[cobirds] Boulder County Birding 10/20

Since Peter Gent just posted all my good birds, this will be quick ;>)

 

I hung close to home today rather than joining the CBR sparrow rush.  As with this whole fall, there were good birds at large in lots of places.

 

I started trying for the Dunlin that Steve Mlodinow “dialed in” this morning at Panama Reservoir.  While this large reservoir that sits one field east of the NE corner of Highways 52 and 287 in eastern Boulder County is a private rod and gun club, it can be viewed reasonable well from the north side.  (From 52 X 287 go north 2 miles to Oxford Road and take it for 1 mile east to 115^th Road and go south for a mile.  At that point 115^th turns east and becomes Niwot Rd. but you can continue south on a paved drive right up to the gate of the rod and gun club.  There is space to park at the gate and bird from there.  But, behave yourself!)  I had no luck on my first visit, but after wandering north all the way to Loveland and back (and not seeing very much) I decided to return.  This time I found the bird as a distant speck with a distinctive bill in front of four Sandhill Cranes.

 

From Panama I went south to Teller #5 to try for the Golden-crowned Sparrow that Scott Severs first reported as back for the 3^rd straight winter.  When I arrived there was a lot of White-crowned activity, but no Golden-crowned, so I walked the trail over by the lake and saw lots of dying fish and a single, late Snowy Egret.  Sure enough when I got back to my car the Golden-crowned was just one bush in front of it.

 

I decided to be preemptive next, and go to the spot in one of Boulder’s industrial parks that a Palm Warbler has shown up at for the last two or three Novembers (another Scott Severs’ find as he works right there).  There was lots of bird activity in the form of a couple dozen juncos including one White-winged, but then a train came down the tracks and scattered them all.  Not everything that was flying out seemed to be white tailed, so there might just be a Palm hanging out.  (Maybe I should go back later—it worked the first two times!).

 

I then went up to Boulder Reservoir where I found a FOS Common Loon—still in partial molt and a probably LOS Forster’s Tern.  I wouldn’t recommend visiting the Reservoir tomorrow as preparations were already under way for tomorrow’s Boulder Marathon.

 

Bill Kaempfer

Boulder