All winter long I have monitered the California Rare Bird list on e-bird and I've had my eye on a Ruddy Ground Dove that is overwintering at the Furnace Creek Resort in Death Valley National Park. Every few days it pops back onto the list as sightings are reported. While down visiting family in Bakersfield I had a chance to go off on a birding day and decided that it was worth the effort to make the drive over two mountain ranges and on down below sea level to try for this bird.
The Ruddy Ground Dove is a Central and South American species and a rare visitor to the American Southwest. Every winter you can usually turn one up somewhere in southeast Arizona but they rarely make it to California. With the weather being so mild at the beginning of the year here, it made for a lovely day out. Warm temperatures but still a dusting of snow atop Telescope Peak, the highest point in Death Valley.
I arrived at the resort area shortly before 10 am. and spent about 45 minutes searching before locating the bird roosting in a small tree in the lawn area between the swimming pool and the lodge. It did some flying back and forth before settling down on the grass to feed at one point flying up to perch in a small tree where I was able to get these images.
A beautiful little dove that takes me now to within 10 birds of 600. Perhaps 2026 will see me over this milestone.
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