On 20 February 2018, we found ourselves at one of our favorite south Texas stops, the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. At the headquarters, they have some water and a few active bird feeders. On any trip, this is a good place to see the first few south Texas specialty birds—like Green Jays and Altamira Orioles.
White-tipped Doves also stroll among the undergrowth. These doves become common further south through Latin America, at least where they are not over-hunted. White-tipped Doves spend most of their time on the ground. Without the aid of a feeder, they can be difficult to detect. Hogan (1999) writes that it is surprising how little is known about the biology.
We were delighted to list the Long-billed Thrasher. We watched as it consumed what appeared to be insect grubs from a rotten log under one of the feeders. Tweit (1997) does not sepcifically mention grubs in his list of thrasher prey—these birds take a wide variety of arthropods and berries. Grubs, however, would be hard to retrieve from thrasher digestive tracts.
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