Itter Lakes National Wildlife Refuge

 March 13, I took a taxi out to the Wildlife Refuge to the east of Roswell. I expected a greuling hike after my arrival so I didn't want to burn myself out between town and the park.

Although the area is primarily intended as a wildlife refuge, especially as a byway for migrating birds, it's a great attraction that's developed with education in mind 

As a home to one of the largest bison herd ever in North America, the oasis that is now the Roswell area was a major draw to the indigenous people long before Europeans began to settle here. So the refuge is also a outdoor museum of history.

The land surrounding the park is typical Chihuahuan desert. Reading the section on the Chihuahuan desert in The Deserts of the Southwest. A Sierra Club Naturalist's Guide by Peggy Larson and Lane Larson makes me think, "Yep. That's my yard."

The trip out Pine Lodge Road has a few surprises such as the big solar farm, part of the source for Roswell's power (see the September 4 blog about Roswell's utilities).

The visitor center (see photo above) is loaded with information about the site and souvenirs that have nothing to do with UFOs. It also has a back patio with observational scopes to look out over the lakes and cliffs. The staff is friendly and knowledgeable. They have events throughout the year but I intentionally went during a less crowded period.

They have an aquarium that displays some of the rare and endangered fish of the park including the Pecos blunt nose shiner, Pecos gambusia, and green throat darter. (I, hrm, failed to get a photograph, ummm, embarrassed.....)

You can check on events at their website:

Bitter Lakes National Wildlife Refuge

There is a string of several lakes fed by artesian springs. The waters flow through layers of gypsum and evaporites are evident at several places, especially at the northern reaches of the lakes  They lay in the Pecos River valley along Comanche Bluffs.

The park is home to many migratory birds including the sandhill crane. There are also over 90 species of dragonflies and damselflies. The park is on the route of the migrant Monarch butterflies. 

The oxbow lake at the southern end of the park seems to be popular with water fowl. Streams can meander pretty far in the flat areas of the desert, so much so that they can "meet themselves coming back", pinch off, and form a body of water separated from the stream.

Although it's hard to see from the ground, this aerial shot from Google Maps clearly shows the path of the oxbow.

The parent stream, the Pecos River is to the right of the photos. Here it is from its bank.

Although I didn't see evaporites on the ground much at the southern end, I did see this rock that was coated with the crystals.

There were a lot of different birds in the park but this wasn't a technical hike and I didn't have the equipment to catch them on camera. I will have to revisit the park with my tripod and lenses.

Wildlife refuges are great places to visit and are chosen for specific reasons. They're usually home to rare indigenous species or important stop over points in the migration of other animals. If there is one near you, you might want to visit with a camera