On a recent trip to Texas for the Spring Chirp bird festival, we had a chance to do a little exploring. I have done a bit of birding around the Hill Country, but there is just so much to see! Looking at my eBird Target Species, there was an obvious choice to go chase: Black-capped Vireo. Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge showed the more frequent and most recent sightings, so we thought we would give that a try, as it is a site we had never been to before! We jumped in the car and arrived there about noon.

This NWR was established just northwest of Austin in 1992 to protect the breeding range of endangered Black-capped Vireos and Golden-cheeked Warblers. It is composed of almost 30,000 acres of juniper and oak woodlands and savannahs, supported by a network of karst (limestone caves, rivers, and sinkholes) that spans several counties. Human development was the primary threat to these migratory species, so it was important to preserve this habitat. But this specific region is important for humans too! The water that flows through and beneath these habitats feeds the Hill Country rivers, which eventually reach the coast and provide millions with drinking water.

Our first stop was Shin Oak Observation Deck, which is a very small site but just enough to see the vireo! A short walk down a gravel path leads you to a large gazebo with the Black-capped Vireos singing in the bushes.

These vireos were listed as endangered in 1987 when the population plummeted to only 350 individuals, due to habitat loss from urbanization and agricultural conversion. These grassy landscapes were historically maintained by fire, and suppression of that caused forest succession away from what the vireos require. Conservation measures included prescribed fire, improved grazing management, and control of Brown-headed Cowbirds. This species was delisted in 2018 thanks to these efforts, and recent surveys show more than 22,000 vireos in the wild.

Back at the observation deck, we had a vireo singing and singing and singing just out of view. Frustrated that we weren’t getting any looks, we walked the short trail at the site and ended up hearing two more singing; we also had a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Turkey Vultures, White-eyed Vireo, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, and Spotted Towhee. Finally, back at the start, we spotted one male in the bushes! And now that we could find it so easily, we had plenty of time to check out a bit more of Balcones Canyonlands NWR.