Description
The three species of Rosy Finches that winter in the highlands of New Mexico are major photographic attractions. These annual visitors nest and breed in the northern Rocky Mountains and like all "snow birds" migrate south in the winter. A favorite wintering ground is northern New Mexico, where they enjoy the lower elevations (10,000 feet) and the balmy nights that seldom fall below minus 30 degrees (F.). The Black Rosy Finch (Leucosticte atrata) is said to be the most shy and elusive. Unlike his bolder, more habituated brown-capped and gray-crowned flock-mates, this fighty chap would tolerated an approach no closer than a photographically challenging two feet. (Photographed near Bobcat Pass, Taos County, New Mexico)