Tic-Toc

In 24 hours I will hopefully be minutes from departure. I am off for adventure with a couple of old school buddies, to explore a new locale and escape the reminders that Colorado keeps throwing out that winter isn't that far gone. So in the meantime a few more shots from Sunday. Nothing new from yesterday, I ran a couple of errands and moved 96Gb of pictures, (the first 1/3 of 2011), to external storage freeing up some space on the ol' laptop. The first shot (above) is a Northern Rough-winged Swallow. Not a particularly well lit shot, but finding one perched as opposed to zooming around above a lake was worth noting. NRWS show that buffy arc across the top of their breast, which can also be a good field mark when looking at rows of swallows on power lines.


While looking for shorebirds at the edge of one pond, a bird decided I had gotten too close and took off across the water.

I just had to head along the bank to make sure the large bird that had just flown quietly away was what I suspected it to have been.


A Great Horned Owl. I backtracked, as I intended to take a different route through the maze of small ponds and having confirmed its identity I was content to leave the owl in peace rather than risking flushing it once again.

A lone Great Egret had set up shop in a pond which I was gradually working my way around. I believe that this was the same bird that had started my morning with a flyover as I parked.


Further along I heard dull tapping coming from a tree. I paused, and quickly realized that it was the sound of a woodpecker excavating a nest cavity. I circled the tree until I found the hole, and then waited....


Northern Flicker, maker of holes.

One of my real highlights from Sunday was this sight, Wood Ducks in the woods. After seeing the Wood Ducks last week in Wheat Ridge I had been hoping to find some roosting, and finally got the chance. They moved deeper into the trees when a nice couple walked up to me with their dog, but I got to follow their progress through two more flights.


Finally, a Great Blue Heron for kicks.


I had a great series of this bird taking off. Unfortunately I was aiming somewhat into the poor light, but fun to see them in their breeding finery.

So now I am back to watching the clock and ready for travel. My hotel will be a few minutes walk from a National Seashore, so I hope to get my bird on in the early part of the day, and my chill-axin' tourist on in the afternoon and evening. I already know the trip will be fun, and my first visit to a shoreline since beginning birding has my mind spinning with the new species I may get to see and photograph.

Images from Ketner Reservoir

During today's lunch I walked for my second time at Ketner Reservoir. It is a smallish lake in the middle of a neighborhood, but one that I hope will prove to be a good little patch to check on every once in a while. Today I didn't see anything exceptional, but did get a few good shots of more common birds, thanks to playing with Exposure Compensation.

The Northern Flicker above was foraging on the ground beneath some mature trees. The bird itself was shaded a bit, but the patch of grass just behind was bright enough to trick my camera's sensor into thinking the scene was well lit. Knowing from a wealth of underexposed subject shots that this bird would lose detail, I set the exposure compensation up a third of a stop. That was enough to bring out the texture and colors on the Flicker, making a fun shot.


This Black-capped Chickadee had such great expressions as it evaluated me from a small tree. To get detail on a bird that is isolated against a bright sky I had to use the same principle as above, but really push it this time. I pushed the exposure up two full stops, and was able to capture the Chickadee's dark face.

As I passed the lake, I spotted a bunch of Redhead Ducks lifting off from the water. While waiting for them to clear a group of trees I took the time to pull the exposure back down to a negative third. That helped to keep the light bodies of the ducks from being blown out where they were in direct sunlight.



I received a practical lesson on exposure compensation last year at the CFO convention on a photography field trip. In the year since I have been practicing... It doesn't always work out, but is a good tool to have in the bag when shooting in the ever changing light conditions that are nature. Needless to say that trip is one I have signed up for again this year.

Count Day!

"Hurry up and count me, so I can get back to suet!"

As my past entries on the subject indicate, the Christmas Bird Count has been a special event for me. From a first time exposure to the great people that one can meet while birding, to unexpected encounters with new species, and revelations about new ways to expand identification skills the CBC has always been a highlight of my birding year. This year presented a new challenge, to organize and lead a territory count. While I had my hesitations, I was flattered to be asked to do so by the count organizer. My concern was that I would be taking an opportunity from a more experienced birder, but the need remained and I was happy to give it a shot.

Two of three Coyotes, calculating their chances of success with a group of Mule Deer just after sunrise.

