Stearn's Lake Saturday Morning

I was out before the sun on Saturday morning, and took the opportunity to visit Stearn's Lake at the southern edge of Boulder county. Readers of this blog will know that this was a spot I visited frequently when my office was located in Louisville and it was a brief turn from my daily drive. On my visit Saturday I stood in the company of a pair of Bald Eagles waiting for the sun to clear a ridge. Turning to the east, a distant post caught my eye...


My interest was peaked, and I did some backtracking to try an approach from another direction. My effort was rewarded, my route took me out of view of the post, and when I had reached a new vantage point it was bare.


To my delight, the bird had relocated to the small tree that had been blocking my view, and had multiplied! I took a few shots, and then dragged myself away to let them settle in for the day.


I looped out to the south, and returned along the edge of a pumpkin field, (they're getting close), as I walked I had some Vesper Sparrows to keep me company, showing off their seasonal colors in the post-dawn light. As I walked I was teased with unphotographed views of at least one Cooper's Hawk. I never got a satisfactory shot of it (them), but did get a nice distant shot of a Northern Harrier skimming the cattails on the far side of the lake. They are so distinctive when seen hunting mere feet above a marsh or field, the white rump, and facial disk were both visible in this shot.


I checked on the owls as I returned to the parking are from a distance and they were still visible. I'll take the opportunity to post one more of their previous shots, they were a real highlight to an enjoyable weekend start.


I hope that yours was just as beautiful, wherever you found yourself yesterday.

Evening at Stearn's Lake

Two subjects at Stearn's Lake this evening, different sides of the trail, a few minutes apart and completely different photographic challenges. The Western Grebe was brightly lit by direct light just before the sun dipped behind the mountains.


I tried a low ISO setting, and dialed back the exposure value to keep the white in the bird's face from being blown out.


On the other side of the trail a Great Horned Owl was perched in the open just after the sun had set.


To capture the colors and as much detail in the owl as I could, I dialed up both the ISO value and exposure compensation. Then I used a fence post as an impromptu tripod to steady the camera for the longer exposure time.

As the days shorten and evening photography opportunities become fewer the adjustments to make the most of opportunities that do arise are crucial. Hopefully more opportunities for practice present themselves!

Dive Bomb

Cute little female American Kestrel, right?

Big, tough, Red-tailed Hawk, right?

Not, hardly - here she comes....

A tight pass, the youngster Red-tail has its head turned sideways. The approach had been that close.

She banked and considered a second pass, but opted instead to relocate to another tree and call vehemently at her young adversary.

A real head-scratcher for this giant of a child! I guess there are still a few things for a hawk to figure out.

The judges weren't all that impressed and called it a draw.

1 down - 5 to go!

Here we are one week removed from the Groundhog's prediction of six more weeks of winter. This morning certainly fit the winter bill, with a fresh coating of 3-5 inches of dry fluffy snow, and temps in the low single digits it was definitely a wintry morning. I tried to grab a bit of the early light at Stearn's Lake on my way into the office. Unfortunately, the only bit of open water was right on the east edge of the dam. Its position and the thick cloud of steam really kept me from getting much of a look at the waterfowl that were crowded in. I did see Canada and Cackling Geese, Northern Shovelers, and a trio of Common Mergansers coming in to land. That was it though, the shot above was the first of four I took when I arrived. Just as I did the steam started moving towards me, and blocking my view of the open water.

So I turned my head to the sky and spotted this airplane properly adorned with a snowflake for the weather. I have no idea what the insignia represents, but that was the first time I had noticed that plane taking off from Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport. As I was looking skyward I had a flyover from a pair of Western Meadowlarks, they weren't singing today - but a few brave Red-winged Blackbirds were.

Clear skies and warming temps should have this reminder of winter receding into our memories in the next few days, personally I hope to see at least another five this season.

A Couple of Marks to Beat

Anyone else catch the moon rise this evening? Impressive to say the least here in Colorado. There was just enough moisture in the air to throw a pinkish glow beyond the shadows creeping eastward. I just had to stop by Stearn's Lake to get in a quick look and see if I could get a couple of shots before all the light was gone.
Because it was an unplanned trip I had no tripod, so for the first "Depth of Field shot I leaned into and propped the camera directly against the trunk of a tree. The branch wasn't a photogenic gem, but it does provide some foreground material to show the range of focus.


