United States Ramsar wetland
Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge
151 bird species recorded; the most from April to May.
mark byzewski · CC BY 2.0
This month here
60 species in January.46 species in February.75 species in March.94 species in April.101 species in May.70 species in June.54 species in July.31 species in August.24 species in September.14 species in October.47 species in November.51 species in December.
The birds you are most likely to see in the month you choose, those that come for the season first. It opens on today's month.
NT
NT
NT
NT
NT
NT
NT
NT
NT
VU
NT
NT
NT
NTVU
NTNTNTNT
NT
NT
NTNTVU
NT
NT
NT
NT
NTNT- Resident all year
- Summer visitor comes to breed
- Winter visitor comes for the winter
- Passage migrant in spring and autumn
In numbers
151 species, counted.
Our own rating, from the records only: species (50 points), threatened species (20), migrants (20) and protected status — Ramsar, IBA, SPA, observatory (10).
- 151Speciesrecorded more than once
- 80Migrantssummer, winter or passage visitors
- 2ThreatenedVulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered (IUCN)
- 2,246Recordsopen records within 6 km
- 1,080 mAltitudeabove the sea
- 11Raptors
- 3Owls
- 18Waders
- 7Gulls & seabirds
- 22Ducks & geese
- 12Herons, ibises & grebes
- 1Storks & cranes
- 61Songbirds
- 16Other birds
From open records (eBird and others, through GBIF, licensed for any use). More birdwatchers mean more records: a quiet place may have more birds than it shows.
The checklist
All 151 species.
By group, with the year in twelve cells: the darker the cell, the more often the bird is recorded that month.
Raptors11 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Hen HarrierCircus cyaneus
- Falco sparveriusFalco sparverius
- Red-tailed HawkButeo jamaicensis
- Turkey VultureCathartes aura
- Swainson's HawkButeo swainsoni
- OspreyPandion haliaetus
- Prairie FalconFalco mexicanus
- Ferruginous HawkButeo regalis
- Mississippi KiteIctinia mississippiensis
- MerlinFalco columbarius
- Accipiter striatusAccipiter striatus
Owls3 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Burrowing OwlAthene cunicularia
- Great Horned OwlBubo virginianus
- American Barn OwlTyto furcata
Waders18 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- KilldeerCharadrius vociferusNT
- Greater YellowlegsTringa melanoleucaNT
- Black-necked StiltHimantopus mexicanus
- American AvocetRecurvirostra americana
- Wilson's PhalaropePhalaropus tricolor
- Long-billed dowitcherLimnodromus scolopaceusNT
- Least SandpiperCalidris minutillaNT
- Lesser yellowlegsTringa flavipesVU
- Western SandpiperCalidris mauri
- Baird's SandpiperCalidris bairdii
- Spotted SandpiperActitis macularius
- DunlinCalidris alpinaNT
- Long-billed CurlewNumenius americanus
- Stilt SandpiperCalidris himantopusNT
- Marbled GodwitLimosa fedoaVU
- Wilson's SnipeGallinago delicata
- SanderlingCalidris alba
- WilletTringa semipalmata
Gulls & seabirds7 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Ring-billed GullLarus delawarensis
- Franklin's GullLeucophaeus pipixcan
- Forster's TernSterna forsteri
- Least TernSternula antillarum
- Black TernChlidonias niger
- Bonaparte's GullChroicocephalus philadelphia
- California GullLarus californicus
Ducks & geese22 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
- Northern ShovelerSpatula clypeata
- Ruddy DuckOxyura jamaicensis
- BuffleheadBucephala albeola
- GadwallMareca strepera
- Northern PintailAnas acuta
- Cinnamon TealSpatula cyanoptera
- Blue-winged TealSpatula discors
- American WigeonMareca americana
- Canada GooseBranta canadensis
- Lesser ScaupAythya affinis
- Eurasian TealAnas crecca
- Snow gooseAnser caerulescens
- RedheadAythya americana
- Ring-necked DuckAythya collaris
- Ross's GooseAnser rossii
- CanvasbackAythya valisineria
- Common GoldeneyeBucephala clangula
- Red-breasted MerganserMergus serrator
