La Llave

The reservoir at La Llave is a magical place for birding.  The variety of habitats here, and the healthy amount of vegetation means that you can find a real diversity of species here.  Here's some photos Xander took on his visit ( also see  www.alexanderhiley.com, www.northfrancebirder.com)

Ducks are an obvious feature here.  In winter, Northern Pintails and Northern Shovelers feature heavily.  Blue-winged Teal, Green-winged Teal, Cinnamon Teal, American Wigeon, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser Scaup, Mexican Duck and Gadwall are also easy.  I've had a number of pairs of breeding Fulvous Whistling Ducks here as well.  

Green-winged Teal

 Waders present at La Llave in winter include Black-necked Stilts (below), Long-billed Dowitchers (below), Stilt Sandpipers, Spotted Sandpipers, Least Sandpipers and a few Wilson's Phalaropes.  Passage brings many more species.

Wilson's Phalarope and Black-necked Stilt

Long-billed Dowitcher

One of the big attractions, though, is the damp low-lying vegetation (the water onions), which attract unusual species such as American Bittern, Sora and Northern Jacana..

Northern Jacana

 Walking along the side of the reservoir, it is easy to pick up a variety of rarer passerines and raptors, such as Marsh Wren and Common Yellowthroat, Crested Caracara, Cooper's Hawk, Northern Harrier, Red-tailed Hawk and Turkey Vulture.  Sparrows and other Warblers abound, as do the likes of Groove-billed Anis (unusual elsewhere in Queretaro) and Cactus Wren.

Cactus Wren

 La Llave is definitely one of the nicest places to bird in Queretaro.