Re: [cobirds] Confusing dark dove, Pueblo West, Pueblo County
Hi all, Thanks for the response I received regarding the dark dove in my Pueblo West yard. Most all agreed that it looks to be a melanistic bird rather than an oiled to sooty one. And most thought it was likely a Eurasian Collared-Dove. There's one holdout for Eurasian Collared-Dove - Mourning Dove hybrid. Thanks everyone for having a look. This is what I love about birding -- there's always some new thing to wonder about. Cheers, Margie Joy Pueblo West, CO -- Original Message -- From: mar1...@juno.com mar1...@juno.com To: cobirds@googlegroups.com Subject: [cobirds] Confusing dark dove, Pueblo West, Pueblo County Date: Sun, 12 Apr 2015 01:15:13 GMT Hi all, I'm interested in comments about a strange-looking dark dove seen with Eurasian Collared-Doves in my Pueblo West yard on March 26 and 27. I've loaded photos on my Flickr page starting at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/59865934@N00/16495006503/ Click right in the photo stream for two more photos. They are pretty bad, taken through a low-powered scope with a point-and-shoot camera behind a double-paned window in my kitchen. But perhaps some of you can see enough to make an educated guess. At first I thought it was a Mourning Dove but the closer shot taken the second day showed a distinct collar. That and the eye color ruled out Mourning Dove. The shape of the tail feathers is interesting, as is the very dark color. I posted it on the CFO Facebook page and got a few comments. Some thought it was oiled or sooty, some thought it was a collared-dove of one sort or other, some thought it was a hybrid, but none had ever seen anything like it. I'm still at a loss and would love to hear some insight from those of you who are good at sorting out puzzles. You may reply to the group or privately to mar1joy AT juno DOT com. Cheers, Margie Joy Pueblo West, CO -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Colorado Birds group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/20150411.191513.14376.0%40webmail12.vgs.untd.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Colorado Birds group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/20150418.091041.15424.1%40webmail02.vgs.untd.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
[cobirds] Re: Chickadee cannibalism on Cameron Pass?
Here are some responses that have been posted on both facebook and from cobirds replies to me personally: Marcia: I think it was Nature on PBS last night that included a segment about ravens eating a deer carcass. Other birds joined in...including a chickadee, definitely tearing off a bite. I was really surprised! Eric: One thing I know is that even songbirds are not above eating meat, even if it's the flesh of their compadres if that's what's available. In a storm like this, and at that pass, it would be relatively easy food to get, and clearly very nutritious. Birds are often opportunistic. But why were they sitting there and getting hit by cars to begin with, and then continuing to sit there and get smashed by the dozen? - Let me turn that question around, and ask, why *wouldn't* they sit there? Chickadees are almost certainly not aware that snowed-over roadways are dangerous places. Cars are not predators in their eyes, and the vast majority of their lives is spent completely above and away from such things. And if the weather is cold and snowy, their reaction times against these unfamiliar entities are already greatly impeded. Yet, their survival impulse (being at a ready and rich food pile) probably keeps them in place just long enough to get run over and thus become an attractive food item for the next batch of chickadees that passes by. Dave Leatherman: Maybe the initial attraction was salt, followed by salt toxicity (equals sluggishness), death, followed by opportunistic scavenging. Just a possible scenario. Amanda: I drove up Thursday morning - i70 was already a huge mess, so I took the long way and was so glad I did. But then, there was only an inch on the road, though several on the trees. Chickadees are small enough that they can't go too long without food. So I'm guessing that after over 24 hours of being buried by wet and heavy snow, they got somewhat delirious and starving. But I'm sure glad I didn't see that in person! Sarah: Pat and Amanda--if either of those scenarios are true it seems like we would all have seen this at some point, doesn't it? Roads get salted all the time, and we get big snowstorms all the time. And it was weird how they were clustered in this one area. In other areas we saw individual chickadees in the road, but most of then flew away as we approached. On Friday, April 17, 2015 at 6:29:54 PM UTC-6, Pat Hayward wrote: Hi all, A friend of mine just posted this