I began by mapping out what I thought the best locations in the territory would be, and then driving around to see what did and did not meet expectations. As I guessed, some of the peripheral areas were our most productive. My guess that some of the creek corridors running through the neighborhoods would also be good turned out to be completely wrong. A large area of trails on University of Colorado pasture/prairie restoration land also ended up being a major bust. That area did generate a Northern Harrier and juvenile Bald Eagle, but failed to produce species our team hoped to find, like Western Meadowlark or Ring-necked Pheasant; all at the cost of over an hour and several miles of extra walking. I believe birders would still be well advised to look to that area on future counts, but may look for ways to check it and similar areas more quickly. Leaving a vehicle at both ends of that trail is a refinement I would consider for future years. Multiple vehicles would have allowed for an end to end search, but without the team having to make a full loop in an area that we quickly determined was under productive.

American Kestrel - hover-hunting in the breeze.

In a bit of a surprise for me, our best habitat turned out to be the last houses on the edge of the open space just before the foothills. I knew they were going to be good, but our species counts from trails running just beyond the developments and the streets on the opposite side of those homes, gave us the greatest species diversity. That transition zone netted us three species of jay, two woodpeckers, both chickadees, White-breasted Nuthatch, Brown Creepers and Townsend's Solitaires, along with two different raptors and many other more common species. During the count compilation, those teams reporting Western Scrub-Jays all found that the species turned up at the perimeter of developments, just as they approached the lower edges of ponderosa pine forest. Not Earth shattering, but a cool confirmation and as I look back at my previous sightings, (Red Rocks Park and Roxborough State Park), one that holds true throughout the Denver area.

Western Scrub-Jay - a species we found in a very specific habitat belt.

Once again my expectations were completely blown out of the water by the people who volunteer for the Christmas Bird Counts. I had three great volunteers, each an accomplished birder and all three were people who had a good time just getting to know the others while being out seeing some cool birds. Each of us spotted species that made for 'good' adds to our day list, and I think as a group we all made one another stronger with our varied backgrounds and skills.

Townsend's Solitaire - a welcome sight on each of my Boulder CBCs to date.

We had a section that was as advertised, it produced a good list of fairly common birds. There were some birds that we were surprised we did not run across during the day. White-crowned Sparrows, Mourning Doves, and Belted Kingfishers were all misses for our count, and despite our best efforts we could not produce a roosting owl. It is amazing to me that even when spending an entire day dedicated to watching for birds, some of the more common species won't turn up.

Brown Creeper - an elusive bird that gave us good looks, and was a lifer for at least one member of our team.

When I look back on this count I hope the lesson I will remember is that identification skill isn't a prerequisite to bringing others together for good birding. Having been taught and lead by so many great birders in the past couple of years I guess I just hadn't seen what happens when a bunch of willing folks get together and bird. It turns out that if you pick a meeting place and have a general idea of where you want to go the rest will take care of itself. In our case one participant even lived in our count area, and invited the three strangers to her home at six in the morning for breakfast - how often does that happen these days?

I hope that all the members of the Bear Creek team had as good a day as I did. Thank you very much to each of them, Bill Schmoker the count compiler, Bill Kaempfer who hosted the compilation potluck that evening, and to all the other birders who participated. To all of them and for anyone reading this...

...may your Holidays be filled with family and friends, food and fun, fur and feathers, and if your location favors it at least a bit of frost!


Bear Creek Territory 2010 Total: 30
Boulder CBC 2010 Total: 114, (A count day record by 5 species) plus 1 'free-flying presumed escapee' and 2 additional count week birds so far.

Friday's Flicker

Just a perched bird in good light, posing as I made a stop on the way into work this morning. Great weather continues - hopefully through the weekend.

Young Hawk Feeding - (mild gore factor)

Yesterday was overcast again, but added a wind factor that really kept the birds hidden away. I was out at lunch and only had pairs of Northern Flickers and Mallards, and a lone Red-tail Hawk. After work I got a bit of compensation though, a young Red-tail had made a kill and was posed in the same area where I had seen a Cooper's Hawk recently. Red-tailed Hawks are carnivores, and as such they eat other animals. The pictures below show a bit of that activity, but these are nothing to lose your lunch over. The heavy cloud overhead and bright horizon help to keep the messier parts dark, but this young hawk is just doing what it needs does, so cut it some slack and appreciate it for the messy eater that it is.

The juvenile Red-tail has some characteristics to help identify it, but also make it a bit tougher to distinguish from other raptors. If you can see a pale iris in the field or in an image you have a very good indicator. Unfortunately, birds being wild and not always distracted with their supper when we find them, an eye look is not always ensured.
This individual was cooperative enough to give me looks from most angles. With Red-tails a look from behind is often helpful. Three clues are visible on this bird. First, the head is lightly colored, but does have some dark on it. Second, the scapulars (feathers that cover the shoulders of a bird), form a white "V" pattern on the back. That one is nice because it can be easy to spot from a distance, but I find that I still don't trust it, as many hawks can have varying amounts and patterns of white on the back. I am sure that with time I will trust that one more, but for now I use it as a piece of the puzzle. Third, check out the tail! It has uniform gray-black banding, with a wider black tip.

