The Binocular Site
Sandia-Manzano Mountains, New Mexico
The Sandia-Manzano Mountains stretch down the eastern side of the middle Rio Grande valley, providing a dramatic and beautiful backdrop to Albuquerque.
These mountains offer excellent opportunity for skiing, hiking, picnicking, and star-gazing as well as birdwatching. The chain is divided by the Tijeras Canyon, and the Manzano Mountains lie to the south, with the Sandia Mountains lying to the north of the canyon.
Manzano Peak marks the highest point of the Manzano Mountains, with other peaks bringing the mountains high into the sky. Still, the Sandia Mountains offer more dramatic cliffs. Together these mountains attract a wide variety of birds including rosy finches, northern flickers, tanagers, towhees, cowbirds, grosbeaks, goldfinches, and many more.
The Quarai National Monument is a unique sight at the base of the Manzano Mountains. This historic site contains the ruins of a pueblo that was once home to about 400 people. The once busy buildings now host the echoes of bird calls and those who seek out the avian residents here.
The monument provides a scenic backdrop for birdwatchers and hikers, with 13 structures as well as the pueblo and mission. Here you might expect to see chipping sparrows, western wood peewees, and olive-sided flycatchers, along with northern flickers.
The state bird of New Mexico is the Greater Roadrunner and you can find a birding checklist for New Mexico here.
Photo credit to bobthemtnbiker, used with permission under the creative commons license. For more information about this rugged range of moutains visit this website.
If you've visited the Sandia-Manzano Mountains, please take the time to share your experience and any tips or insight you have about this New Mexico birding location below.
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