note on facebook with a picture, and I just had to post to the group to see if anyone can offer an explanation. (My friend) and I were driving over Cameron Pass today (4/17) in a gnarly snowstorm. There was a couple feet of fresh, wet snow. Temperatures weren't terrible, probably in the upper 20's. There was a 1-2 mile section of road near the top of the pass where hundreds of chickadees (I think--the visibility wasn't great) were sitting in the road and getting smashed by cars. It was horrible. Many were sitting on their own, unwilling or unable to move, but sometimes flying away at the last second. Even worse (and weirder) were the endless groups of chickadees, a dozen or more per group, sitting in the road eating their dead buddies, and also getting smashed by cars. Also saw a few crows getting the same treatment from the packs of chickadees. What on earth was going on? Thanks for any thoughts - I'll pass them on to her. Pat Hayward Masonville CO -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Colorado Birds group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/1312acde-87ee-4fee-ac68-42b59a88f207%40googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
[cobirds] Common Loons, Boulder County
All, There were two Common Loons, both in beautiful breeding plumage, this morning on Baseline Reservoir. This is southeast of Boulder, looking from Cherryvale Road. There was also a single White-faced Ibis at Cottonwood Marsh, which is in Walden Ponds, northeast of Boulder off 75th Street. This is the first Ibis I've heard of in Boulder County this spring. Cheers, Peter Gent. Boulder. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Colorado Birds group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CADEFvCcnjxyjsUdOv86bDwtAqNpnPyN0Gc04BcB7Uz%3Do%2B%3DA%2BXA%40mail.gmail.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
[cobirds] Dark plumaged White-winged Dove - Pueblo
COBirders, Continuing with the thread about dove plumages, this morning a dark White-winged Dove showed up in my back yard. I have posted four images of it, along with normal plumaged WWDOs for comparison, at https://www.flickr.com/photos/brightsfotos/17190967131/. Note in two of the photos there is a Mourning Dove perched on top of the board fence. My apology for the sub-par photos-I didn't have my camera set properly. A couple of years ago on COBirds there was a question about Eurasian-collared Doves in Colorado which prompted me to do an Internet search. There I saw many photos of ECDOs in England whose plumages varied almost as much as those of urbanized Rock Pigeons. Will that be a trend among some dove species in Colorado? Leon Bright, Pueblo -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Colorado Birds group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/000901d07a1d%24dfe32530%249fa96f90%24%40comcast.net. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
[cobirds] Semipalmated Plover Big Johnson
I had a *Semipalmated Plover* 4/18 at Big Johnson Reservoir El Paso County at about 2:00. Other shorebirds on the res were both yellowlegs, American Avocets, Black-necked Stilts, Semipalmated Sandpipers, Least Sandpipers and Wilson's Snipe. David Tonnessen Colorado Springs -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Colorado Birds group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/4c4bb635-fc51-4664-b6f3-f80bc186ebb4%40googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
[cobirds] Horned Grebe in Jefferson Cty
An unexpected new duck to add to my bird list. A Horned Grebe in Tucker Lake, Arvada. Martha -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Colorado Birds group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/ba1e7c8c-252a-4f57-8fee-0951800aa7f9%40googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
[cobirds] Leukering and Mlodinow in FL, March 2015
Greetings All For those who care, Tony Leukering and I did a whirlwind trip around central and southern Florida during late March, racking up 145 species or so of birds as well as a goodly number of Dragons and Damsels and creatures of the scaly kind. Highlights, including a series of photos of Double-crested x Neotropic Cormorants, can be seen at https://www.flickr.com/photos/organize/?start_tab=one_set72157646939420549 Good Birding Steven Mlodinow temporarily in New Orleans, LA -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Colorado Birds group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/14ccf542931-4e5a-350f0%40webprd-a09.mail.aol.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
[cobirds] Colorado Rare Bird Alert, 18 April 2015
