Mexico Ramsar wetland
Ciénegas del Lerma
215 bird species recorded; the most in March, in October and from December to January.
Avecus · CC0
This month here
120 species in January.105 species in February.127 species in March.112 species in April.86 species in May.78 species in June.69 species in July.111 species in August.84 species in September.122 species in October.115 species in November.130 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.
VU
VU
NT
VU
NT
VUNT
VU
NT
VU
VUNT
VUNTVUNT
VUVU
- Resident all year
- Summer visitor comes to breed
- Winter visitor comes for the winter
- Passage migrant in spring and autumn
In numbers
215 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).
- 215Speciesrecorded more than once
- 87Migrantssummer, winter or passage visitors
- 3ThreatenedVulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered (IUCN)
- 14,361Recordsopen records within 6 km
- 2,570 mAltitudeabove the sea
- 16Raptors
- 5Owls
- 16Waders
- 4Gulls & seabirds
- 16Ducks & geese
- 16Herons, ibises & grebes
- 110Songbirds
- 32Other 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 215 species.
By group, with the year in twelve cells: the darker the cell, the more often the bird is recorded that month.
Raptors16 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Hen HarrierCircus cyaneus
- White-tailed KiteElanus leucurus
- Turkey VultureCathartes aura
- Red-tailed HawkButeo jamaicensis
- OspreyPandion haliaetus
- Falco sparveriusFalco sparverius
- Peregrine FalconFalco peregrinus
- Red-shouldered HawkButeo lineatus
- MerlinFalco columbarius
- Accipiter striatusAccipiter striatus
- Black VultureCoragyps atratus
- Crested CaracaraCaracara plancus
- Harris's HawkParabuteo unicinctus
- Broad-winged HawkButeo platypterus
- Zone-tailed HawkButeo albonotatus
- Mississippi KiteIctinia mississippiensis
Owls5 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- American Barn OwlTyto furcata
- Burrowing OwlAthene cunicularia
- Short-eared OwlAsio flammeus
- Western Screech-owlMegascops kennicottii
- Great Horned OwlBubo virginianus
Waders16 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- KilldeerCharadrius vociferusNT
- Black-necked StiltHimantopus mexicanus
- Wilson's SnipeGallinago delicata
- Greater YellowlegsTringa melanoleucaNT
- Spotted SandpiperActitis macularius
- Lesser yellowlegsTringa flavipesVU
- Solitary SandpiperTringa solitaria
- Long-billed dowitcherLimnodromus scolopaceusNT
- Wilson's PhalaropePhalaropus tricolor
- Stilt SandpiperCalidris himantopusNT
- Least SandpiperCalidris minutillaNT
- American AvocetRecurvirostra americana
- Baird's SandpiperCalidris bairdii
- Bartram's SandpiperBartramia longicauda
- Pectoral SandpiperCalidris melanotos
- Northern JacanaJacana spinosa
Gulls & seabirds4 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Laughing GullLeucophaeus atricilla
- Black TernChlidonias niger
- Ring-billed GullLarus delawarensis
- Franklin's GullLeucophaeus pipixcan
Ducks & geese16 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Mexican DuckAnas diazi
- Ruddy DuckOxyura jamaicensis
- Northern ShovelerSpatula clypeata
- Blue-winged TealSpatula discors
- Cinnamon TealSpatula cyanoptera
- American WigeonMareca americana
- Eurasian TealAnas crecca
- GadwallMareca strepera
- Northern PintailAnas acuta
- Ring-necked DuckAythya collaris
- Eurasian WigeonMareca penelope
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
- Lesser ScaupAythya affinis
- Cairina moschataCairina moschata
- Greylag GooseAnser anser
- Fulvous Whistling-duckDendrocygna bicolor
Herons, ibises & grebes16 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Plegadis chihiPlegadis chihi
- Western Cattle EgretBubulcus ibis
- Great White EgretArdea alba
- Snowy EgretEgretta thula
- Pied-billed GrebePodilymbus podiceps
- Great Blue HeronArdea herodias
- Eared GrebePodiceps nigricollis
- Green HeronButorides virescens
- Black-crowned Night-HeronNycticorax nycticorax
- Tricolored HeronEgretta tricolor
- Least GrebeTachybaptus dominicus
- Clark's GrebeAechmophorus clarkii
- American BitternBotaurus lentiginosus
- Double-crested CormorantPhalacrocorax auritus
- Phalacrocorax brasilianusPhalacrocorax brasilianus
- American White PelicanPelecanus erythrorhynchos
Songbirds110 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Song SparrowMelospiza melodia
- Black-polled YellowthroatGeothlypis speciosaVU
- Agelaius phoeniceusAgelaius phoeniceus
