The Valley's four young guns, Ryan Rodriguez, Nolan Walker, Simon Kiacz and Zach Johnson have been leaving a path of destruction in their wake in recent months. This morning Ryan found Hidalgo County's third Flame-colored Tanager. This Mexican montain species is still a review species in Texas but now is annual in SE Arizona where it has nested. I was happy to refind it for the small group of birders who had assembled. It was my 415th species for Hidalgo County.
Nolan, who found the Mexican Violetear on SPI a few days ago, had been looking for the Flame-colored Tanager when I arrived and scored a Black-capped Vireo in the process. Once federally listed as endangered, Black-capped Vireos have rebounded after successful cowbird predation control programs and a decline in the number of goats being raised in the Hill Country. Goats tend to eat everything including the brushy thickets Black-capped Vireo prefer for nesting. This is only the second I've seen in the county. These poor phots are still better than the ones I got of the Frontera bird many years ago.
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