Tuesday, May 7, 2019

Return to Salisbury Equestrian Park, Douglas County

May 7, 2019

Richard Stevens:

High temperature reached 58 degrees.  Winds were 11-12 mph.  Anomometer readings rose to 28 mph when the thunderstorm blew through.

After yesterday's traffic mess from Parker to Cherry Creek Reservoir (51 minute drive that normally should last 17 minutes), I was not going to bird today. A report of a Black-bellied Plover in breeding plumage changed my mind.

No Black-bellied Plover was on the Salisbury Equestrian Park pond.  The shorebird mix was different from yesterday.  Shorebirds included six American Avocets, two Lesser Yellowlegs, at least thirty six Spotted Sandpipers and a Least Sandpiper.

The eight Baird's Sandpipers found yesterday were still at the south end of the pond.  Three of the Wilson's Phalaropes also remained.

I made a quick circuit around the pond; however, I did not have time to search for yesterday's warblers and orioles.  Four Yellow-rumped Warblers and a male Wilson's Warbler fluttered about the willows at the northwest corner of the Pond.

It started to rain when I was halfway around the Pond.  Fortunately, I was back at my car when the downpour hit.

The Parker to Cherry Creek Reservoir drive was 50 minutes today.  The Metro traffic is a nightmare most of the day.

A quick drive through Cherry Creek State Park (Arapahoe) did not find that the Black-bellied Plover had flown downstream to the Park.  No shorebirds were on Pelican Point or at Pelican Bay (opposite end of the Park).

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