Last month I got to spend a couple of weeks in Argentina. I'm currently working a blog trip report which I will link in a few days. Anyway while I was down south looking a dotterels and Magellanic stuff a Limpkin was discovered at Estero Llano Grande State Park in Weslaco. This was not completely unexpected as there has been a literal invasion of Limpkin across the eastern United States. There are now many records for Texas and we were just waiting our turn for one to be found down here. In fact I posted an account of finding a deceased Limpkin on South Padre Island in Willacy County on this blog last February. Well the Estero Limpkin hung around for only an afternoon and was long gone by the time I returned to the USA.
Fast forward to this morning. I was out in the yard hoping for a return of the Red-billed Pigeon when the WhatsApp dinged. Abran over at Estero had either refound or found another Limpkin in the flood channel at the same spot where the previous one had been observed. In birding sometimes you get a reprieve but not often. So I got myself ready to make the short drive to Estero when the WhatsApp dinged again. This time Javier DeLeon, the park superintendent, was reporting there were actually two Limpkins. Dang! Well I raced over and made the long hot walk to the levee above Alligator Pond and there was Javi looking at the Limpkins. They had relocated from the mudflats to a distant shady tree where I managed these poor photos.
It used to be the only place to see Limpkins in the United States was south Florida where they feed on the large apple snails. But with the help of the tropical fish industry, apple snails have spread across the southern US and Limpkins are spreading with them. Now Limpkins are being seen feeding on freshwater clams and mussels so no telling how far they will spread. These Estero birds may have wandered down from east Texas but to me they may have just as likely wandered up from Mexico. Anyway I get another new species for my Hidalgo County list, #413.
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