Hurricane Ike came ashore on September 13, 2008 and was an amazingly destructive storm. The calls started coming in to the office as soon as the phones were

working again. “Are the sanctuaries still there?” “Will there be birds?”

All of Houston Audubon’s coastal sanctuaries were impacted. At Bolivar Flats the storm surge moved the beach and mudflats inland, and tons of debris, including huge containers from container ships, were left on the shore and in the marsh. The vehicular barrier and many fences were washed away. Whole houses were left in Horseshoe Marsh along with the contents of local stores. Most upland trees and shrubs were killed by the salt water. Mundy Marsh wound up with sand from the beach across the highway plus pilings and air conditioners from the houses that used to be on the beach. It appeared that the houses floated across the bay. The salt marsh grasses in these three sanctuaries were still in pretty good shape. Although the storm surge had flattened them, they were still green.

Our High Island sanctuaries lost trees but not as many as were lost to Hurricane Humberto on September 13, 2007. Of course we had fewer trees to lose. The trees in Boy Scout Woods were hit hardest, with water oaks and hackberries down, and mulberries cracked and broken. Smith Oaks lost a couple of the big oaks in the picnic area, smaller oaks and hackberries

throughout the woods, and some limbs off the big oaks in the middle of the woods. Smith Pond was inundated with salt water, which killed many of the cypresses and willows that had been planted along the shore. The Rookery in Claybottom Pond, Eubank’s Woods, and the S.E. Gast Red Bay Sanctuary lost trees.

As for the birds, well, we didn’t see a lot of mortality although undoubtedly there was some. We did find Brown Pelican bodies on the beach, but other than that, we could only make assumptions. At Bolivar Flats we assumed that Clapper Rails and Seaside Sparrows were drowned by the storm surge, and shorebirds and waders were pushed inland. Most land birds were gone from the Bolivar Peninsula as was most of the land bird habitat. Starlings and Rock Pigeons were the common birds on the peninsula a week after the storm. What they were eating was never obvious. There were mockingbirds here and there in places where there was a yaupon bush or two. At High Island, doves, particularly the big ones, seemed to have been blown away, but other resident land birds were there after the storm, and fall migrants showed up immediately.

The fall and winter were spent cleaning up and planting. At Bolivar Flats volunteers and the state picked up tons of debris, and some fences were rebuilt. The vehicular barrier was replaced with power poles downed by the storm, cable donated by Schlumberger, and funds from ConocoPhillips.

Houston Audubon 2009 Coastal Sanctuaries Report

by Winnie Burkett, Sanctuary Manager

Kentucky Warbler: Greg LavatyHigh Island – April 6, 2009

Cape May Warbler: Greg LavatySmith Oaks – May 3, 2009

Yellow Warbler: Joanne KamoHigh Island – April 17, 2009

2 Houston Audubon 2009 Coastal Sanctuaries Report

Roseate Spoonbills: Joanne KamoThe Rookery at Smith Oaks – April 25, 2009

We tried to clean up Horseshoe Marsh, but it was beyond us. FEMA contractors came in and demolished the houses and scraped up everything else. Pilings and air conditioners remain in Mundy Marsh. We decided it would do too much damage to the marsh to get vehicles in there to drag them out.

Professional tree crews were needed to handle the big complicated tree work at High Island, and the volunteers cleaned up everything else. It was months of chain sawing, hauling, and burning. Once we got areas cleaned up, the replanting began. Three hundred plus trees and shrubs were planted in the sanctuaries during the winter. All together, more than 3,000 volunteer hours were spent cleaning up and planting. What would we do without volunteers?

As spring approached and the High Island sanctuaries greened up, the phones continued to ring. “Are the High Island sanctuaries still there?” “Will there be birds this spring?” Too many people only saw pictures of the devastation. Of course, the news rarely shows what survives. Some birders thought that because of the hurricane, the birds wouldn’t come, but the birds didn’t know. They just migrated, and when they reached the Upper Texas Coast, they looked for habitat, and we had lots of habitat ready.

