The Whoopers are Getting Antsy: March in Lamar

The juvenile waded and grabbed a frog. First it pinned it in its beak and then it shook the frog, stunning it before swallowing it whole. It was the first time we have seen a feeding whooper so close and we could actually see the frogs being eaten as it waded the flooded field and ate two more.

Meanwhile two juvenile males were chasing each other, displaying their strong wings to a female, ready to pick a lifelong mate. There have been nine juveniles that have frequented the area here and some are definetly ready to settle down in adulthood.

A few sandhills still remain but most have headed north as if they know that the snows are finally melting, As we watched two more whoopers, a mated pair perhaps, flew by from the other feeder, followed a little later by four more sandhill cranes.

The flooded field in front of us, we got three inches of rain yesterday, was full of blue winged teal and mottled ducks. A flock of American white ibis fed on a shallow island, too engrossed to be bothered by the stopping cars of birders. They were joined by four black bellied whistling ducks and yes they do make a loud whistle call to one another as they fly

A little later we drove over to Big Tree and spotted a herd of the small Texas deer grazing in a nearby field. Later a doe alongside the road surprised us as we left Goose Island State Park allowing Renita a great shot. The smaller deer here have a higher surface area/ mass ratio allowing them to dissipate the heat and as you go north the larger mammals all increase in size, (the bigger you are the harder time you have losing excess heat).

It had been an excellent afternoon bird watching and we look forward to the upcoming rookeries. If we are in the right place at the right time we may even see a fallout as the songbirds return form South and Central America. This is such a great birding time! Clear skies