After searching unsuccessfully 2 days, I considered that the Centennial Park Yellow-bellied Sapsucker may have left the area. However, I know that they can be missed for several reasons: if they are loafing in a large cottonwood, it is virtually impossible to see them as they tend to perch on a horizontal branch; they are hiding from disruption in the top section of a pine tree where pine needles are thicker; or they may be foraging at another location in the area. Since it was tennis lesson day with a lot of players at the court across from where this sapsucker is usually found, though I was there early there had already been a lot of activity as they park their cars adjacent to the pine trees.
All this to say I thought it was worth another trip to look for the sapsucker--and it paid off as I did find the bird. Since it had been so sensitive that I had avoided looking for it for a month to avoid being an intrusive birder, I stopped my car before I got to the tree the bird was in so I would be about 50 feet away. I stayed in my car and I was careful not to make noise. Indeed, these precautions were necessary as this sapsucker would stop feeding and freeze when a car would drive by or on one occasion when a person walked by on the other side of the street. In fact, I had to be careful taking photos as this sapsucker would stop feeding and look in my direction when it heard the clicking noise that my digital camera makes when I take a photo (not a lot of noise as I have turned off the bell-like noise many of these digital cameras make). So in order not to disturb it's feeding, I didn't try to move my car to get better photos (though I did get a view of it's gorgeous red crown). As these pics may not be as good as I could have gotten, it would not have been worth it to disturb this super-sensitive bird. I did brighten and add some contrast to this photo as it was rather dark (I usually only crop my pics).
I also saw a Ruby-crowned Kinglet in the trees where this sapsucker was feeding plus a second kinglet at Rouse Park.
SeEtta
Labels: birds, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Today I birded the Caston area of Big Bend National Park, an area where the Rio Grande River flows into Santa Elena Canyon. The weather was improved today, sunny and it got into the 70's in this lower elevation area and I even stripped down to a t-shirt. I found this sweet Ruby-crowned Kinglet in the campground that is an area with a nice cottonwood gallery, mesquite and other native trees. Other landbirds included a number of Yellow-rumped Warblers, a Black Phoebe, Golden-fronted Woodpeckers and Red-naped Woodpeckers. 
