For the record, it started to pour at 12:10 p.m. today at Barr Lake. Not rain. POUR. Megan Miller and I were were twirling the first net when we felt the first drops; by the time we had finished closing we were drenched to the skin, squeezing water out of our jacket sleeves, splashing each other as we stomped through big, muddy puddles, laughing the whole way. We got back to the banding station to learn that the canopy that had been put up “in case of rain” had collapsed from the water; the bird bags are now in my dryer, Pyle is drying on my kitchen counter. And 3 days ago we were whining about the heat……
Our sense was that there were lots of birds around, but most of the movement was up high. In between a late start and the flood, we banded 31 birds:
Hammond’s Flycatcher 1
Dusky Flycatcher 1
Yellow Warbler 1
American Redstart 1
Common Yellowthroat 1
Wilson’s Warbler 22
Brewer’s Sparrow 1 (FOS……we are clearly having a different migration than Chico!)
House Sparrow 2
Our next “human designated” day off isn’t until Friday, 9/20. But WEATHER PERMITTING is going to be key for the next couple of days. Possibility of late openings, early closings, etc.
Meredith McBurney
Biologist/Bander
Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory
303-329-8091
Celebrating 25 Years of Bird and Habitat Conservation
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