By Karen Gleason
For the past two weeks, I have been spending several hours nearly every morning in the city’s FEMA property along Barron Street, hoping to see and photograph the Rufous-capped Warbler once again.
This little bird, as noted in last week’s column, is a very rare visitor to the United States from Mexico and points south. Members of this species occasionally visit south Texas and southern Arizona, and one was found along the San Felipe Creek on Nov. 27.
Birders from across the state have come to Del Rio to try and find this warbler since its discovery here.
It has been seen consistently on the city’s FEMA property along Barron Street between Jones and Guillen streets.
I had seen the warbler twice, both times in a bamboo thicket along the creek.
On Saturday morning, I headed back to the creek.
Like many other mornings over the past two weeks, it was absolutely gorgeous. The sky was a bright, clear blue. The temperature hovered in the high 40s, but warmed quickly as the sun rose.
I spent about half an hour standing near the bamboo hedge, “spishing” and making kissing noises. Strange as it may sound, this sometimes draws birds in, but it sure wasn’t working Saturday.
I wandered up to Barron Street to check out a flock of Yellow-rumped Warblers and Pine Siskins foraging in the pecan trees growing along the road. The nut-laden trees were full of small birds.
I moved away from the pecans and played a Pine Siskin recording, hoping to draw these small birds closer to me. These tiny finches breed in the open woodlands of Canada and can be found throughout the United States during the winter.
I know we have them pretty regularly here in Val Verde County, but I’ve never seen any along the creek and was hoping to get a photo.
The siskins responded to the recording, flying into the upper branches of a broken-down mesquite tree growing close to the road.
I got some photos of the siskins, then noticed another bird foraging in the center of the tree. I glanced at it through my binoculars and almost dropped them in surprise. It was the 
Rufous-capped Warbler.
The little bird had abandoned its haunt in the bamboo hedge and was busy looking for its breakfast. It found a tiny caterpillar, which it ate with gusto, then continued its foraging.
The warbler stayed in the tree for many minutes, occasionally jumping onto an exposed perch and giving me the chance to take a series of photographs.
There are days in the field where everything comes together, when your patience pays off, the weather is right, the light is perfect and the stars align in their orbits for you to get just the right picture.
Saturday was one of those days, and I am beyond grateful to have experienced it. I’m also very happy to be able to share the experience with all of you.
