[cobirds] Colorado Rare Bird Alert for Monday, April 30, 2012

[Joyce Takamine]

 Compiler:   Joyce Takamine
Date: April 30, 2012
email:rba AT cfobirds.org
phone:   303-659-8750

This is the Colorado Rare Birds Alert for Monday, April 30, 2012, sponsored
by Denver Field Ornithologists and the Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory.  If
you are phoning in a message, you can skip the recording by pressing the
star Key (*) on your phone at any time.  Please leave your name, phone
number, detailed directions, including county and dates for each sighting.
 It would be helpful if you would spell your last name.

Highlight species include: (*denotes that there is new information on this
species in this report)

Long-tailed Duck (*Boulder)
Barrow's Goldeneye (Eagle)
Pacific Loon (Washington)
WHITE IBIS (*Adams)
GLOSSY IBIS (*Boulder, La Plata, Montrose)
Black Rail (Pueblo)
Snowy Plover (Kiowa)
RED KNOT (Rio Grande)
Short-billed Dowitcher (*Weld)
Caspian Tern (Mesa)
Broad-winged Hawk (Jefferson, Larimer)
 White-winged Dove (*Fremont, Mesa, *Prowers)
Red-bellied Woodpecker (*Prowers)
 Eastern Phoebe (*Bent, Boulder, Yuma)
White-eyed Vireo (*Fremont)
GRAY-CHEEKED THRUSH (Yuma)
Northern Parula (Crowley, *Prowers, Pueblo)
Palm Warbler (*Weld)
Pronthontary Warbler (El Paso)
KENTUCKY WARBLER (Pueblo)
Hooded Warbler (Bent)
EASTERN TOWHEE (Yuma)
Field Sparrow (*Fremont, *Prowers)
 Fox Sparrow (Eagle, Garfield)
Northern Cardinal (*Prowers, Yuma)
Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Prowers)

Please note, detailed directions to most of the following locations can be
found on the Colorado County Birding Website:
  
http://www.coloradocountybirding.com/index.php

Adams County:
--A pair of WHITE IBIS was reported by Pollock flying NE over 35th and
Tower Road on April 29.

Bent County:
--At Tempel Grove on April 18, Duane Nelson reported that a pair of Eastern
Phoebes is nesting under the bridge at Tempel Grove.  On April 21, Chartier
reported Eastern Phoebe and Hooded Warbler at Tempel Grove.  Leatherman
reported Eastern Phoebes at Tempel Grove April 22 to April 27, but they may
have left when the water level in the canal dropped to zero.

Boulder County:
--A calling Eastern Phoebe was reported by Tumasonis along the irrigation
ditch by Twin Lakes on April 28.
--A breeding plumaged f Long-tailed Duck was reported by Nunes in the NW
corner of Boulder Reservoir early in the morning on April 29.  It was
associating with Redheads.
--A GLOSSY IBIS was reported by Nunes at Cottonwood Marsh on April 29.

Crowley County:
--A Northern Parula was reported by Truan in trees at Ordway Reservoir on
April 25.

Eagle County:
--10 Barrow's Goldeneyes were reported by Filby at Spring Park Reservoir on
April 20.  On April 22 Filby reported 3 Barrow's Goldeneyes.
--A singing Fox Sparrow was reported by Filby at Spring Park Reservoir on
April 23.  It was heard in the creek.

El Paso County:
-- A Prothonotary  Warbler was reported by Enbody by the creek at Biedleman
Center in Sondermann Park in Colorado Springs on April 25.  On April 26,
John Maynard and Goff reported that the Prothonotary Warbler was below the
first bridge by Biedleman Center in the morning, but Bill Maynard reported
in the afternoon that the warbler had moved about 100 yards upstream and
was foraging in willows.

El Paso/Pueblo Counties:
Chico Basin Ranch which is a fee area.
--A Northern Parula was reported by Percival at Rose Pond (Pueblo) on April
23.
--A KENTUCKY WARBLER was reported by Percival in Headquarters Willows on
April 23.

Fremont County:
--A Field Sparrow and White-eyed Vireo were reported by Percival and the
Arkansas Valley Audubon field trip to the Canon City Riverwalk on April 29.
--A White-winged Dove was reported by Nuissl on CO 120 near Portland on
April 29.

Jefferson County:
--On April 23, Rouch reported 2 Broad-winged Hawks at the Dinosaur Ridge
Hawk Watch.  Slingsby reported a Broad-winged Hawk on April 24 at the Hawk
Watch.  On April 27, 1 Broad-winged Hawk was reported by Wuerthele and
Rouch.
--A Broad-winged Hawk was reported by Kwong on the DFO Field Trip to
Prospect Park in Wheatridge on April 28.  The hawk flew over the group and
headed north.

