November/December 2009

The
Brown Pelican
The Newsletter of the Coastal Bend Audubon Society

On the Web at http://www.coastalbendaudubon.org

CBAS Monthly Meetings
Look for color, web-linked version of newsletter on the web at
www.Coastalbendaudubon.org
Tuesday, November 3
Speaker: Jim Blackburn
Topic: Can the Whooping
CBAS October Cranes be Saved?
Meeting
Cancelled Location:
Corpus Christi Museum of
due to Bird Re- Science and History
search 1900 N. Chaparral
Corpus Christi, Texas
Photos of research are on page Time: 7:00 p.m.
4 and 5, story on page 6.
We apologize for cancelling the Tuesday, December 1
October CBAS meeting. Dr.
Larry Niles was in the All members and the public
Coastal Bend conducting re- are invited!
search on the shorebird, Red Knot. He and volunteers were in the middle of his project cap-
turing birds (knee deep in shorebirds waiting to be processed) and it was crucial that he com-
plete this task. He didn’t have time to get to the museum for the meeting. He was disap-
pointed that he could not talk to us about his work with
Red Knots and sends his sincere regrets. Photo of Red Knot by Tony Amos

November Speaker:
Jim Blackburn, Nov. 3, 7:00 pm
The recent winter loss of more than 8% of the whooper population was tied to low flows of
fresh water from the Guadalupe River into San Antonio Bay. Recent research by Blackburn
and his team of experts shows that low-flow problems will become worse as diversion of
upstream water increases. This threatens the survival of the whooping crane as well as the
productivity of local bays.
Can the Endangered Species Act help avert this threat to the last and only natural mi-
grating population of whoopers? Are local bays going to be starved of the fresh water they
need to sustain fisheries and bird populations? What are the implications for the local econ-
omy? Blackburn will present the results of this research and discuss its implications. Jim
Blackburn is the preeminent environmental attorney of the Texas Gulf Coast, a veteran of
over 30 years of efforts to preserve our coastal heritage. He is the author of The Book of
Texas Bays.
There will be plenty of time for questions and discussion. Please save the date and bring
your friends.
 WHAT’S UP AROUND TEXAS
BIRD WALK Birders of all skill levels are invited to join a master birder as
Every Tuesday and Saturday in November the group searches the wetlands, prairies and woods for a few
World Birding Center, Resaca de la Palma SP, Brownsville of the 289 avian species documented there. Ages 10 and up.
Walk the trails of the park with an experienced birder and learn Reservations required. 7:30 a.m.
why the park is important for bird abundance and diversity. Phone: 972-219-7980
Bring plenty of water, sunscreen and insect repellent. 8:30 a.m. Web site: www.ias.unt.edu/llela
to 10:30 a.m. $4 per adult; free for children 12 and under.
Phone: 956-350-2920 FESTIVAL OF THE CRANES
Website: www.worldbirdingcenter.org/sites/brownsville November 17–22, 2009 Bosque del Apache NWR, Socorro,
NM
EN–RAPTOR–ED This festival highlights the world renowned Bosque del Apache
November 7, 2009 Kinkaid School, Houston National Wildlife Refuge. It features refuge tours and bird,
Jonathan Wood takes attendees on a wilderness expedition with biology, geology and art workshops and fantastic keynote
his raptor entourage, which includes live birds of prey from speakers.
every type of habitat on the planet. Lunch is included. 11 a.m. Phone: 575-835-2077,
to 1 p.m. $100 per person. Email: friends@sdc.org
Phone: 979-480-0999 Web site: www.festivalofthecranes.com
Web site: www.gebo.org
SOUTH TEXAS WILDLIFE AND BIRDING FESTIVAL
16th ANNUAL RIO GRANDE VALLEY BIRDING FESTIVAL November 19-22, 2009 Kingsville
November 12-15, 2009 Harlingen The festival will include workshops and seminars, birding
This festival will focus on field trips, a trade show and special tours, vendors and exhibitors.
presentations by internationally renowned birders and authors Contact: Kingsville Convention and Visitors Bureau 1501 N.
of wildlife biology. Field trips offer glimpses of parrots, Highway 77, Kingsville, TX 78363
Chachalaca, Great Kiskadee, Altamira Oriole and Green Jay Phone: 800-333-5032
among many other birds found in this region. Web site: www.kingsvilletexas.com
Contact: Harlingen Chamber of Commerce 311 East Tyler,
Harlingen, TX 78550 OPEN HOUSE/HOLIDAY SALE
Phone: 800-531-7346; (956) 423-5440 December 5, 2009 Gulf Coast Bird Observatory, Lake Jackson
Web site: www.rgvbirdfest.com Great gift items on sale range from bird books to hummingbird
feeders. There is a 10 percent discount for GCBO members. All
BIRD WALK items are sales tax free. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
November 14, 2009 Lewisville Lake Environmental Learning Phone: 979-480-0999
Area Website: www.gcbo.org

