• Twin Sisters

    City Of Rocks

    National Reserve Idaho

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  • Visitor Center Operating Hours Notification

    The City of Rocks Visitor Center will be closed May 21 & 22 for an All-Employee Orientation. The visitor center will reopen May 23 and operate from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. 7 days a week (including holidays) through October.

Birds

The high desert ecosystem and rocky cliffs of the Reserve provide excellent habitat for many birds of prey, including Golden Eagle, Prairie Falcon, Red-Tailed Hawk, Swainson's Hawk, Northern Harrier, Sharp-Shinned Hawk, Cooper's Hawk, American Kestrel, and Great-Horned Owl. Bald eagle and Ferruginous Hawk are also observed in winter, but with less frequency. Other bird species of interest include Turkey Vulture, Sage Grouse, Pinyon Jay, Clark's Nutcracker, Common Nighthawk, Cliff Swallow, Mountain Bluebird, Mountain Chickadee, Rock and Canyon Wrens, Green-Tailed Towhee, Virginia's Warbler, Western Tanager and Lazuli bunting.

Within City of Rocks and Almo Valley, 142 species have been documented, and are included on the Reserve's bird checklist. Just about anywhere in the Reserve or Castle Rocks State Park is a great place to watch birds. Select birding hotspots for details about the best areas and a map.

Species Spotlight:

 
Rough-legged Hawk

photo by Wallace Keck

Rough-legged Hawk (Buteo lagopus)

The Rough-legged Hawk has a body length of 18 - 23 inches, a wingspan of 4 - 4 1/2 feet, and weighs 1 1/2 - 3 pounds. This hawk spends the summer in the tundra and extreme northern taiga, and the winter in open lowland areas of prairies, marshes, and agricultural area across North America. The rough-legged hawk is quite common in the winter months, but rarely seen any other time.

 
Golden Eagle

photo by Wallace Keck

Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos)

Sightings of Golden Eagles are rare, but do occur. Golden Eagles use their agility and speed combined with extremely powerful talons to snatch up prey including rabbits, marmots, ground squirrels, and large mammals such as foxes, and young deer. They will also eat carrion if prey is scarce, as well as reptiles. They maintain a territory of apporximately 60 square miles. They are also monogamous, staying with their partner for several years, or even life.

 

Did You Know?

View of a granite mountain with trees around the base.

The uplifted and eroded rocks at City of Rocks National Reserve are like an open window into the earth where visitor and scientist can view tectonic events that raised the mountainous interior of the western United States, and the weather that shapes the current landscape.