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Flamingo on the Texas Coast

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Flamingo on the Texas Coast Vol.6• ] GeneralNotes 30 l •944 -• Refuge,Back Bay, Virginia, by Mrs. C. A. Barefield,Mrs. ColgateDarden, Jr., H. A. Bailey,Manager of the Refuge,and myself. It wasfeeding at the edgeof the water in the coveopposite Cedar Island. The flats at this placewere coveredwith water to the depth of one or two inches. The phalaropeattracted our attention by its exquisitelydainty head and neckand its dazzlinglywhite breastand underparts. The legsappeared conspicuously yellow, the bill fine and apparentlyat leastas long as the width of the head. As the phalaropefed we sawit whirl completelyaround in a circle, very fast; also it dabbed from side to side. At no time did we see it swimmingin the water. Becauseof the noticeablyclear yellowof the legswe did not think it could be confusedwith anything except the I_•ser Yellow-legs,and we had an excellentopportunity to compareit with a group of ten LesserYellow-legs and one Greater Yellow-legs,which were feeding not many yards away. We also flushed it to make certain that there was not a noticeablewing-stripe. Later the phalaropejoined a group of twelvePectoral Sandpipers, four White-rumpedSand- pipers,and SemipalmatedSandpipers. Mrs. Darden took movingpictures of it, and Dr. J. J. Murray showeda portion of her film to Mr. Ludlow Griscomwho confirmed our identificationof it as a Wilson's Phalarope. Dr. Murray statesthat this is an addition to the Virginia bird list, that it is a rare visitorat Cape May, New Jersey, and that there are only a half-dozenNorth Carolina records.--M•. A. C. I•ED, Norfolk, Virginia. Flamingo on the Texas ½oast.--Therehave been many reports of Flamingoes (Phoenicopterusruber Linnaeus)on the coastof Texas, but since thesebirds might be confusedby the layman with the RoseateSpoonbill and sincespoonbills are com- monly observedon the Texas coast,it has been concludedby ornithologiststhat there was little proof that a Flamingo had ever been seen in Texas in the natural state. If there are any published records,they are unknown to the writer. On July 27, 1943,Mr. Fred C. Starkof the SanAntonio ZoologicalPark, Mr. F. F. Dietz of San Antonio, and the writer left Rockport,Texas, on a Game, Fish and OysterCommission launch. I am indebted to Captain M. B. Mullinax and Mr. Ben A. Earp, who piloted the boat, and other officialsof the Game, Fish and Oyster Commissionfor the privilege of making this trip. The purposeof the trip was to collect young birds for the San Antonio ZoologicalPark. While we were cruisingalong near Carroll Island of the SecondChain of Islands in lower San Antonio Bay, I saw a Flamingo standingin the water near the island. The observationwas made through binoculars (Zeiss8 x 40). I immediatelyasked Captain Mullinax to stop the boat. Mr. Stark verified the identificationand Mr. Earp, who has been a taxidermistfor many yearsand who is acquaintedwith bird life, also concurred in the identification, as did Mr. Dietz, who is a student of birds. Captain Mullinax was the last to view the bird with the glasses. The men then left the boat and I waded toward the bird, which had not movedfrom its original posi- tion near the marker of the National Audubon Preserve. I was able to approach within 75 feet of the Flamingo before it moved. Then it took several steps,rose, and circledslowly about 50 feet over my head,showing the dark wing markings,with long neckfully extendedand legstrailng behind. The bird flew southeastwardout of sight towardsMatagorda Island. The time spent in observationof the Flamingo was over half an hour. There were hundredsof RoseateSpoonbills standing near with which we could make comparison,and there was no possibilityof mistaking this red bird with the delicate pink spoonbills. On the same date a hurricane hit the Texas Coast at Galveston but there was no 302 GeneralNotes [April[Auk stormy condition in the AransasBay region. It is possiblethat the Flamingo flew in ahead of the hurricane. There is also the possibilitythat the bird had been in this region for severalweeks. Mr. Gordon Gunter, of the Game, Fish and Oyster Commission,told me afterwardsthat somethree or four weekspreviously Mr. George A. Ratisseauhad reportedseeing, at a great distanceand not very dearly, what he thought was possiblya Flamingo among a group of RoseateSpoonbills, near his Jolly Roger Camp on CopanoBay. The Flamingo may have been a stray from the Bahama region or it might have come from Yucatan. The latter suppositionseems to be the most plausible one.- CONGERN. HAGAR(MRs. JACKHACAR), Rockport, Texas. Notes on certain birds of the lower Florida Keys.--Duringthe writer's assignment at Key West, Florida, for the Fish and Wildlife Servicefrom February 1939until October 1942,notes were made on the avifaunaof the Lower Florida Keys,which include thosekeys lying from about the Bahia Honda bridge southwesterlyto the Marquesas, including the Great White Heron and Key West National Wild- life Refuges. Although much time and study was devoted to the Great White, Ward's, and Wurdemann'sherons, about 160 speciesand subspeciesof birds were recorded. As comparativelylittle information has been publishedon the area, the followingspecies have been selectedas of specialinterest. Terrestrial bird life was disappointing until it wasrealized that the area is maritime, consistingof hundredsof keysscat- tered along the Gulf and Atlantic Oceanwith many miles of water. RoseateSpoonbill (Aiaia aiaia).--Althoughwe found no nestson the Marquesas Keys, which lie about twenty miles off Key West and comprisethe westerly ex- tremity of the Key West Refuge,we did seebirds there asfollows: February 20, 1940, one adult bird flying directly over our skiff late in the afternoon. On July 16 of the sameyear, one bird alightedon the marl flat and commencedfeeding, and later in the day Joe Warren, my patrolman, and I saw four birds off Little Creek near EasternHarbor of the Marquesas,one of which may have been the bird recorded earlier. On April 18,1941,Joe Warren countedsix birdsat the Marquesas,and on June 18 of the sameyear, I sawone in flight there. On July 25, 1942,one bird, apparentlyan adult, was seenfeeding about a pond in Key West. On August 13, 14, 15, 25, and 29, 1942,one bird, probablythe same individual,was seen feeding about the pondsof Key West,generally in the evening around 8 P.M. It was at times quite tame, allowing a closeapproach. Swainson'sHawk (Buteoswainsoni).--Wintering regularly, as far as I coulddeter- mine from natives,this westernhawk has beenrecorded by the writer in Key West, on StockIsland, Sugarloafand NonameKeys. Those seenappeared to be of the light phaseor possiblyintergrades. They were tame, appearedsluggish, and were easilyapproached. Birds, perched on polesalong the highway,would fly from pole to pole in front of an approachingcar or pedestrian. Short-tailedHawk (Buteo brachyurus).--Ihave only a few recordsof this rare bird in the area. Two birds were seensoaring near PorpoiseKey on March 16, 1939, both in the white phase. One bird in the dark phasewas seen soaring near Key Largo,off the mainland,on January1, 1940. At one time it divedtoward the earth for a shortdistance. A bird in the darkphase was seen at BocaGrande Key, in the Key West Refuge,on October17, 1940. MangroveClapper Rail (Ralluslongirostris insularum).--Apparently a permanent residentalthough seldom seen during the winter months.An abundantnester about .
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