Bird count along the Bosque River Trail June 16, 2026 (air combat)
Weather: Fog at 7:00am burns off to mostly sunny, no wind, temp ~ 75 degrees at 7:00 am, high of 90 today, very humid.
Event 1: It was a low-bird-count day. I saw 9 species less today than on Sunday. As soon as I got out of my car I noticed an absence of birds in the parking lot. Maybe it was the fog.
Event 2: I was sitting on a bench in the park when I heard a loud crashing sound. I looked to my left and saw a dark hawk plunge down through the branches and leaves of a tree. The hawk leveled out and chased a dark colored bird up the river valley. I could not tell what type of hawk it was.
Event 3: A few minutes later I heard a commotion in one of the trees across the river from my bench. I looked up and saw a number of Scissortail Flycatchers buzzing around the top of the tree. Suddenly a Mississippi Kite burst out of the top of the tree screeching its call. At first I thought the flycatchers were chasing the kite, but then I heard the loud call of a hawk. It was a Red-tailed Hawk. It flew out of the tree and around the top of the tree with scissortails buzzing around it. The kite flew circles around the melee. The hawk tried to land in the tree several times, but eventually uproar chased it away. The scissortails and kite were clearly trying to chase the hawk away. They were successful, but later on I saw the hawk sneak back to its roost in the tree.
Bird types: 20 Individual birds: 106
Number of birds Type of birds
~27 Barn Swallows
12 House Sparrows
11 Cardinals
10 Mourning Doves
10 Starlings - one flock of six
5 Scissortail Flycatchers
4 Mississippi Kites
4 Robins
3 Mockingbirds
2 Grackles
2 Bluebirds
2 Ducks - flying - type unknown - probably Black-belly Whistling Ducks
2 Great Blue Herons
2 Hawks - one was a Red-tailed Hawk - one hawk type was unknown
2 Brown-headed Cowbirds - 1 female - 1 male
2 Red-bellied Woodpeckers
2 House Finches - 1 male - 1 female
1 Bluejay
1 Turkey Vulture
1 Crow
1 Dove - type unknown