Male Northern Harrier

I had high hopes for seeing some good wildlife on the Vasco Caves tour. I saw a ton of raptors a couple weeks prior at nearby Brushy Peak, and even saw a ferruginous hawk while driving to Brushy Peak that very morning. Some guy on the shuttle bus on the way to Vasco Caves claimed to have seen a fox as we drove through the park. Our naturalist told us to be on the lookout for burrowing owls and said that other tour groups have seen a cougar. A COUGAR!!! We came across a lot of coyote and bobcat scat. There should have been wildlife out the wazoo at this place. Unfortunately, I didn’t see much. Certainly no cougars. I did see a couple of red tails and a kestrel or two, but that’s about it. Except for this male Northern harrier that I photographed as we waited to board the shuttle to go back to our cars at Brushy Peak. The shuttle bus driver – a big birder – said it was the same harrier that we had seen when she dropped us off that morning; he’d just been patrolling near the bus for hours. Good for him! Our naturalist informed us that he especially loved the “cool, sleek beauty” of male Northern harriers which reminded me of Jain’s especial love for them. Despite not seeing as much wildlife as I had hoped, Vasco Caves was very much worth it and I really loved my time there.