Rio Grande Valley Bird Festival - Day 2

The morning started with a field trip to Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park. This was an outstanding trip with good looks of Northern-beardless Tyrannulet. This little bird is smaller than it's name.  Who would have thought that a bird with such a long name would be so drab.  A small group was also able to see Smudgie, the unusual hybrid of an Altamira and Audubon's Warbler. Smudgie looks like an Altamira with a dirty and streaky hood of sorts. The name was well chosen. Over 70 species were seen on the trip.  A big thanks to our guides Jeff, Jim, John, and Ben.

The afternoon and evening programs were all very interesting. Jeff Gordon spoke about Mexican birds and Xavier Munoz spoke about his work in Ecuador. Don Kroodsma gave a fascinating program on bird song and the dynamics of how a bird sings.

Tomorrow starts with a field trip to Southmost Preserve, an area not normally open to the public.  More to come.......