Rich Stevens' Bird Trips
December 2005
South Platte Park 12/28
I parked at the Littleton Light Rail station today and hiked the
South Platte River from Bowles Avenue to C470 (Arapahoe County).
What a fantastic Colorado winter day. Winds were mild at times;
temperatures were in the high 50s.
Many species of ducks were seen (12, including two pairs of Hooded
Mergansers). White-cheeked Geese were everywhere. A lone white
goose standing on the frozen pond at Hudson Gardens turned out to
be a Ross's Goose. Perhaps this is the same Ross's Goose that
Deb Carstensen has been reporting around Bowles & Santa Fe.
Hudson's Gardens is about a 0.5 mile hike south of Bowles.
Several flocks of White-crowned Sparrows and 3 Song Sparrows
fluttered about the willows along the river.
A friendly ranger pointed out a Sharp-shinned Hawk that was
standing on the ground only 15 feet west of the bike path. A male
American Kestrel watched from a tree branch as I walked by him.
When I arrived at the Carson Nature Center, South Platte Park,
the adult Harris's Sparrow was already feeding under the eastern
feeders. I timed my arrival for just after noon which is when
the Center opens. The sparrow does not seem to be bothered by
onlookers from inside the building.
He came quite regularly from noon to 1:30pm. After that,
I watched him for another half hour from the northern window.
The bushes outside that window provide him with cover for
further food searching.
A pair of adult Bald Eagles were just south of Mineral Avenue.
Apparently Eagles are not as common this winter. One ranger
said a pair of adults and one subadult were just about all
that were being observed.
Most of the ponds and lake were still frozen. Three or four
Black-capped Chickadees also visited the eastern feeders.
Eventually I took the light rail back to my car.
Bonny Reservoir Christmas Count 12/27
Inserted by Lisa Novin:
CoBus’ Bonny Reservoir Christmas count was conducted
12/27. It is the most consecutive held Yuma County
count. We had 9 birders participating.
Bonny Reservoir CBC; 66 species
Ross's Goose
Canada Goose
Cackling Goose
Gadwall
Mallard
Green-winged Teal
Northern Bobwhite
Great Blue Heron
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Rough-legged Hawk
Golden Eagle
American Kestrel
Merlin
Prairie Falcon
Wilson's Snipe
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Barn Owl
Eastern Screech-Owl
Great Horned Owl
Long-eared Owl
Short-eared Owl
Northern Saw-whet Owl
Red-bellied Woodpecker - (2 males, 1 female)
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Northern Shrike
Blue Jay
Black-billed Magpie
American Crow
Common Raven
Horned Lark
Black-capped Chickadee
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Winter Wren
Eastern Bluebird
Townsend's Solitaire
American Robin
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
American Pipit
Cedar Waxwing
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Spotted Towhee
American Tree Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
Harris's Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Lapland Longspur
Northern Cardinal - (1 male)
Red-winged Blackbird
Western Meadowlark
Brewer's Blackbird
House Finch
Common Redpoll
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
Wray Christmas Count 12/26
Inserted by Lisa Novin:
Wray Christmas
There were 12 birders which
included 4 locals counting at feeders.
Wray CBC; 48 species
Canada Goose
Gadwall
Mallard
Great Blue Heron
Northern Harrier
Cooper's Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Rough-legged Hawk
American Kestrel
Killdeer
Ring-billed Gull
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove - (5)
Mourning Dove
Barn Owl
Eastern Screech-Owl
Great Horned Owl
Red-bellied Woodpecker - (1)
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Northern Shrike
Blue Jay
Black-billed Magpie
American Crow
Horned Lark
Black-capped Chickadee
Eastern Bluebird - (2)
American Robin
Varied Thrush - (male)
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
American Tree Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-throated Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Lapland Longspur - (1)
Northern Cardinal - (male, female)
Red-winged Blackbird
Western Meadowlark
Brewer's Blackbird
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
South Platte River 12/24
Rebecca and I found ourselves with a couple of hours to kill this
afternoon and returned to the South Platte River at 88th Avenue
and Colorado Blvd. We wanted to look at Christmas lights in the
area after dark and decided a hike here would fill our time nicely.
Our trek went along the west side of the South Platte River to
Clear Creek, then along the north side of Clear Creek to York
Street, returning along the South side of Clear Creek and back
along the East side of the Platte.
