THE COASTAL BEND MAGAZINE • Winter 2018-19 31 TheCoastalBend.com Copano Bay State Fishing Pier This unique public fishing pier is actually the old bridge that spanned Copano Bay from the tip of the Lamar Peninsula, southward to Fulton. Scan the bay for loons, grebes and diving ducks, and American Oystercatcher can be found on shell spoil islands. Nominal fee. 99200 TX Hwy 35, Rockport TX 78382 www.copanopiers.justgofishin.com Rockport Demo Garden & Wetlands Pond Tens of thousands of hummingbirds, mostly Ruby-throated, pass through Rockport early each Sep- tember, and are attracted to the many varieties of native plants, including the Trumpet Creeper. This is also a great site for migratory landbirds throughout the winter months. Boardwalk, wetland demonstration pond. 0.9 mile south of TX-35 & FM 3036 @ TXDOT Rest Stop Connie Hagar Cottage Sanctuary A small but very active site, the sanctuary is frequented by vireos, warblers, grosbeaks, flycatchers, and thrushes, with the bordering grassy fields often packed with Dick- cissels, a variety of sparrows, and buntings, including the Painted. A daily bird list is posted at the kiosk and migration is dynamic and can change daily. East First and South Church Streets in Rockport Newbury Park Hummingbird Garden This garden area located within an Aransas Pass city park was specifically designed as a hummingbird sanc- tuary, shrouded by ancient coastal live oak trees. Spring cold front bring a wide variety of migrating landbirds. S. Lamont St. & W. Wheeler Ave. Aransas Pass Ransom Road Navigation District Park Located on the Intracoastal Waterway channel, facilities include multi-tiered observation deck and picnic tables. Loons, grebes, pelicans and diving ducks travel and fish in the channel, with rails and shorebirds in wetlands. TX Hwy 361 to Ransom Rd., Aransas Pass Aransas Pass Community Park Recently developed, this park offers a view of Redfish Bay from an observation platform. A boardwalk is being planned, so keep an eye on this site. TX Hwy 361 to Johnson Avenue, Aransas Pass Live Oak Park Leaf litter carpeting the forest floor is particularly attractive to thrushes, thrashers, and ground-dwelling warblers such as Worm-eating, Ovenbird, Hooded, and Swainson’s (rare). TX Hwy 361 south on Main Ave. (FM1069), Ingleside Aransas Pass Wetlands Search the waters here for loons, grebes, diving ducks, and pelicans. Causeway road (TX-361) toward ferry landing is straddled by Redfish Bay and wetlands on both side, and is visited by a cornucopia of water bird. TX-361 Causeway Road between Aransas Pass & Ferry to Port Aransas Leonabelle Turnbull Birding Center The boardwalk extends into a freshwater marsh associated with the adjoining wastewater treatment plant. Little fresh water is available for much of the year on barrier islands such as Mustang, and the ponds here offer a consistent supply of water for a wide variety of wetland species. Cut Off Road past Community Park, Port Aransas Port Aransas South Jetty The jetty extends for several hundred yards into the Gulf, and furnishes an excellent vantage point from which to look for a variety of open water species. Gulls and terns often roost at the base of the jetty, and shorebirds may be seen feeding along the beach. Northernmost end of Port Aransas Beach on ship channel Port Aransas Wetland Park The observation platform overlooks a freshwater basin that may be thick with a variety of waterfowl and shorebirds during wet periods. The park has been landscaped to establish a native dune community, and during migration the scrubby vegetation and grasses may attract a number of migrant landbirds. TX-361 across from Post Office Mustang Island State Park The state park subsumes an entire barrier island ecosystem, encompassing dunes, coastal grasslands, marshes, and bayside tidal flats, and sloughs. The beach may be particularly rewarding in winter for gulls, terns, and shorebirds (scan the Gulf for seabirds), and a walk in the coastal grasslands should uncover Sedge Wren and perhaps LeConte’s Sparrow. TX-361 midway between North Padre Island and Port Aransas Corpus Christi Pass Corpus Christi Pass slices across the island south of Mustang Island State Park, and the bayside flats here are the wintering haunts of such species as Piping Plover and Long-billed Curlew. Search the inlet waters for waterfowl (such as Hooded Merganser), and look for nesting Snowy Plover in late spring. Bay side of Mustang Island off TX- 361, across from Beach Access Rd. 3 Packery Channel The bayside flats at Packery Channel may retain thousands of shorebirds at low tide, and search the flocks for Marbled Godwit, American Oystercatcher, and Long-billed Curlew. Ruddy Turnstone, Black-bellied Plover, and Snowy Plover often scurry along the edges of the pass, and watch for diving ducks, loons, and grebes in the clear waters of the channel. TX-361 where Padre Island becomes Mustang Island/Zahn Rd. Padre Island National Seashore Padre Island is the longest barrier island in the United States, and the second largest island next to Long Island, New York, and PINS is the protected zone for the country’s longest continuous stretch of undeveloped coastline. Here over half of the 380 bird species identified in North America have been spotted at PINS, which stretches from its entrance at the southernmost end of Park Road 22 (SPID), more than 70 miles south to Port Mansfield. Although the Gulf beach side of the island is frequented by thousands of shore birds, the Laguna Madre (interior) side is where the greatest variety of birds are spotted. Southern end of Park Road 22 (SPID) • nps.gov/pais/ • (361) 949-8068 Packery Channel Park This county park offers another view of Packery Channel, and birds normally associated with the“bocas”are present here. As you enter the park, however, notice the oak mottes to your right among the private houses. These woods attract landbirds in migration, and birders from Corpus Christi consider this to be one of their most fruitful spots in spring. A number of rarities have been discovered here in the past, including Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher, Gray Kingbird, and Black-whiskered Vireo. Park Road 22 (SPID) apx. 1/2 mile south of JFK Causeway JFK Causeway Wetlands The flats along the causeway may be awash with herons, egrets (look for Reddish), pelicans, and shorebirds including migrating Skimmer. JFK Causeway spans Laguna Madre from Flour Bluff toward Padre Island, take exit to access flats Redhead Pond Wildlife Area Ducks, grebes, black-crowned night heron, common goldeneye, and hooded merganser. Laguna Shores Rd. at Glenoak Rd. in Flour Bluff South Texas Botanical Gardens Impressive assortment of habitats, including wildflower fields, virgin mesquite trails, an herb-lined bird and butterfly trail and more. 8545 S. Staples St. in Corpus Christi Oso Bay Park Shallow estuary provides ample feeding grounds, especially during low tide. Waterfowl and shorebirds of many varieties. Ennis Joslin Rd. 1/2 mile north of SPID Freeway Hans & Pat Suter Wildlife Refuge Waterfowl on this Oso Bay site is can be staggering in numbers; modern birders’boardwalk and many natural trails along the bay. Ennis Joslin Rd. @ Nile Dr. 49 50 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 64 65 66 67 51 63 68 69