Birding
The 2012 Laredo Birding Festival was a success! Birders from all over the country came to Laredo and enjoyed 4 days of birding next to experts like:
Pete Dunne, Director of the Cape May Bird Observatory, V.P. of New Jersey Audubon Society Natural History Information, and founder of the World Series of Birding.
Gene Blacklock noted birding author, guide and educator. He founded the annual Texas Colonial Waterbird Survey and Census, the longest on-going survey of its type in the world.
Ro Wauer has authored over 180 nature articles for prestigious national publications and wrote a weekly newspaper column on nature for 19 years. He has also authored 25 books, including Finding Butterflies in Texas, Butterflies of the Lower Rio Grande Valley, Field Guide to the Birds of Big Bend National Park, three visitor’s guide books to national parks in the USA and Canada, and Birder’s Mexico.
Participants had the opportunity to visit different private properties as well as state and city parks. The most coveted sighting was that of our local star, the White-Collared Seedeater.
The afternoon sessions with our visiting experts also provided a rare opportunity to learn more about: Pishing, Bird Identification as well as Butterflies in Texas
Coming soon! Bird list for the 2012 Festival!
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Birding in Laredo
Local birding enthusiasts have come to describe Laredo as the only place in the U.S. to have boasted four species of Kingfisher: Ringed, Belted, Green and Amazon. In January 2010 a female Amazon Kingfisher, a real rare beauty and a first North American sighting caused quite a stir with her two-and-a-half week cameo appearance at Laredo’s Zacate Creek, which attracted paparazzi from all around the U.S. and beyond. The news of her presence spread fast and just as quickly, so did the story of Laredo’s hospitality.
Other birds that are commonly heard and seen are the Green Parakeet and the resident White-collared Seedeater. Thanks to a relationship with the Images for Conservation Fund, Laredo now has the ability to show off some of its brush country beauties courtesy of its professional nature photographers and individual landowners through the Pro Tour of Nature Photography Borderlands of Laredo Competition.
Here are some trails and parks for your reference:
The Chacon Creek Trail
Visitors can access this trail through the following Laredo Parks: Benavides Softball Complex, Dryden Park, and the Garcia Vela Little League Field. This trail extends from the Rio Grande up to Highway 359 along both sides of the creek for approximately three miles.
Lake Casa Blanca International State Park
An area often overlooked by birders, is along Casa Blanca Road below the dam, a road that parallels a portion of Chacon Creek, the watershed that feeds the lake. The edge of the creek can be walked to search for Green Jays, native sparrows, and migrating warblers. The lake wetlands provide habitat for wintering ducks and shorebirds as well as Osprey and American White Pelicans. Lake Casa Blanca is a state park and its main entrance is across the Laredo International Airport on Bob Bullock Loop.
Las Palmas Trail
This trail begins just east of International Bridge II. It extends for half a mile along the Rio Grande and ends at Zacate Creek. Clay-colored Robins, White-tipped Doves, and Green Jays are known to nest in this area.
North Central Park
Located in North Laredo, this park has asphalted trails which wind around a beaver pond and boasts some of the best wildlife viewing in the city. The White-collared Seedeater has also been seen here.
Paseo Del Indio Trail
Begins behind the river road at the Lamar Bruni Vergara Environmental Science Center located on the Laredo Community College campus on West End Washington Street and extends for a mile along the Rio Grande.
Ranchito Road
Adjoining Lake Casa Blanca International State Park and runs between a lagoon and a wetland. Great place to see shorebirds and ducks as well as the White-collared Seedeater.
Robert Muller Trails
This trail is located in northwest Laredo and can be accessed at the end of Atlanta Drive. This trail follows the pond in a circular pattern. The trail extends one quarter mile across 21 acres of land.
San Ygnacio Road
If you are interested in birding-by-car, this is the road to be on. Ranchland is on both sides of San Ygnacio Road, which is also known as the Del Mar extension. Groove-billed Anis; Black-throated, Lark and Olive Sparrows; Painted Buntings and several Oriole species can be found on either side of the road, as well as flocks of quail and roadrunners.
St. Peter’s Square
Found in the historic district of Saint Peter this square boasts Green Parakeets roosting in the old buildings. They can be seen taking off at sunrise and coming back to roost at sunset.
Zacate Creek Trails
Visitors can access the trails along the banks of the creek or at the following parks: Seven Flags, Eistetter, Taylor and Cecilia Moreno. The trails extend along both sides of the creek for approximately three quarters of a mile starting at the Rio Grande. This creek is a nesting area for the White-collared Seedeater, Audubon’s Oriole, and Black Phoebe. Four Kingfisher species have been seen here including Ringed, Belted, Green and Amazon. No place else in the United States can claim that!
For more information, contact the Laredo Convention and Visitors Bureau at 800.361.3360 or the Monte Mucho Audubon Society :
President – Tom Miller – 956.763.0221
Vice President – Raul Delgado – 956.763.7624
