A quail sized, stocky bird that has a high whinny can be found in any wet marshy location, like a cattail or grassy marsh. They can be seen along edges of marshy vegetation or walking upon shallow water or mud near vegetation.
The late-moving Sora should be heading south in a week or two through Oklahoma, and bear in mind that it could be difficult to see, as they don't always come out of the vegetation, but it is very possible to hear one. They will also use flooded fields, brackish marshes, ditches, and wet pastures.
This small water bird or rail, is somewhat secretive and it might only show its yellow bill. It also walks slowly like a chicken in the reedy grasses, and the short tail is frequently cocked upward. The black mask and long toes are vey distinctive, and the body is mottled gray and brown. The toes are used to rake vegetation so that they might locate snails, beetles, grass, rice, or sedge. Don't let their shape fool you, as they can be speedy when they choose to do so.
Sora (rear)
Estero Llano Grande, TX 2017
Some of these crakes winter along our southern coasts and others go as far as South America.
This thirty million year old bird hasn't changed much according to fossils. It may appear to have a comical physique and ungainly in its skin, but that could not be further from fact. This common coastal bird of the east and west coasts is an accomplished fisherman with spectacular plunge dives that many an Olympic swimmer strives to share form.
This unusual diving bird performs twisting lunges in shallow waters of bays, lagoons and oceans. Coasting just inches above the water, the graceful and elegant flight of the pelican can be mesmerizing.
Like the Bald Eagle, Peregrine Falcon, and other birds, the Brown Pelican was affected by DDT in the late 1960s and early 70s. The deadly concoction was banned by the EPA in 1972, which gave this beautiful species a chance to return in numbers, through the help of the Endangered Species Act. At that time it was seriously imperiled, as nest sites are upon the ground or island cliffs. It was released from its endangered status in 2009, not that long in the past.
Brown Pelican, 2017
Even though this is a bird of salt water, they are known to stray from time to time. For a ten day period in December of 2016, one Brown Pelican was upon the waters and upon land of Boomer Lake Park in Stillwater, OK. It has also managed to be in several other locales, usually in key areas of the state during this decade, like Great Salt Plains, Lake Overholser, and others.
Squadrons of this bird can be found in coastal waters, observed relaxing and fishing. Their most well known feature is the gular pouch, which can hold up to three gallons of water and is strained out before consuming its assorted delicacies.
This is a small bird in comparison to the other seven species of the world, at eight pounds and fifty-one inches in length with a six to seven foot wingspan. They require four pounds of fish each day and their remarkable eyesight can aid them up to seventy feet in the air before that inevitable dive.
Not only can that pouch scoop up food, but it also is an aid in cooling the bird during the heat of the season. They will also steal fish from other birds, eat prawn, and seize prey when schools of fish are passing near the water's surface.
As a colonial nester, the state bird of Louisiana can be seen breeding there, as well as on Pelican Island in Florida, which Ding Darling named the first national wildlife refuge.
As can be best determined, the Anhinga no longer breeds in Oklahoma, but once did so. Foremost authority on breeding birds, data from the late George Miksch Sutton listed this bird as a breeder in 1937 in McCurtain County, most likely at Red Slough WMA which did not exist then. After a period of time, the bird was sighted by a well-known biologist at Red Slough in 1974, when it was first recorded on eBird, still observed recently as a species.
There were later breeding records in Sequoyah County from 1971 to 1972(last seen as a species in 2014 via eBird), and at Little River NWR from 1991-1993( last seen May of 2018 as a species via eBird).
The snake-bird is uncommon, and found in wooded swamps, as well as along canals and ponds. They tend to form small groupings, roosting in trees over water. It has the attributes of both diving and water birds, which serve it well. They are often confused with cormorants, but are much larger and have a thinner build.
Male Anhinga
Estero Llano Grande, TX 2017
Male water crows are beautiful in breeding plumage with green lores, a black crest and silver offsets on the wings and upper back. The body appears to look like a glossy greenish black. While submerged in water, often the head and bill are the only parts of the bird seen. The tail is used as a fan-shaped rudder.
As breeding birds, they are colonial with nests no greater than a dozen, anywhere from six to twenty feet over water. Branches, twigs and leaves are used for construction from substrate to lining. Nest sites are sometimes reused over the years.
These monogamous birds breed in their second or third year. Males establish territory by taking old nests or building new framework. They will display upon these structures by bowing, wing-waving, and feather ruffling. Females respond to the nest and repeat this behavior. Pairing occurs shortly thereafter, as well as copulation. The male will gather nesting material and the female places it where she will. A few days later after construction is complete, egg laying begins. Hatchlings are bald, but begin to gain a tan down in a couple of weeks, followed by a white one.
These neotropical migrants only migrate if in the extreme north and south of their ranges.
Hanging Out In the Lower Rio Grande Valley with the Birds:
