cwilliamson@pimacc.pima.edu (10/07/90)
You are invited to...
1990 San Blas Christmas Bird Count, Nayarit Mexico
"We have not set the date for San Blas officially, but I think
the 28th of December (a Friday) would be good."
Sharon Goldwasser, San Blas CBC compiler
So, there you have it, the tentative date (plus or minus a day or
so) of the 1990 San Blas Mexico Christmas Bird Count.
Last year, 1989, the tropical San Blas count had 206 species, a
low for that count. Many of the usual participants, for one
reason or another, could not make it - but the count went forward
anyway and who is to say that 206 is not a respectable species
count? The count in the past has produced more than 290 species.
More than 300 species can be seen within the count circle during
the Christmas Count season.
This year, with recruitment of new participants from around the
US, we would like to push 260 or so.
The diversity of habitats found within the count circle is hard
to match anywhere. Come to San Blas to find:
Offshore, whitewashed ocean rocks where RED-BILLED TROPICBIRDS
might land 30 feet from your skiff...Sandy beaches, estuaries,
and seasonal ponds teeming with herons, shorebirds, gulls, and
hundreds of MAGNIFICENT FRIGATEBIRDS ... Mangrove swamps,
accessible only by boat, for certain looks at the COMMON POTOOS &
comic BOAT-BILLED HERONS... true tropical forest where BRIGHT-
RUMPED ATTILA, SCRUB EUPHONIA & BOAT-BILLED FLYCATCHERS may
romp... peanut farms in dry thornscrub for the elusive SAN BLAS
JAY... coffee and banana plantation with MOTMOTS, MASKED TITYRAS
& maybe a SPARKLING-TAILED HUMMINGBIRD... and many familiar
northern migrants keeping you company with their chip notes.
Even the outskirts of town boast flocks of BLUE-RUMPED
PARROTLETS, YELLOW-WINGED CACIQUES and GREAT KISKADEES, to
mention only a few.
HOW DO YOU PARTICIPATE? Just show up in San Blas no later than
the evening of the 27th of December. Notices for the pre-count
meeting will be posted throughout the town. It may not be too
late to book a flight to Mazatlan or Puerto Vallarta, or take the
train from Nogales to Tepic. Rental cars are available in the
big cities. Or drive your own vehicle. A variety of
accommodations are available from the comfortable (North American
style) Las Brisas Hotel- to the inexpensive but noisy Hotel
Buccanero, conveniently located only 2 blocks from the town
square. The seafood is fresh & inexpensive.
So, if you don't mind mosquitos, no-see-ums, and jungle ticks,
and are feeling adventurous this year, meet us down there!
Chuck Williamson and Sharon Goldwasser