Kiowa County:
--4 Snowy Plovers were reported by Stephanie Jones at Neenoshe Reservoir on
April 21 and again by Leatherman on April 23.

La Plata County:
--A GLOSSY IBIS was reported by Beatty at Pastorius SWA on April 26.

Larimer County:
--2 Broad-winged Hawks were reported by Sparks flying north over old town
Fort Collins at Howes St and Maple St on April 24.
--A pair of Broad-winged Hawks was reported by DeFonso circling over the
Poudre River Trail just west of Riverbend Ponds Natural Area on April 28.

Mesa County:
--A Caspsian Tern was reported by Arnold at Highline Lake SP on April 27.

Montrose County:
--On April 25, Dexter reported a GLOSSY IBIS at Nucla Town Reservoir which
is 2 miles SE of town.

Prowers County:
--2 m Northern Cardinals were reported by Leatherman at Lamar Community
College Woods (LCCW) on April 25 and on April 28 

[cobirds] San Luis Lake, Alamosa County

[MARIE C LEE]

We "discovered" lake San Luis (had never been there before) on the way to the  
Sand Dunes yesterday, after unsuccessfully searching for the Red Knot at 
Homelake (Rio Grande County); of note however was one Clark's Grebe with the 
Western Grebes.
   
San Luis Lake, Alamosa county:

125-150 Marbled Godwits 
20+ Willets 
18-20 Long-billed Dowitchers 
500+ Wilson's Phalaropes 
50+ Avocets
A single Greater Yellowlegs 
One unidentified Peep (too far)

I don't know what the normal water level is at this lake but judging from the 
large amount of dried up shore and the water not reaching  boat launches, it 
seemed very low. 
Having grown up near water with huge tide levels, my first thought was: low 
tide, good for shore birds; DUH!!! 
  
Cecile Lee (Cici)
Elbert 

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[cobirds] CFO Photo Quiz

[coloradodipper]

Hi all:

I have posted the solution to the previous two CFO Photo Quizzes 
(www.cfobirds.org).

Enjoy,

Tony Leukering
Villas, NJ

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[cobirds] Long-Billed Curlew in west Longmont

[Kat Bradley-Bennett]

A Long-Billed Curlew set down in a pasture just north of Blue Mountain
Elementary School in west Longmont this morning at about 8:30.  It was
still there at 9, working along a little wet area along the fence
line.

Kat Bradley-Bennett
katpbenn...@gmail.com

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[cobirds] Info on curlew sighting

[Kat Bradley-Bennett]

Sorry, I didn't give my home town (Longmont) or county (Boulder) with
the Long-Billed Curlew sighting.

Kat Bradley-Bennett
katpbenn...@gmail.com

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[cobirds] HSR: Dinosaur Ridge (29 Apr 2012) 15 Raptors

[reports]

Dinosaur Ridge
Colorado, USA
Daily Raptor Counts: Apr 29, 2012
---

SpeciesDay's CountMonth Total   Season Total
-- --- -- --
Black Vulture0  0  0
Turkey Vulture   1112113
Osprey   1 15 16
Bald Eagle   0  2  8
Northern Harrier 1  5  5
Sharp-shinned Hawk   1 21 24
Cooper's Hawk2 59 67
Northern Goshawk 0  2  2
Red-shouldered Hawk  0  0  0
Broad-winged Hawk1 12 12
Red-tailed Hawk  3 82233
Rough-legged Hawk0  0  2
Swainson's Hawk  0 11 12
Ferruginous Hawk 0  0  2
Golden Eagle 0  3 10
American Kestrel 1 82102
Merlin   0  3  5
Peregrine Falcon 2  8 11
Prairie Falcon   0  4 10
Mississippi Kite 0  0  0
Unknown Accipiter0 33 37
Unknown Buteo1 16 24
Unknown Falcon   0  6  7
Unknown Eagle0  0  0
Unknown Raptor   1 10 14

Total:  15486716
--

Observation start time: 07:30:00 
Observation end   time: 14:00:00 
Total observation time: 6.5 hours

Official Counter:Joyce Commercon

Observers:Cynthia Madsen, Dave Hill, Francis Commercon, Heidi Seeland,
  Jeff Birek, Robert Hill, Tim Smart

Visitors:
A Denver Field Ornithologist (DFO) field trip, led by Tim Smart, got
started early on the Ridge, and included Jayne and George James as well as
Robert Hill. A little later in the morning, an Audubon Society of Greater
Denver (ASGD) field trip of fifteen, led by Dave Hill and Cynthia Madsen,
arrived to learn about hawk identification and HawkWatch from RMBO
biologist Jeff Birek. As usual, a number of hikers stopped by for the view;
some of them curious about hawk-watching.


