Wildcat day

Fresh lion tracks
Bobcat in the yard, Canyon RdDec. 29- I went out to check my camera trap(about 50yds from 

the house) and found that a bobcat had walked right near it, but not

in front of it! Then went up into the Pecos looking for marten 

tracks and came across a set of VERY fresh lion tracks! Stopped

me in my tracks. I had just spooked about 6 muleys, when I

crossed the lion tracks. He might have been stalking them. I

followed the tracks back uphill hoping to see him/her but didn't.

I saw where it stopped and looked back in the direction

where I had been. I'm sure it saw me. The tracks were about

3 1/4" L x 3 1/4" W, not huge, but big enough to feel very vulnerable.

As I left I found myself checking over my shoulder a few times. 

Dec 28 X-mas bird count

Dec. 28 - Christmas Bird count Espanola

It was an icy morning along the Rio Grande.

Highlights included:

Seeing the Rio Grande choked with ice.

A great view of an adult Bald eagle with prey.

3 Wood ducks

8 Buffleheads

30+ Goldeneyes

1 Redhead

10 Canvasbacks

50+ Gadwalls

2 Widgeons

1 Great blue heron

1 Killdeer

Great light all day.

At my gate

December 27

At my gate

(cottontails)

Also saw ravens chasing off a

peregrine(?)(a large falcon),

and a red-tail

Florida Mountains

Southern Sojourn

Dec. 17- Back in Santa Fe after being down south for more than 3 weeks. The day I left (Dec.15) I saw ants and butterflies, and some flowers in bloom. I'd been hearing crickets every night. By the time I got to Socorro it was freezing and when I got to Santa Fe there was about 8 inches of snow on the ground. From summer to winter in two days.

I spent almost all of my time hiking and camping in the Florida Mountains near Deming. Its a really rugged place, full of rocks, cactus and thorns. It was like bootcamp for couch potatoes. I saw more shooting stars in 3 weeks than I've seen in a year of "normal" life. I also saw lots of Persian Ibex, and golden eagles. Quail and roadrunners ("Paisano"or countryman to Mexicans) were also common. A few times I saw Peregrines, Prairie falcons, Merlins, and Pyrrhuloxias(a beautiful desert cardinal). Northern harriers were common over the mesquite flats and grasslands. Accipiters hunted the mountain and the valley.