Spring came, and with it came the birds, birders, and our wonderful volunteers. This was the second year of Houston Audubon’s partnership with Tropical Birding at High Island, and the partnership has been great fun. Several Tropical Birding guides spent the spring at High Island leading free bird walks in Houston Audubon sanctuaries. There were four bird walks every day from March 28 to May 3, and they were all well attended. Having the extra expert birders there seems to result in more unusual bird sightings and more birding energy.

The last couple of years we have started the spring with consistently strong south winds, which is great for migrating birds but not too good for birders, but that was not the case this spring. Cold fronts regularly reached the coast bringing nice numbers of a good variety of birds.

Activity started late in the Rookery, most likely due to the drought that started before Ike hit and stretched through the spring. The lack of rain meant low water in the pond and fewer nesting sites for water birds, but the birds that nested did well.

Low water levels also attracted a nice variety of shorebirds. Birds like Stilt Sandpipers became a sanctuary regular.

The most unusual bird of the spring was a Hooded Oriole that fed in Cape Honeysuckle in a High Island neighbor’s yard. Western Tanagers were seen on and off for several weeks, and Black-whiskered Vireos were found on several occasions.

The changes at Bolivar Flats made birding from the beach difficult, but lots of birds were there, and at low tide birds could easily be viewed from the jetty. Our assumptions about Clapper Rails and Seaside Sparrows proved to be wrong and they were present in all the appropriate habitat. (What did they do during the storm??)

Horseshoe Marsh wound up being the place to find Bobolinks and Dickcissels. Had we not looked there before? We were always so confident about finding them in Gilchrist, we may have overlooked them.

We had fewer birders then usual on the Upper Texas Coast this spring, but birders came from 45 states and 15 foreign countries, and they were not disappointed. Birding was great. The daily reports by our Tropical Birding guides available on our website at www.houstonaudubon.org in the High Island section of Sanctuaries give a colorful picture of a wonderful spring.

Summer Tanager feasting on a mulberry: Joanne KamoHigh Island – April 17, 2009

Warbling Vireo: Greg LavatyHigh Island – Spring 2009

3www.houstonaudubon.org

High Island Kiosk Volunteers

Hurricane Cleanup VolunteersSkip Almoney • Deb Aronson • Judy Aronson • John Arvin • Bill Baker • Barbers H.S. Key Club • Norma Barnes • Cindy BartosJohn Bartos • Mary Ann Beauchemin • Betsy Black • Peggy Boston • Judy Boyce • BP’s Gulf of Mexico Exploration UnitVicky Briones • Marcie Brown • Mary Brown • David Burkett • Debbie Burnett • Jack Burnett • Caroline Callery • Jan CatoJessica Clark • Jean Clark • Ginger Coleman • Carlton Collier • Susan Davis • Sue Davison • Lucy Downey • Kevin EllisNancy Ellis • Clare Erne • Charles Erwin • Harlan Evans • Sue Fennewald • Nancy Fite • Laurie Foss • Phyllis Frank • Tony FrankJoanna Friesen • Andrew Fulton • Julia Garrett • Mary Goldsby • Marshall GrahamGary Gray • Mike Gray • Milton Gray • Adam Grier • Veda Hackell • Kay HaleDale Hamilton • Shelia Hargis • Bill Harwell • Susan Heath • Judy HeffnerSusan Henry • Denise Herzberg • Jenny Herzberg • Joy Hester • June HillChantz Howell • Josh Howell • Lori Howell • Nealy Howell • Bernice HotmanBen Hulsey • Mary Gwen Hulsey • Charlona Ingram • Bernice JacksonEd Jackson • Carol Jones • Andy Jordan • Wendy Keitel • Kerry KernsJohn Kirschner • Earle Krause • Deanna Krause • Corey Leboff • Andy LopezWallace Lowery • Mrs. Lowery • Catherine MacGregor • Theresa MacGregorSheryl Maruca • Steve Matherly • Tess McElvaney • Sandra Moore • Sandy McHone Kendall Murphy • Megan Neal • Janet Neath • Goeff Newton • Ria NicholasWayne Nicholas • Anton Nielsen • Boogie O’Conner • Lynn O’Conner Carolyn Ogden • Frank Ohrt • John Old • James Penny • Becky PhillipsSteve Powell • Mary Helen Pritchett • Albert Ramierz • Carol RamsayerBarbara Rapstein • Jane Rierson • Fred Rogers • Bill Saulmon • John SchneiderJack Schwaller • Sue Schwalller • Richard Senechal • Pauline SingletaryJim Skogsberg • Lillian Skogsberg • Becky Smith • Sam Smith • Pam SmolenDede Snavely • Al Starr • Mike Stelling • Aaron Stoley • Dominic Stolle • Jane StormerJay Stormer • Billie Strickland • David Swaim • Tom Taroni • Barbara TiltonJetta Todaro • Tobi Troxell • Debbie Valdez • Don Verser • Sarah Vickers • Mort VollerKelly Walker • Ben Wardwell • George Watanabee • Ruth Webb • Ron WeeksRhett Wilkins • Jim Winn • Marc Winn • Jessica Woodson • Tara Wutke

