Highlights of today's visit to Grandview Cemetery in Fort Collins between 11a and 1p were:
Eastern Screech-Owl (1 gray morph in a decrepit silver maple, first I've seen at GC since January 2012 (perhaps the same individual, as the locations were near each other). FYI, I am meeting Norm Lewis tomorrow morning at the entrance to the cemetery (at the west terminus of Mountain Avenue by the old stone building that formerly served as the cemetery office) at approximately 10am. Norm lacks this species for his impressive 2016 list. If anyone would like to join us, we can give it a shot. If we are not there exactly at 10, be patient. On the chance we are on time, we will wait until 10:15 before proceeding to find the bird. Showing people owl locations is sort of like discussing politics at the bar (i.e. potentially problematic), so please, no respondees with monstrous cameras who will not be respectful of the bird, both tomorrow and during sneaky return trips. Fair warning, Santa works as a P.I. during the off-season, and my grandkids gave me his cell number.
Ruby-crowned Kinglet (2) - in a dense spruce tree near a big hackberry, no doubt gleaning hackberry gall-making psyllids from their overwintering sites under spruce bark. I had known there was one kinglet present, but not two until today. Does it seem like more and more individuals of this species are overwintering every year?
Bald Eagle (1 subadult) circling near the entrance, probably after a visit to nearby Sheldon Lake in City Park.
Brown Creeper (at least 3)
American Robin (several, one of which chipped ice off a garage roof as a source of water).
Misses today were Great Horned Owl, Eurasian Collared-Dove, flyover Red-tailed Hawk, White-breasted Nuthatch and flyover Ring-billed Gull. To my knowledge special species present at GC in certain winters but NOT this one (at least so far) are crossbills, Pine Siskin, sapsuckers and Golden-crowned Kinglet.
Total of 17 species today.
Dave Leatherman
Fort Collins
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