Austin Nature and Science Center Nature Day April 20

Come and Join us at the Austin Nature and Science Center Nature Day Free Event! Stop by and Visit our Texas Blue Jay Project table! 


We will be hosting a "Be a Bird" Interactive booth table at this awesome event! #GoneTexasBirding

Birds of Lake Pflugerville Presentation and More!

Come and join us to learn about the beautiful birds at Lake Pflugerville! It's a FREE event! All Ages Welcome. There will also be bird craft activities for kids!

Birds of Lake Pflugerville Presentation
Thursday, March 14, 2019
7:00pm-8:00pm

Birding Activities start at 6:30pm-7:00pm

February 1-2, 2019 Laredo Young Birders Birding Event

Calling All Young Birders! 

Join me on Friday, February 1, 2019 at Lake Casa Blanca International State Park in Laredo, Texas for a Young Birders Presentation about my experiences as a Texas Young Birder. Learn how to start birdwatching, and about Laredo Birds. Also, you will learn about all the awesome opportunities there are for young birders. Birding Presentation Fee: Free; But, you need to pay for the TPWD Park Entry Fee Admission to enter. Registration Mandatory.: rgisc.org/register

Join me on Saturday, February 2, 2019 at Lake Casa Blanca International State Park in Laredo, Texas for a Young Birders Bird Hike! 1st Hike: 7:30am-9:00am; 2nd Hike: 9:30am-11:00am. Fee per Hike: $5.00 per person. Registration Mandatory: rgisc.org/register


Discover South Texas Birds!
The Texas Blue Jay Project

Common Nighthawk (Chordeiles Minor) by Sebastian Casarez

*Photo by Sebastian Casarez, Common Nighthawk

   Throughout late Summer evenings in parking lots and open fields you might notice a medium-sized slim bird flying over with long-pointed wings, flies with an erratic bat-like flight and make a loud "peent" call as it's flying...this bird is called a Common Nighthawk.

*Photo by Sebastian Casarez, Common Nighthawk

   Common Nighthawks are abundant in Texas during April-October. They spend the Summer in North America and they spend the Winter in South America. Common Nighthawks are aerial insectivores, which means they feed on flying insects while on the wing. Nighthawks can be found hovering over open fields or parking lots. Especially, during nightime they will be hovering under spotlights to catch insects. During the daytime you might find nighthawks roosting on your backyard fences, trees, roofs, or even on your car!

   Male and female Common Nighthawks look almost identical but, except males have white throats and broad white wing bars while females have buffy throats and the white wing bars aren't so bold as the males. 

*Photo by Sebastian Casarez, Common Nighthawk, Male

   Nighthawks are closely related to Nightjars which include: Common Poorwill, Chuck-will's-widow, Whip-poor-will, and others. Unlike most nightjars, Nighthawks catch their prey by wing. They will hover over fields to catch insects. While other Nightjars will do the "sit-and-wait" technique, which is when the bird stays sit on the ground and when a flying insect passes by they will leap up and catch the insect with their extremely, large mouth.

  

   Common Nighthawks like any other nightjar don't build nests. Instead, they lay their eggs on flat ground (rocks, gravel, flat gravel rooftops, etc...) making themselves easy targets for predation. The eggs and hatchlings are so well camouflage that sometimes predators can't see them at all. 

   The next time you are sitting outside in your backyard porch during the Summer evenings in Texas try to hear the loud "peent" call of one of my favorite Summer bird migrant in Texas, the Common Nighthawk.

Happy Birding,

Sebastian Casarez

#GoneTexasBirding

#CommonNighthawksAreCool

#TheTexasBlueJayProject