Part 1 – South to Alaska
Preface
This first installment of the series would not be possible without the love and support of my mother, Emma Jean, who spent most of her life in Brackettville, Texas. She was a lover of birds, humanity and all living things (except flies and mosquitos). She fed and monitored the bird action in her yard for years frequently relaying to me the amazing diversity of bird life around her house. I remember her telling me decades ago that Brackettville is a place that people come from all over the USA to see birds. I had no deep appreciation for this at the time but I found it intriguing. She didn’t know the species names, but she knew the colors, the migrations and the behaviors. She helped me to appreciate the simple beauty of nature and played a role in inspiring me to take up birding as a hobby.
I lost her last year, and it is with a heavy heart that I dedicate this blog to my mother, Emma Jean.
In the Beginning
Months of planning and preparation was “seamlessly executed” before loading the Black Series HQ17 travel trailer, hooking it to my Ford F250 and heading south to Alaska from Lone Grove, Oklahoma.
A few days in Cedar Hill State Park by Dallas to play grandparents to three wonderful young ladies and then off to Brackettville.
In Search of the Golden-cheeked Warbler
Kickapoo Caverns State Park is ground zero in Kinney County for locating a trifecta of regional specialties. Black-capped Vireo, Varied Bunting and the star of the show, Golden-cheeked Warbler.
On previous efforts I had already managed the Varied Bunting and the Black-capped Vireo, but the Golden-cheeked Warbler remained on my wish list. Due to the hours of operation at Kickapoo, I would have one evening and one day to find this bird.
Foiled again. Classic birding story: when returning to the birding blind after lunch, the lady sitting there looked at me and said: “You just missed two of them, 10 minutes ago, look at these pictures.” She needed the Varied Bunting which showed up 15 minutes later. She got her picture and left me sitting there for the next three hours with nothing to show for my time. Maybe next year.
Future Site of
Golden-cheeked
Warbler Photo
On the upside, the Elf Owl and Common Poorwill were making lots of noise the night before. Both birds were lifers for me.
The Golden-cheeked Warbler Story
The Golden-cheeked Warbler is listed as an Endangered species. It is the only Texas breeding endemic bird. This species only breeds in Texas, no other state, no other country. The major driver for the Endangered designation is the continued expansion of communities in the Texas Hill Country where the birds nest in the spring and summer. These warblers need a fairly large area of natural juniper/oak forest for reproductive success (250 acres). The more the better. This is in direct conflict with the popularity of owning a home in the Texas Hill Country.
Not only do these birds feel pressure in the breeding area, their wintering grounds in Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua are also under attack from mining, logging and human expansion. The future of these birds is not so golden.
The Great City of Brackettville
Brackettville is the County Seat of Kinney County, Texas. A ranching community that boasts a calvary fort that remained an active military post from 1852 through WWII. This fort, Fort Clark, is now a community of locals, snowbirds and tourists. The star attractions are Fort Clark Springs and Las Moras Creek, fed by the spring. A swimming pool fed by the spring is a refreshing and classic All-American family outing on a sunny West Texas day.
This water brings a diversity of birdlife, both resident and migrant. This birdlife brings birders and naturalists from around Texas and even the United States. And those birders and naturalists bring a level of economy to the town.
My Favorite Fort Clark Springs Specialties
There are a handful of resident birds that attract birders from beyond Kinney County and beyond Texas. The Green Kingfisher, Green Jay and Olive Sparrow have limited USA ranges that essentially follows a section of the Rio Grande where it borders Texas. The Black-crested Titmouse, Cassin’s Sparrow and Golden-fronted Woodpecker have a slightly wider range but are still considered specialties of the region. Below are some of my favorite photos.
In addition to these residents, there are numerous warbler species, flycatchers, and other passerines that either winter or make a stop on migration to enjoy everything that Fort Clark has to offer. Waterfowl and waders are abundant during migration.
Concerning Update!!
The spring has gone dry.
While there is much debate about the cause of the spring going dry, which it has done from April to October for the last three years, there is some basic data to reflect upon.
Rainfall levels while below modern-day averages, are not strikingly below average and Kinney County falls into the “Severe Drought” category like much of Texas west of I35. There are two worse drought categories, Extreme and Exceptional and there are parts of Texas that fall into these categories.
Demand on the Kinney County groundwater is markedly higher than it was 5 years ago. Annual pumping rates have increased from 3600 acre-ft to over 10,000 acre-ft in the last few years. The primary consumers are the farming operations which have increased their presence in the county.
For three consecutive years now, when pumping rates increase for irrigation in the spring, the spring dries, when rates drop in the fall, the spring flows. Other users also follow the same pattern; but these volumes are a fraction of the irrigation demand.
Has Kinney County literally gone to the well one too many times?
Will the movement to reign in the draw on the aquifer to a sustainable level prevail?
As someone who has enjoyed years of great birding in Kinney County, taken a few plunges into the cold swimming pool water and wrestled with a few bass from the creek, I would like to continue enjoying all that the spring has to offer including adding to my county list, which now stands at 194 of the 324 total birds reported on eBird. I hope the sides can strike a compromise that recognizes the importance of a flowing Las Moras Creek to the economy and culture of the community.
Life Goes On
After Kickapoo, I spent a couple of sad days walking the dry creek bed of the Las Moras and wondering what the future holds for the people and animals that depend on that flow.
For now we will prepare our RV for the next leg of our journey.
Love the photo of the black-crested titmouse…it looks like its swimming…like a duck! Yes, really sad about Las Moras creek…historic times…you wonder will it go the way of Comanche Springs in Fort Stockton…which have been pumped dry for farming now for decades?
What an adorable photo of the black-crested titmouse! Great article
Joel, as always, another great report. Keep them coming. The dry spring is just another victim caused by dominance of special interest groups–farmers sucking down the aquifer. This has been going on for decades elsewhere. They are not concerned about consequences which they directly cause and you won’t get any sympathy from them.
This is a parallel in Florida where springs are declining and drying up completely in some areas. I am speaking about a state that has much more rain than Texas.
You trip is a dream come true and I look forward to the next reports.
BTW, Leo and I have concluded that there is a notable increase of Mealy Parrots and Crimson-fronted Parakeets at Hospital Point. But they leave us enough mangos to savor every day.