Black-whiskered Vireo: Greg LavatySmith Oaks – May, 2009

Shirley Adams • Beverly Adderholt • Skip Almoney • Mary Lou Anderson • Ann Barb • Norma Barnes • Betsy BlackPeggy Boston • Craig Bourgeois Marcie Brown • Debbie BurnettJack Barnett • Richard Carey Ginger Coleman • Marty CoyleSue Davison • Donna Diggons Nancy Dobbs • Dianna EickhornMike Fredericksen • Joanna Friesen Shirley Garies • Julia Garrett Carol Beth Gore • Lucille Gottschius Doris Graham • Jean HackneyMary Hannigan • Bill Harwell Jean Harwell • Betsy HarwoodSergio Heano • Wanda Henao Barbara Hickl • Ed HicklLisa Holmes • Bernice Hotman Fae Humphrey • Bernice JacksonEd Jackson • Linda Kuhnen Bette Lester • Paul Lester Andy Loker • Carol Lynn Loker Barbara Massey • Dick MasseySandy McHone • Sandra Moore Celeste Newton • Paul NewtonMaureen O’Conner • Pat Park Pat Pease • Glenda PerryJames Saxon • Elsie Smith Sam Smith • Billie StricklandGretchen Thoman • Barbara Tilton Debbie Valdez Lettalou Whittington • Jana Whittle Carl Wilkerson • Sherry Wilkerson Betty Williams • Laurie Williams Mary Yurkovich • Liz Dear-Zivley

Painted Bunting : Joanne KamoHigh Island – April 17, 2009

Special Thanks ...

To Joanne Kamo and Greg Lavaty for supplying all the photogaphy in this report. All the photos were taken in the spring of 2009 at High Island and Bolivar Flats.

Semipalmated Sandpiper: Greg Lavaty

4 Houston Audubon 2009 Coastal Sanctuaries Report

Upland Sandpiper, Northern Parula, and Blackpoll Warbler images courtesy of Greg Lavaty

Black-bellied Whistling-DuckFulvous Whistling-DuckGadwallAmerican WigeonMottled DuckBlue-winged TealNorthern ShovelerNorthern PintailGreen-winged TealGreater ScaupLesser ScaupSurf ScoterWhite-winger ScoterBlack ScoterRed-breasted MerganserCommon LoonPied-billed GrebeAmerican White PelicanBrown PelicanNeotropic CormorantDouble-crested CormorantCormorant speciesAnhingaMagnificent FrigatebirdLeast BitternGreat Blue HeronGreat EgretSnowy EgretLittle Blue HeronTricolored HeronReddish EgretCattle EgretGreen HeronBlack-crowned Night-HeronYellow-crowned Night-HeronWhite IbisWhite-faced IbisRoseate SpoonbillWood StorkTurkey VultureOspreySwallow-tailed KiteMississippi KiteNorthern HarrierSharp-shinned HawkCooper’s HawkRed-shouldered HawkBroad-winged HawkSwainson’s HawkRed-tailed HawkCrested CaracaraAmerican KestrelMerlinPeregrine FalconClapper RailSora

