The Joys of Winter Birding
Find out what Bird Alliance of SW NM members appreciate about birding here in the winter months!
Karen Beckenbach: I enjoy winter birding because of the diversity of sparrows and the challenge in identifying them.
Ken Dayer: Changes in seasons bring in different birds and different challenges. For me, the winter always brings me two challenges. The challenge of identifying LBJs or Little Brown Jobs or sparrows and other related species as they were called by old-timers when I was first learning to bird. Developing the patience and the eye to scan through lots of LBJs to find the one that looks different. The same with the waterfowl, scanning through lots of duckies and others, again to find the one that looks different. Once you find the one, you wonder how come it took you so long to find the one as it stands out from all the common birds around it.
Jeff Johnson: Even though there’s less variety than other seasons, it’s fun to keep track of when the regulars arrive.
Dave McDonald: Many birds come to us for the winter, instead of going away for the winter… The places to find birds change. Lakes have many ducks and other waterbirds, with regular surprises. Chihuahuan grasslands have birds, such as longspurs, that are hard to see, but worth searching out… It’s not so hot! But the birds are... My Summer tanagers become Christmas ornaments in the tropics… Birds in the ponderosas look cuter in the snow.
Will Mora: De cranes, de cranes flying overhead and their raucous calls… The Merlins are back and boy do they zoom by…. Searching for other visiting winter raptors… Ducks at Lake Roberts.
Josh Nemeth: I love listening to the flocks of phainopeplas staking their claims to the berry patches in the foothills that they will congregate around until the spring. I love the sudden arrival of the raptors that will haunt the winter grasslands, which now are alive with sparrows and longspurs. I love the random flocks of sandhill cranes that call overhead when you're out in the middle of nowhere, and the bluebirds and finches that descend from the mountains, zipping by when you least expect it. Along with our familiar cold-weather friends, the winter in New Mexico always brings the feeling that some sort of surprise is just around the corner.
Emily Pollom: We had a Yellow-eyed junco stay at our house in Arenas Valley all winter in 2020, snacking on suet. People from near and far reached out to come see it. We sat on the porch in masks and watched it. It's one of the only ways we met new people in 2020!
Ian Robinson: You don’t have to get up quite so early.... Less leaves on the trees so you can see birds more easily.... Ducks and raptors (and of course cranes) - bigger than summer migrants and don’t move so fast so you can often get really good views! But sparrows will drive you crazy....
Devyn Scott: The common birds get their chance to shine! While I miss the summer birds, I love taking a minute to appreciate the dark-eyed juncos that have taken over my bird feeders. I get to spend a minute with my cat in the morning, both of us watching birds scramble for seeds on the grass.
Susan Slade: Bundle up and get out early to see which birds visit your yard as soon as the sun comes up. Especially at the bird bath! Or pack a hot drink and a morning snack and drive in the dark to the place you plan to bird as the sun comes up!
Dawn Smith: Winter birding in the southwest is sunshine, no wading through waist deep snow, lots of ducks and the return of lesser goldfinches and pine siskins to our feeders.
Cara Staab:
Winter’s prize is here
Two hundred laughs in the sky
Pinyon jays galore.