Northern West Gravel Lakes (20 percent open water) had few birds
on it. Total was nine Common Mergansers and two Common
Goldeneyes. The Southern West Gravel Lakes (15 percent open)
had 6 additional Common Mergansers.
The pair (male, female) of Barrow's Goldeneyes was where we had
left them yesterday (on the Platte, below the green & white
water tower). The count of ducks seemed about the same as yesterday.
One can find at least two of most common ducks found wintering
in Colorado (no Redheads or Canvasbacks, but 13 other species
(Mallard, Gadwall, Northern Pintail Duck, American Wigeon,
Northern Shoveler, Green-winged Teal, Ring-necked Duck, Lesser
Scaup, Buffleheads, Common Goldeneyes, Common Mergansers,
Hooded Mergansers, and uncommon eastern slope Barrow's Goldeneyes).
An added advantage of hiking the west side bike path is that
the ducks are somewhat use to people. This allows fairly
close approaches for photograph taking.
An adult Red-tailed Hawk watched the ducks from one
of the cottonwoods on the east side of the river.
Sparrows were plentiful today. We counted 49 American Tree
Sparrows, 6 Song Sparrows, and a small flock of nine
White-crowned Sparrows.
A pair of Pied-billed Grebes and a surprise Double-crested
Cormorant were found along Clear Creek.
A Northern Shrike stood sentinel over the willows at the
east end of the footbridge near the confluence of the
Platte and Clear Creek.
A male and female Northern Harrier flew over the river.
One Great Blue Heron looked for fish along the shoreline.
Our last bird of the day was an adult Bald Eagle watching
over East Gravel Lake. East Gravel Lake was 40 percent open.
There were many ducks but no uncommon ones. We could not
find the Long-tailed Duck observed last Saturday.
Birding Around Denver 12/23
We stopped at the Carson Nature Center of South Platte Park
(Arapahoe County) early this afternoon. It took a 30 minute wait;
the adult Harris's Sparrow finally showed and looked for food
under the eastern side feeders. I managed to get a couple of
better photos than last week.
McLellan Reservoir (Arapahoe) was 25 percent open water.
However, few birds were there? A pair of Common Goldeneyes,
2 dozen American Coots and half a dozen Canada Geese.
Earlier we had stopped at Aurora Reservoir (Arapahoe).
Most of the gulls were out somewhere hunting for food.
No Mew Gull was found. However we did not want to wait
until late afternoon when they usually return.
Addenbrooke Park (Jefferson) had at our count 15,
220+ White cheeked Geese. Quite a few were Cackling Geese.
No Greater White-fronted Goose or Brant however.
There were 2 interesting Canada Geese with white heads.
We found the pair of Barrow's Goldeneyes on the South Platte
near the Green and White Water tower (approximately 0.5 miles
south of 88th avenue).
No Long-tailed Duck today on East Gravel Lake;
there was another adult male Barrow's Goldeneye.
We did not check the two West Gravel Lakes just across
the Platte; perhaps the Long-tailed Duck was there?
Great-tailed Grackles continue at the corral 1.1 miles East
of Piccadilly Road & 152nd Avenue (Bromley Lane, Adams County).
The Horned Lark count along the DIA Owl loop was down by
75 percent from two weeks ago. We hung around until dusk
hoping for a Short-eared Owl; without success.
Arapahoe County Reservoirs 12/22
Bryan & Sue Ehlmann, Rebecca Kosten, & I birded in
Arapahoe County today. What a fantastic Colorado winter day!
Temperatures were in the 50s; winds were mild most of the afternoon.
The plan was to go to the Denver West Office Complex on the west
side of Denver and search for the Pine Warbler. We never made it
however.
Our first stop was Cherry Creek Reservoir (Arapahoe County).
Few gulls were about. A lone adult Bald Eagle stood on an ice
mound in the middle of the frozen lake. The only open water
was around the southwest marina. Dozens of Common Mergansers
and 14 Common Goldeneyes swam about. The possibly injured
American White Pelican stood on the poles surrounding the marina.
A quick hike at the northern end of the campgrounds added
a dark morph Red-tailed Hawk, Great Horned Owl, and 27 American
Tree Sparrows to our day list. A nice pile of old limbs and bush
at the northern most end that provides nice cover for sparrows.
We got to wondering where the gulls have all gone.
There were so many just a few weeks ago. Of course
the single digit temperatures had caused them to move on,
but where? Our plans changed and we headed to Aurora
Reservoir and the DAD City dump north of it.
