The bat falcon is a small bird of prey. And it is indigenous to Mexico and Central America. Somehow a lone bat falcon has made his way across the Rio Grande and is wintering in Texas.

The bat falcon was originally spotted at the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge in Alamo, Texas which is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).  

According to USFWS, this is the first time that a bat falcon has ever been seen in the U.S.

Officials determined that the bird's "buff-cinnamon throat and crest bars," make it a juvenile or younger bird. And the "the thickness of the tarsus and beak" indicates that it's a male.

 These birds have distinctive orange, black and white plumage. And have dark back feathers on the top of the bird’s head that looks like a mask.

A bird of prey is a hunter. Bat falcons are mainly crepuscular, which means they are twilight hunters. Expect to see them hunting at dusk and dawn. And they communicate with each other both visually and vocally.

According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Bat falcons are considered a species of Least Concern. It is estimated there are somewhere between 500,000 and five million of these birds in the wild.

Bat falcon photographs going viral

Photographer Peter Witt took some photos of the bird on February 9th. 

USFWS shared his photos of the bird on its Facebook page this week. And were on Yahoo's Twitter page. 

Joe Barnett, USFWS deputy refuge manager for the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge, told Border Report that, so far, about 4,000 excited birders with binoculars-in-hand have descended on the refuge.

 Since the bat falcon was first spotted the wildlife refuge has had a large spike in visitors.

"Somebody even came from Europe, so it's drawing a lot of attention. People coming just to see this bird," Barnett added.

Barnett lives on the refuge. And he claims to have seen the bat falcon in a tree above his backyard. He was sitting outside at the time. He didn’t have his camera handy. But he did get a look at the now-famous bird.

“It’s always awesome to see something you’re not expecting to see,” Barnett said.