Searching for Elegant Trogans

“Have any trogans been sited recently?” we asked when we checked into the Southwestern Research Station in Cave Creek, Arizona.
“We saw three during last week’s bird tour,” the tour leader relayed. “We saw them near the bridge over the road into the South Fork Picnic Area. They were not calling.”
We were hopefully optimistic. [...]

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Hummingbirds of Southeast Arizona

Five feeders hung from metal hooks placed strategically on the grass in front of the Nature Shop at the Southwestern Research Station, a year-round field station under the direction of the Center for Biodiversity and Conservation of the American Museum of natural History located in Cave Creek, AZ. Hummingbirds swooped in and out, unperturbed [...]

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Birding the Chiricahua Mountains

“Look, there’s a raptor flying against the cliffs,” Donna motioned.
“There’s three, no four. They are Red-tailed Hawks,” Gail replied. “See the dark leading edges of the wings.”
The hawks flew higher as they circled over the tops of the mountains, attracting the attention of two Turkey Vultures who joined the surveillance. [...]

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Migrating Shorebirds at Belen Marsh

The rain came down steadily as we cruised down Interstate 25 towards Belen. However, it was only misting when the Thursday Birders assembled in the parking lot behind Taco Bell, and by time we had gathered at the side of the marsh, it had almost stopped. The good news was that we would not [...]

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Petroglyphs Guest House Caters to Birders

Scaled Quail called from their perch on top of the low bushes in the Petroglyph National Monument across the street from the Petroglyphs Guest House on the far western edge of Albuquerque, NM.
“They roost in a tree in my yard,” Carol Nordengren, the guest house owner, explained. “In the morning when I am [...]

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Birding Sandia Ranger Station and Ojito Open Space

The air was cool, with a hint of fall, as the Thursday Birders gathered at the Sandia Ranger Station in Tijeras. A flock of birds flew in to greet us. “Pine Siskins,” trip co-leader, Karen Boettcher, announced. Two Chipping Sparrows joined the siskins, and then they all flew off into the arroyo [...]

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Migrating Birds on New Mexico’s Eastern Plains

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Late Summer – Bosque del Apache

As we pulled into the parking lot by the Visitor’s Center at the Bosque del Apache, we stopped to admire a male Kestrel perched on top of some dead branches. Movement lower in the tree caught our attention. We were surprised to see a Roadrunner trying to sneak up through the branches towards the [...]

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