LaredoBuzz.Com

Courtesy Xochitl Mora,

Weather, birds come through for niche-group visitors

 Laredo,Tx—  Bird watchers and nature enthusiasts feasted their eyes on the natural beauty in and around Laredo during the 2012 edition of the Laredo Birding Festival.  The event also featured nationally acclaimed author and naturalist, Pete Dunne, director of the Cape May Bird Observatory in New Jersey, who accepted an invitation from Laredo and the Texas Ornithological Society (TOS) to participate in the festival as a guide, seminar leader and closing keynote.

 White-collared Seedeaters, Green Parakeets, Say’s Phoebes, Crested Caracaras, Chachalacas, Cinnamon Teals, Green-winged Teals, Black Vultures, Night-Herons, Black-crowned Herons, Chihuahuan Ravens and over 140 other species of birds were seen on the three-day excursions had by visitors into Laredo, some for the first time.

 “This festival was one of the most enjoyable and relaxed events that I have ever attended.  It has the potential to be one of the premier birding events in North America and I congratulate Laredo, TOS and Monte Mucho Audubon Society (MMAS) for hosting such a successful birding festival,” stated Mr. Dunne, participant and field expert at the 2012 Laredo Birding Festival.  “I have visited many parts of the United States and even Texas, but never Laredo; it was a memorable trip.”

 According to the Art of Bird Finding, Pete Dunne has been on this task across North America for more than three decades.  He is author of numerous books on birding, bird identification, and natural history- including Pete Dunne’s Essential Field Guide Companion, Arctic Autumn, The Feather Quest, and The Art of Pishing—and he is the director of the New Jersey Audubon’s Cape May Bird Observatory.  In 2001, he was awarded the Roger Tory Peterson Award by the American Birding Association.  Now, he is a fan of birding in Laredo!

 The event began Wednesday, February 1, 2012, with the inaugural field trip into the historic St. Peter’s district in search of Green Parakeets, which were located immediately by local field guides and volunteer staff from the Monte Mucho Audubon Society.  The event was structured to take birding field trips out to various different locations in Webb, Zapata and Starr Counties, with Laredo as the host location and origination for the trips, daily from Thursday, February 2 through Saturday, February 4.  Field trip sites varied from private ranches, such as Los Lazos Ranch in Aguilares to public park spaces in Laredo such as North Central Park. 

 The event offerings were diversified again this year by the addition of two nature photography field trips, sponsored by Images for Conservation that took participants to just outside of Mirando City to the San Jose Ranch; owned and operated by John and Ana Puig. The other photography trip went to the Rockin’ R6 Ranch, just north of Laredo, owned and operated by Butch and Zita Ramirez.   Mr. Ramirez also loaned his images to an exhibit that was displayed during the opening reception event on Wednesday, February 1, 2012.  Participants enjoyed his cache of amazing wildlife images and Ojo Rojo at an evening mixer sponsored by the Laredo Convention and Visitors Bureau.

 Participants stayed at La Posada Hotel and were from throughout Texas as well as from Illinois, Maryland, Missouri, Arizona, South Carolina, and even included a couple from Ontario, Canada. 

 Festival attendees took in local public parks and trails such as Lake Casa Blanca State Park, Las Palmas nature trail, North Central Park, San Ygnacio Birding Sanctuary, Falcon Dam and the Laredo Community College Lamar Bruni Vergara Environmental Science Center.  Other locations were generously loaned by private ranchers to show off the regional assets of the area and included excursions to La Perla Ranch Resort, La Laja, Santa Maria, Rancho Rio Verde, Los Lazos, Saleneño and Chapeño Ranches. 

 Post-field trip information and photo galleries are posted online at www.visitlaredo.com look for the Laredo Birding Festival photo gallery entry or under the Sports drop down dynamic menu and click on Birding.