Wondering at Winter

After a Sunday filled with falling snow I headed out yesterday afternoon to see if I could find anything to photograph during the bright cold day. At lunch I found House Finches showing brilliant color in the reflected sunlight, but they remained hidden well back in thick bushes and brush. This squirrel had no reservations about staring me down from just above eye level. I did get one very distant shot of a Slate-colored Dark-eyed Junco stretching its wings in the sun. I guess being slate colored has its advantages on sunny days when it is cold. I wondered why more birds weren't out in open perches soaking up some radiation. Perhaps the Red-tailed Hawk that I saw pass overhead was part of the reason.


Hawks were everywhere, but a pair of Song Sparrows that I found at McKay Lake Woods later in the afternoon were more photogenic. The shot above was just after I had spotted it feeding on seed heads. It was back-lit, and just on the edge of the trees.


As I had found myself and my subject just inside the trees I dialed up the ISO, and then pulled back the exposure compensation to try to pull more detail out of the subject. It works, but I like the back-lit seed heads in the first shot to.


Finally the birds crossed to the other side if the path, and I was able to watch them as they moved through the half-buried grass. Sneaky sparrows, you have to be quick and shoot a lot of frames to catch them when they are scavenging.... Its a wonder to me that small birds make it through the long cold nights mid-winter. Sure in the sun they can puff their feathers and soak up some rays, but those nights must be brutal. Hope they find lots of seeds.

Even later in the afternoon as the sun was setting and the temps were plummeting I caught a few passing looks at a nice Harlan's Red-tailed Hawk. They don't look much like a typical Red-tail, but when you hear them give the Red-tail scream you know they have to be the same species. I'll spare the bad pictures I did get here, and direct anyone interested to the Harlan's keyword in the menu at right - I was surprised when I looked back at how many better shots I already had of that cool variation.

Sunny and still cold today, with less time for birding and less exciting results. Hopefully my lunchtime walk tomorrow will yield some more good photo ops.

I've got "Cooties"!

Uh, I mean I've got Cootlings......or if you want to be all technically correct about it - American Coot Hatchlings.


I was shocked at lunch today when I stopped by the Greenlee Preserve, and saw tiny bits of orange moving around with a pair of Coots on the edge of a large cattail bank.


After shooting several hundred distant pictures I checked the Birds of North America Online article on Coots to find out about these little orange puff-balls. Apparently the color patterns of the bald head identify the chicks to their parents and trigger a feeding response from the adult birds. Whatever the reason for it, seeing these bright youngsters out for a swim, (which they are capable of doing 6 hours after hatching), was a pleasantly shocking surprise.


There were other birds around, like this Western Wood-Pewee, but I'm not going to pretend that there were any other stars of today's lunchtime than the young American Coot chicks.

I love that when birding you may always be surprised. Here I was, out hoping to find one of the species that I had gotten to know this weekend, and blamo, I find out that American Coot chicks are brilliantly orange. Had anyone asked me what a Coot chick looked like 10 hours ago I would have never in a million years guessed the truth. I guess that is what keeps so many of us coming back for more, over and over again.

Staying out of the wind

The spring winds have been hanging around since Saturday, and hopefully they have just about blown themselves out for a bit. Yesterday I swung by the Greenlee Preserve at lunch and had a mostly unproductive walk/lean. The Mallards above had the right idea - seek shelter anywhere you can find it.

The only calls I could make out were those of the Red-winged Blackbirds around me in the trees. If the Harris's Sparrow was still around I didn't see it. So hopefully I can stay on track and keep getting stuff done around the house before the weather improves and the migrants are on display.

Harris's Sparrow

One of the great technological innovations that I have relied on heavily in my year and a half of birding is the CObirds mailing list for Colorado Birders. If you are a Coloradoan and are reading this you probably are already a member - if you are in a different locale I hope there is something similar for you to find in your own community. For me the mailing list is a teaser list of what to watch for in the area. Now that I am approaching my second spring migration I have a bit better feel for what to watch for, but reading about the observations of others definitely helps me prepare when I head out to a certain area.

The list also conspires to make a 'twitcher' out of all of us. The mailing list grew from the Colorado Rare Bird Alert, which as I understand it was once upon a time entirely phone based. While the scope of the mailing list has expanded, the rare bird alerts still make up the meat of the archive. I have certainly used the rarity alerts to help me plan day trips to different areas in Colorado, but often chasing a specific species at my skill level doesn't pan out. To save on gas, and to make sure that I am birding my favorite places rather than just chasing species, I limit myself to following only those alerts that are consistent over time, or are conveniently located to somewhere I need to be.

