By Mary Anne Morris, Houston Audubon Education Director
The winds from the south were gusting at about 15 mph. The water was choppy and the ground was wet. Despite the forecast and the gloom of clouds the atmosphere at Super Bird 58 was hot!! Hot donuts and eager birders ready to face off in the storied challenge that we call Super Bird!!
The Superb Owls and the Gridiron Goatsuckers were in separate huddles. The clock was ticking every closer to game time. Strategies were being laid out and plans to win victory were being made. Occasional jabs at the opposing team could be heard coming from the goatsuckers. They were eager to lead the owls down the loser trail in search of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker. The owls responded with vigorous hoots of disagreement.
Finally, the clock struck 10 and both teams headed surprisingly in the same direction. Was this some kind of early hail Mary play to confuse? We may never know. The owls seemed stuck at the 50 yard line while the goatsuckers fueled on donuts were practically sprinting around the field of play. Those wise owls were taking a more slow and methodical approach with the hope that saving their energy would give them stamina to make the final play to victory.
The teams only passed once and kept any game time conversations to a minimum although there was some pointing by a goatsucker and a reference to the Ivory-billed Woodpecker. The owls were wise to this game and kept their eyes and ears focused on the task at hand.
As the clock neared high noon the goatsuckers were double-timing it around the field. The owls were silently and slowly meandering towards their goal line as if on a spring walk to look at the flowers. Which team would pull ahead and claim victory and any leftover donuts?
At high noon captains for both teams submitted their checklists and silence fell over the field/parking lot. The goatsuckers had logged 54 species and the owls stood at 53. However, the captain of the owls confessed that he had seen the group of Cattle Egrets on the sidelines but did not log it since the other owls on the team had their heads turned the other way. The goatsuckers graciously declared it a tie and all enjoyed the last of the donuts.
So, yet another Super Bird has been logged in the playbook and all anxiously await Super Bird 59 on February 8 2025.
Houston AuduBlog 