I'd Rather B Birdin': White TIPPED Dove

Showing posts with label White TIPPED Dove. Show all posts

§ Winter is NOT Over Yet...

This week it's been showing signs of winter for the Texas Coast! High tides, coastal flooding, temperatures dropping into the high 40s overnight, not reaching much above 60!! And rain! Altho, I am enjoying the respite of weather change, I will be happy again to feel the Spring warmth and be able to go back to "my islands"! lol

Top to Bottom [with habitat map links]:
WHITE TIPPED DOVE
WHITE WINGED DOVE
ROSEATE SPOONBILL
SORA
YELLOW RUMPED WARBLER
RED HEADED DUCK

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Linking Tool is now closed...new one Saturday Mar 25th

§ Park Walk...

With my last birding trek around the Park and River banks on a nice clear, balmy, morning, I saw most of the birds shared here at the Hawkwatch platform and drip system. The park is located about a 20 minute drive from Corpus Christi, in Calallen, Texas. Photos of the park grounds, seen HERE..

BROWN HEADED COWBIRD
Habitat map: Cowbird

AMERICAN KESTREL
Habitat map: Kestrel

WHITE TIPPED DOVE
Habitat map: Dove

NORTHERN CARDINAL [female]
Habitat map: Cardinal

GREEN JAY
Habitat map: Jay

LONG BILLED THRASHER [?]
Duller in color than Brown Thrasher
brighter white breast with black streaks
-also, curved beak while Brown Thrasher beak is straighter.
Habitat map: Thrasher

NORTHERN CARDINAL [male]
Habitat map: Cardinal

GREAT KISKADEE
Habitat map: Kiskadee

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A new tool opens at NOON on Saturday, the 13th

§ A Stroll in the Park...

All the birds below were seen at one park....in Calallen, Texas.

GREEN JAY
habitat map: Jay
length: 10.5 inches
wingspan: 13.5 inches

NORTHERN CARDINAL [top image, female - bottom image 2 males]
habitat map: Cardinal
length: 9 inches
wingspan: 11.5 inches

LADDER BACKED WOODPECKER
habitat map: Woodpecker
length: 7 inches
wingspan: 13 inches

GOLDEN FRONTED WOODPECKER
habitat map: Woodpecker
length: 9.5 inches
wingspan: 17 inches

BLACK CRESTED TITMOUSE
habitat map: Titmouse
length: 6.5 inches
wingspan: 9.75 inches

WHITE TIPPED DOVE
habitat map: Dove
length: 11.5 inches
wingspan: 18 inches

Participating this week are:

Saun in Ohio
Birds in Europe and Africa
Cranium Bolts
Linda, Virginia, USA
Nature Footsteps PhotoArt
Rosyfinch Ramblings
Cloudia
Lavender Dreams
Phil UK
Eileen
Lea's Menagerie

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§ Coo Me, Woo Me!!

As far as I know, there are six different dove species in South Texas. I've seen five of them. I do keep on the look-out for the sixth, but guess they're a bit scarce. At least in my area. One species, the white-tipped dove is also elusive and very few seen, so it's a special day to find one and even get the opportunity [in my neck of the woods] to photograph them.

So, I'm gonna share nothing but doves this week!

I see these quite frequently on our birding days. The Eurasian Collared Dove.

EURASIAN COLLARED DOVE
photos taken: Paradise Pond - Port Aransas, Texas
habitat map: Collared Dove

This particular dove is quite small. And most always seen in pairs. Rarely do I see one without the other sex. They seem to be a very devoted dove that remains ever-faithful to its spouse. The Inca Dove.

INCA DOVE
photos taken: Bazemore Park - Calallen, Texas
habitat map: Inca Dove

This dove, a favorite of all for me because of its melancholy, beautiful song, is a bit elusive also. By elusive I mean the population is quite small here in my area. The Mourning Dove.

MOURNING DOVE
photos taken: Oso Bay Wetlands - Corpus Christi, Texas
habitat map: Mourning Dove

This dove, very pretty with it's very light head and breast is named so because of the very small white tip on its tail feathers. I love the deep rose, iridescent eye 'ring'. Most always found in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas, this one in particular was spotted just north/west of Corpus Christi. The White Tipped Dove [aka in some older guide books The White Fronted Dove].

