I arrived at the South Pade Island Convention Center at about 1 PM. There were a lot fewer birders than at Sheepshead. I checked the water feature and found nothing so I wandered back behind the center to check the Huisache trees. I found another more cooperative Acadian Flycatcher, the second of an amazing five on the day. Green, pale breasted, narrow eye ring, big billed with long primary extensions, this is one of the easier Empidonax to identify.
I noticed Sarkozi's group was photographing something near the coma tree on the west end of the water feature habitat island. Turns out they had a bright male Cerulean Warbler. Unfortunately it was wet like all the birds on this soggy day.
And a couple of brilliant but wet Scarlet Tanagers.
And another Black-throated Green Warbler.
I walked back behind the Convention Center again and found another Summer Tanager.
Then I got a shocking text from David Sarkozi. He and his group had gone down the boardwalk through the mangroves hoping to add birds to their day list. One of his group had just photographed a Golden-cheeked Warbler! Damn that's a species I've wanted to see in the Valley for over thirty years. David is not in our local WhatsApp group and I was his only contact so I got the text.
Every few years some birder will report a Golden-cheeked Warbler in the Valley. There is never a photo and they are never refound. This endanged species nests in juniper and ash trees in the Texas Hill Country and winters in the mountains of Mexico. I have only seen them on their breeding grounds. I went runing.
I found the group near the end of the north boardwalk. David showed me where they had last seen the bird in the mangroves. Then I got a look at the back of the photographer's camera. Sure enough it looked like a Golden-cheeked Warbler. I started searching while David's happy group departed.
I put the word out on Whatsapp and soon eager birders started arriving. Michele and Horatio were first to arrive. She's good at finding stuff in the mangroves. We had glimpses of birds and found a couple of Hooded Warblers. More people arrived and we searched and then Isidro Montemayor yells "There it is!" Fortunately it stayed high in the mangroves. Between the dark cloudy skies and my poor camera being on its last legs it was hard to get shots of this active little warbler but I managed a few. The black back and crown differentiates this species from the similar Black-throated Green Warbler.
The bird drifted to the south into the SPI Birding and Nature Center. I have not heard of it being refound though high powered birders like Ryan and Nolan went running down the boardwalk for it. This much wanted Golden-cheecked Warbler was my 442nd species for Cameron County. It started raining so I decided that was enough. I passed another Kentucky Warbler on the way out.
Not nearly the number of migrants I expected on the cool, wet day. But I'll take quality over quantity.
South Padre Is.--WBC/Conv. Center/Laguna Madre Trail (LTC 035), Cameron, Texas, US
Apr 19, 2026 1:17 PM - 4:09 PM
Protocol: Traveling
0.326 mile(s)
30 species
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck 14
Mottled Duck 2
Ruby-throated Hummingbird 12
White Ibis 2
Eastern Wood-Pewee 2
Acadian Flycatcher 4
Great Crested Flycatcher 1
Great Kiskadee 1
Red-eyed Vireo 1
Gray Catbird 4
Northern Mockingbird 1
Swainson's Thrush 2
Lincoln's Sparrow 1
Orchard Oriole 5
Hooded Oriole 1
Altamira Oriole 2
Baltimore Oriole 5
Great-tailed Grackle 15
Northern Waterthrush 1
Black-and-white Warbler 2
Tennessee Warbler 6
Nashville Warbler 1
Kentucky Warbler 1
Hooded Warbler 3
Cerulean Warbler 1
Golden-cheeked Warbler 1
Black-throated Green Warbler 1
Summer Tanager 2
Scarlet Tanager 2
Indigo Bunting 1
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