The next morning I ran into Dennis Cooke and we started searching the area. We could not find it where it had been seen the day before so I started exploring. It didn't take long. The big beauty was in the big field, along the freeway frontage road just east of the church parking lot where it had been the day before. All I can say is "Wow!" Texas bird #573.
It's in kind of a weird area where Odessa condos and shopping malls are expanding out into the prairie with a big freeway passing by. So far lots of people are getting to see this Texas rarity. I hope it survives to winter to return to the arctic tundra.
Yesterday the sun popped out. It's been a cold winter so I took advantage and made a run over to Cameron County. It wasn't too birdy but I was able to add the Los Fresnos Burrowing Owl to my new year list.
And the day before I was out in the yard here at Progreso Lakes when I head the purring trill of our local Eastern Screech-Owl. With my hearing fading a bit in one ear, my sense of direction for calling birds tends to be off a bit. So I just kept following the sound as best I could. It was not as close as I thought. After a bit I realized it was in the big hackberry just across the fence in the neighbor's yard. Luckily it kept calling and I finally spotted it. Now that I know it's roost site I was able to find it again this morning.
So with the Long-eared Owl from earlier in the month, owl wise, my new year list is off to a pretty good start.
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