Birding Colorado

Rio Grande County
Author(s):  Virginia Simmons
County Seat: Del Norte
Size: 913 square miles
Low Elevation: 7,591 ft. - SE border of the Monte Vista NWR at Alamosa
High Elevation: 13,203 ft. - Bennett Peak
Best Birds: Cerulean Warbler (1997), Vermilion Flycatcher (1950)
Checklist: Rio Grande County Checklist
Introduction: Located in the San Luis Valley in south-central Colorado, Rio Grande County includes part of the flat basin, adjacent foothills, and mountains. Elevations range from about 7,600 feet to 13,200 feet and annual precipitation includes, on average, 6-8 inches to about 100 inches depending on the elevation. Habitat types vary from grassland and irrigated agricultural land in the Valley floor up dry foothills through montane and subalpine zones in the mountains. The Rio Grande and several of its tributaries offer riparian habitats, as well as road access to the higher country. Native vegetation types, from lowest to highest elevations, are grasses and greasewood, pinyon/juniper/shrubs in foothills, brush/willow/cottonwood in riparian areas, shrubs/aspen/ponderosa/fir on moist mountain slopes, and scattered scrub/aspen/spruce/bristlecone and meadows at the higher locations. Irrigation ditches, impoundments, small brooks and lakes, and rock outcrops add to the variety. Among human activities that have altered natural habitats are irrigation, extensive farming and grazing, mining, timber-cutting, towns and rural home development, while a National Wildlife Refuge has increased several species. Because political boundaries of Rio Grande County are irregular except on the east side, access to some areas requires routes through other counties. Several Forest Service roads and trails enter the San Juan Mountains from the east and north in Rio Grande County, and others reach the La Garita Mountains from the south, but Forest Service roads are not maintained in winter, and mud or high water may limit access in any season. Lakes, even on the Valley floor, are usually frozen over from December into March or May, depending on elevation. Many 4x4 roads exist, but most of the birding locations listed here can be reached in passenger cars.

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