Quincy Reservoir is passed along the way. The reservoir is closed
until spring; however several locations allow scopes to survey the
reservoir. Only four gulls all Ring-billed were observed.
The mystery continued; perhaps they have all flown to Pueblo Reservoir
where there has been a kind collection of uncommon gulls this winter.
We arrived at Aurora Reservoir and counted 400+ gulls standing
around the swim beach. The count included 400+ Ring-billed,
2 California (uncommon in winter), 38 Herring, and an adult
Mew Gull. Sue was the first to spot the bird on the edge of
the mass of gulls. The darker mantle and short pointy bill
was quite easy to see.
A fisherperson walked by and scared the group which then flew
north. We decided to make a quick hike of it around the
reservoir. When we arrived at mile marker 3.0 (the swim beach
being mm 0.0) the gulls had settled on the ice here.
Few additional birds were found along our trek. Sparrows included
2 Song and 8 American Tree Sparrows. A female Northern Harrier
and Bald Eagle perched in the large cottonwood below the dam were
just about it.
Cherry Creek Reservoir 12/19
While doing chores we did drive through Cherry Creek Park around
3:00pm. Birding is slow. Lake is completely frozen except for
a little area inside the marina.
Only five gulls flying overhead and none on the ice. Open water
included many Common Mergansers, 2 dozen Common Goldeneyes, and
a lone American White Pelican. Did someone write that it was an
injured bird? Only other birds seen were 2 Northern Flickers and
6 Black-billed Magpies. Warmer than yesterday, but still cold out!
Fort Morgan Christmas Count 12/18
We only had six birders for the first Fort Morgan Christmas count on 12/18.
Total species count was 60.
Birding was very slow. Winds were 15-20 mph with gusts to 30+.
It was quite cold with single digit temperatures.
No white geese or Greater White-fronted Goose seen.
Missed Eurasian Collared-Doves even though we know they are
in the count area. The Barn Owl found several weeks earlier
was not there today. Same was true with Short-eared Owls
found two weeks earlier.
Canada Goose
Gadwall
Mallard
Northern Shoveler
Northern Bobwhite - ---now private property, Muir Springs
Ring-necked Pheasant
Great Blue Heron
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Rough-legged Hawk
Golden Eagle
American Kestrel
Merlin - ---Jackson Reservoir
Prairie Falcon
Virginia Rail
Killdeer
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Eastern Screech-Owl - ---three locations (5)
Great Horned Owl
Long-eared Owl - (8)
Belted Kingfisher
Downy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Northern Shrike
Blue Jay
Black-billed Magpie
American Crow
Horned Lark
Black-capped Chickadee
Red-breasted Nuthatch - ---uncommon on the plains (1)
White-breasted Nuthatch
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird - ---2 locations (9)
Townsend's Solitaire
American Robin
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Spotted Towhee
American Tree Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow - ---private property Muir Springs (1)
White-throated Sparrow - ---3 locations (3)
White-crowned Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Lapland Longspur
Northern Cardinal - ---reported at feeder, not seen by 6 counters
Red-winged Blackbird
Western Meadowlark
Brewer's Blackbird
Great-tailed Grackle - ---Jackson Reservoir
House Finch
Pine Siskin
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
Boulder & Adams Counties 12/17
Rebecca Kosten & I started our birding day at a friend's
ranch in Boulder County.
They had heard a Northern Saw-whet Owl earlier in the week
and we went to check it out. Unfortunately, we did not hear
or find the owl this morning.
From there we headed to Fawnbrook Inn in Allenspark in hopes
of seeing the Common Redpoll reported two weekends ago.
Again, the bird never showed during our stay. However 3 species
of Rosy Finches did and made the trip a hit!
Our next stop consisted of a hike of the South Platte River from
88th Avenue and Colorado Blvd. It was quite fruitful with
sightings of a male and female Barrow's Goldeneye on the river
below the green & white water tower.
A female Northern Harrier flew back and forth over the river but
never caught anything that we could see. Another 1st year male
Barrow's Goldeneye was on the river just north of the railroad tracks.
The north end of the Northern West Gravel Lake had open water.
Here another male Barrow's Goldeneye was observed. On the return
trip to our car, a Northern Shrike hunted along the cattails near
the new fishing platform (north of the water tower).
Finally, we checked the Northern East Gravel Lake from the east
side (Dahlia Street). Here while watching an adult Bald Eagle
eat a duck on the ice, we found a Long-tailed Duck!