WHITE TIPPED DOVE
photos taken: Bazemore Park - Calallen, Texas
habitat map: White Tipped Dove

The one that is most common, in and around what seems to be EVERYWHERE in the Coastal Bend of Texas, is the White Winged Dove. The male of the species is extremely pretty during breeding season with the taupe/brown body and very bright pink legs/feet. And not to mention the blue eye ring gets a darker shade.

WHITE WINGED DOVE
photos taken: Blucher Park - Corpus Christi, Texas
habitat map: White Winged Dove

Books and online sites state there are EIGHT doves in the state of Texas. Yet, when you read the list, included are PIGEONS. Tho related to each other, pigeons, to me, are NOT doves!!! So, the sixth dove, not yet photographed or spotted by me, is the common ground dove. So far, for the two of us, it's not been 'common'. I read others that bird in our area who said they've seen them...but alas, moi? Nope, nada!! Assuredly, I'll keep searchin'.

habitat map for Common Ground Dove

Now, share your birding experiences:

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§ Rio Grande Valley....

Along the Rio Grande Valley we hiked some trails to hopefully find a special bird species seen only in the southwestern area of the valley. I had hoped to spot an Altamira Oriole which has been often reported seen in the area. But we didn't see any. We did spot a Hooded Oriole at one of the sanctuary's feeding stations. We saw a few other unexpected bird species also. One group was a fly-over of snow geese while we were in the car, driving. And, luck would have it, absolutely no place to pull the car over and get a photo. But just seeing them was a special sight. They're beautiful against a deep blue sky!!! Another species we saw that wasn't on my 'to see list' and unexpected I'll show photos of next week. Stay tuned. Also spotted were, more common in Texas, the red winged blackbirds by the hundreds, inca doves, collared doves, kiskadees, muskcovy ducks, a nesting great horned owl [in a palm tree], northern cardinals, couch's kingbirds, green jays, dozens of golden fronted woodpeckers, common house sparrows, spoonbills, egrets, stilts, harriers, ONE hummingbird, a blue bird at a rest stop when I didn't have my camera strapped around my neck...darn!! Oh and another dove that is only seen in the Lower Rio Grande Valley which I'll share images of below...

Moving on...I mentioned we found one I was hoping to see other than the Altamira Oriole...and that was the Plain Chachalaca!!! [pronounced cha kah LA kah] ---so named for its sound/calls. We were lucky enough to see several as we arrived early at one of the secondary refuges on our list of possible stop overs. They are reported online and in guide books to be active early in the morning AND later in the evening just before sunset. The male Chachalaca has a red throat, visible only during breeding season...I found a couple with the red showing!! The female and male are quite similar [except for the red spot on the throat of the male] in marking and color...the female tends to be a bit smaller in size. The species is very common in Mexico and farther south into Central America ---very FEW are seen here in Texas and only near Brownsville, Texas.

[male with red breeding throat]

PLAIN CHACHALACA

photos taken: Along Cattail Trail - Santa Ana NWR [outside of Brownsville, Texas]
Habitat Range: Plain Chachalaca

- - -

The White-tipped Dove, as mentioned above, has a range that extends from South America all the way through to the southwestern tip of Texas. They are often somewhat secretive in the small U.S. portion of their range, preferring to use areas of dense low vegetation.

WHITE TIPPED DOVE
photos taken Sabal Palm Sanctuary Trail[s] Brownsville, Texas
Habitat Range: White Tipped Dove

TRIVIA:
The White Tipped Dove is easily identified even before you spot one...by its distinctive call, described as similar to the sound of a person blowing over the mouth of a bottle. [and I can attest to this statement!]

Unlike most other chicken relatives in North America, the Plain Chachalaca is largely arboreal, spending most of its time foraging in trees. It is commonly observed feeding in precarious positions, including upside down.

Now...share your birding experiences:

§ Winter is NOT Over Yet...

§ Park Walk...

§ A Stroll in the Park...

§ Coo Me, Woo Me!!

§ Rio Grande Valley....

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