El Paso Day 1: Franklin Mountains State Park

Franklin Mountains State Park, El Paso, Texas

Armed with a printout of El Paso birding spots downloaded from the local Audubon chapter, I drove my little rental car straight to Franklin Mountains State Park, a hat and a bottle of water in my hand, ready to face the 103 degree afternoon heat. In a genuine desert, the Chihuahuan.

I was greeted at the entrance by a giant grasshopper.

This was going to be great.

The Tom Mays unit, not far from Rte 10, includes a very mild nature trail complete with a bird blind/feeder set up. It felt a little like cheating but I spent most of my time there. Actually it was paradise.

What is it about new birds? I cannot deny the "listing" rush, the vision--with the bird right in front of you--of yourself back in a dark hotel room checking off an empty box in that forever open birding project. But that's just the start, a way of getting oriented. Who are the main characters in this story? Who will flit in, make an appearance and leave and who will become a constant companion?

The anchor birds for me were the ubiquitous chirping house finch, the mourning dove, and the white-winged dove, which I had seen quite a lot of in Costa Rica.

White-winged dove, Franklin Mountains State Park, El Paso, TX.

 Everything else was new. The black-throated sparrow, a friendly little bird with a lovely song.

Black-throated Sparrow, Franklin Mountains State Park, El Paso, TX

The black-chinned hummingbird, the so-called southwest counterpart of the ruby-throated hummingbird, but much more common, zooming everywhere.

Black-chinned hummingbird, Franklin Mountains State Park, El Paso, TX

The top-heavy ash-throated flycatcher, a pair of which flew right up to me as if to voice a complaint.

Ash-throated Flycatcher, Franklin Mountains State Park, El Paso, TX

Ash-throated Flycatcher, Franklin Mountains State Park, El Paso, TX

The somewhat more elegant brown-crested flycatcher (I think--I really have no business ID-ing unfamiliar flycatchers).

The nearly invisible canyon towhee.

Canyon Towhee, Franklin Mountains State Park, El Paso, TX

The gigantic cactus wren, making itself comfortable at the feeder

White-winged Doves and Cactus Wren, Franklin Mountains State Park, El Paso, TX

and at the shallow desert-style bird bath.

Cactus Wren, Franklin Mountains State Park, El Paso, TX

But the most striking birds were the quails. When I first read that quails were considered common, even abundant, in areas of El Paso, I couldn't quite believe it. I live in such a quail impoverished region, lucky to see or hear a bob white once a year. But here they were among the doves and finches at the feeder. The stunning Gambel's quail

Gambel's Quail and House Finch, Franklin Mountains State Park, El Paso, TX

Gambel's Quail and House Finch, Franklin Mountains State Park, El Paso, TX

Gambel's Quail and White-winged Dove, Franklin Mountains State Park, El Paso, TX

and the equally lovely scaled quail.

Scaled Quail, Franklin Mountains State Park, El Paso, TX

I would see a lot more of these quails, mostly running away from me, kicking up trail dust. The scaled quails in particular have a comical running style--completely erect with their necks extended and often turned back to look at you, their topknots bouncing.

There is life in this desert, which caused a little pain, even as an outsider, when I viewed the way El Paso seems to take the land outside of the park as empty space, prime for another outlet mall.

I'll end this post by setting up a little narrative suspense. Here's the coyote.

Coyote, Frankin Mountains State Park, El Paso, TX

Would I see the roadrunner?