Texas Birding in April – Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge

Great Egret

I was getting a bit weary of chasing fickle little warblers through the bushes in the hot, humid Texas weather and direct mid-day sunshine at Quintana Neotropical Bird Sanctuary. My camera is fairly heavy and after four hours of lugging it around, I needed a break. Plus, I was seeing the same birds over and over, so I thought it would make sense to leave for a while and then come back later in the day – you know, to give the birdies a chance to change shifts.

The Texas Gulf Coast is rich in wildlife preserves. I had seen Facebook posts from many and would really like to visit all of them. But, alas, I didn’t have time (that may be another topic for introspection – I actually do have time but start to feel guilty and selfish when I am away on one of my little trips for too long). So, I decided to go to nearby Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge.

Marshes

The 44,414-acre wildlife conservation area east of Angleton and Lake Jackson, Texas, borders a bay on the Intracoastal Waterway, behind a barrier island at the Gulf of Mexico. 

Black-bellied Whistling Ducks

The refuge contains a freshwater slough that winds through salt marshes, providing excellent habitat for waterfowl. It also features some rare, native bluestem prairie and, although it is very close to civilization, it seems worlds away. 

Common Gallinule and Black-necked Stilts

Brazoria has mild temperatures, fresh and salt water estuaries, bay waters and a blend of soils that create a rich habitat for many wildlife species. 

On the refuge, mud flats and salt water marshes gradually give way to fresh water. 

Shorebirds live on the ocean's edge and in the bay and waterfowl live in the marshes and freshwater ponds. 

Between the salty and fresh waters are the brackish wetlands teeming with shellfish and fish, important sources of food for many species. 

Old windmill

Farther inland are freshwater marshes, ponds and bayous that support waterbirds frogs and crawfish. 

The water further inland is less saline and, as the salinity changes, the plants found in a salty environment give way to coastal prairie, dominated grasses and wildflowers and inhabited by moths, butterflies, bees and birds. 

There are boardwalks around a marshy pond …

Boardwalk view

... and a 7.5-mile-long wildlife loop road build on a raised gravel roadway that traverses the slough …

Auto tour

Brazoria and its sister refuges, San Bernard and Big Boggy, form a vital complex of coastal wetlands harboring more than 300 bird species. The name Brazoria, refers to the Brazos Rivers, which empty here.

A Snowy Egret goes after a White-faced Ibis

The refuge was established in 1969 to provide wintering habitat for migratory waterfowl and other bird species, to serve as an end point for ducks and geese migrating south along the Central Flyway for the winter and to serve as an entry point for neotropical migratory songbirds. More than 300 species of birds call the refuge home for all or part of the year and it is designated as an Internationally Significant Shorebird Site by the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network.

Blue-winged Teal

In the winter, it is home to more than 100,000 snow geese, Canada geese, Northern Pintails, Northern Shovelers, Blue-winged and Green-winged Teal, Gadwalls, American Wigeons, Mottled Ducks and Sandhill Cranes. I saw some Shovelers and Teals, but none of the other usual suspects.

I saw more of the typical summer inhabitants, including White-faced Ibises (a bird I have been trying and trying to find on a sunny day so that I could capture their iridescence – bingo!) ...

Jump!

Roseate Spoonbills …

A pretty pair

Great Egrets …

A nice pose

Snowy Egrets …

Crest up; crest down

Tri-colored Herons …

Pretty coloring

White Ibises (adults and juveniles) …

Adult, left; juveniles, right

 Black-bellied Whistling Ducks ...

A very striking duck

Blue-winged Teals …

Out of the water for a moment

 American Coots …

A regal-looking Coot (is that an oxymoron?)

Common Gallinules …

A Purple Gallinule also made a split-second appearance, but avoided my camera 

Black-necked Stilts …

Graceful

Least Sandpipers …

Many shore birds

Long-billed Dowitchers …

Hunting in the marsh

Lesser Yellowlegs …

Where do you think the name came from?

Forster’s Terns …

Fishing

Loggerhead Shrikes …

He doesn't look like a dangerous predator, but he is

Savannah Sparrows …

Perching

Eastern Kingbirds …

Bright-eyed

And the songful Dickcissel …

Pretty yellow eyebrows

I also saw a few raptors, including a Crested Caracara (very, very far away) and a Red-shouldered Hawk …

Raptors, too

After exploring the boardwalks, I drove the loop twice, stopping often to take pictures. Unlike Quintana, it was virtually empty, providing a very pleasant interlude and opportunities for lots of pictures.

I really enjoyed my time at Brazoria and would like to further explore the many refuges along the Texas coast. Once again, who knew????

I guess this White-faced Ibis is amused

Trip date: April 19-24, 2018