Last stop for today and our trip is at the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters. Here we really hope to see the Masked Bobwhite a subspecies of Northern Bobwhite that was thought to be extinct before a population was found in Mexico. Since then a breeding and a re-introduction program was initiated with the center being right here in Buenos Aires. But first we see pronghorn antelopes near the entrance, already something special.
In fact they play around, to us it seems that two of them are juveniles who really enjoy the cooler weather and abundant grassland. They also play right next to a pond so water is not a problem as evidenced by the many cowbirds enjoying the pond.
We are the only people at the headquarters so we get a personal tour of the former ranch house from the volunteer. We get lots of information about the history and also an indication on where to see Masked Bobwhite, even though they are still in captivity.
In fact some of the Masked Bobwhite kept for reintroduction are in a pen right next to the visitor center and they are fun to see. Even more interesting there is at least one outside the pen that has come to visit so we get our first glimpse of a wild Masked Bobwhite, soo cool!
Next we eat our lunch at the picnic area next to the visitor center in the almost gale level winds. At least with the winds it doesn’t feel so hot outside, it is hiting the 90s at this point. And then it is time to explore the Proghorn Tour Loop Road where we plan to look for birds and antelopes of course.
But first we stop for every flower and nice view near the road enjoying the fact that we basically have the entire road for ourselves and we can stop wherever we want and stay as much as we want.
At one of these steps we notice something in the distance and when looking closer we notice it is a pronghorn antelope, alone in the grasslands. This is quite unusual and it sits there for quite some time as we watch it from a distance.
We continue on enjoying the many flowers all around us, there seem to have been rains recently as the ocotillos are in flower everyhere. And then we return back towards the headquarters where we have two more hikes planned.
But first surprisingly in the parking lot we find a great horned owl nest with a parent watching us carefully from the nest. And then looking more carefully at the tree we also find the second parent much closer and looking quite annoted at us but not moving at all. We take a few steps back and then watch for a while the owls while they watch us back. And then it is time to start on the first trail from headquarters, the Ranch Loop Trail.
It is a short trail, less than 1 mile and relatively level. We have no idea what to expect but it seems to be focused on remains from the previous inhabitants of the area including some well preserved metates.
There are also lots of flowers and greenery, it is actually a nice trail and a good way for us to stretch our legs after the auto tour.
There are also other archaeological digs ongoing it seems and we are curious what they are digging for. And the trail also passes through an abandoned (?) corral which is quite impressive in size before returning back to the visitor center.
And here besides the usual rabbits we have a large surprise seeing a masked bobwhite really in the wild away from the cage, it is quite fun to see how quick it can disappear into the undergrowth. Hopefully it can hide well given the great horned owls nearby….
The last stop in the headquarters area is the Aguirre Lake. There is a trail around it but it is too long and the lake is dry. Instead we decide to do the shorter Grebe Pond Trail that passes through a small section of Aguirre Lake to look for birds and just take in the sunset.
There is no one else on the trail, in fact the whole NWR is seems to be almost deserted. This is good for us as we enjoy the solitude as we follow the good paths across bridges while keeping an eye out for any interesting birds.
There are a few birds in fact, we especially like the canyon towhee that is showing his catch around to attract a mate.
As we reach the only area with water the sun comes out illuminating the landscape in otherwordly colors. It is quite beautiful here and we stay on a bench for a while just enjoying the views and the birds.
But then it is time to return back to the car and to the entrance where we watch for nighthawks before starting on the three hour return trip to Phoenix after a beatiful and fruitful trip in this unexplored area of Southern Arizona.