This Hawk, a light-morph, has other traits when seen from the front that can help add to a composite identification. The breast and thighs are both mostly white, and there is a distinct white browline on the face.

Also, the legs are not feathered to the feet. On a sighting like this that is a big help, but if the bird is simply perching and observing or sleeping the bare legs may be covered by the body feathers, making for a more frustrating look. A bit of stretched flesh below - but for a raptor that is one of the most beautiful sights in the world.

Ok, enough of the feast. A parting shot of the pair of Northern Flickers who were willing to brave the breeze at lunchtime.

The Best Part of Really Cold Weather

Is the first mild day after!


I headed a bit downstream along Coal Creek from where I had seen the American Robins on Tuesday. I walked quickly into the sun, and a more wooded riparian area where I had visited a House Wren hole a few times this summer.

As I headed along the bank I noticed that the creek was running a bit, but at the time the only sounds of activity I heard were Junco and Chickadee calls high above. I was returning a few minutes later when I saw a shorebird shape explode up from the creek's depression and fly a bit downstream. There I was momentarily distracted by the deep purple colors of the male Mallard's head at that angle. Eventually, I found two Wilson's Snipe hiding along the shore. With the bits of green grass sticking up and melting snow no one would guess that the high temperature yesterday was well south of ten degrees.

That was a fun surprise. The last thing I expected to see on today's walk was a group of shorebirds. Even more surprising for me was that from first sighting to confirmation of the pictures online I was thinking Wilson's Snipe. This is a species I have seen a couple of times before, and between the size and bill shape I knew it would be that or something close.

I turned from the Mallards and Snipe and got a well lit look at this Northern Flicker savoring a drink of liquid water.

Finally, as I returned across the open space towards my car I was shocked to see a Coyote crossing the trail ahead of me,moving away from a neighborhood and towards the trees and creek bed. Coyotes are no strangers in this area, and despite some localities culling efforts earlier this year they are not all that uncommon to see, even in areas with heavy development. What was strange was to see one in the relative open at 2:00 in the afternoon. I hope this one stays out of trouble, this is their home as well, but if pets go missing it usually ends poorly for the Coyotes.

Creekside Lunch

I had a chance to spend a few long minutes along the banks of Coal Creek at lunch today. It was just about perfect. The temp was perfect, not too hot, not to cold. There was a hint of a breeze to move the leaves just enough to give life to the spots of sunshine that made it through the canopy.
The creek softly babbled as it made its way through the rocky part of its course just to my side, pleasant to hear, but not so loud as to drown out the noises of birds and creatures in the area.

The birding wasn't spectacular for fall migration - I had a group of Northern Flickers fairly close at all times, and am confident but not certain that an Orange-Crowned Warbler was briefly over my shoulder and up-sun from me. In the end though, it didn't matter. I had a moment of pure peace in an otherwise hectic day. I got to savor Mother Nature at her finest, in a spot that is often passed but rarely appreciated or given more than a passing glance. I will be back, new found lunch spot; for the experience, for the calm, but most of all for the birds.

A day for a walk - finally

I have been eager to get back outside during a workday, but weather, and the addmittedly more important work has been keeping me indoors. When it was finally sunny today I was excited to get a chance to be outdoors in the middle of the day.
Of course this close to the solstice midday light for photography is particularly brutal. Still the Northern flicker above exploded in a red ball off his perch as I was getting a few frames. I just love when they do that. It reminds me of the first time I saw and ID'd a Flicker last fall. It was dusk and watching a brownish shape on a dirt field suddenly explode into color as it took flight through bins really caught my attention.
The birding today was particularly common, and with all the recent rain the vegetation is thick - making spotting birds in the heat of the day unlikely. I did get to watch two Red-tailed Hawks hunting over the prairie dog towns.

This was the one shot where an eye caught enough light to not be a dark cavity on the head. Hopefully some better light and timing this evening or tomorrow morning. Until then - keep your eyes on the skies!

Nothing Special, but a good way to start the day

I had to run an errand on my way into work this morning, and the place didn't open 'till 8:00, my normal work time. So I was up and ready and had a half hour to spare today. I stopped by Alexx and Michael's Pond to see if there were any goodies around to start my day. What there were, were millions of gnats, or midges, or somethings. Whatever they were, they were prolific. They didn't really bite, but there were so many that getting them in the eyes became a nuisance.
That and keeping moving to get to work in a reasonably timely manner kept the photography more on the aim and fire side of things than any real consideration of how shots would turn out. The redhead against reflected cattails was nice though.

