Birds of New Mexico at a glance
New Mexico spans desert, grassland, river valleys, and high forested mountains, so the birds in a yard in Las Cruces can differ a lot from those in Santa Fe or Taos. The state bird is the Greater Roadrunner, a long-tailed ground bird that is often seen sprinting across roads and yards.
Common backyard birds
These are widespread and a good starting list for most of the state:
- House Finch: Males have a red head and chest. Females are streaky brown.
- Mourning Dove and White-winged Dove: Mourning Dove has a pointed tail. White-winged Dove has a white wing edge.
- Canyon Towhee: Plain brown with a rusty cap and a faint spot on the chest.
- Spotted Towhee: Black hood, rusty sides and white belly, more likely in the north and in shrubby areas.
- Curve-billed Thrasher: A gray-brown bird with a long curved bill, mostly in the south.
- Black-headed Grosbeak and Lesser Goldfinch: Seen in warmer months at feeders in many areas.
- Dark-eyed Junco and Mountain Chickadee: More common in higher country.
- American Robin, Western Scrub-Jay and Black-billed Magpie can all appear, depending on region. Magpies are mostly in the northern part.
Large birds
People often ask about large birds in New Mexico. A few commonly noticed:
- Sandhill Crane: Tall, gray, with a red forehead. Large flocks winter in some river valleys and wetlands, such as along the Rio Grande. Their rolling calls carry far.
- Red-tailed Hawk: A heavy hawk, often seen on poles. Many have a reddish tail.
- Turkey Vulture: Dark with two-toned wings, soaring with its wings in a slight V.
- Golden Eagle: Large and dark, usually seen in open, rugged country.
- Greater Roadrunner: Large for a ground bird, with a long tail.
Hummingbirds
Several hummingbird species visit New Mexico in warm months, including Black-chinned, Broad-tailed and Rufous Hummingbirds, depending on season and location. The male Broad-tailed Hummingbird makes a distinctive trilling sound with its wings. Hummingbirds are tricky to identify quickly, so note throat color, tail pattern and the date.
Identifying a bird from a photo
If you took a picture and want to know what the bird is:
- Check the basics: Size compared to nearby objects, bill shape and tail length.
- Note the colors and patterns: Head stripes, wing bars and belly color matter more than overall impression.
- Use a tool: The Merlin Bird ID app from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology can suggest species from a photo. The results are suggestions, so compare them with a field guide and range map.
- Include context: Where and when you saw it can rule out many species.
Related guides
Birds in southern New Mexico overlap strongly with those in neighboring Arizona. See our Arizona birds identification guide for more desert species.