So, last night when I read that a Harris's Sparrow had been spotted in the Greenlee Preserve, (one of my regular lunch birding spots), I knew that I would have to swing back by for a visit to try my luck. I had two strong things going for me if the bird was still around; I had seen it before in Iowa, and I knew the Preserve well enough to have a good understanding of the area where it had been seen.

Of course birding at mid-day, with patchy snow cover, and trying to see into the underbrush where the Harris's Sparrow likes to forage is still a formidable challenge. When I did see the bird I had a good feeling that it was what I wanted, but with the glare I had to rely on a series of frames to really confirm the field marks I was seeing.

In the adult I had seen previously, the black crest, neck and bib were readily distinguishable from a distance and in poor light. This bird had already been distinguished as a first year when I saw it, and that accounts for the blotchy black areas where the darker feathers are just beginning to come in. Other key field marks that are visible on a Harris's Sparrow are, the light bill and legs, which distinguish them quickly at a distance from the also dark bibbed, but much more common House Sparrow. The Harris's sports a long tail for a sparrow, and has black streaks mixed in its brown back and on the sides of its whitish underparts. Throw on a pair of white wing-bars and a dark spot back behind the eye, and you have a youngster on the way to becoming one fine looking bird.

It certainly is satisfying to head out to a location in search of a specific individual bird, one that in my experience spends most of its time at the base of thick bushy shrubs, and actually locate it quickly enough to be able to return to work after a normal lunch break. I for one am hoping that it decides to stick around for a while, but more than likely it will pass on as just an early migrant.

Common Colors

Got out for an even more gorgeous lunch this afternoon. 30 some degrees has never felt so nice.

I decided to have a look-see at Greenlee Preserve, where I had a feeling some brush areas might make up for the lack of open water on the area lakes.

I was treated to lots of activity from some very common species, House Finches, Dark-eyed Juncos, and European Starlings were all busy in great numbers. The Spotted Towhee started in a fairly clear patch under the brush, but gradually moved deeper and deeper until the movement was visible but the bird was not.

Chickadees were present as well, but were far too preoccupied to remain still for any pictures.

Next time perhaps.

More Hawks

Yesterday at lunch I headed to the Greenlee Preserve in Boulder County for a quick look since the snow has long since knocked down the marsh grass and cattails. The water was fairly quiet, but I had an aerial display that more than made up for it.


These two Red-tails were lazily circling over the wetland. They didn't seem to be aggressively disputing territory, just displaying the majesty of flight on a beautiful fall day.

This time of year always surprises me, here we are just a month away from the shortest day of the year, and yet the recent snows have still felt early. I'm not complaining though, the lingering snow pack and low angle sun really helped to light these hawks from below.

It was really rewarding to get a chance to spend a few minutes watching large raptors in flight.

I just hope that in some bird way they know how much a few members of one species enjoy watching them soar.

A beautiful morning - birds

What a sight to start the day! All those warm colors against a crisp blue sky. Not to mention a juicy green bug for breakfast - Mmmmm Good!

A pair of Mourning Doves were out enjoying the sunshine, they are fledglings I believe - having a more scaly appearance and less distinct eye-ring.

The hatch isn't over though, this momma appeared to be incubating while dad came back periodically with some patching supplies for the nest.

It is certainly a beautiful morning when a Coot can eat a glowing breakfast while swimming on a surface of light.

This jay even managed to make blue on blue look good this morning as he checked me out while flying by. Such a great way to start the day. I hope to get another chance this evening.

Spots and Scales

(Yep, there are snake pictures below, so proceed with caution if they give you the willies!)


A Boulder Blue-Winged Teal up close and personal.

I took my lunch at Waneka Lake and Greenlee Preserve this afternoon. Not quite the same experience as January or February. Today it was beautiful, and as such packed with Moms and Kids. I was glad to be out in the open soaking up the sunlight, but it was really a more chaotic and aggravating trip than all those quiet get back to nature walks I enjoyed over the winter.

Despite the crowds, I did catch this Spotted Sandpiper scavenging along the shore.

