Brown-headed Nuthatch (Sitta pusilla) Family: Sittidae By Grace Yaros, Houston Audubon Coastal Conservation Technician Brown-headed Nuthatches are tiny nuthatches native to pine forests of the southeastern United States. Their range extends from southern Maryland and Delaware through southern Florida, extending westward into eastern Texas. They are blue-gray above and whiteish below with dark brown caps. […]

Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola) Family: Charadriidae By Rachel Myers, Houston Audubon Coastal Conservation Technician The Black-bellied Plover is species of plover that spends its winter along coasts across the United States, Central America, and the Caribbean. On the upper Texas Coast, Black-bellied Plovers are abundant from August through April and less common in the summer. […]

Black Vulture (Coragyps atratus) Family: Cathartidae By Grace Yaros, Houston Audubon Coastal Conservation Technician Black Vultures are large, all-black vultures with unfeathered, dark gray heads. They feed primarily on carrion, though they will occasionally hunt small fish or mammals. Black Vultures are common within their range, and can be found from the eastern United States […]

Snow Goose (Anser Caerulescens) Family: Anatidae By Rachel Myers, Houston Audubon Coastal Conservation Technician The Snow Goose is a species of waterfowl that overwinters here in abundance on the upper Texas coast and surrounding areas. They arrive in huge flocks of hundreds to thousands of birds, surrounding the sky in a cacophony of honks. In […]

Harris’s Sparrow (Zonotrichia querula) Family: Passerellidae By Grace Yaros, Houston Audubon Coastal Conservation Technician Harris’s Sparrows are large, mostly brown sparrows with white underparts and black crowns, throats, and chests. During the breeding season, adults have silvery gray faces that contrast with their brown backs, and become browner during the winter. Immature birds are similar […]

Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana) Family: Passerellidae By Grace Yaros, Houston Audubon Coastal Conservation Technician Swamp Sparrows are medium-sized sparrows, handsomely colored in shades of red and gray. They are rusty reddish-brown above with coarse black streaks, and grayish underneath. They have a distinct black line that extends behind the eye, and a pale gray face […]

Franklin’s Gull (Leucophaeus pipixcan) Family: Laridae By Rachel Myers, Houston Audubon Coastal Conservation Technician The Franklin’s Gull is a small gull species that migrates through our region of the upper Texas coast. Breeding Franklin’s Gulls have a black head, red bill, and white eye crescents. Franklin’s Gulls also often show a rosy cast on their […]

Nelson’s Sparrow (Ammospiza nelsoni) Family: Passerellidae By Grace Yaros, Houston Audubon Coastal Conservation Technician Nelson’s Sparrows are small, colorful sparrows of wet, dense grasslands and marshes. They are white below with orange chests and sides, and their orange faces contrast with their gray cheeks. They are quite round, with short, spiky tails. LeConte’s Sparrows are […]

Crested Caracara (Caracara cheriway) Family: Falconidae By Rachel Myers, Houston Audubon Coastal Conservation Technician The Crested Caracara is a large tropical falcon and the only member of the caracara group to reach the United States. Caracaras are members of a neotropical group with several species ranging from Central to South America. The Crested Caracara stands […]

American Pipit (Anthus rubescens) Family: Motacillidae By Grace Yaros, Houston Audubon Coastal Conservation Technician American Pipits are small, sparrow-sized birds with long legs and long tails, giving them a lanky appearance. They are a pale brown-gray color above and white below with brown streaks. They can be easily identified in flight by their distinctive “pi-pit!” […]