that bring so many surprises with the seasons is the rich variety and rotation of the birds that share life near our rivers and creeks as well as in the canopied cover near and far. Several have nested and displayed their offspring with caution nearby. Others have come and gone this way in seasonal migratory journeys. Unforgettable is the night when for some unknown reason migrating birds settled in the trees around us in such abundance that sleep was brief that night. We wondered and worried until they took leave and were again on their way. Other years we've had morning visits on occasions from scores of robins filling the open areas before taking leave and heading on their way. In dry stretches (which we have more of than the birds, wildlife and I care for!) a sprinkler or our outdoor shower can produce quite a gathering. |
It's much more fascinating than any cocktail party I have ever been invited to! Recently the elusive rain crows (aka yellow billed cuckoos) came for refreshment.
My professional life familiarized me with the positive contributions birds and their habits and playfulness have contributed to coping and lifting burdened human spirits. Even some survivors in the death camps of the holocaust found birds to strengthen their coping. My early life cataloguing of varieties of birds native or migrating and their voices plays again! I marveled then and marvel again that so much song and beauty can come from such small beings. Their industriousness and tenacity impress as well! In a time when we receive weekly postings of more acreage being divided for home and commerce, the urgency and wisdom of protecting and setting aside habitat seems smart as well as necessary. The Comal County Conservation Alliance (comalconservation.org) enlists the helpfulness of those wishing to set aside some protected parcels. In addition to the oft mentioned wooded areas adjacent to Fischer Park and on the former El Rancho Cima Scout Ranch (Devil's backbone), I bet you can think of some land and habitat meriting protection. Engage with us virtually during this "season of selah." Plan on joining us when in-person gatherings for exploration and discovery resume! And, check out our website! Once splendid open spaces get divided, it's irreversible! Many migratory and local birds will likely reroute and/or relocate to other flyways and nesting areas. They lose the precious waterways and lake open areas and we lose their gifts of color and song. Let's go forward with sensitivity and a measure of stewardship while we have time and space! |
State Suit Again Tries To Rescind Songbird Protection
By Jasper Scherer
January 13, 2022
January 13, 2022
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The Texas General Land Office on Wednesday renewed its lawsuit to remove a songbird that nests in Central Texas from the endangered species list, arguing the federal government defied a court order that required officials to reconsider the bird’s status.
The long-running court battle, which has shaped the trajectory of suburban growth along the San Antonio-Austin corridor, pits the interests of developers who are seeking to build on Hill Country land against conservationists who argue that doing so would threaten the habitat of the golden-cheeked warbler. In 2017, the General Land Office — led by Land Commissioner George P. Bush — enlisted the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative think tank, to file a lawsuit on its behalf that aimed to de-list the warbler and free up hundreds of thousands of acres for development. The warbler also figures in a legal battle over a proposed natural gas pipeline through the Hill Country. The Land Office argues that the population of warblers has sufficiently recovered and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service did not use the best available data in ruling to keep it on the endangered list. A federal judge upheld the warbler’s endangered status in 2019, but the conservative Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the ruling in January 2020, finding the federal government had used an “inappropriately heightened” legal standard to reject the appeals. The court ordered the Fish and Wildlife Service to reconsider the decision, and last July, the agency concluded again that the warbler should remain endangered. About 27,000 warblers are estimated to survive today, a decline of about 25 percent since the songbird was first added to the endangered species list in 1990, according to the federal agency, though the GLO lawsuit Wednesday cited a “presentation” from a Texas biologist last year that registered a higher population count. The agency said TPPF’s petition “does not present substantial scientific or commercial information” showing it “may be warranted” |
for the warbler to be de-listed. The warbler’s habitat would be threatened by “rapid suburban development and human population growth for Travis, Williamson, Bexar and surrounding counties,” the Fish and Wildlife Service concluded.
