Difficulty: Moderate. Some walking on mild slopes on dirt trails or gravel roads. Dirt trails may be muddy. Bathroom at Empire Ranch. Drive time to location approximately one hour plus driving on gravel/dirt roads.
Las Cienegas is a 45,000-acre national conservation area with high desert grasslands, riparian strips and perennial streams, marshes, and juniper-oak woodlands. Here we can find grassland breeders such as Cassin’s, Botteri’s and Grasshopper Sparrows, Chihuahuan Meadowlark, and Loggerhead Shrike, as well as riparian-associated species including Gray and Zone-tailed Hawks, Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Blue Grosbeak, Yellow Warbler, and Summer Tanager. Las Cienegas is great for mammals, too — we’ll visit a colony of Black-tailed Prairie Dogs (road condition permitting) and keep an eye out for Pronghorn Antelope. Join Joshua Covill of Hillstar Nature to explore this beautiful habitat. Limited to 9 participants.
Chihuahuan Meadowlark, Alan Schmierer