East Texas Quarterly Magazine Summer 2014 | Page 8

ated west of the Sabine River, Tony Houseman State
Park and Wildlife Management Area offers birders
the first opportunity to sample the pleasures of Texas
piney woods birding.

is the best place around the lake for finding migrant
land birds in spring and sparrows in winter.

Boykin Springs Recreation Area: Located in the
Angelina National Forest (20 miles north west of
Champion Woodland Trail: Here birders will find Jasper on Highway 63), this site offers a wide variety of
some of the oldest longleaf pines in the United woodland birding opportunities. The bluestem
States and nestled among these giant and aging grasslands within the forest are preferred habitat
trees are a wide variety of birds, including colonies of for Bachman’s sparrows. The wetter grasslands also
red-cockaded woodpeckers.
attract a few Henslow’s sparrows. Brown-headed
nuthatches can be seen throughout the year in
Martin Dies, Jr. State Park: The park, whose headquar- the dense pine stands, and Kentucky warblers,
ters are located on the Jasper County side of the lake, yellow-breasted chats, and painted buntings nest in
is divided into three units (Hen House Ridge, Walnut the yaupon thickets.
Ridge and Cherokee) placed both north and south
of U. S. Highway 190 as you enter Tyler County from
Other birding locations in East Texas include:
Jasper. Birders can look for pileated and other
woodpeckers in the park throughout the year and Davy Crockett National Forest: The 161,497 acre
brown creepers in the winter. There are several Davy Crockett National Forest (Houston County) is
rookeries (heron egret nesting colonies) in and around managed under the multiple-use concept with
the reservoir, and anhingas are frequently spotted in logging, hunting, and other recreational activities.
this part of the loop.
West B.A Steinhagen Reservoir: Yellow-throated
warblers and indigo buntings can be spotted around
the Cherokee Unit. American redstarts have nestled
in Magnolia Ridge Park near the Wolf Creek Trail
parking area. Camper’s Cove Park, south of Town Bluff,

The endangered Red-cockaded Woodpecker

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East Texas Quarterly