Rich Stevens' Bird Trips
April, 2006
More Denver Birding 4/29
I could not keep hiking boots off for three days. We had to
venture over to see the female Vermilion Flycatcher at
Chatfield Reservoir (Jefferson/Douglas Counties).
The flycatcher was easy to find at the southeast sand spit.
It flew between the short bushes between the two sides.
Sparrows were quite numerous. We found 3 dozen Brewer's Sparrows,
1 Clay-colored Sparrow, 2 Lincoln's Sparrows, 2 Song Sparrows, and
3 Lark Sparrows. Missed the Eastern Bluebird; however we were quite
happy with our sightings. Thanks to Joey Kellner for finding and
reporting the bird!
Our next stop was Barr Lake (Adams). We did not find the Palm
Warbler reported by Loch Kilpatrick. Our search was from 5:00pm
to 6:00pm around the banding station. Nine White-crowned Sparrows
fluttered about the willows below the trail. Yellow-rumped Warblers
were in the trees above.
A Swainson's Hawk was in a nest to the southwest of the banding
station. In all, we saw about 7 Swainson's Hawks in the park.
A small flock of Chipping Sparrows crossed the trail also.
A House Wren called incessantly north of the footbridge. While
a Green-tailed Towhee was under the Visitor Center's feeders.
A female Northern Harrier hunted along the windbreak at the entrance.
On the way to the DIA Owl Loop, we saw a Ferruginous Hawk
(at mile marker 109 of Tower Road). A Prairie Falcon soared
over at the Denver Trash Dump.
We stopped at the prairie dog village across from the new Wildhorse
Condominiums about 2 blocks north of Tower Road & 56th
Avenue. The pair of Burrowing Owls was not out tonight, however
we did see a Long-billed Curlew.
The Curlew was about 50 yards west of Tower Road and near the
northern third of the prairie dog village. This was my first Denver
County Long-billed Curlew. I missed the four reported on 4/9
by Lueckel at the Southeast corner of Trussville and 114th Avenue.
Many Burrowing Owls were observed at 3.4 miles East of Tower Road
and 96th avenue.
Birding Around Denver 4/27
Yesterday afternoon, I returned from my 5th week of Grouse Tours
around Colorado (only one to go). Promised my feet I would not
wear hiking boots for three days, so birding was limited.
A drive through Cherry Creek Reservoir found 2 Marbled Godwits on
southeast sand spit (first reported by Terry Michaels on 4/22).
Burrowing Owls were found along the DIA Owl Loop at 3.4 miles East
of Tower Road & 96th Avenue and at Powhaton Road and 128th Avenue.
Good Day of Birding 4/16
What a beautiful spring day in Colorado. Winds 10-15 mph;
temps were in the high 70s.
Found the Yellow-throated Warbler first reported by Swash at the
southeast corner of Palmer Lake (El Paso County). After church,
headed to lunch in Brighton (Adams).
DIA Owl Loop (Adams) had Burrowing Owls at:
7 @ 3.4 miles East of Tower Road & 96th avenue
3 @ Powhaton Road & 128th avenue.
2 @ 2 blocks north of Tower Road & 56th avenue
After lunch we decided to head up to Lower Latham Reservoir
(Weld). Plenty of shorebirds to scope. We found at least
2 Marbled Godwit (Griffin), Dunlin (Wild), Black-bellied Plover
(Griffin), and a Pectoral Sandpiper (Griffin).
Also Long-billed Dowitcher, White-faced Ibis, American Avocet,
a Greater Yellowlegs, and Lesser Yellowlegs. Thanks to all for
reporting the possibilities!
We then drove up to Pawnee National Grasslands (Weld) and found
a Mountain Plover in the field southeast of Highway 14 & 51 (Lefko).
Chestnut-collared Longspurs and McCown's Longspurs along CR 96.
Raptors found: Red-tailed Hawk, Golden Eagle, Prairie Falcon,
Peregrine Falcon (just south of Weld CR 42), and American Kestrel.
Great-tailed Grackles were a little south of I76 and 160th avenue.
Further south than railroad tracks.
Checking a Few Birding Locations Around Denver 4/15
While doing chores, we visited a couple of Denver birding locations.
I was scouting for Hooded Mergansers and Barrow's Goldeneyes;
we found neither.
The Long-billed Thrasher did not show up between 2:00pm to 3:00pm.
It has not been reported since 4/7.