In the latest lawsuit, filed Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, the General Land Office and TPPF argue that the decision failed to consider scientific studies on “habitat and population regrowth” for the warbler and applied “the same incorrect standard” that the Fifth Circuit tossed in 2020. Bush, a Republican who is trying to unseat Attorney General Ken Paxton in the March primary, accused the Biden administration of “ignoring” a court order and knowingly undermining state sovereignty. “I will continue to use every legal tool in our arsenal to fight this regulatory threat to our lands,” Bush said in a statement. “The GLO and TPPF have successfully defended Texas’ property rights in the past, and I am confident the courts will continue to stand with Texans.” The lawsuit further contends that the decision to classify the warbler as endangered diminishes the value of state-owned land that contains warbler habitat. The GLO collects revenue from leasing out public land, including oil and gas royalties, and contributes the funds to a public endowment for public schools. The U.S. Interior Department, which includes the Fish and Wildlife Service, did not respond to a request for comment. In 2019, when the federal judge upheld the endangered status, Nicole Nether-ton, executive director of Travis Audubon, said it was “simply too soon to remove protections for the warbler, which continues to lose habitat to urban sprawl.” “Central Texas is the only place in the world where golden-cheeked warblers are born and raised, and continued protections will help encourage their breeding success for years to come,” Netherton said then. |
How Much Do You Know About Birds?
Are you a bird expert, or are you just flapping your wings? It's time to put your talents to the test, and see just how much you really know about our feathered friends.
1. This royal bird is known for forming in incredibly large flocks—at times numbering in the tens of thousands!
Take this test and find out how much you know about birds.
1. This royal bird is known for forming in incredibly large flocks—at times numbering in the tens of thousands!
- Least Tern
- Greater Sage-Grouse
- Broad-tailed Hummingbird
- King Eider
- Common Loon
- Blue-winged Teal
- Tundra Swan
- Red-tailed Hawk
- Sandhill Crane
- Scarlet Macaw
- Red Knot
- Golden Eagle
- Bald Eagle
- Mallard
- Mountain Bluebird
- Peregrine Falcon
- Green Parakeet
- Osprey
- Great Horned Owl
- Cerulean Warbler
Take this test and find out how much you know about birds.
Birds Are Essential to Our Ecosystem
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Birding is For Everybody, But it's Not Always Easy
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For the last couple of years, a movement has been building to help people with mobility challenges gain better access to the outdoors, specifically for birding. It all started thanks to Virginia Rose of Austin, Texas, a retired high school and college English teacher.
When Rose was 14, she broke her back in a horse-riding accident. She has used a wheelchair ever since. One of her grandmothers was a birdwatcher, and when she died, she left Rose her Peterson guide, with her numerous and treasured pencil markings. Rose herself caught the birding bug in 2003 after attending a presentation about the House Finch given by her local Travis Audubon Society. She joined the group and “took all their birding classes and went on all their field trips. Everybody was so welcoming, and there were no hesitations” about her mobility, she recalls. “Field-trip leaders just took me in, and off we went.” While she was birding, leading beginning bird walks herself for Travis Audubon, and still teaching, she was thinking about “trying to help people who have mobility challenges get on trails, but I wasn’t really sure how to do that.” After she retired, Rose decided to do a birdathon on her own in 2018. She didn’t like joining other birdathons because she didn’t want to slow down walking birders and didn’t want to feel rushed. She called her birdathon “Birdability” and went to five accessible parks around Austin on her own. Her effort gained attention from local media and the National Audubon Society, and soon, Rose was the face of the fledgling Birdability campaign. It has grown a lot in recent years, in more ways than Rose could have imagined. “It happened really fast,” she says. “I feel like I landed right smack-dab in the middle of a movement.” At its heart, the goal is the same as her first solo birdathon. Birdability focuses on removing barriers to access for birders with mobility challenges, blindness or low vision, intellectual or developmental disabilities (including autism), mental illness, being deaf or hard of hearing, chronic illnesses and other health concerns. Learn about why this should matter to you (even if you don’t have an accessibility challenge), ways to be a more welcoming and inclusive birder, the Birdability Map (and how to submit a Birdability Site Review) and our resources for birders (and potential future birders) with accessibility challenges… because birding is for everybody and every body! |
Virginia Rose, Birdability Founder
Freya McGregor, Birdability Coordinator & Occupational Therapist
To help us work towards a welcoming and inclusive birding community and the outdoors, you can:
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Freya McGregor (pictured), OTR/L, is the Birdability Coordinator and Occupational Therapist. Birding since childhood, her ‘dodgy’ knee often creates an accessibility challenge for her, and she is passionate about enabling all birders and potential future birders to enjoy birding and nature as much as she does.