Weather:
The day was sunny and partly cloudy with minimal cloud cover (hugging the
North and West horizons) early on, increasing to about 50 percent coverage
scattered over the sky later in the day.  Cool, level 2 B winds came from
the East and Northeast. The temperature rose from 12 C to 15 C. There was
reasonably good visibility but with noticeable haze to the South and
Southeast.

Raptor Observations:
The best bird of the day was the adult Broad-winged Hawk that migrated
directly over the Ridge mid-morning. A local Swainson's Hawk passed (going
South) close by the Broad-wing, which made for a nice comparison of
species. One of the local nesting Peregrines aggressively drove one and
then another of two migrating Peregrines out of its territory early in the
morning. There was a lot of local Cooper's Hawk activity, including some
territorial flight displays, which were pointed out by Jeff Birek. Some
local Turkey Vultures spent the day passing back and forth North and South
from behind Mt. Morrison to Cabrini.

Non-raptor Observations:
Four American White Pelicans were spotted well South of the Ridge headed
further South. Eight Common Ravens spiraled up over WestRidge and went
South over Mt. Morrison. A group of about five Violet-green Swallows
flitted about near the Ridge late in the afternoon. Other birds seen or
heard included Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Mourning Dove, Black-billed Magpie,
Spotted Towhee, White-throated Swift, Bushtit, Yellow-Rumped Warbler,
Broad-tailed Hummingbird, Western Scrub-Jay, Barn Swallow, and American
Robin.

Report submitted by Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory (jeff.bi...@rmbo.org)
Dinosaur Ridge information may be found at:
http://www.rmbo.org/


Site Description:
Dinosaur Ridge is the only regularly staffed hawkwatch in Colorado and is
the best place in the world to see migrating Ferruginous Hawks. Dinosaur
Ridge may be the best place in the country to see the rare dark morph of
the Broad-winged Hawk (a few are seen each spring). Hawkwatchers who linger
long enough may see resident Golden Eagles, Red-tailed Hawks and Prairie
Falcons, in addition to migrating Swainson's, Cooper's and Sharp-shinned
Hawks, American Kestrels and Turkey Vultures. Peregrine Falcons and
Ferruginous Hawks

[cobirds] Cliff swallows have returned to Peyton, possibly a Cooper's Hawk

[Chuck Bessant]

This year, over the past 2-3 weeks we have had an infestation of miller
moths. My garage was full of these pesky things the past few weeks. I wished
for a good solution and it happened.

 

Last year, we had 3 cliff swallow nests attached to our roof peaks. At any
given time, you could step outside and see 40-60 cliff swallows swopping
around within 10-20 seconds. Well, mysteriously, I noticed a sudden lack of
miller moths the other day and no bodies in the garage. I had seen some
swallows swooping around, and about the time the millers disappeared, I
noticed a new mud nest under full construction. 

 

Seems the cliff swallows from last year return to re-build their nest(s) and
gorge themselves on a high-protein diet of miller moths, or at least the
ones my terriers didn't get (inside the house the moths don't stand a
chance.) I welcome these swallows: they can build their nests as long as
they offer insect control. 

 

As I was writing this, possibly a Cooper's Hawk nailed a rabbit not 10 feet
from my window. He was fairly large (at first I thought it was a golden
eagle but later realized it wasn't) and had real yellow legs and long black
talons. He pounced on a young rabbit a few times, and after 5 minutes
took-off with dinner in-tow; one less rabbit for my terriers to chase. It
kind of took me by surprise as it happened so quickly, close and silently.
As it flew off it had a fairly good wingspan (3-4' ft?) and wasted little
time getting airborne. I know we have hawks out, just not sure about what
kind. 

 

Chuck Bessant

Peyton, CO

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[cobirds] Fremont Cty - White-eyed Vireo, Yes - Field Sparrow, No

[melgoff]

First of all, thanks a lot to Brandon Percival for his report on the White-eyed 
Vireo on the Canon City Riverwalk. 



Jeanne and I had already planned to go to Canon City today, but because of 
Brandon's post we listened to several recordings of the vireo and the field 
sparrow. We never did see or hear the sparrow, but within a half-hour of 
parking by the Sells Pond, we clearly heard the  vireo in some thick bushes 
right off the riverwalk path. We only got a brief glimpse of the bird, but it 
was enough to make a positive ID along with the song. 



