Flycatchers, Shrikes, Vireos

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" width=200 BGCOLOR="#003333" TEXT="#F7F7FF" background="096d4c00dduajq.gif"> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="95" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 46 WIDTH="91"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="46" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="91" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#003333" FACE="Arial" ><B>The Fauna and Flora of Kerr County, Texas</B></FONT>     |     <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Fauna and Flora of Kerr County, Texa"><U>home</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id91.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Loons, Grebes, Pelicans, Cormorants, Anh"><U>Loons, Grebes, Pelicans, Cormorants, Anhinga</U></A>   |   <A 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Crows, Ravens, Lark, Swallows, Mar"><U>Jays, Crows, Ravens, Lark, Swallows, Martin</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id101.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chickadee, Titmouse, Verdin, Bushtit, Nu"><U>Chickadee, Titmouse, Verdin, Bushtit, Nuthatches, Creeper, Wrens</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id102.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Kinglets, Gnatcatcher, Thrushes, Mocking"><U>Kinglets, Gnatcatcher, Thrushes, Mockingbird, Thrashers, Pipits, Waxwing</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id103.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Warblers"><U>Warblers</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id104.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Tanagers, Sparrows, Grosbeaks, Cardinals"><U>Tanagers, Sparrows, Grosbeaks, Cardinals, Buntings</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id105.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Blackbirds, Finches"><U>Blackbirds, Finches</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id38.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Introduced, Feral and Exotic"><U>Introduced, Feral and Exotic</U></A></div> <div> Flycatchers, Shrikes, Vireos</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>Eastern Phoebe, </B><I>Sayornis phoebe</I></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <I><IMG SRC="28795710.jpg" border=0 width="149" height="113" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></I></div> <div> <B>Eastern Phoebe, </B><I>Sayornis phoebe</I></div> <div> Camp Rio Vista, 5 September 2002</div> <div> <I><B>photos </B></I><B>©</B> <I><B>by tony gallucci</B></I></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="44cada70.jpg" border=0 width="173" height="167" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>Eastern Phoebe, </B><I>Sayornis phoebe</I></div> <div> Camp Rio Vista, 5 September 2002</div> <div> <I><B>photos </B></I><B>©</B> <I><B>by tony gallucci</B></I></div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="fafd0bb0.jpg" border=0 width="208" height="187" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>Eastern Phoebe, </B><I>Sayornis phoebe</I></div> <div> Heart of the Hills Fisheries Research Station, Texas 27, 19 October 2002</div> <div> <I><B>photos </B></I><B>©</B> <I><B>by tony gallucci</B></I></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>Eastern Wood-Pewee, </B><I>Contopus virens</I></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B><IMG SRC="458f3130.jpg" border=0 width="243" height="275" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"><IMG SRC="457df130.jpg" border=0 width="223" height="275" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG SRC="45696950.jpg" border=0 width="150" height="149" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"><IMG SRC="45596950.jpg" border=0 width="150" height="149" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"><IMG SRC="454b0950.jpg" border=0 width="176" height="149" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"><IMG SRC="453a7950.jpg" border=0 width="167" height="149" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> <B>Eastern Wood-Pewee, </B><I>Contopus virens</I></div> <div> Camp Rio Vista, 8 September 2002</div> <div> <I><B>photos </B></I><B>©</B> <I><B>by tony gallucci</B></I></div> <bR> <div> <B>Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, </B><I>Tyrannus forficatus</I></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B><IMG SRC="18cc1920.jpg" border=0 width="193" height="146" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"><IMG SRC="18ba3920.jpg" border=0 width="163" height="146" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"><IMG SRC="18aad920.jpg" border=0 width="173" height="146" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> <B>Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, </B><I>Tyrannus