Long-eared Owl at Sabine Woods!

Thanks to Jana Wittle, who called me with the news, I was among those who got to see the Long-eared Owl at Sabine Woods today.   Actually there were at least two present, but one flew off before I arrived and could not be refound.  I know that better photos were obtained by others, but here's one of mine:

Long-eared Owl is always a good find, and particularly so in eastern and coastal Texas, where it is considered a rarity.

It's getting late for neotropical migrants, and winter birds were much more in evidence.  Lately Sabine Woods has hosted large numbers of sparrows, mostly White-throated, but Chipping, Savannah, White-crowned, Field, Swamp, Song, and Lincoln's were also present.  The Eastern Phoebe pictured below was one of many.  They seemed to be everywhere, even within the shady depths of the woods.

Of all the raptors seen today, this immature Red-shouldered Hawk was the most approachable:

 

Back at home, a Selasphorus hummingbird has been frequenting our feeders since October 30th, and my first Dark-eyed Junco of the fall was observed in a neighbor's yard this morning.