Harlequin Quail

Out of our tent before dawn at Davis Mountain SP, we took an early walk looking for quail, but didn’t find any. So we got in the car and drove around looking along the edges of the roadway. At one point John saw another high-flying quail but couldn’t tell what it was. Back at the state park we went to the office to clarify our registration. John asked about if quail were being seen and we were told about the automatic seed dispenser that “goes off” at a certain time in the morning and again in the afternoon. We raced to where it was and there beneath the feeder were two Harlequin Quail (photo) and some other birds attracted to the seed. What a great bird. We did a walk around the campground area and found a MacGillivray’s Warbler and some other migrants in the trees. After breakfast at the lodge, we broke camp packing up the tent and setting off along Limpia Creek where we hoped to see Common Black Hawk, but didn’t. We did see our first of many Bell’s Vireos. We got on the scenic loop around the Davis Mountains and stopped at a picnic area with Western Bluebirds, White-breasted Nuthatches, and our first Western Wood-Pewees. We left the loop and drove through Marfa, Alpine, and Marathon picking up lunch at Alice’s Café. From Marathon it was a straight shot to Big Bend NP. Here again I was reminded what a great bargain the Golden Age Pass is. Entry to the park was free for us and the campsite was $7 per night instead of $14. If you are 62 or over and don’t have one yet, spend the $10 and start enjoying the benefits. That’s $10 for life! We found a campsite at the Basin campgrounc and set up the tent, took a walk, and stopped for dinner at the Chisos Mountaainn Lodge where during dinner I saw a Blue-throated Hummingbird come to an Ocotillo bloom outside. A Western Tanager flew across the trail during an after-dinner walk. When we went to bed in the tent, the six new birds seen during the day raised the total to 542 for the year.