Purple GallinuleCommon MoorhenAmerican CootBlack-bellied PloverAmerican Golden-PloverSnowy PloverWilson’s PloverSemipalmated PloverPiping PloverKilldeerAmerican OystercatcherBlack-necked StiltAmerican AvocetGreater YellowlegsLesser YellowlegsSolitary SandpiperWilletSpotted SandpiperUpland SandpiperWhimbrelLong-billed CurlewHudsonian GodwitMarbled GodwitRuddy TurnstoneRed KnotSanderlingSemipalmated SandpiperWestern SandpiperLeast SandpiperBaird’s SandpiperPectoral SandpiperPurple SandpiperWhite-rumped SandpiperDunlinStilt SandpiperBuff-breasted SandpiperShort-billed DowitcherLong-billed DowitcherWilson’s SnipeWilson’s PhalaropeLaughing GullFranklin’s GullBonaparte’s GullRing-billed GullHerring GullGlaucous GullGull-billed TernCaspian TernRoyal TernSandwich TernCommon TernForster’s TernLeast TernBlack TernBlack SkimmerRock PigeonEurasian Collared-DoveWhite-winged DoveMourning DoveInca DoveYellow-billed CuckooBlack-billed Cuckoo

Tennessee WarblerOrange-crowned WarblerNashville WarblerNorthern ParulaYellow WarblerChestnut-sided WarblerMagnolia WarblerYellow-rumped WarblerBlack-throated Green WarblerBlackburnian WarblerYellow-throated WarblerPine WarblerPrairie WarblerPalm WarblerBlackpoll WarblerCerulean WarblerBlack-and-white WarblerAmerican RedstartProthonotary WarblerWorm-eating WarblerOvenbirdNorthern WaterthrushLouisiana WaterthrushKentucky WarblerCommon YellowthroatHooded WarblerWilson’s WarblerCanada Warbler Yellow-breasted ChatEastern TowheeChipping SparrowLark SparrowSavannah SparrowNelson’s SparrowSeaside SparrowSong SparrowLincoln’s SparrowSwamp SparrowWhite-throated SparrowHarris’s SparrowWhite-crowned SparrowNorthern CardinalSummer TanagerScarlet TanagerRose-breasted GrosbeakBlue GrosbeakIndigo BuntingPainted BuntingDickcisselRed-winged BlackbirdEastern MeadowlarkYellow-headed BlackbirdCommon GrackleBoat-tailed GrackleGreat-tailed GrackleBronzed CowbirdBrown-headed CowbirdOrchard OrioleHooded OrioleBaltimore OrioleGoldfinchHouse Sparrow

Barn OwlGreat Horned OwlCommon NighthawkChuck-will’s-widowChimney SwiftRuby-throated HummingbirdBlack-chinned HummingbirdBuff-bellied HummingbirdBelted KingfisherRed-bellied WoodpeckerYellow-bellied SapsuckerDowny WoodpeckerNorthern FlickerPileated WoodpeckerOlive-sided FlycatcherEastern Wood-PeweeYellow-bellied FlycatcherAcadian FlycatcherWillow FlycatcherTraill’s FlycatcherLeast FlycatcherEastern PhoebeGreat Crested FlycatcherWestern KingbirdEastern KingbirdScissor-tailed FlycatcherLoggerhead ShrikeWhite-eyed VireoYellow-throated VireoBlue-headed VireoWarbling VireoPhiladelphia VireoRed-eyed VireoBlack-whiskered VireoBlue JayHorned LarkPurple MartinTree SwallowNorthern Rough-winged SwallowBank SwallowCliff SwallowBarn SwallowCarolina WrenHouse WrenWinter WrenSedge WrenMarsh WrenGolden-crowned KingletRuby-crowned KingletBlue-gray GnatcatcherVeerySwainson’s ThrushHermit ThrushWood ThrushAmerican RobinGray CatbirdNorthern MockingbirdBrown ThrasherEuropean StarlingAmerican PipitCedar WaxwingBlue-winged Warbler

Spring 2009 Bird List for the Bolivar PeninsulaMarch 1, 2009 – May 31, 2009