New Yard Birds

Migration is starting to ramp up, and this morning I got several new birds at the office, bringing the 2005 yard list there up to 67 species. New this morning were Philadelphia Vireo, Yellow Warbler, Spotted Sandpiper, and American Redstart. Gray Catbirds were everywhere--calling, singing, chasing each other through the tangles and underbrush. Fun to see them so abundant--growing up in Oregon, these were more secretive and local breeders along mountain streams in Eastern Oregon. In Central Texas, these guys were fairly secretive migrants that could be easily overlooked most years if you didn't spend enough time along brushy creeks or rivers. Fun to see these guys in top form.