On Sunday January 3rd, we finally got a good look and a few photos of the
rock wren that has been attracting birders to Pine Gully Park in Seabrook, TX. We often walk and bird in this park, which is near our appartment. It had been reported on eBird for several weeks, but we had missed it, and were beginning to wonder if it really existed.
Rock wrens normally live on rocky slopes, canyons, and rubble in the western mountains and deserts (Peterson, R.T., 2008, Field Guide to Birds of North America). The closest they come to our area is western Texas. The bird here in Seabrook is living and feeding in the rocky rip-rap which protects the bay front of the park from erosion. The bird was working its way in and out of the crevices and interstices in the rocks apparently feeding on invertebrates it finds there. It does not seem particularly shy and at one point was sitting on a rock within 10' of us.
We have only been birding a few years, and this is the 271st on our "life list". The rock wren is not especially rare in its normal habitats. However, This is the first time the species has been reported in Harris County, TX. It is also the first bird we have identified that is a rarity in the place where we found it, giving a little extra excitement to a new "lifer".
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