Ornithology Group summer field trip!
We will be birding and hiking in the Davis Mountains Preserve, a
33,075-acre gem in Jeff Davis County, in the Texas Trans-Pecos region. The
Davis Mountains are one of three sky islands in Texas—a cooler, wetter
landscape surrounded by arid lowland desert.
"There are over 365 species in the Davis Mountains, but it’s totally
different than the rest of the Trans-Pecos,” in part because of the
mountains, canyons, riparian gallery forests and a higher elevation that
makes the area cooler and wetter. - Tara Poloskey, The Nature Conservancy
"The Davis Mountains Preserve, owned by The Nature Conservancy, contains
most of the pine-oak forests. Nesting species in the Preserve include
Flammulated Owl, Mexican Whip-poor-will, Dusky Flycatcher, and Grace's
Warbler. Over 100 species nest at elevations above 5,500 in the Davis
Mountains." - Birdzilla
"Featured birds: Black-headed Grosbeak, Acorn Woodpecker, Cassin’s
Kingbird, Say’s Phoebe, Hepatic Tanager, Plumbeous Vireo, and Zone-tailed
Hawk." - Jason Garcia, Travis Audubon
August hummingbirds include: Rivoli's (previously Magnificent),
Blue-throated Mountain-gem, Lucifer, Ruby-throated, Black-chinned,
Calliope, Rufous, Allen's, Broad-tailed, Broad-billed, and White-eared.
The Preserve is open to the public at limited times; The Nature Conservancy
is offering an open weekend on Aug 12-13-14, with 100 people being allowed
on the property each day. Reservations must be made through their website,
and each day requires a separate reservation. You can camp in the preserve
on Fri and/or Sat nights, or camp at nearby Davis Mountains State Park, or
take a hotel room at Indian Lodge, in the state park, or in Fort Davis
(5050-ft elevation, the highest town in Texas).
Near the entrance to the Davis Mts Preserve on TX-118 is the Lawrence E.
Wood Picnic Area (highest roadside park in Texas), and the start of the *Madera
Canyon trail*, a relatively easy 2.4-mile loop with just 175-foot rise in
elevation, to 6,050 ft. The tail was built by volunteers and opened to the
public in Oct 2007. You can look here for Ash-throated Flycatcher, Hepatic
Tanager, Plumbeous Vireo, Gray Flycatcher, Scott’s Oriole and Rock Wren,
among others, and view Mt. Livermore (8382 ft)
https://www.nature.org/content/dam/tnc/nature/en/documents/madera-canyon-trail-map.pdf
Printable checklist for the Davis Mountains Preserve:
https://ebird.org/printableList?regionCode=L295940&yr=all&m=
Bar chart for the Davis Mountains Preserve:
https://ebird.org/barchart?r=L295940&yr=all&m=
We may also be visiting Carolyn Ohl's Christmas Mountains Oasis, in
Brewster County, possibly on Thursday, Aug 11.
Contact Nina.Rach@xxxxxxxxx if you would like to join us for birding amid
ponderosa, piñon, and southwestern white pines, oaks and alligator juniper.
Please do not reply to this email directly! Our mail server, FreeLists,
does not accept replies.
**Be sure to reserve a spot at the Preserve using the link below. Note that
each day must be reserved separately.
https://www.nature.org/.../tx-davis-mountains-open-days/
<https://www.nature.org/.../tx-davis-mountains-open-days/>
Other links:
https://ebird.org/hotspot/L295940 - six people logged eBird reports from
the 15-16-17 July 2022 open weekend, 48 species.
https://bigbendsentinel.com/2021/07/14/avid-birders-raise-10000-for-davis-mountains-preserve/
https://www.birdzilla.com/adventures/s-crowe-b-adventures/davis-mountains-west-texas.html
https://travisaudubon.org/uncategorized/birding-the-davis-mountains
https://tpwd.texas.gov/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_bk_p4501_0004a.pdf
All Trails hikes in Davis Mountains Preserve:
https://www.alltrails.com/parks/us/texas/davis-mountains-preserve
https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/texas/madera-canyon
<https://www.alltrails.com/parks/us/texas/davis-mountains-preserve>
Mt. Livermore, Baldy, Mescalero hike:
https://www.alltrails.com/explore/recording/livermore-baldy-plus-mescalero-019d385
