John Vanderpoel and I are leading a group of 10 birders on an overnight trip to NE Colorado. Today we headed out to begin our day on Logan County Road 93 south of I-76—the Red Lion exit. We had lots of sparrows along the road including Cassin’s, Grasshopper, Clay-colored, Brewer’s, Chipping, Lark, Vesper and Lark Bunting. Three Orchard Orioles were in the field at the ranch house and south of this spot we managed to find one Greater Prairie Chicken.
Next we visited Tamarack Pond in the eponymous SWA. We started there with a male Baltimore Oriole (and later saw a hybrid) plus several calling Northern Bobwhites. A small pocket of migrants included an Ovenbird, Red-eyed Vireo and Philadelphia Vireo along with Red-bellied Woodpecker. In the west units all we could manage was a singing Bell’s Vireo.
At Red Lion SWA there were about a dozen shorebirds including Bllack-necked Stilt and Stilt Sandpipers. Jumbo Reservoir in Logan County had more shorebirds including two Sanderlings, but the best bird was a Sabine’s Gull adult. We had a handful of California Gulls and that long-resident, funky Lesser Black-backed Gull in the Sedgwick side. Also seen in Sedgwick was a Peregrine Falcon.
Continuing south to Haxtun the water treatment ponds were active with one pond on the east side of the road being low and very shorebirdy including a Pectoral. There was also an incredibly dark Merlin present—our 4th falcon of the day. Finally we ended up exhausted in Holyoke with 101 species for the day.
We continue to Julesburg and North Sterling SP.
Bill Kaempfer
Boulder
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