Photo: David McDonald. Looking south from the early part of the Jack's Peak/CDT trail

How lucky can one get? To live in a place where, by driving less than twenty miles, one arrives at a wonderland of rock and oak and juniper. A place inhabited by birds that people travel the globe to find. Within a mile from the Continental Divide (CDT) trailhead one can see the elusive and improbable Montezuma Quail, whose face is a black and white swirl of Mimbres pottery.

Click here to read more of local birder and SWNM Audubon member David McDonald's account of one of his favorite local birding sites.

Find other local birding sites here.

"Five years ago, a group of concerned members from Southwestern New Mexico Audubon Society visited Dr. Shepard, the President of Western New Mexico University, (WNMU), voicing our concern over the rampant spraying down of Cliff Swallow nests. We agreed on a compromise that entailed the erection of nest building deterrents in highly traveled areas to keep walkways free of debris..."

Click here to read the rest of this year's Cliff Swallow Monitoring Project's successes and obstacles. On this page, you'll also find a history of this project and how you can get involved.