ML617782509

Age

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Sex

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Observation details

Returned to Marine Ctr Dr for better pictures of the Gray Kingbird and perhaps to help other birders locate it if necessary since word had gone out on NARBA. I arrived at 7am with no sign of the Gray Kingbird from the day before. At 8:15, I spotted the kingbird flying from the palm trees at the entrance of Beachside and it landed on the telephone wire (had it been roosting in the palm trees over night?). The kingbird was quickly chased by a Shrike and landed on the wire about 2 poles to the north. We (me, Harry Forbes, Teri Zambon and one other) were able to get great looks and photos while the bird preened for about 20 minutes and then started feeding voraciously, all in clear view on the telephone wire. This bird ate any number of large flying insects that looked to be grasshopper, wasps and at one point even caught a cicada though the bug escaped as the bird tried to subdue it. I'm not sure exactly what I saw but as I watched the perched bird it seemed to regurgitate a blackish 'blob'. Was this exoskeletons of the bugs it had eaten? Not sure but I've never seen that before. We observed the Gray Kingbird for 2 hrs from 8:15 to 10:15 with great lighting, the sun over our shoulder. Even got some good photos of the kingbird in flight. I returned twice, at 4pm and 8pm, to confirm the bird was still there and spoke to other birders each time. Apparently it was seen, photographed and identification confirmed by at least 12 other birders. These included Eric Carpenter, Petra Hockey, Steve Gross, Ron Weeks, Joe Fischer and others who are familiar with the species. The Gray Kingbird was last seen on the fence on the east side of Marine Ctr Dr at about 8:15 pm, still actively feeding. I could not re-find the bird on Thursday, July 4 and it may have left the area sometime Wednesday night. (Tripp Davenport explained that this is what happened with the Sulphur-billed flycatcher that had been located in the Davis Mtns earlier in the year. It fed heavily for a couple of days and then disappeared one night.). I checked again for the kingbird on July 5th and 6th with no luck. I even expanded my search a couple of miles to the north, east and west as there is good habitat in other close-by areas. No luck. This Gray Kingbird was just passing through and we enjoyed it only 2 short days in Palacios.

Technical information

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572 pixels x 526 pixels

Original file size

40.09 KB