Thursday, November 5
10 am to 2 pm
Whataburger Field

Page 2
 Hibernia Preserve breeding bird survey
By Gene W. Blacklock, Mary Kay Skoruppa, and Jake Herring
Seven hundred sixty-five acres of relatively undisturbed wood-
lands along the lower Nueces River comprise the San Patricio
de Hibernia Preserve, protected and studied by the Coastal
Bend Bays and Estuaries Program since October 2004. Habitats
occurring along the river are significant because they represent
remnant sub-tropical forests that once were common in this
area.
Three hundred eighty acres along the river are checked for
breeding bird activity annually in late May or early June. Habi-
tats occurring there support a mixture of temperate and sub-
tropical woodland plant species: live oak (Quercus virginiana),
not commonly found along the lower Nueces River, and
Tamaulipan thorn scrub, represent approximately 35 percent
cover. The remaining 65 percent is mainly trees: cedar elm
(Ulmus crassifolia), anacua (Ehretia anacua), net-vain hack-
berry (Celtis laevigata var. reticulate), sugarberry (Celtis laevi-
gata), Mexican ash (Fraxinus berlandieriana), Western soap-
berry (Sapindus saponaria var. drummondii), coma
(Sideroxylon lanuginosum), black willow (Salix nigra), and
colonies of mustang grape (Vitis mustangensis); ball “moss”
Tillandsia recurvata and Spanish “moss” (T. usneoides) is lo-
cally abundant; understory is partly open with some dense
stands of Tamaulipan thorn scrub. In addition, several season-
ally wet sites occur. Brush holly (Xylosma flexuosa), rarely
seen this far north, Neotropical, occurs mainly along the south-
west edged of the property. Regrettably, guineagrass (Urochloa
maxima), an exotic grass, is becoming increasingly more abun-
dant throughout the preserve.
SURVEY METHODS
Three participants walked designated trails documenting all
male birds that were heard or seen; mapping approximate loca-
tions of each one on aerial map. All methods, counts and trails
have been accomplished in the same way since June, 2005. Due
to space limitations, only species of special interest are listed
here.
SPECIES OF SPECIAL INTEREST
June 07, 2005: (high counts): green jay, 5; tropical parula, 2;
and olive sparrow, 13. Birds observed that do not breed in this
area: northern waterthrush, 7; mourning warbler, 1.
May 26, 2006: Species of special interest (high counts): great
Kiskadee, 4; white-eyed vireo, 19; black-crested titmouse, 24;
long-billed thrasher, 8; northern parula, 10; red-eyed cowbird,
10. Birds observed that do not breed in this area: least fly-
catcher, 1.
May 23, 2007: Species of special interest (high counts): great
blue heron, 10. Birds observed that do not breed in this area:
long-billed curlew, 1; eastern wood-pewee, 2; yellow-bellied
sapsucker, 1; least flycatchers, 5; red-eyed vireo, 3.
June 12, 2008: Species of special interest (high counts): cattle
egret, 22; wood stork, 30; black vulture, 23; white-tipped dove,
23; yellow-billed cuckoo, 20; barred owl, 7; ladder-backed
woodpecker, 8; Carolina chickadee, 2; summer tanager, 10;
and northern cardinal, 38. Birds seen that do not breed in this
area: wood stork, 30; red-eyed vireo, 2.
May 22, 2009:
Species of special interest (high counts): black-bellied whistling
ducks, 10; mourning dove, 14; and white-winged dove, 5. Birds
observed that do not breed in this area: eastern wood-pewee, 1;
yellow-bellied sapsucker, 2; willow flycatcher, 1; red-eyed, 9;
Philadelphia vireos, 3; magnolia, 6; blackburnian, 2; chestnut-
sided, 2; Canada warbler, 1; American redstart, 2.
CONCLUSIONS
Fifty-one bird species have been observed during the 5 years of
surveying; all but eight are expected to breed here, eight were
migrants. Three species, northern parula, tropical parula and
summer tanager, were previously not expected to breed along
the lower Nueces River. From information collected, the north-
ern parula and summer tanager breed seasonally at Hibernia: In
June 07, 2005, a breeding pair of tropical parula warblers was
discovered; they were in full song and were observed defending
territory. This discovery was published in the Texas Bulletin of
the Texas Ornithological Society, Vol.40 (1), 2007; pp. 14 – 17:
“Three Noteworthy Species of Woodland Birds in a Riparian
Forest of the Lower Nueces River, San Patricio County,
Texas”.
Two additional bird species found during the counts suggest
that these may breed along the lower Nueces River. On several
occasions red-eyed vireos were observed singing and possibly
maintaining territory but breeding was not confirmed.
Two Carolina chickadees were observed at Hibernia on June
12, 2008. Breeding could not be confirmed. Chickadees have
occurred as residents infrequently east to southeastern Nueces
County, Encinal Peninsula, Flour Bluff (Gene W. Blacklock,
1969); locally along the lower Aransas River, Welder Wildlife
Refuge, San Patricio County, and in winter along the lower
Nueces River, San Patricio and Nueces Counties (Gene W.
Blacklock).
MANAGEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS:
Take care to minimize the spread of guineagrass and other exot-
ics in this remnant tract of native riparian forest. The existing
guineagrass should be treated with herbicide. Clearing of native
brush should be avoided; disturbance and clearing opens up
areas for exotic species such as guineagrass, to colonize. It is
important to control exotic species because once they become
established, overall diversity is reduced, and fewer wildlife
species can be supported. The changes brought about by the
introduction of an invasive species such as guineagrass are
nearly impossible to reverse, unless action is taken early.
Page 3
 Red knot project: south texas coast