Next up, selective focus, here the branch becomes the subject, and the moon and sky are just background elements setting the evening feel. This would definitely need some selective cropping to remove the top section of the branch and the little tuft of grass.

Next came another set, I dialed up the ISO a bit and used some cattails and barbed wire for my foreground subject matter.

Functionally sound, but an expanse of ice doesn't really show off the bokeh effect very well.

Here is the same subject, now showing depth of field. I like the composition, and I like the spot, it usually has a few American Avocets hanging around in late spring. Getting it in winter was nice, but I am not sure that the background really shows any degree of focus. If Stearn's Lake has a drawback it is that its westward view towards the mountains is fairly cluttered. Oh well, now there are a few to beat.

Friday Night "Light"

What species is this?


Being that this past Friday was just a few days before the Winter Solstice, there wasn't much light to work with when I got away from work a few minutes early and had a chance to swing by Stearn's Lake before full dark. Fortunately, this large buteo was content to remain perched on a power pole as I drove below, and then returned from the south for a bit better illumination.

I would like to think this is a juvenile Ferruginous Hawk. In the picture above, one tell-tale feature appears to be visible. The Ferruginous sports a pair of feathered legs. In a light adult those white legs will take on a rusty-brown color, and will provide a great overhead field mark, in a juvenile they remain white. Unfortunately, from the angle I had it seems that the legs are feathered, but a Red-tailed Hawk can pull its legs back into its lower feathers, obscuring the 'bald' legs.

A tighter look at the face reveals more specifics of a potential Ferruginous, but become more inconclusive on closer inspection. "Sibley's" describes a "large bill and long gape", which certainly seems to be here, but Red-tail juvenile's tend to have a longer gape as well. Frankly, I am not sure if this one reaches back far enough under the eye to qualify.

The head seems a bit darker, but given the light conditions and angle I am thinking that it may appear lighter in full sun. If anyone can help with a definitive trait I would love to know, but for now I am willing to target this bird for a return visit. In the meantime, the weekend is already on a very birdy path, I filled a 4 Gb memory card along the South Platte in less than an hour today, and head out for the Boulder, CO, Christmas Bird Count early tomorrow.

If there is time amid the work, laundry, holiday cheer, packing, and potential snowy commutes over the coming days I should have some good, pic filled, posts coming.

Take care all, and good birding!

Half a Dozen

Despite a morning with single digit temps the sun was out today. I got an early start, and with good weather had plenty of time to swing by Stearn's Lake on my way into work.

I was hoping for the scene above and got it. A small area of still open water that had the geese concentrated in a relatively small area. Even better, it was on the close side of the lake to the trail, allowing close looks from behind a tree. Unfortunately, there were no Snow or Ross's Geese present yet. Soon perhaps, but well worth a periodic quick check.

While there were no uncommon Geese, there were Red-tailed Hawks. As indicated by the title, I had six individuals split between my drive along the dirt road to the lake and my walk. I am fairly confident that it is my highest count total for individuals in such a short span in one location.

There is something about a Hawk surveying the area from a high perch that just fits with a cold morning.

A closer crop, showing the lighter colored eyes and tail banding of this juvenile bird. (For contrast note the brown-eyed adult in the top picture).

Here, primed for takeoff, the patagial bars on the leading edge of the under-wing are clearly visible.

Then, with a wingbeat, a pump of the fully fanned tail, and a thrust of the legs this young Red-tail is aloft! With so many neighbors about he/she will need an early start to get breakfast. From my visit to the hawkwatch at Dinosaur Ridge last spring I know that as waves of migrants pass through periodic numbers can easily spike for a certain area. In this case most individuals were spaced out amongst the various tree clusters, with no more than two individuals in any particular area. It was a fun first to see so many of those clusters occupied on this chilly, and therefore very private morning with the hawks.

Bright and Brisk

It must be nice to have built in sunscreens on bright mornings.

The mystery hawk seems to be confirmed as an awkward and lanky teenager Red-tailed Hawk. The tail says adult, but the eyes give away the fact that this hawk isn't quite grown up yet.

In general the birding was unspectacular. I saw close to a thousand Rock Pigeons, and many more Canada Geese than that. The only species that really shone in the sunlight was this Western Meadowlark though.

It was just nice to be out, and to be able to appreciate a few moments outdoors before the activities of the day took over.

"Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world..."