- Hooded MerganserLophodytes cucullatus
- GoosanderMergus merganser
- Greater White-fronted GooseAnser albifrons
Herons, ibises & grebes12 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Great White EgretArdea alba
- Snowy EgretEgretta thula
- Great Blue HeronArdea herodias
- Pied-billed GrebePodilymbus podiceps
- Plegadis chihiPlegadis chihi
- Black-crowned Night-HeronNycticorax nycticorax
- Eared GrebePodiceps nigricollis
- American BitternBotaurus lentiginosus
- Double-crested CormorantPhalacrocorax auritus
- Green HeronButorides virescens
- American White PelicanPelecanus erythrorhynchos
- Western Cattle EgretBubulcus ibis
Storks & cranes1 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Sandhill CraneGrus canadensis
Songbirds61 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Sturnella neglectaSturnella neglecta
- White-crowned sparrowZonotrichia leucophrys
- Loggerhead ShrikeLanius ludovicianusNT
- Agelaius phoeniceusAgelaius phoeniceus
- Savannah SparrowPasserculus sandwichensis
- Chihuahuan RavenCorvus cryptoleucus
- Buff-bellied PipitAnthus rubescens
- Western KingbirdTyrannus verticalis
- Say's phoebeSayornis saya
- Quiscalus mexicanusQuiscalus mexicanus
- American Cliff SwallowPetrochelidon pyrrhonota
- Barn swallowHirundo rustica
- Lark SparrowChondestes grammacus
- Song SparrowMelospiza melodia
- Northern RavenCorvus corax
- Northern Rough-winged SwallowStelgidopteryx serripennis
- Northern MockingbirdMimus polyglottos
- House finchHaemorhous mexicanus
- Marsh WrenCistothorus palustris
- Blue GrosbeakPasserina caerulea
- American CrowCorvus brachyrhynchos
- Sturnella lilianaeSturnella lilianae
- Shore LarkEremophila alpestris
- Tree SwallowTachycineta bicolor
- House SparrowPasser domesticus
- Sage ThrasherOreoscoptes montanus
- Vesper SparrowPooecetes gramineus
- Rock WrenSalpinctes obsoletus
- Sand MartinRiparia riparia
- American GoldfinchSpinus tristis
- Myrtle WarblerSetophaga coronata
- Junco hyemalisJunco hyemalis
- Ash-throated FlycatcherMyiarchus cinerascens
- Brewer's BlackbirdEuphagus cyanocephalusNT
- Scissor-tailed FlycatcherTyrannus forficatus
- Bullock's OrioleIcterus bullockii
- Black phoebeSayornis nigricans
- Common GrackleQuiscalus quisculaNT
- Brown-headed CowbirdMolothrus ater
- Lark BuntingCalamospiza melanocorys
- Curve-billed ThrasherToxostoma curvirostre
- Cassin's SparrowPeucaea cassinii
- Sagebrush SparrowArtemisiospiza nevadensis
- American RobinTurdus migratorius
- Common StarlingSturnus vulgaris
- Purple MartinProgne subis
- Brewer's SparrowSpizella breweri
- Chipping SparrowSpizella passerina
- Lincoln's SparrowMelospiza lincolnii
- Bewick's WrenThryomanes bewickii
- Lesser GoldfinchSpinus psaltria
- Yellow-headed BlackbirdXanthocephalus xanthocephalus
- White-breasted NuthatchSitta carolinensis
- Common YellowthroatGeothlypis trichas
- PyrrhuloxiaCardinalis sinuatus
- Black-headed GrosbeakPheucticus melanocephalus
- Western BluebirdSialia mexicana
- Swamp SparrowMelospiza georgiana
- Cassin's KingbirdTyrannus vociferans
- Violet-green SwallowTachycineta thalassina
- Woodhouse's Scrub JayAphelocoma woodhouseii
Other birds16 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- American CootFulica americana
- Mourning DoveZenaida macroura
- Scaled QuailCallipepla squamata
- White-winged DoveZenaida asiatica
- Greater RoadrunnerGeococcyx californianus
- Common NighthawkChordeiles minor
- Eurasian Collared DoveStreptopelia decaocto
- Common PheasantPhasianus colchicus
- Yellow-shafted FlickerColaptes auratus
- Virginia RailRallus limicola
- Black-chinned HummingbirdArchilochus alexandri
- Belted KingfisherMegaceryle alcyon
- Rock DoveColumba livia
- Lesser NighthawkChordeiles acutipennis
- Colinus virginianusColinus virginianus
- SoraPorzana carolina
Monthly presence relative to all bird records that month, so a busy month does not inflate every species.
