Birds and Nature

Wild Red-crowned Parrots are found only in northeast Mexico and parts of the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas. These parrots are in Oliveira Park in Brownsville, TX where they are known to roost in the many trees in this otherwise sports oriented park (soccer fields, baseball, tennis, etc).  Do click on each pic to enlarge for better viewing. Red-crowned Parrots have life-long pair bonds and it is not uncommon to see pairs roosting or just perching together.   These parrots fly into trees with a lot of cover like shown in the pic above. They also perch in flocks on power lines.  They are quite striking when they fly as a flock as shown in the pic below.  And a very short video clip of the flock flying around as they tried to find the best spot to roost. Warning they are loud. Best viewed by clicking on the 'V' on bottom right corner of movie screen. SeEtta

I took these photos of this juvenile Peregrine Falcon from my car, a a technique I use frequently to reduce disturbance. I was pleased to be able to get several photos and leave with the falcon still perched on this pole. This bird was near Hargil Playa which attracts waterfowl and shorebirds, a good place to hunt especially for a juvenile. SeEtta

Good thing I got these additional photos of the Long-eared Owl yesterday as it flew off and disappeared again today. As can be seen the photos had to be taken between all the branches and leaves when the owl turned it's head so it's face could be seen.  This required during manual focusing and at a level below where I could get the pics standing so I went back to my car and got my campchair.  So while I was comfortable I spent about an hour watching the owl, something that was not possible during prior sightings of this species and I really enjoy getting to know species I don't often get to see. While I watched the owl did not seen to pay any attention to those walking by on the trail which was about 30 feet away from it's new roosting location. It did turn and look at me when I made noise (which I did very little of as I stayed seated and was intentionally as quiet as possible so as not to disturb it). As staff reported that the owl had been awake all d

The Long-eared Owl that I posted about last week had left the location at Edinburg Wetlands where it had been roosting and had not found until today. So I went up to see if I could get some video of it. The best view is to click on 'V'at the bottom right corner of the screens below. Long-eared Owl from SeEtta Moss on Vimeo . It choose a spot that provided more of a challenge to get a clear view. If you are viewing this on a computer it will be best to view in fullscrean. Long-eared Owl from SeEtta Moss on Vimeo . The top video has the best owl views but owl enthusiasts will likely enjoy all three, each is less than a minute long. SeEtta

While almost all Scissor-tailed Flycatchers are basking in the tropics in and near Central America a few are leftover in the United States including this one. I found it north of Edinburg Tx in the county at dusk.  SeEtta