Trip difficulty: Easy morning trip to Las Cienegas with only short walks through the grasslands, we’ll be quitting before it gets too hot. Pit toilets available at Empire Ranch; bring water, snacks, sun protection, car-pooling required.

While many birds are going quiet this time of year, with the start of the monsoon, sparrows and other species are just getting started. We’ll focus on finding/detection, identifying, and studying several sparrows partial to these grassland habitats, including Botteri’s, Cassin’s, and Grasshopper Sparrows. Spotting scopes will be particularly helpful.

Leaders: Tim Helentjaris

Registration for this outing is $35 for members and $50 for non-members.