Judging by the popularity of the name
around here, my money is on Carlos for the new heir to the throne. Unlikely, I
grant you, but not out of the question.
A small bird had flown across the
road in front of us and the mountain shelter at the sharp bend looked like a
good place to jump out. Birds were apparent immediately with calls and songs
ringing through the misty forest. A Spotted
Towhee was the first bird seen followed closely by an Olive
Warbler and a Mexican Chickadee.
The Red Warbler was not entirely red across its back. It appeared to have a bit of olive and cinnamon mixed in. I saw a juvenile bird later on with an all-over ginger look and grey cheeks.
These were two of my main target birds for the day. Both were inquisitive and responded very well to pishing. I was able to approach quite closely and took most of these pictures from the middle of the road. I had to set priorities between missing the opportunity of close encounters with these beautiful birds and getting knocked down by the traffic.
A ranger, Carlos, approached and warned me of the dangers of walking in the forest during a storm and advised that I stay out until it was over. I decided to head back down the mountain. My plan would have been to walk down the path that leads downhill from the left side of the convent, but that would take me through a different forested area with the same dangers during the storm. Not wanting to take any more risks, I waylaid a couple of student film-makers who looked as if they were headed for town and scrounged a lift from them. They very kindly dropped me in Mexico City where I was able to find my own way home.
Taxis do occasionally pass the convent and an irregular bus heads to the villages at either end of the road, but getting back home from Desierto de los Leones can be a little uncertain at times.
The taxi driver, Carlos, dropped me
short of the convent on this visit to Desierto
de los Leones. I had no idea how short; nor did he, as neither of really
knew where we were. I managed to pinpoint the location on Google Earth when I
got home and found that it was less than a kilometre away (cut and paste these coordinates
into Google Earth 99°19'3.77"W
19°18'31.74"N).
I back-tracked along the road for a
short way and a party of birds came down to investigate my pishing. They are
very responsive here. There was a steep, bushy bank on the upper side of the
road and the party spent 15 – 20 minutes working their way along, gleaning
insects from the underside of leaves as they went, seemingly unperturbed by the
closeness of the large vehicles that brushed by.
Bushtits made
up the bulk of the flock, but the stars were the Golden-browed Warbler and of course, the Red Warbler. The Golden-browed Warbler above looked rather tatty and dishevelled. It struck me that he wore the wide-eyed staring expression of new fathers everywhere.
The Red Warbler was not entirely red across its back. It appeared to have a bit of olive and cinnamon mixed in. I saw a juvenile bird later on with an all-over ginger look and grey cheeks.
These were two of my main target birds for the day. Both were inquisitive and responded very well to pishing. I was able to approach quite closely and took most of these pictures from the middle of the road. I had to set priorities between missing the opportunity of close encounters with these beautiful birds and getting knocked down by the traffic.
I usually mug up on the subtleties of
identification during a break on the plane ride, but had forgotten to bring my
field guide on this occasion. I tentatively put down a Tropical Parula, which I have seen here before, but once I got back
to the book, the eyebrow very clearly made it a Crescent-chested Warbler. Actually, it was a relief not to have to
carry the bulky book around at the dizzying altitude of nearly 10,000 ft.
The jangly, descending call of the Brown-backed Solitaire (another target
species) was heard all morning, but they can be tricky to see amongst the
pines. One was singing full voice from very close to the road and I spent a
long time trying to find it, eventually tracking it down to a very high perch,
almost into the low clouds.
The sun came out occasionally and
made life very pleasant, but the morning had been quite chilly. I would
definitely recommend a warm top at any time of year up in the mountains during
the early hours.
At the convent, restaurants have
sprung up to serve traditional Mexican fare. Carlos, the waiter, led me to a
table from which I could see Yellow-eyed
Juncos feeding in the grass.
The first roll of thunder came as I
started up the trail above the convent. For those with a low haemoglobin count,
or a restricted lung capacity, horses are for hire in the car park.
A ranger, Carlos, approached and warned me of the dangers of walking in the forest during a storm and advised that I stay out until it was over. I decided to head back down the mountain. My plan would have been to walk down the path that leads downhill from the left side of the convent, but that would take me through a different forested area with the same dangers during the storm. Not wanting to take any more risks, I waylaid a couple of student film-makers who looked as if they were headed for town and scrounged a lift from them. They very kindly dropped me in Mexico City where I was able to find my own way home.
Taxis do occasionally pass the convent and an irregular bus heads to the villages at either end of the road, but getting back home from Desierto de los Leones can be a little uncertain at times.
Birds seen; 14
Mexican Chickadee 10, Bushtit 60,
Brown Creeper 4, Golden-crowned Kinglet 4, Ruby-crowned Kinglet 1, Brown-backed
Solitaire 1, White-throated Thrush 1, American Robin 2, Olive Warbler 5, Crescent-chested
Warbler 3, Golden-browed Warbler 8, Red Warbler 6, Spotted Towhee 4,
Yellow-eyed Junco 3.
For previous posts from Desierto de
los Leones, follow the links below;
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/10/desierto-de-los-leones-mexico-city-mex.html
http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/desierto-de-los-leones-mexico-city.html
Visit the dedicated South and Central
American page for more posts from Mexico including Xochimilco and ParqueNacional de Tlalpan
Great!
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