We did count waterfowl and would be happy to send a list to anyone
who asks. I counted Northern Shovelers and Goldeneyes while
Rebecca counted other species. By 3:00 pm, winds were 15-20 mph
and temperatures were around 20. It was cold!
Our final stop was the corral 1.1 miles East of Piccadilly Road
and 152nd street. Approximately 28 Great-tailed Grackles stood
around the corral area.
Southwest Denver 12/16
Rebecca & I birded around southwest Denver.
The cold weather and windy conditions did not help in finding birds.
Most reservoirs seemed to be completely frozen.
McLellan Reservoir (Arapahoe County) had two small open areas.
We did not find the Barrow's Goldeneye reported last weekend
by Loch Kilpatrick. We might have seen the female Greater Scaup.
However she was along the northern edge of the lake and too far
away for a positive ID.
Our next stop was the Carson Nature Center at South Platte Park.
We did not see the Harris's Sparrow. Information has it, that
the sparrow has not been reported since Wednesday.
The Greater White-fronted Goose reported by Mark Chavez on
Wednesday at Addenbrooke Park (Jefferson) was not found either.
There was a small area of open water on the pond. However it
was filled with Canada and a few Cackling Geese.
Many White-cheeked Geese were in Denver City Park (Denver County).
We did not find any Greater White-fronted Geese.
Our final stop was the Aurora Golf Course at Alameda and Chambers.
It caught our eyes because there were at least 3500 White-cheeked
Geese. Again we found no Greater White-fronted Geese or a Brant.
Jumbo/Tamarack Christmas Count 12/15
Eight birders participated in the Jumbo Reservoir/Tamarack Ranch
Christmas Count. We ended up with new high of 86 species!
We missed a Black-crowned Night-Heron by a day.
No American Woodcocks, we wished for one!
Greater White-fronted Goose - ---private pond (4)
Ross's Goose - --- (2)
Canada Goose
Cackling Goose
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mallard
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Lesser Scaup
Bufflehead
Common Merganser
Ring-necked Pheasant
Greater Prairie-Chicken - ---private ranch (2)
Northern Bobwhite - ---two locations (10)
Great Blue Heron
Bald Eagle
Northern Harrier
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Accipiter sp.
Red-tailed Hawk
Ferruginous Hawk
Rough-legged Hawk
Golden Eagle
American Kestrel
Merlin
Prairie Falcon
Least Sandpiper - ---Jumbo (1)
Wilson's Snipe
Ring-billed Gull
California Gull
Herring Gull
Rock Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Mourning Dove
Barn Owl - ---private ranches (2)
Eastern Screech-Owl - ---3 locations (3)
Great Horned Owl - ---(9)
Long-eared Owl - ---2 private ranches (5)
Short-eared Owl - ---2 private ranches (2)
Northern Saw-whet Owl - ---private ranch (1)
Belted Kingfisher
Red-bellied Woodpecker - ---(7)
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Northern Flicker
Northern Shrike
Blue Jay
Black-billed Magpie
American Crow
Horned Lark
Black-capped Chickadee
Red-breasted Nuthatch
White-breasted Nuthatch
Brown Creeper
Marsh Wren
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eastern Bluebird
Townsend's Solitaire
American Robin
Brown Thrasher - ---usually at least one each yr (2)
European Starling
American Pipit
Cedar Waxwing
Yellow-rumped Warbler - --- just 1 this yr
Common Yellowthroat - ---just 1 this yr
Spotted Towhee
American Tree Sparrow
Fox Sparrow - ---private ranch for 2 months now
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow - --- not found often in Logan (1)
White-throated Sparrow - ---3 locations (4)
Harris's Sparrow - ---2 locations (3)
White-crowned Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Lapland Longspur
Northern Cardinal - ---3 locations including Tam (4)
Red-winged Blackbird
Western Meadowlark
Brewer's Blackbird
Great-tailed Grackle - ---1st time
Purple Finch - ---private ranch for about 2 weeks (m)
House Finch
Red Crossbill
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow
Julesburg Area 12/14
Rebecca & I scouted for tomorrow's Christmas Count.
Winds were quite strong; temperatures in the low 50s.
Highlight was sitting inside and watching a male
Purple Finch come to Roger Danka's feeders.
He has observed the bird since December 2nd.
The eastern race Fox Sparrow made an appearance also.
This bird has adopted Roger's feeders as his own.
It may be the longest staying Fox Sparrow since Roger
first discovered it on October 20th.