forficatus </I></div> <div> Camp Rio Vista, one of two present, 1 September 2002</div> <div> <I><B>photos </B></I><B>©</B> <I><B>by tony gallucci</B></I></div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="1e0b89f0.jpg" border=0 width="184" height="159" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, </B><I>Tyrannus forficatus</I>, fledgling</div> <div> Camp Rio Vista, 2 September 2002</div> <div> <I><B>photos </B></I><B>©</B> <I><B>by tony gallucci</B></I></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="790eaff0.jpg" border=0 width="234" height="255" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"><IMG SRC="78ff3fe0.jpg" border=0 width="243" height="254" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, </B><I>Tyrannus forficatus</I></div> <div> Camp Rio Vista, 14 September 2002</div> <div> <I><B>photos </B></I><B>©</B> <I><B>by tony gallucci</B></I></div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="f8958c20.jpg" border=0 width="600" height="450" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="f8b29df0.jpg" border=0 width="297" height="223" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, </B><I>Tyrannus forficatus</I></div> <div> Twenty-three migrants perched in a bare tree in late afternoon with a handful of House Finches. Most of the </div> <div> Scissor-tails were catching migrating Monarchs and eating them on the spot.</div> <div> Cypress Park, Texas 27, 14 October 2002</div> <div> <I><B>photos </B></I><B>©</B> <I><B>by tony gallucci</B></I></div> <bR> <div> <B>Eastern Kingbird, </B><I>Tyrannus tyrannus</I></div> <div> A single Eastern Kingbird dropped from the sky and landed on a hackberry stem at HOH on 9 September 2002, for a very rare, perhaps unique, fall record for Kerr County (tg/eb).</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B><IMG SRC="47b45120.jpg" border=0 width="325" height="274" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG SRC="47aa1840.jpg" border=0 width="161" height="132" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"><IMG SRC="478b9840.jpg" border=0 width="185" height="132" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> <B>Eastern Kingbird, </B><I>Tyrannus tyrannus</I></div> <div> Heart of the Hills Fisheries Research Station, 9 September 2002</div> <div> <I><B>photos </B></I><B>©</B> <I><B>by tony gallucci</B></I></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> <B><IMG SRC="0e920200.jpg" border=0 width="32" height="32" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">  Black-capped Vireo,</B><I> Vireo atricapillus</I></div> <bR> <div> The Black-capped Vireo, a federally-listed endangered species, is in its peak range in Kerr County. Two of the world's six largest populations are in the county, and at least a half-dozen other sizable groups reside here as well. The largest accessible population is that found on the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department's Kerr Wildlife Management Area in the west-central part of the county. Only one other population is pseudo-accessible and well-known, that at Spicer Ranch. Several other populations are accessible per se, but will not be disclosed here to protect those population whose existence may be tenuous if they become public. </div> <bR> <div> The key to knowing where to find  the bird to begin with is to be able to recognize habitat; then seeing the bird is dependent on a good ear, and much patience. Black-capped Vireos require dense shrubby vegetation, and there seems to be a correlation with vegetation growing in limestone outcrops . There are several keys to identifying the shrubbery they prefer. Foremost, it must have foliage to ground level. Any area that has been browsed by goats is likely to have had the leafy parts of the shrubs denuded near ground level and will not host these vireos. If you see goats you can be about 99% sure there are no Black-capped Vireos. Secondarily they prefer areas with openings and with some low to moderate grass cover.</div> <bR> <div> Beyond that there is a fairly wide variation in what they choose. At Lost Maples SNA (in Bandera County) for example they are on moderately steep slopes in shrubbery that is mostly Mountain-Laurel. They also occupy some of this type of habitat at Spicer Ranch. At Kickapoo Caverns SNA (in Edwards and Kinney Counties) the shrub portion of their prime habitat is composed largely of Texas Persimmon. In the Kerr County populations however, the obvious habitat component is oak shinnery --  the knee-high sucker plants of the Scaly-bark or Bastard Oak. This seems to be Black-capped Vireo habitat at its finest as they seem to be densest in this type of vegetation. These shinneries grow outwards from single trees or pockets of small trees, and thus by default provide for the openings the birds prefer. Virtually all medium-sized and large populations of the bird in this county are in this habitat type.