Bexar Audubon Outings Recaps
As we visit local and regional birding hotspots in and around South Central Texas, we want to share photos of the participants,
as well as the birds and other wildlife we encounter on our outings.
Canyon Lake Gorge Birding and Tour, December 11, 2022
Bexar Audubon offered an outing to Canyon Lake Gorge that included birding the trails above the gorge and then a guided tour in the gorge. If you haven't visited the gorge, you can read about it here.
Shorebird Workshop Field Trip, September 10, 2022
Following an online workshop Patsy Inglet taught about inland shorebirds, the attendees met at Mitchell Lake Audubon Center to put their ID skills to work.
How to Lead a Bird Walk Workshop, August 15, 2022
A great group of birders attended the How to Lead a Bird Walk Workshop led by Patsy Inglet and Sherie Gee at Friedrich Wilderness Park on Monday, August 15. The indoor presentation was followed by a walk through the park.
Kreutzberg Canyon Natural Area, Kendall County, June 10, 2022
A group of 11 birders enjoyed a morning at Kreutzberg Canyon Natural Area and found 36 species. Highlights were Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Yellow-throated Vireo, Yellow-throated Warbler, Northern Parula, Orchard Oriole, Indigo Bunting, and Painted Bunting. See the checklist here.
Tom Slick Park, June 3, 2022
With Sherie Gee as our leader, our group of 14 met at Tom Slick Park near Loop 410/Highway 151 for a fun morning of birding. We saw 34 species, with highlights including Loggerhead Shrike, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Green Heron, and Painted Bunting. The checklist can be found here.
Pearsall Park, May 21, 2022
Jeffrey Mann led a group of 15 birders in Pearsall Park on the city's southwest side. Highlights of the 32 species seen were a Barred Owl along Leon Creek and a Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Scissor-tailed Flycatchers, White-eyed Vireos, and a Hutton's Vireo. See the checklist here. Several birders new to BAS were among the group and we hope to see them again!
Sweet Tweets Bird Walk, Kreutzberg Canyon, March 14, 2022
Tom and Patsy Inglet led a bird walk for Cordillera Ranch residents at Kreutzberg Canyon Natural Area in Kendall County as a follow-up bird walk to the Birdsong: Nature’s Sweet Tweets talk Patsy gave the previous week. The group of 13 saw 20 species.
San Marcos Spring Lake at The Meadows Center, March 13, 2022
Our morning began with birding on the boardwalk, where we were lucky enough to see an American Bittern stalking in the reeds. Next, we boarded a glass bottom boat for a guided tour and learned about the river, springs, and aquatic life while also birding. Many thanks to our guides Jessie and Wednesday.
Stone Oak Park,
Feb. 21, 2022
We had a great turnout for our Stone Oak Park bird walk led by Lora Reynolds. The group saw 23 species, including an American Kestrel with a snake in its bill, a Red-shouldered Hawk, and six sparrow species. Britt Coleman's photos are at right.
Goose Island/Rockport,
Feb. 13, 2022
BAS members (group photo by Sherie Gee) who visited the Rockport area for our February 13 outing led by Tom and Patsy Inglet saw a great variety of birds, including an Anhinga, Sandhill Cranes, Tricolored Heron, Great Blue Heron, Ruddy Turnstone, pelicans, ducks, shorebirds, and more. A few members saw Whooping Cranes before and after our Sunday morning outing, with a brief flyover witnessed by some attendees during our field trip. Ken Butler's photos of a swimming Green-winged Teal, standing Whooping Crane, and flying Osprey are at right.
Mitchell Lake Audubon Center, Jan. 22, 2022
Attendees of the online Duckology 101 Workshop presentation on January 12 by Patsy Inglet met at Mitchell Lake Audubon Center to put their duck ID skills to work. The group saw 54 species of birds, including Gadwall, Blue-winged Teal, Green-winged Teal, Ruddy Duck, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Hooded Merganser, Bufflehead, Northern Pintail, American Wigeon, Canvasback, Northern Shoveler, American Kestrel, Cave Swallow, Yellow-rumped Warbler, and Ring-billed Gull.
Acequia Park Bird Walk,
Jan. 17, 2022
On a chilly, sunny morning, 15 attendees found 43 species of birds at Acequia Park near the San Antonio Missions. Belted Kingfisher, Hooded Merganser, Blue-winged Teal, Pine Warbler, and Barred Owl were some of the highlights.
Family Christmas Bird Count at Mitchell Lake, Jan. 8, 2022
Tom and Patsy Inglet had the pleasure of leading five birders around Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this morning for the Family CBC event. The weather was light rain and foggy - not so great for birders, but perfect for the birds. Cool but not cold. Perfect weather for ducks and water birds and waders. The group saw 57 species.
Kirchoff Prairie Birding Skills Workshop, October 2, 2021
Tom and Patsy Inglet of BAS led a Birding Skills Workshop at Kirchoff Prairie in Wilson County for nine attendees. They then took a walk around part of the 200-acre property and documented 22 species, including a Merlin, a Blue-headed Vireo, and a flyover of three White-faced Ibis. Four Bobwhites were flushed out of the prairie. Green Jays “interrupted” the class and took everyone’s attention. Photos by Don Kirchoff.
Tour of Frida Kahlo Oasis at SA Botanical Garden, September 13, 2021
This special tour highlighted the animals, animal imagery, and symbolism important to artist Frida Kahlo. The tour guide, Gabriela Gamez, originally from Mexico City, is the Art Consultant/Curator of the Frida Kahlo Oasis. After a tour of the exhibit and the folk art statues, the group did some birding at the garden. Photos by Patsy Inglet (PI), B. Taylor (BT), and Patty Leslie Pasztor (PLP).
Bracken Bat Preserve, August 30, 2021
Bexar Audubon members gathered at Bracken Bat Preserve to watch millions of Mexican Free-tailed bats emerge from the cave on their nightly journey to find food. Photos by Patty Leslie Pasztor (PLP), Britt Coleman (BC), and Ken Butler (KB).
Bat Emergence Video by Britt Coleman
Click on photo below, then click twice on the video to play.
Kirchoff Prairie, Wilson County, May 2021
Bexar Audubon Society coordinated a Birding BioBlitz for the Kirchoff Prairie Restoration Site in Wilson County, Texas, on May 8, 2021. This conservation easement provides public access to a farm restored to Blackland prairie and its natural communities. The Kirchoff Family’s “Farm to Native Prairie” philosophy is a working example of how landowners can restore native prairies, following many decades of row crop farming and cattle ranching. They are carrying out their plan to create a financially self-sustaining prairie in honor of their parents’ conservation ethic, preserved in perpetuity for future generations to enjoy.
Habitats are being preserved for butterflies, pollinators, neotropical songbirds, and grassland birds. Sprague’s pipit has been identified on the property and is a candidate for endangered species.
Rio Grande Valley, January 2020
