Bird count along the Bosque River Trail August 3, 2026. Mysterious black headed bird.
Weather - clear, no wind, temp ~75 degrees at 7:10 am. Supposed to be 100 degrees today.
Hummingbirds - there was a pair of hummingbirds in the wild flower garden. Again I couldn’t identify a type. I am beginning to think they are Black Throated Hummingbirds. I have a picture of one that seems to show some black spots on its neck.
Western Kingbird nest - I saw a Western Kingbird fly up into a tree just south of the dam. I could see it in the tree sitting in a funny position. Eventually I saw that it was sitting on a fairly large nest.
Black headed bird - I saw an unusual (at least to me) bird today. It flew up into a tree in the hayfield and I got a really good view of its upper body with my binoculars. It was a Cardinal sized bird. In fact initially I thought it was a Cardinal. But it had a completely black head and shoulders. It also had a large black eyeball. It flew away and I briefly saw its lower body which was a red or orange color. I guess it could be an oddly colored Cardinal. The only birds I could find that kind of matched what I saw are a Baltimore Oriole or an Orchard Oriole.
Types of birds - 21 - 20 Number of birds - 129
Number Type
22 Robins
17 Starlings
17-16 Cardinals
14 House sparrows
11 Grackles
11 Sparrows - type unknown - lighter brown than House Sparrows and no black chin patch.
7 Western Kingbirds
6 Mockingbirds
5 Mississippi Kites
4 White Winged Doves
2 Scissortail Flycatchers
2 Mourning Doves
2 Hummingbirds - a pair - Black Throated ?
2 Chickadees
1 Merlin - sitting in the hayfield tree, small dark bird distinctive white streak above eyes - I have pictures
1 Great crested Flycatcher
1 Turkey Vulture
1 Belted Kingfisher - heard but not seen
1 Dove type unknown
1 Unknown - small gray bird with lighter belly - may have been a Tufted titmouse.
1 Unknown - cardinal sized bird with a black head and upper body. Lower body was partially red or orange. Possibly a Baltimore Oriole or an Orchard Oriole.