- Marsh WrenCistothorus palustris
- Barn swallowHirundo rustica
- Scarlet FlycatcherPyrocephalus rubinus
- Cassin's KingbirdTyrannus vociferans
- House SparrowPasser domesticus
- House finchHaemorhous mexicanus
- Quiscalus mexicanusQuiscalus mexicanus
- Yellow-headed BlackbirdXanthocephalus xanthocephalus
- Striped SparrowOriturus superciliosus
- Common YellowthroatGeothlypis trichas
- Lesser GoldfinchSpinus psaltria
- Bronzed CowbirdMolothrus aeneus
- Violet-green SwallowTachycineta thalassina
- Canyon TowheeMelozone fusca
- Loggerhead ShrikeLanius ludovicianusNT
- Black phoebeSayornis nigricans
- American RobinTurdus migratorius
- Myrtle WarblerSetophaga coronata
- Blue-gray GnatcatcherPolioptila caerulea
- Brown-headed CowbirdMolothrus ater
- Wilson's WarblerCardellina pusilla
- Lincoln's SparrowMelospiza lincolnii
- American Cliff SwallowPetrochelidon pyrrhonota
- Savannah SparrowPasserculus sandwichensis
- Common StarlingSturnus vulgaris
- Curve-billed ThrasherToxostoma curvirostre
- American BushtitPsaltriparus minimus
- Brewer's BlackbirdEuphagus cyanocephalusNT
- Blue GrosbeakPasserina caerulea
- Buff-breasted FlycatcherEmpidonax fulvifrons
- Clay-colored SparrowSpizella pallida
- Bewick's WrenThryomanes bewickii
- Say's phoebeSayornis saya
- Mangrove WarblerSetophaga petechia
- Grass WrenCistothorus platensis
- Northern WaterthrushParkesia noveboracensis
- Cinnamon-rumped SeedeaterSporophila torqueola
- Black-headed GrosbeakPheucticus melanocephalus
- Tree SwallowTachycineta bicolor
- Orange-crowned WarblerLeiothlypis celata
- Chipping SparrowSpizella passerina
- Pine SiskinSpinus pinus
- Yellow-eyed JuncoJunco phaeonotus
- Shore LarkEremophila alpestris
- Ruby-crowned KingletRegulus calendula
- Gray Silky-flycatcherPtilogonys cinereus
- White-throated FlycatcherEmpidonax albigularis
- Northern Rough-winged SwallowStelgidopteryx serripennis
- Buff-bellied PipitAnthus rubescens
- Sand MartinRiparia riparia
- Northern House WrenTroglodytes aedon
- Steller's JayCyanocitta stelleri
- Greater PeweeContopus pertinax
- Pipilo maculatusPipilo maculatus
- Cinnamon-bellied Flower-piercerDiglossa baritula
- Slate-throated RedstartMyioborus miniatus
- Lark SparrowChondestes grammacus
- Sturnella lilianaeSturnella lilianae
- Crescent-chested WarblerOreothlypis superciliosa
- Least FlycatcherEmpidonax minimus
- White-breasted NuthatchSitta carolinensis
- Vireo huttoniVireo huttoni
- Nashville WarblerLeiothlypis ruficapilla
- Mexican ChickadeePoecile sclateri
- Black-backed OrioleIcterus abeillei
- Townsend's WarblerSetophaga townsendi
- Eastern phoebeSayornis phoebe
- Brown-backed SolitaireMyadestes occidentalis
- Bullock's OrioleIcterus bullockii
- Empidonax difficilisEmpidonax difficilis
- Rufous-backed RobinTurdus rufopalliatus
- Western BluebirdSialia mexicana
- Vesper SparrowPooecetes gramineus
- Western Wood-PeweeContopus sordidulus
- Black-throated Grey WarblerSetophaga nigrescens
- Turdus assimilisTurdus assimilis
- Great KiskadeePitangus sulphuratus
- Tropical KingbirdTyrannus melancholicus
- Orchard orioleIcterus spurius
- Louisiana WaterthrushParkesia motacilla
- Red WarblerCardellina rubra
- American Dusky FlycatcherEmpidonax oberholseri
- Eastern MeadowlarkSturnella magnaNT
- Flame-coloured TanagerPiranga bidentata
- DickcisselSpiza americana
- Orange-billed Nightingale-thrushCatharus aurantiirostris
- Hermit WarblerSetophaga occidentalis
- Vireo plumbeusVireo plumbeus
- Ash-throated FlycatcherMyiarchus cinerascens
- Warbling VireoVireo gilvus
- Summer TanagerPiranga rubra
- Hooded YellowthroatGeothlypis nelsoni
- Golden-browed WarblerBasileuterus belli
- Rufous-capped Brush-finchAtlapetes pileatus
- Blue MockingbirdMelanotis caerulescens
- Canyon WrenCatherpes mexicanus
- Botteri's SparrowPeucaea botterii
- Black-headed SiskinSpinus notatus
- Willow FlycatcherEmpidonax traillii
- Hammond's FlycatcherEmpidonax hammondii
- Social FlycatcherMyiozetetes similis
- Northern Beardless-TyrannuletCamptostoma imberbe
- Grasshopper SparrowAmmodramus savannarum
- Eastern KingbirdTyrannus tyrannus
- Lazuli BuntingPasserina amoena
- MacGillivray's WarblerGeothlypis tolmiei
- Green-striped Brush-finchArremon virenticeps
Other birds32 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- American CootFulica americana
- Common MoorhenGallinula chloropus
- SoraPorzana carolina
- Rock DoveColumba livia
- Virginia RailRallus limicola
- Mourning DoveZenaida macroura
