August sunshine!

Well, if we can be excited for anything in August in Texas, we can be excited about the sunshine! What’s that saying about too much of a good thing? Hogwash I say! Particularly this August! Despite the long-term projection from NOAA for slightly warmer and drier weather this next month, that can’t touch the brutality from the last few years! Heck, they’re talking about rain next week! Maybe not talking a lot about it, but you’ll have to admit it’s been a much better summer than the past few in terms of rainfall and cloud cover.

Sometimes this is the best way to bird in August

So what does all that mean for me!? Er… you!? I know I had a whole blog about reading books and staying inside last month… well that was then! August is whole new month, full of plenty of new things to see!

1. Purple Martin migration

In case you’ve not heard, RBAS has been keeping track of the Purple Martin roost at the corner of Southwest Pkwy and Texas Ave in College Station. We have another Roost Party planned for Sunday 27JULY from 8:15PM until dark!

As a quick run through about what’s going on, most (if not all) Purple Martins nest in man made structures primarily in central and eastern US and Canada. When all of this productive nesting and brood rearing concludes, the birds start to head south to Central and South America for our winter. Now, they just don’t go in ones or twos. They flock in migration staging areas along the Gulf coast and southeast US before making the big leap south.

There have been large flocks (several hundred thousand birds!) reported in Houston and Austin the past several years, as well as in College Station (but not consistently noticed). This year we found it! While our roost is only a couple thousand strong (estimate), it’s an entertaining site and unique birding experience.

If you’d like to be a Purple Martin landlord next year, come talk with us- we’ve got a number of members with experience being a Martin landlord and can help in figuring out the who, what, and whens. Also, the Purple Martin Conservation Association has a lot of excellent information.

2. Shorebirds!!!! Don’t you roll your eyes! I saw that! Shorebirds are great!

And they start their way back from the Arctic (or points north) in August. All of the Peeps, with their muddy legs and bill, indistinct or misleading plumage, and frenetic, spontaneous rapid flights make… well ok. Maybe Peeps are a pain. But the Sandpipers are… um. They’re good too. Well, you know at least the Lesser and Greater Yellowlegs are easy to… distinguish from most of the other shorebirds.

But hey, you may get lucky and come across a group of Wood Storks or a Roseatte Spoonbill! Maybe an Ibis?! So it’s not all glare and frustration with shorebirds! At least you’re out! Right?

I’m not sure what the story is with Country Club Lake and the availability of shoreline. That’s been our most productive (and convenient) spot for shorebirds in town. Some other places that have been favorable lately is the marsh north of Calvert on Highway 6, Lake Bryan, Gibbons Creek Reservoir, Wilcox Sod Farms, and the Allen Farms area.

This Yellow-Crowned Night-Heron was a nice surprise, although the view was a little disappointing

3. Hatch-year birds and miscellaneous surprises

It’s a little hard to predict what else will show up this time of year. Ebird has a number of things for the county listed in August, but honestly it’s going to come down to a little luck. Rufous Hummingbirds start showing back up, as do some of our more prominent winter residents like Loggerhead Shrikes and American Kestrels. And you may even find a few other surprises!

Funny looking Turkey!

Bobwhite! I don't care if it probably came from a ranch... still neat to see!

And finally, if you can’t bear to be out during the day (which is completely understandable), there’s still plenty to see at sunset! Both of these critters were seen on a dusk walk at Lick Creek Park. 

Chatter box

Bird-sized moth! Wowzah!

Speaking of dusk walks at Lick Creek Park, I’m in highest-level negotiations with Texas Master Naturalist Brazos Valley Chapter about coordinating an evening stroll through Lick Creek Park during the next full moon time (09August). We’ll have an update/plans in the near future.