Grand New Mexico Part II Jun 01—06, 2010
Posted by Barry Zimmer
Barry Zimmer
Barry Zimmer has been birding since the age of eight. His main areas of expertise lie in North and Central America, but his travels have taken him throughout much of the wo...Related Trips
Woodpeckers were certainly a big part of the story on our recent Grand New Mexico North tour. In all we tallied 8 species, starting the first morning with an absolutely stunning Lewis's Woodpecker perched atop a telephone pole no more than 25 feet away. Its rosy-pink belly, deep-red face, silvery collar, and inky-green upperparts shined brilliantly in the morning sun. After soaking up fantastic scope views, we watched as the Lewis's began flycatching (a characteristic trait of this species) over the open fields. This bird was voted the favorite of the trip. Later on that same day we enjoyed a marvelous study of a male Red-naped Sapsucker about three feet off the ground in a nearby Ponderosa pine. This bird allowed us to approach to within about 15 feet. Other highlights of the day included Black-billed Magpie, Pinyon Jay, Western Scrub-Jay, Juniper Titmouse, Western Bluebird, scope views of Virginia's Warbler, striking Western Tanagers, Blue and Black-headed grosbeaks, and Bullock's Oriole.
The next morning found us in the scenically spectacular Jemez Mountains. Here we quickly tallied another target woodpecker, the highly sought Williamson's Sapsucker. Initially the female responded—a curious, brownish, almost flicker-like bird, squawking right overhead. Soon, the dapper male appeared with his red chin, bright yellow belly, and black-and-white body. Eventually they scaled up opposite sides of the same tree right over our heads! Nearby we enjoyed Hammond's, Dusky, and Cordilleran flycatchers, Townsend's Solitaire, MacGillivray's Warbler, Green-tailed Towhee, and Evening Grosbeak. In Valle Grande, the stunning caldera of an ancient volcano, we marveled at sky-blue Mountain Bluebirds, singing Vesper Sparrows, a pair of striking Swainson's Hawks, and a distant herd of elk. Brilliant Violet-green Swallows, Steller's Jay, Pygmy and Red-breasted nuthatches (almost at arm's-length), Mountain Chickadee, Brown Creeper, and Grace's Warbler rounded out the day.
On our third day, we toured the ruins at Bandelier National Monument. Along the path through the 600-year-old Anasazi dwellings, we found flocks of White-throated Swifts, singing Canyon Wrens, and a very out-of-place Osprey. At a nearby campground we added Gray Flycatcher, Rock Wren, more Juniper Titmice and Western Bluebirds, and a male Hepatic Tanager. In the afternoon we had more close studies of both Williamson's and Red-naped sapsuckers. Other highlights of the day included Scaled Quail, a recently fledged Great Horned Owl, and several Curve-billed Thrashers.
Our final day began in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains just outside of Santa Fe. Here we tallied perhaps our best woodpecker of all, the nomadic and locally rare American Three-toed. We had repeated superb views of a female drumming on spruce trees, though our other target for this area, the Pine Grosbeak, remained elusive. We did add Orange-crowned Warbler and a very quick fly-by of a Clark's Nutcracker. The afternoon found us back in Albuquerque where we tallied Wood Duck and Bushtit among others. Finally, it was on to the famous Sandia Crest Tramway. On the way up we had a Peregrine Falcon among the spectacular cliff faces, and after a delicious dinner at the top, a Greater Roadrunner entertained us on a fence post on our way back to the motel. All in all, a superb ending to a great trip!