If Bogart were a Finch and smoked double cigarettes I am sure he would have just that expression. In addition to being distracted by the brilliant red above, on my stop at Stearn's Lake and the adjacent farm pond I was struck by just how high the water level is currently. It really isn't much of a surprise given our recent rains, but for two areas that are usually havens for shorebirds there isn't much mudflat real estate. Instead the cattails are sitting in floodplains. The Red-winged Blackbirds are loving it, but I was disappointed that no Bitterns were hanging out, or if they were I still haven't picked up the knack for spotting them. That is one species that I am looking forward to finally locating.

It wasn't all disappointment and classics last evening though. In unusually birder like fashion, (for me) I worked the picture of my lifer Common Yellowthroat above. At first I heard a new call as I was watching for swallows at the farm pond. It was coming from the willows on the bank, and to my ear sounded like a DJ triple scratching - Vee-teh..Vee-teh..Vee-teh. I had to have been looking right at it, but couldn't see anything moving in the vegetation. Finally, after about 5 minutes of the sound moving through the tree I caught sight of movement. I was just about to click a few blocked frames when a flash of yellow shot out, across the road, and into the reeds on the Boulder County side of the road. I saw where the shape had dropped out of view, so I approached and kept him singing with a few whistles/pishes of my own. After another ten or so minutes of his echoing my horrible impersonation of his song he rose up high enough for me to get a few shots through the wide leaves. Not bad when I get to bag a lifer and get to follow it between two counties.

2009 Count: 159

Lifetime: 171

Another Great Evening

After my lunchtime reptilian adventure I was ready for another round, so I made the stopoff at Stearn's Lake on my way home last evening. Of course Redwings were everywhere, and at times I can't resist the urge for yet another picture of their gleaming colors.

As a relatively new birder I am just loving this springtime migration season. I guess that starting in October is the way to go, as you get used to dry barren landscapes and 15 species checklists. Now I am able to filter out more of the common residents, and focus on the visitors and new arrivals showing up. I know if I was just starting out I would be in over my head trying to sort out Robins and female Red-Winged Blackbirds from everything else, (yes the female RWBBs still get me occasionally, but I am starting to put size and streaky breasts together more quickly in the field now).

Anyway, one thing that I have noticed a few times is the recurrence of a recently identified species. For instance yesterday afternoon I identified my first Spotted Sandpiper. Last evening I saw a number of additional individuals of the same species and got some much better pictures. It makes me wonder if these occasions are a coincidence of arrivals, or a heightened awareness of the presence of the species - and therefore a trigger in the consciousness to alert on the now recognized shape and pattern. Probably a bit of both, but an interesting phenomena nonetheless.

They are welcome to click with my mind whenever I can get this close!

I also had this Brewer's Sparrow stop on this clear branch with a bit of back lighting. Another lifer, a new species each time out is just fine with me! Will I now have Brewer's showing up each time I head out? Have they been there all along, and this is just the first time one has been gleaming in the sun to catch my attention?

The pair of American Avocets, (summer residents?), were at the same location, the first marshy part of the lake the trail passes. I hope that they remain, as I get a rush each time I see their cool rusty heads.

Back off for more today at lunch, hopefully I will have some new species that I can start seeing around every corner!

2009 Count: 127

Lifetime: 142

Mystery Bird - or Very Common Bird?

Last night I spent two great hours in the area around Stearn's Lake. While I was there I spent some time watching this bird in the Cattails and Grasses at the Northeast corner of the lake.

My leaning is to Orange-Crowned Warbler, as the habitat is right and there are so many around, but either the field marks are incorrect or my pictures aren't capturing them clearly.


My questions arise from the lack of any visible streaking on the breast, and no break in the eye ring that I can see.

If anyone knows that this is something different please feel free to comment, or email me at daveabirding-at-gmail-dot-com. I'll keep digging and post any updates, but in reality there is just too much to see outside to get a fast turnaround on exhaustive research for the next few weeks.

Pre-trip Catchup

Before I head out for feathered adventure this afternoon I wanted to catch up some pictures from a week ago. Last Thursday I stopped by the Stearn's Lake area on my way home from work. It was overcast and drizzly as the storm that would eventually hammer the Denver metro area with heavy wet snow was just arriving. Sure enough as soon as I got out of my car the rain really started coming down. The wind was enough to make sure that my umbrella had little effect. Still the shorebirds and ducks didn't mind and were out doing their thing on the banks. The American Avocet (above) was fairly close to my side of the larger Stearn's lake proper.

