How many guys take their wives on a fifty-fourth anniversary and chase birds? Not many, I imagine. Ann was a trooper and seemed to enjoy the adventure in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. We found a jewel of a place called The Birding Center. It is on South Padre. We spent an entire day there and didn't see it all.
We kept a record of our sightings and saw a total of NINETY-FIVE different species. Some of them were as common as a dove or sparrow or blackbird. Others were Green Jay, Vermillion Flycatcher, Lark Sparrow, Pyrrhuloxia, (Eat your heart out, GR), Great Kiskadee, Chachalaca, Moorhen, Peregrine Falcon, Altimira Oriole, Roadrunner, etc.
The Valley is almost like another country. It is modern as a place can be...in places. Other little towns are like a step back in time. There are still orange and grapefruit orchards; fields of lettuce, carrots, onions, and others greens growing beautifully. Birds abound.
New Year's Eve is upon us. I can no longer fire a shotgun into the air at midnight. It is doubtful if I can even stay awake until midnight. Happy New Year to all!
