We are on the move again. First we visited the Three Rivers Petroglyph Site, a hillside in the desert in the Tularosa Basin with over 25,000 examples of Mogollon rock drawings. We have been here before and hope to return often.

Then we visited the Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument and the Manzano Mountains 80 miles southeast of Albuquerque. Three missions were founded by Spanish Franciscan missionaries  in the 17^th century to convert the local Pueblo peoples to Catholicism. The missions successfully disrupted the Native Americans traditional way of life which left them unable to survive a severe drought. Both the Spanish and the Pueblo people abandoned the area within 30 years of the missionaries arrival. Ruins of the stone structures still remain.

We camped in the Manzano Mountains State Park, visited the nearby town of Mountainair and hiked near Capilla Peak.

Some of the Petroglyphs at Three Rivers

And a large lizard basking in the morning sunlight.

Visiting the 3 Salinas Pueblo Missions - first Grand Quivira Pueblo ruins

Then a visit to Mountainaire, New Mexico. A very funky village that has not been visited by much of the outside world.

Snake mosaic in the town park

The Shaffer Hotel and Dining Room - handmade by Pop Shaffer in the 1920s after his blacksmith shop/hardware store burned to the ground and he needed a new business. (Just a reminder that swastikas were long viewed as a symbol of peace and goodwill by many Native American Tribes.)

And then on to the Abo Pueblo ruins

Samples of Pueblo artwork and pottery in the Salinas Pueblo Missions Visitor Center Museum

And lastly to the Quarai Pueblo ruins

And on our last day there we drove up into the Manzano Mountains in the Cibola National Forest - Once again, Smokey was there to greet us.

Juniper Berries

Colorful rock was all about

A Red Tailed Hawk in the lowlands forest (probably about 6500 feet)

We encountered a new variety of squirrel in the Manzanos - we believe it must be an Abert's Squirrel

Note the length of its tail

We drove up about 10 miles up a 4 wheel drive dirt road to get to Capilla Peak (approx 9400 feet) where there are a small observatory operated by the University of New Mexico, an observation tower, several communication towers, and a primitive campground. This photo is of a rock outcrop staffed by Hawk Watch International for monitoring hawk migrations moving from north to south along the Rio Grande valley. The Rio Grande is the dark strip of vegetation in the desert below all of us. They had 3 paid observers there and 2 volunteers. We walked about a mile out along the ridge to visit them.

We have found most of the people we meet in New Mexico are much more welcoming than this. But, there are exceptions. 

So this post is about Hummingbirds at the Dripping Springs National Recreation Area, which is a 10 minute drive up the hills on the east side of Las Cruces. We drove up there with friends visiting from Austin two days ago, and Dennis got transfixed by the Hummingbirds and took 299 pictures of them.

Most of these, but not all, are Rufous Hummingbirds migrating south. They are the ones with redish-orange body feathers. The females also typically have a bright red spot on their throat. But there are other breeds that we are not sure of.

And in the pictures where it looks like they might be lovers or might be fighting, they are fighting. Hummers are very territorial and defend food sources as much as they can - there were only 3 feeders, and there were probably over 50 birds. (And a few wasps.) The Rufous were interlopers.


Female Rufous Hummingbird

 Male Broad-tailed Hummingbird

 Another Male Broad-tailed

 Female Rufous

 Female Rufous

 Female Rufous

 Female Rufous (and a wasp) in flight as a female Broad-tailed feeds

 Female Broad-tailed

 Female Rufous facing off the others at the feeder

 

 Female Rufous at rest

 Female Broad-tailed at rest