Birds of Comal County
Landa Park Bird Guide
| landaparkbirdguide.pdf |
Clicking on any of the bird names below will take you to The Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
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Blackbird, Orioles, & Grackles Cardinals & Allies Caracaras & Falcons Chickadees & Titmice Cormorants Ducks & Geese Exotics & Non-migratory Finches Flycatchers |
GnatcatcherGrebes Herons & Egrets Hummingbirds Jays Kingfishers Kinglets Kites Eagles, & Hawks Mockingbirds New World Vultures Nightjars Old World Sparrow Osprey Owls Pigeons & Doves |
Plovers Rails, Gallinules, & Coots Sandpipers Shrikes Sparrows Starlings Swallows Tanagers VireosWarblers Waxwings Woodpeckers
List compiled from: Landa Park Bird Guide.pdf |
An adult male ruby-throated hummingbird in flight. Credit: Brock and Sherri Fenton (CC BY 4.0)
Energy-saving Strategy Helps Hummingbirds Fuel their Long Migrations
By eLife
December 14, 2021
December 14, 2021
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Ruby-throated hummingbirds use the same energy-conserving strategy to survive overnight fasts and build the fat stores they need to fuel long migrations, shows a study published in eLife.
The findings help prove a long-held suspicion among scientists who study hummingbirds. They also provide new insights on the rules the birds use to determine whether to conserve energy or stockpile fat. Tiny ruby-throated hummingbirds constantly eat sugary nectar to fuel the rapid wing movements that allow them to hover. To conserve energy during their overnight fasts, the birds can shift into an energy-saving mode called torpor by lowering their body temperature and slowing their metabolism up to 95%. "We wanted to know if hummingbirds use this same energy-saving mechanism to more quickly build the fat stores they'll use to power their 5,000-kilometer migrations between their North American breeding grounds and Central American winter homes," says first author Erich Eberts, a Ph.D. student at the Welch Lab, University of Toronto Scarborough, Ontario, Canada. To study how and when the hummingbirds deploy this energy-saving strategy, Eberts and the team measured daily changes in the body, fat, and lean masses of 16 ruby-throated hummingbirds during three periods: The breeding season, late summer when the birds prepare to migrate, and during the birds' typical migration period. They also measured the birds' oxygen consumption using a technique called respirometry to determine when they shifted into torpor. |
During the breeding season, the hummingbirds maintained lean body masses and only entered torpor when their fat stores fell below 5% of their body mass. This "energy-emergency strategy" was usually deployed on nights when they went to sleep with lower energy reserves.