Some birds, like all people, just look dorky at times, despite their activities. This Northern Flicker already looked out of place on a slab of sidewalk, but getting a half inch of vertical jumping for an insect is just over the top.

I also badly focused this shot of an American Coot's foot. Their rarely seen toes are well designed for swimming and perching, but I guess if my toes looked like that I would keep them underwater most of the time as well.

Finally, after I had left and was on my way I had to make a stop and shoot through my window at this young Red-tail. He/she was so focused on something on the ground that I was able to get as many shots as time allowed from fairly close range.

If only I was disciplined enough to start every day with a bit of nature....but then I enjoy evenings as well.

Discovering the Cradleboard Trail

I headed back to the Stearn's Lake area yesterday, but rather than going to the lake itself I headed south through the trail system towards Josh's Pond in Broomfield. The last time I visited in mid-February it was overcast, windy and generally poor conditions. This time couldn't have been more different. It was still cool, but there wasn't a cloud in the sky, and the wind had finally relented. Just a beautiful afternoon and evening.

I didn't get to see a Red-tail snacking like last time, but I did have this juvenile keep an eye on me from across a pond.

As I walked I decided to take a trail I had not tried previously, called the Cradleboard Trail. It took me head on into the setting sun, so for a time I really had no idea where I was headed, but could look back at a small creek and quiet a few Prairie Dogs.

Signs warn walkers to stay on the trails to avoid damaging the Critical Wildlife Habitat, and the pamphlet I picked up at the far end mentioned Burrowing Owls using Prairie Dog burrows for nesting. That perked up my interest, but I didn't see any on this visit. There were several nice march sections, and both Prairie Dogs and Cottontail Rabbits were plentiful.

The trail ended at a low usage back road, and I followed that for a bit to loop the wildlife area and cross back into the Broomfield trail system at the east side. The loop I made was just under 3.5 miles, but as the days get longer it could grow to include Josh's Pond and a dip back to pick up Stearn's lake as well.

I just love exploring unknown trails in my own backyard. Walking along a road and wondering if what is hopefully a loop will work out, or if you are in for finishing a hike in the dark on a much longer than expected out and back. Takes me back to my high-school cross-country days, and I must say that I am happy to have traded speed for the extra weight of a camera and bins.

2009 Count: 65

Lifetime: 93

Big Dry Creek

The Big Dry Creek open space is a great resource that runs through Westminster and cuts across 120th Ave minutes from my home. Yesterday I took advantage of the later sunset to get in a good walk and see what birds were about. To start it was all Prairie Dogs and European Starlings.



The Prairie Dog is essential to good wildlife watching here in the high plains habitat. Their place on the menus of Coyotes, Hawks and Eagles make their communities great places to stake out predators. In addition their alert calls can give an early heads up if a raptor is soaring overhead and up-sun from a current position. I have read that their warning barks are threat specific, so in theory they could let you know what they are watching while you are in their area, but I have yet to see that applied by anyone.

While I was walking south towards the 120th underpass I got buzzed by this Sharpie (Sharp-shinned Hawk). He was on me so fast that I didn't get a well focused image, but this and the few others I got worked for identification. As usual with raptors I double checked my own impressions against Jerry Ligouri's, Hawks from Every Angle: How to Identify Raptors In Flight. Sharpies are a tough ID in the field for a relative novice like myself because they are very similar to the slightly larger Cooper's Hawk. Key identification points to look for are the squared off tail and smaller head. The Sharpie is generally more stout in appearance due to wing shape and a relatively short tail length. Also the Sharp-shinned Hawk has a body shape that starts broad at the shoulder and narrows towards the tail. The Cooper's Hawk tends to be more uniformly broad.

I half expected this guy to start dancing to "I'm Alright" as I walked past.

Shortly after the Sharpie I was treated to a very cool sight. There are two Northern Flickers in the picture above, see them both?

Here is another frame that shows the trailing bird more clearly. Not only was the lead bird a Yellow-shafted Northern Flicker, (my first sighting), but the two chased one another from tree to tree for the full ten minutes I was watching them. Their under-wing colors would flash in the sun on each upbeat and as they banked and dove around branches. Suh-weeet!

A handful of Cottontails are mixed in among the Prairie Dogs, although I think I see them in greater numbers in my neighborhood each morning.

