Parrot Palooza!
/There are red-crowned parrots and green parakeets in Harlingen TX. They are native to Northeast Mexico and might be to the area just across the Rio Grande River which is where Harlingen is located. Both species have adapted to an urban lifestyle. The Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival field trip involved getting on a white van in the late after that slowly drove through Harlingen looking for sites the birds routinely come to before dusk.
We went to a Whataburger parking lot first….and the green parakeets showed up to sit on the nearby wires about 5:45 PM! They sat in groups – preening each other.
The red-crowned parrots were more elusive. We heard them in the air before we saw them. The van was parked in a church parking lot. There were a few parrots on a nearby line. I got bored enough to take a picture of a flowerbed with a bird of paradise plant!
Just as we were about to give up at 6:45 PM, a large flock few overhead (very noisy) and many landed on the lines at the end of the parking lot furthest from where we were. We walked down and took a few pictures even though the light was not very good. The sound the flock made was worth the wait!
And that was the end of our second day at the festival….
