December 29-31, 2012
Richard Stevens:
December 29, 2012
Bryan Ehlmann, Jacob Washburn, Ray Simmons and I headed to the northeast to conduct a couple of Christmas Counts.
Most of our day was spent around Sterling Reservoir (Logan County). Two Common Redpolls were around the picnic area. A Barn Owl was found at the Campgrounds. While we looked for shorebirds at the north end, a Snow Bunting circled overhead and landed several times!
Horned Larks and Lapland Longspurs were numerous along the southern edge of the property. Raptors included: Bald Eagles, Red-tailed Hawks, Rough-legged Hawks, Northern Harriers, American Kestrels, a Prairie Falcon and a pair of Great Horned Owls.
At dusk, we drove to Tamarack Ranch Wildlife Area (Logan). Two Eastern Screech-Owls were located between sections 6 & 7 East (perhaps missed by the Crook CBC)?
December 30, 2012
The four of us walked much of the South Platte River that flows through Tamarack Ranch Wildlife Area (Logan County). We were inside the Crook Christmas Count area (that took place yesterday, 12/29).
Highlights included 2 Field Sparrows (7 East), 3 Northern Cardinals (1 West & Tamarack Pond), 7 Red-bellied Woodpeckers.
Surprise finds included a Stub-tailed Wren (never made a sound) between 1 & 2 East) and 2 Common Redpolls along the main road between Tamarack Pond and County Road 93.
Great finds were a Greater Prairie-Chicken wandering around with 7 Ring-necked Pheasants and a Short-eared Owl flying over the Prairie Chicken.
Our Christmas Count will be published in a future "Colorado Field Notes".
December 31, 2012
Time to head back to Denver, of course making several stops along the way.
We stopped at Julesburg Wayside Rest Stop (Location of last year's Common Ground-Dove and several Eastern Screech-Owls earlier this year). Nothing uncommon was found this morning.
Nothing uncommon was found at Ovid Woods and Julesburg Wildlife Area (Sedgwick County). We skipped the usual stops (Holyoke, Haxtun, Jumbo Reservoir) and drove Highway 59 down to Interstate 70.
Flocks of Horned Larks and several flocks of Lapland Longspurs were run into. Four Common Redpolls were found along Highway 59, south of Phillips County 38.
We hoped to relocate the Stub-tailed Wren and Eastern Meadowlark last reported by Bill Kaempfer on 12/27 at Flagler Reservoir (Kit Carson County).
It was not birdy when we stopped at Flagler. Two Common Redpolls were found with House Finches at the northeast corner of the reservoir. No wrens lurked below the dam or the thickets at the southern end of the lake. The only meadowlarks found were definitely Western. A male Red-bellied Woodpecker worked the cottonwoods along the east side of the reservoir. No uncommon sparrows could be found either.
Richard Stevens:
December 29, 2012
Bryan Ehlmann, Jacob Washburn, Ray Simmons and I headed to the northeast to conduct a couple of Christmas Counts.
Most of our day was spent around Sterling Reservoir (Logan County). Two Common Redpolls were around the picnic area. A Barn Owl was found at the Campgrounds. While we looked for shorebirds at the north end, a Snow Bunting circled overhead and landed several times!
Horned Larks and Lapland Longspurs were numerous along the southern edge of the property. Raptors included: Bald Eagles, Red-tailed Hawks, Rough-legged Hawks, Northern Harriers, American Kestrels, a Prairie Falcon and a pair of Great Horned Owls.
At dusk, we drove to Tamarack Ranch Wildlife Area (Logan). Two Eastern Screech-Owls were located between sections 6 & 7 East (perhaps missed by the Crook CBC)?
December 30, 2012
The four of us walked much of the South Platte River that flows through Tamarack Ranch Wildlife Area (Logan County). We were inside the Crook Christmas Count area (that took place yesterday, 12/29).
Highlights included 2 Field Sparrows (7 East), 3 Northern Cardinals (1 West & Tamarack Pond), 7 Red-bellied Woodpeckers.
Surprise finds included a Stub-tailed Wren (never made a sound) between 1 & 2 East) and 2 Common Redpolls along the main road between Tamarack Pond and County Road 93.
Great finds were a Greater Prairie-Chicken wandering around with 7 Ring-necked Pheasants and a Short-eared Owl flying over the Prairie Chicken.
Our Christmas Count will be published in a future "Colorado Field Notes".
December 31, 2012
Time to head back to Denver, of course making several stops along the way.
We stopped at Julesburg Wayside Rest Stop (Location of last year's Common Ground-Dove and several Eastern Screech-Owls earlier this year). Nothing uncommon was found this morning.
Nothing uncommon was found at Ovid Woods and Julesburg Wildlife Area (Sedgwick County). We skipped the usual stops (Holyoke, Haxtun, Jumbo Reservoir) and drove Highway 59 down to Interstate 70.
Flocks of Horned Larks and several flocks of Lapland Longspurs were run into. Four Common Redpolls were found along Highway 59, south of Phillips County 38.
We hoped to relocate the Stub-tailed Wren and Eastern Meadowlark last reported by Bill Kaempfer on 12/27 at Flagler Reservoir (Kit Carson County).
It was not birdy when we stopped at Flagler. Two Common Redpolls were found with House Finches at the northeast corner of the reservoir. No wrens lurked below the dam or the thickets at the southern end of the lake. The only meadowlarks found were definitely Western. A male Red-bellied Woodpecker worked the cottonwoods along the east side of the reservoir. No uncommon sparrows could be found either.
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