Maxwell National Wildlife Refuge

Scott was going to Memphis, the weather forecast for the next week looked good, I wanted some more bird photos and I didn't want to spend a lot of money. So, I decided to take a day trip south to where migratory birds could be found. And, I packed a bag in case I decided to stay a little longer.

My first stop was Maxwell National Wildlife Refuge in northeastern New Mexico.

Just two and half hours away

Maxwell encompasses 3,699 acres of short-grass prairie, lakes, woodlots, wetlands and crop fields surrounded by high mesas to the northeast and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains to the west. The area has been managed as a refuge since 1965. More than 60 Bald Eagles winter there every year.

When I arrived, the area looked completely desolate. Even though the website said that visitor center should have been open, the gate was closed and padlocked shut. So, I drove just a little past to a stand of bare trees. As I approached, four or five immature Bald Eagles took off from the tree, leaving just one behind. I quietly exited my car and got a few shots of that one taking off as I approached.

Bald Eagle!

That was as close as I got to the many Eagles I saw the rest of the morning. But, this one circled around quite a bit before alighting on a distant tree.

I was glad I checked it out

And, as it landed, another Eagle soared around for awhile, as well.

This one looks a year older (maybe 3rd?)

After watching the Eagles head off to distant trees, I drove around the dirt roads looking for more birds. The flat landscape is ringed by mountains and the lake was still frozen, which is probably why there weren't many different birds.

The area is surrounded by ranches

There were lots and lots of Eagles -- most of them immature. I must have seen 15 or 20. Most flew off when I tried to get out of the car. The almost-mature one below was fairly far away at the top of a pine tree. And, it even flew off as I crossed the road. When I first saw it, I thought it was an adult, but as it flew, I could see it still had white on its wings and its tail hadn't turned pure white yet. On second inspection, I could see that its dirty-looking head was still sporting some brown feathers.

Fourth year Baldie

As I criss-crossed the refuge, I re-checked the Visitor Center twice. The gate was unlocked and open, so I thought the center might be open, but the door was locked and the inside dark. I suspect that there is a small staff in the winter and that they lock up when they have to go out and patrol. They whole time I was driving around, I saw only two other cars. So, it probably doesn't make sense to have a big staff.

Mule Deer

And, I saw a fair number of Mule Deer as well. Like the Eagles, they seemed skittish -- watching me like a Hawk every time I stopped to take a picture (of, course, I am used to neighborhood deer that are a bit more accustomed to people). And, speaking of Hawks ...

This one was very rufous

Maxwell has its fair share. I saw a number of Red-tailed Hawks, all with varying coloration.

More typical dark head, pronounced belly band

I kept thinking that I had come across some other types of Hawk. I still struggle to differentiate among Red-tailed, Cooper's and Ferruginous Hawks (not mention Sharp-shinned or Rough-legged), but I am not sure I have ever seen the latter ones. But, I am working on it.

The striped tail and light eyes say juvenile

As one would expect, there were also a number of smaller birds. The stand-outs were meadowlarks with their beautiful voices and bright yellow breasts. I saw trees full of them, but like the raptors, they also flew as I approached.

Pretty bird with a pretty song

I suspect springtime brings many more varieties of birds, so I was probably early. After driving a couple of hours to get there and seeing only (OK, I may be spoiled) Eagles and Hawks, I still wanted more.

Watching me

So, I decided to head south to warmer weather and some guaranteed Sandhill Cranes and Snow Geese. I'll cover that in my next post.

Trip date: January 27-29, 2016