At dark we headed to another private ranch and found
a Short-eared Owl flying along a riparian area.
Eastern Screech-Owls responded to our tapes at two locations.
Our two known Long-eared Owl spots are active and hopefully
will be counted tomorrow.
Northeast of Denver 12/13
Bryan Ehlmann, Gary Weston, Terry Michaels, and I decided
to search for owls in Morgan County today.
We started out by looking at the adult Mew Gull at Cherry
Creek Reservoir. The Gull was standing on the ice just east of
the southwest marina. One California Gull and 2 Herring Gulls
were with 4 dozen Ring-billed Gulls.
As we passed Barr Lake, we took a quick side trip over to
the corral 1.1 miles East of Piccadilly Road & 152nd street.
Approximately 16 Great-tailed Grackles stood around the fence.
We did not find any Snowy Owls. Our search area was 10 miles
north of Riverside Reservoir, south to Highway 34, and then east
to Jackson Reservoir. We did find 2 Long-eared Owls, an Eastern
Screech-Owl, and 5 Great Horned Owls. No Short-eared Owls
could be found.
Lapland Longspurs were easy to spot north of Jackson Reservoir
(Morgan County). We searched for Eurasian Collared-Doves in
Fort Morgan; without success. The feeders at Log Village did
not add any uncommon birds to our trip list.
Raptors were numerous:
Red-tailed Hawk (7)
Rough-legged Hawk (11)
Ferruginous Hawk (1)
Golden Eagle (2)
Prairie Falcon (2)
Merlin (1 male)
American Kestrel (19)
In all, it was quite an enjoyable day.
Denver & Aurora 12/12
At least it was warmer today. Temperatures may have reached
the middle 50s. Winds were 10-15 mph though.
We did not have much time for birding today, however did stop
at Cherry Creek Reservoir (Arapahoe County) to search for the
Mew Gull reported earlier by Glenn Walbek.
The Gull was not found between 2:00pm and 2:45pm. Not the best
times to search for gulls that may be out hunting for food.
We did not have the time to wait until 4:30pm when they seem
to return to the poles surrounding the southwest marina.
No uncommon geese were found at Lowry Golf Course or Fitzsimons
Golf Course. There were hundreds of Canada Geese and some
Cackling Geese also. Not much was found at Denver City Park.
Approximately 15 Great-tailed Grackles were around the corral
1.1 miles east of Piccadilly Road & 152nd Avenue.
Eastern Plains 12/11
In the afternoon, Rebecca Kosten & I looked for birds,
especially owls in Elbert and Douglas Counties.
Total owl count was 2 Great Horned Owls along Elbert County Road
and another one by the Museum in Kiowa.
We did not find any Northern Saw-whet Owls in Castlewood
Canyon State Park. A Spotted Towhee popped out of the bushes
at the first parking area south of the old homestead.
Mountain Bluebirds were along Castlewood Canyon Road south
of the park. We did find Lapland Longspurs in Elbert and
Douglas Counties.
Eastern Denver 12/10
Not much seen bird wise while we ran around doing chores today.
It felt cold because of the high winds and temps in the 40s.
Rebecca & I stopped at East 26th Avenue & North Peoria Street
when we noticed thousands of White-cheeked Geese on the Fitzsimons
Golf Course (Denver County). We scoped the large flocks hoping to
find a Brant (not to be). A lone Greater White-fronted Goose was
among the Canada and Cackling Geese.
While it may not be possible to relocate the bird because much
of the golf course is off limits, the shot would be to park on
the new road running along the south side of the golf course.
Then you can see most of the south side by walking east on
the new road and Sand Creek nature path.
This area is just east of Bluff Lake Nature Area (across
Peoria Street from it's eastern end.
Not much was seen at Cherry Creek Reservoir (Arapahoe).
It is 99 percent frozen. The couple of small open water
areas were filled with Common Mergansers and a couple of
Common Goldeneyes. An adult Bald Eagle stood on a large
snow mound and kept an eye on the ducks.
Western Denver 12/9
After running around getting chores done at the west side of
Denver this morning, we found time to bird a little. After last
week, the 34 degree temperature (with no wind) felt quite warm?
Around noon, an adult Harris's Sparrow was coming to the feeders
on the east side of Carson Nature Center at South Platte Park
(Arapahoe County). Phil Waltz believes that the bird he reported
(12/2-12/8) was a 1st winter Harris's Sparrow. The bird found
today was an adult.
