Cenizo Journal Summer 2017 | Page 26

continued from page 4 Jeff Davis County is a far-flung part of Texas, nearly twice the size of Rhode Island, with a 2,265 square- mile landmass; it touches the Rio Grande on the county’s western trape- zoid tip. The county’s population of 2,342 inhabitants has grown little over the years. In the 19th and 20th cen- turies, some brave souls came for cattle ranching in its spectacular highland plateau. Later and still today, the dark night sky and astronomy brings scien- tists and star gazers from around the world. But many of us call it ‘home’ because of its undisturbed nature and majestic scenery. Once famous for stagecoach trails, Apaches and Buffalo Soldiers, Fort Davis, the county seat, is now pro- claimed the “Hummingbird Capital of Texas” and is the gateway to the Nature Conservancy’s Davis Mountains Preserve, and the University of Texas McDonald Observatory. The unincorporated town sits at an elevation of 5,050 feet and also claims to be the “Coolest Town in Texas.” The region features one of the darkest night skies in the U.S., making it perfect for the observa- tory complex, built in 1932 at elevation 6,800 feet. Close to town, Fort Davis National Historic Site joins McDonald Observatory, Davis Mountains State Park and the Nature Conservancy’s Davis Mountains Preserve as the coun- ty’s tourism jewels. The preserve’s Mt. Livermore is a popular feature as the county’s highest point, at 8,432 feet elevation. Adjacent to and west of Fort Davis National Historic Site, the Davis Mountain State Park claims rights to nature with campgrounds, scenic drives, impressive bird viewing struc- tures and the Indian Lodge built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1934. The old Fort Davis, built in 1857, is considered one of the finest standing forts in the U.S. Lately, with the Nature Conservancy’s conservation of sky island habitat, residents, scientists and visitors now have access to scenic nat- ural areas and high mountain forests where quaking aspen, madrone, oaks, pinyon pine and juniper species grow beside impressive stands of ponderosa pine and Southwestern white pine at S KY I SLAND H UMMINGBIRD S TUDY R ESULTS SPECIES Magnificent Blue-throated Lucifer Ruby-throated Black-chinned Anna’s Costa’s Broad-tailed Rufous Allen’s Calliope Broad-billed Buff-bellied Violet-crowned White-eared Hybrid species PROJECT TOTALS 210 5 794 603 7,199 469 5 3,705 4,426 138 544 12 1 1 18 31 hybrid individuals of 11 different combinations TOTALS 18,146 Project totals reflect banded birds only. The first on record in the U. S., an Amethyst-throated hummingbird was sighted October, 2016 perching on the Cornell Lab’s live cam (https://youtu.be/JAAXKSsKKPk). This species normally occurs only in the mountains of eastern Mexico. With this bird well docu- mented, Texas now boasts 19 species of hummingbirds, one more than Arizona-its only U.S. rival for hummingbird diversity. More information at: (http://westtexashumming- birds.com/ ) and http://cams.allaboutbirds.org/channel/50/West_Texas_Hummingbirds/) the highest elevations. The lower ele- vation’s grasslands set a spectacular backdrop for the highland’s ecology and beauty. The Nature Conservancy is responsible for maintaining much of the sky island habitat through conser- vation easements with private landowners and on its 33, 075-acre Davis Mountains preserve, where the unique mountain avifauna has now been thoroughly documented. The Preserve’s higher elevations support birds more commonly associ- ated with western mountain ranges, 26 Cenizo Third Quarter 2017 such as the common black-hawk, gold- en eagle, and Montezuma quail. Various birds of prey and 13 species of hummingbirds are found there. At ele- vations above 5,500 feet, the range covers over 800 square miles and sup- ports an impressive population of 108 known and suspected breeding bird species. Access to the region’s biodi- versity has only recently allowed scien- tific study. In 2008 Kelly Bryan, a biologist now retired from Texas Parks and Wildlife, launched a scientific banding