August 2025: All About the Water

August in New Mexico is a time of sunflowers, both wild and cultivated. They have arrived on schedule, though it appears to me not as many as in previous years. It makes sense to me that this would be related to the minimal rain we have experienced, along with other factors  that have led to the drying out of the Rio Grande. 

Death and Life on the Rio Grande

On Aug 13, I walked to the river. It's been running dry since July. I'd found myself avoiding it in emotional self-protection. I decided I needed to see for myself what the current conditions there. As far as I could see, there was no running water. Parts were muddy, but much was completely dried out. A friend reported that she had been able to walk bank to bank without getting her shoes muddy.

The river has always ebbed and flowed. Yet the frequency with which the river dries up has  increased. The limited snowmelt from Colorado has led to much less available water. The Rio Grande is a managed river, and with the 1938 Rio Grande Compact determining how much of this flow is owed to Texas and to varied human uses, the river itself gets short shrift when available water is limited.

On the day of my visit, there were large numbers of Turkey Vultures, kettling in the air, gathering in "committees" in the Cottonwoods. This generally happens as they gather for their southward migration. 

  

Walking along a trail near the river, I noticed the odor of dead fsh and other aquatic creatures. So sad, and yet--Coming to a clearing by the river, I saw about two dozen Turkey vultures out on the the mud flat. I surmised that they were out feasting on the perished: Recycling death back into life. This is what Turkey Vultures and other carrion-eaters do. Observing this cycle of life lifted my spirits. Sad for the fish, sad for the river, concerned for the future, but nature does have a way of working with what it is given. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cienega Picnic Ground 

Two days later, I visited Cienega Picnic Ground. The fields of Coneflowers by the nature trail were in full bloom, as expected in August. Insects buzzed around the blooms for the nectar. . Insect-seeking birds including warblers and flycatchers followed.

The Coneflowers attracted both Broad-Tailed and Rufous Hummingbirds. This Rufous Hummingbird (either a female or first year male) stood guard over one patch of flowers, chasing away all comers.

The severe drought and lack of water has impacted the mountains as well as the valley. The picnic ground stream is human-managed, providing a little oasis. Up near the pump providing the water, a variety of birds gathered to drink from the shallow waters, including a Black-Throated Gray Warbler. Disclaimers on the sketch: I don't know how to draw shallow water, so you'll just have to imagine that is water under the bird's feet. (And to the people for whom accuracy of bird rendering is important, including myself, I must apologize for messing up the wing detail so badly!)

Shining River--Water Returning

On August 26, I went to the part of the Rio Grande Bosque south of Paseo, the Shining River Trail. A friend who does a raptor nesting survey.there reported on her recent visit.Though the river there was mostly dry, shallow pools just south of Paseo were drawing a variety of shorebirds. We'd had a good rain since then, and I wanted to see what effect, if any, it had on the river. I also hoped to see some of those shorebirds. 

 

The rain had most definitely had an effect. A shallow river now ran at least a mile south of Paseo. (This was most likely not so much from rain we got in Albuquerque, as it was on rain north of Cochiti reservoir that allowed for enough water to feed the river.) Though I didn't find the variety of shorebirds that my friend had on Sunday, a number of Killdeer and half a dozen Snowy Egrets were making use of the shallow water to forage. Another example of nature making good use of what is given, as shallow water provides birds with better foraging opportunities. 

 We had another good rain that next day, and water is running all along the river in Albuquerque.These photos of the river are from the Tingley Bosque, several miles south of the Shining River trail, on August 30th. You can see how shallow the water is. I will hope for a continued return of the water as we move into the fall, and a recovery of aquatic life. 

Blue Grosbeak juvenile male, Tingley Open Space

Bird Survey-August Gallery

The severe drought provides tough challenges that impact bird populations. But bird life still goes on. August is the beginning of fall migration, and several interesting migrants passed through the Candelaria Nature Preserve (CNP) this month. In the past two weeks, these three species we observed were recorded for the first time at the CNP. 

The preserve was full of conspicuous young hawks (Cooper's Hawk and Swainson's Hawk)  born this summer, still learning how to be raptors. That's no easy task, and I wish them well. The Cooper's Hawk will be here all year. The Swainson's Hawk will soon be making their first trip south to Argentina.