Hi all,
Al Levantin, Tom McConnell went back to Kremmling yesterday, Monday, in a bid to find a good Hoary Redpoll, and document it. Last week’s “candidate” that we saw, was NOT a Hoary Redpoll.
We started out quite déjà-vu... -17F again at 9am in Kremmling, clear and sunny. However a gentle breeze (a drainage wind no doubt) made it unpleasant for bare skin. Gloved camera fingers soon needed help too! There were quite a few Redpolls at the various feeders, and over 100 Rosy Finches of all three species. However, Redpolls were fewer in number than last Thursday and definitely more skittish. The reason soon became apparent.. a young Northern Shrike has figured out the deal. It showed up at the Eagle St feeders, carrying meat in its beak, causing everything to scatter. It proceeded to stash the meat in a nearby bush, before returning to feed on the corpse, which was impaled inside a nearby bush. Watching it eat, it looked like the prey may have been a House Sparrow (perhaps just wishful thinking on my part). Way to go if it was eh?
We moved to the feeders on Gore.. and guess who showed up there – yep Mr. Northern! We didn’t see it catch anything tho..
We explored all over town, found a few other small groups of Redpolls, but every Redpoll we saw was a Common Redpoll. We probably only saw around 100 Redpolls. ONLY ? well I guess compared to last Tuesday I mean.. when we probably had more like 150++ Also yesterday there were still at least two American Tree Sparrows.
By 1pm the breeze had died away, but the day was really struggling to warm up, it was still only -13F. We left soon after and headed back to I70 where at about the same altitude and only 40 miles away, in similar sunny and calm conditions, it was a full 50 degrees warmer! Nuts!
At least 8 Golden Eagles, a couple of Bald Eagles, a Prairie Falcon made the drive list.
FYI: My last free Snowmass Bird tour for a few weeks is tomorrow, Wednesday 23rd. I head to Antarctica again on Thursday, as the birding guide on two trips, back late February in time for Snowmass on Wednesday 27th Feb.
Good birding all
Dick Filby
Carbondale,CO
No comments:
Post a Comment