Mission, TX - 2nd Week - 3rd Month

Mar 12th ( Monday)
Zilch, I went for some needed groceries
Mar 13th (Tuesday)
Went up the road to Bentsen State Park to do a little more birding. There is one segment of a trail to no where that we had never been on, called Resaca Vieja Trail, and we had heard that the rare Pauraque might be seen there. Don't know what a pauraque is? Well you are not alone. Denice was able to see one in Estaero LLano, another state park, that she went to one day with friend birder Laura. Here is what Wikipedia has to say about the pauraque:


This medium-sized nightjar is 8.7-11 in (22–28 cm) long and has two colour morphs, the plumage being variegated greyish-brown or rufous-brown. It is long-tailed and has broad rounded wings. The buff 'eyering' and 'facial stripe' contrast with the reddish sides of the face.[1]

The adult male Pauraque has a white band near the wing tips, and the outer tail feathers are mainly white. The female's wing band is narrower and the white in the outer tail is more restricted. There are seven subspecies of the Pauraque, differing in size and greyness.[1]

The male Pauraque's song is very variable, but includes a whistled weeeow wheeooo, ("who-r-you"), soft puk puk and a whip given in the courtship flight as he flutters around the female. Her call is a rapid succession of whip sounds.

It is found in open woodland/grassland habitats, but also scrubland and crop fields. This species has long legs (by nightjar standards) with bare tarsi, and is more terrestrial than most of its relatives. If disturbed, it will sometimes run rather than fly, and it frequently rests on roads and tracks. In general it prefers mixed habitat which offers densely vegetated hiding places – ideally forest – for the day, as well as open landscape – perhaps even rivers or wetlands – to hunt at night. The Pauraque is nocturnal, like other nightjars, and starts to fly at dusk. Like its relatives, it feeds on insects caught in flight, usually by flycatching from a low perch, but also by foraging over open ground.

How ever we saw none!! In fact few birds today, but we had a good walk. The trail to nowhere ends at a resaca. Oh, you don"t know what a resaca is either! Well wklipedia does not give an English version of the definition, only Spanish, so I will interpet. It is nothing more than an old oxbow left abandoned after the Rio Grande changed course. In days past when the river flooded these resacas would fill with water and retain most of the summer, but now with the control on the Rio they are usually just old dry beds where birds find good habitat. On returning home we took the levee along the river and we find that Sugar Cane harvest is in process. We find this intrigueing to watch the whole sugar cane cycle.
Mar 14th (Wednesday)
To McAllen for more glass - first went to Hobby Lobby, but could not find all that I wanted, so had to do a side trip to McAllen glass. There are so many types and designs that it is slightly mind boggling to find the perfect piece to match your design
Mar 15th (Thursday)
Over to HEB for some groceries. Denice needed some supplies for the "Pot Luck" tonight. Once home I took in a few minutes of the Golf Cart Rodeo. Each contestant had to have a co-pilot, the pilot was blindfolded and had to maneuver his golf cart down a corridor missing pre placed barrels along the way, and ending in the "Kitchen" between two barrels and stopping before running into one in front.  Quite hilarious actually!!
Mar 16th (Friday)
Laundry Day    --- What can I say??
Mar 17th (Saturday)
St Patty's Day - Just chill out all Day - Do a little glass cutting on my new "Self Designed" project
Mar 18th (Sunday)
SKYPE'd the kids - all good on that front

Worked on Stained glass - all pieces cut out for latest project (#6)
Ordered Anchor Seal from Amazon