Bosque del Apache - December 2019 - Part 5

These Snow Geese were flying into the Flight Deck Pond just after sunset to spend the night.

Sunset at the Flight Deck

The sun rising across the Flight Deck Pond

Soon after sunrise, the Snow Geese depart en masse to start the day's feeding.

We heard that there had been Bobcat sightings in the refuge.  We were lucky enough to see this male Bobcat near the entrance to the wildlife drive.

Young spike-horn buck

A male Bufflehead, one of our favorite small diving ducks

A Javelina beside the refuge road

Mule Deer buck and doe

On occasion we spot skunks.

Roadrunners are fairly common.

Coyotes are often seen as well.

I believe this was the first time we noticed turtles in the refuge.

We heard about an uncommon visitor, a Tundra Swan.  We were lucky enough to spot it and get a couple of pictures.

A colorful sunset

Bosque del Apache - December 2019 - Part 4

Bosque del Apache is a great place to see a variety of other wildlife.

Great Blue Herons

Mule Deer doe

Ring-necked Duck

Red-tailed Hawks

Killdeer

Say's Phoebe

American Kestrel

Bald Eagles

Greater Yellowlegs

Northern Pintail

Bosque del Apache - December 2019 - Part 3

We also made two trips to the Bernardo Waterfowl Management Area about 40 minutes north of Bosque del Apache.  There were even more Sandhill Cranes feeding up there.

The cranes are usually hard to disturb, but something caused a huge flock to suddenly take flight and fill the sky.

An "explosion" of Snow Geese

The next time we visited the Bernardo Area, a light covering of snow blanketed the ground.

Bosque del Apache - December 2019 - Part 2

Besides the wildlife, we find the light and the fall colors in this part of New Mexico during winter to be special.  Below are a few images to try to convey the landscapes around the refuge.