KERR WMA

Yeah! I got to head back to my old stomping grounds (central Texas that is) and catch two of my most favorite birds, the Golden-cheeked Warbler and Black-capped Vireo! I love my new job!

This was a really great trip! I got to take our contract student along (it was her first week of work and she loved it!), and catch up with my bird-catching partner-in-crime, graduate advisor, and another Lebergian labmate.

Here is Kelly teaching Myra how to hold a Black-capped Vireo.

After Kelly and Paul left, and after the work day (you can only catch birds until early afternoon most days in Texas, due to the heat and high winds), the rest of us went over to Lost Maples State Park. Texas has a lot of beautiful parks to offer, and this one is no exception. This was my second trip to Lost Maples (Kelly and I went back in 2005 when we were working at Kerr WMA). We saw a few Golden-cheeks (and heard many more) while hiking, sat around the pond hoping to see a new Kingfisher, and hiked up to the top for a full view of the park (and a cool breeze)!

Yes! This time around I got to hold an Ash-throated Flycatcher! (We tried and tried to catch one back in 2005, without success)

Here I am in 2006 with a Golden-cheek we caught by accident while trying to catch a Black-cap. We were nowhere near acceptable Golden-cheek habitat, but this guy was really aggressive! He responded to the Black-cap song (we weren't even playing the Screech Owl)!

Definitely one of the most beautiful birds in Texas. I let the Screech Owl song play a bit longer than usual to catch this guy so Myra could see him up close.

A big storm was rolling in as we hiked up Enchanted Rock (another gorgeous state park), which made for some pretty photos, but a somewhat scary hike back down.

Here we are striking a pose at the top... Myra, me, Christina (Giri's field assistant for the 2006 season), and Giri. We wanted to wait for sunset to head back, but the rain started falling. We ended up hitting the safety of the Gazebo about 10 minutes too late... we were drenched. As we looked back up the rock, we noticed a RIVER flowing through the crevice we had just descended through... flash floods are scary!

FIRST VICKSBURG VISITORS

Jean and Grandmother came to visit this weekend, becoming our first visitors! It also happened to be Mother's Day weekend, so the timing was perfect!

We had lots of fun doing "touristy" things... We're still new to the area, so we needed to see these things!

Here are Jay and Grandmother as the visitor center, overlooking the new and old Mississippi River Bridges.

This is my artsy photo from the USS Cairo at the Vicksburg National Battlefield.

And her is Jean just outside the USS Cairo.

Looking over the side deck towards the neighbor's pond.

Down in the Sunken Trace on the Natchez Trace Parkway.

We took a river tour on the Sweet Olive just before sunset. This scene is where the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers meet. The tour was neat... we got to get out on the water, see the casino boats from a different angle, and go under the bridges, but it was overpriced in my opinion.

This is the best casino in town, the Ameristar. All gambling in Vicksburg takes place "out on the Mississippi", even though the casinos have been dry docked since the hurricanes in 2005 (for safety reasons). You can see the casino boat with the hotel up on the hill beyond. Niether Jay or I gamble, but we do like the Friday night seafood buffet at the Heritage Buffet (expensive, but worth it if you like steak, crablegs, and dozens of amazing deserts)!

Next to the boat docks is meter of all the major floods affecting Vicksburg, courtesy of the US Army Corps of Engineers of course!

This scene is also just across from the docks. Here are Jay, Grandmother, and Jean posing in front of the Vicksburg river-side welcome sign.