The sand is constantly shifting and this has led to some interesting adaptations by the plants to stay rooted. Some have extensive root and stem systems that hold sand in place so that even after the dune they are growing in has moved, they have "their own dune" held in place. Plants also have to grow quickly to ensure that they are not buried forever beneath the sands.
We have visited White Sands National Monument twice (once in 2010 and again in 2015) and driven by it countless times. Every time we pass through the area, I want to stop, but we just don't always have time. This is one of those places that is so strange that you have to see it for yourself. There are a few places away from the coasts with sand dunes, like Death Valley National Park, but these sand dunes are different...they are made of gypsum. As seasonal water evaporates, selenite crystals form underground. When the crystals become exposed, wind and water break them down until they become the gypsum sand that you see all around you at White Sands National Monument (for a more detailed description of the geological processes that created this natural phenomenon, please visit the National Park Service's website here.) To top it all off, these are the largest gypsum sand dunes in the world. There is an auto tour that you can drive at your leisure and several places to stop along the way. Additionally, several Ranger Programs are offered throughout the year. The dunes lie in the Tularosa Basin surrounded by two mountain ranges, the San Andreas and Sacramento Mountains. While the dunes may look barren, White Sands is a fragile ecosystem containing lots of life. As you step out of your car to explore, please be mindful of the difficult conditions that these plants and animals must endure to survive and do not disturb them. The sand is constantly shifting and this has led to some interesting adaptations by the plants to stay rooted. Some have extensive root and stem systems that hold sand in place so that even after the dune they are growing in has moved, they have "their own dune" held in place. Plants also have to grow quickly to ensure that they are not buried forever beneath the sands. The circular pattern in the sand around the grasses pictured below has been created by the wind. Since the dunes are constantly moving, the staff regularly clean the roads, leaving interesting patterns in the sand (pictured below). One of the Ranger Programs includes a daily sunset walk. We had a great time participating and learned about the native plants and animals while enjoying the beautiful scenery of the the sun setting over the white dunes. During the walk, we found a surprising number of animal tracks! And when it got too dark to look for tracks, we watched the sunset. For more information, please visit White Sands National Monument's website.
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I wasn't able to get a picture of either, but I also saw Round-tailed Ground Squirrels and Rock Squirrels. There is plenty to see besides birds here and there were lizards scurrying around everywhere. This was a beautiful place to bird in northwest Tuscon, AZ. It was recommended to me by several people as their favorite place to bird in Tuscon, and I can understand why. I birded around 3 hours here and found 38 species, but probably could have done better if I had not gotten stuck on a warbler for 30 minutes! Even in early March, the day heated up quickly, so the earlier the better. There were not many waterfowl left in the ponds, but there was plenty to see and birds sang around me the entire time. Of the birds I saw, my favorites were Yellow-headed Blackbirds, Verdins, a Lesser Goldfinch, a Black Phoebe, Cooper's Hawks, Gambel's Quail, an Albert's Towhee, Cinnamon Teal, and 2 Soras. I am sure the exciting species will be different for everyone, but I don't get to see these every day! I ended up walking the outer trail across both groups of ponds and sped through the last 3/4 of it because I had spent so long on the first part. You can spend any amount of time here, but to see the whole thing, plan for at least a few hours. There are restrooms and water by the parking area, but nothing after that, so plan accordingly.
This was our first visit to Bosque del Apache, but this is one of my favorite areas within the United States. Every view is a picture. The wildlife refuge was beautiful and the staff was helpful and friendly. The refuge has a north and south auto tour loop. We joined the Sunday morning birding tour, which covered the north loop, and after lunch we travelled the south loop. This site is well known for the large population of Sandhill Cranes, Ross' Geese, and Snow Geese that overwinter here. The Rio Grande flows through the refuge and the area is now managed to support the wildlife populations. When we arrived in early March, there were only a few of each of these species left, but there was still plenty to see. You could easily spend a few hours birding the area around the Visitor's Center (and I did!). As soon as we arrived we saw a group of Gambel's Quail, my target species at the refuge. Since the refuge I have seen one individual at a time at other locations in New Mexico and Arizona, but there were large numbers of them here and they were just about everywhere around the Visitor's Center. The refuge was great for birding and we saw at least 50 species. I saw my first Gambel's Quail, Cinnamon Teal, a Peregrine Falcon, a white morph Ferruginous Hawk, and Black and Say's Phoebes. In addition to the birds, we saw Striped Skunks, Javelina, Rock Squirrels, elk, raccoons, rabbits, and Long-tailed Weasels! This refuge quickly became one of our favorites and we will definitely be back. Just a reminder that there are wildlife in this area! Be on the lookout for mountain lions, coyotes (which we hoped to see, but did not), javelina, and snakes. Be mindful of your surroundings and pay attention to posted signs. Here's a link to their website:
http://www.fws.gov/refuge/Bosque_del_Apache/ and to the Friends of Bosque del Apache website: http://www.friendsofthebosque.org Leaving the cold front that was passing through Texas, we headed west into New Mexico to visit the Very Large Array (VLA) and Bosque del Apache NWR. The VLA has guided tours the first Saturday of every month and we were able to attend one of them. If you are not able to be there for one of the guided tours, they have plenty of signs and information for self-guided tours. The VLA is a group of 27 radio telescopes arranged in a Y formation to observe the skies. The radio telescopes can be arranged into various positions, but are primarily placed in one of 4 circular formations ranging from close together to far apart. This facility is worth the hour drive west from Socorro. Not only was the array itself very interesting, the views are spectacular, too.
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September 2022
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