Sunday, May 22, 2011

The Birds of Chavarrillo


Every once in a while, I think people need to be disturbed. This is the one-eyed turkey that lived next door to us in Chavarrillo. It actually had more room to run around than this picture makes it seem, but the turkey was continually having the shit kicked out of it by the yard rooster and the hen turkey (I assume this is why his eye is gone), so often he took to taking shelter in this nook. What's even more complicated is that the hen would occasionally let old Tom here mate with her, which makes things awfully complicated. Talk about an abusive relationship. It was very strange to see Tom strutting around, all proudly puffed-up with wings dragging, only to be fleeing his prospective mate in terror a few moments later. Anyways, if you keep any birds, for my sake don't litter their feeding areas with garbage, its just not classy. Watching Muscovy Ducks hungrily eating plastic is not my idea of fun.

But we are not here to talk about abused turkeys or deranged ducks today. I am posting my Chavarrillo bird list, so anyone going to work at Swainson's Hawk Bird Observatory in the future will know what to expect, and to try to motivate some non-Mexican birders to find their way there. It's not really in taxanomic order and I might have some names wrong, but I think its complete. Birds in bold were new for me. All photos were taken in or adjacent to Chavarrillo.

Least Grebe
American White Pelican
Neotropic Cormorant
Anhinga
Great Egret
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Cattle Egret
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Wood Stork
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Grey-necked Wood-Rail
Osprey
Mississippi Kite
Swallow-tailed Kite
Hook-billed Kite
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Cooper's Hawk
Gray Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Swainson's Hawk


Broad-winged Hawk (pictured above)
Zone-tailed Hawk
Roadside Hawk
Common Black-Hawk
Short-tailed Hawk
Crested Caracara
Bat Falcon
Merlin
American Kestrel
Peregrine Falcon
Plain Chachalaca
Northern Jacana
Solitary Sandpiper
White-tipped Dove
White-winged Dove
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Inca Dove
Ruddy Ground-Dove
Red-billed Pigeon
Rock Pigeon
White-crowned Parrot
Red-lored Parrot



Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl (pictured above)
Vermiculated Screech-Owl (heard only)
Mottled Owl (heard only)
Tawny-colored Nightjar
Vaux's Swift (it is possible Chimneys were observed as well)
Greater Swallow-tailed Swift
White-collared Swift
Golden-olive Woodpecker (conspecific with Bronze-winged Woodpecker now, right?)
Smoky-brown Woodpecker
Golden-fronted Woodpecker
Lineated Woodpecker
Ivory-billed Woodcreeper
Ringed Kingfisher
Green Kingfisher
Little Hermit (again...anybody know the current taxonomy on this species?)
Wedge-tailed Sabrewing
Azure-crowned Hummingbird
Green-breasted Mango
Green Violet-Ear
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Canevet's Emerald
Broad-billed Hummingbird
Buff-bellied Hummingbird
Squirrel Cuckoo
Groove-billed Ani
Keel-billed Toucan
Gartered Trogon
Blue-crowned Motmot
Barn Swallow
Cliff Swallow


Northern Rough-winged Swallow (pictured above)
Dusky-capped Flycatcher
Dusky Flycatcher
Least Flycatcher
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
Western Wood-Pewee
Greenish Elaenia
Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet
Eastern Phoebe
Vermilion Flycatcher
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher
Boat-billed Flycatcher
Great Kiskadee
Social Flycatcher
Couch's Kingbird
Tropical Kingbird
Western Kingbird


Masked Tityra (pictured above)
Yellow-green Vireo
Warbling Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
White-eyed Vireo
Barred Antshrike
Rufous-browed Peppershrike
Brown Jay
Green Jay
Black-crested Titmouse
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Rufous-naped Wren
Band-backed Wren
Spot-breasted Wren
House Wren
White-bellied Wren
Clay-colored Thrush/Robin
White-throated Thrush/Robin



Long-billed Thrasher (pictured above)
Blue Mockingbird
Gray Catbird
Blue-grey Gnatcatcher
Red-legged Honeycreeper
Greyish Saltator
Black-headed Saltator
Rose-throated Becard
Blue-winged Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler
Nashville Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Tropical Parula
Northern Parula
Magnolia Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Worm-eating Warbler
Ovenbird
American Redstart
Black-and-white Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
MacGillivray's Warbler
Wilson's Warbler
Rufous-capped Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Grey-crowned Yellowthroat
Slate-throated Redstart
Yellow-breasted Chat
Northern Cardinal
Crimson-collared Grosbeak
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Indigo Bunting
Varied Bunting



Painted Bunting (above, with a Green Heron. Weird mixed flock.)
Western Tanager
Summer Tananger
Yellow-winged Tanager
Blue-grey Tanager
Lincoln's Sparrow
Rusty Sparrow
Scrub Euphonia
Yellow-throated Euphonia
Great-tailed Grackle
Bronzed Cowbird
Melodious Blackbird
Orchard Oriole
Baltimore Oriole
Audubon's Oriole
Altamira Oriole



Montezuma Oropendula (pictured above)
Yellow-billed Cacique
Yellow-faced Grassquit
Blue-black Grassquit
White-collared Seedeater
House Finch
Lesser Goldfinch
House Sparrow

167 species, almost all within walking distance from the observatory! Pretty snazzy. For the record, this was from February 24 thru April 28, 2011. Someone who has more free time in the future could easily rack up some more.

Other observers also recorded Yellow-headed Parrot, Black Swift, White-bellied Emerald, Northern Bentbill and Red-crowned Ant-Tanager, among others.

I promise, whether you like it or not, more Mexican content in the near future. I will also officially announce that I am settled here in North Dakota and I seem to have internet access, so it will be a long, bloggy summer. Tomorrow is my first day of paid work since September 30. Sick.

1 comment:

  1. Wow that's an awesome list. I am so dumb that I looked at your pygmy owl photo and for a second thought to myself, why the hell did he post a photo of a song sparrow???

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