Common Birds of Texas Gulf Coast

North America's tallest bird at 1.5 m — the entire wild migratory population of 800+ birds winters at Aransas NWR; boat tours from Rockport guarantee close views of this magnificent white crane.

North America's most theatrical hunter — performs a drunken, umbrella-wing dance while chasing fish through shallow water; Texas holds most of the US population.

The male — red, blue, and green — is considered North America's most beautiful bird; migrants pour through coastal live oaks at High Island and Smith Oaks during April-May.

Texas's state bird — the male's 30 cm tail streamers float behind it as it perches on roadside fences and stoops to catch insects over Texas roadsides throughout the summer.

A master pirate of the air — harasses other seabirds into dropping food with extraordinary aerial agility; males have the largest wingspan-to-weight ratio of any bird.

Texas holds a large resident spoonbill population — the Texas City Dike and Bolivar Flats provide outstanding views of feeding and roosting birds throughout the year.

Winters in good numbers on Texas beaches — Bolivar Flats just north of Galveston concentrates migrant and wintering shorebirds including large Piping Plover flocks.

A year-round resident of Texas coastal marshes and prairies — the Texas Coast holds the largest Mottled Duck population outside of Florida, with thousands wintering in rice-field country.