Bosque del Apache

I recently returned from a trip to a wildlife reserve in New Mexico called Bosque del Apache. It is located about two hours drive above Las Cruces on the Rio Grande River. It is a beautiful spot and the winter home for many migrating birds like the Sandhill Cranes. These birds flock here in the tens of thousands. There are many other birds as well. Here are some shots I liked on a first pass through of the thousand images I captured.

The first three pictures are of Sandhill Cranes. These are big graceful birds and are fun to photograph. They roost in ponds at night to avoid predators. Temperatures were in the low twenties when we started shooting before sunrise. Really cold if there is a wind blowing. The birds are fun to watch as they extricate themselves from the iced over ponds. It's really slippery for them. As the sun starts to climb in the sky the cranes leave the ponds and head for the fields for a day of eating and socializing.

This is a Northern Harrier I believe with a duck he'd just taken for dinner.

This is of course a bald eagle. There were three or four hanging around waiting for a meal.

I know this isn't about sailing, but it was a fun adventure. I know how much Steve loves the birds so I just have to share the photos with him.

Bruce

(P.S. I could use the radio, too but the Captain won't let me. He says I need much more training and more of a command voice.)