Santa Ana is a beautiful wildlife refuge along the Rio Grande River in South Texas. While we were in the area, a Northern Jacana had been reported at Santa Ana so we agreed the bird would be a nice addition to our ABA lists and we headed out to look for it! We had a bit of driving ahead of us so we didn't arrive until 11:30am and it was already HOT! We hiked along a forested trail until we reached the first pond where the Jacana had been seen. We had already started adding up some life birds! (Black-crested Titmouse and Long-billed Thrasher)
The first pond was deeper than it had been recently so the Jacana was nowhere in sight. Other birders who had been searching the park since it opened that morning reported that the bird hadn't been seen all day. Either way, we had fun birding the area. Great Kiskadees called from every direction! The pond was full of waterfowl and shorebirds including Least Grebes, which were at the top of my list of birds I hoped to see in Texas! Other birds here were Black-necked Stilts, Stilt Sandpipers, and a White-faced Ibis. As we scanned the water, I noticed a dark snake swimming in the water. My first instinct was that it was a Texas Indigo Snake, but I didn't know if they were swimmers, so I asked Ben what it was. He confirmed it and was very excited because it was on his most wanted list! A few minutes later, another lifer snake swam by... a slender Western Ribbon Snake!
We continued to hike and stopped by a duck blind to get a different angle on the pond, in hopes of spotting the hiding Jacana. As we entered the blind, Ben spotted a Black Witch sleeping on the support beams. Black Witches are moths with a ~7" wingspan and bat-like flight. Their common name comes from a variety of folklore and superstitions from Southern Texas, to Mexico, Jamaica, and other areas of the Caribbean. Some say you've had an evil spell cast on you if you see one, others say if someone is sick and one flies into their home, they will die. I felt we were quite lucky to get to see one... but maybe there was a spell cast upon us because we missed the Northern Jacana and an assortment of other target birds for our trip! As we were leaving the blind, we ran into a friend. While we chatted and wandered along the path, he mentioned that he had never been the one to first spot a Common Pauraque so he wanted to try. Just moments later, he actually spotted one!
This was the first time I'd seen a Common Pauraque so close, and during the day! In Guatemala, I saw quite a few along the roads as we drove around at night, but it was amazing to see the feather detail in the daylight! After more hiking in the forested area, we trekked into more open and sunny territories. We both had water with us and wore hats and sunscreen so we didn't worry too much about the long hike. As we got into some brushy habitat, Ben noticed an Olive Sparrow! Another of the sneaky birds we had hoped to see. A lifer for both of us!! We continued on until we reached the next set of ponds, hoping to respot the Jacana. No luck, but we did see Roseate Spoonbills, and a variety of shorebirds!
