[cobirds] Aurora Reservoir (Arapahoe Co.) 2/26

I stopped by Aurora Reservoir mid-late afternoon and found that the gulls have returned.  There were a number of gulls I had not seen at Aurora previously.  Today, the ice (covering about 25% of the lake) had a complicated structure, and gulls rested in many locations rather than in one spot.  Viewing from the west side at vantage points from the marina northward to the dam provided decent looks at most of the groups.  The gulls were moving around a lot, motivated by trips to the landfill and also a bothersome bald eagle.  Late in the afternoon, many gulls flew toward the west, as I had seen during previous visits.  Are some of these gulls roosting at Quincy and/or Cherry Creek?

Here's a summary of this afternoon's gulls at Aurora Reservoir:

* GLAUCOUS-WINGED GULL (second winter)

MEW GULL (adult)

GLAUCOUS GULLS (1 adult, 2 immature)

THAYER'S GULLS (2 juvenile, 1 or 2 adult)

LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULLS (2 adult, 1 third year)

14 California Gulls

approx. 165 Herring Gulls

approx. 2400 Ring-Billed Gulls

* The second-winter glaucous-winged gull at Aurora Res. today looked nearly identical to the one Steve Mlodinow photographed (links to his photos below) at Pueblo Reservoir on December 11, and could very well be the same bird.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/36088296@N08/11349151494/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/36088296@N08/11349044085/

Duck and goose numbers were low at Aurora this afternoon.  The highlight was a group of Northern Pintails.

David Dowell

Longmont, CO

PS  Sometimes I do visit locations other than Aurora Reservoir.  On Monday (Feb 24), the GOLDEN-CROWNED SPARROW was at the usual Teller Farms trailhead location on Valmont Road (Boulder County).

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