</div> <bR> <div> Once you have located a likely area (try Rock Pasture and Bobcat Pasture at Kerr WMA), then you must attune your ear to the song of the bird. Sung almost all day long, but more emphatically and for longer sequences in the morning, the song is somewhat atypical for a vireo on two counts: the phrases are ever-changing; and the song can be a very loing sequence of strung-together phrases. The voice does have the quality of a vireo. By that i mean you will probably not have trouble identifying it as a vireo when you first hear it, assuming you are familiar with other vireos. But it does not repeat the same, or a similar, phrase over and over as do Yellow-throated and Red-eyed Vireos (virtually the same phrase repeated), or White-eyed and Bell's Vireos (slight variation from phrase to phrase). Instead each phrase is noticeably different, so much so sometimes that you're not sure it's the same bird on each phrase. It also differs markedly from the other vireos in that you hardly notice the pause between phrases. When encountering other males, in fact, the song becomes more rapid and emphatic and the pauses are lost altogether. This is known as run-on song, and despite the vireo-like "quality" of the song is most un-vireo-like. </div> <bR> <div> After locating a singing male, you'll have to stick with it, follwoing it patiently untl it exposes itself on the outside of a bush. They are notorious skulkers, moving very slowly, singing several phrases from an interior branch before making a slight move, always watchful for caterpillars, which are about the only things that interrupt their singing. Once a bush has been worked over well, you may see them flit or fly to another shrub, only to disappear into the depths of it. Occasionally however, a bird will move to the outside of a shrub, jump to a perch on top of one, or rarely fly up into a small oak, and sing from an exposed branch. Those are the moments you are waiting for. Be patient, it will happen. And if the one you're following decides to shut up for a while (likely because it's near the nest, or bringing food in) then you can always just move down the way and find the next one.</div> <bR> <div> In 1988 I produced an audiotape for the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department of the Voices of the Black-capped Vireo and the Golden-cheeked Warbler. I long ago gave away or sold all the extras i had of the production tape. However, i still have the master tape and would be happy to make copies for anyone interested in having one, for the cost of the tape and mailing. Check the "Ordering GCW/BCV Audiotape" page for more info.</div> <bR> <div> Additional information on Black-capped Vireos can be found at these webpages:</div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/nature/endang/birds/bcv.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/nature/endan"><U><B>http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/nature/endang/birds/bcv.htm</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="http://ecos.fws.gov/servlet/SpeciesProfile?spcode=B07T" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://ecos.fws.gov/servlet/SpeciesProfi"><U><B>http://ecos.fws.gov/servlet/SpeciesProfile?spcode=B07T</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="http://endangered.fws.gov/i/B6G.html" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://endangered.fws.gov/i/B6G.html"><U><B>http://endangered.fws.gov/i/B6G.html</B></U></A></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>Black-capped Vireo, </B><I>Vireo atricapillus</I></div> <div> <I><B>photos </B></I><B>©</B> <I><B>by tony gallucci</B></I></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>Red-eyed Vireo, </B><I>Vireo olivaceus</I></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B><IMG SRC="45ba0810.jpg" border=0 width="160" height="129" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> <B>Red-eyed Vireo, </B><I>Vireo olivaceus</I></div> <div> Mountain Home Bridge, 9 September 2002</div> <div> <I><B>photos </B></I><B>©</B> <I><B>by tony gallucci</B></I></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>Blue-headed Vireo, </B><I>Vireo solitarius</I></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <I><IMG SRC="ddaf02a0.jpg" border=0 width="240" height="298" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></I></div> <div> <B>Blue-headed Vireo, </B><I>Vireo solitarius</I></div> <div> Mountain Home Bridge, 19 October 2002</div> <div> <I><B>photos </B></I><B>©</B> <I><B>by tony gallucci</B></I></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>