I also had a long distance view of these Wood Ducks in the wildlife habitat. There were goslings, Avocets, a Pelican that had one biker so excited he locked up his brakes to make sure I had seen it, and of course Yellow-Rumped Warblers all around.

But most exciting for me was this fellow who was slowly crossing the path as I walked up:

A Bullsnake! Snakes excite me because I have a primal, deep seeded, irrational fear of them. I have no issues with spiders, rats, sharks or any of the other typical "yucky" creatures, but snakes get to me. Over the years I have learned to manage this by learning as much as I can, and by seeking out opportunities for "controlled" encounters. For instance if I am at a zoo or someplace where there is an opportunity to touch a snake I will make myself do it, even while I am breaking out in a cold sweat.

On the other hand I am no hero when it comes to snake encounters. When a bullsnake was hanging out around an entrance to our work last summer I went out with a group to track it down. We all spent a good 20 minutes approaching it and retreating as it moved along the building. Then one guy joined us, looked at the snake for less than a minute, walked up to it and calmly pinned its head, grabbed it behind the jaw and walked it to a nearby field where he released it. Not in 1 million years buddy!

I like to respect the snake and observe it from a distance. I will still get within a few feet, and admire their creepy, reptilian beauty and efficiency - but that is plenty for me. The snake doesn't want me touching him or her, and I don't want them touching me, so we have a nice balanced outlook in that respect.

I just keep an eye out when I am hiking, and love to see them as much as any other less common fauna out there.

So soak it up you wild and crazy snake lovers, your moment of zen!

Now I'm off for an evening of feathers not fangs!

2009 Count: 126

Lifetime: 141

A Beautiful, Breezy Afternoon

After my trip to see the Trumpeter Swans Monday morning I was fired up and hoped for some more good birds after work. I did want to avoid as much of the wind as possible though. So I headed over to the Greenlee Preserve at Waneka Lake. There is a mile trail looping the lake, and the preserve has a wooden deck overlooking an adjacent marshland and pond. It is tucked into some trees - well sheltered from the wind. I fought the wind across the open areas surrounding the lake to get to the preserve, and then soaked in the peace and calm of the sheltered overlook. It was great!
The wind was clearing the air, and the sun was low enough to generate some good light - and frustrating shadows. I remained on the observation platform for an hour or so, enjoying all the sights and sounds I could, and relishing being back outside after the 4 days of sick. Nature was putting on a great show that afternoon. A group of Juncos were on one side of me as I arrived, and a pair of Downie Woodpeckers were working through the trees on the other. Robins, Chickadees, and House Finches all were busy around me; apparently they enjoyed the calm in the trees as well. Shortly after I got there a Red-tail, likely this one, took off from a spot further down on my side of the pond and made a slow circuit before settling on one of the far side trees. Red-winged Blackbirds were scattered throughout the reeds, displaying their epaulets and singing in the setting sun.
My photography was unproductive. The shadows of the tree limbs and thick branches made many shots cluttered, and many birds dark. It was one of those days where anything at a distance was in good light, and anything close was not. Even this Song Sparrow working an open area in the marsh grass was partially obscured.

That sun sure was nice, and down in the grass he wasn't feeling the wind at all.


Not the best pic of these Green-Winged Teal taking off, but the light caught the namesake green patch on the trailing edge of the male's wing.


Mmmmm! Tasty! I'm not certain what the main course was for this Ring-billed, but it looks suspiciously like a crayfish or shrimp head.

So I didn't add any more species, and there were no spectacular images captured, the day was beautiful despite the wind. Now that the Colorado weather has turned wintry again it is very nice to have a springlike memory from just two days ago.

2009 Count: 57

Lifetime: 87

Good Lunch Birding

Will update or repost later, but my lunchtime trip to Waneka Lake/Green Lee Preserve was definitely good.

I have not updated my numbers, but I had some good species counts and saw some fun birds. A highlight and one worth a closer look. The Great Blue Heron seems to have donned his breeding plumage. I don't know if those molt or can just get puffed up in the cold.



The hawk is evading me until I can get home and double check some guides. Mostly dark head, (maybe a white chin), streaked body, and all white undertail.





The puffed feathers are making it tough for me to gauge if the streaking is representative, or if the bird would appear darker when unpuffed.





If anyone has insights feel free to comment, otherwise I will update when I have a chance to look more closely. Of course it is back to overcast winter here, so unfortunately there is less detail than I would like.