Amazon kingfisher makes rare U.S. appearance (TX)

[Donna]

LAREDO – News spreads fast in the birding community.

On Sunday afternoon, two birders from Canada overnighting in Laredo on their way to the Rio Grande Valley visited Zacate Creek, a popular birding site in Laredo. There, they spotted and photographed a female Amazon kingfisher, a species of bird never previously confirmed in the United States.

One, Alan Wormington of Leamington, Canada, "immediately posted it from his hotel room [Sunday] night," said local birder Tom Miller. "Already, people drove up [Monday] morning."

So far, birders from at least eight states and two Canadian provinces have arrived in Laredo to catch a glimpse of the rare kingfisher.

The Amazon kingfisher is typically found no farther north than southern Tamaulipas state in Mexico, birders said.

Its appearance coincides with a recent sighting of the bare-throated tiger heron in the Rio Grande Valley. That bird has already attracted many birders to South Texas. Now, many of those are making stops in Laredo.

Although several photographers took photos of the bird, it must be confirmed with the American Birding Association before the sighting can be considered official.

This is not the first time there have been possible sightings of an Amazon kingfisher in South Texas, but this is the first time the bird has been photographed for confirmation.

No males, or even a second female, have been spotted. Although no one knows for sure where the bird came from, one theory is that, as the recent cold front moved south, instead of staying in front of it, she may have tried to go around it, ending up north of the Rio Grande in the process, according to Miller.