There were no Greater Scaup at Memorial Lake in Fort Logan National
Cemetery. No Hooded Mergansers were there either.
I hiked the first mile of the South Platte River from 88th avenue
and Colorado Blvd. Found no Barrow's Goldeneyes or Hooded Mergansers.
A couple of Common Mergansers were on East Gravel Lake. Many regular
observed ducks were on the river and lakes; nothing uncommon.
Cherry Creek Reservoir was slow also. Forty-four White Pelicans
were observed mostly in the southeast corner. I could not find
the Greater Yellowlegs or Baird's Sandpipers reported this morning.
No shorebirds at all were found. Logs surrounding the south west
marina had no birds on them.
We did see two Barn Swallows fly by the Lake Loop. The Great Horned
Owl is still on her nest (woods where main road runs over Cherry Creek.
Does not look like any young have hatched yet.
The Swainson's Hawk was back on her nest near the Cottonwood Creek
Wetlands Pond. A pair of Cinnamon Teal look to have a nest on a small
island. Both Blue-winged and Green-winged Teal were also on the pond.
A Great Blue Heron and adult Black-crowned Night-Heron were in the
surrounding trees. No American Tree Sparrows could be found.
Seven Burrowing Owls were relocated along the DIA Owl Loop at
3.4 miles east of Tower Road & 96th Avenue.
Around Metro Denver 4/14
While doing chores I drove the DIA Owl Loop. Seven Burrowing Owls
were 3.4 miles east of Tower Road & 96th avenue (Adams). I took
a short 4 mile hike along the east side of Rocky Mountain Arsenal
(Adams, inside arsenal; Denver County outside).
Nine additional Burrowing Owls were found. Passerines were
scarce. Perhaps migration will pick up next week.
A Ferruginous Hawk, two Swainson's Hawks and a Red-tailed Hawk
were found.
After dinner Rebecca and I searched unsuccessfully for the Long-
billed Thrasher formerly found at 2332 South Emerson Street,
Denver. I do not believe it has been reported since last Friday.
Not much happening at Cherry Creek Reservoir (Arapahoe County)
either. Water levels are quite high; there is little shore for shorebirds.
Only sparrows found at campgrounds were Song and White-crowned.
Trip to El Paso County 4/13
A friend and I were going to meet Kramer Bookman in Peyton in
the afternoon and birded Hanover Road in El Paso County in the
morning. Two Eurasian Collared-Doves were found 0.5 miles
south of Old Pueblo Road and Birdsall Road.
We thought this a find until we reached the town of Fountain
(El Paso). Eurasian Collared-Doves were all over town.
One would have bad luck to miss them.
Our next stop was Fountain Creek Regional Park. Noon was not
the best time of day for a visit; we did see our first Barn Swallow
of the year.
After lunch we met up with Kramer and Tracy Bookman at
Homestead Park in Peyton (El Paso County). Kramer quickly
found a pair of Eastern Bluebirds, several Mountain Bluebirds
and a pair of Western Bluebirds. Thanks much to Kramer!
An adult Golden Eagle flew over during our stay.
The drive up Elbert Road from Peyton to Kiowa found few birds.
It is too early for Dickcissels and Bobolinks (usually show up
in the middle of May). Nine Swainson's Hawks were observed
on nests or hunting in the nearby fields.
Castlewood Canyon State Park (Castlewood Canyon Road) had several
Western Bluebirds and many Mountain Bluebirds checking out the
nesting boxes. After dark we searched for Northern Saw-whet Owls;
without success.
Trip to Northeastern Colorado 4/11-4/12
It was supposed to be a week of rest after 3 weeks of Grouse trips
(halfway through the six trips). The report of Colorado's fourth
White Ibis tempted us to drive northeast. A bonus was spending
the night with our friends north of Julesburg.
Rebecca Kosten and I drove by Elliott Wildlife Area on the way
toward Julesburg. We did not find the Eurasian Wigeon April 5th.
The White Ibis was found quickly after arriving at the ponds
northeast of Red Lion Wildlife Area (Logan).
Over on Julesburg Reservoir (Logan/Sedgwick Counties) we observed
2 Greater Scaup while looking for owls and passerines in the north
woods. A Great Horned Owl was also found. Winds were 20+ mph
(not the best for finding birds).
We drove back to Tamarack Ranch Wildlife area (Logan) where
birding was pretty good. We counted 3 Red-bellied Woodpeckers and
a male Northern Cardinal. Sparrow migration had not reached the
area yet. We hoped to kick up the Sharp-tailed Grouse reported by
Larson at 9 East of 4/2; without success. It has been ten years
since I last found a Plains Sharp-tailed Grouse at Tamarack Ranch WLA.
