Ed note: 45 million people spend $80 billion on birding trips and equipment annually. The higher the income and education level the more likely a person is to be a birder.
“Sierra County is one of the best birding counties in New Mexico in terms of habitat diversity and potential rarities,” according to the book, “New Mexico Bird Finding Guide,” written by John Parmeter, Bruce Neville and Douglas Emkalns. “The riparian habitat along the Rio Grande and its associated lakes is a paradise of egrets, herons, pelicans, grebes and unusual avian sightings.”
Across the contiguous areas of the country, some 800 species of birds have been identified and more than 500 of those can be spotted in New Mexico.
In Sierra County alone, there are more than 300 different species that can be spotted. And that should make the county a beacon for birders, said Truth or Consequences Mayor Steve Green.
“In one county you can get about 65 percent of the entire bird population that have been identified in the entire state,” he said. “And almost 40 percent of the birds that have been identified in the continental United States. So it makes it a wonderful opportunity to see many different types of birds.”
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