Paintings brings me incessantly to Monterrey in Nuevo Leon, northern Mexico. Monterrey is a huge commercial town, with industrious other folks. This is a particular town for the reason that surrounding Parque Nacional Cumbres de Monterrey redeems town’s many environmental sins. Town right kind is butt unsightly, however if you’re like me or MC Hammer, that doesn’t subject. And should you like birding, it’s a excellent position to spend time earlier than or after conferences and discover. I all the time pack binoculars.
Overdue autumn 2022, I made up our minds flying in an afternoon early to do a little weekend birding. I used to be joined by means of my colleague Mauricio, his spouse Melba, and my pal David. It used to be David’s first time birding. Mauricio and Melba picked me up and if it weren’t for the Coyote we noticed at the approach it might have taken us 5 mins to succeed in Chipinque Parque Ecologico. Now it took 6. It’s actually superb how temporarily you permit town in the back of and achieve the oak-pine forests at the hills/mountains of the Cumbres NP. We had been throughout the park earlier than break of day. A Mexican Whip-poor-will welcomed us on our hike up.
The run rose in an excellent spectacle of colors due to Monterrey’s air air pollution. Now it used to be a little bit lighter, diurnal birds turned into vocal. I phished a troupe of Inexperienced Jays and amazingly they began giving me lip, calling me every type in jayeese. Impolite! The following dialog were given me nicknamed “Snow White” by means of my younger buddies. I’d most well-liked Dr Dolittle, however millenials don’t know that film. We additionally noticed Brown Jay and Mexican Jay they usually had been extra well mannered. Acorn Woodpecker and Black-crested Titmouse had been considerable and confiding. David realized 3 issues that day. By no means use some other guy’s binoculars, very most likely they had been wrapped in undies. That lesson got here too past due. Additionally, shouting out “glance on that department” isn’t useful in a wooded area and he did numerous that. However most significantly, Chipinque is a herbal treasure price appearing on your youngsters.
For my subsequent talk over with within the following summer season, we made up our minds to arrange an organization birding travel to L. a. Estanzuela – some other treasure spot within the Cumbres. Amazingly, everybody confirmed up at break of day except for for one particular person, who’d had a near-death enjoy with me on Colombia’s Sumapaz paramo, an appropriate excuse for a no-show. Kingfisher Birdwatching Nuevo León would offer our guides (and the fowl pictures for this put up – gracias!). We met Marilyn and Leonardo at a non-descript fast-food joint’s car parking zone and inside of 10 mins we had been in Parque Nacional L. a. Estanzuela. L. a. Estanzuela it seems that is absolute best have shyed away from within the weekends for the reason that position used to be teeming with Spandex-clad other folks pouting their lips, taking selfies and speaking loudly. Thankfully, Leonardo has superb listening to. Legend has it he can listen birds as some distance away as Guatemala. That day, he restricted himself to appearing us Buff-bellied Hummingbird, Golden-olive Woodpecker, Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher, Rose-throated Becard, Gray-collared Becard, Spot-breasted Wren, Olive Sparrow, Hepatic Tanager, Blue Bunting and Stripe-crowned Warbler. We heard Sublime Trogon and Thicket Tinamou, however for the ones birds the mix of gaudy clothes, duckfaces and noise used to be simply an excessive amount of to triumph over. A weekday can be higher for timid birds.
Whilst my colleagues made numerous a laugh of my garments (I used to be cruelly in comparison to the boy scout from the film Up!) the tick repellent in them labored. However, colleague Kathia advanced an intimate courting with a tick (feeding on her “beautiful blood” – her phrases) and a health care provider’s talk over with used to be required. And all she did used to be sit down down on a bench to textual content a chum how nice birding is… So beware.
Going birding with beginners is a laugh and you will need to unfold the conservation message, however there’s handiest such a lot a hardcore birder can stand. So, I employed Kingfisher Birdwatching Nuevo León for a travel alone once I’d come again from my travels to Colorado. Marilyn and Leonardo picked me up at 4:30 hrs and we drove to our first forestall: Pastizales de Santiago. Arriving whilst it used to be nonetheless darkish allowed us to catch a virus Tawny-collared Nightjar in motion. Gentle broke and after Sofa’s Kingbird I noticed my 2000th lifer: Purple-collared Grosbeak. An excellent celebratory fowl. The male is gorgeous (duh) however the feminine may be very placing too, yellow as an alternative of pink. We additionally scored with Blue Grosbeak, Yellow-faced Grassquit, Golden-fronted Woodpecker and Ladder-backed Woodpecker. The day used to be handiest mins outdated and we already had 32 species at the day checklist. This used to be going to be epic.
At the approach up into Cumbres we stopped at a flowering agave close to Laguna de Sánchez. Agaves bloom as soon as of their lifestyles after which die. The plant builds up a sugar reserve to provide the large flower. This sugar is what Mexicans craftily become tequila. Mexicans drink tequila from glasses however I’ve been advised you’ll drink from somebody’s navel too. Allegedly. And but even so, we had been more youthful then. Our agave flower stalk had 3 species of hummingbird consuming nectar, dive-bombing and stabbing each and every different: Blue-throated Mountain-gem, Lucifer Hummingbird and Huge-tailed Hummingbird. It used to be superb. That plant would no longer die in useless.
We in the end reached Mesa de Oso, the desk (mountain) of the undergo. Our major function right here used to be the Maroon-fronted Parrot. Those parrots breed inside of cavities in cliffs and they’re very explicit concerning the cliff. It will have to face the solar on the proper time of day, the fabric must be excellent for excavating however no longer too comfortable to steer clear of collapsing tunnels, it must be steep, and the checklist is going on and on. Location, location, location. We now know what actual property brokers reincarnate into of their subsequent lifestyles… however not like realtors, those parrots are uncommon, Nuevo Leon endemics and wanting conservation enhance. Marilyn is all the time thinking about any fowl she sees (an overly captivating feature), however with the parrots she went in overdrive. I will’t fault her for that – simply take a look at them!
There have been numerous different birds within the pine-oak wooded area. A number of of my purchasers sponsor a mission proper close to the parrot cliff. The mission’s goals are water-related however White-eyed Vireo, Lengthy-billed Thrasher, Brown-backed Solitaire, Crescent-chested Warbler, Rufous-capped Brushfinch, Audubon’s Oriole, Painted Redstart, Flame-colored Tanager and White-breasted Nuthatch don’t care and get pleasure from the conservation effort.
At the approach right down to town, the various stops and turns at the curvy street were given the simpler of me and we needed to forestall on the picnic spot Plaza Las Hadas in Santiago. A judgmental Nice Kiskadee watched a veteran of Southern Ocean pelagics emptying his abdomen in a wastebin… As soon as recovered we did a walk-around and met Simple Chachalaca with younger. I felt higher after that.