Next we went to pick up Roger Danka and headed up to Sedgwick
Draw. No Short-eared Owls showed up this evening. Back at
Tamarack Ranch Wildlife Area we did find 2 Eastern Screech-Owls
again on the eastern sections.
In the morning we birded around Roger's ranch and added
2 additional Eastern Screech-Owls, a Harris's Sparrow, and
2 White-throated Sparrows to our trip list. The Black Phoebe
that he found on 3/25 was last seen on 3/28.
Rebecca and I headed back toward the foothills by way of highway 14.
We found Mountain Plovers at three locations. One at a private
ranch. One just west of Weld CR 96 and the third at the traditional
location (hwy 14 & CR 51). A Burrowing Owl was at the latter
location. We did not relocate the Mountain Plover at CR 51 & CR 90
(sometimes they walk north over the ridge).
Raptors found included 1 Rough-legged Hawk (still around!),
9 Red-tailed Hawks, 2 Ferruginous Hawks, 1 Prairie Falcon,
11 American Kestrels, 1 Merlin, and 2 Swainson's Hawks.
After dinner in Fort Collins, we drove to Cameron Pass to search
for Boreal Owls (scouting for future grouse trips). None were
found this night. The road to Pennock Pass was quite muddy and
we turned around before reaching the summit (therefore no
Flammulated Owl search).
Cherry Creek Reservoir 4/9
Male and female Black Scoter were still at Cherry Creek Reservoir
(Arapahoe County).
Three nesting Great Horned Owls can be found if one looks around
the park.
We could not find any American Tree Sparrows which was the case
on April 8th last year. They all seem to leave at the same time.
Eastern Plains 4/8
Bruce Wentworth and I went looking for Greater Prairie-Chickens
Saturday morning in Yuma County. We checked three locations and
found Greater Prairie-Chickens at the first two. We may have been
too late at the third. Total birds counted were 26. Birds can be
seen on a public road at the Yuma County Road 45 Lek (1.7 miles
east of Highway 385).
We checked Beecher Island and Sandy Bluffs State Trust Lands
without finding many birds.
Next we headed over to Flagler Reservoir (Kit Carson County).
Here we enjoyed a little more success. A Harris's Sparrow was
in the few trees below the dam. Along the east side of the
reservoir we found an Eastern Phoebe, Marsh Wren, Vesper
Sparrows, Loggerhead Shrike, and a group of longspurs that
included 5 McCown's and one Chestnut-collared Longspurs.
A Great Horned Owl was along the south end.
We decided to head to Kit Carson (Lincoln County) to check on
an Inca Dove report. We did not have success in that, however
did find several Eurasian Collared-Doves.
Heading east we found few birds at Karvel (one Field Sparrow
in brush heading west from entrance) & Hugo Wildlife Areas and
turned North. Five Great-tailed Grackles were found in Hugo.
Not knowing about the Eurasian Wigeon sighting north of Brush,
we headed back to Denver. Time was short anyway. We managed
to get Bruce to DIA in time for his flight home.
Two Burrowing Owls were 3.4 miles east of Tower Road & 96th avenue
(Adams County).
Return to 2332 South Emerson 4/7
After doing chores, I headed over to 2332 South Emerson Street,
Denver around 4:00pm. I wanted to see if the Long-billed Thrasher
was still around.
I sat around from 4:00pm to 6:30pm. The evening was a rather
pleasant party sunny 50 degrees after the morning's snowstorm.
The Thrasher had routinely showed up most afternoons between
4:45 and 5:15pm. I would have been disappointed if it had today
as with daylights savings time 4:45pm was 3:45pm last week.
The bird did not.
However, at 5:48pm the Long billed Thrasher flew from the east
and landed in the bushes above the eastern fence. Unfortunately,
someone walked down the alley at 5:51pm. The thrasher flew back
east over the fence and I did not see it again.
Afterwards, I visited a new friend in the neighborhood.
We watched a pair of Eastern Screech-Owls which are nesting
in the cottonwoods in her backyard!
DIA Owl Loop 4/3
I received a message from an out of state birder that an email
was sent that it was too early to find Burrowing Owls in Colorado.
Not true, as 2-15 Burrowing Owls have been found along the DIA
Owl Loop before 4/2 each of the last 12 years.
