Loggerhead Shrike at Baca NWR

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The Baca National Wildlife Refuge was only established in 2003 and is not yet open to the public. My Audubon chapter had a field trip there last summer and I birded there last week. It is a veritable jewell in the rough, waiting for funding to add staffing (currently there is a manager and some maintenance staff). The approximately 92,000 acres in it's boundaries provide a lot of habitat for a variety of birds and other wildlife. 14% of the Refuge is wetland habitat including lush wet meadows, playa wetlands and riparian habitat. Most of the upland habitat is classified as semi-desert shrublands and grasslands. The lower pic is a Northern Shrike that I photographed on the Baca NWR last week. It is always good to see shrikes since though this species is not known to be of conservation concern yet, many shrike species are in danger. SeEtta

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