When to go
The most species from April to May.
Species recorded in each month, with the usual temperature and rain.
- Jan13°/-2°9 mm
- Feb16°/0°10 mm
- Mar21°/4°15 mm
- Apr26°/8°14 mm
- May31°/14°26 mm
- Jun36°/20°28 mm
- Jul35°/22°50 mm
- Aug34°/21°53 mm
- Sep30°/16°52 mm
- Oct25°/9°34 mm
- Nov18°/2°11 mm
- Dec12°/-2°10 mm
- Bar: species recorded that month.
- Temperature: average maximum / minimum (NASA, 1991–2020).
- Rain: monthly total.
The place
Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge.
Protected wetland area in Chavez County, New Mexico, United States
Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge is a wetland of international importance (Ramsar) in United States, 1,080 m above the sea.
151 bird species have been recorded here more than once, in 2,246 open records.
The most recorded are the Sturnella neglecta, the Mallard and the White-crowned sparrow.
44 species come for the summer, 36 for the winter and 0 only pass through.
2 are threatened worldwide, including Lesser yellowlegs and Marbled Godwit.
The most species are recorded from April to May.
Get there and watch
- Official informationAccess, hours and rules from those who manage the place.Official site↗
- Bitter Lake Scout Campcampsite · 7.5 km · 1 within 10 km
- Roswellnearest town · 17 km in a straight line
- Roswell Air Center Airport (ROW)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 27 km in a straight lineCar hire at ROW airport (Roswell)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
Plan the visit
A guided walk, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
From above
The place and its surroundings.
The satellite image of the 6 × 6 km around the place, with the bird hides, towers and trails that OpenStreetMap shows.
Around, in OpenStreetMap
- 1campsites within 10 kmBitter Lake Scout Camp
- bird hides within 6 km
- observation towers within 6 km
- marked trails within 4 km
- visitor centres within 6 km
- viewpoints within 5 km
- car parks within 3 km
- restaurants and cafés within 3 km
- places to stay within 10 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet.
In our other atlases
Around Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge.
The lakes, beaches, islands, rivers and mountains around this place, and its night sky, in the family's atlases.
Peakyas5 mountains within 25 kmBallard Hill · 11 kmComanche Hill · 13 kmPanther Hill · 16 kmMesa Diablo · 18 kmHaystack Mountain · 21 km
Figures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Photographs
The place, as people saw it.
Where these figures come from
| Name and type | Wikidata (Q4919014) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Birds | 2,246 open bird records within 6 km (GBIF, CC0 and CC BY 4.0 only; mostly eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology) |
| See these records | gbif.org |
| Species | GBIF Backbone Taxonomy · CC BY 4.0; Wikidata (CC0); Wikimedia Commons |
| Altitude | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Temperature and rain | NASA POWER (CERES SYN1deg, 2001–2020; MERRA-2) |
| What is around | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Sister atlases | Peakyas |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers, canyons, caves, dark skies, viewpoints, birdwatching or forests?
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Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
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Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Visit 
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Every cave with its real depth and length: the rock above, the temperature inside all year, and how to visit.Visit 
dark skies
Where the night is still dark: the sky of every place, the Milky Way month by month, the Moon, eclipses and auroras.Visit 
viewpoints
Every viewpoint with its real 360° panorama: the peaks you can name, how far you see and where the sun sets.Coming soonVisit 
birdwatching
Every bird sanctuary and wetland with the species recorded month by month: who is resident, who comes for the summer, who only passes through.You are here
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Every forest with its land-cover rings, what grows and lives in it, and the best months to walk it.Coming soonVisit