Winter Mexico Tour Y2K16, Days 8-9: Rancho Primavera

After Tecuitata, we headed south for fertile new birding grounds, in a new state and different time zone, no less. We lurked south through the sprawling gringo-orgy that is Puerto Vallarta, and it wasn't long after that we arrived in El Tuito, where we turned off the highway toward Rancho Primavera. We had been looking forward to birding Rancho Primavera very much, where I had rented a house for us, because we knew A) there was good birding on the property and B) there was geri birding on the property. That's right friends, Rancho Primavera is that rarest of rarities...a place in Mexico that actually feeds birds! Sure, there are countless lodges in Central America world-renowned for the great birds that their feeders bring in, but that phenomenon has yet to take hold in birdy Mexico. Luckily, Rancho Primavera does have some feeders, and thus some quality confiding birds. So, for the sake of conversation and public disclosure, if you know of ANY place in Mexico that is good geri birding, leave a comment! Dipper Dan knows of a place in Los Alamos, and I once saw a Wedge-tailed Sabrewing at a feeder in Tamaulipas, but that's all I know of.

Rufous-crowned Motmot was one of the endemics that inspired this trip. Luckily, we saw them at many different places, and they would frequently give good looks like right here. Facemelting? Yes. It's birds like this that keep me fantasizing about going south every winter.

I think this is the best way to start off the feeder train. This is a Blue Mockingbird, a highly desirable (if not uncommon) bird. As you can see, it is not skulking in the dark undergrowth being a pain to see, it is boldly eating out of a papaya in plain view. If you have seen these birds before, I think you can appreciate how mind-blowing it is to actually see one calmly eating out in the open.

The first Blue Mockingbird I saw was many years ago, in Southern California. People still grumble about that bird, which was denied natural vagranthood by the Bird Police. Luckily, I have seen many since then, but none like this! This bird lived in the shrubbery around our rental house and we would see it on the regular.

As I mentioned, because Rancho Primavera has nice habitat on the property, we saw many big mixed flocks during our stay. This Black-throated Gray Warbler, slurping up an inchworm, was in a flock with Magnolia and Chestnut-sided Warblers, the only ones of the trip.

The abundance of western migrants in that realm is something else...such high densities of these species compared to most of the U.S.

Jasmine the free-flying-but-not-really-wild Lilac-crowned Parrot lives at the ranch. It's a bit surprising to be birding somewhere and all of a sudden she just shows up on your shoulder. Jasmine liked Stilt the most.

Jasmine did not like Dipper Dan as much as Stilt. Dan and Jasmine did not have a conventional relationship.

(White-throated) Flycatcher Jen, being a newly sociable being, relished her time with Jasmine, a fellow sociable being.

The first morning at Rancho, I had some serious issues with my lens fogging up. I liked this shot of a male Yellow Grosbeak (!!!) enough to try to rescue this image though.

Yellow Grosbeaks love the feeders at Rancho Primavera. Could this be the best place in the world to get point-blank looks at this species? I would put a lot of pesos on it.

Is this not an amazing bird? This is the bird that dreams are made of. Mexican dreams.

Grayish Saltator are common birds in West Mexico, they seem to be in just about every mixed flock you find if you are low enough. I like them well enough, but it is not birds like this that make me think about going south every winter.

Our trip did suffer from a lack of sparrow diversity, but at least there were Stripe-headed Sparrows practically everywhere we went. I had previously only seen a handful in Costa Rica, so it was a bit of a surprise to see so many, especially considering how striking they are. Expect to see a bunch of these at the Rancho Primavera feeders.

The west coast of Nayarit and Jalisco may lack in a diversity of sparrows, but the abundance of buntings makes that fact easier to bear. It was great to see Varied Bunting on the reg, which you have to work for a bit in southeast Arizona (they're not hard at Florida Canyon though).

Black-vented Oriole is one of the specialty birds at Rancho Primavera; they were rumored to be reliable here, and the rumors were true. This life bird (!) was on a hummingbird feeder next to the house we rented. Convenience! Lifers! That is the way of the geri.

I was not mentally prepared for how they look exactly like Black-cowled Orioles, which I'd seen before in Costa Rica. We would go on to only see one Black-vented Oriole away from Rancho Primavera on the entire trip, so I feel like this is the place to go to see this species in the area.

Rufous-backed Robin is a common yet alluring bird, but I didn't manage any pics of them until we got here. Before this trip I'd only seen them as vagrants in California, both times at desert oases. That is not their preferred habitat, it turns out. Seeing birds where they are supposed to live is weird, right?