As with my previous visit to the Big Dry Creek area the Robins were prolific. They still seem to be plotting, but don't seem to be taking any action yet......

...unless rerouting air traffic from Germany is a part of their plan. Muhhhhaaaaahhhhaaaa! It was a randomly low circling transatlantic jet for this area, but it did immediately precede the change in weather, that brought a cold strong wind from the northeast for the rest of my walk and snow overnight.

I'll leave off with this shot of one of the Prairie Dog predators. The Coyote and I surprised one another as I walked along a roadside to get a better view of a potential owl nest, and it was cruising into the Prairie Dog town from some cattail growth. I backed away to avoid unintentionally driving the hunter towards a busy road, and as I left the Coyote had withdrawn beneath some scrub. I was a bit disappointed to have not gotten a clear view of the nest from a higher angle, but was treated to three Red-tails circling and lightly hunting above me. Of course that was just as my one gb card filled up and just as I realised that I did not have the partially full four gb card that I had believed was in my pocket. Take my word they were great looking birds! I saw a total of six Red-tails, and believe that the three may have been a part of the beginning of migration.

2009 Count: 65

Lifetime: 93

South Boulder Creek & Denver Birding

Monday at lunch-time I headed up to Boulder, to check along South Boulder Creek and the southwest corner of Baseline Reservoir. There wasn’t much in the way of exciting species, but I did get to witness some cool behavior on the part of two Northern Flickers. When I first spotted them they were on opposite sides of the same tree trunk. For a few minutes I watched as they danced back and forth around the trunk. It was almost like a young child playing peek-a-boo around a centerpiece at a dining room table. After a bit, one of the two flew to another tree and began vocalizing in a different manner than I had heard previously. Those spring triggered hormones must be activating for the Flickers.
Being that Mondays are my early day at the office I had an early afternoon, and decided to use it in conjunction with the Denver Field Ornithologists meeting/presentation at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.

My first stop was at the Denver Botanical Gardens. I have to say that I was a bit disappointed with my decision. I had been there once previously when my sister and her husband lived in Loveland and my parents were out visiting from Minnesota. At that time the gardens were obviously more interesting, and the entire area just seemed larger and more involved. The Koi above was as happy as a fish could be to have a visitor. Yesterday the gray skies, dead gardens and lack of people all made the site less interesting. Granted I did not spend any time in their indoor habitats, which I am certain I would have found more appealing in late winter, but I was looking for birds. There just wasn’t much to be seen, aside from the squirrels which had lost all fear of humans.

I did see a Red-tailed Hawk soar overhead, which was unexpected in such an urban area. As I was getting ready to leave I saw American Crows assembling in a murder to head off to roost. They just kept arriving from everywhere, and as the first to arrive headed west more were emerging from treetops and from behind buildings. It was very cool to watch.

I left before it started too get dark because I wanted to get to City Park with some remaining daylight. I had a specific target in mind, but had never really spent any time in City Park itself before. I have been to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science in the past, and knew that it was connected to a large park area which included the Denver Zoo, but that was the extent of my knowledge. I parked at the Museum and headed along the first lake towards Duck Pond. In the lawn just to the west of the museum building were two banded Geese in a crowd of many. There was a great variety of waterfowl in the first lake, and I stopped a few times to take pictures, but I was very aware of the setting sun, and needed to reach my destination before it got too dark for pictures. On the way I looked up into the trees that divided the Zoo from the Park and saw this:

Juvenile Red-tail Hawk

Urban raptors, what a deal! I did also see a Cooper’s Hawk fly right over my head, but being dusk it was too dark to track him for any pictures. Finally I did reach my destination and beheld:

Double-Crested Cormorants! Here is a closer view from the same pic:

I had no idea that there was a Double-Crested Cormorant rookery right in an urban park habitat until it was mentioned on the COBirds mailing list. Apparently the birds are still just arriving and will have totals in the hundreds at their peak. For the time being there were around 40 that I counted.

I did also see this unknown goose. After I had a chance to look it up I determined it was a Graylag Goose, which can be found wild in the Eastern Hemisphere, but here they are deemed released/escaped domestic birds and therefore uncountable.

Update 01/26/2010: After a return visit to the park and seeing two individuals I correctly identified Greater White-fronted Geese, and realized that I had made an incorrect ID last year.

Oh well, I did add the Double-Crested Cormorant and Coopers Hawk, not bad.

I walked back towards the museum in the growing darkness, and caught the novelty of sunset at City Park, lions snorting and roaring as they welcome the dusk, their natural hunting time. Not to mention a view that has gotten a bit of Executive attention in the past week.

2009 Count: 63

Lifetime: 93