D.F.O. Monthly Meeting The Chihuahuan Desert: Critical Winter Habitat for Colorado Birds Monday, November 23, 2009
As the last plaintive notes of bugling elk echo through mountain valleys and November snow squalls threaten to blanket the streets and lawns of Denver, Greg Levandoski, a research biologist for the Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory (RMBO) will “transport” us south into the vastness of the Chihuahuan desert. The Chihuahuan desert is one of North America’s four major deserts and spreads across 200,000 sparsely populated square miles from Albuquerque, New Mexico, 750 miles south into the Mexican state of Zacatecas. In Mexico this region lies between the Sierra Madre Occidental in the west and the Sierra Madre Oriental in the east. In the U. S. it encompasses the southeastern corner of Arizona, a portion of southern New Mexico, and a region of west Texas including the amazing Big Bend National Park. It is a relatively high desert rising from 1,900 ft. to 5,500 ft. above sea level. The Chihuahuan desert is known as a shrub desert which includes vast regions of creosote bush, mesquite, yucca and agave, areas of prickly-pear cactus and Mormon tea, acacias and ocotillo, and significant areas of grassland. We have all heard stories of scorpions, tarantulas, sidewinders and Gila monsters, and of ocelots and javelina. And there are the roadrunners, scaled quail (their range matches the desert’s range to a very large degree), cactus wrens, elf owls, pyrrhuloxia, and painted buntings. But what of the burrowing owls, the mountain bluebirds, Cassin’s kingbirds, and the white-winged doves? Many of Colorado’s birds, along with birds from across the Great Plains, migrate south to their wintering grounds in the Chihuahuan desert. Grassland birds are experiencing widespread population declines and are considered the most threatened group of birds in North America. These species face many threats which are tied to habitat loss, environmental changes, political whims, and economics. Greg will explain how he, RMBO, and many Mexican partners are working to better understand the needs of these birds and to find potential solutions for conserving these threatened populations. Greg has worked on a wide variety of research projects ranging from monitoring nesting alcids in the Bering Sea, to counting migrating raptors along ridge lines in the West, to chasing warblers through Caribbean thorn forests. His search for a broad understanding of avian conservation needs has led Greg to work in 15 U. S. states (10 western), 3 Mexican states, and Jamaica. Join DFO to hear about Greg’s work in the grasslands of the Chihuahuan desert of northern Mexico and gain a better understanding of the distribution and abundance of a part of North America’s wintering bird populations. December 2009 NO DFO MEETING. Please plan to participate in the Denver Christmas Count and/or one of the many other Christmas Counts around the state! January 25, 2010 The always popular Bill Schmoker, C.F.O. president, teacher, and accomplished wildlife photographer will present us with a program which will “ lift you out of the mid-winter doldrums!” The Denver Field Ornithologists monthly meetings are held in Ricketson Auditorium at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science in City Park. These meetings are free and open to the public and occur on the 4th Monday of each month August through April (except December). Park on the north side of the museum and walk around and enter through the museum's west door. Plan to arrive by 7:15 p.m.; DOORS OPEN BY 7:00 AND ARE LOCKED AT 7:30 P.M. If late, you can enter through the security/volunteer door, but this does create problems for our hosts at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. -- Colorado Field Ornithologists: http://www.cfo-link.org/ Colorado County Birding: http://www.coloradocountybirding.com/ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.as/group/cobirds?hl=en