My wife and I drove to the Acton Nature Preserve on Saturday (2/19/2022) to participate in the Great Backyard Bird Count. Our group on Saturday counted 30 species and one hybrid for a total of 347 individual birds. For more information on the event please go to https://www.birdcount.org/.
I took pictures of 19 different species and saw several more of which I could not get a photograph (Great-tailed Grackle, Bufflehead, and Great Blue Heron are the two I remember specifically). Three species did not have usable photos (Black Vulture, Carolina Chickadee, and Red-winged Blackbird), so I ended up with 16 decent to good photographs. These birds were: American Goldfinch, Bewick’s Wren, Black-created/Tufted Titmouse hybrid, Brown-headed Cowbird, Chipping Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Eastern Bluebird, Field Sparrow, Harris Sparrow, Hooded Merganser (on a pond adjacent to the Nature Center), Northern Cardinal (two separate photographs: one male, one female), Northern Mockingbird, Sharp-shinned Hawk (that was eating a cotton rat), Song Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, and White-throated Sparrow.
Three of these photographed birds were new species for my life list, all sparrows:
Chipping Sparrow, Acton Nature Center, Acton, TX, February 19, 2022 Canon EOS Rebel T3i with Tamron 150-600 mm lens; 500 mm; ISO-1600; f/6.3; 1/640 sec.Field Sparrow, Acton Nature Center, Acton, TX, February 19, 2022 Canon EOS Rebel T3i with Tamron 150-600 mm lens; 600 mm; ISO-1250; f/6.3; 1/1000 sec.Harris Sparrow, Acton Nature Center, Acton, TX, February 19, 2022 Canon EOS Rebel T3i with Tamron 150-600 mm lens; 500 mm; ISO-1000; f/6.3; 1/800 sec.
After the bird count, we got to listen to a wonderful lecture on the history and changes to bird naming conventions by Dr. Billy Teels. It was extremely interesting.
I had not planned on going out on Saturday (2/12) as the weather was not really conducive to birding. I had heard about some owls at Colleyville Nature Center and was planning on heading out there on Sunday, as the weather was to be improved. However, Friday was a particularly bad day, so I just needed to get into the woods and clear my head. I am glad I went out even though the lighting was terrible and I was not expecting to take any decent photographs. My first stop at the Fort Worth Nature Preserve Cross Timbers Trailhead resulted in the usual suspects that hang out in the at area, American Coots, American White Pelicans, Mallards, etc.
After hanging out that for a bit, I decided to head down the road to see if the racoon was back in the hollow tree. I was driving slowly, noticing the birds flitting about in the trees. I came to one area and I saw some woodpeckers, so I went to the next parking area and walked back and sat on a downed tree to let the area calm. I saw four members of the Picidae family: Red-bellied Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Downy Woodpecker, and a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (a new species for my life list). So I was feeling pretty good about then. I am looking forward to visiting the Woodpecker Woods again soon.
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Fort Worth Nature Preserve Shoreline Road, Fort Worth, TX, February 12, 2022 Canon EOS 5Ds R with Tamron 150-600 mm lens; 600 mm; ISO-6400; f/6.3; 1/2000 sec.
After a while, I went back to driving to the hollow tree, but it was empty. I decided to head to the Marsh Boardwalk to see what was hanging out in the shallow area (I got a Swamp Sparrow the week before, another new member of my life list). However, I only saw some Mallards, Green-winged Teal, and a Canvasback. As I walked out onto the platform, I noticed a small group of Hooded Mergansers about 150-200 yards to my right. Although not new to my life list, the only picture I had was a fairly blurry one that I had to “over process.” They knew I was there, even at that distance, as they slowly swam in the opposite direction. I did manage to get some nice shots, but from 200 yards, they are not too detailed.
Hooded Merganser, Fort Worth Nature Preserve Marsh Boardwalk, Fort Worth, TX, February 12, 2022 Canon EOS 5DS R with Tamron 150-600 mm lens; 600 mm; ISO-1600; f/6.3; 1/1600 sec.
Later that afternoon while at home, my viewfinder autofocus decided to stop working. Live View autofocus still worked (through the LCD screen on the back of the camera), but I shoot 99% of the time using the viewfinder. After hours working with it, researching, and talking with Canon support, it is getting shipped to the service center to be fixed. That left me without my new camera to go see the owls on Sunday. Fortunately, I had my older Canon Rebel T3i camera, so off I went early in the morning to be there about sunrise. The Colleyville Nature Center was awesome. However, my photographs were not. I think the camera’s sensor needed a good cleaning (I picked up the camera today from getting it cleaned), but I did manage to get a few good pictures of a squirrel, and I did get to take a photograph of the Barred Owls. Who knows when I will get my camera back, but at least I have a back up for now.
Fox Squirrel, Colleyville Nature Center, Colleyville, TX, February 13, 2022 Canon EOS Rebel T3i with Tamron 150-600 mm lens; 150 mm; ISO-6400; f/5; 1/1600 sec. Barred Owl, Colleyville Nature Center, Colleyville, TX, February 13, 2022 Canon EOS Rebel T3i with Tamron 150-600 mm lens; 600 mm; ISO-400; f/6.3; 1/250 sec.
We really enjoy the Texas State Parks and and eventually want to visit them all. Recently (12/28/2022) we visited Cleburne State Park for the first time and found it to be a charming place with some nice birds and hiking. When we returned home, I found that what I thought was a Tufted Titmouse was actually a Black-crested Titmouse. When I checked the park’s bird list, the Black-crested Titmouse was not on it, so as far as I know, I am the first person to seed this particular species of bird at the park, so that was pretty cool. I sent them a picture through their Facebook page to let them know they have a new species and they posted the photo.
Cleburne State Park Facebook Screen Capture
We went back to the park on January 29, 2022 to do some more birding and just happened to arrive as a Birding 101 program, organized by the park, was gathering. So we joined the group and had a really good time. Here is a picture of the group. I am third from the right and my wife is to my right.
Birding 101, Cleburne State Park, January 29, 2022
I am looking forward to my next visit to the park, especially when it get warmer and we can take our kayaks! If you are in the area and want a nice place to take a relaxing hike and enjoy nature, I highly recommend stopping by for a visit.
