[cobirds] Re: White-winged Crossbills, Boulder Co.

Paula and Maggie:

Great find!  Based on your report, I hiked the same trail this morning starting at 6:00 AM.  The flock of WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILLS was a bit scattered -- 1 near the campground, 12 about a quarter mile down the Arapaho Glacier Trail, and 8 about a mile down the Arapaho Glacier Trail.  The same stretch of trail had two AMERICAN THREE-TOED WOODPECKERS (one male, one female).

Afterwards, I continued along the Arapaho Glacier Trail for another 3 or so miles to the tundra.  Birding was mostly slow, but I found one snow patch with a nice assortment of tundra / rocky slope birds:

* White-Tailed Ptarmigans (2)

* Brown-Capped Rosy-Finches (4)

* Rock Wrens

* American Pipits

* Horned Larks

* Chipping Sparrow (tundra bird wannabe)

The snow patch was the highest one on the east facing slopes of the ridge line marked "Caribou 12310" on top maps, requiring a few hundred yards of off-trail walking, southward from the Arapaho Glacier Trail.

Note that I did not see or hear the White-Winged Crossbills during my hike back to the car late morning.  In general, bird activity had subsided quite a bit.  So, my recommendation for seeing the crossbills would be to get an early start, hoping that the birds will be as vocal as they were this morning.  The crossbills move around constantly, so some patience and some wandering back and forth along the trail might be required.

Thanks again for the report from two days ago.

David Dowell

Longmont, CO

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