Spotting

I should have checked eBird; I use it enough myself to know its value. One of my field guides also shows that range expansion.

Recent expansion puts Neotropic as a regular resident in Austin (see eBird). In this case, stocky proportions and seemingly long tail indicate Neotropic over Double-crested.

Probably double-crested cormorant; although neotropic cormorant can also occur in Texas, the map at http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Neotr... suggests that neotropics are rarer as one gets away from the coast..