Thursday, June 5, 2014

Golden-cheeked Warbler and Others, Pedernales State Park

Golden-cheeked Warbler

Male Painted Bunting


Lesser Goldfinch


Male Ladder-backed Woodpecker      

Female Ladder-backed Woodpecker

Bewick's Wren

Lark Sparrow



J.G. and I spent a couple of days in the "Hill Country" of Texas.  We visited a few antique shops in nearby towns.  We love to browse the shops and look for a "treasure" or two to place with others in our home. We almost always find something old and vintage that we feel we must buy! It is a fun hobby. 
We spent both early mornings at Pedernales State Park .  We were blessed to see the Golden-cheeked Warbler both mornings.  We were on the trail to the falls both times we heard and saw this warbler. The first morning I heard a Golden-cheeked singing high in a tree top.  J.G and I saw two on the trail the next morning, flying through the trees. We did not get any good photos.  I included one just so you could see it was a Golden-cheeked.  A few years ago, two G. cheeked Warblers flew right into our campsite area while we were enjoying morning coffee. This Warbler has been on the endangered list for years. The Park has the combination of mature Ashe Juniper and hardwood trees for this birds nesting habitat. It is awesome that the Golden-cheeked Warbler is successfully breeding.
A Gray Fox appeared in the bird blind chasing a rat while we were there.  Everyone in the blind enjoyed seeing this animal. The bird blinds are so wonderful at this park. I have written in other posts about visiting this park and enjoying seeing the birds from such a close vantage point.   We saw Painted Buntings, Lark Sparrows, Ladder-backed Woodpeckers, Lesser Goldfinch, Bewick's Wren, Black-chinned Hummingbirds and many White-winged Dove. We love our time spent in this beautiful part of Texas and look forward to visiting again soon! Blessings!