But in the late summer, when the birds typically increase their body mass by 20% to sustain themselves over the long migration, they stop using the 5% threshold for entering torpor. Instead, they enter torpor more frequently and at higher levels of fat. This allows them to conserve energy and build up fat even as nights get progressively longer. "We've shown that hummingbirds abandon the energy-emergency strategy in the late summer and start using torpor to accumulate the fat stores they need for migration," Eberts explains. The authors add that learning more about this energy-saving strategy may be important for the conservation of ruby-throated hummingbirds and other migrating bird species that face increasing stress from climate change and habitat loss. "Our findings that hummingbirds can use torpor to cope with different energetic challenges throughout the annual cycle are important for understanding differences in how these and other migratory animals that don't use torpor might respond to future environmental changes in food availability and temperature," concludes Kenneth Welch Jr., Associate Professor and Acting Chair of the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Toronto Scarborough, and co-author of the study alongside Christopher Guglielmo, Professor at the University of Western Ontario, Canada. |
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Hummingbirds Are Cooler Than Me
By: Maren McLaughlin-Klotz
Article featured in the 2021 Fall/Winter Texas Forever Magazine
Photos by: Yuhang Alan Zhou, TLC member
Article featured in the 2021 Fall/Winter Texas Forever Magazine
Photos by: Yuhang Alan Zhou, TLC member
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Every fall, nearly 1 billion birds pass through Texas during their fall migration. As this year’s migration reaches its peak, it has been especially exciting to see an influx of hummingbirds as they dart between flowers, rapidly beat their tiny wings, and dazzle us with their beautiful colors. Every time I catch one in my front yard, drinking from the flowers in our Desert Willow, I am captivated by their very existence, while also a little impressed with myself that I caught sight before it fluttered off to its next destination.
Recently, a birder friend of mine casually mentioned that he got a new lens for his camera and had snapped a few pictures of hummingbirds. When he showed me the photos, taken just miles from my own home, I was blown away. I am so grateful that he agreed to let me share them with you. After seeing the incredible detail of these tiny birds, I realized that I wanted to know more. So along with these incredible photos, here are some fun facts I found to help us all appreciate just how special these little pollinators are. And just how much cooler they are than me. |
Hummingbirds can remember feeder locations years later and remember which flowers they’ve visited.
I misplace my water cup daily. Most hummingbirds beat their wings 60 to 80 times per second. I have had automatic lights turn off while sitting at my desk in my office… because I didn’t move enough to trigger the sensor. Hummingbirds can rotate their wings 180 degrees, which enables backward flight and stationary hovering. I can’t fly at all. Hummingbirds can perch on branches and scoot sideways, but cannot walk. Finally, my time to shine! I walk, like, almost every day! Final tally: Hummingbirds 3, Maren 1. |
The Cornell Lab is one of the best places to learn everything about birds. You will find information about where they live, what they eat, nesting habits, their behavior, their call, and where they are on the conservation ladder. The Cornell Lab includes eBird, a huge resource including many articles to read online. The website compiles information for individuals, keeps your birding notes, your life list, where to go find certain species, what birds that can be seen at 'hotspots,' and more.
Because the male bird is much more colorful than the female, you may be unfamiliar with the head of the bird nest. At the lab, you can also see and learn more about her.
As we said, you will find bird calls on the Cornell Lab website. Bird calls are especially interesting and fun to learn. As you probably already know bird watching has become quite popular, even among kids. The effort to learn bird calls makes the entire bird watching experience so much more interesting
and fun.
If you have kids, grandkids, nieces, or nephews, go to our "For Kids" webpage for more bird activities.
Because the male bird is much more colorful than the female, you may be unfamiliar with the head of the bird nest. At the lab, you can also see and learn more about her.
As we said, you will find bird calls on the Cornell Lab website. Bird calls are especially interesting and fun to learn. As you probably already know bird watching has become quite popular, even among kids. The effort to learn bird calls makes the entire bird watching experience so much more interesting
and fun.
If you have kids, grandkids, nieces, or nephews, go to our "For Kids" webpage for more bird activities.
travisaudubon.org/birdwatching-basics
| bird_plants_travis_co_september2010.pdf |
Birdwatching Basics
TRAVIS AUDUBON
There is no better way to jump into birdwatching than to take a class or go on a field trip with Travis Audubon. If you decide to bird on your own, pick a good birding spot– learn more about Travis County birding hotspots here. 