Early dates have been:
14+ on 3/25/2000
2 on 3/27/1999
2 on 3/30/2001
Rest: 3/31 to 4/1
This year the first on the owl loop was 3/24/2006. A quite early
Burrowing Owl was found along the east side of Rocky Mountain
Arsenal on 3/6.
Today Rebecca Kosten & I drove the DIA Owl Loop (Adams County).
We found Burrowing Owls: 2 at 3.4 miles East of Tower Road & 96th
avenue 3 at southwest corner of 114th & Trussville Avenues 1 at
northwest corner of Powhaton & 128th avenues 1 at 1.1 miles east
of Piccadilly Road & 120th avenue
We also photographed a Sage Thrasher on the rock pile near the
yellow sign (366) about 1.4 miles east of Piccadilly Road & 120th
avenue.
Not much was seen in Barr Lake area. Dozens of Common Grackles
and Red-winged Blackbirds may have scared off other birds.
Three White-crowned Sparrows and two Song Sparrows were
at the bushes at the southeast corner of the Visitor's Center.
Lochbuie Ponds (Exit 25 of I76) was quiet. One Great Blue Heron
on eastern pond.
At East 160th avenue and I76 (northeast corner by railroad tracks)
we found 40+ Great-tailed Grackles. Another 2 Great-tailed Grackles
were at the southeast corner of Gun Club Road & E. 160th avenue.
Mountain Plover & Boreal Owl Search 4/2
Four of us returned to Pawnee National Grasslands in search of
Mountain Plovers. Winds were quite strong; temperatures were in
the 60s.
We headed up Kersey Road to Briggsdale (Weld County). No
Burrowing Owls were at their usual location along CR 42 at 0.7
miles west of Kersey Road. No Peregrine Falcons flying around
between Beebe Draw Ponds and Lower Latham Reservoir today.
Briggsdale was slow (no Common Redpolls or any uncommon birds).
Crow Valley Campground was slow also. A pair of Mountain Bluebird
flew around the northeast corner of the area. No owls were found
in the campgrounds, cemetery, or work center area.
We found McCown's Longspurs (no Chestnut-collared Longspurs) on
a 2 mile drive along CR 96 (west from CR 77, main road north from
Briggsdale).
Next we drove my favorite Mountain Plover Loop (see CoBus website;
"Mountain Plover Loop"). Two dozen McCown's Longspurs, no
Chestnut-collared Longspurs or Mountain Plovers.
We found no Burrowing Owls or Mountain Plovers at Highway 14 & CR 51.
Finally success as Bryan spotted a Mountain Plover on the ridge at
the northeast corner of CR 51 & CR 90. Eventually the bird walked
north out of sight.
After dinner we headed to Cameron Pass (Larimer/Jackson Counties)
in search of Boreal Owls. We skipped Pennock Pass as the roads
looked like they could be too muddy. It is a little early for
Flammulated Owls anyway (though 2 were heard on 3/16/2004;
the only March record I can find).
My theory is that when it is windy on the plains and foothills,
the mountains are usually not windy. This proved the case
tonight, as we could almost hear a pin drop (well, not quite,
but it was relatively quiet).
We spent most of the night checking every 0.2 miles from Joe
Wright Reservoir to the Colorado State Forest Visitor's Center.
Only one owl was heard (at 0.2 miles West of the upper
Joe Wright Reservoir parking area).
Search for Northern Pygmy-Owls 4/1
Four of us went searching for Northern Pygmy-Owls today. It was
quite windy and felt cold.
Just before civil twilight we searched for Northern Pygmy-Owls at
Reynolds Park (Jefferson County); without success. We hiked up
the Oxen Draw Trail a little ways from the Elkhorn Trail. To our
surprise, a Blue Grouse crossed the trail at about 50 yards north
of the intersection.
We chose not to hike to the top where American Three-toed
Woodpeckers have been found in the past and headed to Pine Valley
Ranch Park.
Here it took about 20 minutes to find a male American Three-toed
Woodpecker. The woodpecker was east of Buck Gulch Trail and 100
yards uphill (South) of Pine Lake.
An American Dipper hunted for food at the western bridge (along
the Narrow Gauge Railroad trail). We were not able to find any
Northern Pygmy-Owls.
We did find a flock of 7 Pygmy Nuthatches, 2 White-breasted Nuthatches,
and one Red-breasted Nuthatch. A Brown Creeper was observed also.
More Bird Trips
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