Two species of bird never before seen in Morongo Valley were spotted during this year’s annual Christmas Bird Count. Reporter Jef Harmatz has a detailed review of the results.
Birders from all over the high desert gathered on December 18 for the annual event which counts and identifies birds from East Yucca Valley to Desert Hot Springs. 41 observers counted 86 species of birds from more than 4,000 individual sightings. Event coordinator Joseph Zarki said that two species new to Morongo Valley were spotted. The first were most likely Vaux’s swifts, which are not typically present in the desert during winter months. The second sighting was an Abert’s towhee, a small brown bird common to the Sonoran Desert, but this sighting is still being verified. Zarki explained that milder winters in the high desert have led to an increase in the number of species seen, but that the overall number of birds in the Morongo Valley has decreased in recent years as drought conditions continue. For more information on the bird count and to see data from previous counts, follow the links below.
Christmas Bird Count Information
https://www.audubon.org/conservation/science/christmas-bird-count
Data from Previous Christmas Bird Counts
