A Sparrow and a Crow take me to 917

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     I arrived at Houston after a long journey from Chennai on Sat evening. The original plan was to sleep well at my uncle's place, start to ATX after breakfast the next day, and have lunch at a friend's place. Madness rushed into my head. I thought I can try for some of my target birds and start after lunch.
   
     Nelson's Sparrow should be an easy pick. I wanted to put in some effort for King Rail (not too hard, but cannot guarantee a sighting) and Ross's Goose (which should be moderate, but I'm struggling for a while). For the Rail and Ross's Goose, which can be in flocks of Snow geese in fields, I chose Anahuac NWR. For Nelson's Sparrow I chose three spots they were sighted at in good numbers in Nov. The fall morning was beautiful, and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52HYHvabBZ8 came into play while I was driving. For some reason, this song comes to my mind when I leave my hometown. I realized I did not think of this song when I left Chennai this time.

     I talked to Anahuac NWR visitor center guy who suggested a couple of places to check out for the King Rail. I drove along multiple waterways only to find the usual birds and alligators. I drove the 'Shoveller loop' finally. I saw huge flocks of white Geese (Snow and possibly Ross's mixed with them), but they were far away to id. Here is the checklist: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S40747856. I need to create a plan for the Ross's  Goose to get it on my next trip. Also a plan is needed for King, Yellow (very hard) and Black Rails (very very hard). While I was driving the 'Shoveller loop' I got a notification on a group about a sighting of a Tamaulipas Crow at Galveston, which wasn't far from where I was! I finished the loop still hoping for the King Rail but dipped on it.

The Sparrow:

Nelson's Sparrow
     I headed to my first Sparrow spot Bolivar-Yacht Basin Rd - no birds, leave alone sparrows. Second spot, Tuna Road at Bolivar - some birds, but completely unbirdy in the afternoon - http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S40749328. Third spot, Bolivar Flats 17th St Jetty - lots of shorebirds, and I could see tall reeds at some point in the jetty. The path was made of huge rocks with considerable gaps between them.  I walked on the jetty and the reeds were quiet, until I hit the end of the section of reeds. I saw a bunch of Nelson's Sparrows for bird 916. Here is the partial list - http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S40763888. The new path tracking feature of ebird made me loose the data I was entering, hence the partial list. I did the 0.5 mile walk back along the jetty carefully and quickly. It was time for the Crow!

The Crow:

Tamaulipas Crow
     Tamaulipas Crow is seen rarely in Brownsville area. It was being seen recently from Brownsville dump consistently after a few years gap. I was thinking of driving down there after my India trip. If I'm free I thought I could go next week. When the news came in, I took the opportunity to save on 11 hrs of driving and staying at a motel in Brownsville. The time was 1:35 pm and the initial plan was to start back from my uncle's place at two! A delayed departure and a hungry stomach (all I had was a Croissant with egg and some veggies, and lots of water) was a small price to pay. I took the ferry from Bolivar Peninsula to Galveston, and headed to the Crow spot. The birds around the dumpster/kiosks were all Great-tailed Grackles. I drove back and forth twice on the road it was seen at. Birders were few, which wasn't helping. I went to the opposite end to where it was seen, and looked around. A break came when I started driving back towards the original place it was seen at. I met a couple of birders who told me that the bird is back at the dumpster/kiosk area. After a short looking around with another birder, the crow's call alerted us to it's presence. Tamaulipas Crow became number 917! When we went closer, other birders converged and we had good long looks! I'm saved the 11 hr total drive time, and saved from the stink of the landfill. Checklist: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S40763904

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