Saturday, April 26, 2008

Grouse Trip April 4th to April 10th

April 4th to 10th

I enjoyed the extreme pleasure of accompanying Dr. Claude Bloch around Colorado for a week. Brilliant physician, marvelous birder, and great anecdote teller. I had never met Claude but recognized him immediately from a PBS special on birding in Central Park, New York.

This trip was quite early in the season. While all Chicken-like Birds could be expected, it was definitely too early for vireos, warblers, and most shorebirds.

April 4th, 2008

Claude arrived early Friday morning and we hurried off to Summit County. We picked up the 3 Rosy Finch species, Pine Grosbeak, Evening Grosbeak, and other mountain species at a friend's home.

We missed White-tailed Ptarmigan on Loveland Pass. Not surprising as it was snowing so much, that visibility was 20 feet. Winds had to be 40+ mph.

We drove up to Steamboat Springs and found several of the dozens of Sharp-tailed Grouse that winter up the Fish Creek Drainage.

Our birding day ended back on Jackson County Road 26 where a Greater Sage-Grouse Lek is close to the road.

April 5th, 2008

Our first stop of the day was the 20 Road Lek. We found another 6 Sharp-tailed Grouse displaying in a small clearing on the east side of the road. The normal "lek" was under 5-6 feet of snow and no grouse crossed the road.

From Hayden, we drove west of Maybell to the Oxbow Wildlife Area (Moffat). In fifteen minutes, 3 Sage Sparrows and 4 Sage Thrashers were found singing from the tops of the brush.

On the drive back to Maybell and Craig (to head south to Rifle) we saw a white goose on the Little Snake River at Hwy 318. It was a County lifebird, Ross's Goose for me!

Our final stop of the day was Cameo. Fortunate was good to us; both a Chukar and Black-throated Sparrow popped out of the brush for us.

April 6th, 2008

Our day started at the eastern (southern) entrance to the Colorado National Monument (Mesa). A drive through the subdivision just east of the entrance found 4 Gambel's Quail. It did appear that any Black-throated Sparrows were around yet (they nest in the area).

A couple of points. First I choose to drive from the southern entrance to the northern entrance because it keeps the sun at our backs (the other direction can be a killer on sunny days). The other point, I call the entrances southern & northern, but the park calls them eastern & western. Seems confusing to someone without a map on them.

At Escalante Canyon south of Grand Junction 2 Chukar and 2 Black Phoebes were added to our trip list. Shorebirds were scarce this early in the season at Fruitgrower's Reservoir. Three Lewis's Woodpeckers flew around the tall cottonwoods below the dam.

Our birding day ended at Black Canyon of Gunnison National Park (Gunnison). Unfortunately the south rim self auto tour road was closed at the Visitor's Center. (For weeks no one would be able to drive to the west end where Dusky Grouse and Northern Pygmy-Owls are almost a certain sighting).

Fortunately, we parked at the closed barrier and pointed the car back to the east. Just after sunset, a Dusky Grouse flew across the road.

April 7th, 2008

Twenty+ Gunnison Sage-Grouse put on quite a show at the Waunita Hot Springs Lek. Just before sunrise they walked from the lek to the road where observers were parked. We got to see them from 20 yards or so!

Our trek continued east. A quick detour to the Buena Vista Overlook (Chaffee) added Pinyon Jays to our trip list. A drive down the Swallows Road (Pueblo) added Scaled Quail and Curve-billed Thrashers.

In Rocky Ford, a drive around this small town added Eurasian Collared-Doves, White-winged Doves, and a Inca Dove to our day list.

Claude had already seen Lesser Prairie-Chickens which allowed us to skip the 130 mile (260 round trip) to the Elkhart, KS leks. All public leks in Colorado are closed for 2008.

April 8th, 2008

Most of today we drove through snowstorms. There was 6 inches of snow on the ground when we drove around Neenoshe Reservoir and Upper Queens Reservoirs.

Fortunately the weather improved as we drove North to Burlington. We spent a couple of hours driving around Bonny Reservoir (20 miles north of Burlington). Eastern Bluebirds and Red-bellied Woodpeckers are common around the Hale Ponds area.

On the drive from Bonny Reservoir to Hale Ponds I noticed a flock of sparrows along CR 4 (just west of Hale Ponds). I mentioned to Claude that sometimes a Harris's Sparrow will be in a flock of White-crowned Sparrows. Before I finished the sentence, Claude yelled out……. Harris's Sparrow.

We ended our birding day at the Yuma County Road 45 Greater Prairie-Chicken Lek. Just after sunset, 3 male Greater Prairie-Chickens performed their dance for us (well, obviously not for us, but for……….)

April 9th, 2008

Claude and I watched 6 species of swallows fly around Jumbo Reservoir (Logan/Sedgwick) this morning. Then we headed to Pawnee National Grasslands.

Mountain Plovers were found along Weld County Road 96, 2.0 miles west of CR 77. McCown's Longspurs were seen along CR 94. And our final target bird, a Chestnut-collared Longspur was found in the field southeast of Hwy 85 and CR 114.

April 10th, 2008

Claude was leaving around noon for New York. We had just enough time to drive to Pine Valley Ranch Park (Jefferson). A short walk along the south side of Pine Lake added an American Three-toed Woodpecker to his list.

We stopped briefly at Genesee Mountain Park and found a male Williamson's Sapsucker drumming on his favorite telephone pole at the northwest corner of the group picnic area building.

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