A Vermilion Flycatcher and a fall migration workshop

This September I took Travis Audubon’s Migration Workshop, a deep dive into one of the most remarkable things birds do. Over three evening sessions we covered the biology of migration, how birds find their way, how geography and weather shape their journeys, the dangers they face, and the tools used to study and track migration. We also learned when and where to look for migrants around Austin and across Texas.

The field trips were the highlight: an evening at O. Henry Middle School for Swift Night Out, a morning at Roy G. Guerrero Park in East Austin, and a day at Warbler Woods near San Antonio.

At Roy G. Guerrero Park I found this Vermilion Flycatcher sitting on a bare, lichen-covered branch. With her gray-brown back and soft salmon belly, she is a female. The males are the ones that earn the name, with a brilliant red crown and underparts.

Vermilion Flycatchers hunt from open perches. They sit and watch, dart out to snatch an insect in mid-air, and often return to the same spot. This one was in no hurry. She fluffed up her feathers and took her time preening, which gave me the chance to watch her closely.

In Central Texas some Vermilion Flycatchers can be found all year, while many others move south for the winter. The workshop made me look at familiar birds differently, too: which of them are only passing through, which ones stay, and what they need along the way.

Thank you to Travis Audubon for a wonderful workshop. If you live in or around Austin, I can warmly recommend their classes and field trips.