Photos on this page and the facing page were

taken by Winnie Shrum and Linda Fuiman,
members of Coastal Bend Audubon Society, who
volunteered to assist with the project.

Page 4
Red knot project: south texas coast

Dr. Larry Niles, of Conserve Wildlife Foun-

dation of New Jersey, has made studying the
red knot his area of expertise. Dr. Niles and
a group of colleagues and volunteers banded
red knots on Padre Island during the first
week of October. The red knots were cap-
tured using a canon fired net, after being
lured into the area by recorded red knot
calls. Once in the net, researchers weighed,
measured and fitted the birds with tags for
identification. Red knot populations have
plummeted in recent years, and little is
known of their migratory patterns. More
about the research can be found at the San
Antonio Express-News at this link: http://
www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/
Texas_a_stop_in_20000-
mile_migration.html
Page 5
 Red knot project: south texas coast
By David Newstead
From October 4-11 a group of researchers and a hardy team of volunteers spent long days searching the beaches of Mustang
and Padre Islands for Red Knots. The objective: capture and band up to 200 of the birds.
The rufa subspecies of Red Knot migrates from breeding grounds in the Canadian Arctic to wintering grounds in Tierra del
Fuego at the southern tip of South America – one of the longest shorebird migrations on earth. On their way, they depend on stop-
over areas to rest, molt flight feathers, and store critical energy reserves to make their next journey. Most birds take a more easterly
route, but every spring and fall the gulf beaches of the Texas Coastal Bend host up to several thousand of this sharply declining
shorebird.
Research throughout the range is being conducted by Dr Larry Niles, of Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey, and Dr
Humphrey Sitters, of the International Wader Study Group based in Exeter, England. Their work was coordinated locally by CBAS
president David Newstead. But setting and firing a cannon net is a major undertaking, so the effort relied heavily on a group of vol-
unteers from US Fish & Wildlife Service, Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, The Nature Conservancy, Padre Island National Sea-
shore, and many CBAS members.
In the end, the team was able to capture 65 birds in four separate netting events. Birds were immediately removed from the net,
placed in keeping cages, and then processed – including attachment of leg flags and for some, geolocator datalogging devices, meas-
urements, molt staging, weighing, and feather samples which will be used for isotope analysis.
Red knot numbers began to diminish on area beaches the week before the research began, which made finding catchable numbers of
birds challenging. Several possible reasons were likely responsible for this, including the rather sudden arrival of large numbers of
staging Peregrine Falcons on the barrier islands (which make shorebirds very nervous), atypically high beach traffic associated with
a beach fishing tournament, and perhaps most importantly, the onset of a major red tide event that caused major fish kills in the near-
shore surf, and likely impacted the Red Knot’s preferred food in the surf zone – the coquina clam.
Nevertheless, the data collected so far indicates that the Texas birds likely use a distinct migratory route than the east coast
birds, that the adults begin the molt of their primary feathers here, and probably do not make any major migratory movement until
that process is complete (roughly 90 days), and that while they are in Texas they may wander north and south in search of suitable
habitat conditions.
Any resighting of a flagged bird writes an important chapter in the full life-cycle history of that bird and helps researchers iden-
tify areas of conservation importance. Dr Niles has established a website for birders to input their resighting information at
www.bandedbirds.org. If you enter a resighting, the site will provide you with the known history of that individual and let you track
it through future resightings.
The research effort in Texas will be continuing with aerial surveys for wintering birds, and another trapping effort during the
spring migration. Stay tuned for more information, and for opportunities to help with the research in the future.