Other Fremont County  highlights: 



Canon City: Yellow warblers, 4 swallow species 



Holcim Wetlands: Ladderback Woodpecker, Common Yellowthroat 



Brush Hollow: Common Loon (basic plumage), Cassin's Kingbirds, Western 
Kingbirds 



Good birding, everyone! 



Mel Goff 

Colorado Springs

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[cobirds] Poorwill, Plumbeous Vireo, Warbling Vireo, Virginia's Warbler found on Phantom Canyon Rd in Fremont County

[David Elwonger]

During an overnight camping trip to Phantom Canyon Sunday night, 4/28-29, we
found several singing Virginia's Warblers, at least two singing Warbling
Vireos, a Plumbeous Vireo singing and acting like he was on territory,
Bushtits, and after dark we heard a Common Poorwill.  Specifically, we were
camping at the ghost town site McCourt at  ~6500' along SH 67 (the Phantom
Canyon Rd) in Fremont County.
Good birding to you.
Dave

David M Elwonger
Master Bird Bander and Naturalist
Who roosts at 8500' near Woodland Park CO


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[cobirds] DeWeese Res. SWA, Custer Co.

[millerrichj]

I spent most of the day birding around the DeWeese Reservoir  SWA.  
Fifty-nine species were seen.  Highlights were:
 
1 fm - Summer Tanager (next to dam)
1 alt - Common Loon
1 -  American Bittern (stalking the shore of  the willow island)
1 - Black-necked Stilt
1 - Sora
Dozens - Wilson Phalaropes
 
The area below the dam sometimes produces good warblers during migration  
but not today.  There were two Orange-crowns here and that was it.   The pine 
woods had a few Yellow-rumps.
 
The shallow end of the reservoir had lots of ducks and geese plus ibises,  
avocets, willets, pelicans and more.
 
Rich Miller
Canon City

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[cobirds] Boulder County, April 30th

[Ted Floyd]

Hello, Birders.

During the lunch hour today, Monday, April 30th, Andrew and I visited south 
Teller Farms (access from Arapahoe Road), and we saw an Upland 
Sandpiper--presumably the same bird I observed there yesterday. Today we saw it 
only in flight--flying north as if toward Teller Lake No. 5. Also present was a 
singing FOY Lark Sparrow.

A few other Boulder County sightings from earlier today for Andrew and me: 
Teller Lake No. 5 had a Baird's Sandpiper and a Great Egret; Coalton Open Space 
(east entrance, off McCaslin Road) had a Loggerhead Shrike and 3 FOS Western 
Kingbirds; and Prince Lake No. 2 had 4 Long-billed Dowitchers.

I note, by the way, that Greenlee "Reservoir" has great shorebird habitat, but 
not a lot of shorebirds, right now. This evening, Hannah and Andrew and I saw 
only a Spotted Sandpiper, a few Killdeer, and a flock (well, n=3) of Solitary 
Sanpipers. Also a White-faced Ibis, an indeterminate Plegadis sp., many 
Yellow-headed Blackbirds, and 2 or 3 Great-tailed Grackles.

One final comment. Ten years ago today, I moved to Colorado. Thanks to all of 
you for a warm welcome this first decade!

Ted Floyd
tedfloy...@hotmail.com
Lafayette, Boulder County, Colorado   

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[cobirds] RMBO Chico Basin Ranch banding - Monday

[Steven Brown]

Hi COBirders,

A good day today, marked by a flock of sparrows. 61 new banded birds:

House Wren 1
Swainson's Thrush 1
Hermit Thrush 3
Eur Starling 1
Orange-crowned Warbler 1
Myrtle Warbler 2
Audubon's Warbler 4
Spotted Towhee 2
Chipping Sparrow 38
Brewer's Sparrow 1
Harris' Sparrow 1
White-crowned Sparrow 6

Steve Brown
for Nancy Gobris RMBO


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[cobirds] Bobolink, El Paso County

[MARIE C LEE]

Late this afternoon, I saw a Bobolink at the western end of Tamlin Road, El 
Paso County, a short distance  before the pavement ends. 
I saw it briefly in the grass by the fence then watched it fly  to the south.
It seems a bit early for this bird? 

At the Squirrel Creek pond, there were 7 Least Sandpipers, 2 Avocets, about 120 
Ibis, 3 Wilson's Phalaropes and a few ducks. The water level is low. 
There was a lone Canada Goose calling a lot; I wonder if it's the same one who 
lost his/her mate there last year; they were nesting and one morning I saw a 
Peregrine Falcon eating one of the Canada Goose right by the nest. I presumed 
he/she had killed the goose on the nest. 
Cecile Lee
Elbert, CO

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