Compiler: Joyce Takamine Date: April 18, 2015 This is the Rare Bird Alert, Saturday, April 18 sponsored by Denver Field Ornithologists and the Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory. Highlight species include: (* indicates new information on this species). BRANT (Rio Grande) Long-tailed Duck (Larimer) Barrow's Goldeneye (Park) Pacific Loon (Montrose) Red-necked Grebe (Pueblo) COMMON BLACK HAWK (Baca) ZONE-TAILED HAWK (Kit Carson) Piping Plover (*Bent) Mountain Plover (Washington, Weld) GLAUCOUS-WINGED GULL (Weld) Glaucous Gull (Weld) Caspian Tern (*Bent) Williamson's Sapsucker (Jefferson) Black Phoebe (Boulder, Fremont, Mesa, Montrose, Ouray) Eastern Phoebe (Boulder, Chaffee, Douglas, *El Paso Fremont, Jefferson) Canyon Wren (Boulder, Garfield) Lapland Longspur (Prowers) Chestnut-collared Longspur (*Douglas, Washington, Weld) McCown's Longspur (*Douglas, *Jackson, Jefferson, Washington, Weld) PAINTED REDSTART (*Montrose) EASTERN TOWHEE (El Paso) Canyon Towhee (Baca) BAIRD'S SPARROW (Pueblo) Fox Sparrow (*Jackson) Summer Tanager (Fremont) EASTERN MEADOWLARK (Baca) Rusty Blackbird (Jefferson) Brown-capped Rosy-Finch (*Jackson) BACA COUNTY: --A juv COMMON BLACK HAWK and Canyon Towhee were reported by Michael O'Brien at Cottonwood Canyon on April 13. On April 14, Stulp and Thompson refound the COMMON BLACK HAWK and Canyon Towhee in Cottonwood Canyon. --An EASTERN MEADOWLARK was reported by Michael O'Brien at Comanche National Grasslands, Rd J east of Campo on April 13. --A Canyon Towhee was reported by Stulp at Carrizo Canyon Picnic Area on April 14. --5 Canyon Towhees were reported by Sean Fitzgerald at Picture Canyon on April 15. BENT COUNTY: --A Piping Plover was reported by Duane Nelson at John Martin Reservoir on April 9. On April 17, Duane Nelson reported that 3 more Piping Plovers have arrived at John Martin Reservoir. --A Caspian Tern was found by Duane Nelson at John Martin Reservoir on April 15. Duane Nelson reported the Caspian Tern on north side of John Martin on April 17. BOULDER COUNTY: --On April 3, Floyd reported Eastern and Black Phoebe at 75th St Bridge over Boulder Creek. On April 4, Steadman reported Eastern Phoebe and Black Phoebe at 75th St Bridge over Boulder Creek. On April 5, Minner-Lee reported both Eastern and Black Phoebe at 75th St Bridge over Boulder Creek. On April 6, Dowell reported Eastern Phoebe and Black Phoebe at 75th St Bridge over Boulder Creek. On April 9, Victoria Wheeler reported Black Phoebe at 75th St Bridge over Boulder Creek. On April 11, Hundertmark and Vanderpoel reported Black Phoebe at 75th St Bridge over Boulder Creek. On April 12, Waltman reported Black Phoebe at 75th St Bridge over Boulder Creek. On April 15, Minner-Lee reported Black Phoebe at 75th St and Boulder Creek. --On April 8, Starace reported a pair of Canyon Wrens at Rabbit Mountain. CHAFFEE COUNTY: --An Eastern Phoebe was reported by Michael O'Brien at Sands Lake SWA on April 11. DOUGLAS COUNTY: --An Eastern Phoebe was reported by Kellner at Plum Creek Picnic Area at Chatfield SP on March 28 and March 29. On March 30, Gen Moore reported Eastern Phoebe at Plum Creek Delta on March 30. On April 2, Eastern Phoebe was reported by Matt Crooks on Douglas county side of Chatfield. On April 3, Chavez reported Eastern Phoebe at Plum Creek Delta at Chatfield. On April 4, Bob Spencer reported Eastern Phoebe at Plum Creek bridge at Chatfield. On April 5, Kellner reported Eastern Phoebe at Plum Creek Delta at Chatfield. On April 9, Norm Lewis reported Eastern Phoebe at Phoebe Bridge at Chatfield. --3 McCown's Longspurs were reported by Kirkpatrick at the Model Airplane Field at Chatfield on April 16. On April 17, Kellner reported 2 McCown's Longspurs ( 1f, 1 molting male) and 2 Chestnut-collared Longspurs (1f, 1 molting male) at the Model Airplane Field at Chatfield. EL PASO COUNTY: --On April 11, Drummond reported a f EASTERN TOWHEE at Chico Basin Ranch (fee area) by the banding station. --An Eastern Phoebe was reported by Nikolai at Kettle Lakes on April 17. FREMONT COUNTY: --At John Griffin Regional Park in Canon City, Simon Thompson reported imm m Summer Tanager, Eastern Phoebe and Black Phoebe on April 12. GARFIELD COUNTY: --A Canyon Wren was reported by Marry Harris outside of Carbondale off Hwy 82 below Mushroom Rock on April 10. JACKSON COUNTY: --On April 17, Bert Harris reported Fox Sparrow , 3 McCown's Longspurs, and Brown-capped Rosy-Finch at Moose Visitor Center. JEFFERSON COUNTY: --2 Eastern Phoebe were reported by Burger at Swimbeach at Chatfield Sp on April 7. On April 8, Suddjian reported Eastern Phoebe and 3 Rusty Blackbirds at Deercreek inlet. On April 13, Matt Clark reported 2 Eastern Phobe near the Swimbeach at Chatfield. --On April 7, Kibbe reported Eastern Phoebe upstream from Kingfisher Bridge at Chatfield SP. On April 10, Chavez reported 2 Eastern Phoebe upstream from Kingfisher Bridge at Chatfield SP. On April 13, Robert Martinez reported Eastern Phoebe at