L to R: Winnie Shrum, David Newstead, Jackie and Humphrey Sitters, April Anderson, Ron Kratzer, Larry
Niles, Brent Ortego, Cliff Shackelford, Cullen Hanks. Photo by Winnie Shrum.

Page 6
 Treasurer’s report Memorial donation
By Leatrice Koch
August 1-September 30, 2009
Robert M. White, Corpus Christi, sent this mes-
Beginning balance. .................................... $17,072.59 sage to the Coastal Bend Audubon Society:
Income......................... $ 3,735.81
Expenses ........................... 691.73
.............................................................. ...... $3,044.08 "Please accept the enclosed donation of $250 in
memory of my wife, Sheryl White."

Ending balance .......................................... $20,116.67

Less reserved fund. ...................................... 542.12
Less Collaborative Chapter grant ................ 600.00
Less Purple Martin research grant .......... 1,484.97
Less sanctuary improvement .................. 2,000.00
Less sanctuary maintenance donations ........ 330.00
Operating fund .......................................... $15,159.58
Coastal Bend Audubon Society thanks Mr.
White for the donation in memory of his wife, a
member of the National Audubon Society. The
funds will be used to further our mission of
education and conservation.

New or Renewing Membership

Page 7
 Non-Profit Org.
U. S. Postage
The Newsletter of the Coastal
Bend Audubon Society PAID

Permit No. 1080

Corpus Christi, TX
P.O. Box 3604
Corpus Christi, Texas 78463

Phone: 361-885-6203
Email: coastalbendaudubon@gmail.com
http://www.coastalbendaudubon.org

Regular CBAS meetings:

First Tuesday of the month, September
through May, 7 p.m. at the CC
Museum of Science and History

The Brown Pelican

Coastal Bend Audubon Society Board of Directors

PRESIDENT The Coastal Bend Audubon Society is a non- DIRECTORS
David Newstead profit 501c(3) organization dedicated to the con-
Education Linda Fuiman, linda.Fuiman@mail.utexas.edu
361-885-6203 servation of birds and bird habitat, and to conser-
davnewst@yahoo.com vation education in the Coastal Bend. Sanctuary Dick DuBois, papadubois@yahoo.com
VICE PRESIDENT
Conservation Scott Large, largesi@gmail.com
vacant The organization is supported by contributions
from local memberships and from the National Membership Laura Cooper, lgcooper@earthlink.net
SECRETARY
Audubon Society.
Cherie McCollough
cherie.mccollough@tamucc.edu Newsletter Sally Bickley, s8bickley@yahoo.com
Your CHAPTER needs you! You can help steer
TREASURER At-Large Gene Blacklock, geneb@cbbep.org
the course of growth and change in our
Leatrice Koch
leak36@aol.com community by working together Please contact us At-Large Ray Sutton, wsutton1@stx.rr.com
at 361-885-6203 about getting involved!

This newsletter is compiled, written and published

every other month. Articles of interest are gathered from
various sources and compiled by the editor,
volunteers, and/or contributing authors.
All contributions and comments are welcomed.