Wanting to refind some of the birds reported yesterday by Andy Bankert, Ken Ecton and I this morning first went up to Hamilton Reservoir by the Rawhide Power Plant north of Buckeye Road. We saw the Pacific Loon straight across from the Observation Overlook basically in line with the main power plant (did Andy anchor it to the bottom?). It had that characteristic thick bull neck, modest bill, mousy gray on the back of the head and neck, chinstrap under the white throat, etc. I think only the third I have ever seen up there. The Red-necked Grebe was in the western third of the res (nw from the overlook) in the company of one Western Grebe for a nice comparison. When this pair cruised past (and dwarfed) a small flock of Horned Grebes, the comparisons were even richer. What an amazing autumn it has been in CO for Red-necked Grebe. Are there more this year, or are the water bodies just getting covered better by birders?
At Douglas Res, Ken and I ran into Scott Cobble. The three of us were unsuccessful at laying eyes on Andy's reported Mew Gull. I took Ken back to his truck in Laporte and had a wild hair to go back to Douglas. Bad carbon footprint. After scoping every gull I could for over an hour from the north boat ramp on the west side, boom, there was the Mew Gull maybe 50 yards off the shore of the south end of the dam (just north of the boat ramp). I took my eye from the scope to try and find it in binoc, a Bald Eagle cruised over the res scattering everything, and I never saw the bird again in the reshuffled deck. Larophiles will laugh, but only my second Larimer Mew Gull, the first one being at Douglas Res on 25Nov2006. Also at Douglas, at the south end where the rabbitbrush is dense, was a Northern Shrike. Lots of waterfowl at Douglas, apparently all eating gizzard shad and maybe crayfish, but besides the Mew, nothing particularly noteworthy. This is about when the Pomerine Jaeger and one (maybe two) Black-legged Kittiwake showed up there back in 1995 so still worth checking until it freezes up.
It should also probably be mentioned for the sake of who has Douglas for the FC CBC, a sparrow was down among the dam rocks north of the west side boat ramp north of the little metal pump shack (or whatever that is) that strongly suggested Savannah Sparrow. It could have been an immature Song Sparrow with a molting, funky tail, but I don't think so. The darn thing would never give an unobstructed look. Certainly Song Sparrows can be skulky on occasion but Savannah Sparrows can be classic in that regard. One that got away.
Thanks to Andy for finding and posting his birds to COBIRDS.
Dave Leatherman
Fort Collins
At Douglas Res, Ken and I ran into Scott Cobble. The three of us were unsuccessful at laying eyes on Andy's reported Mew Gull. I took Ken back to his truck in Laporte and had a wild hair to go back to Douglas. Bad carbon footprint. After scoping every gull I could for over an hour from the north boat ramp on the west side, boom, there was the Mew Gull maybe 50 yards off the shore of the south end of the dam (just north of the boat ramp). I took my eye from the scope to try and find it in binoc, a Bald Eagle cruised over the res scattering everything, and I never saw the bird again in the reshuffled deck. Larophiles will laugh, but only my second Larimer Mew Gull, the first one being at Douglas Res on 25Nov2006. Also at Douglas, at the south end where the rabbitbrush is dense, was a Northern Shrike. Lots of waterfowl at Douglas, apparently all eating gizzard shad and maybe crayfish, but besides the Mew, nothing particularly noteworthy. This is about when the Pomerine Jaeger and one (maybe two) Black-legged Kittiwake showed up there back in 1995 so still worth checking until it freezes up.
It should also probably be mentioned for the sake of who has Douglas for the FC CBC, a sparrow was down among the dam rocks north of the west side boat ramp north of the little metal pump shack (or whatever that is) that strongly suggested Savannah Sparrow. It could have been an immature Song Sparrow with a molting, funky tail, but I don't think so. The darn thing would never give an unobstructed look. Certainly Song Sparrows can be skulky on occasion but Savannah Sparrows can be classic in that regard. One that got away.
Thanks to Andy for finding and posting his birds to COBIRDS.
Dave Leatherman
Fort Collins
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