[cobirds] Out of state Baird's Sparrows

(With permission of David Suddjian.)

 

Certainly one of the most exciting story lines in Colorado birding in recent years (Purple Sandpiper, the 500^th species on the state list, and Broad-tailed Hummingbird double brooding would be among the others for me) has been the discovery of persistent populations of Baird’s Sparrows in Larimer County.  A glance of any published range map for this species would show a breeding range in NE Montana, W North Dakota and the prairie provinces of Canada—but not near here. 

 

Today I ventured up to check out a reported site for Baird’s Sparrow in Wyoming with John Vanderpoel.  After a couple of hours of searching (because we didn’t know exactly where to look) we were rewarded with at least three singing Baird’s along a wonderful section of rural road in Wyoming not far from Laramie at a site where Baird’s have been repeatedly reported for the last two years or more.

 

The significance for Colorado birds is that this Wyoming population indicates a potential southern breeding plot of Baird’s that includes not only the three distinct spots where they have been found in northern Laramie County (Soapstone, LCR 5 and south of Carr) but an additional population about 75 km to the NW in Wyoming.  (There are probably other patches of appropriate habitat in between that have not been extensively surveyed, and I should point out that Jason Beason has had additional observations this summer about 100 km further north in WY.)  All of these spots are hundreds of miles from the usually noted breeding range.  The point is that these are probably not just a few misplaced males singing away in hopes that there is a female somewhere around—something we see regularly with one-off, out of range male warblers around here (see Yellow-throated Warbler in Pueblo this year)--but a bona-fide range extension.

 

The significance for Colorado birders is that this site is not far from us and easily accessible.  Pull out your range maps—Laramie is only 2 hours from Denver! (In other words about like Red Lion.) To get to the right spot, take I-80 all the way through Laramie to Old Stockyards Road (or maybe it is Curtis Road, hard to tell on Google) on the NW side of town.  Exit and go back east to US 30 and turn left.  Go 6 miles north on US 30 to Road 51 and turn left.  Take 51 across the Laramie River, then follow along as it bends to the right.  At about 6.5 miles from US 30 you will notice a much wetter and taller grassland on both sides of the road.  Our observation took place in this wet meadow with about three birds singing, one of which was viewable as it sang from an exposed perch in taller grass on the north side of the road.

 

Keep going on the road as it eventually gets back to US 30 at the “town” of Bosler.  The whole road was full of longspurs and other sparrows like Brewer’s, Vesper, and Savannah, Ferruginous Hawks, and Prairie Falcon.

 

Bill Kaempfer

Boulder