Michael Emenaker
Here is the merry face of Michael Emenaker … one of the volunteer caretakers of the birding site in Salineno. This site is on the bank of the Rio Grande river with Mexico on the other side. It is an ideal place to see the “specialty” birds of this humid, tropical region. Michael comes down from Colorado to fill bird feeders, monitor people, and insure the health and good will of humans and birds, alike.
Michael Filling Feeders
Let us all be thankful that he has assumed the mantle of previous caretakers so that we can enjoy the Green Jay, all the Orioles, the Kiskadee and Roadrunner etc, etc. Every day he spreads peanut-butter/corn meal glop on the tree trunks and awaits the influx of many hungry birds.
One of the most spectacular birds is the Golden-fronted Woodpecker who is seen only in Texas. Another bird seen only in southernmost Texas is the Olive Sparrow with his dull greenish tint on his back. He is shy and hard to see as he prefers dense underbrush as his home. Sharing his neighborhood is the tiny Black-crested Titmouse who darts in, grabs a sunflower seed and dashes away giving almost no time to take a photo …many blurry shots of him I have taken before I managed to get this one of him. Hopping slowly next to the Olive Sparrow is the Black-throated Sparrow in his crisp white and black tuxedo. They all delight the people grouped around Michael who patiently names them for the beginning birders. Thanks Michael!
The Cactus Wren ! A desert bird who is comfortably at home building his nest right in a towering cactus. No one will bother his nest tucked into the protective spines of a cactus. He is a medley of stripes and dots. What a visually spectacular bird!
Cactus Wren
Finally, the Pyrrhuloxia … took me a while to get his name right … he is gray with a vermillion face, a pointed topknot, and red scattered down his chest. Sitting on a blue feeder tray he is delightful.
Pyrrhuloxia
Come on down to the Rio Grande Valley to see all these resident birds.
Mary P Williams 