- Inca DoveColumbina inca
- Highland RailRallus tenuirostrisNT
- Ladder-backed WoodpeckerDryobates scalaris
- Eurasian Collared DoveStreptopelia decaocto
- Acorn WoodpeckerMelanerpes formicivorus
- Yellow-shafted FlickerColaptes auratus
- Belted KingfisherMegaceryle alcyon
- White-eared HummingbirdBasilinna leucotis
- Broad-billed HummingbirdCynanthus latirostris
- Magnificent HummingbirdEugenes fulgens
- Vaux's SwiftChaetura vauxi
- Ruby-throated HummingbirdArchilochus colubris
- Rallus longirostrisRallus longirostris
- Chestnut-collared SwiftStreptoprocne rutila
- White-winged DoveZenaida asiatica
- Long-tailed Wood-partridgeDendrortyx macroura
- Groove-billed AniCrotophaga sulcirostris
- Purple GallinulePorphyrio martinica
- Yellow RailCoturnicops noveboracensis
- Berylline HummingbirdSaucerottia beryllina
- Phaeoptila sordidaPhaeoptila sordida
- Blue-throated MountaingemLampornis clemenciae
- American Black SwiftCypseloides nigerVU
- Amethyst-throated MountaingemLampornis amethystinus
- Golden-cheeked WoodpeckerMelanerpes chrysogenys
- Mexican VioletearColibri thalassinus
Monthly presence relative to all bird records that month, so a busy month does not inflate every species.
When to go
The most species in March, in October and from December to January.
Species recorded in each month, with the usual temperature and rain.
- Jan22°/7°8 mm
- Feb24°/8°10 mm
- Mar27°/10°12 mm
- Apr29°/12°18 mm
- May28°/13°64 mm
- Jun25°/13°171 mm
- Jul23°/13°179 mm
- Aug23°/13°188 mm
- Sep22°/12°183 mm
- Oct22°/11°72 mm
- Nov22°/9°19 mm
- Dec22°/8°5 mm
- Bar: species recorded that month.
- Temperature: average maximum / minimum (NASA, 1991–2020).
- Rain: monthly total.
The place
Ciénegas del Lerma.
Wetland in central Mexico
Ciénegas del Lerma is a wetland of international importance (Ramsar) in Mexico, 2,570 m above the sea.
215 bird species have been recorded here more than once, in 14,361 open records.
The most recorded are the Song Sparrow, the Black-polled Yellowthroat and the Agelaius phoeniceus.
27 species come for the summer, 56 for the winter and 4 only pass through.
3 are threatened worldwide, including Black-polled Yellowthroat, Lesser yellowlegs and American Black Swift.
The most species are recorded in March, in October and from December to January.
Get there and watch
- Auto Hotel Villa Miroplace to stay · 7.1 km · 48 within 10 km
- San Pedro Tlaltizapannearest town · 1.9 km in a straight line
- Adolfo López Mateos International Airport (TLC)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 15 km in a straight lineCar hire at MEX airport (Mexico City)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
- 2car parks within 3 km
- 4restaurants and cafés within 3 km
- 48places to stay within 10 kmAuto Hotel Villa Miro, Mansión Inn, Hotel Villas de San José and 45 more
- bird hides within 6 km
- observation towers within 6 km
- marked trails within 4 km
- visitor centres within 6 km
- viewpoints within 5 km
- campsites 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 Ciénegas del Lerma.
The lakes, beaches, islands, rivers and mountains around this place, and its night sky, in the family's atlases.
Peakyas97 mountains within 25 kmVolcán Texontepec2,960 m · volcano · 9.5 kmVolcán Tomasquillo3,017 m · volcano · 13 kmVolcán Emerenciano3,074 m · volcano · 13 kmVolcán Teconto3,121 m · volcano · 13 kmVolcán La Silva3,107 m · volcano · 14 kmVolcán Tres Cruces2,915 m · volcano · 14 kmVolcán Jumento3,738 m · volcano · 20 kmVolcán Chalchihuites3,159 m · volcano · 24 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.
Other places nearby.
Ciénegas del Lerma
Mexico
- 70Birdyas Score
- 215Species
- 87Migrants
- 3Threatened
Biosphere Reserve Barranca de Metztitlán
Mexico · 166 km
- 52Birdyas Score
- 129Species
- 50Migrants
- 0Threatened
Veracruzano Coral Reef System National Park
Mexico · 390 km
- 29Birdyas Score
- 25Species
- 1Migrants
- 0Threatened
Where these figures come from
| Name and type | Wikidata (Q108391249) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Birds | 14,361 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, Riveryas |
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?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, in seven languages.
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viewpoints
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birdwatching
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