At McLellan Reservoir (Arapahoe) we found 2 imm/female type
Surf Scoters.
Chatfield Reservoir (Jefferson/Douglas Counties) was 99 percent
frozen. The only open water (north of the south marina) had
1 adult Herring Gull, 34 Common Goldeneyes, 4 American Coots,
6 American Wigeons, 42 Common Mergansers, 4 Ring-necked Ducks,
19 Redhead Ducks, and 3 Canvasbacks.
Cherry Creek Reservoir (Arapahoe) was quiet also.
Many Common Mergansers and 2 Eared Grebes swam in the open water.
The Northern Shrike was along the main road (north of the gun range).
Barr Lake 12/7
This afternoon Rebecca Kosten & I birded at Barr Lake
(Adams County). No uncommon birds were found.
A Song Sparrow, 8 White-crowned Sparrows, and many
Dark-eyed Juncos visited the feeders around the Nature Center.
The Highlight was 29 Ring-necked Pheasants feeding in the field
west of the evergreens near the pay station.
Great-tailed Grackles were found at two locations. Four birds
were around the cattle feed at 0.4 miles south of Piccadilly Road
and Bromley Lane (152nd avenue). Twenty plus Great-tailed
Grackles were at the corral 1.1 miles East of same intersection.
We also drove the DIA Owl Loop in search of Snow Buntings and/or
Snowy Owls, (without success). Conservatively, we counted 100,000+
Horned Larks. It has been a few years since last recording this many.
That only accounts for the ones we could see from the main roads.
There are many fields "over the hill" where additional birds could be.
Two Lapland Longspurs were found just east of the fenced
in fuel area (south of 112th avenue & Trussville Road).
Two Ferruginous Hawks, a Red-tailed Hawk, Rough-legged Hawk,
and 3 American Kestrels were also observed along our trek.
Chatfield Reservoir 12/3
Rebecca Kosten & I drove south to Chatfield Reservoir this
morning. Not too early as it was snowing quite hard at 9:30am.
Fortunately, it let up about 10:30am. Temperatures were in
the high 20s; winds were 10-15 mph.
We first relocated the Black Scoter reported earlier in
the morning by Joey Kellner just south of the dam's tower.
A fisherman scared about 60 Common Goldeneyes out of
the cove north of the boat ramp. This made finding the scoter
a difficult. Two Bonaparte's Gulls flew around the cove also.
There was a Common Loon off in the distance to the east.
Later we found the Yellow-billed Loon just to the north of
the swim beach (while we were at the Heron Rookery).
A better view was obtained at the handicapped fisherperson dock.
From here, I could see the Yellow-billed Loon to the west.
Two Common Loons swam below the dam (east of the tower)
and the Black Scoter just south of the tower.
An adult Thayer's Gull was with 200 Ring-billed, 1 California,
and 2 Herring Gulls on the sand spit by the south marina.
We did not find the Surf Scoter reported earlier by Terry
Michaels. Dozens of ducks swam in the cove just north of
Plum Creek Delta. We did not scope them however as the
wind had picked up and it turned quite cold.
Aurora Reservoir 12/2
Bryan Ehlmann and I took advantage of this fantastic Colorado
winter day to hike the 7.8 miles around Aurora Reservoir.
Temperatures reached into the 50s; winds were calm until 12:30pm.
Unfortunately they then turned into 10-20 mph with 30 mph gusts.
By sunset, winds made looking for birds difficult. Predicted
weather looks bad for the next week, so we wanted to get in
a good hike before freezing this weekend.
Two Common Loons were below the northwest corner of
the reservoir when we arrived.
Gulls numbered 3000+ Ring-billed, 67 Herring, 39 California, and
one juvenile Thayer's Gull. The Thayer's Gull moved back and
forth from the northeast corner of the dam to the swim beach.
Along the eastern side, we counted 247 Common Goldeneyes at mm 5.0
and another 310 at mm 4.5. A male Barrow's Goldeneye was among
the second group.
All three species of mergansers were represented; 6 Hooded
Mergansers, 3 Red-breasted Mergansers, and 80+ Common Mergansers.
Sparrows included 7 American Tree Sparrows and 3 Song Sparrows.
Raptors included a male and 2 female American Kestrels and
a female Northern Harrier.
No shorebirds were found, only 1 American Pipit and only 1 Horned
Lark (what are the chances of that).
We hoped to find a Short-eared Owl at sunset flying around the
City dump north of the reservoir. None were found.
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