If I Were Going...: A Maddening Search

A blue-gray Gnatcatcher; Not what I was looking for, but pretty

My destination for the next day was Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge and, because I had been trying to outrun the weather, I was getting there earlier than planned. I was staying three nights now. I was on a mission to see two very rare birds that are both found at Balcones. I had been there before and failed to find them (or, actually very many birds at all). It had been roughly the same time of year (a few days later), but much, much hotter, so I thought maybe I had a better chance this time.

Balcones Canyonlands, in the Texas Hill Country northwest of Austin, was created in 1992 to conserve habitat for two endangered songbirds.

A view from the Knolls Trail

Hill Country vegetation includes oaks, elms and Ashe juniper trees (often referred to as "cedars" in Texas). The birds this habitat attracts are the Golden-cheeked Warbler ...

A pretty bird with a tiny range: Photo: McCauley Library; Map: All About Birds

... and the Black-Capped Vireo ...

It has a slightly larger range; Photo: National Audubon Society; Map: All About Birds

Both depend on different successional stages of this vegetation, especially the Ashe juniper. It is the only place that the Golden-cheeked Warbler nests.

Balcones Canyonlands is a beautiful place with many steep-banked streams and canyons etched into the limestone of the Edwards Plateau by tributaries of Texas’ Colorado River, which is a different river than the Colorado that originates in my home state and forms the Grand Canyon.

The Colorado in the distance

Hoping morning would be best to find the Warbler and Vireo, I headed out early and was the only person hiking in and around the part of the Park called “Warbler Way.” Did I see my birds? Nope. I hardly saw any birds, even though I heard lots of Blue-Gray Gnatcatchers in the trees (and caught a few glimpses of them flitting about).

When I went to the Visitor Center, I saw a couple of birds ...

Scissor-tailed Flycatchers (a marvelous bird)

House Finches (on a house!)

An Eastern Phoebe (with lunch!)

I also saw some Northern Mockingbirds and Vermilion Flycatchers. But, I didn't see any Golden-cheeked Warblers or Black-capped Vireos.

And, there were lots of Pipevine Swallowtails and Variegated Fritillary Butterflies

When I drove through the Park to observation areas on the other side, I saw nothing.

The drive passes Cow Creek

While it wasn’t raining, it was incredibly windy, so that may have been the issue.

After lots of exploring, I drove back to Warbler Way and ate a quick lunch in my car (too windy for a picnic).

I didn't see much from the deck, but heard a loud Canyon Wren

I hopped out to look around. I saw some birders and asked if they had had any luck. Yes! They had just seen a Golden-cheeked Warbler and it had flown farther back in the trees.

We could hear it singing. They left and I could hear it singing. For a long time …

I never saw it!

At least I got some photos

That evening, I did some online searches for other possible sites and found a few.

I had a fallback plan for the next day.

I went back the next morning and had better luck with Blue-gray Gnatcatchers. But, I didn’t even hear any Golden-cheeked Warblers. And, no one was even talking about Black-capped Vireos.

Another Try

So, I drove for an hour to Pedernales Falls State Park, another place I had been before.

Pedernales Falls

Ten miles east of Johnson City, Texas, home of President Lyndon Johnson, Pedernales Falls State Park sits on what was a working ranch, known as the Circle Bar Ranch, up until 1970.

Exposed rock on the Falls Trail

The river limestone at the namesake Pedernales Falls is 300 million years old.

Focused more on recreation than wildlife, Park activities center around the Pedernales River: swimming, tubing, wading and fishing. Plus, there are 19.8 miles of hiking and mountain biking trails, 10 miles of equestrian trails and 14 miles of backpacking trails.

Like many rivers in central Texas, the Pedernales is prone to variable water levels. A sign at the park shows a relatively tranquil river in one picture and a raging wall of muddy water in the next picture, said to be taken only five minutes after the first.

Flash floods have resulted in several deaths at the Park

I was surprised, after the weather I experienced two days earlier, that there wasn’t water over the washes along the Park road.

The falls didn’t have enough water to be falling

I started on a trail by the Falls where people had seen Golden-cheeked Warblers.

Nope. Not in that thick scrub!

But, Pedernales has a bird blind. Maybe, just maybe …

Nope, no Golden-cheeked Warblers at the blind (I wasn’t hopeful at all about Black-capped Vireos).

There were, however …

White-winged Doves

Black-chinned Hummingbirds

A Lincoln's Sparrow (and some Red-winged Blackbirds I didn't shoot)

There was a bird taking advantage of the water feature than another birder said was a Green-tailed Towhee.

It seemed reasonable

I didn’t question it and it wasn’t until I got home that I discovered that it was a Rufous-Crowned Warbler.

Not the bird I was looking for, but a lifer!

Then, I went to the picnic area to eat a quick lunch and continue my search.

There were lots of birders peering into the woods and occasionally pointing their cameras. I walked over to see if they were spotting anything. But, they said no.

The songs of Golden-cheeked Warblers were ringing through the trees.

There may have been dozens!

At one point, I think one was right above my head!

I never saw one.

I stayed for a few hours, searching, listening (using Merlin’s song ID feature to confirm what I was hearing) and failed.

I did watch some adorable Blue-gray Gnatcatchers building a nest ...

Bringing in some grasses

And, singing, singing, singing!

... and I saw a Chipping Sparrow ...

Just chillin' out

... an Ash-throated Flycatcher ...

A pretty common bird in Texas

At one point, Merlin even picked up a Black-capped Vireo song. Now, these two birds join Brown-capped and Black Rosy Finches as my nemeses. Arrgghhhh.

Despite complete and utter failure, I had a nice time. The temperatures were mild for Texas and the there were some pretty butterflies ...