Just across the road I peeked at a small irrigation or farmer's pond which happens to fall in Broomfield county. I was fortunate to get a closer look at the Solitary Sandpiper I had seen previously.

I also had this Wilson's Snipe nearly at my feet. Unfortunately for the exposure we were both positioned below a large cottonwood, capturing a bit more of the feel of the weather than I would have hoped. Then again it was a new species for my list so I'll take it in any conditions.

So now my submissions to Ebird are up to date, all of my camera memory cards have been uploaded and reformatted and I have a couple of fresh pics posted to tide the blog over until Friday at the earliest.

My car is loaded and ready and in a few short hours I will be on the road. The only bit of bad news so far is that I could not get a blind reservation at the Valentine Wildlife Refuge for Saturday morning, but I will be camping the next two nights and have an alarm set for 4:00, so maybe I will get extremely lucky.

Even if I don't I know the next few days are going to be a whirlwind, and hopefully my notes and pics will give me a bunch of ID challenges for the days and weeks to come.

Not only will the birding be great, but the Lyrid Meteor shower peaked this morning and will continue in the early hours tomorrow, and I should get some good history exposure as well, (I have a degree in American History).

Take care everyone, and as always please feel free to make any appropriate corrections on my species identifications. Seriously, shorebirds are a whole new world for me. I will always do my best, but would rather learn from my mistakes than continue on in ignorance.

2009 Count: 84

Lifetime: 108

An even nicer evening at Stearn's Lake

The shorebird above is an American Avocet, just one of the 6 new life birds I saw on Tuesday evening. It was so nice on Tuesday that I decided to stop at Stearn's on the way home for a bit of a walk and some more pictures. While I was there I saw 3 shorebirds, including the Avocet above, two new Grebes, and an American White Pelican which I knew would be coming any day now. For the record I did peek at the Farmer's Pond across from the parking lot. That is where I spotted the Avocet, a Solitary Sandpiper, and the standard assortment of ducks, Red-wings and Killdeer.

Here is a Greater Yellowlegs walking along the beach. I am going to do my best with shorebirds, but will very likely be wrong at some point along the way. Feel free to email or add corrections in the comments.

I saw a lone American White Pelican on the lake and apparently the fishing was better towards the middle than it was for the humans on the bank. It was quite a battle for the Pelican to get it lined up for swallowing.

A quick note on Pelicans. Back a few years I spotted one on the lake at a local golf course. I was shocked that Pelicans showed up in Colorado. In Minnesota where I grew up there is a town called Pelican Rapids where White Pelicans nested, but they were fairly isolated, from what I knew, and I really thought that the additional 4000 feet of elevation would be prohibitive. At any rate - I started noticing Pelicans, even thought at that time I was far from doing any actual birdwatching. Since I started keeping a list last October I have known that at some point the Pelicans would return and I would get see them officially. What a cool way to get to see my first of the year, catching a monster fish.

I also had three species of Grebe on the lake, two of which were lifers. The Horned Grebes above were a long way out, but their distinct buff "horns" and bill shapes made the ID clear.

Also present were two similar species of Grebe, the Western above which is fairly common...

and this Clark's Grebe which is less so. I actually got several shots with multiple Westerns and the Clark's in frame, but they were far enough apart that the formatting would have made them indistinguishable blobs.

The above pictures still aren't great, but they show the major differences for making an ID. On the Western the black on the head drops down below the eye, and the body is mostly dark. The Clark's has a whiter face, including the area around the eye and the mottled light sides. Also of note is the difference in bill color. The Western's bill is a greenish-yellow and the Clark's is bright yellow to orange.

This Killdeer was in great light with a group as I walked past it in a field. Check out that great red eye.

I saw this Great Blue Heron way up in a Cottonwood that was somewhat removed from a small pond on the way to the Cradleboard trail. Interesting to see something that large, on those skinny legs, standing 40 ft up in a tree.

What a day!

Between my earlier walk along coal creek and the evening spent at Stearn's I really saw some of nature's best. I added six new life species on the day. They were, American Avocet, Solitary Sandpiper, Greater Yellowlegs, American White Pelican, Horned Grebe, and Clark's Grebe.

2009 Count: 78

Lifetime: 102