Pedernales Falls State Park Prothonotary Warbler Nest Box Study: January Nest Box Repairs & Bird Blind Visit

Prothonotary Warbler Occurrence In Texas

Central Texas draws the western line for the Prothonotary Warbler range. This species occupies much of eastern North America up to the southern boarder of Ontario Canada.
Prothonotarys' nest in natural cavities but also readily use nest boxes located on or near water. Flooded swamps represent ideal habitat but they will also nest along rivers or small bodies of water.
In May 2007 I saw a brightly colored male Prothonotary Warbler at Pedernales Falls State Park bird blind. After some research I learned male birds have been seen building nests in neighboring counties to Blanco County. Further research revealed a pair of Prothonotary Warblers successfully nested at Heard Wildlife Sanctuary in McKinney, Texas.
In December 2007 I decided to undertake a nest box study at the park. January through February 2008 I hiked the entire Pedernales River and tributaries within park boundaries, in an effort to choose the best sites. Habitat selection proved a challenge do to high flood levels along the river.
Five sights were eventually selected where two nest boxes each were placed. Most boxes were attached to trees however two were attached to metal poles. These boxes were monitored from March through June 2008 on a weekly basis. A Breeding Bird Study was conducted at each nestbox location in 2008 and will be continued in 2009.

Sunday, January 25, 2009

January Nest Box Repairs & Bird Blind Visit

Today I waited until temperatures warmed to the high 40's before venturing out to the park as my plan was to mountain bike to East Park Boundary 3-1/2 miles distant from the Primitive Campground parking lot. Lucky for me I did not have to do that.

I was very fortunate to connect up with Bill McDaniel, park manager, who put me in touch with

Lynn Kuenstler, a State Park Peace Officer. Lynn drove me out to Tobacco Creek and East Park Boundary nest box sites. My aim today was to remove the fronts of the boxes so I can open the entrance holes to 1-1/2" wide by 2+" in height. We also visited Twin Falls nest boxes #1 & 2. At Twin Falls a trespasser gained access to the pool area, pulled one nest box with pole out of the ground and threw it into the deep pool. Lucky the weight of the pole and box did not allow for a far throw, whereby Lynn was able to pull the box out of the pool. I also learned today the location of a Mountain Lion sighting made last Fall at Jones Springs, relatively close to one of my nest box sites.

At the bird blind there were still a couple of Pine Siskins, one Dark-eyed Junco, a White-throated Sparrow and a Fox Sparrow, along with an Orange-crowned Warbler and a Ruby-crowned Kinglet. On the drive out of the park I spotted two Common Ravens soaring high in the sky. I believe this to be a mated pair who will be nesting soon either in a stick nest built in a tree or on a rock outcrop. Ravens mate for life and have a territory approximately 10 square miles or larger. This all depends on food availability.