I took a very quick trip to Michoacán in January of this year to visit a Monarch butterfly sanctuary. (How long ago that seems!)
Of course I managed to find a few birds.
The Canyon Towhee is as common there as the California Towhee is in southern California. Here is one in the town of Ocampo.
The birding highlight of the trip was getting a glimpse of the Golden-browed Warbler, a bird found only in Mexico and parts of Central America. The Merlin birding app describes it as an "attractive warbler of shady dense understory in highland forest... often quite skulking... can appear rather drab unless the striking head pattern is seen."
This bird was seen at the El Rosario Monarch Butterfly Preserve near Ocampo. I actually like that the bird is partially obscured by pine needles.
After visiting the El Rosario preserve, I birded the parking lot at the Chincua preserve, about 45 minutes away, just as that preserve was closing. It was worth the visit, as there were quite a few birds in the fading light.
Townsend's Warbler:
Hermit Warbler:
The spectacular Red Warbler, a Mexican endemic.
A Striped Sparrow (below), another Mexican endemic species.
The Merlin app describes this bird as a "big, fat, rather social and conspicuous sparrow...endemic in highlands of Mexico." How'd you like to be officially described as big and fat?
Stay tuned tomorrow for butterfly pictures!
Comments