Texas Parks & Wildlife
RECOMMENDED FIELD GUIDES
BINOCULARS HELP YOU SEE THE BIRDS BETTER Good choices: 7x 35, 7 x 42, 8 x 40. How to choose: https://www.birdwatchersdigest.com/bwdsite/explore/optics/top-10-tips-buying-binoculars-bird-watching.php. Try them out at REI, Wild Birds Unlimited, Cabela’s, or at a birding festival. Evaluate for ease of use and how heavy they feel. Check websites for binocular reviews:
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Saving Birds — What You Can Do
Birds provide essential services for us, from eating pests to pollinating flowers, and they are a delight to watch and hear. But they face many threats to survival, and many bird populations are in steep decline. With expanding urbanization and development, suitable habitat and resources become increasingly scarce. You can help by gardening for birds and creating a bird-friendly habitat in your yard!
CREATE BIRD FRIENDLY COMMUNITIES Birds face so many challenges on a daily basis: habitat loss, climate change, predation, building collisions, pesticides, and more. You can help birds by creating a bird-friendly community with these simple guidelines! GARDEN FOR BIRDS Get a list of gardening resources to help cultivate your garden to be inviting to birds: https://travisaudubon.org/gardening-resources
Engelmann Daisy
BUILDING COLLISION STUDY
Travis Audubon is investigating the impact of local buildings on migratory bird mortality and raising awareness in the community about this issue. |
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As the climate changes, so will the places birds need.
Audubon scientists took advantage of 140 million observations, recorded by birders and scientists, to describe where 604 North American bird species live today—an area known as their "range." They then used the latest climate models to project how each species's range will shift as climate change and other human impacts advance across the continent. The results are clear: Birds will be forced to relocate to find favorable homes. And they may not survive. |
Highly and moderately vulnerable birds may lose more than half of their current range—the geographic area where they live—as they are forced to search for suitable habitat and climate conditions elsewhere.
Below, find out which of the birds that nest or spend the winter in your area are most vulnerable across their entire range. Some birds may lose range outside of your state, making the protection of their current habitat in your area even more important. |
Bird Calls vs Songs
This very interesting video explains in detail the difference between bird songs and bird calls and what they both mean.
Bird Cams From Texas Hill Country
TYE PRESTON PUBLIC LIBRARY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKTtruLiQbc&feature=emb_err_woyt
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKTtruLiQbc&feature=emb_err_woyt
Tye Preston Library Live Cam
TEXAS HILL COUNTRY
Some of the more common birds you might see during the stream are: Hummingbirds, Road Runners, Black Capped Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, House Finch, Lesser Goldfinch, American Goldfinch, Mocking Bird, Scrub Jays, Desert Cardinal, Northern Cardinal, Rock Pigeons, Woodpeckers, Blue Jays, Sparrows, Wrens, Cardinals, Cowbirds just to name a few. You may also spot the elusive Painted Bunting or Vermilion Flycatcher!
Texas Hill Country bird feeders
Other Resources
TEXAS PARKS & WILDLIFE
The Great Texas Wildlife Trails website provides great places to bird in central and south Texas. Landa Park and Canyon Lake are two of the nine stops on the Heart of Texas East Birding Trail that are suggested places for people to go birding.
The Great Texas Wildlife Trails website provides great places to bird in central and south Texas. Landa Park and Canyon Lake are two of the nine stops on the Heart of Texas East Birding Trail that are suggested places for people to go birding.
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Two local Audubon Society websites provide additional information about common birds in our area of Texas.
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TRAVIS AUDUBON
Mission: Travis Audubon protects native habitat for birds and other wildlife. In 1952, our founders recognized the vital connection between conserving wildlife habitat and the ecological balance necessary for healthy and sustainable communities. |
SAN ANTONIO AUDUBON
Mission: The purpose of this organization is to raise the awareness of both members and the general public about the protection, preservation, and propagation of all wildlife, particularly birds, and their habitat. Be sure to give them a visit. |
Download These Apps
- Audubon Bird Guide
- Merlin Bird ID by Cornell Lab
- North American Birds Free
- eBird by Cornell Lab
