Chase 4: Bachman's Sparrow is bird 980

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East Texas Piney Woods
     Bachman's Sparrow is a specialty bird of the Pineywoods. It is a 'Nearly Threatened' species due to loss of it's habitat. The bird is best found when it is singing. It starts singing from March mid, and it would be better for me to chase it in March rather than in April so that I can look at passage migrants in April. I had put off finding the bird until now as it is out of the way from anywhere. There is no reliable spot near Houston.  The best spot in Texas is Angelina National Forest which is 4.5 hrs away from Austin.



Bachman's Sparrow
      I took tea in a flask, some energy bars and started the drive Sat morning from ATX. I reached at 1:30 pm and slowly drove around Boykin Springs. I heard one singing around 3:30 pm but could not locate it. I heard another one around 4:10 pm, and I was joined by another birder visiting from out of the country. None of us could spot it, and we decided to play a tape. Out came one to offer good prolonged looks. It made its territory clear by singing it's notes before dropping back into the shrubs. 

Bachman's Sparrow
        I started the drive back at 4:30 pm. I took a break for coffee at Bryan,TX and reached home at 9 pm. There was no other bird I could target, and it made sense for me to drive both ways on the same day to avoid a hotel stay. So, in total I drove 540 miles for this bird. It was 9 hours drive to and fro, 3 hours drive on the dirt roads looking for the bird for a total of 12 hours.

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