Fun Times at Franklin Mountain

We took a quick trip out to west Texas (El Paso area) a little over a week ago. I went back to the same parks as last year, including Franklin Mountain State Park. This park has some great hiking trails (the mountain bike trails looked like a blast too). I spent some time observing birds from the bird blind they have set up near a nature trail. They have a water source, which attracts a lot of birds and feeders, which attract even more birds and  even a few critters.

It's always fun to bird away from your regular area and catch up with different species. The Curve-billed Thrasher was definitely one of my favorites. Check out that bill!

White-winged Doves aren't too exciting, but they are pretty.

I saw my first Lesser Goldfinch, a species not found in the sunshine state.

I wish all sparrows were as easy to identify as the Black-throated Sparrow! There were hundreds of sparrows at Hueco Tanks this year, some of which I wasn't too sure about.

This was also my first sighting of a Spotted Towhee. This was the most skittish species of all that were visiting the waterhole. It made a brief appearance for a quick, refreshing drink.

A cute little Texas Antelope Squirrel!

I have a good little helper who likes carrying my camera bag (while I carry the camera). He is funny...when he spots a bird on a hike, he usually tells me "Mom, there's one of your birds".

He also celebrated another birthday...Happy 4th to my mini-birder! Time goes by way too fast!