I kid, I kid, save your indignant righteousness for another post. Rufous-backed Robin is happy right where Rufous-backed Robin belongs. More from Rancho Primavera coming soon!

To Bird or To Rage? Todos Santos (Part 1)

Costa's Hummingbirds are the wee kings of cripple, tiny bastions of facemelt. Much sought-after by many birders, to find where they are truly common, one usually has to find oneself in the middle of some strange and random spot in the desert. For any birders who find themselves in Todos Santos, Baja California Sur, any longings for Costa's Hummingbirds would be more than satisfied.

Baja California Sur. Most people go there with one thing in mind...raging. Cabo San Lucas is known worldwide for its rage opportunities and beaches (but mostly for rage). However, others go to BCS with something in mind besides forcefed tequila shots, and there is much more to see other than the debauchery in Cabo.

One such place is Todos Santos, just over an hour's drive northwest of Cabo San Lucas on the Pacific side of the peninsula. It's not unknown by any means. Many gringos go there to both visit and live, as the town is known as a small art community and has an abundance of good food (which, to be fair, can be said of most Mexican towns). Birders make it there from time to time as well, and can get a decent fix while birding areas in and outside of town. Xantus's Hummingbirds, Gray Thrashers and Belding's Yellowthroats can all be found without difficulty in the pueblo, and many western migrants and desert residents lurk as well.

I almost felt bad crushing this fragile little gem...almost...

Of course, I have to point out the obvious fact that any birder travelling to Todos Santos is probably more interested in this hummingbird, the one found in Baja California Sur and no place else. Xantus's Hummingbirds (LIFER) are common in the lowlands in winter...and crushing them felt really, really good.

The avian community down in southern BCS is strange, at least for someone who has not been there before...a strange mix of species one would associate with California's coastal chaparral and the Sonoran desert, with some endemic passerines and a pygmy-owl thrown in. Crested Caracaras (above) are, thankfully, a regular sight in the desert and near the edges of town.

I was lucky enough to recently sample the BCS avefauna (truly, it was a sample, not a gorge), mostly while based out of Todos Santos. BB&B and 10,000 Birds (where the Great Ornithologist Felonious Jive will post) will have total coverage, and tips for any future visitors. It was a very interesting birdscape, and we did not even get into the Sierra de la Laguna or the sewage ponds at La Paz.

And for the record, I highly recommend both tequila consumption and debauchery, just do it on your own terms...unless you are in college, then all bets are off.

Mmmmmmm...another life bird, and a Baja endemic at that. Meet the Gray Thrasher, denizen of the peninsula's desert scrub.

We were lucky enough to have all three of the lowland Baja endemics lurking within walking distance of our house. Gray Thrashers were the least numerous of the three, which is kind of funny considering how globally rare the local subspecies of Belding's Yellowthroat is...more on them later.

Cactus Wrens roam around in small, raucous groups, bearing little resemblance to the smaller Troglodytes (that's wrens, not cave-dwellers) that are found throughout the U.S. Strangely, it was here in Todos Santos where I really got the feeling that these birds were behaving much like Rufous-naped and Spotted Wrens, other Campylorhynchus I've seen in other parts of Mexico.

I like this pose...the barred flight feathers melt easily into the barring on the tail. What is the significance? I'm not entirely sure, but a nerve has been struck.

Among the throngs of Common Ground-Doves in Todos Santos, the semi-aware observer can pick out Ruddy Ground-Doves as well. We saw two different birds on the trip, both along a random road in the north part of town. EBird has a couple of reports of substantial numbers of RUGDs in the area, so be vigilant.

Seemingly the most abundant bird in Baja California Sur, White-winged Doves are everywhere. They are thriving. They even invite American Kestrels into their flocks, for good or ill. It is worth mentioning that during our stay, we saw no Eurasian Collared-Doves in either Todos Santos or La Paz...in fact, eBird does not show any records for Todos Santos at all.

Behold, the White-winged Dove. Their wings may blind you in flight, but the face pattern allures.

It's been a while, so I am now dismayed to have the dishonor of presenting to you, yet again, a terrible photo of a good bird. This is a male Varied Bunting, photographed near Punta Lobos, just south of Todos Santos. These cripplers are uncommon in BCS, but not unexpected.

One afternoon we tried to get out into the desert to find a nice cactus forest to walk through. The road I chose was a poor choice (there was a lack of large cactus to admire), although we may have gotten somewhere interesting if our completely overpacked car had not overheated. Still a nice sunset though, despite the heaps of garbage and animal bones.